diff options
30 files changed, 17 insertions, 52580 deletions
diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..62dcfe0 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #50508 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/50508) diff --git a/old/50508-8.txt b/old/50508-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 2c11d6c..0000000 --- a/old/50508-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,21570 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Memoirs of Admiral Lord Beresford, by -Lord Charles Beresford - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: The Memoirs of Admiral Lord Beresford - -Author: Lord Charles Beresford - -Release Date: November 20, 2015 [EBook #50508] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MEMOIRS OF ADMIRAL LORD BERESFORD *** - - - - -Produced by Al Haines - - - - - - - - - -[Frontispiece: Charles Beresford, Admiral] - - - - - THE MEMOIRS OF - ADMIRAL - LORD BERESFORD - - - - WITH TWENTY-THREE ILLUSTRATIONS - - - - FOURTH EDITION IN ONE VOLUME - - - - METHUEN & CO. LTD. - 36 ESSEX STREET W.C. - LONDON - - - - - First Published (2 vols.) . . . . October 6th, 1914 - Second Edition . . . . November, 1914 - Third Edition . . . . December, 1914 - Fourth Edition (1 vol.) . . . . September, 1916 - - - - - TO - MY BROTHER OFFICERS - OF THE - ROYAL NAVY - - - - -{vii} - -PREFACE - -This work is a record of my life from the year 1859, when I entered the -Royal Navy, to the year 1909, when I hauled down my flag and came on -shore. - -For the Introduction and the Notes, which have been written in order to -amplify the personal narrative and to connect it with the historical -events of the period, Mr. L. Cope Cornford is responsible. - -I have dedicated the book to my brother officers of the Royal Navy. - -As luck would have it, my career has been of a singularly varied -character. And my hope is that, in reading its story, boys and girls, -as well as their elders, may find pleasure. - -CHARLES BERESFORD - _Admiral_ - -1 GREAT CUMBERLAND PLACE, W. - _June_ 1914 - - - - -[Illustration: CURRAGHMORE] - - - - -{ix} - -CONTENTS - -INTRODUCTORY NOTE - -CHAP. - -I. I SEE THE FLEET - -II. THE BEGINNING OF SERVICE - -III. THE SHIP OF HAPPIEST MEMORY - -IV. THE SHIP OF UNHAPPY MEMORY - -V. THE MIDSHIPMAN OF 1864 - -VI. STRICT SERVICE - -VII. THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. _GALATEA_-- - I. TO THE ANTIPODES - -VIII. THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. _GALATEA_ (_continued_)-- - II. MY TWO FAITHFUL SERVANTS - -IX. THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. _GALATEA_ (_continued_)-- - III. TAHITI AND THE SANDWICH ISLANDS - -X. THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. _GALATEA_ (_continued_)-- - IV. OLD JAPAN. NOTE - -XI. THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. _GALATEA_ (_continued_)-- - V. WITH THE DUKE IN JAPAN - -XII. THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. _GALATEA_ (_continued_)-- - VI. THE HOMEWARD VOYAGE - -XIII. FLAG-LIEUTENANT AT PLYMOUTH - -XIV. POLITICAL EVENTS OF 1873-80 AND POSTSCRIPT. NOTE - -{x} - -XV. AN IRISH ELECTION AND IRISH POLITICS - -XVI. MEMBER FOR WATERFORD, AND COMMANDER, ROYAL NAVY - -XVII. WITH THE PRINCE IN INDIA - -XVIII. THE EGYPTIAN WAR-- - I. THE BEGINNING OF TROUBLE. NOTE - -XIX. THE EGYPTIAN WAR (_continued_)-- - II. THE BOMBARDMENT OF ALEXANDRIA - -XX. THE EGYPTIAN WAR (_continued_)-- - III. CHIEF OF POLICE - -XXI. THE EGYPTIAN WAR (_continued_)-- - IV. GARRISON WORK - -XXII. PASSING THROUGH EGYPT - -XXIII. THE SOUDAN WAR OF 1884-5-- - I. SUMMARY OF EVENTS. NOTE - -XXIV. THE SOUDAN WAR (_continued_)-- - II. HOW WE BROUGHT THE BOATS THROUGH THE GREAT GATE - -XXV. THE SOUDAN WAR (_continued_)-- - III. UP THE CATARACTS AND ACROSS THE DESERT - -XXVI. THE SOUDAN WAR (_continued_)-- - IV. THE FIRST MARCH OF THE DESERT COLUMN. NOTE - -XXVII. THE SOUDAN WAR (_continued_)-- - V. THE DESERT MARCH OF THE FORLORN HOPE - -XXVIII. THE SOUDAN WAR (_continued_)-- - VI. THE FIGHT AT ABU KLEA - -XXIX. THE SOUDAN WAR (_continued_)-- - VII. THE FIGHT TO REACH THE RIVER - -{xi} - -XXX. THE SOUDAN WAR (_continued_)-- - VIII. DISASTER - -XXXI. THE SOUDAN WAR (_continued_)-- - IX. THE RESCUE - -XXXII. THE SOUDAN WAR (_continued_)-- - X. THE EFFECT OF THE ACTION OF WAD HABESHI - -XXXIII. THE SOUDAN WAR (_continued_)-- - XI. THE RETREAT - -XXXIV. THE SOUDAN WAR (_continued_)-- - XII. SEQUEL AND CONCLUSION - -XXXV. ORGANISATION FOR WAR - -XXXVI. THE TWENTY-ONE MILLION - -XXXVII. H.M.S. UNDAUNTED-- - I. WITH THE MEDITERRANEAN FLEET - -XXXVIII. H.M.S. UNDAUNTED (_continued_)-- - II. THE SALVING OF THE _SEIGNELAY_ - -XXXIX. THE SECOND SHIPBUILDING PROGRAMME - -XL. STEAM RESERVE - -XLI. VIEWS AND REVIEWS - -XLII. COVETED CHINA. NOTE - -XLIII. THE INTROMISSION OF THE ADMIRALS - -XLIV. TRAFFICS AND DISCOVERIES-- - I. CHINA - -XLV. TRAFFICS AND DISCOVERIES (_continued_)-- - II. JAPAN - -XLVI. TRAFFICS AND DISCOVERIES (_continued_)-- - III. THE UNITED STATES - - -{xii} - -XLVII. H.M.S. _RAMILLIES_ - -XLVIII. HER MAJESTY'S MIDSHIPMEN - -XLIX. THE PARLIAMENTARY ANVIL - -L. THE CHANNEL FLEET - -LI. BOAT RACING - -LII. THE MEDITERRANEAN STATION - -LIII. SPORTING MEMORIES-- - I. RIDING AND DRIVING - -LIV. SPORTING MEMORIES (continued)-- - I. SHOOTING - -LV. SPORTING MEMORIES (continued)-- - III. FISHING - -LVI. HOME WATERS: THE LAST COMMAND - -POSTSCRIPT. THE MAKING OF AN ADMIRAL - -INDEX - -(The "Notes" are by L. COPE CORNFORD) - - - - -{xiii} - -LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS - -THE AUTHOR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . _Frontispiece_ - From a photograph by Heath - -CURRAGHMORE - From a photograph by G. D. Croker - -SIR JOHN DE LA POER BERESFORD, 4TH MARQUESS OF WATERFORD - -CHRISTINA, MARCHIONESS OF WATERFORD - From paintings at Curraghmore - -THE AUTHOR AS NAVAL CADET - From a photograph - -H.M.S. _MARLBOROUGH_, 1861 - From a painting in the possession of the Author - -THE OFFICERS OF H.M.S. _SUTLEJ_, 1865. - From a photograph - -H.R.H. THE DUKE OF EDINBURGH - From a photograph by J. Russell & Sons - -PIETER BOTH MOUNTAIN, MAURITIUS - From a photograph - -THE AUTHOR AS LIEUTENANT - From a photograph - -{xiv} - -THE AUTHOR ÆT. 27 - From a photograph - -LADY CHARLES BERESFORD - From a photograph - -THE BOMBARDMENT OF ALEXANDRIA, 11TH JULY 1882 - From a chart drawn by the Author at the time - -ON BOARD H.M.S. CONDOR, 11TH JULY 1882 - From a drawing by Frederic Villiers - -PROVOST-MARSHAL AND CHIEF OF POLICE, ALEXANDRIA, JULY 1882 - From a drawing by Frederic Villiers - -THE AUTHOR'S METHOD OF HAULING BOATS THROUGH THE BAB-EL-KEBIR - After a drawing made on the spot by the Author - -THE NILE FROM WADY HALFA TO KHARTOUM - -THE AUTHOR - From a photograph by Hallen, New York - -"RUNNING THE GAUNTLET"--THE ACTION OF THE _SAFIEH_ - AT WAD HABESHI, 4TH FEBRUARY 1885 - From a painting in the possession of the Author - -FIELD-MARSHAL THE RIGHT HON. VISCOUNT WOLSELEY - From a photograph by Elliott & Fry - -THE AUTHOR SPEAKING IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS ON - HIS TWENTY-ONE MILLION SHIPBUILDING PROGRAMME, - 13TH DECEMBER 1888 - From the drawing by J. Walter Wilson in the possession - of the Author - -{xv} - -THE AUTHOR, 1898 - From a drawing by Phil May in the possession of the Author - -H.M.S. _KING EDWARD VII_ ENGAGED IN BATTLE PRACTICE, 1907 - From a photograph - -(_Design of Cover by HAROLD WYLLIE_) - - - - -{xvii} - -INTRODUCTORY NOTE - -THE HOUSE OF BERESFORD - -Lord Charles William de la Poer Beresford, born in 1846, was the second -of five brothers, sons of Sir John de la Poer Beresford, fourth -Marquess of Waterford. Lord Charles's elder brother, Sir John Henry de -la Poer Beresford (to give him his full title), Earl and Viscount of -Tyrone, Baron de la Poer of Curraghmore in the county of Waterford, and -Baron Beresford of Beresford in the county of Cavan, in the Peerage of -Ireland, and Baron Tyrone of Haverfordwest in the county of Pembroke, -in the Peerage of Great Britain, Knight of the Most Illustrious Order -of St. Patrick, succeeded to these titles in 1866. Sir John joined the -1st Life Guards. He died in 1895, and was succeeded by his son (nephew -to Lord Charles), as presently to be noted. - -Of the other three brothers, Lord William de la Poer joined the 9th -Lancers and became Military Secretary to five successive Viceroys of -India, was a patron of the Turf, and died in 1900; Lord Marcus de la -Poer joined the 7th Hussars, took charge of the King's racehorses, an -office which he still fulfils, and was appointed Extra Equerry to King -George; Lord Delaval James de la Poer (sixteen years younger than Lord -Charles) ranched in North America and was killed in a railway accident -in 1906. - -The five brothers were keen sportsmen, hard riders, men of their hands, -high-couraged, adventurous, talented in affairs, winning friendship and -affection wherever they went. {xviii} Lord John-Henry, fifth Marquess, -the eldest brother, inherited the family tradition of good -landlordship. There was never any oppression of tenants on the -Waterford estate. In the House of Lords and in the country, Lord -Waterford took a strenuous part in the troubled and complex issues of -Irish politics; although during the last years of his life he was -crippled and helpless, the result of an accident which befell him in -the hunting field. Lord William won the V.C. by an act of cool and -audacious gallantry in the Zulu war of 1879; renowned for reckless -hardihood, there was hardly a bone in his body which he had not broken; -and it is probable that his injuries, diminishing his powers of -resistance, caused him to succumb to his last illness. Lord Charles -has broken his chest-bone,--a piece of which was cut out in his -boyhood, leaving a cavity,--pelvis, right leg, right hand, foot, five -ribs, one collar-bone three times, the other once, his nose three -times; but owing to his extraordinary physique and strict regimen, he -is younger and stronger at the time of writing than most men of half -his age. - -The family home of the five brothers was Curraghmore, a noble estate -lying some twelve miles west of Waterford. The great house stands in a -cup of the hills, whose slopes are clothed with woods of oak, the -primæval forest of Ireland. The oak woods adjoining the house were -planted with the design of supplying timber to the Royal Navy. Built -foursquare, like most houses in Ireland, the mansion faces upon a vast -gravelled quadrangle, closed in on left and right by the long ranges of -stables. Beyond the lawns of the terraced garden, beyond the hanging -woods, the bony shoulders of the mountains of Comeragh hunch upon the -changing sky; nearer hand, darkens the lone hill of Croughaun; and day -and night the noise of running waters, the voice of the Clodagh River, -flowing through tawny shallow and sombre pool, breaking white-maned -upon rock and fall, rises upon the quiet air. Looking westward from -the bare summit of the hill above the deer-park, you shall {xix} view -the rich valley parcelled into garden and farm and paddock, which are -set among deep groves; in the midst, flanked by a gleam of water, the -house darkens upon the westering sunlight; and beyond, the sparkling -landscape fades into the profound and aerial blue of the mountain wall. -Eastward, the rounded bosses of the forest clothe the hills; and in the -valley's gentle opening, the river Suir, like a scimitar laid on cloth -of tapestry, glimmers dark and bright upon the plain, which, studded -with woods and dotted with white specks of villages, stretches to where -the dim sea-line merges in the sky. - -Over yonder, cloven through the heart of the ancient woods, a green -drive rises to the skyline, bordered on either side by rhododendrons, -like huge ropes of jewels, three miles long. In the forest there is -silence. Few birds or none nest in that deep labyrinth of -silver-barked and shaggy trees, rooted for centuries in the mould of -their own perennial decay. The martin-cat is lord of that hoary -solitude. As a boy, Lord Charles trapped the martin-cats, and -presented his mother with a muff made from their skins. - -High on the hill rising to the north of the house of Curraghmore, set -in a grove of beeches and enclosed within a wall, the last -resting-place of the Beresfords opens upon a great and shining prospect -of wood and mountain. Here is a wide and broad stone platform, like an -ancient altar, the hue of rusty iron, compact of the granite slabs -whereon the names of the dead are graven. On three sides it is walled -with the tall silver stems of beeches, whose branches high overhead -interlace in a green canopy. - -Hard by stands the private chapel, once the parish church of Clonegam, -a bleak and an unfeatured edifice. Within, there reclines the bronze -effigy of the third Marquess, he of the aquiline profile and the full -beard, who broke his neck out hunting in 1859. Opposite to him lies -the white marble figure, urbane and majestic, of Lord John, his -successor, father of Lord Charles Beresford. In the south wall of the -chancel, in an arched recess cut out of the {xx} thickness of the wall, -the white light falls from an unseen opening above upon the sculptured -figure of a lady, sleeping recumbent, and beside her nestles the tiny -form of her child. She was the first wife of the fifth Marquess, and -she died in childbirth. Near by the private chapel, high uplifted on -the bare shoulder of the hill, stands a round tower, a mark for -leagues, the monument set up to the memory of the little boy, Marcus, -Lord le Poer, heir to Lord Tyrone, afterwards first Marquess. He died -from the effects of a fall from his pony, the accident occurring when -he was jumping hurdles just outside the great courtyard of the house. -His portrait, painted by Gainsborough, hangs in the drawing-room. It -is a noble head, done with Gainsborough's inimitable delicacy. The -lad's blue eyes gaze frankly out of the picture; his fair hair curls -upon his shoulders; his coat is scarlet, with the open falling collar -of the time; the face is of a singular beauty. - -Near by, in the centre of the wall, hangs Sir Joshua Reynolds's -portrait of Sir Francis Delaval, K.B. A tremendous figure, Sir -Francis, posed in a commanding attitude upon a hillside, right arm -extended, grasping a musket with fixed bayonet, and clad in a rich suit -of claret colour and cocked hat. He was the uncle of the wife of the -second Marquess of Waterford. By reason of that alliance, many of the -Delaval family pictures came to Curraghmore. - -Here is Lord Delaval himself, who died in 1808, a nobleman of a -somewhat rugged and domineering countenance. Here is the first -Marquess of Waterford, with a long hooked nose; he is thin-lipped, -narrow-eyed (it seems that he had a squint), wearing the ribbon and -star of a Knight of St. Patrick. Henry, second Marquess, was painted -by Sir Thomas Lawrence; a handsome head, crowned with a mass of fine -light hair. In the hall hangs the portrait of the third Marquess; he -whose bronze effigy lies in the chapel. He is reading. With his pale -and finely cast features, his thick brown hair and beard, he might have -been (but was not) an ascetic student. He married the Hon. Louisa -{xxi} Stuart, second daughter and co-heiress of Charles, Lord Stuart dc -Rothesay. The Marchioness was a lady of taste, and was considered the -most talented amateur painter of her day. She laid out anew the -gardens, where heretofore the horses used to graze close to the house, -took great interest in the improvement of the mansion itself, designed -the Cawnpore Memorial, designed Ford village, formerly the property of -the Delavals in Northumberland, and achieved a series of cartoons -representing religious subjects, which adorn the walls of the school at -Ford. - -These and many other ancestral portraits gaze from the walls of gallery -and hall and chamber, in the great house of Curraghmore. Each -generation as it grew up has traced in them its own lineaments -fore-ordained, and has marked the miracle of heredity repeated again -and again, from Sir Tristram Beresford, darkling in full armour, -through the masterful Katherine le Poer and the beautiful Susanna -Carpenter, whose mother was a Delaval, to the penultimate head of the -house of De la Poer Beresford. - -The entrance hall of the mansion of Curraghmore is the ancient keep, -which was built by the De la Poers in the late twelfth or early -thirteenth century, foursquare, the walls ten feet thick. The rest of -the house is eighteenth century. The original edifice is briefly -described in _The Antient and Present State of the County and City of -Waterford_, by Charles Smith, published in Dublin in 1740, and in _The -History, Topography and Antiquities of the County and City of -Waterford_, by the Rev. R. H. Ryland, published by Murray in 1824. Sir -Marcus, first Earl of Tyrone, and his son, afterwards first Marquess of -Waterford, made considerable additions, which, according to the date -inscribed upon the lead work, were completed in 1771. From the old -keep, transformed into an eighteenth-century entrance hall, a flight of -steps leads to the inner hall, whence a wide staircase rises, following -the walls, and out of which open the reception rooms. These face upon -lawn and fountain and terrace. Over the entrance door are carved the -family coat; {xxii} and the crest of the De la Poers, a stag couchant -bearing a cross upon his forehead, crowns the parapet. Upon the garden -front are sculptured the Beresford shield and their crest, "a dragon's -head erased, the neck pierced with a tilting spear, and holding the -point broken off in the mouth." Motto, _Nil nisi cruce_. - -Such was the home of the five brothers, when their father, Lord John dc -la Poer Beresford, in holy orders, succeeded his brother in 1859. Lord -Charles Beresford, who had been for some years at school in England, -joined the Navy in that year. He came to Curraghmore in his brief and -widely spaced intervals of leave, while his brothers came home more -frequently during their vacations. In those days, the stables were -filled with horses, the house was populous with guests; and the great -courtyard in front of the house, now silent, resounded with the cheery -bustle of a jovial company coming and going. All winter the house was -thronged; there was hunting six days in the week; and more than a -hundred horses were stabled at Curraghmore. Lord Charles Beresford has -told how that many a time, when, as a midshipman, he was humping beef -into the blood-boats for the Fleet, did he think not without envy upon -his brothers, each with his two or three hunters, riding to hounds at -Curraghmore. - -The house of Beresford derives from the "very old and eminent English -family of Beresford of Beresford, in the county of Stafford," and from -the De la Poers, an ancient Breton family, and their quarterings -include the noble houses of Hamilton, Monck, Carpenter, Plantagenet, -Lastile and Leon, Mortimer, De Burgh, Holland, Wake, Wevill, Beauchamp, -Delaval, Blake. The Beresfords represented the English plantation in -the North of Ireland, until the marriage was made which united them -with De la Poers, who were of the first English plantation in the South. - -[Illustration: SIR JOHN DE LA POER BERESFORD, FOURTH MARQUESS OF -WATERFORD, FATHER OF LORD CHARLES BERESFORD. CHRISTINA, WIFE OF THE -FOURTH MARQUESS OF WATERFORD, MOTHER OF LORD CHARLES BERESFORD] - -Tristram Beresford came into Ireland in the reign of James I., as -manager of the corporation of Londoners, known as "The Society of the -New Plantation in Ulster." {xxiii} The first Tristram settled at -Coleraine, in county Londonderry. His son, Sir Tristram, first -Baronet, in common with the first created Baronets of Ulster, bore on -his shield the open red hand of Ulster, hitherto borne by the forfeited -O'Neils. Sir Randal, second Baronet, sat in the first Parliament held -after the Restoration. - -Sir Tristram, his son, commanded a regiment of foot against King James -II., and was attainted. He it was who married the Hon. Nicola Sophia -Hamilton, concerning whom a legend of the supernatural is current. -Briefly, it is that the friend of her early years, the Earl of Tyrone, -visited her after his death, according to agreement, and, to prove the -reality of his appearance, touched her wrist, shrivelling nerve and -sinew, so that ever afterwards she wore a bracelet of black velvet. A -picture, supposed to represent this lady, hangs in Curraghmore. It -must be said that the evidence of it extant is so highly dubious, that -the story is not worth telling in detail. - -Sir Tristram was succeeded by his son, Sir Marcus, fourth Baronet, who -married the Lady Katherine de la Poer, who was Baroness in her own -right. Thus the two houses were conjoined. Lady Katherine was the -only daughter and heiress of James, third and last Earl of Tyrone. She -was allowed the Barony of La Poer in fee by resolution of the Irish -House of Lords, on 16th November 1767. Sir Marcus her husband was -created Earl of Tyrone in 1746. The son of Sir Marcus and Lady -Katherine, George De la Poer, was created Marquess of Waterford in -1789, and Knight of St. Patrick at the Institution of the Order in -1783. First Marquess, he was the first De la Poer Beresford. - -The De la Poer, Power, or Poher, family traces its descent from Comorre -I., Count of le Poher, who married the widow of Jonas, King of -Domnonée, and who died A.D. 554. Le Poher was one of the five -independent states of Brittany, of which the others were La Domnonée, -La Cornouailles, Le Vannes, and Le Leon. The genealogy of the Le Poers -is {xxiv} interesting, if only by reason of its romantic names. From -Comorre I., Count of le Poher, descended the Counts Comorre, Erispoë, -Rivallon, Nominoë. Nominoë married one Argantal, defeated Charles the -Bald, drove the Franks out of Brittany, and was proclaimed King of that -country in 841. He was succeeded by his son Erispoë, who married -Mormohec. From the aforesaid Rivallon descended Salomon, who (having -achieved a little murderous intrigue) succeeded King Erispoë, and -married Wembrit. From the brother of Salomon, Mathuedoi, descended -Alain, Count of Vannes and Duke of Brittany, who fought against the -Normans, and who was driven by them to take refuge in England. His son -Alain (called Barbe-torte) returned to Brittany, drove out the Normans -in his turn, and united Le Poer to the Duchy. - -From the Pohers, in the female line, descended Arthur, Duke of -Brittany, who was done to death by John, King of England, A.D. 1203. -There is this other link between John of England and the De la Poers, -that in the demesne of Curraghmore an ancient bridge of stone, over -which the English King is said to have passed, spans the river and is -called John's Bridge to this day. From the Duchess Constance, the -mother of Arthur of Brittany, descended the Duchess Anne, who married -King Louis XII. of France. Brittany was thus incorporated in France. - -The Pohers seem to have come to England with Duke William of Normandy, -called the Conqueror. In 1066 they are found in Devonshire; and later, -in Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Shropshire, Warwickshire, -Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, Herefordshire; a fructuous and an -acquisitive clan. They came to Ireland in the reign of the second -Henry: then came Sir Robert, Sir Roger, William and Simon. Sir Roger -helped in the invasion of Ulster. But the founder of the De la Poers -of Curraghmore was Sir Robert, who, in the year 1172, accompanied King -Henry II. as Knight Marshal, and to whom was given by the King, the -town of Waterford and a great parcel of county Waterford. - -{xxv} - -Towards the end of the sixteenth century, Sir Henry Sidney, in the -course of his account of the province of Munster, communicated to the -Lords of the Council, describes his visit to John, Lord le Poer, who -was born in 1527. "27th Feb., 1575. The day I departed from Waterford -I lodged that night at Curraghmore, the house that Lord Power is baron -of, where I was so used, and with such plenty and good order -entertained (as adding to it the quiet of all the country adjoining, by -the people called Power country, for that surname has been since the -beginning of the Englishman's planting inhabitants there), it may be -well compared with the best ordered country in the English Pale. And -the Lord of the country, though he be of scope of ground a far less -territory than his neighbour is, yet he lives in show far more -honourably and plentifully than he or any other, whatsoever he be, of -his calling that lives in his province." - -The "Peerage of Ireland" of 1768 urbanely observes: "It is very -remarkable, that in so long a succession in this family, and in a -country continually disturbed and torn by rebellion and civil wars, -that not one of this family was ever engaged in any rebellion against -the crown of England, nor was there ever a forfeiture in the family -during the space of six hundred years that they have been planted in -Ireland; and they at this day enjoy the family lands, and reside at the -same place they were originally settled in, in the county of Waterford. -In a grant of letters patent from King Charles II. to this Richard, -Lord la Poer, bearing date the 9th May, the twenty-third year of his -reign, there is this recital. That the ancestors of the said Richard, -Lord la Poer, from their first planting in Ireland, for above four -hundred years, had entirely preserved their faith and loyalty to the -crown of England, in consideration therefore," etc. - -Sir Tristram Beresford, up in the North, fought against King James -Second; but the De la Poers harboured that monarch; who in the course -of his retreat from Ireland, {xxvi} slept a night at Curraghmore, and -departing thence took ship at Waterford, and was no more seen in Erin. - -Sir Marcus, the son of Sir Tristram, as above recited, united the two -houses by marrying the Lady Katherine le Poer; and their descendants, -as in 1768, "at this day enjoy the family lands and reside at the same -place they were originally settled in." The earldom of Tyrone, which -was extinguished by the death of Lady Katherine's father, the third -Earl, was revived in Sir Marcus Beresford. Tracing back the direct -line of the De la Poers of Curraghmore, we find that Nicholas de la -Poer was summoned to Parliament in 1375, in 1378, and in 1383, by the -most ancient writs contained in the Rolls Office in Ireland. This Sir -Nicholas of Curraghmore traced his descent from Brian Boru, King of -Erin, who died in 1014. The line of Irish Kings (as recorded in -_Whitaker's Almanack_) goes back to A.D. 4; and some say much further. - -A collateral branch of the De Pohers, or Powers, was the Barons of -Donoyle, or Dunhill, the ruins of whose castle remain to this day. It -was stoutly defended against Cromwell by the Baroness; and, according -to tradition, was betrayed into the hands of the enemy by the -lieutenant of her garrison. These Powers were then transplanted to -Connaught, and their estates were forfeited. Another collateral branch -was the Powers of Knockbrit, county Tipperary. In the year 1789, to -Edmund Power and his wife, who was a daughter of "Buck" Sheehy, was -born Marguerite, who became Lady Blessington. It seems that her -father, "Buck" Power, dissipated his fortune, as the mode was in those -days; that he compelled his daughter to marry one Captain Farmer, who -ill-treated her; that Mrs. Farmer left her husband, came to London with -her brother, was painted by Sir Thomas Lawrence, and, after Farmer's -death, married Lord Blessington. Here is a link with my Lord Byron. - -The relation of the De la Poer Beresfords with the Delavals of -Seaton-Delaval in Northumberland, consists in the marriage of Sir Henry -de la Poer, second Marquess {xxvii} (1772-1826), with Lady Susanna -Carpenter, who was the granddaughter of Lord Delaval. Her mother, -daughter of Lord Delaval, married George, second Earl of Tyrconnel. -The Lady Tyrconnel was famed for her beauty. The portrait of her -daughter, Lady Susanna, now at Curraghmore, represents a singularly -beautiful, fair-haired creature, delicately featured, blue-eyed. The -Delavals would seem to have been a high-spirited, reckless, and -spendthrift race. Extravagant entertainments were devised at their -house of Seaton-Delaval, which was built by Sir John Vanbrugh, -playwright and architect. The actor Foote was a friend of the family; -they were devoted to amateur theatricals; and Garrick once lent Drury -Lane Theatre to them. The Delavals were singularly addicted to -practical jokes; a tendency to the same diversion has reappeared in -later generations. Lord Delaval's only son died young, and the title -expired. There is a picture of the sturdy, brown-haired lad at -Curraghmore. It is worth noting that an ancestor of Lady Susanna, and, -therefore, of Lord Charles Beresford, was a naval officer of some -distinction. George Delaval, vice-admiral of the Red, was present at -the action fought off Cape Barfleur in May 1692. - -The generation of the second Marquess, he who married the Lady Susanna, -produced an Archbishop: even the Right Honourable and Most Reverend -Lord John George de la Poer Beresford, Archbishop of Armagh and Primate -of all Ireland. He was born in 1773, and died in 1862. Possessing -great wealth, he was known for his immense benefactions. He gave -largely to Dublin University, and to the College of Saint Columba; -restored the Cathedral at Armagh at a cost of £30,000; and augmented -the salaries of his clergy. The bust of this magnificent prelate -stands in the private chapel at Curraghmore. His body is interred in -Armagh Cathedral. The Archbishop bequeathed his Property in county -Cavan to Lord Charles Beresford; the townlands on the estate bearing -such euphonious names as Ballyheady, Corraleehan Beg, Crockawaddy, -{xxviii} Kiltynaskeelan, Derrynacrieve, Gubnagree, Scrabby, -Tullynamoultra. - -The third Marquess, Sir Henry de la Poer, having met his death in the -hunting-field, was succeeded in 1859 by his brother, Sir John, who was -Dean and Prebendary of Mullaghbrack, in the Arch-diocese of Armagh. He -married, in 1843, Christina Leslie, daughter of Charles Powell-Leslie. -She was born in 1820, and lived until 1905. The Marchioness learned to -ride when she was between forty and fifty years of age, and speedily -became a noted rider to hounds. Their sons, as before recited, were -Sir John-Henry de la Poer, fifth Marquess of Waterford; Lord Charles, -Lord William, Lord Marcus, and Lord Delaval; of whom Lord Charles and -Lord Marcus survive at the time of writing. Lord Charles was born on -10th February 1846 at Philipstown Glebe, Louth. It was the year of the -great famine; and at Curraghmore, half a regiment was then quartered in -the house. - -The fifth Marquess, elder brother of Lord Charles, was succeeded in -1895 by his son, nephew to Lord Charles. The sixth Marquess lost his -life by a sad accident in 1911. The present heir is a minor. - -In this chronicle, brief as it is, three notable figures cannot be -omitted: Mr. Commissioner John Beresford, Admiral Sir John Poo -Beresford, and the Marshal. (For information concerning these -worthies, I have drawn upon the _Dictionary of National Biography_.) - -John Beresford, whose name is even yet occasionally reproached by the -descendants of his political opponents, was born in 1738, and died in -1805. He was the second son of Marcus, Earl of Tyrone (brother of the -first Marquess) and Lady Katherine, Baroness de la Poer. Appointed -First Commissioner of Revenue in 1780, John Beresford became in fact -ruler of Ireland. He was entrusted by Pitt with the management of all -Irish affairs. Viceroys came and viceroys went, but Beresford -continued to hold a position "greater than that of the Lord Lieutenant -{xxix} himself"; much to the indignation of Lord Fitzwilliam, who, when -he was appointed Lord Lieutenant, permitted himself to address the -First Commissioner in terms so indigestible that Beresford promptly -challenged him. The duel, however, was prevented. John Beresford took -a great part in the preparation and passing of the Act of Union; was -M.P. for Waterford and a Privy Councillor; and did much to improve the -city of Dublin, the fine Custom-house being built under his auspices. -He married Barbara Montgomery, who was one of the "Three Graces" in the -painting done by Sir Joshua Reynolds, now in the National Gallery. The -other two Graces were her sister, Lady Mountjoy, and the Marchioness of -Townshend. - -Admiral Sir John Poo Beresford (1768 (?)-1884) was a natural son of the -first Marquess of Waterford. He entered the Royal Navy in 1782; fought -a smart action in the capture of the French store-ships in Hampton -Roads on 17th May 1795; and performed distinguished service in the West -Indies. He took part in the famous eight months' blockade off Ferrol -in 1808, and in the blockade of Lorient, commanding one of those -"weather-beaten ships upon which the Grand Army never looked." In 1810 -he was co-operating off Lisbon with Wellington's army, with which his -younger brother the Marshal, in command of the Portuguese Army, was -also co-operating. He represented in Parliament, in succession, -Coleraine, Berwick, Northallerton, and Chatham. In 1835 he was Junior -Lord of the Admiralty. His career, a combination of fighting seaman, -member of Parliament, and Junior Lord, presents a singular resemblance -to the career of his relative, Lord Charles Beresford. - -Marshal Beresford, or, more precisely, General Viscount William Carr -Beresford, was born in 1768 and died, full of years and honours, in -1854. Son of the first Marquess, he also, like the Admiral, bore the -bar sinister on his escutcheon. As captain of the 69th Regiment, he -was with Lord Hood at Toulon in 1793, and commanded the storming party -at the tower of Martello. He was present at the {xxx} captures of -Bastia, Calvi, and San Fiorenzo. After service in India, Beresford's -brigade led the march across the desert in the Egyptian campaign of -1801. Eighty-four years later, his relative, Captain Lord Charles -Beresford, took his Naval Brigade across the desert with Sir Herbert -Stewart's forlorn hope. - -Beresford was present at the capture of Cape Colony under Baird in -1805. Then he went up to Buenos Ayres, and with 1200 men took that -place from the Spanish. After three days' hard fighting, Beresford was -driven out of Buenos Ayres by an overwhelming force. Then he went with -Sir Arthur Wellesley to Portugal; where he commanded two brigades under -Sir John Moore. In the terrible winter retreat to Corunna, Beresford's -brigade, told off to assist the rescue, was constantly engaged with the -French vanguard. At Corunna, Beresford fought on the English left, -achieving the greatest distinction. - -In 1809, at the request of the Portuguese Government, Beresford was -appointed to reorganise the Portuguese Army. Gifted with that -marvellous capacity for handling men and for organisation, which -Irishmen of English descent sometimes combine with a reckless -gallantry, Beresford speedily transformed an ill-found, insubordinate -mob into an efficient, well-fed, fighting force. He knew how to -establish obedience to discipline, together with the confidence that -good conduct would be rewarded; or, in Lord Charles Beresford's phrase, -he coupled "commendation with condemnation." The Portuguese Government -made him marshal in the Portuguese Army while he was lieutenant-general -in the British Army; nor did the annoyance discovered by British -officers at the double rank, which gave Wellington trouble, perturb the -Marshal in the least. His Portuguese fought well alongside the English -at Busaco, an action which earned Beresford the K.C.B. and other -decorations. - -He won the battle of Albuera, defeating Soult, though not without heavy -losses. The victory was said to be due {xxxi} to the action of one of -his Staff, rather than to Beresford's tactics; a good deal of -controversy was waged on the subject, in which the Marshal, after his -retirement, took a vigorous part; but the fact remains that Albuera was -won. - -Beresford was present at the tremendous siege of Badajoz and at the -battle of Salamanca, at which he was severely wounded. He speedily -recovered, and fought at Vittoria in 1813, in the battles of the -Pyrenees, and in the battles of Nivelle, Nive, and Arthez. He then -returned to Portugal to command the Portuguese Army; so that he was not -present at Waterloo. At the conclusion of the war he was created -Baron. He left Portugal in 1822, and took his seat in the House of -Lords, where he was a sturdy supporter of the policy of the Duke of -Wellington. In 1828 he was appointed Master-General of Ordnance. In -1830 he retired. - -Wellington wrote of the Marshal in 1812: "All that I can tell you is -that the ablest man I have yet seen with the army, and that one having -the largest views, is Beresford ... he is the only person capable of -conducting a large concern." And upon another occasion, Wellington -affirmed that if he were removed by death or illness, he would -recommend Beresford to succeed him, not because he was a great general, -but because he alone could "feed an army." - -General Lord Beresford married the Hon. Louisa Hope, his first cousin, -daughter of the Most Rev. William Beresford, Archbishop of Tuam and -Lord Decies, and widow of Thomas Hope, author of _Anastatius_. His -stepson was A. T. Beresford-Hope, sometime member for Cambridge -University. - -In 1824 the Marshal purchased the ancestral estate of the Beresfords in -Staffordshire. His portrait, which bears a singular resemblance to -Lord Charles, hangs in Curraghmore. It depicts a burly, martial -figure, gorgeous in full uniform, with a broad, jovial, open -countenance, and a bold blue eye, head thrown back, and a vast spread -of chest and {xxxii} shoulder. Endowed with extraordinary physical -strength, he was a born fighter, a great administrator, a big, -warm-hearted, quick-tempered, irrepressible Beresford. - -The formal list of his titles is: Viscount and Baron in the peerage of -England, Duke of Elvas in the peerage of Spain, Conde de Trancoso in -the peerage of Portugal, K.C.B., etc., colonel-in-chief 60th Rifles, -colonel 16th Regiment, general in the English Army, marshal in the -Portuguese Army. - - -The generations pass: the House remains. The House of de la Poer -Beresford derives, from among other sources innumerable, from the -Counts of Brittany, in the sixth century; from Brian Boru, King of -Ireland, in the eleventh; from the Beresfords, that "very old and -eminent English family," Norman in origin; from the Delavals of -Northumberland, whose forefathers fought in the Crusades. This is the -virtue of ancient lineage: that from generation to generation, an -honourable tradition of service, of peculiar obligation, gathers -reinforcement. Every scion of the House is judged by the stern company -of his forefathers; who, together with his dower of body and of mind -and heritage of land or wealth, bequeath him warning or example. No -traffic in titles can purchase that unique inheritance, nor can any -forfeiture of material possessions diminish its essential value. - -L.C.C. - - - - -{1} - - THE MEMOIRS OF ADMIRAL - LORD CHARLES BERESFORD - - -CHAPTER I - -I SEE THE FLEET - -I saw the Navy for the first time in the year 1858, when I was twelve -years old. The Channel Squadron came into the Downs; the admiral, who -was a friend of my father, invited me to visit his flagship. The -admiral put off from Deal in a six-oared galley, and I was taken into a -second boat. Both crews began to pull with all their might. I -remember being intensely excited, beating with my hand on the gunwale -and urging the men to row faster. We were overhauling the admiral, -when the boat in which I was slackened her pace. - -"Row!" I shouted. "Why don't you go on rowing?" - -"We can't pass the admiral, sir," said the coxswain. And that was my -first lesson in naval etiquette. - -As we drew near to the ships, there arose a great tumult of shouting, -and I could see the men running to and fro and racing aloft, and -presently they stood in rows along the yards, manning yards in honour -of the arrival of the admiral. - -The neatness and order of the stately ships, the taut rigging, the -snowy sails, the ropes coiled down neatly on deck: these things left an -abiding impression upon my youthful mind. - -{2} - -It was in the winter of the same year, 1858-9, that a certain young -soldier, who had fought throughout the Indian Mutiny with great -gallantry and conspicuous ability, came to his home in County Waterford -on his first furlough. He was Lieutenant Roberts, V.C.; now -Field-Marshal Earl Roberts of Kandahar. - -"During the winter months," he writes, "I hunted with the Curraghmore -hounds, and was out with them the day before Lord Waterford was killed. -We had no run, and at the end of the day, when wishing us good-bye, he -said 'I hope, gentlemen, we shall have better luck next time.' 'Next -time' there was 'better luck' as regarded the hunting, but the worst of -all possible luck for Lord Waterford's numerous friends; in returning -home after a good run, and having killed two foxes, his horse stumbled -over quite a small ditch, throwing his rider on his head; the spinal -cord was snapped, and the fine sportsman breathed his last in a few -moments." (_Forty-one years in India_. By Field-Marshal Lord Roberts -of Kandahar. Bentley. 2 vols. London, 1897, p. 451, vol. 1.) - -My father, the Rev. Lord John Beresford, succeeded to the marquisate. -In the same year, 1859, I joined the Naval Service. I remember, some -years afterwards, thinking with some degree of envy of my two younger -brothers, each of whom had three hunters, while I was only the -"blood-boat" (the jolly-boat bringing beef to the ship) midshipman of a -man-of-war. - -At that time the Navy consisted of both sailing ships and steamships. -Steam was used as seldom as possible in those ships which were fitted -with masts and yards. The flagships of the Cape of Good Hope, East -Indies and China, South-east Coast of America, Pacific and North -America and West Indies stations were all sailing ships. The Navy List -of 1859 gives the names of no less than 548 "effective" ships, together -with a list of 185 "steam gunboats" and a list of 121 vessels employed -in Harbour Service. - -That there was so large a number of "steam gunboats" {3} was the result -of the Crimean war, during which very many were built for service in -the Baltic. There is a story that an admiral returning from foreign -service noticed eight gunboats aground on the Spit. Upon his inquiry, -he was informed by one of his crew that they were "commanded by these -old Baltic War mates and second masters, the sort what knows nothing -and fears nothing." But of the sailing master there will be more to -say. - -The line-of-battle sailing ships which were flagships on naval stations -abroad were:--the _Boscawen_, 70 guns, Rear-Admiral Hon. Sir Frederick -W. Grey, Cape of Good Hope; _Calcutta_, 84, Rear-Admiral Sir Michael -Seymour, East Indies and China; _Cumberland_, 70, Rear-Admiral Sir -Stephen Lushington, S.E. Coast of America; _Ganges_, 84, Rear-Admiral -R. L. Baynes, Pacific; _Hibernia_, 104, Rear-Admiral H. J. Codrington, -Malta; _Indus_, 78, Vice-Admiral Sir Houston Stewart, North America and -West Indies. - -The number of ships distributed among the various stations in 1859 was -no less than 130. "Trade follows the flag." - - East Indies and China . . . . . . . 36 - Pacific . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 - W. Coast of Africa . . . . . . . . 17 - N. America and W. Indies . . . . . 14 - S.E. Coast of America . . . . . . . 13 - Mediterranean . . . . . . . . . . . 22 - Cape of Good Hope . . . . . . . . . 5 - Australia . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 - River Gambia . . . . . . . . . . . 1 - Channel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 - --- - Total 130 - === - -The presence of so large a force in Chinese waters was due to the -affair of "the lorcha _Arrow_," which occurred on 8th October, 1856, in -the Canton River. The _Arrow_, a small vessel flying the British flag, -was captured by the Chinese authorities and the crew were arrested on a -charge of piracy. In the result, Admiral Sir Michael Seymour bombarded -{4} Canton. Operations were suspended during the Indian Mutiny, to be -resumed in 1858, with the assistance of France. Canton was captured, -and the treaty of Tien-Tsin was concluded with China. It was not, -however, ratified, and in June, 1859--six months before I entered the -Navy--hostilities were resumed, to terminate in the burning of the -Summer Palace at Pekin, and the subsequent signing of a convention. - - - - -{5} - -CHAPTER II - -THE BEGINNING OF SERVICE - -I was sent to sea for the somewhat vague reasons which so often -determine a boy's future. There was a belief that I was of a delicate -constitution, and an impression--perhaps justified--that I needed -discipline. I was sent to Bayford School in England when I was very -young, together with two of my three brothers. We were known as the -three "wild Irish." Among my schoolfellows were the present Lord -Rosebery, James Lowther, Lord Newport, Lord Claud Hamilton and Lord -George Hamilton, Lord Worcester, and Lord Methuen. From Bayford I went -to the educational establishment of the Rev. David Bruce Payne -(afterwards Canon) at Deal, where I first saw the ships of the Royal -Navy, as already related. Canon Payne was a splendid type of the best -British clergyman, and I had a great respect and affection for him. I -was afterwards a pupil of the Rev. Mr. Foster, of Stubbington, Fareham. - -I received my nomination from Captain Charles Eden, C.B., and qualified -as a naval cadet on 12th December, 1859. The qualifying certificate -must be signed by the candidate; a regulation which, simple as it -seems, was nearly my undoing. - -"Do you always sign your Christian name William with one 'l'?" asked -the examiner. - -It was a critical moment. Irish resource supplied the answer. - -I said, "Only sometimes, sir." - -The examiner smiled grimly. But he passed me. It was my first narrow -escape in the Navy. - -{6} - -I have the faded blue paper before me as I write. The signature, -laboriously written in a round hand, is "Charles Wiliam Delapoer -Beresford." - -The qualifying examination was not very formidable in those easy days. -The knowledge required consisted of a little "English," less French or -Latin (with the "aid of a dictionary"), a "satisfactory knowledge of -the leading facts of Scripture and English History," a certain amount -of geography, and an elementary knowledge of arithmetic, algebra and -Euclid. The preliminary course of education afforded to "Volunteers," -as the naval cadets used to be called, at the Royal Naval College, -Portsmouth, had been abolished in 1837, and for the next twenty years -cadets were sent straight to sea. In 1857, cadets were entered for -training in the _Illustrious_, Captain Robert Harris. The number of -cadets exceeding the accommodation in the ship, the _Britannia_ was -commissioned on 1st January, 1859, by Captain Harris. But not for many -years did the entrance examination become the competitive ordeal for -which cramming is the only preparation, known to the present -generation. But I remember Admiral William Bowles, commander-in-chief -of Portsmouth, taking me kindly by the shoulder and saying, "Well, my -little man, you are very small for your age. Why are you being sent to -sea?" - -I said that I wanted to go to sea. - -"Are you good at your books?" asked the admiral. "Bless me, I know -many an admiral who could not pass the examination you have passed. -Good Heavens, what they expect boys to do nowadays!" - -The _Britannia_ was then moored at the entrance to Haslar Creek in -Portsmouth Harbour, where the depot ships of the submarines are moored -to-day. Alongside her, in the following year, lay the training frigate -_Eurydice_, which was afterwards capsized off the Isle of Wight on 24th -March, 1878, when 318 lives were lost out of a complement of 320. I -learned to heave the lead from the chains of the _Eurydice_. - -[Illustration: THE AUTHOR AS NAVAL CADET] - -{7} - -In addition to the ordinary school curriculum on board the _Britannia_, -the cadets were taught seamanship, gunnery and navigation. Book-work -did not interest me, but I took great pains to become proficient in -seamanship, in which I always secured a high place. - -A cadet entering the _Britannia_ under 14 years of age, would be -rejected from the Service if he failed to pass the fourth quarterly -examination after his entrance. Having entered the _Britannia_ in -December, 1859, I was sent to sea in March, 1861. I was very happy -during my time in the _Britannia_. Out of school time, we did a great -deal of boat-pulling. My boat was called the _Gazelle_. I remember -that one day, when I borrowed a private boat to put off to the -_Gazelle_, my comrades pushed me out into the stream, and I drifted out -to Spithead, without oars. There was nothing in the boat but a -painter, which I considered it to be my duty neatly to coil down. Then -I sat still and waited until a boat came to fetch me. - -Seamanship was taught by the use of models, and sail-drill was taught -upon the mizen-mast. I remember being haunted by a doubt lest the -handling of small models, and going aloft in a stationary ship, might -not enable me to practise the knowledge thus acquired when I came to -deal with the real full-size objects and to go aloft in a ship at sea. -My prevision was largely justified; and when I came to command a ship, -I made the youngsters learn their business by handling real things and -not the models of them. For if anything goes wrong while teaching a -youngster, for instance, to lay out a 6-ton anchor upon a model, he -puts it right with his finger and thumb and thinks he can do the same -with the real anchor. - -The captain of the _Britannia_ was Robert Harris, to whom the Service -owes the inestimable benefit of cadet training ships. The first -lieutenant was George S. Nares (now Vice-Admiral Sir George S. Nares, -K.C.B.). He commanded the _Challenger_ in her voyage of scientific -discovery of 1872, during which he was recalled to proceed {8} upon his -celebrated voyage of Arctic exploration. Another lieutenant was -William H. Heaton, whose long whiskers afforded the cadets much -innocent amusement. On a windy day his whiskers used to stream -backwards over his shoulders. Lieutenant Heaton chose to wear his -stripes running longitudinally up his arm, a peculiarity which -exemplifies the prevailing latitude with regard to uniform. There was -no rule prescribing the pattern of cap or great-coat worn in the -Service. Officers might wear the mohair band and badge on any kind of -cap that took their fancy. Some of them used to transfer plain clothes -buttons to a uniform coat or greatcoat, if they were going ashore, for -the sake of economy; for we were nearly all poor in those days. The -chaplain and naval instructor was the Rev. Robert M. Inskip. - -My chest on board the _Britannia_ stood between the chests of poor -"Andy" Wauchope and Henry John Thoroton Hildyard. Both subsequently -left the Navy for the Army. The late Major-General Andrew Gilbert -Wauchope, D.S.O., was fatally wounded at Magersfontein during the South -African war. General Sir Henry J. T. Hildyard, G.C.B., K.C.B., retired -in 1911, after long and distinguished service. I was strongly inclined -to follow the example of my comrades and to join the Army; and I have -since occasionally regretted that I remained in the Navy, in which -Service there is less opportunity for attaining the highest rank. - -I was raised to the rank of "captain" in the _Britannia_; but I regret -to say that my enjoyment of that dignity was singularly brief, for I -was disrated upon the same day, even before I had time to put on the -stripe. For my delight at my promotion so exhilarated me, that I -forgot to resist the temptation to empty a bread-barge upon the head of -the old master-at-arms as he was coming up the hatchway, and the -spectacle was so amusing that I stayed to laugh at it. - -When I entered the Service, the system of training {9} young seamen, as -well as cadets, was in operation. To Sir James Graham, First Lord of -the Admiralty, is due the credit of introducing the training of seamen. -In 1854, he caused the _Illustrious_, two-decker, to be commissioned -for that purpose, under the command of Captain Robert Harris. The fact -was that as sails gave place to steam and as the science of gunnery -progressed, it became necessary to enter seamen as boys and to train -them for continuous service. For some time the short service and long -service systems were concurrent. When I went to sea, captains still -entered men direct from the merchant service, and very good seamen they -were. They were engaged for a commission, at the end of which they -could re-engage or not as they pleased. But in the meantime, under the -admirable administration of Captain Harris, "Jimmy Graham's novices," -as they were called, earned an excellent reputation in the Fleet; and -continuous service gradually replaced intermittent service. In the -continuous service system resided our chief superiority over foreign -Navies. The objection to it on the part of the Government was (and is) -the increasing permanent charge of pensions. But in the interests of -the Service and of the country, it cannot be too clearly understood -that the system is well worth the cost, and that the revival of the -short service system is profoundly to be regretted. - - -NOTE - -H.M.S. _Britannia_.--She was the seventh ship of her name. She was -launched at Plymouth in 1820, was pierced for 120 guns, and her -complement was 900 men. Her length, beam and draught were 205 feet, 53 -feet and 18 feet respectively. In the Crimean war, she landed 200 men -as part of the naval brigade which assisted the Army at the siege of -Sevastopol, and took part in the bombardment of that town. She was -commissioned on 1st January, 1859, by Captain Robert Harris, as a -training ship for cadets. {10} The _Britannia_ was stationed first in -Portsmouth Harbour, then at Dartmouth. She was broken up in 1869. The -memory of Captain Robert Harris deserves to be held in high honour. -Vice-Admiral Sir William Fanshawe Martin, who himself achieved great -reforms in the discipline of the Fleet, while in command of the -Mediterranean Fleet, wrote to Captain Harris under date 18th January, -1861, "There is no man in England whose opportunity of doing good to -our country for ages to come is greater than yours; and assuredly the -Navy is greatly your debtor." (_The Story of the Britannia_, by -Commander E. P. Statham, R.N. Cassell.) - -The successor of the _Britannia_ in which Lord Charles Beresford -received his training, the eighth of her name, known and remembered -with affection by all naval officers save the new generation, lay at -Dartmouth for more than forty years, when her functions were -transferred to the colleges on shore. (_The King's Ships_, by H. S. -Lecky, Lieut. R. N. Muirhead. Vol. 1.) - - - - -{11} - -CHAPTER III - -THE SHIP OF HAPPIEST MEMORY - -On the 25th of March, 1861, I was appointed naval cadet in the -_Marlborough_. As I climbed up her side by the hand-rungs, while my -chest was being hoisted in over all, I perceived two huge men looking -down upon me, and I heard one say to the other:-- - -"That white-faced little beggar ain't long for this world, Dick." - -The speaker was John Glanville (called Clamfy Glanville), boatswain's -mate (of whom more anon), and he addressed this lugubrious remark to -Dicky Horne, the quartermaster, a very fat man. It was a far from -encouraging welcome to the sea; but the fact was that I had been ill, -and was feeling very cold as I climbed up the side of the ship. At -first, I was much disappointed at having been sent to a large ship, for -we youngsters had a notion that there were more freedom and -independence in a small ship; and besides, I wanted to go to China. -But I went to China all in good time. - -The _Marlborough_ was the flagship of the Mediterranean station. She -was a wooden line of battleship, three-decker, launched in 1835, 4000 -tons burthen old measure, 6390 displacement new measure, fitted with -single screw horizontal Maudslay engines. The length of her gundeck -was 245 feet 6 inches, her extreme beam was 61 feet, her maximum -draught was 26 feet. Her complement was 950, and she always carried -100 or more supernumeraries. She was pierced for 131 guns and she -carried 121 guns. She was {12} one of the first ships to be fitted -with wire lower rigging. In the _Marlborough_ the old 24-inch hemp -cable was used for laying out anchor at drill. It was the same class -of cable as that which was used in Nelson's time; it was superseded by -the chain cable. - -The vice-admiral in command of the Mediterranean station was Sir -William Fanshawe Martin (called "Fly" Martin); the captain, William H. -Stewart; the commander, Thomas Brandreth: three of the finest officers -that ever lived. The captain of the Fleet was Rear-Admiral Sydney C. -Dacres, C.B. His duties were those of what we should now call a chief -of staff. The office was subsequently abolished; and it was always my -desire to see it restored. - -Ships in those days were manned according to the number of guns they -carried. The theory was that if the boats' crews were absent from the -ship, there should always be sufficient men on board to work the sails -and the guns. The watch-bills were made out upon this principle, the -men being distributed among what were called the "parts of the ship." -In the case of a newly commissioned ship, the making out of the -watch-bills and assigning his place to each man, was the first thing to -be done. It was no small task, especially as no printed forms were -supplied for the purpose. The watch-bills were ruled and entered by -the officers on paper supplied by themselves, and were arranged upon -the tradition handed down for centuries. Even the signalmen supplied -their own pencils and paper. Each ship made its own arrangement. It -was not until 1860 that uniform watch-bills, quarter-bills and -station-bills were instituted. - -[Illustration: H.M.S. "MARLBOROUGH," 1861] - -The men were classed in the following categories, each "part of the -ship" being divided into port watch and starboard watch. - - The Forecastlemen - The Foretopmen - The Maintopmen - The Mizentopmen - The Gunners -{13} - The Afterguard - The Royal Marines - The Idlers - - -The Forecastlemen were most experienced seamen. They wore their caps a -little differently from the others. They manned the foreyard, and -worked the foresail, staysail, jib, flying jib, jibboom, flying jibboom -and lower studdingsails. - -The Foretopmen worked the foretopsail, foretopgallant and foreroyal -yards, foretopgallantmast, foretopmast and topgallant studding-sails. - -The Maintopmen worked the maintopsail, maintopgallant and main-royal -yards and maintopgallantmast, maintopmast and topgallant studding-sails. - -The Mizentopmen worked the mizentopsail, mizentopgallant and -mizen-royal yards, and mizentopgallantmast, mizentopmast and -mizencourse (if there was one), also the driver. - -The upper-yard men were the smartest in the ship, whose character -largely depended upon them. - -The Gunners, assisted by the Afterguard, worked the mainsail and -mainyard. These were generally old and steady men, who were not very -quick aloft. The gunners were also responsible for the care and -maintenance of the gun gear, side tackles, train tackles and the -ammunition. The senior warrant officer was the gunner. - -There were only three warrant officers:--gunner, boatswain and -carpenter. - -The Royal Marines were divided between fore and aft, working on -forecastle and quarterdeck. I remember seeing a detachment of Marines, -upon coming aboard, fallen in while the blacksmith, lifting up each -man's foot behind him, wrenched off and dropped into a bucket the metal -on the heel of his boot, lest it should mark the deck. - -The Afterguard worked on the quarterdeck and helped with the mainyard. -They were the less efficient men and were therefore employed under the -eye of the commander. - -{14} - -The Idlers were not idlers. They were so called because -(theoretically) they had their nights in, although actually they turned -out at four o'clock a.m. They were artificers, such as carpenters, -caulkers, plumbers, blacksmiths, etc. They worked all day at their -several trades until their supper-time. They were nearly all old petty -officers, steady and respectable. It was part of their duty to man the -pumps every morning for washing decks. I made up my mind that, if ever -I was in a position to do so, I would relieve them of an irksome and an -inappropriate duty. - -In action, the carpenters worked below decks, stopping holes with -shot-plugs, while many of the other Idlers worked in the magazines. -Among the Idlers was the ship's musician--unless the ship carried a -band--who was a fiddler. He used to play to the men on the forecastle -after working hours and when they manned the capstan. Personally I -always considered the name of Idlers to be anomalous. They are now -called Daymen. - -Among the ship's company were several negroes. At that time, it was -often the case that the captain of the hold and the cooper were -coloured men. - -An instance of the rapidity and efficiency of the organisation of the -_Marlborough_ occurred upon the night before she sailed for the -Mediterranean. She was newly commissioned, and she carried a large -number of supernumeraries on passage. We took out 1500 all told. A -fire broke out on the orlop deck; the drum beat to quarters; every man -instantly went to his station, to which he had previously been told -off; and the fire was speedily extinguished. The event was my first -experience of discipline in a big ship. - -The nature of the discipline which was then in force, I learned on the -way out to the Mediterranean. In the modern sense of the word, -discipline was exemplified by the Royal Marines alone. I cannot better -convey an idea of the old system than by means of an illustration. -Supposing that a Marine and a bluejacket had each committed an offence. -The Marine was brought up on the quarter-deck before the {15} -commander, and the charge was read to him. The commander asked him -what he had to say. The prisoner, standing rigidly to attention, -embarked upon a long rambling explanation. If his defence were -invalid, the commander cut him short, and the sergeant gave his order. -"Right turn. Quick march." The Marine, although continuing to -protest, obeyed automatically, and away he went. He continued to talk -until he was out of hearing, but he went. Not so the bluejacket. He -did not stand to attention, not he. He shifted from one foot to the -other, he hitched his breeches, fiddled with his cap, scratched his -head. - -"Well, sir," said he, "it was like this here, sir," ... and he began to -spin an interminable yarn. - -"That'll do, my man," quoth the commander. But, not at all. "No, sir, -look here, sir, what I wants to say is this"--and so on, until the -commander had to order a file of Marines to march him below. - -But both Marine and bluejacket had this in common: each would ask the -commander to settle the matter rather than let it go before the -captain; and the captain, to sentence him rather than hold a -court-martial. - -The explanation of the difference between the old system of discipline -and the new is that in the sailing days it was of the first importance -that the seaman should be capable of instant independent action. The -soldier's uniformity and military precision were wholly unsuited to the -sailor, who, at any moment, might have to tackle an emergency on his -own initiative. If a seaman of the old days noticed anything wrong -aloft, up he would run to put it right, without waiting for orders. -Life and death often hung upon his promptitude of resource. - -In the old days, we would often overhear such a conversation as the -following:-- - -Officer: "Why the blank dash didn't you blank well do so-and-so when I -told you?" - -Man: "Why didn't I? Because if I had I should have been blank well -killed and so would you." - -{16} - -Officer: "Damn you, sir, don't you answer me! I shall put you in the -report." - -Man: "Put me in the ruddy report, then." - -And the next day the commander, having heard both sides, would say to -the officer, - -"Why, the man was quite right." And to the man, "You had no right to -argue with the officer. Don't do it again. Now get away with you to -hell." - -And everyone would part the best of friends. - -The change came with the improvement and progress in gunnery, which -involved, first, the better drilling of the small-arm companies. In my -early days, the small-arm companies used to drill with bare feet. -Indeed, boots were never worn on board. It was of course impossible to -wear boots going aloft for a sailor going aloft in boots would injure -the heads and hands of his topmates. Occasionally the midshipmen went -aloft barefooted like the men. So indurated did the feet of the -sailors become, that they were unable to wear boots without discomfort, -and often carried them when they were ashore. - -A sailor's offences were hardly ever crimes against honour. They -rather arose from the character induced by his calling. Its conditions -were hard, dangerous and often intensely exciting. The sailor's view -was devil-may-care. He was free with his language, handy with his -fists and afraid of nothing. A smart man might receive four dozen for -some violence, and be rated petty officer six months afterwards. -Condemnation was then the rule. Personally, I endeavoured to -substitute for it, commendation. For if there are two men, one of whom -takes a pride in (say) keeping his rifle clean, and the other neglects -it, to ignore the efficiency of the one is both to discourage him and -to encourage the other. - -Before the system of silence was introduced by the _Marlborough_ the -tumult on deck during an evolution or exercise was tremendous. The -shouting in the ships in Malta Harbour could be heard all over Valetta. -The _Marlborough_ introduced the "Still" bugle-call. At the {17} -bugle-call "Still" every man stood motionless and looked at the -officer. For in order to have an order understood, the men must be -looking at the officer who gives it. During the Soudan war, I used the -"Still" at several critical moments. Silence and attention are the -first necessities for discipline. About this time the bugle superseded -the drum in many ships for routine orders. - -There were few punishments, the chief punishment being the cat. The -first time I saw the cat applied, I fainted. But men were constantly -being flogged. I have seen six men flogged in one morning. Even upon -these painful occasions, the crew were not fallen in. They were merely -summoned aft "for punishment"--"clear lower deck lay aft for -punishment" was piped--and grouped themselves as they would, sitting in -the boats and standing about, nor did they even keep silence while the -flogging was being inflicted. The officers stood within three sides of -a square formed by the Marines. Another punishment was "putting the -admiral in his barge and the general in his helmet," when one man was -stood in a bucket and the other had a bucket on his head. - -Very great credit is due to Admiral Sir William Martin, who reformed -the discipline of the Fleet. The Naval Discipline Act was passed in -1861; the New Naval Discipline Act in 1866. In 1871 a circular was -issued restricting the infliction of corporal punishment in peace time. -Flogging was virtually abolished in 1879. (Laird Clowes' _The Royal -Navy_, vol. 7.) Now we have proper discipline and no cat. In former -days, we had the cat but no proper discipline. - -The men were granted very little leave. They were often on board for -months together. When they went ashore, there they remained until they -had spent their last penny; and when they came on board they were -either drunk or shamming drunk. For drunkenness was the fashion then, -just as sobriety is, happily, the fashion now. In order to be in the -mode, a man would actually feign drunkenness on coming aboard. In many -a night-watch after leave had been {18} given have I superintended the -hoisting in of drunken men, who were handed over to the care of their -messmates. To-day, an intoxicated man is not welcomed by his mess, his -comrades preferring that he should be put out of the way in cells. It -was impossible to keep liquor out of the ship. Men would bring it -aboard in little bladders concealed in their neckties. Excess was the -rule in many ships. On Christmas Day, for instance, it was not -advisable for an officer to go on the lower deck, which was given up to -license. I remember one man who ate and drank himself to death on -Christmas Day. There he lay, beside a gun, dead. Other cases of the -same kind occurred in other ships. - -The rations were so meagre that hunger induced the men constantly to -chew tobacco. For the same reason I chewed tobacco myself as a boy. -Nor have I ever been able to understand how on such insufficient and -plain diet the men were so extraordinarily hardy. They used to go -aloft and remain aloft for hours, reefing sails, when a gale was -blowing with snow and sleet, clad only in flannel (vest) serge frock -and cloth or serge trousers, their heads, arms and lower part of their -legs bare. Then they would go below to find the decks awash in a foot -of water, the galley fire extinguished, nothing to eat until next meal -time but a biscuit, and nothing to drink but water. - -Seamen often curse and swear when they are aloft furling or reefing -sails in a gale of wind; but I have never heard a sailor blaspheme on -these occasions. Their language aloft is merely a mode of speaking. -Although in the old days I have heard men blaspheme on deck, blasphemy -was never heard aloft in a gale. To be aloft in a whole gale or in a -hurricane impresses the mind with a sense of the almighty power of the -Deity, and the insignificance of man, that puny atom, compared with the -vast forces of the elements. - -In later life, I once said to a young man whom I heard using -blasphemous language in a club: - -"If you were up with me on the weather yard-arm of a topsail yard -reefing topsails in a whole gale, you would be {19} afraid to say what -you are saying now. You would see what a little puny devil a man is, -and although you might swear, you would be too great a coward to -blaspheme." - -And I went on to ram the lesson home with some forcible expressions, a -method of reproof which amused the audience, but which effectually -silenced the blasphemer. - -The fact is, there is a deep sense of religion in those who go down to -the sea in ships and do their business in the great waters. Every -minister of God, irrespective of the denomination to which he belongs, -is treated with respect. And a good chaplain, exercising tact and -knowing how to give advice, does invaluable service in a ship, and is a -great help in maintaining sound discipline, inasmuch as by virtue of -his position he can discover and remove little misunderstandings which -cause discontent and irritation. - -The discomforts of the Old Navy are unknown to the new. The sanitary -appliances, for instance, were placed right forward in the bows, in the -open air. If the sea were rough they could not be used. On these -occasions, the state of the lower deck may with more discretion be -imagined than described. As the ship rolled, the water leaked in -through the rebated joints of the gun-ports, and as long as a gale -lasted the mess-decks were no better than cesspools. It is a curious -fact that in spite of all these things, the spirits of both officers -and men rose whenever it came on to blow; and the harder it blew, the -more cheery everyone became. The men sang most under stress of -weather; just as they will to-day under the same conditions or while -coaling ship. After a gale of wind, the whole ship's company turned-to -to clean the ship. - -In those days the men used to dress in cloth trousers and tunic with -buttons. The men used to embroider their collars and their fronts with -most elaborate and beautiful designs. They had two hats, a black hat -and a white hat, which they made themselves. The black hats were made -of straw covered with duck and painted. Many a man has lost his life -aloft in trying to save his heavy black hat from being blown away. - -{20} - -The fashion of wearing hair on the face was to cultivate luxuriant -whiskers, and to "leave a gangway," which meant shaving upper lip, chin -and neck. Later, Mr. Childers introduced a new order: a man might -shave clean, or cultivate all growth, or leave a gangway as before, but -he might not wear a moustache only. The order, which applied to -officers and men (except the Royal Marines) is still in force. - -Steam was never used except under dire necessity, or when entering -harbour, or when exercising steam tactics as a Fleet. The order to -raise steam cast a gloom over the entire ship. The chief engineer -laboured under considerable difficulties. He was constantly summoned -on deck to be forcibly condemned for "making too much smoke." - -We were very particular about our gunnery in the _Marlborough_; -although at the same time gunnery was regarded as quite a secondary -art. It was considered that anyone could fire a gun, and that the -whole credit of successful gunnery depended upon the seamanship of the -sailors who brought the ship into the requisite position. The greater -number of the guns in the _Marlborough_ were the same as those used in -the time of Nelson, with their wooden trucks, handspikes, sponges, -rammers, worms and all gear complete. The _Marlborough_ was fitted -with a cupola for heating round-shot, which were carried red-hot to the -gun in an iron bucket. I know of no other ship which was thus equipped. - -The gunnery lieutenant of the _Marlborough_, Charles Inglis, was gifted -with so great and splendid a voice, that, when he gave his orders from -the middle deck, they were heard at every gun in the ship. We used to -practise firing at a cliff in Malta Harbour, at a range of a hundred -yards or so. I used to be sent on shore to collect the round-shot and -bring them on board for future use. I remember that when, in the -course of a lecture delivered to my men on board the _Bulwark_ more -than forty years afterwards, I related the incident, I could see by -their faces that my audience did not believe me; though I showed to -them the shot-holes in the face of the cliff, which remain to this day. -{21} On gunnery days, all fires were extinguished, in case a spark -should ignite the loose powder spilt by the boys who brought the -cartridges to the guns, making a trail to the magazines. At "night -quarters," we were turned out of our hammocks, which were lashed up. -The mess-tables were triced up overhead. The lower-deck ports being -closed, there was no room to wield the wooden rammer; so that the -charges for the muzzle-loading guns were rammed home with rope rammers. -Before the order to fire was given, the ports were triced up. Upon one -occasion, so anxious was a bluejacket to be first in loading and -firing, that he cherished a charge hidden in his hammock since the last -night quarters, a period of nearly three months, and, firing before the -port was triced up, blew it into the next ship. - -In those days, the master was responsible for the navigation of the -ship. He was an old, wily, experienced seaman, who had entered the -Service as master's mate. (When I was midshipman in the _Defence_, the -master's assistant was Richard W. Middleton, afterwards Captain -Middleton, chief organiser of the Conservative Central Office.) The -master laid the course and kept the reckoning. As steam replaced -sails, the office of master was transferred to the navigating officer, -a lieutenant who specialised in navigation. The transformation was -effected by the Order in Council of 26th June, 1867. - -The sail-drill in the _Marlborough_ was a miracle of smartness and -speed. The spirit of emulation in the Fleet was furious. The fact -that a certain number of men used to be killed, seemed to quicken the -rivalry. Poor Inman, a midshipman in the _Marlborough_, a great friend -of mine, his foot slipping as he was running down from aloft, lost his -life. His death was a great shock to me. - -The men would run aloft so quickly that their bare feet were nearly -indistinguishable. Topmasts and lower yard were sent down and sent up -at a pace which to-day is inconceivable. - -I once saw the captain of the maintop hurl himself bodily down from the -cap upon a hand in the top who was slow in {22} obeying orders. That -reckless topman was Martin Schultz, a magnificent seaman, who was -entered by the captain direct from the Norwegian merchant service, in -which he had been a mate. - -Mr. George Lewis, an old topmate of mine, who was one of the smartest -seamen on board H.M.S. _Marlborough_, has kindly sent to me the -following interesting details with regard to the times of sail-drill -and the risks incidental to the evolutions. - - Time allowed Time in - by Admiral. _Marlborough_. - Min. Sec. Min. Sec. - - Cross topgallant and royal yards 1 0 0 30 - Down topgallant yards with royal - yards across 2 0 1 13 - Up topgallant mast, cross upper - yards and loose sails 2 30 1 27 - Shift topgallant masts from royal - yards across 7 0 5 40 - Up topgallant mast and make all - plain sail 4 0 2 40 - Up topgallant mast and make all - possible sail 6 0 3 0 - Shift topsails from plainsail 6 0 4 50 - In all boom boats from away aloft 7 0 6 0 - Out all boom boats 7 0 5 40 - Away lifeboat's crew 0 30 0 20 - - -What Mr. Lewis means by "admiral's time," let him explain in his own -words. "When our admiral" (Sir William Martin) "was captain of the -_Prince Regent_, which was considered the smartest ship in the Navy, he -brought all her times of all her drills to the grand old _Marlborough_ -along with him; and you know, my lord, that he allowed us six months to -get our good old ship in trim before we drilled along with the Fleet; -but we started to drill along with the Fleet after three months, and -were able to beat them all." - -"Now, my lord," continues Mr. Lewis, "I come to one of the smartest -bits of our drill. When we were sailing in the Bay of Naples under all -possible sail, our captain wanted to let the world see what a smart -ship he had and what a smart lot of men was under him. From the order -'Shift topsails and courses make all possible sail again'"--which -really means that the masts were stripped of sails and again {23} all -sails were hoisted--"Admiral's time 13 minutes, our time 9 minutes 30 -seconds. All went without a hitch, within 400 yards of our anchorage." - -Mr. Lewis proceeds to recount a very daring act of his own. "We were -sending down upper yards and topgallant mast one evening, and it was my -duty to make fast the lizard. But I could only make fast one hitch, so -I slid down the mast rope and it turned me right over, but I managed to -catch the lizard and hold on to it, and so saved the mast from falling -on the hundred men that were in the gangway. No doubt if it had fallen -on them it would have killed a good many...." - -What happened was that Lewis, in the tearing speed of the evolution, -not having time properly to secure the head of the mast as it was -coming down, held the fastening in place while clinging to the mast -rope and so came hurtling down with the mast. He adds that he "felt -very proud"--and well he might--when the captain "told the admiral on -Sunday that I was the smartest man aloft that he had ever seen during -his time in the Service." He had an even narrower escape. "I was at -the yard-arm when we had just crossed" (hoisted into place). "I was -pulling down the royal sheet and someone had let it go on deck, and I -fell backwards off the yard head-foremost. I had my arm through the -strop of the jewel block, and it held me, and dropped me in the topmast -rigging, and some of my topmates caught me." - -Mr. Lewis himself was one of the smartest and quickest men aloft I have -ever seen during the whole of my career. The men of other ships used -to watch him going aloft. "My best time," he writes--and I can confirm -his statement "from ''way aloft' to the topgallant yard-arm was 13 -seconds, which was never beaten." It was equalled, however, by Ninepin -Jones on the foretopgallant yard. The topgallant and royal yard men -started from the maintop, inside of the topmast rigging, at the order -'"way aloft." The height to be run from the top, inside of the topmast -rigging, {24} to the topgallant yard-arm was 64 feet. From the deck to -the maintop was 67 feet. At one time, the upper-yard men used to start -from the deck at the word "away aloft"; but the strain of going aloft -so high and at so great a speed injured their hearts and lungs, so that -they ascended first to the top, and there awaited the order "away -aloft." - -The orders were therefore altered. They were: first, "midshipmen -aloft," when the midshipmen went aloft to the tops; second, "upper-yard -men aloft," when the upper-yard men went aloft to the tops, and one -midshipman went from the top to the masthead. - -At the evening or morning evolution of sending down or up topgallant -masts and topgallant and royal yards, only the upper-yard men received -the order, "upper-yard men in the tops." The next order was "away -aloft," the upper-yard men going to the masthead. - -At general drill, requiring lower- and topsail-yard men aloft, as well -as upper-yard men, the orders were: first, "midshipmen aloft"; then -"upper-yard men in the tops"; then, "away aloft," when the lower- and -topsail-yard men went aloft to the topsail and lower yards, and the -upper-yard men went aloft to the masthead. - -These arrangements applied of course only to drill. In the event of a -squall or an emergency, the men went straight from deck to the -topgallant and royal yards. - -Mr. Lewis's performance was a marvel. Writing to me fifty years -afterwards, he says:--"I think, my lord, it would take me a little -longer than 13 seconds now to get to the maintopgallant yard-arm and -run in again without holding on to anything, which I have done many -hundreds of times." - -The men would constantly run thus along the yards--upon which the -jackstay is secured, to which again the sail is bent, so that the -footing is uneven--while the ship was rolling. Sometimes they would -fall, catching the yard, and so save themselves. - -{25} - -The foretopgallant-yard man, Jones, was as smart as Lewis, though he -never beat Lewis's record time. These two men were always six to ten -ratlines ahead of the other yard men, smart men as these were. One day -Jones lost a toe aloft. It was cut clean off by the fid of the -foretopgallant mast. But Jones continued his work as though nothing -had happened, until the drill was ended, when he hopped down to the -sick bay. He was as quick as ever after the accident; and the sailors -called him Ninepin Jack. - -Another old topmate, Mr. S. D. Sharp, writing to me in 1909, when I -hauled down my flag, says:--"I was proud of the old _Marlborough_ and -her successor up the Straits, the _Victoria_. They were a noble sight -in full sail with a stiff breeze. No doubt the present fleet far -excels the old wooden walls, but the old wooden walls made sailors. -But sailors to-day have to stand aside for engine-men. Going round -Portsmouth dockyard some few years since, I was very sad to see the -noble old Marlborough a hulk" (she is now part of H.M.S. _Vernon_ -Torpedo School), "laid aside, as I expect we all shall be in time" (Mr. -Sharp is only between seventy and eighty years of age). "I am doubtful -if there are many men in the Navy to-day who would stand bolt upright -upon the royal truck of a line-of-battle ship. I was one of those who -did so. Perhaps a foolish practice. But in those days fear never came -our way." - -There speaks the Old Navy. - -When a ship was paid off out of Malta Harbour, it was the custom that -there should be a man standing erect on each of the trucks, main, mizen -and fore. Many a time have I seen these men balanced more than 200 -feet in the air, strip off their shirts and wave them. And once I saw -a man holding to the vane-spindle set in the truck, and I saw the -spindle break in his hand, and the man fall.... - -In the course of my experience, I have seen a man fall off the -main-royal yard, be caught in the belly of the mainsail slip down the -sail, catch the second reef-line with his {26} legs, and hold on until -a topmate ran aloft with a bowline and saved him. - -I have seen a man fall off the maintopsail yard, and be caught in the -bight of the mainsheet in the main rigging, and run aloft again. And -this was at sea. - -And several times I have seen a man fall from aloft to be dashed to -pieces upon the deck. - -One of the closest escapes I have ever had occurred aloft in the -_Marlborough_. Being midshipman of the mizenroyal, I was furling the -sail, leaning forward upon the yard, gathering in the canvas, my feet -braced backward upon the footrope, when another midshipman, leaping -upon the footrope, accidentally knocked it from under my feet. For two -or three seconds I hung by the tips of my fingers, which were pressed -against the jackstay of the mizen-royal yard (the rope running taut -along the top of the yard to which the sail is bent) under which I -could not push my fingers, and then, at the last moment, I found the -footrope again. I have never forgotten my feelings, when I saw certain -death approaching while my feet were clawing about for the footrope. - -When the hands were turned out to bathe, John Glanville, chief -boatswain's mate, would go up to the main-yard, stand with one foot on -the yard and the other on the preventive braceblock, and thence take a -header. The height was between 50 and 60 feet. Once he struck the sea -sideways, and was injured, so that he was never quite the same man -afterwards. But any other man would have been killed. - -On another occasion, when the ship was hove-to for the hands to bathe, -the captain of the forecastle hauled the jib sheet aft, and the ship -began to glide away from the officers and men, myself among them, in -the water. Luckily all got on board again. - -In the spirit of emulation, I fell into deserved disgrace at -sail-drill. In order to be first in the evolution, I secretly unbent -the foretopgallant sheet before the men arrived at the masthead. -Another midshipman did likewise at the {27} main. He was Arthur -Gresley, one of the smartest midshipmen aloft, and one of the best oars -in the Service, a splendid, cheery, chivalrous, noble-minded lad. We -were discovered; and, before all the men, we were ordered down on deck, -and were severely reprimanded for having endeavoured to gain an unfair -advantage, thereby staining the character of a ship justly noted for -her scrupulous fair play. I was taken out of my top, deprived of the -command of my boat, and disrated to cadet; and I had serious thoughts -of ending a ruined career by jumping overboard. I have never been so -genuinely unhappy before or since. But upon the following day I was -rated up again, and replaced in my top and my boat. - -At first in the _Marlborough_ I was midshipman of the mizentop, and in -charge of the jolly-boat. The midshipman in charge of a boat learned -how to handle men. As he was away from the ship with them for long -periods, he was forced to understand them and to discover how to treat -them, thus learning the essential elements of administration. As all -my delight was in seamanship, I contrived to miss a good deal of -school. It was not difficult, when the naval instructor desired my -presence, to find a good reason for duty with my boat. I was -afterwards midshipman of the foretop, and when I was promoted from the -jolly-boat to the second pinnace, and to the command of the first -subdivision of the three-pounder division of field-guns for landing, -being placed in charge of one three-pounder gun, I thought I was an -emperor. - -We used to land with the guns for field-battery exercises, setting -Marine sentries all round to prevent the men getting away to drink. -Returning on board, we used to race down the Calcara Hill at Malta to -the harbour. On one occasion, we were going so fast that we couldn't -turn the gun round the corner, and gun and all toppled over the wharf -into the water..... - -I fell into another scrape in excess of zeal for marksmanship. We used -to practise aiming with rifles and {28} muzzle-loading Enfields, the -Service rifle of that day. We fired percussion caps without charges, -at little bull's-eyes painted on a strip of canvas, which was stretched -along the bulwarks below the hammock-nettings. The marksman stood on -the opposite side of the deck. Another midshipman and myself contrived -to fire a couple of caps as projectiles, which of course entered the -woodwork behind the targets, making dreadful holes. This appalling -desecration, involving the fitting in of new planking, was discovered -by the commander, Brandreth. His rage was justifiable. We were stood -on the bitts, and also mastheaded. - -Captain Houston Stewart used to fish from the stern gallery when the -ship was at anchor. He tied his line to the rail, and went back into -his cabin, returning every few minutes to see if he had a fish. -Beneath the stern gallery opened the ports of the gunroom. With a -hooked stick I drew in his line, attached a red herring to the hook, -dropped it in again, and when the captain came to feel his line I -jerked it. He hauled it up in a hurry. Instantly after, he sent for -all the midshipmen; and, for some reason or other, he picked me out at -once. - -"_You_ did that, Beresford," he said. "Most impertinent! Your leave -will be stopped." - -Next day, however, he let me off. - -Among the most delightful incidents were the boat-races. It was before -the time when fleet regattas were instituted. What happened was that a -boat would row round from their ship, to the ship they wished to race, -and toss oars under her bows in sign of a challenge. Then the boat's -crew of the challenged ship would practise with intense assiduity until -they felt they were fit to meet the enemy. The bitterest feeling was -aroused. Even the crews of "chummy ships" could not meet without -fighting. Hundreds of pounds were wagered on the event. In the -_Marlborough_ we had the cutter, _Black Bess_, specially built for -racing. Her stroke was John Glanville, the gigantic boatswain's mate, -who, when I joined the ship, told Dicky {29} Horne, the quartermaster, -that I was not likely to live long. He was the son of Ann Glanville, -the redoubtable West country woman who pulled stroke in the crew of -Saltash women that raced and beat a crew of Frenchmen at Cherbourg, -under the eyes of the Queen, the Prince Consort, the Emperor Napoleon -III., and the British and French navies. That notable victory was won -in 1858, when Queen Victoria, accompanied by the Prince Consort, -visited Napoleon III. The Queen and the Prince sailed in H.M.S. -_Victoria and Albert_, escorted by a squadron of men-of-war. They were -received by the French Navy. After the race, the Queen invited the -Saltash women on board the Royal yacht. Later in life, it was my -privilege to remove anxiety concerning her livelihood from fine old -Mrs. Glanville. - -I steered the _Black Bess_, and we beat the two best boats in the -Fleet; and then we were challenged by the _St. George_. The _St. -George_ had taken the upper strake off her boat to make her row easier. -Now the stroke of the _St. George_ was George Glanville, brother to -John, and of the same formidable weight and size. The race was rowed -in Malta Harbour, over a 3½-mile course, and we were beaten. We could -not understand it; but beaten we were. That night George Glanville -came aboard the _Marlborough_ with a bag containing some £300 the money -put up to cover the stakes. George came to receive the stakes, and -according to custom he brought the cover-money to show that all was -above-board. To him came John his brother; and scarce a word was said -ere the two big men were fighting furiously, the bag of gold on the -deck beside them. They were torn apart with difficulty. Nor could the -respective crews be landed together for a long time afterwards. Next -year we beat the _St. George_. - -When we lay in Corfu Harbour, the _Marlborough_ was challenged by a -crew of artillerymen. It was I think on this occasion that John -Glanville headed a deputation to me, asking me to be the coxswain. - -{30} - -"Well, sir," he said, "it's like this here, sir, if you'll pardon me. -Yew be young-like, and what we was thinking was whether you have the -power of language that du be required." - -I said I would do my best. I did. I astonished myself. As for the -artillerymen, they rowed themselves right under. There was a little -seaway, and they rowed the boat under and there they were struggling in -the water. - -"What! Yew bain't never going to pick 'em up?" cried John Glanville, -in the heat of his excitement. - -I also rowed bow-oar in the officers' boat, the second cutter. I was -young and small, but I had great staying power. I could go on rowing -for ever. - -When my leave was stopped--which did occur occasionally--I had a system -by means of which I went ashore at night. I lashed a hammock-lashing -round the port stern-ring, crawled out of the stern port, lowered -myself to the water, and swam to a shore boat, waiting for me by -arrangement. Maltese boats are partly covered in, and I dressed in a -spare suit of clothes. On one occasion, upon landing, I nearly--but -not quite--ran into the arms of the commander. - -One night I went ashore, taking a painter and two men. We lowered the -painter over the edge of the cliff, and he inscribed on the cliff in -immense letters, "'Marlborough,' Star of the Mediterranean." Next -morning the whole Fleet, not without emotion, beheld the legend. -Another brilliant wit went ashore on the following night and altered -the word "Star" into "Turtle." My reply was the addition "Until the -'Queen' comes out." After this exploit I was sent ashore to clean the -cliff. - -There were numerous horses in Malta, and the midshipmen and bluejackets -used to hire them for half-a-crown a day. When the horses had had -enough of their riders, they used to gallop down to the Florian Gate, -kick them off, and return to their stable. I heard one sailor remark -to another, {31} who, sticking to his horse, was bounding up and down -in his saddle: - -"Get off that there 'orse, Jack, 'e's a beast!" - -"He aint no beast at all," retorted Jack. '"E's the cleverest 'orse I -ever see. He chucks me up and he catches me, he chucks me up and he -catches me--why, 'e's only missed me three times in a hour!" - -There used to be very bad feeling between English and Maltese. Both -sailors and soldiers frequently lost their lives on shore. The seamen -used to be stabbed, and the soldiers were sometimes thrown over the -fortifications at night. I have seen a dead soldier lying on the rocks -where he was thrown. A party of _Marlborough_ officers drove out in -"go-carts" (two-wheeled vehicles in which passengers lay on cushions) -to Civita Vecchia, to hear the celebrated Mass on New Year's Eve. The -Cathedral was the richest church in Europe until Napoleon confiscated -its treasure. Somehow or other, there was a row, and we were fighting -fiercely with a crowd of Maltese. A clerk of our party, a very stout -person, was stabbed in the belly, so that his entrails protruded. We -got him away, laid him in a go-cart, drove back to Malta, a two-hours' -drive, and put him on board, and he recovered. - -At nine o'clock p.m. the seniors in the gunroom stuck a fork in the -beam overhead, the signal for the youngsters to leave their elders in -peace--too often to drink. Sobriety--to put it delicately--was not -reckoned a virtue. I remember visiting a ship at Bermuda (never mind -her name) to find every member of the mess intoxicated. Two were -suffering from delirium tremens; and one of them was picking the bodies -of imaginary rats from the floor with a stick, His case was worse than -that of the eminent member of a certain club in London, who, when a -real rat ran across the carpet, looked solemnly round upon the -expectant faces of his friends, and said, "Aha! You thought I saw a -rat. _But I didn't!_" - -There was no rank of sub-lieutenant, the corresponding {32} grade being -a "mate." Many of the mates were men of thirty or more, who had never -gained promotion and who never would gain it. I remember an old mate -who used to earn his living by rowing a wherry in Portsmouth Harbour. -He was then (1862) on half-pay, with seniority of 1820. His name was -Peter B. Stagg, as you may see in the Navy Lists of the period. In the -Navy List of 1862, Stagg is rated sub-lieutenant, the rank of mate -having been abolished in the previous year. - -Wisdom spoken by babes was not approved in the _Marlborough_. I -ventured to remark a thing I had observed, which was that the masts of -men-of-war were out of proportion tall as compared with the sails they -carried; or, in technical language, that the masts were very taunt, -whereas the sails were not proportionately square. I said that the -masts ought to be lower and the sails squarer, thus increasing the -sailing power. - -"D--n it! Listen to this youngster laying down the law as if he knew -better than Nelson!" cried an old mate. I was instantly sentenced to -be cobbed; and received twelve strokes with a dirk scabbard. - -It was true that the rig had been inherited from the men of Nelson's -day; but it was not true that I had pretended to know better than the -late admiral; for, since his death, the ships had become longer; so -that, whereas in Nelson's time the masts, being closer together, were -made taller, with relatively narrow sails, in order that in going about -the yards should not lock, in my time the reason for the disproportion -had ceased to exist. Very shortly after I had been beaten for the -impiety of thinking for myself, the merchant clippers adopted the very -plan I had in mind, lowering masts and increasing the size of sails and -thereby gaining a speed which was unrivalled. - -I visited Corfu during my time in the _Marlborough_ when that island, -together with the rest of the Ionian Islands--Cephalonia, Zante, -Ithaca, Santa Maura, Cerigo and Paxo--was an independent State under -the protection of Great {33} Britain. In the following year, 1864, the -Islands were annexed to Greece. When the Great Powers agreed that a -sovereign should be nominated to reign over Greece, it was suggested -that, as the integrity of his kingdom could not be guaranteed, he -should be provided with a place of refuge in case of trouble. So at -least ran the talk at the time. In any case, Great Britain was induced -to relinquish these magnificent Islands, which she had won from the -French in 1809. Their loss was greatly deplored by the Navy at the -time; for Corfu has one of the finest harbours in the world; a harbour -in which a whole fleet can be manoeuvred. The Islands, moreover, had -magnificent roads, and were furnished with barracks, and in all -respects formed an invaluable naval base. Prince William of -Schleswig-Holstein was proclaimed King George I of Greece on 30th -March, 1863. The late King was a most admirable sovereign, whose -personal friendship I was privileged to enjoy. When I was in Corfu -there was a story current to the effect that when Mr. Gladstone came to -the Islands on his mission of inquiry in 1858, he delivered a superb -oration in the Greek tongue. He was, of course, an excellent scholar -in ancient Greek; but modern Greek differs in pronunciation and other -respects. When he had finished, the official in attendance, while -complimenting him upon his eloquence, observed what a pity it was that -Mr. Gladstone delivered his speech in the English language. - -As I am writing, it is the fiftieth anniversary of the marriage of the -late King Edward with Queen Alexandra, who is still spared to us. I -remember that on the 10th March, 1863, the _Marlborough_ was -illuminated with a dainty splendour I have never seen surpassed, even -in these days of electricity. Every port-hole was framed in sixteen -little Maltese glass lamps; the rails and yards were set with them; so -that, ports being triced up, and the ship being lit within, she was as -though wrought in a glow of mellow fire. - -Early in the year 1863 I was ordered home, to my great grief. I was -discharged to the _Hibernia_ stationed in Malta {34} Harbour, to await -the homeward bound P. and O. mail steamer. Many years afterwards, when -commanding the _Undaunted_, I was tried by court-martial in the old -_Hibernia_ for running my ship ashore and was acquitted of all blame. -While waiting in the _Hibernia_ for a passage, I learned that the -_Marlborough_ had gone to the rescue of a Turkish liner, carrying -troops, which had run aground on the Filfola rocks, twelve or fifteen -miles by sea from Malta Harbour. I was so eager to see my old ship -again, that I hired a duck-punt and pulled all by myself to the Filfola -rocks. Fortunately the sea was calm, or I must have been drowned. I -found a party from the _Marlborough_ rolling the Turkish vessel to get -her off. Each British sailor took a Turkish sailor by the scruff of -his neck, and ran with him from side to side of the ship, until she -rolled herself into deep water. I had a delightful dinner on board the -_Marlborough_ and then I pulled all the way back in the dark to the -_Hibernia_. I was sad indeed that my time in the _Marlborough_ was -ended; for, in the words of George Lewis, my old topmate, "the dear old -_Marlborough_ was the smartest and happiest ship that ever floated." - -I took passage home in the mail steamer, and was appointed midshipman -to the _Defence_ by Rear-Admiral Charles Eden, C.B., my "sea-daddy." -He very kindly said he wished me to gain experience of one of the new -iron ships. - - - -NOTE - -_The Old Navy_.--The _Marlborough_ was a survival of the Old Navy, in -whose traditions Lord Charles Beresford and his contemporaries were -nurtured. It was a hard-fisted, free-living, implacable, tragic, -jovial, splendid Service; it was England at her valorous best. - -The present generation hardly realises that the naval cadets, who, like -Lord Charles Beresford, entered the Service in the mid-nineteenth -century, were taught their business by the men who had served with -Nelson. The admirals and old seamen of fifty years' service who are -alive to-day, therefore represent the direct link between Nelson's time -and our {35} own. When they entered the Navy, many of the admirals and -the elder seamen had actually fought under Nelson, and the Service was -in all essentials what it was at Trafalgar. Admiral of the Fleet Sir -Edward Seymour relates (in _My Naval Career_) that as a cadet he often -talked with Master-Commander G. Allen, who saw Nelson embark from the -sally-port at Portsmouth for Trafalgar. - -The change from sails to steam was just beginning. Never again will -the Royal Navy be administered by men who were brought up in that stern -school, which produced a type of men unique in history. - -The time-honoured divisions of the Fleet into Red, White and Blue were -still in use while Lord Charles Beresford was a midshipman. They were -abolished by an Order in Council of 9th July, 1864. - -In the year 1858-9 there was only one admiral of the Fleet, Sir John -West, K.C.B. He entered the Navy in 1788, as a "first-class -Volunteer," as a naval cadet was then called. West served on the coast -of Guinea, in the West Indies, Newfoundland and the Channel in the -_Pomona_. He was midshipman in the _Salisbury_, 50, and the _London_, -98, and was in the _Hebe_, Captain Alexander Hood. He was lieutenant -in the _Royal George_, Captain Domett. He was present at the action of -Île de Groix of the 23rd June, 1795, under Lord Bridport. He was -promoted to captain in 1796. In 1807, commanding the _Excellent_, 74, -he was engaged off Catalonia, helping the Spaniards to defend the -citadel of Rosas, which was besieged by 5000 French. He was promoted -to rear-admiral in 1819, and to admiral of the White in 1841. - -Here was an instance of an officer becoming a captain at the age of 22, -after no more than eight years' service; remaining a captain for 23 -years; and a rear-admiral for 22 years; and in 1859 he was still alive -as an admiral of the Fleet, being then 85 years of age. - -The Board of Admiralty in 1858-9 consisted of: the Right Hon. Sir John -Somerset Pakington, Bart., M.P.; Vice-Admiral William Fanshawe Martin, -who entered the {36} Navy in 1814; Vice-Admiral the Hon. Sir Richard -Saunders Dundas, K.C.B., who entered the Royal Naval College in 1814; -Rear-Admiral Sir Alexander Milne, K.C.B., who entered the Royal Naval -College in 1817; and the Right Hon. Lord Loraine, M.P. - -A very brief survey of the services of the admirals of the Red, White -and Blue shows that they derived directly from the French wars and the -time of Nelson. - -Admiral of the Red Sir William Hall Gage, G.C.H., had been -acting-lieutenant of the _Minerva_, when she bore the broad pennant of -Commodore Nelson; had fought in the battle of St. Vincent under Sir -John Jervis; and commanded the _Indus_ under Sir Edward Pellew in the -action off Toulon of 13th February, 1814. - -Admiral of the Red Sir Edward Durnford King, K.G.H., in command of the -_Endymion_, watched 26 sail of the line and nine frigates put into -Cadiz on 16th April, 1805, and carried the information to Vice-Admiral -Collingwood, who was cruising off Gibraltar with four ships. He had -the ill-luck to be detailed for special service at Gibraltar on -Trafalgar Day. - -Admiral Sir George Mundy, K.C.B., fought in the battles of St. Vincent -and of the Nile, and had a deal of other distinguished fighting service -in his record. - -Then there was Admiral of the Red the Right Hon. Thomas, Earl of -Dundonald, G.C.B., whose skill in privateering amounted to genius. As -Lord Cochrane, commanding in 1800 the _Speedy_ sloop, 14 guns and 54 -men, he captured in one year and two months 33 vessels containing 128 -guns and 533 men. Among other spirited exploits, he boarded and -carried the Spaniard _El Gamo_, 32 guns, 319 men. Falling under the -displeasure of the politicians, his rank and his seat in Parliament -were forfeited. In 1818, he accepted the chief command of the Chilian -Navy, then of the Brazilian Navy, and then entered the Greek naval -service. King William the Fourth upon his succession reinstated -Dundonald in his rank in the Royal Navy. - -Admiral of the Red Sir William Parker, Bart, G.C.B., {37} went with -Nelson in pursuit of the French Fleet to the West Indies and back in -1805. - -Admiral of the White Sir Lucius Curtis, Bart, C.B., served in the -Mediterranean in 1804 and 1805. - -Admiral of the White Sir John Louis, Bart., served in the Mediterranean -in 1804. - -Admiral of the White John Ayscough was flag-lieutenant in the _Queen -Charlotte_, Lord Rowe's flagship, in the Channel in 1797; he afterwards -served with distinction in Holland, Quiberon, Cadiz, Egypt, the West -Indies; and, with two frigates and some sloops, protected Sicily -against the invasion of Joachim Murat. - -Admiral of the Blue Sir Edward Chetham Strode, K.C.B., K.C.H., served -under Lord Hood in the _Victory_ in the Mediterranean, taking part in -the evacuation of Toulon, in the sieges of St. Fiorenza, Bastia and -Calvi, in Corsica. In August, 1794, he was lieutenant in the -_Agamemnon_, commanded by Nelson. He performed much distinguished -service until, in 1841, he attained flag rank and went on half-pay. - -Admiral of the Blue William Bowles, C.B., entered the Navy in 1796, was -employed in the Channel and off Cadiz, in the North Sea, West Indies, -and North American station. In command of the _Zebra_ bomb, he went -with Lord Gambier to Copenhagen. In 1813, and again in 1816, he -performed excellent service in protecting British trade in Rio la Plata -and the neighbouring coasts. - -Admiral of the Blue James Whitley Deans Dundas, C.B., entered the Navy -in 1799, took part in the blockade of Alexandria in 1800, and served -with distinction in the North Sea, Baltic and Mediterranean. - -Admiral of the Blue Henry Hope, C.B., took part in the blockade of -Alexandria in 1800, and served in the Mediterranean. - -Admiral of the Blue the Hon. Sir Fleetwood Broughton Reynolds Pellew -performed long and gallant fighting services in the Dutch East Indies. - -Admiral of the Blue Sir Charles Napier, K.C.B., etc. etc., {38} had a -most distinguished fighting record in the West Indies and on the coast -of Syria. In 1841 he represented Marylebone in Parliament, in which -respect, as in others, his career resembled that of Lord Charles -Beresford. - -In 1854, Sir Charles Napier was appointed to the command of the great -fleet which sailed for the Baltic in the spring of that year. Admiral -Penrose Fitzgerald, who received his nomination to the Navy from Sir -Charles Napier, and who served in the second Baltic expedition of the -following year, makes some instructive observations in respect of the -treatment of Sir Charles Napier by the authorities. - -"... The issue was really decided in the Black Sea, and both Baltic -expeditions were, practically speaking, failures. The admirals were -told by the Government that they were not to attack stone forts with -their wooden ships, and were then censured by the same Government for -doing nothing, when there was really nothing else to do. Sir Charles -Napier, who commanded the British Baltic fleet in the summer of 1854, -was shamefully treated by the politicians, and, being a hot tempered -old gentleman, he couldn't stand it. He got into Parliament as member -for Southwark and gave them back as good as they gave.... It was the -old story--the politicians shunting the blame on to the soldiers or the -sailors when they fail to achieve such success as is expected of them, -but quite ready to take credit to themselves for their magnificent -strategy and foresight when it turns out the other way.... When Sir -Charles was peremptorily ordered to haul down his flag, as a punishment -for not disobeying orders, he was superseded in command by Admiral -Dundas, who had been a Lord of the Admiralty in 1854...." - -Sir Charles Napier requested the Prime Minister, Lord Palmerston, to -grant an inquiry into his case. He then addressed the following letter -to Lord Palmerston:--"I sent your Lordship my case, which I requested -you to lay before the Cabinet, but you have not favoured me with a -reply. I am aware of the various occupations of your Lordship, but -{39} still there ought to be some consideration for an old officer who -has served his country faithfully, and who has held an important -command. Had my papers been examined by your Cabinet, and justice -done, instead of dismissing me, and appointing one of the Lords of the -Admiralty my successor, you would have dismissed Sir James Graham and -his Admiralty, for treachery to me." (_Life of Sir Charles Napier_, by -General Elers Napier. Quoted by Admiral Penrose Fitzgerald, in -_Memories of the Sea_.) - -Sir Charles Napier, remarks Admiral Fitzgerald, "thus gave his wary -enemies a chance of accusing him of disrespect towards those in -authority." - -Admiral of the Blue Phipps Hornby, C.B., was promoted acting-lieutenant -from the _Victory_, flagship of Lord Nelson, to the _Excellent_, 74. -As captain of the _Volage_, 22, he received a gold medal from the -Admiralty for gallant conduct in the action off Lissa of March, 1811, -when a British squadron of 156 guns and 859 men defeated after six -hours' action a Franco-Venetian force of 284 guns and 2655 men. - -Such is the tale of the admirals of the Red, White and Blue in the year -1858-9. Several of them had actually served in Nelson's ships; the -most of them had served under Nelson's command, when Lord Charles -Beresford joined the Navy. - -In the same year, the number of officers receiving pensions for wounds -on service was 104. - - Admirals . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 - Vice-admirals . . . . . . . . . . 10 - Rear-admirals . . . . . . . . . . 4 - Captains . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 - Commanders . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 - Lieutenants . . . . . . . . . . . 24 - Masters . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 - Surgeons . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 - Mates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 - Second masters . . . . . . . . . . 1 - Paymasters . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 - --- - 104 - === - -{40} - -The total number of men in the Royal Navy in 1858-9 was 53,700: 38,700 -seamen, 15,000 Marines. In 1912-13, the total number was 137,500: -118,700 seamen, 15,800 Marines. In 1810, the number of seamen and -Marines was 145,000: 113,600 seamen, 31,400 Marines. - - - - -{41} - -CHAPTER IV - -THE SHIP OF UNHAPPY MEMORY - -I did not like the _Defence_. I thought her a dreadful ship. After -the immaculate decks, the glittering perfection, the spirit and fire -and pride of the _Marlborough_, the "flagship of the world," I was -condemned to a slovenly, unhandy, tin kettle which could not sail -without steam; which had not even any royal-masts; and which took -minutes instead of seconds to cross topgallant yards, a disgusting -spectacle to a midshipman of the _Marlborough_. Instead of the -splendid sun and blue waters of the Mediterranean, there were the cold -skies and the dirty seas of the Channel. I wrote to my father asking -him to remove me from the Navy. - -The _Defence_ was one of the iron-built, or iron-cased, armoured, -heavily rigged, steam-driven, broadside-fire vessels launched from 1860 -to 1866. They represented the transition from the Old Navy to the New, -inasmuch as they retained large sailing powers and broadside fire, -combining with these traditional elements, iron construction and steam -propulsion. They were the _Warrior_, _Black Prince_, _Defence_, -_Resistance_, _Hector_, _Valiant_, _Achilles_, _Minotaur_, _Agincourt_, -and _Northumberland_. The _Defence_, launched in 1861, was (in modern -terms) of 6270 tons displacement, 2540 h.p., 11.6 knots speed, carried -22 guns, and had a complement of 450 men. She was commanded by Captain -Augustus Phillimore, and was one of the Channel Squadron, which, in the -year 1863, was commanded by Rear-Admiral Robert Smart, K.H. - -{42} - - CHANNEL SQUADRON - (NAVY LIST, 1863, DESCRIPTION) - - Rate H.P. Name Guns Tons Com. Officer Complement - - 2nd S. 800 Revenge (Flag) 73 3322 Capt. Charles 800 - Fellowes - Iron-cased - ship S. 1250 Warrior 70 6109 Capt. Hon. A. 704 - A. Cochrane, - C.B. - " S. 1250 Black Prince 40 6109 Capt. J. F. A. 704 - Wainwright - " S. 600 Defence 16 3720 Capt. Augustus 457 - Phillimore - " S. 600 Resistance 16 3710 Capt. W. C. 457 - Chamberlain - Gunboat S. 60 Trinculo 2 --- Tender to 24 - Revenge - -The Channel Squadron at that time was employed in cruising round the -coasts of the British Isles, in order to familiarise people on shore -with the Fleet. In later life it fell to me, as commander-in-chief, to -conduct similar cruises, of whose object I thoroughly approve. - -The _Warrior_ and _Black Prince_, in particular, were stately and noble -vessels whose beauty was a delight to behold. Their great spread of -sail, their long hulls and yacht bows, the vast expanse of flush wooden -decks, their solidity and grace, set them among the finest ships ever -built. - -I was somewhat consoled in the _Defence_ by being placed in charge of -the cutter; in which I succeeded, by a small feat of seamanship, in -earning the rare commendation of the first lieutenant. I was about to -sail off to the Fleet from Devonport, when I discovered that the yard -of the dipping lug was sprung. This was serious, as it was blowing -fairly hard. Fortunately, I had one of those knives so dear to -boyhood, containing a small saw and other implements; and with this -weapon I shaped a batten and fitted it to the yard, woolded it with -spun-yarn and wedged it tight. I did not expect it to hold; but, -double-reefing the sail, I put off. All {43} the way to the ship I had -an eye on the yard, and it held. Of course I was late on board; and -the first lieutenant declined to believe my explanation of the delay -until he had had the yard hoisted on deck. Then he was kind enough to -say, "Well, my boy, if you can do a thing like that, there's hope for -you yet." Every little ray of hope is worth having. - -But by reason of my love for the cutter, I fell into trouble. In the -dockyard at Devonport, there stood a mast newly fitted with beautiful -new white signal halliards, the very thing for the cutter. I should -explain that, as we were kept very short of stores, stealing in the -Service from the Service for the Service, used to be a virtue. There -was once an admiral who stole a whole ship's propeller in order to melt -the brass from it; and it was another admiral who boasted to me of his -brother officer's achievement. Of course, no one ever steals anything -nowadays; nothing is ever missing out of store; and no midshipman would -dream of attempting to convey signal halliards from the dockyard into -his boat. - -But I did. I brought an end of the halliard into an adjacent shed, -concealed in which I revolved swiftly upon my axis, winding the rope -about me. Then I put on an overcoat, borrowed for the purpose. But my -figure presented an appearance so unnaturally rotund that a policeman -experienced in diagnosing these sudden metamorphoses, compelled me to -divest and to revolve, unwinding, in the public eye. He also reported -me for stealing Government stores. "Zeal, all zeal, Mr. Easy!" - -It was during my time in the _Defence_ that I was so fortunate as to be -enabled to save two lives. On one occasion, the ship was lying in the -Mersey, and visitors were on board. A party of these was leaving the -ship, when their boat was slewed round by the strong tide, and one of -them, a big, heavy man, fell into the water. I dived after him. -Luckily there was a boat-keeper in the galley secured astern of the -ship. He held out a boat-hook, {44} which I caught with one hand, -holding up my man with the other. - -I received the gold medal of the Liverpool Shipwreck Humane Society, -and the bronze medal of the Royal Humane Society. The name of the man -who fell overboard was Richardson. More than forty years afterwards, -the son of Mr. Richardson sent me a kind letter, enclosing a photograph -of his father, who had died in 1882, nineteen years after his rescue. - -"My mother," wrote Mr. J. Richardson, "was in very great terror, as my -father could not swim a stroke. He was a very fine man, and this made -your task you so quickly undertook not any the easier.... The clothes -he wore on that memorable occasion were, after their thorough wetting, -too small for him to wear again, so they were cut down for my elder -brothers, and were called by them their 'Channel Fleet' clothes, and -jolly proud they were to wear them too." - -The boys' sentiment is pleasing, whether it arose from the exciting -fact that Mr. Richardson had fallen overboard in them--a thing which -might happen to any gentleman--or from his having in them been picked -out by an officer (however junior) of the Channel Fleet. - -The second occasion when I was successful in saving a man from drowning -was in Plymouth Sound. A string of boats from the Fleet carrying -liberty men was pulling ashore, when a shore-boat crossed their bows -and was run down by the leading boat. I jumped in and held up one of -the passengers; and was again awarded the bronze medal of the Royal -Humane Society. - -In the _Defence_, as in my other ships, my Service transgressions were -few and venial, as in the case of the signal halliards. My troubles -arose from my intervals of relaxation on shore. It is now so long ago -that perhaps I may without imprudence relate a sad episode in which I -fell under the condemnation of the law, with all that attendant -publicity which--as one journalist rather unctuously remarked at the -time--is so often worse than the penalty. - -{45} - -"_Defence_, PLYMOUTH - -"MY DEAREST FATHER,--I am writing to you at once to tell you what a sad -scrape I have just come out of. On Friday night I was with some other -wild fellows on the outside of a cab, pea-shooting, myself the worst, -when unfortunately I hit a lady who was leaning on a gentleman's arm in -the face. The man chased us and with a good deal of difficulty, caught -us; we were then taken to the station-house, and given into custody. -The hotel-keeper we always go to, very kindly bailed us for the night. -In the morning we went to the station-house according to promise; and -were tried; the result was my paying £2, 10s. and costs, or one month's -imprisonment, and another £1, or 7 days. The other two got off, no -peas being found upon them. You will see all about it in the papers I -am sending you. I am writing to you in such a hurry, as I am afraid -you might believe the papers if you saw them before my letter. I most -_solemnly swear_ to you on my honour that I was _quite_ sober the whole -of the day that this took place. And as for behaving unbecoming a -gentleman in the Court, I certainly did laugh, but the judge made me, -and all did so, as he was chaffing all the time. The reason I did not -apologise to the man was because he swore on his oath that I was drunk; -which was a lie. I had been dining with Hutchinson (see in the paper), -who was giving a dinner as he was leaving the ship. All I drank was -two glasses of Moselle. The papers I sent you are Radical so of course -they run me down.... All that remains to be said is, I hope you will -look upon it as a boyish lark and not as a disgraceful action ... and -will you send me 5 pounds as I have but 3 shillings left; and I must -have some money to pay mess, wine, etc. etc. So now write soon to your -prodigal son, - -"CHARLIE BERESFORD" - - -I received in reply a severe but affectionate reproof from my father. - -The gentlemen of the Press took upon themselves to {46} improve the -occasion, having first taken care, of course, to describe the affair as -a great deal worse than it was. "Let this lesson be taken," says one -kind journalist, "it may be a guide and a warning for the future. The -days are gone--gone for ever--when the pranks of a Waterford would be -tolerated; but while we would hope his follies are lost, we would -likewise hope that his manly, frank, chivalrous nature is still -inherited by his kinsmen." - -Another reporter did me the justice to record that, on being called on -for my defence, I said: "I certainly do apologise if I did strike the -lady, because it was not my intention to do so; but I certainly don't -apologise for striking Mr. Yates." I trust he bears me no malice. - -Yet another guardian of public morals observed that "his Worship, in -announcing the penalties, called attention to the inequalities of the -law, which exacted fines for the same offence alike from the man with -whom sovereigns were plentiful as hours and the man whose night's spree -must cost him a week's fasting." Had his Worship taken the trouble to -refer to the scale of pay granted by a generous country to midshipmen, -comparing it with the scale of rations and the price we paid for them, -and had he (in addition) enjoyed the privilege of perusing the -financial clauses of the letter addressed to me more in sorrow than in -anger by my father, he might perhaps have modified his exordium. - -As an illustration of the strict supervision exercised by the senior -officers, I may record that I received--in addition to my other -penalties and visitations--a severe reproof from Captain Stewart, my -old captain in the _Marlborough_. - -The Channel Fleet visited Teneriffe. It was the first iron fleet ever -seen in the West Indies. - -In the cutting-out action off Teneriffe, Nelson lost his arm, and -several ensigns of the British boats were captured by the French. Ever -since, it has been a tradition in the Navy that the flags ought to be -recaptured. A party of bluejackets did once succeed in taking them -from the {47} cathedral and carrying them on board; but the admiral -ordered their restoration. They were then placed high up on the wall, -out of reach, where I saw them. We held a meeting in the gun-room of -the _Defence_ to consider the best method of taking the flags. But the -admiral, who was of course aware that all junior officers cherished the -hope of recovering the relics, issued orders that no such attempt was -to be made. - -I was invited by an old friend of my father, a religious old gentleman -living in Cornwall, to a couple of days' rabbit-shooting. I was -overjoyed at the opportunity, and was the object of the envy of my -brother midshipmen. Arriving after lunch, I was brought into the great -room where the old gentleman was sitting in an arm-chair, with his -feet, which were swathed in masses of cotton-wool, resting on -gout-rests. Near him was a turn-table laden with books. - -"Don't come near me, my boy," he shouted, as I entered. "I am very -glad to see you, but don't come near me. I have a terribly painful -attack of gout, the worst I ever had in my life. Go and sit down on -that chair over there." - -With the breadth of the polished floor between us, we chatted for a -while; and then the old gentleman, pointing to the table of books, -asked me to give him a particular volume. - -"Now be very careful," said he. - -Full of ardour, delighted to think that I should now escape to the -keeper and the rabbits, I jumped up, ran to the table, my foot slipped -on the parquet, and I fell face forward with my whole weight upon the -poor old man's feet, smashing both foot-rests. The agonising pain shot -him into the air and he fell on my back. I have never heard such -language before or since. As he rolled off me, he shouted: - -"Ring the bell, you ---- ----!" - -In came the butler. - -"Take that ---- ---- out of my house! Send him back to his ---- ship! -Never let me see his ---- face again!" screamed my host. - -{48} - -So I departed in the dog-cart. It was many a long day ere I heard the -last of my rabbit-shooting from my messmates. - -A few months afterwards, when I had been less than a year in the -_Defence_, Rear-Admiral Charles Eden appointed me to the _Clio_ as -senior midshipman. He said he wanted me to learn responsibility. - - - -NOTE - -_The New Ships_.--The predecessors of the _Defence_ and her class were -wooden vessels plated with iron armour. The first iron-built, -armoured, sea-going British vessel was the _Warrior_, launched in 1860. -She was laid down in the previous year, in which Lord Charles Beresford -entered the Navy. Several wooden ships (_Royal Oak_, _Caledonia_, -_Prince Consort_, _Ocean_, _Royal Alfred_, _Repulse_, _Favorite_, -_Research_) were converted into armoured ships during their -construction. These were launched from 1862 to 1864. For some years -the Admiralty built wooden armoured ships and iron armoured ships -simultaneously. From 1860 to 1866, ten iron-built, armoured, sail and -steam ships were launched: _Warrior_, _Black Prince_, _Defence_, -_Resistance_, _Hector_, _Achilles_, _Valiant_, _Minotaur_, _Agincourt_, -_Northumberland_. In 1864 and 1865, five wooden-built, armoured ships -were launched: _Lord Clyde_, _Lord Warden_, _Zealous_, _Pallas_, -_Enterprise_. The _Royal Sovereign_, launched in 1857 as a wooden -line-of-battle ship, was converted in 1862 to an armoured vessel and -was equipped with four turrets. She was thus the first turret-ship in -the British Navy. The next step was to group the guns in a central -armoured battery, and to belt the ship with armour along the -water-line. At the same time, more turret-ships were constructed. -Earnest controversy was waged among naval authorities as to what were -the most important qualities of the fighting ship, to which other -qualities must be partially sacrificed; for, broadly speaking, all -warships represent a compromise {49} among speed, defence and -offence--or engines, armour and guns. The controversy still continues. -The disaster which befell the _Captain_ decided, at least, the -low-freeboard question in so far as heavily rigged sailing steam -vessels were concerned, for the Captain, a rigged low-freeboard -turret-ship, capsized on 6th September, 1870. (_The Royal Navy_, vol. -i., Laird Clowes.) - -Lord Charles Beresford, entering the Navy at the beginning of the -changes from sails to steam, from wood to iron, and from iron to steel, -learned, like his contemporaries, the whole art of the sailing ship -sailor, added to it the skill of the sailor of the transition period, -and again added to that the whole body of knowledge of the seaman of -the New Navy. He saw the days when the sailing officers hated steam -and ignored it so far as possible; as in the case of the admiral who, -entering harbour under steam and sail, gave his sailing orders but -neglected the engineer, and so fouled the wharf, and said, "Bless me, I -forgot I was in a steamship!" - -Admiral Penrose Fitzgerald, who entered the Navy five years before Lord -Charles Beresford, describes the transitional period in his _Memories -of the Sea_. Speaking of the _Hercules_, one of the new -central-battery, armoured-waterline ironclads, to which he was -appointed first lieutenant when she was first commissioned in 1868, -Admiral Fitzgerald writes:--"The _Hercules_ was the most powerful -ironclad afloat, in this or any other country. She carried 18-ton -guns--muzzle-loaders--and nine inches of armour, though this was only -in patches; but she had a good deal of six-inch armour, and her -water-line and battery were well protected, as against ordnance of that -date. She was full-rigged, with the spars and sails of a -line-of-battle ship, and she could steam fourteen knots--on a pinch, -and could sail a _little_. In fact she was the masterpiece of Sir -Edward Reed's genius. - -"Up to the advent of the _Hercules_ the three great five-masted ships -of 10,000 tons, the _Minotaur_, _Agincourt_ and {50} _Northumberland_, -had been considered the most powerful ships in the British Navy, and -probably in the world, and Sir Edward Reed's triumph was, that he built -a ship of about 8500 tons which carried a more powerful armament, -thicker armour, fifty feet shorter and thus much handier, steamed the -same speed, and I was going to say--sailed better; but I had better -say--did not sail quite so badly; and it must ever be borne in mind -that at this transition stage in the development of the Navy, our -rulers at Whitehall insisted that our ships of all classes should have -sail power suitable to their tonnage. 'For,' said they, 'the engines -might break down, and then where would you be?'" (_Memories of the -Sea_, Admiral Penrose Fitzgerald, chap. xiv.) - - - - -{51} - -CHAPTER V - -THE MIDSHIPMAN OF 1864 - -I wish I could convey to my readers something of the pride and delight -which a sailor feels in his ship. But who that has never had the luck -to be a deep-water sailor, can understand his joy in the noble vessel, -or the uplifting sense of his control over her matchless and splendid -power, born of a knowledge of her every rope and sail and timber, and -of an understanding of her behaviour and ability. For every ship has -her own spirit, her own personality. You may build two ships or twenty -upon the same design, line for line the same, and each will develop her -own character. As there are no two people alike, so there are no two -ships the same. - -What can be more glorious than a ship getting under way? She quivers -like a sentient thing amid the whole moving tumultuous lusty life. Men -are racing aloft; other men, their feet pounding upon the white decks, -are running away with the ropes; the ringing commands and the shouting -fill the air; the wind strikes with a salt and hearty sting; and the -proud and beautiful creature rises to the lift of the sea. Doctor, -paymaster, idlers and all used to run up on deck to witness that -magnificent spectacle, a full-rigged ship getting under sail. As for -me, I blessed my luck when I returned from the _Defence_ to a sailing -ship. - -The _Clio_ was a corvette pierced for 22 guns, of 1472 tons burthen, -and 400 h.p. The screw was hoisted when she was under sail, which was -nearly all the time. She was an excellent sailer, doing fourteen to -sixteen knots. - -{52} - -The midshipmen's mess was so small, that there was no room for chairs. -We sat on lockers, and in order to reach the farther side, we must walk -across the table. One of our amusements in this tiny cabin was racing -cockroaches, which were numerous. We used to drop a bit of melted -tallow from a purser's dip upon their backs, plant in it a piece of -spun-yarn, light the spun-yarn, and away they would go from one end of -the table to the other. There was once a cockroach--but not in the -_Clio_--which escaped, its light still burning, and set the ship on -fire. - -I began in the _Clio_ by immediately assuming that responsibility of -senior midshipman desired by Rear-Admiral Charles Eden. I purchased -the stores for the gunroom mess, expending £67, accounting for every -penny, with the most sedulous precision. We paid a shilling a day for -messing, and the stores were to supplement our miserable rations. They -were so bad that I wonder we kept our health; indeed, only the fittest -survived. - -We sailed from Portsmouth in August, 1864. It was my first long -voyage. It is curious that the first week of a long voyage goes very -slowly, and the rest of the time very fast. I used to keep the first -dog watch and to relieve the officer in the morning watch. In the keen -pleasure of handling the ship--loosing sails, sheeting them home, -reefing, furling, and all the rest of the work of a sailor--I regained -all my old delight in the sea which I had lost in the _Defence_. -Keeping watch under sail required unremitting vigilance, perpetual -activity, and constant readiness. The officer of the watch must be -everywhere, with an eye to everything, forward and aft; while the -helmsman handling the wheel under the break of the poop, keeps the -weather leach just lifting. - -The memory of the continuous hard work of the daily routine, makes the -sober and pleasant background to the more lively recollection of -events, which were after all but the natural reaction from the long -monotony of sea life. - -It was my duty to preserve order in the gun-room; and a lively lot I -had in charge. One of the midshipmen, a {53} big fellow, was something -of a bully. He used to persecute a youngster smaller than himself, and -one day the boy came to me and asked what he could do to end the -tyranny. I thought that this particular bully was also a coward--by no -means an inevitable combination--and I advised his victim, next time he -was bullied, to hit the bully on the point of the nose as hard as he -could, and I promised that I would support him in whatever came -afterwards. He did as he was told; whereupon the bully came to me with -a complaint that a junior midshipman had struck him. I formed a ring -and put the two to settle the matter with their fists. The little boy -was a plucky youngster, and clever with his fists. He knocked out his -enemy, and had peace thereafter. - -I crossed the Line for the first time. In going through the usual -ceremonies, being ducked and held under in the big tank, I was as -nearly drowned as ever in my life, being hauled out insensible. We -towed out the _Turtle_, a Government vessel, bound for Ascension with -stores. While towing, it is necessary to wear instead of tacking, for -fear of coming on top of the tow. But the first lieutenant thought he -would tack; so he tried to go about. There was a gale of wind; the -ship missed stays, and came right on top of the unfortunate _Turtle_, -dismasting and nearly sinking her. I was sent on board her to give -assistance; and I made excellent use of the opportunity to collect from -the _Turtle's_ stores many useful little ship's fittings of which the -_Clio_ was in need. We took the _Turtle_ into Ascension, where the -midshipmen landed, collected the eggs of the "wideawake" gulls, and -bottled them for future consumption. - -We put in at the Falkland Islands in November. The population -consisted of ex-Royal Marines and their families. It was considered -necessary to populate the Islands; and we always send for the Royal -Marines in any difficulty. There were also South American guachos and -ranchers. The governor came on board to ask for the captain's help. -The governor wanted a man to be hanged, and his {54} trouble was that -he was afraid to hang him. The prisoner was a guacho, who had murdered -a rancher, whom he had cast into the river and then shot to death. The -governor was afraid that if he executed the murderer, the other guachos -would rise in rebellion. So he wanted the captain to bring the -murderer on board and hang him to the yard-arm. The captain refused -this request; but he offered to hang him on shore, a proposal to which -the governor agreed. The boatswain's mate piped: "Volunteers for a -hangman--fall in." To my surprise, half the ship's company fell in. -The sergeant of Marines was chosen to be executioner. He took a party -on shore, and they constructed a curious kind of box, like a wardrobe, -having a trap-door in the top, above which projected the beam. The man -dropped through the trap door into the box and was no more seen, until -the body was taken out under cover of night and buried. - -The shooting on that island was naturally an intense delight to a boy -of my age. We midshipmen used to go away shooting the upland geese. I -managed to bring aboard more than the others, because I cut off the -wings, heads and necks, cleaned the birds, and secured them by toggling -the legs together, so that I was able to sling four birds over each -shoulder. The whole island being clothed in high pampas grass, it was -impossible to see one's way. Officers used to be lost in the -Falklands. The body of a paymaster who was thus lost was not -discovered for eight years. The cold induced sleep, and a sleeping man -might freeze to death. - -Admiral Penrose Fitzgerald, in his _Memories of the Sea_, relating his -experience as a midshipman in the Falkland Islands, says, "Everybody -has heard of the Falkland Island geese, and they may be seen to-day in -St. James's Park. The upland geese--as they are generally called--are -excellent eating; but there are also immense numbers and different -varieties of other geese and these are known as 'kelp geese.' Alas! -our ornithological education had been so {55} sadly neglected that we -did not know the difference with the feathers on, though we soon found -it out, when we came to cook and eat them. All the birds we shot were -kelp geese, about as fishy as cormorants; but they were not wasted, for -we gave them to our Marine servants, who ate them all and declared them -to be excellent. 'Some flavour about them,' as they said." - -While we lay at the Falkland Islands a merchant ship came in whose -whole company was down with scurvy. When I joined the Navy, -lime-juice, the prophylactic, was served out under the regulation; but -in the mercantile marine scurvy was still prevalent. It is a most -repulsive disease. The sufferer rots into putrid decay while he is yet -alive. If you pressed a finger upon his flesh the dent would remain. -He is so sunk in lethargy that if he were told the ship was sinking he -would decline to move. His teeth drop out and his hair falls off. It -is worthy of remembrance that the use of lime-juice as a prophylactic -was discovered, or at least largely introduced, by Captain James Cook -the navigator; whose statue, erected at Whitby, I had the privilege of -unveiling in 1912. Historically, I believe that Captain Lancaster, -commanding the _Dragon_, in the service of the Honourable East India -Company in the time of James I, was the first to cure scurvy by -administering three spoonfuls of lemon to each patient, with his -breakfast. - -From the Falkland Islands we proceeded to the Straits of Magellan, -where the natives of Terra del Fuego came off to us in boats. They -were totally naked, and were smeared all over with grease. It was -snowing, and they had made a fire in the boats; and when the sea -splashed upon the fire and put it out, they beat the sea in anger with -their paddles. - -At the convict settlement there used to be a box to hold mails fixed on -the top of a pole. The letters were taken on board the next ship -passing homeward bound. I posted a letter addressed to my mother, who -received it in due time. - -{56} - -We dropped anchor off Port Mercy. It came on to blow a hurricane. We -had two anchors down ahead, struck lower yards and topmast, and kept -the screw moving to ease the cables. Without the aid of steam, we -should have been blown away. Even so, the captain became anxious and -decided to put out to sea. We battened down and went out under -trysails and forestaysail. Instantly we were plunged into a -mountainous sea, and the wind whipped the canvas out of us. We set -close-reefed foretopsail. A tremendous squall struck us, we shipped -water and were blown upon our beam ends. So strong was the wind that -each successive blast listed the ship right over. The captain then -determined to run back to Port Mercy. The master set the course, as he -thought, to clear the headland; and we steamed at full speed. I was -standing half-way up the bridge ladder holding on to the man-rope in a -violent squall of hail and snow, the hail cutting my cheeks open, when -I saw land right ahead. The fact was that the master had mistaken his -course, and the ship was driving straight on shore, where every man -would have perished. I reported my observation to the first -lieutenant, who merely remarked that it was probable that the master -knew better than I did. But presently he too saw the high rocks -looming ahead through the smother of snow and spray, and the course was -altered just in time. The wind was on the port beam; we edged into it -out to sea; and so were able to clear the headland and get under the -lee of the land. The first lieutenant afterwards handsomely admitted -that it was a good job I was standing where I was "with my eyes open" -at the critical moment. It was in the height of this emergency, that I -first heard the pipe go "Save ship." - -We proceeded to Valparaiso, where the ship put in to refit. At -Valparaiso, we were able to get horses, and we organised paper-chases. - -It was about this time that the incident of the Impresario occurred. -He was conducting the orchestra from the stage itself, being seated in -a hole cut in the stage, so that his legs {57} rested upon a little -platform below. The refreshment room was underneath the stage, and the -Impresario's legs projected downwards from the ceiling into the room, -where were two or three midshipmen and myself. The temptation was -irresistible. We grasped the legs; hauled on them; and down came the -Impresario. Overhead, the music faltered and died away. - -From Valparaiso we proceeded to the Sandwich Islands, whence we were -ordered to take Queen Emma to Panama, on her way to England to see -Queen Victoria. Queen Emma was born Miss Emma Booker. She married -Kamehameha IV in 1856. We took the Queen on board with one native lady -as her attendant. The natives were devoted to their queen, and they -insisted on loading the ship with presents for her. They brought pigs, -masses of yams, sweet potatoes, water-melons and other fruit. The pigs -were housed forward on the main deck, and the other offerings were -piled on the rigging and hammock nettings and about the davit guys, so -that the ship looked like an agricultural show when we sailed for -Panama. - -We sighted a schooner flying signals of distress. The life-boat was -called away to go to her assistance. I was in charge of the life-boat. -When a boat is called away at sea, the crew of course take their places -in her before she is lowered. The whole operation, from the sound of -the pipe to the moment the boat touches the water, occupies no more -than a few seconds in a smart ship. There was a little sea-way on, and -the movement of the boat caused a jerk to the falls, unhooking the -safety catch, and dislodging an enormous water-melon, which fell -through about eighteen feet upon the top of my head. I was knocked -nearly senseless. It was the melon that split upon the impact, -deluging me with red pulp; but I thought that it was my skull which had -cracked, and that they were my brains which were spoiling my uniform, -and I remember wondering that my brains should be so queerly and -vividly coloured. - -But I recovered from the shock in a few minutes. {58} Boarding the -schooner, I found she was short of water. But the remarkable thing -about that schooner was that although she carried a cargo of six -thousand pounds in Mexican dollars, they had only four men on board, -all told--an easy prize for a pirate. - -After touching at Acapulco, which was all heat and flies, we landed the -Queen of the Sandwich Islands at Panama. - -Some years afterwards, I went to call upon her Majesty. In all my -voyages, I carried with me a set of tandem harness; and on this -occasion, I hired a light cart and a couple of ponies, and drove them -tandem. Approaching the royal residence, I took a corner too sharply, -the cart capsized, I was flung out, and found myself sitting on the -ground in the Queen's presence. - -But before we quitted the Sandwich Islands, an event occurred (of which -I was the humble and unwitting instrument) which nearly brought about -what are called international complications. I should explain that -feeling ran pretty high between the English and the Americans in the -Sandwich Islands with regard to the American Civil War, which was then -waging. It was none of our business, but we of the _Clio_ chose to -sympathise with the South. Now that these unhappy differences have -been so long composed, there can be no harm in referring to them. But -it was not resentment against the North which inspired my indiscretion. -It was the natural desire to win a bet. A certain lady--her name does -not matter--bet me that I would not ride down a steep pass in the -hills, down which no horse had yet been ridden. I took the bet and I -won it. Then the same fair lady bet me--it was at a ball--that I would -not pull down the American flag. That emblem was painted on wood upon -an escutcheon fixed over the entrance to the garden of the Consulate. -I took that bet, too, and won it. - -Having induced two other midshipmen to come with me, we went under -cover of night to the Consulate. I climbed upon the backs of my -accomplices, leaped up, caught hold of the escutcheon, and brought the -whole thing down upon {59} us. Then we carried the trophy on board in -a shore-boat. Unfortunately the boatman recognised what it was, and -basely told the American consul, who was naturally indignant, and who -insisted that the flag should be nailed up again in its place. I had -no intention of inflicting annoyance, and had never considered how -serious might be the consequences of a boyish impulse. My captain very -justly said that as I had pulled down the flag I must put it up again, -and sent me with a couple of carpenters on shore. We replaced the -insulted emblem of national honour, to the deep delight of an admiring -crowd. The _Clio_ put to sea. We heard afterwards that the American -Government dispatched a couple of ships of war to capture me, but I do -not think the report was true. - -Having landed the Queen of the Sandwich Islands at Panama, as I have -said, about the middle of June, 1865, we left the Bay early in July, -and proceeded to Vancouver, arriving there in the middle of August. -There we remained until early in December. - -I was placed in charge of a working party from the _Clio_, to cut a -trail through the virgin forest of magnificent timber with which the -island was then covered. I was pleased enough to receive an extra -shilling a day check-money. Where the flourishing town of Victoria now -stands, there were a few log huts, closed in by gigantic woods. When I -revisited the country recently, I found a tramway running along what -was once my trail, and I met several persons who remembered my having -helped to cut it, nearly fifty years before. - -I believe that Canada will eventually become the centre of the British -Empire; for the Canadians are a splendid nation, gifted with pluck, -enterprise and energy. - -The free forest life was bliss to a boy of my age. To tell the truth, -we were allowed to do pretty well what we liked in the _Clio_, which -was so easy-going a ship that she was nicknamed "the Privateer." We -used to go out fishing for salmon with the Indians, in their canoes, -using the {60} Indian hook made of shell. To this day the Indians fish -for salmon in canoes, using shell hooks. I made a trot, a night-line -with a hundred hooks, and hauled up a goodly quantity of fish every -morning. I remember that a party of midshipmen (of whom I was not one) -from another ship were playing cricket on the island, when a bear -suddenly walked out of the forest. The boys instantly ran for a gun -and found one in an adjacent cabin, but there were no bullets or caps. -So they filled up the weapon with stones from the beach. In the -meantime the bear had climbed a tree. The midshipmen levelled the gun -at him and fired it with a lucifer match. - -We used to go away into the forest deer-shooting, and on one occasion -we were lost for a day and a night. It was at this time that I made -the acquaintance of the celebrated Mr. Dunsmuir, who became a mayor and -a millionaire, simply because he slept one night in the forest--for the -sake of coolness. When he awoke in the morning, he found that he had -pillowed his head upon a lump of coal. He subsequently obtained an -enormous concession of land from the Government and amassed a huge -fortune in coal. Two of our lieutenants put money in the scheme. I -wrote at the time to my father, asking him to let me have a thousand -pounds to invest in the coal business. But he replied affectionately -but firmly that, until I ceased to exceed my allowance, he did not -think it right that I should embark in a gambling project. The two -lucky lieutenants were eventually bought out by Mr. Dunsmuir for a very -large sum of money. - -I was very happy in the _Clio_; but, for reasons, it was considered -expedient that I should be transferred to the _Tribune_. Accordingly, -I turned over to the _Tribune_ early in December, by the orders of my -constant friend, Admiral Charles Eden. He said it would do me good to -serve under Captain Lord Gillford. He was right. It did. - - - - -{61} - -CHAPTER VI - -STRICT SERVICE - -Captain Lord Gillford, afterwards Lord Clamwilliam, was one of the -finest seamen, and his ship was one of the smartest ships, in the -Service. The _Tribune_ was what we used to call a jackass frigate. -She was pierced for 31 guns, was of 1570 tons burthen, and 300 -h.p.--not that anything could ever induce the captain to use steam. - -Before I joined the _Tribune_, she had sprung her foremast so she went -up the Fraser River to cut a new spar out of he forest. Such things -were done in those days. But on the way up she grounded on the bar. -Everything--guns, coal, stores--was taken out of her; anchors were got -out; and every effort was made to warp her off. Still she would not -move. In this desperate pass, when every man in the ship, except one, -was hauling on the purchases, it is on record that when the chaplain -put his weight on the rope, away she came. The power of the man of God -is remembered even unto this day. Then the _Tribune_ sailed up the -river, and they cut a new spar, set it up and rigged it, and she came -home with it. - -Captain Lord Gillford prided himself on the speed of his ship under -sail. He had fitted her with all sorts of extra gear, such as they had -in the famous tea-clippers. His tacks and sheets were much thicker -than was usual; strengthening pieces were fitted to the sails; there -were gaffs for topgallant backstays, and extra braces. His order book -was a curiosity, Day after day it bore the same entry: "The course. -Carry sail." Sailing from Vancouver to Valparaiso, the _Tribune_ {62} -beat the _Sutlej_, another fine sailing ship commanded by another -first-class seaman, by two days. - -Captain Lord Gillford's orders were that sail should never be shortened -without his permission. One night when it was blowing hard I went down -to the captain's cabin to ask him if we might take in the topmast -studding-sail. The ship was then heeling over. The captain stuck one -leg out of his cot and put his foot against the side of the ship. "I -don't feel any water here yet," says he, and sent me on deck again. -The next moment the sail blew away. - -I can never be too grateful for the seamanship I learned on board the -_Tribune_. The captain lost no opportunity of teaching us. On one -occasion, for instance, we carried away the starboard foremast swifter, -in the fore rigging--the _Tribune_ had rope lower rigging. Captain -Lord Gillford, instead of splicing the shroud to the masthead pennants, -chose, in order to educate us, to strip the whole foremast to a -gantline. We got the whole of the lower rigging over the masthead -again. I was in the sailmaker's crew; and another midshipman and -myself, together with the forecastle men, fitted in the new shroud, -turned it in, wormed, parcelled, and served it; put it over the -masthead, and got the fore rigging all a-taunto again. I also helped -to make a new foresail and jib out of number one canvas, roped them, -put the clews in, and completed the job. Lord Gillford's object was to -teach those under him to carry out the work in the proper shipshape -manner. The sailmaker's crew, among whom was another midshipman, named -Morrison, and myself, numbered 15 or 20 men, including able seamen, and -we were all as happy as possible. We were taught by one of the best -sailmakers in the Service, who was named Flood. We always worked in a -sailmaker's canvas jumper and trousers made by ourselves. I could cut -out and make a seaman's canvas working suit, jumper and trousers, in 30 -minutes, using the sailmaker's stitch of four stitches to the inch. - -I had a complete sailmaker's bag with every sailmaker's tool -necessary--serving and roping mallets, jiggers, seaming {63} and roping -palms, all-sized marling-spikes, fids, seam-rubbers, sail-hooks, -grease-pot, seaming and roping twine, etc. etc. - -Morrison and I worked together at everything. We turned in new boats' -falls, replaced lanyards in wash-deck buckets, as well as taking our -turn at all tricks sailmaker's crew. We put in new clews to a topsail -and course. We roped a jib and other fore-and-aft sails. Both of -these jobs require great care and practice, and both of them we had to -do two or three times before we got them right. A sailmaker knows how -difficult it is to keep the lay of the rope right in roping a sail. We -used also to go aloft and repair sick seams in the sails to avoid -unbending. - -Captain Lord Gillford himself could cut out a sail, whether -fore-and-aft or square. I have heard him argue with Flood as to the -amount of goring to be allowed, and Lord Gillford was always right. It -was he who put it into my head to try to teach myself all that I could, -by saying, "If a man is a lubber over a job, you ought to be able to -_show_ him how to do it, not _tell_ him how to do it." - -We were never so proud as when Lord Gillford sent for us and told us -that we had made a good job of roping the new jib. Among other things, -I learned from the "snob," as the shoemaker was called, to welt and -repair boots. In after years, I made a portmanteau, which lasted for a -long time, for my old friend, Chief Engineer Roffey; and I made many -shooting and fishing bags for my brother officers. - -Merely for the sake of knowing how to do and how not to do a thing, in -later years I have chipped a boiler (a devil of a job), filled -coal-sacks, trimmed bunkers, stoked fires and driven engines. - -We used up all our spare canvas in the _Tribune_; and I remember that -on one occasion we were obliged to patch the main-royal with a -mail-bag, so that the main-royal bore the legend "Letters for England" -on it thereafter. - -While in the _Tribune_, two misfortunes occurred to me on the same day. -As we all know, misfortunes never come singly. The sailmaker had -reported me for skylarking; and it {64} occurred to me that if he was -going to put me in the report, he might as well have a better reason -for that extreme action. I therefore rove a line attached to a -sailmaker's needle through the holes of the bench upon which he sat. -When he seated himself to begin his work, I jerked the line, and he -leaped into the air with a loud cry. That was my first misfortune. -The second was entirely due to the rude and thoughtless conduct of -another midshipman, who, in passing me as I sat at my sailmaker's -bench, industriously working, tilted me over. I took up the first -thing which was handy, which happened to be a carpenter's chisel, and -hurled it at his retreating figure. It stuck and quivered in a portion -of his anatomy which is (or was) considered by schoolmasters as -designed to receive punishment. I had, of course, no intention of -hurting him. But I was reported for the second time that day. I was -put on watch and watch for a week, a penance which involved being four -hours on and four hours off, my duties having to be done as usual -during the watch off in the daytime. - -We sailed from Vancouver early in December, 1865. On 2nd January I was -promoted to be acting sub-lieutenant. I find that Captain Lord -Gillford endorsed my certificate with the statement that Lord Charles -Beresford had conducted himself "with sobriety, diligence, attention, -and was always obedient to command; and I have been much pleased with -the zealous manner in which he has performed his duties." - -We arrived at Valparaiso towards the end of January. I continued to -discharge my duties in the _Tribune_ until the middle of February, when -I was transferred to the _Sutlej_. - -I was as happy on board the _Tribune_ as I had been in the -_Marlborough_ and the _Clio_, and for the same reason: the splendid -seamanship and constant sailorising. - -[Illustration: THE OFFICERS OF H.M.S. "SUTLEJ," 1865. (THE AUTHOR IS -THE SECOND FIGURE ON THE LEFT OF THE CAPSTAN)] - -The _Sutlej_ was a steam frigate pierced for guns, of 3066 tons and 500 -h.p., flagship of the Pacific station. Before I joined her, the -commander-in-chief of the station was Admiral Kingcome, who had (as we -say) come in through {65} the hawse-pipe. It was the delight of this -queer old admiral to beat the drum for night-quarters himself. He used -to steal the drum, and trot away with it, rub-a-dub all along the lower -deck, bending double beneath the hammocks of the sleeping seamen. On -one of these occasions--so runs the yarn--a burly able seaman thrust -his bare legs over the edge of his hammock, clipped the admiral under -the shoulders, swung him to and fro, and, with an appropriate but -unquotable objurgation, dispatched him forward with a kick. - -Such (in a word) was the condition of the flagship to which -Rear-Admiral the Honourable Joseph Denman succeeded, after the -enjoyment of twenty-five years' profound peace in the command of the -Queen's yacht. - -The captain, Trevenen P. Coode, was tall and thin, hooked-nosed and -elderly, much bent about the shoulders, with a habit of crossing his -arms and folding his hands inside his sleeves. He was a taut hand and -a fine seaman. He nearly broke my heart, old martinet that he was; for -I was mate of the upper deck and the hull, and took an immense pride in -keeping them immaculately clean; but they were never clean enough for -Captain Trevenen P. Coode. In those days we had little bright-work, -but plenty of whitewash and blacking. The test of a smart ship was -that the lines of white or black should meet with absolute accuracy; -and a fraction of error would be visited with the captain's severe -displeasure. For he employed condemnation instead of commendation. - -There was an old yarn about a mate of the main deck, who boasted that -he had got to windward of his captain. We used to take live stock, -poultry and sheep to sea in those days. The captain found fault with -the mate because the fowls and coops were dirty. The mate whitewashed -the chickens and blacked their legs and beaks. Now the poultry in -question belonged to the captain. Thereafter the fowls died. - -It was the custom for the admiral to take a cow or two {66} to sea, and -the officers took sheep and fowls. There is a tradition in the Navy -that the cow used to be milked in the middle watch for the benefit of -the officer on watch; and that, in order that the admiral should get -his allowance of milk, the cow was filled up with water and made to -leap backwards and forwards across the hatchways. Another tradition -ordains that when the forage for the sheep ran short, the innocent -animals were fitted with green spectacles, and thus equipped, they were -fed on shavings. - -When we put into Valparaiso the Spanish fleet was threatening to -bombard the town. Rather more than a year previously, in 1864, Spain -had quarrelled with Chile, alleging that Chile had violated neutrality, -and had committed other offences. In March, 1864, Spain began the -diplomatic correspondence with Chile in which she demanded reparation, -which was refused. Chile sent artillery and troops to Valparaiso. The -Spanish admiral, Pareja, then proclaimed a blockade of the Chilian -ports, and Chile declared war. - -The European residents in Valparaiso, who owned an immense amount of -valuable property stored in the custom-houses, were terrified at the -prospect of a bombardment, and petitioned Admiral Denman to prevent it. -An American fleet of warships was also lying in the Bay. Among them -was the _Miantonomoh_, the second screw ironclad that ever came through -the Straits of Magellan, the first being the Spanish ironclad -_Numancia_. - -When the _Miantonomoh_ crossed the Atlantic in 1866, _The Times_ kindly -remarked that the existing British Navy was henceforth useless, and -that most of its vessels "were only fit to be laid up and 'painted that -dirty yellow which is universally adopted to mark treachery, failure, -and crime.'" - -The British and American admirals consulted together as to the -advisability of preventing the bombardment. The prospect of a fight -cheered us all; and we entered into elaborate calculations of the -relative strength of the Spanish fleet and the British-American force. -As a matter of fact, they were about equal. The Spanish admiral, -Nunez, who {67} had succeeded Pareja, visited the _Sutlej_ and -conversed with Admiral Denman. It was reported by the midshipman who -was A.D.C. to the admiral that, upon his departure, the Spaniard had -said: "Very well, Admiral Denman, you know your duty and I know mine." -The information raised our hopes; but at the critical moment a telegram -forbidding the British admiral to take action was received from the -British Minister at Santiago. - -So the British and American fleets steamed out to sea while the -Spaniards fired upon Valparaiso from eight in the morning until four in -the afternoon, setting the place on fire, and then retired to their -anchorage outside. The British and American fleets then returned to -the Bay, and I accompanied a landing-party to help to extinguish the -conflagration. - -Five of us were standing on the top of the high wall of a building -whose roof had fallen in, so that the whole interior was a mass of -burning wreckage, upon which we were directing the hose, when the men -below shouted that the wall was falling. We slid down the ladder, and -no sooner had we touched the ground than the whole wall tottered and -fell inwards. - -We put the fires out, but the inhabitants were so angry with us because -we had not prevented the bombardment, that they requested that the -landing-party should be sent back to their ships. Then the flames -broke out afresh. For years the resentment of the Valparaisians -remained so hot that it was inadvisable to land in the town men from -British ships. - -The meeting of the British and American seamen gave rise to much -discussion concerning the respective merits of the British and American -theories of gunnery. The Americans advocated the use of round shot to -deliver a "racking blow"; the British preferred firing a pointed -projectile which would penetrate the target instead of merely striking -it. When an American bluejacket asked his British friend to explain -the new English system of {68} shell-fire, the British bluejacket said: -"We casts our shot for the new gun so many fathoms long, and then, d'ye -see, we cuts off a length at a time, regulatin' the length required -according to the ship we uses it against. For your ship, I reckon we -should cut off about three and a half inches." - -The Spanish fleet was afflicted with scurvy; and we used to pull over -to the Spanish ships in the evenings, bringing the officers presents of -chicken, fresh meat and fruit. - -Having done with Valparaiso, the Spaniards went to Callao; but there -they had a more difficult job; for Callao was fortified, and the -Spaniards were considerably damaged by the gun-fire from the forts. - -During the progress of hostilities between the Chilians and the -Spaniards, the Chilians constructed one of the first submarines. It -was an American invention worked by hand and ballasted with water. The -Chilians intended, or hoped, to sink the Spanish fleet with it. The -submarine started from the beach on this enterprise; but it was never -seen again. It simply plunged into the sea, and in the sea it remains -to this day. - -We left Valparaiso about the middle of April, 1866, and proceeded to -Vancouver. On the way, the _Sutlej_ ran into a French barque, taking -her foremast and bowsprit out of her. Captain Coode stood by the rail, -his arms crossed, his hands folded in his sleeves, looking down upon -the wreck with a sardonic grin, while the French captain, gesticulating -below, shouted, "O you goddam Englishman for you it is all-a-right, but -for it it is not so nice!" - -But we repaired all damages so that at the latter end he was better off -than when he started. - -We arrived at Vancouver early in June, and left a few days later, to -encounter a terrific hurricane. It blew from the 18th June to the 22nd -June; and the track of the ship on the chart during those four days -looks like a diagram of cat's-cradle. The ship was much battered, and -her boats were lost. On this occasion, I heard the pipe go "Save ship" -for the second time in my life. - -{69} - -We put into San Francisco to refit. Here many of our men deserted. In -those days, it was impossible to prevent desertions on these coasts, -although the sentries on board had their rifles loaded with ball -cartridge. Once the men had landed we could not touch them. I used to -meet the deserters on shore, and they used to chaff me. As we had lost -our boats, the American dockyard supplied us with some. One day the -officer of the watch noticed fourteen men getting into the cutter, -which was lying at the boom. He hailed them from the deck. The men, -returning no answer, promptly pushed off for the shore. The officer of -the watch instantly called away the whaler, the only other boat -available, intending to send a party in pursuit. But the deserters had -foreseen that contingency, and had cut the falls just inside the -lowering cleat, so that the whaler could not be lowered. - -While I was at San Francisco, I had my first experience of the American -practical view of a situation. Bound upon a shooting excursion, I had -taken the train to Benicia, and alighted with a small bag, gun and -cartridges. I asked a railway man to carry my bag for me to a hack -(cab). He looked at me, and said, - -"Say, is it heavy?" - -"No," I said, "it is quite light." - -"Waal then," said he, "I guess you can carry it yourself." I had to, -so I did. - -Benicia is celebrated as the birthplace of John Heenan, the "Benicia -Boy," the famous American boxer. The great fight between Heenan and -Tom Sayers was fought at Farnborough on the 17th April, 1860. Heenan -was a huge man, six feet and an inch in height; Sayers, Champion of -England, five feet eight inches. The fight was interrupted. Both men -received a silver belt. I remember well the event of the fight, though -I was not present at it. More than three years afterwards, in -December, 1863, Tom King beat Heenan. - -From San Francisco we proceeded to Cape Horn, {70} homeward bound. On -these long sailing passages we used to amuse ourselves by spearing -fish. Sitting on the dolphin-striker (the spar below the bowsprit) we -harpooned albacore and bonito and dolphin, which is not the dolphin -proper but the coryphee. - -We rounded the Horn, buffeted by the huge seas of that tempestuous -promontory. On that occasion, I actually saw the Horn, which is an -inconspicuous island beaten upon by the great waves, standing amid a -colony of little black islands. And off Buenos Aires we were caught in -a pampero, the hurricane of South American waters. It blew from the -land; and although we were three or four hundred miles out at sea, the -master smelt it coming. Indeed, the whole air was odorous with the -fragrance of new-mown hay; and then, down came the wind. - -We were bound for Portsmouth. And when we rounded the Isle of Wight, -and came into view of Spithead, lo! the anchorage was filled with great -ships all stationed in review order. They were assembled for a review -to be held for the Sultan of Turkey. - -We took in the signal containing our instructions, and fired a salute; -and then, standing in under all plain sail and starboard studdingsails, -we sailed right through the Fleet, and all the men of the Fleet crowded -rails and yards to look at us, and cheered us down the lines. For the -days of sails were passing even then; we had come home from the ends of -the world; and the splendid apparition of a full-rigged man-of-war -standing into the anchorage moved every sailor's heart; so that many -officers and men have since told me that the _Sutlej_ sailing into -Spithead through the lines of the Fleet was the finest sight it was -ever their fortune to behold. - -In the _Tribune_ and in the _Sutlej_ it was my luck to serve under two -of the strictest and best captains in the Service, Captain Lord -Gillford and Captain Trevenen P. Coode. I may be forgiven for -recalling that both these officers added a special commendation to my -certificates; an exceedingly {71} rare action on their part, and in the -case of Captain Coode, I think the first instance on record. - -Part of the test for passing for sub-lieutenant was bends and hitches. -Captain Lord Gillford was highly pleased with a white line which I had -spliced an eye in and grafted myself. Knowing that I was a good -sailmaker, he once made me fetch palm and canvas and sew an exhibition -seam in public. - -From the _Sutlej_ I passed into the H.M.S. _Excellent_, in order to -prepare for the examinations in gunnery. In those days, the -_Excellent_ was a gunnery school ship of 2311 tons, moored in the upper -part of Portsmouth Harbour. The _Excellent_ gunnery school is now -Whale Island. - -While in the _Excellent_ I had the misfortune, in dismounting a gun, to -break a bone in my foot; and although the injury seemed to heal very -quickly under the application of arnica, I have felt its effects ever -since. - -In 1867 I was appointed to the _Research_, which was stationed at -Holyhead, and in which I served for a few months. There was a good -deal of alarm felt with regard to the Fenians, who were active at the -time, and the _Research_ was ordered to look out for them. With my -messmates, Cæsar Hawkins, Lascelles, and Forbes, I hunted a good deal -from Holyhead with Mr. Panton's hounds. I also hunted with the Ward -Union in Ireland. I used to cross from Holyhead at night, hunt during -the day, and return that night. - -Among other memories of those old days, I remember that my brother and -myself, being delayed at Limerick Junction, occupied the time in -performing a work of charity upon the porter, whose hair was of an -immoderate luxuriance. He was--so far as we could discover--neither -poet nor musician, and was therefore without excuse. Nevertheless, he -refused the proffered kindness. Perceiving that he was thus blinded to -his own interest, we gently bound him hand and foot and lashed him to a -railway truck. I possessed a knife, but we found it an unsuitable -weapon: my brother searched the station and found a pair of snuffers, -used for trimming the station lamps. With this rude but practicable -{72} instrument we shore the locks of the porter, and his hair blew all -about the empty station like the wool of a sheep at shearing-time. -When it was done we made him suitable compensation. - -"Sure," said the porter, "I'll grow my hair again as quick as I can the -way you'll be giving me another tip." - -We had an old Irish keeper at home, whose rule in life was to agree -with everything that was said to him. Upon a day when it was blowing a -full gale of wind, I said to myself that I would get to windward of him -to-day anyhow. - -"Well, Harney," said I. "It is a fine calm day to-day." - -"You may say that, Lord Char-less, but what little wind there is, is -terrible strong," says Harney. - -A lady once said to him, "How old are you, Harney?" - -"Och, shure, it's very ould and jaded I am, it's not long I'll be for -this worrld," said he. - -"Oh," said she, "but I'm old, too. How old do you think I am?" - -"Sure, how would I know that? But whatever age ye are, ye don't look -it, Milady." - - - - -{73} - -CHAPTER VII - -THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. _GALATEA_ - -I. TO THE ANTIPODES - -After a brief spell in the royal yacht, I was promoted out of her to -lieutenant, and was appointed to the _Galatea_, Captain H.R.H. Alfred -Ernest Albert, Duke of Edinburgh, K.G., K.T. - -H.M.S. _Galatea_ had four months previously returned from the long -cruise of seventeen months, 24th January, 1867, to 26th June, 1868, -during which the Duke visited South Africa and Australasia. While he -was in Australia, an attempt had been made to assassinate his Royal -Highness, who had a very narrow escape. The pistol was fired at the -range of a few feet, and the bullet, entering the Duke's back, struck a -rib and ran round the bone, inflicting a superficial wound. A full -account of the voyage is contained in _The Cruise of H.M.S. Galatea_, -by the Rev. John Milner and Oswald W. Brierley (London, 1869; W. H. -Allen). The _Galatea_ frigate was built at Woolwich and launched in -1859. She was of 3227 tons burthen, 800 h.p.; she was pierced for 26 -guns; maindeck, 18 guns, 10-inch, 86 cwt., and 4 guns, 10-inch, 6½ -tons; on the quarterdeck, 2 guns, rifled, 64-pounders; in the -forecastle, 2 guns, rifled, 64-pounders. The 6½-ton guns threw a shot -of 115 lb., and a large double-shell weighing 156 lb. She stowed 700 -tons of coal and 72 tons of water. Previously the _Galatea_, commanded -by Captain Rochfort Maguire, had been employed from 1862 to 1866 in the -Baltic, and on the Mediterranean and West Indian stations. She {74} -took part in the suppression of the insurrection at Jamaica, and, after -the loss of H.M.S. _Bulldog_, destroyed the batteries on Cape Haitien. -Her sister ship was the _Ariadne_, and Admiral Penrose Fitzgerald, who -served in the _Ariadne_, in 1861, writes: "It would not be too much to -say that she and her sister ship, the _Galatea_, were the two finest -wooden frigates ever built in this or any other country" (_Memories of -the Sea_). Personally, I am inclined to consider, that fine sailor as -the _Galatea_ was, the _Sutlej_ was finer still. - -The Duke of Edinburgh was an admirable seaman. He had a great natural -ability for handling a fleet, and he would have made a first-class -fighting admiral. The Duke's urbanity and kindness won the affection -of all who knew him. I am indebted to him for many acts of kindness, -and I was quite devoted to him. - -The voyage of the _Galatea_ lasted for two years and a half. We -visited Cape Town, Australia, New Zealand, Tahiti, the Sandwich -Islands, Japan, China, India, and the Falkland Islands. It is not my -purpose to describe that long cruise in detail; but rather to record -those incidents which emerge from the capricious haze of memory. In -many respects, the second long voyage of the _Galatea_ was a repetition -of her first voyage, so elaborately chronicled by the Rev. John Milner -and Mr. Brierley. In every part of the Queen's dominions visited by -her son, the Duke was invariably received with the greatest loyalty and -enthusiasm. It should be understood throughout that, when his ship was -not in company, or was in company with a ship commanded by an officer -junior to his Royal Highness, he was received as the Queen's son; but -when a senior officer was present, the Duke ranked in the order of his -seniority in the Service. - -[Illustration: H.R.H. ALFRED ERNEST ALBERT, DUKE OF EDINBURGH, K.G., -K.T.] - -We left Plymouth early in November, 1868, and once more I was afloat in -a crack sailing ship, smart and well found in every detail, and once -more I entered into the charm of the life in which above all I -delighted. We touched at Madeira, where I grieve to say some of the -junior officers captured a goat and some other matters during {75} a -night on shore; touched at St. Vincent; and arrived at Cape Town on -Christmas Day. - -At Cape Town, my set of tandem harness came again into requisition. -From the Cape we proceeded to Perth. The fact that an attempt upon his -life had been made in Australia, was one of the reasons why the Duke -chose to pay the Colony another visit. - -Upon a part of our voyage to Australia we were accompanied by my old -ship, the _Clio_, and so admirably handled was she, that she sometimes -beat the _Galatea_ in sailing. In every place to which we went in -Australia and New Zealand, we received the most unbounded hospitality, -of which I shall always retain the most pleasant recollections. We -were asked everywhere; livery stables were put at the disposal of the -officers; we went to shooting parties, and to every kind of festivity. - -At Perth I visited the convict settlement; and there I found a relative -or connection of the Beresford family, who had been so unfortunate as -to be transported for forgery. He appeared to be a most respectable -old gentleman, and (with the permission of the governor) I presented -him with a small cheque. Alas! incredible as it may seem, the sight of -my signature awoke the ruling passion; and my gentleman promptly forged -a bill of exchange for £50, and (as I found when I came home) got it -cashed. - -It was in Perth, too, that I visited a prisoner, a fellow-Irishman, who -had been convicted of murder. He had been a soldier, and had slain his -corporal and his sergeant. This man inspired me with some ideas with -regard to criminals which later in life I tried to put into practice; -and also aroused in me an interest in prisons and prison discipline -which I have always retained. He was a gigantic person, of immense -physical strength, with receding forehead and a huge projecting jaw. -He was considered to be dangerous; five or six warders accompanied me -into his cell; and they spoke to him as though he were a dog. I looked -at the man's eyes; and I was convinced then, as I am convinced {76} -now, that his intellect was impaired. Criminal psychology then hardly -existed; and although it is now recognised as a science, it must be -said that existing penal conditions are still in many respects awaiting -reform. Subsequent experience has proved to me that I was right in -believing that many crimes of violence are due to a lesion of the -brain, and cannot therefore be treated as moral offences. I heard some -time subsequently that the Irishman had been shot for the attempted -murder of a warder. Perth and New South Wales were the only places in -the British Dominions in which there was a death penalty for attempted -murder. - -I may here mention that in after years I was appointed, together with -the (late) Duke of Fife, as civil inspector of prisons; an office which -I held for a year or two. I was able to institute a reform in the -system then in force of mulcting prisoners of good conduct marks. -These were deducted in advance, before the man had earned them, if he -gave trouble. A prisoner sentenced to a long term--who usually gives -trouble during his first two years--found, when he began to run -straight, that good marks he earned had been deducted in advance. I -was able to change the system, so that no marks should be deducted -before they were earned. - -It was after I had been placed in command of the police at Alexandria, -in 1882, that I was offered the post of chief commissioner of police in -the Metropolis; and I was honoured by a gracious message from a very -distinguished personage, expressing a hope that I would accept the -appointment; but, as I wished to remain in the Navy, I declined it. - -We returned to Australia on our homeward voyage, but for the sake of -convenience I may here deal with the two visits as one. At Sydney, I -purchased a pair of horses. They were reputed to be runaways, and I -bought them for £9 a pair, and I drove them tandem with ring snaffle -bits. They never ran away with me--except once. When they came into -my possession, I found that their mouths were {77} sore, and I did what -I could to cure them. Many a drive I had, and all went well. Then one -day we all drove to a picnic. The Duke, who was very fond of coaching, -drove a coach. I drove my tandem, taking with me the commander, -Adeane. On the way home, the road was down a steep hill. We were -beginning to descend, when one of the Duke's mounted orderlies mixed -himself up with the traces between the leader and the wheeler. The -leader, taking fright, bolted, and the sudden tightening of the traces -jerked the orderly head over heels into the bush. Away we went down -the hill as hard as the horses could gallop. The next thing I saw was -a train of carts laden with mineral waters coming up the hill and -blocking the whole road. The only way to avoid disaster was to steer -between a telegraph pole and the wall. It was a near thing, but we did -it. I gave the reins of one horse to the commander and held on to the -reins of the other. - -Then I was aware, in that furious rush, of a melancholy voice, speaking -close beside me. It was the voice of the commander, speaking, unknown -to himself, the thoughts of his heart, reckoning the chances of mishap -and how long they would take to repair. It said: "an arm, an arm, an -arm--a month. A leg, a leg, a leg--six weeks. A neck, a neck a -neck--O! my God!" And so on, over and over, saying the same words. -Thus did Jerry Adeane, the commander, think aloud according to his -habit. He continued his refrain until we pulled up on the next rise. - -"Thank God, that's over," said Jerry Adeane. - -Before leaving Australia, I sold my pair of horses for more than I gave -for them. - -When the _Galatea_ was in New Zealand, Sir George Grey, who owned an -island called the Kanwah, gave me permission to shoot there. He had -stocked it for years with every sort of wild bird and beast. -Indigenous to the island were wild boar and wild cattle, which were -supposed to have been turned down there by the buccaneers. I landed -early one morning to stalk the wild cattle, with my servant, a pulpy, -{78} bulbous sort of rotten fellow who hated walking. He carried my -second rifle. We climbed to the top of a hill with the wind against -us, to get a spy round. When I came near the top, I perceived the -unmistakable smell of cattle; and, on reaching the top, there, within -thirty yards of me, were a great black bull and two cows. - -The bull saw me. He shook his head savagely, bellowed, pawed the -ground, put his head about, and charged straight for me. I was -standing in a thick sort of tea scrub which was level with my -shoulders, so that I could see only the beast's back as he charged. I -thought it was of no use to fire at his back; and, remembering that the -scrub was thin, having only stems underneath, I dropped on my knee, -hoping to see his head. Fortunately, I was able to see it plainly. I -fired, and he dropped within about five yards of me. - -I said to my man: - -"Well, that was lucky; he might have got us." - -As there was no reply, I turned round, and saw my trusty second gun -half-way down the hill, running like a hare. I was so angry that I -felt inclined to give him my second barrel. On returning on board I -dispensed with his services, and engaged a good old trusty Marine to -look after me. - -I killed six of these wild cattle altogether, and a landing party -bringing them off to the ship, there was beef enough for the whole -ship's company. - -There was a number of sheep on the island, under the care of a shepherd -named Raynes, who was a sort of keeper in Sir George's service. He -said to me, "You have not killed a boar yet. Come with me to-morrow, -and I will take you where we can find one." I said, "All right, I will -come at four o'clock to-morrow and bring my rifle." "No," said he, -"don't bring a rifle, bring a knife. I always kill them with a knife." - -I thought he was chaffing, but I said, "All right, I will bring a -knife, but I shall bring my rifle as well." - -{79} - -In the morning he met me at the landing-stage with three dogs, one a -small collie, and two heavy dogs like half-bred mastiffs, held in a -leash. We walked about three miles to a thick swampy place, with -rushes and tussocks. He chased the collie into the bush, and in about -twenty minutes we heard the collie barking furiously. Raynes told me -to follow him close, and not on any account to get in front of him. -The heavy dogs fairly pulled him through the bush. We soon came up to -the collie, and found him with an immense boar in a small open space. - -Raynes slipped the heavy dogs, who went straight for the boar, and -seized him, one by the ear and the other by the throat. The boar cut -both the dogs, one badly. When they had a firm hold, Raynes ran in -from behind, seized one of the boar's hind legs, and passing it in -front of the other hind leg, gave a violent pull, and the boar fell on -its side. Raynes immediately killed it with his knife, by stabbing it -behind the shoulder. I never saw a quicker or a more skilful -performance. - -I suggested to Raynes that I should like to try it. - -"Well," he said, "we will try and find a light sow to-morrow. A boar -would cut you if you were not quick." - -On the following day, we got a sow, but I made an awful mess of it, and -if it had not been for the heavy dogs, she would have cut me badly; as -it was, she bowled me over in the mud before I killed her. - -In New Zealand, we went up to the White Springs and we all bathed with -the Maories. You stand in the water warm as milk, close beside springs -of boiling water, and occasionally a jet of steam makes you jump. The -person of one of the guests, a very portly gentleman, suggested a -practical joke to the Maori boys and girls, who dived in and swam up to -him under water, pinched him and swam away with yells of laughter. The -old boy, determined to preserve harmony, endured the torment with an -agonised pretence of enjoyment. "Very playful, very playful!" he kept -miserably {80} repeating. "Oh, very playful indeed. _Tanaqui_ (how do -you do), _Tanaqui_." - -We had an excellent lunch, of pig, fowls, and yams, all boiled on the -spot in the hot springs. I saw a live pig chased by some Maori -children into a hot spring, and it was boiled in a moment. - -In this region I rode over soil which was exactly like dust-shot; the -whole ground apparently consisting of ore. We visited the White -Terraces, where, if you wrote your name in pencil upon the cliffs, the -silicate would preserve the legend as if it were raised or embroidered. -Some of the signatures had been there for years. I have since heard -that the place was destroyed by volcanic eruption. - -We witnessed the weird and magnificent war dances of the Maoris. Never -have I seen finer specimens of humanity than these men. When, after -leaping simultaneously into the air, they all came to the ground -together, the impact sounded like the report of a gun. A party of the -Chiefs came to pay a ceremonial visit to the Duke. It struck me that -they looked hungry, and I said so. They want cheering up, I said. I -went to forage for them. I took a huge silver bowl, and filled it with -chicken, whisky, lobster, beef, champagne, biscuits and everything else -I could find, and presented it to them. You never saw warriors more -delighted. They ate the whole, using their fingers, and were greatly -cheered. - -It was in New Zealand that I had an interesting conversation with a -cannibal--or rather, an ex-cannibal. I asked him if he ever craved for -human flesh, and he said no, not now--unless he happened to see a plump -woman. In that case, he said he lusted for the flesh of the ball of -the thumb, which (he gave me to understand) was the prime delicacy. - -Some of the half-caste women were of great beauty. Their savage blood -endowed them with something of the untamed, implacable aspect of their -ancestry. I heard of one such woman, who, outwardly attuned to every -tenet of white civilisation, and received everywhere in white society, -{81} suddenly reverted. A native rebellion breaking out, she rejoined -her tribe and slew a missionary with her _meri_--the native chief's -badge of office. She cut off the top of the missionary's skull, and -used it thereafter as a drinking-vessel. Poor lady, she was (I heard) -eventually captured and was executed. - - - - -{82} - -CHAPTER VIII - -THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. _GALATEA_ (_Continued_) - -II. MY TWO FAITHFUL SERVANTS - -They came to me first in the _Galatea_, so that their story may fitly -be related in this place. Tom Fat the China boy came to me at Kowloon. -He was brought to me by his uncle, who desired to dispose of his -nephew, for a consideration. The consideration was £5. Lest I should -be accused of Chinese slavery--and anything is possible in these -days--I should explain that the fiver was not the price of Tom Fat, but -was in the nature of a delicate compliment paid to his uncle. Tom was -a free boy; he was entered in the ship's books as my servant, at so -much wages per month. Not that he valued his wages particularly; he -had wider views. He was an invaluable servant, clever, orderly, -indefatigable and devoted. I attired him in gorgeous silks, and he -bore my crest with perfect unassuming dignity. He kept my purse, and -expended my money with prudence, even with generosity. When I wanted -money, Tom Fat had plenty of ready cash. I sometimes wondered how it -was that he always seemed to be provided with a margin, for I was not -conscious of practising economy. The fact was, I was careless in those -days, and kept no accounts. It was not until he had been in my service -for some years, that I discovered the secret of his wealth. It was -simple enough. He was in the habit of forging cheques. Altogether, he -forged cheques for nearly twelve hundred pounds. How much of that -amount he kept for himself I {83} never knew; but it is certain that a -great deal of it he spent upon me. Nor do I know why he did not ask -for a cheque instead of forging it. Apparently it was a point of -honour with Tom not to ask for money. When I asked him if he wanted a -cheque to defray expenses, he usually replied cheerfully that he had no -need of it. Certainly he acquired a reputation for economy by these -means. - -His methods were subtle. He was well aware that I kept no private -account book of my own, and that my bankers did not enter the names of -payees in my pass-book, but only the numbers of the cheques cashed, and -also that the bank returned cashed cheques from time to time. On these -occasions, Tom, finding pass-book and cashed cheques among my papers, -would abstract both the counterfoils and the cheques which he had -forged, knowing that as I should not take the trouble to compare the -numbers of the cheques with the numbers in the pass-book, I should not -notice that some cheques were missing. He was always careful to -arrange that the last counterfoil filled up--at which one naturally -looks--should be that of my cheque and not that of his; and he never -drew large sums, varying his amounts between £5 and £20, except on one -occasion, when he forged a cheque for £50. The Oriental mind is -inscrutable; but whether or no Tom considered that he was robbing me; -whether, if he considered that he was robbing me, he believed he was -justified in so doing; he took the most sedulous care that no one else -should enjoy that privilege. - -Tom was universally popular. I took him everywhere with me. In his -way, he was a sportsman. One day, hunting with the Duke of Beaufort's -hounds, I mounted him on a skewbald pony. We came to a nasty slippery -place, a bad take-off, a wall to jump, and the road beyond. Tom's pony -took it safely. A big, hard-riding guardsman who was coming up behind -us, not liking the look of the place, shouted to me, "Is it all right?" - -"That hideous Chinaman has just done it!" I shouted back. Not to be -outdone by a Chinaman, the guardsman {84} rode at the fence, his horse -went down, and he got a dreadful toss. When he got up, he was -furiously angry with me. - -When Tom had been with me for some years, he came to me and said, -"Master, you never give me leave! You give others leave but not me -leave. I want leave." - -The request was reasonable enough, and I sent Tom to my house in town, -there to amuse himself for a week. At the end of the week he did not -return. He was reported missing. I advertised for him, offering a -reward. The next day he was arrested at the Criterion Restaurant, -being one of a party of thirteen (of whom twelve were ladies) to whom -Tom was about to play the host. - -It turned out that during his week in town, my faithful servant had -spent £70. He had also raised money at one of my clubs. - -"Lord Charles want twenty-five pounds," he said to the porter, who took -him to the cashier. - -"His lordship must give me his I.O.U.," says the cashier. - -"What thing that?" says Tom. - -The cashier explained. - -"All-light," says the man of resource, and promptly forged my I.O.U. -for thirty-five pounds. - -"You said twenty-five," remarked the cashier. - -"I tink Lord Charles like little more," Tom replied. - -Of course, the cashier sent me the document. When I investigated Tom's -transactions, I found a few of his forged cheques in the bank, and I -could hardly tell the difference between my signature and his -forgeries. The cheque-books were compared with the pass-book, and -counterfoils were found to be missing. I took legal action against -him, and he was sentenced to five years. Shortly afterwards, when I -was in Scotland, I received a letter from the hapless Tom, saying he -was dying, and asking me to come and see him. I went at once. I found -him in the infirmary, a dying man indeed, with his face to the wall. A -Chinaman dies at will. He simply lies down and dies; but by the same -{85} token, he can continue to live. So I determined to rouse him. I -hailed him in a loud and cheerful voice. - -"Tom! Cheer up, Tom! What's the matter? You're not ill. Rouse up." - -"Me die, master," said Tom. - -"Not you," I said. "Come! Cheer up, and I'll try to get you out of -this." - -And sure enough, he turned back, became quite well, and I secured his -release after he had served a short term. I found him a place in -China, sent him East, and never saw him again. When I went to China -subsequently, I failed to find him. After his interval of Western -service, China took him and swallowed him up. And that was the end of -Tom Fat. - -He was in my service when, upon the return voyage to Australia of the -_Galatea_, we touched at Mauritius. In that strange island I came -across a youthful negro savage. I learned his history from his master, -an amiable French gentleman. Punch, as I named him, had been brought -to Mauritius by a British cruiser. The warship had chased a slaver, -whose crew jettisoned the slaves. They were fettered in chains and -hove over the side. When the British seamen boarded the vessel they -found her holds empty, except for the odour. In a dark corner was -stowed a bundle of rags, into which a bluejacket thrust his cutlass. -The rags sprang to life with a yell, and there was Punch with a wound -in his thigh, of which he carried the scar to his end. - -It occurred to me that Punch would serve me for a groom, and I said so -to his master. - -"_Tiens!_" said that gentleman pleasantly. "You shall have him for -five shilling." - -"Done!" said I, and paid him the money. He did not think I was -serious; but he made no bones about ridding himself of his garden-boy. - -Punch was the most hideous savage I have ever viewed. He was black as -a boot; even his lips were black; his face was seamed with the -cicatrices which were the totem marks {86} of his tribe, whatever that -may have been; and his countenance was exactly like the countenance of -a bull-dog. The scars wrinkled his cheeks, like a bull-dog's jowl. He -was densely stupid, and wild of temper. He attacked one of the men on -board with his teeth. But he was utterly fearless, and although he -knew nothing about horses, he was never afraid of them. He was -apparently constructed of india-rubber. Nothing hurt him. When I -drove a tandem, it was his duty as tiger to spring up behind as we -started. But as my horses started at speed, Punch had not always time -to run from their heads to the back of the vehicle. I have known him -catch a spoke of the wheel and be whirled into the air, and the wheel -to pass over him, without harming him in the least. - -At a race meeting in Australia, Punch begged for a mount, and I -borrowed a horse, which galloped away down the course, Punch clinging -to him with arms and legs exactly like a monkey. He took two big -fences like a bird; but at the third, the horse breasted it, fell -backwards and rolled over upon his rider. I thought he was killed, but -he wasn't. He was not even damaged. - -When I went on half-pay, I placed Punch in the stables. The women -servants took a fancy to him; but Punch, whatever he may have thought -of the women, had no love for the head groom, in whose arm he made his -teeth meet. So I found him a billet in a hairdresser's shop, which -bore the legend, "Hairbrushing by machinery." Punch was the machinery. -I saw him at it, turning a wheel in the window. I never saw him again, -and know not what became of him. - - - - -{87} - -CHAPTER IX - -THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. _GALATEA_ (_Continued_) - -III. TAHITI AND THE SANDWICH ISLANDS - -We arrived at Tahiti in June, 1869. Here is the most lovely climate in -the world. The inhabitants never seemed to do any work, with the -single exception of carrying bananas. In this exercise they were -extraordinarily expert, bearing enormous weights upon the shoulders, -the skin of which becomes hard like leather. I considered myself to be -fairly strong; but when I tried to carry one of the masses of bananas -under which the natives march swiftly all day long, up hill and down, I -found that I was able to carry it only for a short distance, and with -difficulty, on level ground. The people were perfectly delightful. We -went ashore and lived among them; and it was then that I understood how -it was that the men of the _Bounty_ mutinied. The fact was that those -discontented mariners could not bear to leave islands so delectable. I -do not of course, desire to justify their very reprehensible conduct. -All I say is that I can understand the strength of its motive. It was -simply the desire to remain in an earthly paradise which inspired the -men of the _Bounty_ when they left Otaheite in April, 1789, to set -Captain Bligh adrift in an open boat, with the nineteen men who stayed -by him, and a small stock of provisions. The captain and his men made -an astonishing voyage of nearly 4000 miles, and fetched up at the -island of Timor, south of the Malaccas, in the following June. Some of -the mutineers were subsequently {88} brought to justice in the year -1792. Six of them were condemned and three were executed. In 1814 it -was discovered that ten among the mutineers had colonised Pitcairn -Island. - -We in the _Galatea_ stayed at Tahiti as long as we possibly could, and -enjoyed every moment of the time. One of our amusements was to float -down a narrow and swift stream and shoot the waterfall. At a point -some little distance from the coast, the stream ran deep and rapid -between banks which were about three feet apart. The natives, boys and -girls, used to drop into the stream and let themselves be carried down -feet foremost to a waterfall, which descended some 40 or 50 feet in a -wide pool; and it occurred to me that what they could do, I could -accomplish. I watched these intrepid children very carefully, and I -observed that they always came to the surface some distance away from -the fall. In spite of some dissuasion, I determined to attempt the -enterprise. I floated down the stream feet foremost, shot the fall, -and the moment I reached the foot of it I struck out under water. I -was amazed to find that the water was just like air, or an enormous -cauldron of soda water, buoying one up, and I came to the surface -without the slightest difficulty. Afterwards I went down head first. -The only thing to remember was not to come up under the fall itself. -Shooting the waterfall became a popular amusement. - -Another of our diversions was surf-playing. This enchanting exercise -is performed with the aid of a long board shaped like a wedge. The -swimmer takes his board, pushes it before him over the breakers, while -he dives through them, then turns, and, leaning on the board, rides -back on the crest of the surf. The speed, whatever it may be, feels -like sixty miles an hour. It is one of the most exhilarating pastimes -in the world. - -I remember that we all went to church on Sunday. During the service, -the Queen of Tahiti suddenly clapped her hands, whereupon the clergyman -desisted from his {89} ministrations, while her Majesty distributed -tobacco among the congregation. When it was well alight the Queen -again clapped her hands, and the clergyman went on with the service. - -We left Tahiti with profound regret, receiving and giving many presents -on parting. From Tahiti we proceeded to the Sandwich Islands, where I -met many old friends, made during my sojourn four years previously. -The American population had quite forgiven and forgotten my boyish -freak, which had so agitated them at the time. Our old friend Queen -Emma, whom we had taken to Panama on her way to England to see the -Queen, had returned. I went to call upon her, driving tandem, as -already related. Turning in at the gate, I took the corner too -sharply, the wheels locked, and the buggy capsized. In the meantime -the Queen, having heard the jingling of the Canadian sleigh bells -attached to the harness, came out to find her visitor sitting on the -grass at her feet. The horses galloped on and wrecked the vehicle and -also themselves. Altogether it was a very expensive drive. - - - - -{90} - -CHAPTER X - -THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. _GALATEA_ - -IV. OLD JAPAN - -NOTE - -When Lord Charles Beresford visited Nippon (from the Chinese Jih Pun, -the place or rising of the sun, changed by English pronunciation to -Japan), it was the old Japan that he saw; the Japan of centuries of -isolation, inviolate save for the intrusion of the Jesuit missionaries -in the sixteenth century, and the little wedge of Dutch traders. It -had been the Japan of the Mikado, who was as a god; of the Tycoon, his -temporal representative, who, like a man walking the tight-rope above a -wood of transfixing swords, maintained a delicate equipoise of power -among the feudal seigneuralty, the great Daimios, each lord of his -domain and master of life and death over thousands of retainers. It -was the Japan of the Samurai, the two-sworded rufflers; of the Ronins, -the masterless men, the outlaws, who roved the country in bands, -patriotic, ferocious and pitiless. It was still the Japan in which the -common people, men and women and maidens, walked naked and unashamed; -in which the warriors went to battle clad in armour wrought of -tortoise-shell and silk, girt with swords and carrying bows and arrows; -in which the life of a barbarian foreigner was never safe from hour to -hour, so that he must be guarded by the two-sworded Yaconins, the -Government officers, who, knowing the hatred of the Government towards -their charges, seldom drew sword in {91} their defence until it was -just one blood-stained second too late; in which a fault in honour was -instantly expiated by hara-kiri, the fatal cross-cut upon the belly, -performed in the public eye, which was justly offended if the incision -were so clumsily executed that the entrails protruded. Such, at least, -is the ceremonial theory. In practice, the dagger is driven in below -the ribs, drawn horizontally across the belly, and up the other side; -an operation requiring inconceivable courage. - -It is the land of tea-houses and temples, of running footmen and -palanquins; where houses and string and handkerchiefs are made of -paper; where the people wash themselves every day and their clothes -never; where the oldest profession in the world is counted honourable -service, and the pictures of courtesans adorn the temples in which the -bonzes intone prayers in the midst of games and dances: where the -writing is done from top to bottom, from right to left, and keys are -turned from left to right, and carpenters draw their planes towards -them, and the houses are built from the roof downwards, and horses are -mounted on the off-side, and ladies black their teeth. It was a land -of immense processional pageants: the processions of the high Daimios, -who once a year quitted their ancestral homes with a great train to -dwell in Yedo, the capital of the Tycoon, for six months; and returned -again, leaving as hostages for their loyalty their wives and children -for another six months. The two-sworded Samurai march in front, crying -"Shitanirio!" and all the spectators drop upon their knees and hide -behind their legs while the long procession ambles by, spearmen and -banners and baggage-carriers and palanquins; the norimons, which are -the palanquins of the notable, and the cangos, which are the palanquins -of the humble. - -When the foreigner rode abroad in state, he was attended by the -Ward-guards, who marched in front, striking the earth at every step -with their long staves whereon loose iron rings were strung, so that -their jingling warned the populace to make way. - -{92} - -At night, festivals were celebrated by immense processions filling the -streets, in which everyone carried a lighted lantern swaying upon the -end of a flexible bamboo, and the lanterns were painted with bats and -dragons, and the people wore horrible masks, distended with the -monstrous rictus of the devil-gods. In the Yoshiwara, where the women, -painted and gilded, sashed and bedecked, sit in a double row, each with -her price placarded upon her knee, there were the great priapic -processions, concerning which the English works upon Japan preserve a -shocked reticence. - -In old Japan, the common ideal of the ruling classes was that their -country should maintain for ever intact its immemorial laws, traditions -and customs; an ideal whose attainment the entrance of the foreigner -would render impossible. As for the common people, they had no -aspirations beyond the day's work. Japan, in her own view, was -complete, self-sufficient and wholly satisfied with a civilisation -compared with which the politics of the Occident were of yesterday. -The Islands of Nippon were ensphered in holy crystal, whose flawless -preservation was the highest duty of a patriot. - -Into that rare atmosphere, surcharged with perilous elements, sailed -Commodore Perry of the United States Navy in the year 1853. Some fifty -years later, Pierre Loti entered Japanese waters in a French warship. -"Et nous entrions maintenant dans une espèce de couloir ombreux, entre -deux rangées de très hautes montagnes, qui se succédaient avec une -bizarrerie symétrique--comme les 'portants' d'un décor tout en -profondeur, extrêmement beau, mais pas assez naturel--on eut dit que ce -Japon s'ouvrait devant nous, en une déchirure enchantée, pour nous -laisser pénétrer dans son cceur même" (_Madame Chrysanthème_). - -It was Commodore Perry who rent open the heart of Old Japan, and her -blood flowed. The gallant commodore, anchoring off Cape Idzu on 8th -July, 1853, with two steam frigates and two sloops of war, demanded no -more than a treaty securing help and proper treatment to sailors -shipwrecked {93} on the coasts of Japan. The Japanese Government said -neither yes nor no; whereupon Perry gave them a year to consider the -matter, promising to return at the end of it with a "larger fleet." -And on 12th February, 1854, there was Commodore Perry in the Bay of -Yedo with three steam frigates and four sloops of war. After long -negotiations, a treaty of amity was signed, including a promise to -succour ships in distress, and (above all) opening two new ports. From -that moment the isolation of Japan was ended. The door opened but a -crack; but into that crack the wedge of commerce, driven by the lust of -gain, was thrust by America (1854), Russia (1857), England and France -(1858). - -In 1859, Mr. (afterwards Sir) Rutherford Alcock, British representative -of H.B.M. Government in China was appointed her Majesty's Envoy -Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary in Japan. His book, _The -Capital of the Tycoon_ (London, 1863. Longman, 2 vols.), gives one of -the first authoritative accounts of Old Japan presented to the British -public. During his three years in that country he was constantly in -peril of assassination. In August, 1859, an officer and a sailor from -one of the Russian ships lying in the harbour were cut down and slashed -to pieces in the streets of Yedo, and a steward was severely wounded. - -In the following year the Japanese linguist attached the British -Legation was stabbed to death, and two Dutch ship-captains were cut to -pieces in Yokohama. The next demonstration of the hatred of foreigners -was the murder of the Gotairo, the Regent, Iko-mono-no-kami. His -escort was suddenly attacked as it was leaving his castle by some -twenty swordsmen, wielding the terrible Japanese two-handed weapon. -The hands of the bearers of his norimon were severed on the pole and -the Regent himself decapitated, his head being carried away as a trophy. - -In 1861, Mr. Heuskin, attached to the American Legation, was murdered. -Soon afterwards, one of the Governors (or Under-Secretaries) of Foreign -Affairs, {94} Oribeno-no-Kami, who had been especially friendly in his -intercourse with the Legations, "died," in the Japanese phrase, -"without the effects of medicine." To be more precise, he had -committed hara-kiri. - -In July, 1861, the British Legation at Yedo was attacked at night by a -band of swordsmen, who passed the guards and rushed the building. Mr. -Oliphant, who had recently been appointed Secretary to the Legation, -was severely wounded. One of the guards, a porter, and a groom, and -two of the assailants, were killed outright. One of the assailants was -severely wounded, to six of the Legation party who were severely -wounded and eleven slightly wounded. - -Such were the beginnings of Western influence in Japan. Sir Rutherford -Alcock's voluminous account of his three years' ministry reveals a -gallant, honest, kindly gentleman sorely perplexed by the ethical -problems involved in the forcible interference of one powerful nation -in the affairs of a weaker nation, whose sole ambition was to be let -alone. Hampered, on the one hand, by the greed and discourtesy of the -European traders, and on the other, by the immitigable duplicity and -the furtive and implacable enmity of the Japanese, yet singly -determined to do his duty to his Queen and country, Sir Rutherford -Alcock honourably fulfilled a task of extreme danger and incredible -difficulty. - -Thenceforward, until the year 1869, the duel between East and West -continued with increasing ardour. The whole polity of old Japan was -shaken as by the earthquakes which agitate and rend its soil. There -were frequent assassinations of the foreign barbarians; the governing -classes, which consisted wholly of the military caste, employed every -invidious method to restrict trade with Europeans; while the Western -nations, on their side, brought their armed strength to bear in the -enforcement of treaty rights, which by the same means had originally -been wrung from the Tycoon's government. And here it falls to -distinguish between the divine prestige of the Mikado, {95} descendant -of the sun-goddess, and the temporal administration of the Tycoon, or -Shogun. In that dual administration resided a main factor of the -extraordinary difficulty of the situation. Both the spiritual and -temporal rulers, the Imperial Court and the Bakufu, or Tycoon's -Government, were equally inspired by hatred of the foreigner. But -whereas the Mikado, dwelling majestically apart, could avoid all -contact with the barbarians, the Tycoon was compelled by superior force -to negotiate with them. He was thus placed between two fires; on the -one side, the Mikado ordered him to expel the foreigner; on the other, -the foreigner threatened him with war unless the treaties were carried -into execution. - -For long the Tycoon, or his advisers, maintained his position with -singular address. But no man born of woman could have solved its -complications. For the great Daimios, the feudal nobility, held -allegiance primarily to the Mikado. The Tycoon could and did detach -some of the clans to his side; but the great body of the western clans -defied him. The influence of the Tycoon began swiftly to decline. At -the same time the Imperial party began to perceive that the expulsion -of foreigners had become impossible. The immediate result was the -revolt of some of their adherents. Inspired as it was by hatred of the -foreigner, it was directed equally against Mikado and Tycoon, and -accompanied by expressions of loyalty to both parties. - -In 1864 the troops of the Choshiu clan attempted to capture Kioto and -to obtain possession of the person of the Mikado. They were defeated -after heavy fighting. In June of the previous year, the Choshiu men -had fired upon the American ship _Pembroke_ while she was passing -through the Inland Sea, and also upon the Dutch corvette _Medusa_. The -French commander-in-chief of the station, Admiral Jaurès proceeded to -Shimoseki and destroyed the batteries. In August a British naval force -under the command of Vice-Admiral Kuper proceeded to Kagoshima in order -to enforce {96} the payment of the indemnity due for the murder of Mr. -Richardson, bombarded the town and destroyed the batteries. It was -these two actions which for the first time really convinced the ruling -classes in Japan that it was hopeless any longer to endeavour to -prevent the intrusion of foreign influence. - -In 1866 the Tycoon Iyemochi died. In the same year a new and enlarged -Convention was concluded with Great Britain, France, America and -Holland. In the following year Keiki, very unwillingly, became Tycoon, -an office which by this time had become exceedingly insecure. In the -same year the Mikado, Komei, died and was succeeded by his son -Mutsuhito, a minor. In the following year the Mikado assumed the whole -administrative power hitherto vested in the Tycoon, and a new system of -Government was promulgated. Followed, civil war and the defeat of the -Tycoon, who retired into seclusion. In the meantime the Mikado had -invited the Representatives of Foreign Powers to visit him at Kioto. - -"That the Mikado of Japan, who claims to be descended from the -sun-goddess, and in whose person a peculiar odour of sanctity was -considered to exist, should voluntarily invite to his palace at Kioto -the Envoys of nations who had hitherto been looked upon as outer -barbarians, and intercourse with whom was a profane thing, was indeed a -great step in advance. No foreigner had ever yet crossed the Imperial -threshold, or looked upon the face of the sacred Emperor of Japan. It -was a proof that a new order of things was inaugurated, and gave good -hopes for the future" (Adams, _History of Japan_. Lond., 1875). - -But although the Imperial Government perceived the wisdom of accepting -the inevitable, the hatred of the foreigner, bred in the blood of the -military caste, could neither be dissembled nor controlled; and the -attack made upon the British Envoy, Sir Harry Parkes, while actually on -his way to the Imperial Palace on 23rd March, 1868, illustrates the -condition of affairs. On the road to Kioto {97} and in the sacred city -itself, the Europeans had been regarded by the people with a polite and -respectful curiosity, nor was there any sign of hostility. - -Sir Harry Parkes left the temple of Chi-on-in, where he lodged, to -proceed to the audience, with a mounted escort of twelve -ex-Metropolitan mounted police, under the command of Inspector Peacock, -with whom rode a Japanese officer, Nakai Kozo. Behind these massive -veterans rode Sir Harry himself, accompanied by Goto Shojiro, of the -Japanese Foreign Department, and followed by Mr. Mitford, Mr. Satow, -Dr. Willis, and other members of the Legation. Then came a guard of -forty men of H.M.'s 9th Regiment under the command of Lieutenant -Bradshaw and Lieutenant Bruce. A native guard preceded the train, and -another guard followed it. Just as the policemen were turning the -corner of a narrow street, Sir Harry observed signs of confusion, and -the next moment a Japanese, his great sword flashing and hewing, dashed -round the corner, closely pursued by two policemen. Sir Harry cried -out to the soldiers behind him to stop the Samurai. Turning his head, -he saw his companion, Goto Shojiro, on foot, sword in hand rushing -forward to attack a second Samurai, who was already fighting hand to -hand with Nakai Kozo, the Japanese officer who had been riding -alongside Inspector Peacock at the head of the policemen. Behind Sir -Harry, shots rang out as the soldiers fired at the first assassin. Sir -Harry Parkes was suddenly aware of the wild figure of a Japanese -warrior, advancing towards him through the press. His face was a mask -of blood; in one hand shone a long sword, dripping red from hilt to -point; in the other, the victor lifted the bloody head, shorn clean -from the shoulders, of his countryman. It was Nakai Kozo. Nakai gave -the following ingenuous account of his deed of arms to Mr. Adams, -secretary of the Legation, who quotes it in his _History_, as follows:-- - -"I saw a man running down the line cutting at one man after another. I -jumped off my horse, drew my sword, and {98} rushed after him; he -turned and we engaged; he cut me on the head. Then Goto came up and -dealt him a blow which felled him to the ground. Unfortunately Goto's -sword-hilt, which was of lacquer, slipped from his hands, and I had to -cope with the fellow alone. I could only see out of one eye, the other -being covered with blood, but I kept chopping at him, and after about -ten blows I managed to cut his head off. I then took the head and -showed it to Sir H. Parkes." - -The soldiers bayoneted the first Samurai, who was still alive when he -was finally secured by Mr. Mitford. He was afterwards beheaded by the -Imperial Government. But those two desperate enemies of the foreigner -wounded thirteen men and five horses ere they were cut down. One of -the wounded was a soldier, another a native groom; the remaining nine, -of whom two were so seriously hurt that they were invalided home, were -ex-Metropolitan policeman to whom the methods of the Samurai must have -been startling. These trained fighters wield their two-handed swords, -heavy, perfectly balanced, razor-sharp weapons, with an appalling -swiftness and dexterity. At a single blow they can cleave a man to the -chin, or cut off his head, or lop off a limb. - -In May, 1868 Sir Harry Parkes presented his credentials, which had -hitherto been addressed to the Tycoon, to the Emperor. On the 23rd was -celebrated the Queen's birthday, when many Japanese of high rank, some -of whom had never before made acquaintance with a foreigner, were -entertained by Vice-Admiral Sir Henry Keppel, commander-in-chief of the -China Station, on board H.M.S. _Rodney_. It was not until November -that the civil war was ended by the submission of the rebels. The -Emperor then took up his residence for a time in Yedo--now called -Tokio--which had been the capital of the Tycoon, and which was -henceforth to be the eastern metropolis of the Emperor, as Kioto was -the western capital. In the following year, after another insurrection -had been suppressed, the great Daimios made their memorable sacrifice, -offering their lands and servants to the Emperor; thereby deliberately -exchanging their {99} almost independent state for a condition of -subservience to the central Government. - -Such, in brief, was the beginning of the New Japan; and it was at this -stage in its development that, for the first time in history, a foreign -prince, in the person of H.R.H. the Duke of Edinburgh, visited the -Mikado. - - - - -{100} - -CHAPTER XI - -THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. _GALATEA_ (_Continued_) - -V. WITH THE DUKE IN JAPAN - -The _Galatea_ arrived at Yokohama on the 29th August 1869. The Duke -with his suite, including myself, went up to Tokio (the old Yedo) and -took up his quarters at Hama-go-ten, which had been the summer -residence of the Tycoon. The estate marched with a piece of water -opening into the bay; here were many summer-houses; and a commodious -building equipped for the Duke by the orders of the Mikado. The name -was changed to Yen-Rio-Kan, signifying a place set apart for -distinguished foreigners. - -We were entertained with the most delicate and sumptuous hospitality by -this charming people whose courtesy greatly impressed us. Conjurers, -acrobats and wrestlers performed for the entertainment of his Royal -Highness; whenever we went abroad, thirty two-sworded Yaconins attended -us. - -The Duke went in state to visit the Mikado in his palace. All along -the route the upper windows of the houses were sealed with paper, so -that none should look down upon he royal visitor; a precaution only -taken in the case of the highest nobility. The Duke, attended only by -Sir Harry Parkes, Admiral Sir Harry Keppel and Mr. Mitford (afterwards -Lord Reedsdale and author of the delightful _Tales of Old Japan_), had -a private audience of the Emperor, who was presented by his Royal -Highness with a diamond snuff-box. {101} Six of us were afterwards -admitted to the presence. I remember the dim figure of a young man -seated behind a screen at the end of the audience chamber. Many years -afterwards, when I again visited Japan, the Mikado, who remembered my -former visit, graciously invited me to lunch, and entertained me with -the royal sport of catching ducks in a hand-net. The ducks are -preserved in the royal gardens, which are charmingly diversified with -lawns and running water, and flowering shrubs. As you enter, the ducks -rise suddenly, and the sport was to net them as they rose. - -As we remained no longer than a week in Tokio, my recollections are -few. I was tattooed by the native artificers, to the astonishment of -the Japanese officials and nobles; for in Japan none save the common -people is tattooed. The Japanese artist designs in white upon dark, -working upon the skin round the chief ornament in his scheme; whereas -the English tattooer designs dark upon white, using the natural skin as -a background. Both methods are beautifully illustrated upon my person. - -I witnessed the decapitation of six criminals. The victims stand in a -row, their hands bound behind them: each in turn is tapped on the -shoulder, when he kneels down, and bows his head. With a single -half-arm stroke, the executioner slices through the neck. I also saw a -crucifixion. The man's hands and feet are extended and tied to -cross-bars, so that he makes a figure like an hour-glass. Then he is -transfixed with a spear. - -On the 8th September, the Duke returned to Yokohama by sea, taking with -him as his guest in the _Galatea_, Hiobukio-no-Miya, Prince of the -Blood, Minister of War, and other high dignitaries, who attended a ball -given at the British Legation. On the 16th, the _Galatea_ sailed for -China. - - - - -{102} - -CHAPTER XII - -THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. _GALATEA_ (_Continued_) - -VI. THE HOMEWARD VOYAGE - -From Japan we proceeded to China, touching at Chefoo, Shanghai and -Hongkong. Nothing could exceed the princely hospitality of the great -British mercantile firms in China. It was then that I learned, what -subsequent experience confirmed, the remarkable integrity of the -business dealings of the Chinese. The head of the Chinese Bank told me -that he never had a bad account with a Chinaman. The Chinese keeps -agreements to the letter, quite irrespective of documentary contracts. - -From China we proceeded to Manila, then a Spanish possession. My -principal recollection of Manila is the extraordinary prevalence of -cock-fighting. There was a cockpit in every street; and the sole -occupation of the inhabitants appeared to consist of betting upon their -birds. One used constantly to meet men walking in the street with -their birds under their arms. The cocks were armed with steel spurs -shaped like a scythe, and sharpened to a razor edge. I have seen a -bird spring up and slice the head of its adversary clean off, and I -have seen the chest of a bird slashed open, almost cutting its body in -two. The use of the artificial spurs affected the betting, making the -fight very much more uncertain and therefore more exciting. For, -whereas if a cock uses its natural spurs, the best bird probably wins, -an inferior bird armed artificially might gain the victory. - -{103} - -From Manila we proceeded to Calcutta. Upon landing, I met my brother, -Lord Marcus, and with him I rode up, together with the staff, to -Government House. It is a singular coincidence that when I landed at -Calcutta, six years afterwards, on the corresponding date, when I was a -member of the staff of the Prince of Wales (afterwards King Edward -VII), I met my other brother, Lord William, and rode up with him to -Government House. - -The _Galatea_ lay alongside the wharf. It was necessary to take the -most stringent precautions against cholera. Only one boy in the ship's -company was taken ill during our stay. He died inside an hour. But in -the merchant ships lying in the port there were many deaths. Men were -employed in working parties to push off with long bamboos the corpses -that were continually floating down from the Hooghli, lest they should -foul the moorings. The bodies used to come floating down with the -birds perching and feeding upon them. - -We went up country, and enjoyed a great deal of excellent sport. We -went out pig-sticking, which is the finest sport in the world; we went -out tiger-shooting upon elephants; and riding upon elephants, we shot -partridges--a form of sport by no means easy. I remember an irascible -old colonel of artillery, who became very hot, and who missed a good -many partridges, saying indignantly to the Duke: - -"This is all d----d rot. I could shoot more partridges on Woolwich -Common." - -It was the same peppery soldier who, when one of the members of the -staff had fallen ill, went with me upon a visitation to the sick. We -found the invalid in a state of extreme agitation, and surrounded with -books of a religious nature. - -"I think--I hope--" he kept saying, "that I shall be forgiven. I think -I shall--I hope so." - -"What's he saying? What's he saying?" cried the colonel, who, as often -happens to people in hot weather, had become rather deaf. - -{104} - -"He thinks he's dying," I shouted. - -Whereupon the colonel, turning angrily to the invalid, shouted, - -"You d----d fool, you have only over-eaten yourself!" - -The sick man was so infuriated that he hurled his books of religion at -the colonel, and sprang out of bed. Next day he was quite well. - -Another member of the staff was mounted one day upon a red horse (they -paint their horses in India), a wild, half-broken Arab steed, which was -giving its rider a deal of trouble. I advised my friend to dismount, -and left him. Presently I rode back to find him on foot and alone. I -asked him, where was his horse? - -"Gone," said he. "Whenever that d----d horse saw a mosquito, it sat -down and cried like a child. So I kicked it in the belly and it ran -away into the jungle." - -We visited Trincomalee, where the elephants built the dockyard. They -carried the timber and they carried the stones, and they lifted the -stones into position and adjusted them with their feet. The remarkable -thing about the climate of Ceylon is its intermittent showers of -tropical violence, followed by bursts of sunshine. In the result, you -actually see the foliage growing. I remember the extraordinary beauty -of the native decorations, which are fabricated of palms and leaves and -flowers. - -From Colombo we went to Mauritius, arriving there in May, 1870. Here I -climbed the famous mountain called Pieter Botte, or, more correctly, -Pieter Both. - -[Illustration: PIETER BOTH MOUNTAIN, MAURITIUS] - -The mountain is so named after Pieter Both, Governor-General of the -Dutch East Indies in the early part of the seventeenth century, and the -founder of Dutch power in that region. On his homeward voyage he was -wrecked in the bay overlooked by the mountain, which thereafter bore -his name. Previous ascents are recorded in the archives at Mauritius, -from which it appears that mine was the fourteenth. Admiral Sir -William Kennedy ascended Pieter Botte in 1861; he gives an account of -his climb in his {105} interesting book, _Hurrah for the Life of a -Sailor_ (London, Nash). Kennedy started with a party of fourteen -persons, of whom five reached the summit. - -At nine o'clock in the morning I started, together with the captain of -the maintop, Edward Hele. We took with us ropes, a rope ladder, -cod-line, and a small lead. These were all our appliances. We drove -to the foot of the mountain and began the ascent at 11.5 a.m. Now the -mountain of Pieter Botte is shaped like a church with a steep roof, -from one end of which rises a spire. This pinnacle of rock is crowned -with a huge, rounded, overhanging boulder. - -Part of the ridge was so sharp that we were forced to sit on it and to -proceed astride. Then we came to the pinnacle. The ascent was so -sharp and difficult that we were obliged to take off both shoes and -socks. At one point, I lost my balance, and was only saved from -falling backwards by Hele's ready hand. Climbing the pinnacle was far -more difficult than scaling the overhanging boulder at the top. At the -top of the pinnacle there was just room to stand beneath the -overhanging boulder. The only possible method of climbing the boulder -was to get the rope ladder over the top of it. Accordingly, one end of -the rope ladder was attached to the lead-line. In order to swing the -lead, one of us was roped with a round turn round his body, while the -other, lying on his back, held the rope while the leadsman, leaning -right backwards and outwards over the sheer precipice of some 3000 feet -fall, swung the lead. We took it in turns to swing the lead; as we -leaned outwards, the rock spread over our heads like an umbrella; and -it was an hour and a half before we succeeded in casting it over the -boulder. Then we hauled the rope ladder over and made all fast. It -was too short, and the last few yards we hauled ourselves up hand over -hand. So we climbed to the top, which is a platform of about 20 feet -square. It was then 1.59 p.m. We took off our shirts, and waved them -to the warships lying far below in the bay, from which we were {106} -plainly to be distinguished with the aid of a telescope. The ships -each saluted us with one gun. We planted on the summit a flag upon -whose staff were carved our names and the names of our ships. When we -returned, my brother officers gave us a dinner to celebrate the event. - -Hele was eventually promoted to warrant officer. When Hele died, I was -able to help his son to gain his education, and he did very well. It -was in Mauritius that we went out shooting with the native population; -one of the most dangerous amusements in which I have ever taken part, -for the bullets used to whistle in the air all round us. - -From Mauritius we proceeded to Cape Town. Here, on the 12th July, -1870, the Duke inaugurated the new harbour, breakwater and docks. I -kept a team on shore, and used to drive up from Simon's Bay to Cape -Town. Every now and then we stuck in a quicksand. On one such -occasion I had a brother officer with me; and as he was afflicted with -a cold, I took him on my back to save him from wet feet. But I fell -with him, and we were both soaked to the skin. Upon another day, when -we stuck, I put two of my messmates on the leaders, and they pulled the -coach right through. If you want horses to pull a weight out of a -tight place, put weight on their backs. - -The Colonial Secretary at Cape Town was Mr. Southey. He was a most -delightful and sagacious person, and became a great friend of mine. He -prophesied in a most wonderful way what would be the future of South -Africa. - -"If," said he, "we could only get a big man, a master-mind, to come out -here, all that I foresee would come true." - -The right man presently arrived in the person of the late Cecil John -Rhodes, and my friend's prophecies have been most singularly fulfilled. - -While at the Cape, we went up country, shooting. Both Dutch and -English families were most kind and hospitable to us. Upon one of -these expeditions, a member of the staff went out by himself very early -in the morning to shoot. Observing some ostriches in the distance, he -stalked {107} them with immense labour and patience, and presently -succeeded in shooting a couple of birds. When he returned, he -complained that it had been very difficult to get his sights on, owing -to some high rails which were between himself and the birds. It had -not occurred to him that he had been stalking tame ostriches on a farm. - -I once rode from Cape Town to Simon's Town and back, between lunch and -dinner, galloping the whole distance, with four changes of horses. The -distance between the two places is about 35 miles as the crow flies. -My errand was merely to postpone the arrival of a visitor who was to -come to the _Galatea_. - -The ride, however, showed that I was in good condition. I have always -tried to keep myself fit, holding that condition of body regulates -condition of mind. Cheery people deserve small credit, because their -frame of mind is due to their being right inside. Quarrelsome people -are wrong inside. - -On our way to England we touched at the Falkland Islands where I -visited a relative of mine who kept a ranch. He used bull-dogs to -catch his bulls, when he required them for branding. The dogs seized -the bulls by the nose and held them while they were lassoed by the -guachos. - -When we touched at Montevideo, I remember conversing with various -persons, who foretold the immense profit which must eventually accrue -if the land there was purchased at that time. Their opinion has since -proved true. But I had no money to invest; so that the opportunity was -only another instance of what might have been. - -The _Galatea_ was badly strained in a gale of wind, her deck seams -opening so that the water streamed into the cabins beneath. One -lieutenant used to say to another: - -"How did you sleep last night? It was pretty rough. - -"Woke at one o'clock and saw them reefing tops'ls"--meaning that, lying -in bed, he could see clear through the seams. - -I used my sail-making ability to make a canvas awning {108} for my bed; -fitted it with a ridge rope, laced it down and hauled it taut, led a -trough from it to take the water into the slop-pail; and slept dry -under it. - -It was during the visit of the _Galatea_ to Australia that I was made a -Freemason; and I have always regretted that I have never been able to -devote as much time to Masonry as I should have liked to give to the -Craft. The Australian Lodge into which I was admitted was under the -impression that I was the most timid neophyte who had ever joined it. - -When the ceremony was ended, one of the members of the Lodge said to me: - -"You are safely through it. But do you know that of all the men we -have had through this lodge, we never had one so paralysed with fear as -yourself. You were shivering like an aspen!" - -The fact was that during the initiatory ceremonies something -unaccountably struck me as extraordinarily funny. The effort to subdue -my emotions caused me to tremble all over. - -One of our diversions in the _Galatea_ when she was at sea, was to -listen to the conversations which used repeatedly to occur between a -certain worthy member of the Duke's suite and the old quartermaster. -The member of the staff in question had endeared himself to us by his -high seriousness. He dealt with the most trifling incidents of life in -a spirit of preternatural and wholly sincere solemnity. Supposing that -you told him that a common friend had fallen off his horse and bruised -his leg, our member of staff would instantly ship a countenance of -intense concern. - -"Bruised his leg? You don't say so! Good God! Has he indeed?" - -"Yes--he's bruised his leg!" - -{109} - -"Has he now? Well, well. Bruised his leg! I hope it's not serious. -I do hope it's not serious. Tut-tut! Bruised his leg, you say?" - -"It's not serious. But he's bruised his leg." - -"I'm delighted to hear it's not serious. But--bruised his leg. I am -really distressed." - -And so on. - -Among other matters, our friend took his family very seriously. One of -his ancestors had been an admiral; and it was this distinguished -officer who made the link between the member of staff and the -quartermaster. The member of staff used to stroll on the quarterdeck -in the evening, and fall into talk with the seamen. - -"Well, Jones. Good evening, Jones. I suppose, now, you've heard of my -uncle, the admiral?" - -"Heard of 'im, sir? I should think I 'ad heard of 'im. Ah, he was a -_man_, he was. He could handle a ship, he could--ah, and handle the -men, too!" - -"Why, where did you serve with him, Jones?" - -"Where, sir? Where not? All over the world, sir. Ah, he was a man!" - -"I'm delighted to meet anyone who knew a member of my family so well, -Jones--delighted, I assure you." - -"Knew 'im? Why, sir, to know 'im was to admire 'im, as the saying is. -Many a time I've seen the men turn out _for_ to admire 'im, sir. - -"Have you indeed, Jones--have you indeed! Dear me. Most interesting, -I am sure. I daresay a glass of grog would not come amiss to you, -Jones?" - -"Wery kind of you, I'm sure, sir. It 'ud be a pleasure to drink your -health, and the admiral's too, sir. Ah, he was a man!" - -Mr Jones, afterwards, forward on the lower deck, to envious friends: - -"Pretty sweet conversation that, mates. I wonder 'oo the b----y h--l -'is uncle might 'a been!" - -There was another member of the suite who surely deserves record--the -elephant. He was really a member of the ship's company, for he could -do, and did, the work of twenty men. He joined the ship in India, when -he was quite small, and he grew enormously on board. He lived in {110} -a house built aft, and fed upon branches of trees and bran and biscuits -and anything he could get. I trained him myself. I taught him to obey -the words of command, and he would do anything for me. He would hoist -me upon his shoulders with a fore foot, or upon his back with a hind -foot. In the dinner hour, when most of the men were below, he used to -take his share in working the ship. We slung the rope in a bowline -round his neck, and he would clew up the mainsail by walking on till he -was told to stop. He was never seasick. He used to balance himself, -swaying to and fro as the ship rolled. One night when the midshipmen -and I, having supper on deck aft, were called forward to trim sails, -the elephant finished the meal for us. He ate everything on the table, -put his foot on the plates and smashed them, and squashed the big -coffee-tin quite flat. Then he looked at us like a naughty child. - -I was the only person who could persuade him to leave the ship or to -come on board again when he had been ashore. When we reached home, he -was put in a railway truck and directed to the Zoological Gardens. His -keeper, a marine artilleryman, went with him in the truck. Elephants -have a habit of rolling on their feet and squirming their vast bulk. -When the marine was trying to pass the elephant, the great beast -unconsciously pinned his keeper against the side of the truck, and -against a projecting bolt, which broke the man's rib, forcing it into -his heart. He was taken out dead. - - - - -{111} - -CHAPTER XIII - -FLAG-LIEUTENANT AT PLYMOUTH - -In 1871, I was appointed flag-lieutenant to Admiral (afterwards Admiral -of the Fleet) the Hon. Sir Henry Keppel, commander-in-chief at -Plymouth. His flag was flown in the _Royal Adelaide_. Sir Harry, as -already recorded, had been commander-in-chief upon the China station -when the Duke of Edinburgh visited Japan, and had accompanied his Royal -Highness upon his visit to the Mikado. It was at Plymouth that I first -had the honour of serving under Sir Harry Keppel: a splendid seaman, a -most distinguished officer, a fine sportsman, one of the best and -kindest of men. - -Admiral the Hon. Victor Montagu, who served as a midshipman under Sir -Harry, relates in his _Reminiscences_ some interesting actions of his -old captain, which I may be permitted to quote. Commodore Keppel -distinguished himself by his personal gallantry and skilful leadership -in the battle of Fatshan Creek, 1st June, 1857; of which a full account -is given in Laird Clowes' _The Royal Navy_; and Admiral Montagu records -his own recollections of the affair: - -"During the many years in which I knew him I never once Sir Harry lose -his temper, except when the Chinese war-junks beat us back on the first -attack we had made on them.... John Chinaman, seeing us retire, took -the hint, and began making off himself, which so infuriated Harry -Keppel that he jumped up on our paddle-box, shook his fist at the -war-junks, some 500 or 600 yards away, and shouted out: 'You d----d -rascals! I'll pay you out for this! Man the boats, boys--man the -boats at once! The beggars are {112} trying to escape!' I never saw -such a rush. At no regatta could men have rowed faster." - -Commodore Keppel commissioned the _Raleigh_ frigate, 50 guns, for the -China station. Admiral Montagu states that she was "the last -man-of-war that ever sailed out of Portsmouth Harbour." Keppel would -have none of your steam-tugs. "We ran out with a fair wind with -studding-sails set on both sides." Alas! the _Raleigh_ never came back -any more. On 14th April, 1857, she struck a sunken rock in the China -Seas, near Macao. Keppel's indomitable conduct turned a disaster into -an achievement. - -"Shortly afterwards," writes Admiral Montagu, who was a midshipman on -board at the time, "we descried a French squadron lying at anchor in -Macao Roads, with an admiral's flag flying, and, though we were firing -minute guns of distress as the water gained on our pumps, Keppel, -nothing daunted, called out: 'Up with the French flag. Give him his -salute. Sinking or not, let the Frenchmen hear us.'" - -A French frigate coming to the assistance of the _Raleigh_, her captain -asked permission "to go below to see how high the water had risen in -the ship. 'Oh,' said Keppel, 'don't go below; look down the hatchway.' -'Ah! mon Dieu!' exclaimed the captain." ... - -Keppel kept the pumps going, crowded sail on the ship, and finally -beached her off Macao, just in time. He landed the ship's company, but -himself stayed aboard the vessel, sleeping on the bridge. The stores -and guns were saved. Keppel was deeply distressed at the loss of his -fine ship, "which," he wrote, "brings my career as a captain to an -end." Fortunately he was mistaken. In after years, when I told him -that the Admiralty were about to build a second _Raleigh_, Keppel -replied, "Very glad to hear it, my dear boy. I had the honour of -losing the first one." - -Admiral Montagu records that Keppel, while in command of the _Raleigh_, -challenged an American clipper ship to race from Penang to Singapore. -"We were constantly going at a speed of thirteen knots, during heavy -squalls, close-hauled, {113} and trailing the muzzles of our main-deck -guns through the water on the lee side, and I sometimes used to turn -into my hammock in abject terror, fearing that at any moment we might -capsize." - -Sir Harry Keppel was famous throughout the Service when I was appointed -his flag-lieutenant. One of my first recollections of that office -concerned an old-fashioned "Eighteen-hundred-and-war-time," peppery, -strict-service captain, who, having just come home from the West Coast -of Africa, asked to see the commander-in-chief. It happened that Sir -Harry and myself were on the point of going out hunting when the old -captain called, and the admiral was attired in hunting kit. - -"Tell him I'll see him to-morrow," said Sir Harry. - -But that wouldn't do at all, nor would any other excuse serve. - -"I insist on seeing the admiral," said the captain. "I have just come -home and it is my duty to see him at once." - -"Bring him in, then," said Sir Harry impatiently, "Now, sir," said he, -"my flag-lieutenant informed you that I was engaged. Why couldn't you -see the secretary?" - -"The secretary, sir? The secretary!" says the old captain wrathfully -staring at Sir Harry's informal attire. "Indeed I am told, sir, that -the secretary _is_ the Commander-in-chief here. That's what they say, -sir--that's what they say!" - -"Do they?" returned Sir Harry placidly. "And a d----d good -commander-in-chief too!" says he. - -When, in later years, I became commander-in-chief, I made it a rule -that all admirals and captains should have direct access to myself, no -matter how trifling the occasion. - -In those days, there was a turnpike-gate outside the town. I was -driving a brother officer home late one night, after dining at a house -some distance away and when we came to the toll-gate, the keeper was in -bed, and all my knocking and shouting failed to wake him up. So I -{114} proceeded to heave a large stone through his window. That -fetched him; and down he came, grumbling and swearing. I thrust a -sovereign--the only coin I had--into his hand to pay for his broken -window and the toll. It was bad tactics, for he promptly retreated -into his house (with my sovereign) leaving us still on the wrong side -of the gate. There was nothing for it but to break the rest of his -windows, but still he wouldn't come out. Evidently a surly fellow, -unfit to take charge of turnpike gates, an office demanding tact and -courtesy; and we thought it well to remove his temptation. So my -companion and I wrenched the gate from its hinges and lashed it to the -cart, vertically, so that it projected over our heads like a kind of -ornamental roof, its weight nearly lifting the mare between the shafts -off her legs and making her kick like blazes. Then we drove into -Plymouth, gate and all. The gate was reduced to firewood before -sunrise. Next day, the town was placarded with vain offers of reward -for information concerning "some evil-disposed person or persons -unknown who," etc. - -At that time, I used to ride steeple-chases whenever I had an -opportunity, and kept myself in regular training by hard exercise; a -habit which on one occasion involved the commander-in-chief in an -alarming rumour. It arose from the trifling circumstance that I had -borrowed his overcoat. The Fleet was at Holyhead, to celebrate the -opening of the new breakwater by the Prince of Wales; I was just going -for a training run up and down that breakwater, when, finding I had no -coat, I took Sir Harry Keppel's uniform overcoat. I took it, without -thinking, merely because I wanted it. The next thing that happened was -that the signalmen in the Fleet reported that the Admiral must have -gone mad on the breakwater, seeing that he was racing up and down it -clad in a shooting-cap, grey trousers, muffler and uniform overcoat. -As my face was almost hidden by cap and muffler, the signalmen were -deceived by the gold lace, took me for the admiral, and thought that -poor Sir Harry was smitten with insanity. - -[Illustration: THE AUTHOR AS LIEUTENANT] - -{115} - -We used to hunt a good deal with the Dartmoor hounds; and upon a day -when there was no run, and everyone was bored, one of the ladies -present begged me to provide some kind of sport, kindly suggesting that -I should personate the fox, a part I declined. - -"You _must_ do something to amuse us," she said. - -"Very well, I will," said I. - -Among the officers there were an elderly admiral and an elderly -general, and I pointed them out to the lady. - -"I will get up a race between the two of them," said I. - -She bet me I would not, and I took it. I began with the soldier. - -Ambling alongside the general, I asked him casually if he had ridden -much in his life. - -"Of course I have," says he irritably. "What do you mean, sir?" - -"Nothing at all," says I. "I thought I would ask. The admiral----" - -"What about the admiral?" cries the general, staring suspiciously at -the distant and unconscious officer. - -"He was saying he didn't think you knew very much about a horse." - -The general lost his temper. He swore. He said he would show the -admiral what he knew about a horse. - -"You can easily prove it," said I; and before he understood what was -happening, he had agreed to ride a race. Then I went over to the -admiral. - -"Do you know what the general says? He says you look like a monkey on -a horse," said I; and it was the admiral's turn to swear. - -"D----d impertinence!" says he. "I'll race him, and beat him any day -in the week." And he continued to use forcible language. - -"You can do that," I said, for the admiral was riding one of my best -horses. - -"If you really want a race, I'll arrange the whole thing," said I. And -I brought the two wrathful old gentlemen {116} together, rode with them -to the starting-point, gave the word, and off they went as hard as they -could pelt. I followed, cheering them on. The general began to draw -ahead, when his horse baulked at a soft place. The admiral's horse did -the same, throwing his rider upon his neck. - -"Get back into the saddle and he'll go through," I shouted, for I knew -the horse. The admiral hove himself into his seat, and won the race. -He wouldn't have won, if his adversary hadn't baulked. - -The members of the Board of Admiralty came down to Plymouth to witness -the autumn military manoeuvres. I offered to drive them all in my -coach; and they were settled in their places--Mr. Goschen the First -Lord, Admiral Sir Alexander Milne, the Earl of Camperdown and Mr. -Shaw-Lefevre--when out of the house came Rear-Admiral Beauchamp Seymour. - -"Get down!" he shouted. "Gentlemen, you must get down." - -They asked him why. - -"You don't know that boy," said Seymour. "He's not safe. He'll upset -you on purpose, just to say he's upset the whole Board of Admiralty!" - -And he actually ordered my guests off my coach, so that they had to go -in barouches. - -Sir Harry Keppel often came sailing with me in my little yacht. We -were out together, when I said to him, - -"I cannot weather that ironclad, sir." - -"Then run into her, my dear boy," said Keppel placidly. - -"All right, sir--obey orders." - -I held on, and we cleared the jib-boom of the ironclad by an inch. - -Sir Harry had an old friend of his to stay with him, Captain Clifton, a -most remarkable and interesting man. In the old days, the passage for -the opium trade existing between China and India was taken only once a -year--the opium ships running up to China with one monsoon and down to -India with the other. Clifton went to the Government {117} of India -and undertook, if the Government would permit him to build vessels to -his own design, to build clippers to thrash up against the monsoon as -well as run before it, and so double the income accruing from the opium -trade. The Government consenting, Clifton designed the _Blue Jacket_ -and the _Red Jacket_ and vessels of that class, which were the famous -opium clippers of the "roaring forties" and fifties. - -The Indian Government gave Captain Clifton a lakh of rupees. On his -way home, Clifton, touching at what is now the city of Melbourne in -Australia, but which was then a small assemblage of wooden shanties, -noticed the possibilities of the magnificent harbour. He told me that -he could have bought the whole site of Melbourne for a lakh; but on -consideration, he decided against the project. - -One of my great friends, Sir Allan Young, a brilliant seaman of the old -school, commanded, at the age of twenty-four, one of Clifton's opium -clippers. - -Upon the occasion of the Prince of Wales's opening the new breakwater -at Holyhead, in 1873, his Royal Highness was entertained together with -a large party at a country house in the neighbourhood. The Prince -called to me, and said: - -"This is very slow. You really must do something to enliven the -proceedings." - -"Well, sir," said I, "I will run a hundred yards race with Lord ----. -As he is Irish, he is sure to take me up if I challenge him." - -Sure enough, Lord ---- accepted the challenge, but on conditions. -These were: that I should race in full uniform, excepting my sword, -while himself should "take his wardrobe from off himself." Lord ---- -then proceeded to divest himself there and then of his Patrick ribbon, -coat, waistcoat, and boots, which he confided to the care of the wife -of a certain distinguished Liberal statesman. He dropped his Patrick -ribbon into her lap, saying: - -"Madam, will ye have a care now of me Jewel, for glory {118} be to God -there's no saying what twist this mad one might give me!" - -Entirely at ease, with the seat of his breeches patched with stuff of -another colour from the rest, and his toes sticking from his stockings, -he was wholly unperturbed by the laughter of the assemblage. - -Although attired in cocked hat, frock coat, and epaulettes, I had the -speed of him, and waited on him. Then the devil entered into me; and -when Lord ---- drew abreast of a big plant of pampas grass, I cannoned -into him, pitching him head first into the grass, not, of course, -intending to harm him. But to my consternation and sorrow, Lord ----'s -leg was broken below the knee. I put the poor lord into his coach--he -had a coach and four-in-hand--and drove him back to his hotel. That -excellent and magnanimous sportsman was perfectly unconcerned. - -"You hit me a bad skelp, and I am destroyed," said he. "Never mind, -they all laughed, anny way." - -It was about this period of my life, when, returning from a ball in -London in the early morning, I came upon a person selling whelks. He -invited me to sup--or breakfast--upon a plate of these delicacies. - -"How much do you charge for a plateful?" - -"Threepence," said he. - -"I'll give you sixpence for every plateful you eat yourself." - -"Done," said he. - -He finished two platefuls, and had begun a third, when he was overtaken -by rebellion from within, swiftly followed by catastrophe. - -"That's not fair," I said. "You can't count those two platefuls." - -"O my Gawd," he said. "'Ave I got to begin again?" - -To this time, too, belong my memories of a certain famous naval -captain, who was extraordinarily particular both as to his own dress -and the wearing of proper uniform by others. His regard for -appearances, however, {119} did not prevent his diving overboard in -full and immaculate uniform, including white gloves, to save a seaman. -Exceedingly precise in his speech, he owned the singular trait of -becoming deprived of utterance when he was angry; and few things made -him more angry than faulty attire in the Service. - -He was driving with me in a cab towards Plymouth, when we met an old -warrant officer, who was wearing a purple woollen waistcoat and green -gloves. My friend, stopping the cab so suddenly that the horse -slithered along on its haunches, leaped from the vehicle. The old -warrant officer, his attention arrested, had halted and turned round. -My friend went up to him. Then I perceived that he was stricken -speechless with wrath; for, continuing to swallow nothing, as his habit -was in these crises of emotion, he tapped the warrant officer's -waistcoat and gloves. Glaring at him and still silently swallowing, he -turned about and got into the cab. The old warrant officer stood -staring with dropped jaw, like a man petrified. - -It was my friend who, being asked at a court-martial what he would have -done in certain difficult circumstances, replied deliberately: - -"If I was where I was not I might have done something I did not do." - -In after years, when he was commander-in-chief at the Nore, he was -walking along the road to Sheerness, dressed in plain clothes, when a -bluejacket, who was slightly intoxicated, lurched against him. - -"Man, man," said my friend, with his picked elocution, "do you know -what you are doing? Man, you are colliding with the -commander-in-chief." - -"Ho," returned the seaman, totally unimpressed. "Har you, indeed? -Then all I've got to say, is to say you've got a ruddy good billet--an' -wha's more, you take care you don't lose it by getting drunk." - -Despite of my diversions, I did a good deal of hard work. As -flag-lieutenant I was in charge of the signalling, a {120} science -which, as it was understood in those days, I mastered completely. - -My first independent command was the _Goshawk_ gunboat, to which I was -appointed as lieutenant-commander for the manoeuvres and for review in -1873, while I was still flag-lieutenant to Sir Harry Keppel. I had a -narrow escape from disaster at the very beginning. Fortunately I -noticed that the navigator was going the wrong side of the buoy off -Drake's Island, and I was just in time to point out his mistake. I -remember my feeling of horror at the prospect of running on a rock in -Plymouth Sound in my first command. - -The first thing I did in the _Goshawk_ was to get from the flagship a -big working party of a hundred men to work at holystoning our decks -until they were as clean as a hound's tooth. From that day onwards I -set myself steadily against bright-work and spit-and-polish. My -objection to bright-work is that you have first to dirty it with brick -and oil in order to clean it afterwards. There are certain things in a -ship which must be kept bright, and these I would burnish; but -everything that could be painted I would paint, and then scrub the -paint with soap and water. I remember the shock it was to the -commander when I told him to cover the brass rails with canvas and -paint it. Under the spit-and-polish system no doubt the men take a -pride in keeping the ship bright, but such a process involves perpetual -extra bother and worry and black-list, which are quite unnecessary. -Cleaning bright-work makes the men's hands filthy at divisions; and -after ten minutes of bad weather, the copper turns blue and the brass -green, and the whole of the work must be done over again. - -At one time the bright-work system was carried to absurd extremes. I -have known a ship actually to have a bright cable. I have known -another ship with bright hammock hooks. The hatchways of some vessels -were polished and decorated with inlay and all kinds of ocean ornament -until the ship looked like a lady's boudoir or a transatlantic liner. -{121} The custom came in as the old sailing ships gave place to steam -ships, when the time hitherto devoted to making a vessel all a-taunto, -ropes taut, sail furling and mending and so forth, was given instead to -polishing, burnishing and making bright-work shine, until the present -system of gunnery and gymnastic training was introduced. Captains and -officers used to spend on their ships large sums out of their private -income, which very often they could ill afford. "Promotion by paint" -was not unknown. A ship ought to be scrupulously clean, but she should -have paint wherever possible, and soap and water should replace -spit-and-polish. - - - - -{122} - -CHAPTER XIV - -POLITICAL EVENTS OF 1873-80 AND POSTSCRIPT - -NOTE - -The following brief summary of political and international affairs is -introduced for convenience of reference. It may be skipped by the -reader, should he disdain politics. - -The Government of Mr. Gladstone, returned to power in 1868, began to -disintegrate in 1873. The proximate cause was the Irish University -Education Bill, announced in the Speech from the Throne at the opening -of the session on 6th February, 1873. Irish affairs have always been -the curse of the Liberal Party. But a popular Government would have -survived even the Irish University Education Bill, which, designed to -please all parties, failed of course to please any. The truth is that, -as people soon or late weary of all administrations, so they turned -from the Liberal Government. Mr. Disraeli summarised the history of -the Government in a piece of invective which has become classic: "You -have had four years of it. You have despoiled churches. You have -threatened every corporation and every endowment in the country. You -have examined into everybody's affairs. You have criticised every -profession and vexed every trade. No one is certain of his property, -and no one knows what duties he may have to perform to-morrow. I -believe that the people of this country have had enough of the policy -of confiscation." - -{123} - -The Government were beaten on the Irish University Education Bill; Mr. -Gladstone resigned; but Mr. Disraeli declined to take office. Mr. -Gladstone was therefore compelled to carry on the Government. Early in -1874 he suddenly appealed to the electorate; which, however, chose to -give his opponents a majority. Mr. Gladstone resigned, or partly -resigned, his leadership, and plunged into the esoteric joys of a -controversy dealing with the doctrine of Papal infallibility. It would -seem that a great ecclesiastic was sacrificed, when the young Gladstone -chose to give to politics talents which would have won him the -Archbishopric of Canterbury. - -In Mr. Disraeli's Cabinet Lord Cairns was Lord Chancellor; Lord Derby, -Foreign Secretary; Lord Salisbury, Secretary of State for India; Lord -Carnarvon, Colonial Secretary; Mr. Cross, Home Secretary; Mr. Gathorne -Hardy, Secretary of State for War; Mr. Ward Hunt, First Lord of the -Admiralty; Sir Stafford Northcote, Chancellor of the Exchequer. The -Duke of Richmond, as Lord President of the Council, led the -Conservative party in the House of Lords. The Liberal leader, walking -in the Gladstonian shadow, was Lord Hartington. - -In 1874 the Bill for the Regulation of Public Worship was passed. In -the following year Mr. Plimsoll, by the exercise of that dogged -determination and gallant defiance of Parliamentary conventions, by -means of which Parliament can sometimes be goaded into acts of justice, -forced the Government to pass the Merchant Shipping Bill. Mr. Cross, -the Home Secretary, introduced the useful Artisans' Dwellings Bill, -which was passed. Upon 25th November, 1875, the Government, at the -suggestion of Mr. Frederic Greenwood, purchased from the Khedive of -Egypt, 176,000 Suez Canal shares for the sum of £4,000,000. - -In the same year, the Prince of Wales, afterwards King Edward VII, went -to India, whither he was accompanied by Commander Lord Charles -Beresford, M.P., as A.D.C. (Lord Charles was promoted to the rank of -commander on 2nd {124} November, 1875.) The Prince received a telegram -informing him of the purchase of the Suez Canal shares when his ship -was passing through the Canal on the way to India. Lord Lytton was -appointed Viceroy of India. In 1876 it was announced that the Queen -was to assume the additional title of "Empress of India." - -In July, 1875, there was trouble in the Near East, which, nearly two -years later, in April, 1877, resulted in the declaration by Russia of -war against Turkey. The Mediterranean Fleet was ordered to pass the -Dardanelles. In March, 1878, Lord Derby resigned, and Lord Salisbury -succeeded him at the Foreign Office. Mr. Gathorne Hardy went to the -India Office, Colonel Stanley to the War Office, and Mr. James Lowther -became Chief Secretary for Ireland. Sir Michael Hicks-Beach had -already succeeded Lord Carnarvon at the Colonial Office. - -In the Parliament of 1875-80, young Mr. Parnell began his career. -Indomitable, subtle, cold and inscrutable, he speedily became a power. -A Protestant in faith, he had his foot on the necks of the Irish Roman -Catholic Nationalist members; half an Englishman by birth, he was an -implacable enemy of England. Utilising the tactics of obstruction, he -succeeded in bringing discredit upon a Government which was powerless -to control him and his led captains. He forced the Government to pass -a Bill for University Education in Ireland; and as the measure was no -better, if no worse, than the Gladstonian scheme which had been -rejected, so the result upon the Conservative administration was -equally injurious. - -Mr. Gladstone emerged from his studies in Papal infallibility to -denounce Bulgarian atrocities and the like. But the country declined -to become excited on the subject. In the meantime the Russian army was -approaching Constantinople. The British Government took public -measures of military and naval precaution clearly implying that Russia -would not be permitted to occupy Constantinople. Prince Bismarck -thereupon intervened, and invited the nations concerned to discuss -matters at Berlin. Lord Beaconsfield (he {125} had received his -peerage in 1876) and Prince Bismarck were the two most powerful men in -Europe. Beaconsfield chose himself to represent Great Britain at the -Congress, which opened at Berlin on 13th June, 1878. Lord Beaconsfield -returned in triumph, bearing with him "Peace with Honour." - -The advance of Russian influence in Afghanistan induced the British -Government, in 1878, to dispatch an expedition to Cabul, which was -occupied by British troops, and from which the Amir, Shere Ali, fled. -Followed, the signature of the treaty of Gandamak by Yakoob Khan, son -and successor of Shere Ali; the treacherous murder of Sir Louis -Cavagnan, British Envoy, and the greater number of his staff; and the -recapture of Cabul by British troops. The true history of the whole -affair, much distorted at the time (and since) by political malice, is -lucidly set forth in Lord Roberts's _Forty-one Years in India_, by the -great soldier who took so distinguished a part in it. - -Another frontier war broke out in 1879. In South Africa, Sir -Theophilus Shepstone had annexed the Transvaal; Sir Bartle Frere, Lord -High Commissioner, announcing to the Zulu king Cetewayo, that Cetewayo -was entitled to a strip of territory claimed both by Cetewayo and the -Transvaal Republic, ordered him to disband his army. The advance of -British troops was checked by their total defeat by the Zulus on 22nd -January, 1879, at Isandhlwana. Lord Chelmsford the commander-in-chief, -prosecuted the campaign, defeated Cetewayo and took him prisoner. -During the war the young Prince Louis Napoleon, son of the Empress -Eugenie, lost his life. - -In the meantime, the trade of the country had been profoundly -depressed, with the natural result that there was much discontent. On -24th March, 1880, Parliament was dissolved; and the Liberal party were -returned with a majority of some hundred and twenty. The Queen sent -for Lord Hartington; sent for Lord Granville; and finally, for Mr. -Gladstone. - -{126} - -The Russo-Turkish war of 1877 had brought Russia into opposition to -Austria-Hungary, thus destroying the alliance of the three Emperors; -and although Bismarck made peace between the two Powers at the Congress -of Berlin, Russia became estranged from Germany. In order to restore -her security, Germany concluded an alliance with Austria-Hungary and -shortly afterwards with Italy, which had quarrelled with France -concerning her occupation of Tunis. Thus was formed the Triple -Alliance. Its counterpoise was the drawing together of France and -Russia, in view of whose possibilities Prince Bismarck in 1887 -increased the German Army. In 1900 Germany passed the Navy Law, which -ordained that the German Fleet should be so strong that any attack upon -it would be dangerous to the attacking party. - -Nothing but the strength of the British Fleet, which had been largely -increased by the action of Lord Charles Beresford in 1888, and again by -the naval programme of 1893, and whose organisation had been brought to -a high state of efficiency by Admiral Sir Frederick Richards -(afterwards admiral of the Fleet), prevented the outbreak of war -between England and France at the time of the Fashoda incident in 1897. - -The affair caused both nations to reconsider the situation; with the -result that they settled all outstanding difficulties; and the Triple -Entente of Great Britain, France and Russia balanced the Triple -Alliance. Germany, in 1912, added some 70,000 men to her army, while -Austria and Italy increased their fleets. By the time the Allied -nations of the Near East had declared war upon the Turkish Empire, in -1912, Russia had recovered from the disastrous results of her war with -Japan, so that the Triple Entente once more balanced the Triple -Alliance. But the war in the Near East, with the heavy losses it -inflicted upon Turkey, had opened anew the whole Eastern question. The -settlement concluded {127} at the Berlin Conference thirty-four years -previously was abolished in a moment. - -It has been thought worth while to trace the main developments of -European politics from 1873 to the present time; as it happened to Lord -Charles Beresford to be a member of that Parliament which saw the -triumph of the Beaconsfield policy in foreign affairs, and to be a -member of subsequent Parliaments confronted with the emergence of new -and sinister international conditions. - - - - -{128} - -CHAPTER XV - -AN IRISH ELECTION AND IRISH POLITICS - -The political situation in Ireland at the time when I entered politics -was characteristically exemplified in the Kerry election of 1872, in -which I took part. It was fought entirely on the Home Rule issue, -which had been revived by Isaac Butt when, in 1870, he formed his Home -Government Association. - -In the Kerry election of 1872, the Roman Catholic hierarchy was opposed -to Home Rule. The anti-Home Rule candidate, Mr. Deas, was a Roman -Catholic, a local landlord and extremely popular. His opponent, Mr. -Blennerhasset, was a Protestant and a stranger to the locality. But -because he was a Home Ruler, he was elected in spite of the priests and -of the personal claims of Mr. Deas, winning by 839 votes. I may add -that he won in spite also of my exertions, which were considerable. I -started at two o'clock in the morning with Mr. Harry Herbert of -Muckross, and led a band of 350 tenants to the poll. (The Ballot Act -was not passed until 18th July of the same year, 1872.) - -Having polled the tenants, I was strolling in the street, when I was -stopped by one of my grand fellow-countrymen, a huge man of about six -feet five. - -"Are ye for Home Rule?" says he. - -"To hell with your Home Rule!" said I. Whereupon he hit me on the -point of the nose, knocking me over backwards, and effectually -silencing my arguments for the space of an hour and a half. - -{129} - -The nature of the problem of the land in Ireland may be exemplified -from my own experience as a landlord. I came into my property in 1866, -and when I returned from the sea two years later, being in need of -money, I wrote to my agent, telling him that I intended to inspect the -estate. He replied asking me to come as soon as I could, and adding -that I should be able to raise the rents all round. I told him to do -nothing until my arrival. When I went over, I drove to one of my farms -upon which it was proposed to raise the rent. The farm was about 48 -acres in extent, situated in the middle of a bog. Here I was -entertained by one of the finest old Irishmen I have ever seen, and his -three sons. Said I to him: - -"I want to talk to you about the rent. I hear that you are paying me -only 2s. 6d. an acre, whereas I can get 18s. an acre in the market." - -I shall never forget how the poor old man's face fell as he said: - -"For the love of God, do not turn me out, Lord Charles, I will give you -12s. an acre sooner than you should turn me out." - -And then he told me that he had occupied the farm during 48 years; and -in that time he and his sons had raised the original value to 18s. an -acre. Of course I told him to stay where he was at the old rent. But -by the law of the land I could have turned him out and put in a new -tenant who would have paid me 18s. an acre, the increased value being -solely due to the exertions of the old man and his sons. Had I been an -absentee landlord, it would have been an ordinary matter of business to -have instructed my agent to turn the man out and to raise the rent; and -that very course was taken in thousands of cases. There was no -compensation for tenants' improvements before 1870; and a farmer who -did his best for the land, and to whose exertions alone increased value -was due, must pay the increased rent or go. - -The monstrous land system in Ireland naturally caused {130} the tenants -to feel distrust and enmity towards the landlords; for, although not -many landlords abused their powers, the knowledge that they _could_ -abuse them was alone sufficient to create suspicion and hostility. -Again, the great companies which bought land on speculation, exacted -rents at the outside market value. A company cannot be expected to -make allowances. Nor did the companies know the tenants or care for -them. But under the Irish custom they were the tenants who had -themselves by their improvements raised the value of the land. - -In fairness to the landlords, it should be understood that the tenants -objected to the improvement of property by the landlord. "If you, the -landlord," the tenant argued, "improve the land, you will be raising -the rent on me. I would rather make my own improvements." - -The terms of tenure in Ireland were quite different from the terms of -tenancy in England, except in the north of Ireland, where was the -custom of tenant-right. In the south and west, the majority of tenants -had a yearly tenancy, and were liable to six months' notice, known as -"the hanging gale." When a landlord desired to get rid of a tenant, he -"called in the hanging gale." And a tenant habitually owed six months' -rent. - -I stood for Waterford at the request of my brother Lord Waterford. -That I was elected was due to his great personal popularity as a -landlord and as a sportsman and also to the powerful influence of a -certain prominent supporter of Home Rule, which he exercised on my -behalf because, although I was opposed to Home Rule, I supported -denominational education. I believed then, as I believe now, that a -man's religion is his own affair, and whatever it may be, it should be -respected by those who own another form of faith. I have always held -(in a word) that the particular form of a man's religion is necessarily -due to his early education and surroundings. - -[Illustration: THE AUTHOR. ÆT. 27] - -But when in the House of Commons I publicly declared that conviction, I -received about four hundred letters of a {131} most violent character, -most of which were written by clergymen of my own persuasion. I have -never asked a man for his vote in my life. When I stood for -Marylebone, in 1885, there was a controversy concerning the Sunday -opening of museums and picture galleries. I was in favour of opening -them, upon the ground that people who were hard at work all the week -might have opportunities for recreation, which I would have extended -beyond museums and galleries. But I was waited upon by a solemn -deputation of clerical gentlemen of various denominations, who desired -to make their support of me conditional upon my acceptance of their -views. - -"Gentlemen," I said, "has it ever occurred to you that I have never -asked you for your vote? Let me tell you that if you disapprove of my -opinions, your only honest course is to vote for my opponent." - -They were so astonished that they withdrew in shocked silence. - -When I was in Parliament, Isaac Butt, who was failing in his endeavour -to promote an agitation, begun in 1870, in favour of Home Government, -or Home Rule, did his best to persuade me to join the Irish party, and -to obtain for it Lord Waterford's influence, because, he said, Lord -Waterford was so universally popular and so just. Although I was -unable to join the Irish party, I was much impressed with Butt's -arguments in so far as the land question was concerned; and I discussed -the whole matter with Lord Waterford. I suggested to him that he -should form a league of landlords pledged not to rack-rent their -tenants; pointing out that if the Irish landlords failed to take the -initiative in reform, it was certain that the people would eventually -prevail against them, and that the reforms which would be enforced by -law would bear hardly upon the good landlords. - -Lord Waterford sympathised with my view of the matter; but after long -consideration he came to the conclusion that the course I proposed -might do more harm than {132} good. The question was inextricably -complicated by the fact that many of the landlords who had raised their -rents, had been compelled to raise them by force of circumstances; as, -for instance, when they had been obliged to pay very high charges upon -succeeding to their estates. In his position, Lord Waterford shrank -from associating himself with a scheme which must inflict hardship upon -landlords poorer than himself. Events took their course, with the -result I had foreseen. My proposal was inspired by that sympathy with -the demands of the Irish people, and that recognition of their justice, -which had been accorded by both great political parties in turn, and -which ultimately found expression in the Wyndham Land Purchase Act. - -Not long ago I asked one of my tenants, who had bought his holding -under the Wyndham Act, and who was a strong Home Ruler: - -"Now you own the farm, are you still for Home Rule?" - -"Faith, Lord Char-less," said he, "now I have the land behind me, shure -if it was a choice I could be given between Home Rule and a bullock, -I'd take the bullock." - -In recording the beginning of my Parliamentary career, I may say at -once that I have always disliked politics, as such. I entered -Parliament with the desire to promote the interests of the Service; and -in so far as I have been successful, I have not regretted the -sacrifices involved. - -But in 1874 my approval of denominational education--in other words, my -support of the right of every parent to have his child educated in his -own religion--outweighed my opposition to Home Rule. One of my -principal supporters, himself a Home Ruler, suggested as an ingenious -compromise that I should so print my election address that the words -Home Rule should appear large and prominent, and the qualification "an -inquiry into," very small: a proposal I declined. - -My opponents were Mr. J. Esmonde and Mr. Longbottom, who was celebrated -for his achievements in finance. He stood for Home Rule. Concerning -Mr. Longbottom, a {133} certain parish priest, who was also a Home -Ruler, addressed his congregation one Sunday morning as follows:-- - -"Now, boys," says he, "a few words about th' Election that's pending. -First of all, if ye have a vote ye'd give ut to a genuine Home Ruler, -if ye had one standing. Ye have not. Secondly, ye'd give it to a good -Conservative, if ye had one standing. Well, ye have one in Lord -Char-less Beresford, the gr-reat say-captain. And thirdly, ye'd vote -for the Divil, but ye'd never vote for a Whig. But as for this Mr. -Long-what's-'is-name, I wudn't be dhirtying me mouth by mentioning the -latter end of him." - -One of my opponent's supporters retorted by urging the boys to "Kape -th' bloody Beresford out, for the Beresfords were never known to shmile -except when they saw their victims writhin' on th' gibbet": an amiable -reference to John Beresford, First Commissioner of Revenue at the -period of the passing of the Act of Union, and _de facto_ ruler of -Ireland. - -Other incidents of that cheery time occur to my recollection. There -was the farmer who, ploughing his field, cried to me as I rode by, -"Hurroo for Lord Char-less." - -I went up to him and asked him whether he really meant anything, and if -so, what. - -"Will you _do_ anything?" said I. - -Said he, "Lord Char-less, if 'tis votes you want me to collect, begob -I'll quit th' plough an' travel for a fortnight." - -There was the car-boys' race I arranged on Waterford quay. Ten of them -started, and I won, because I had taken the precaution to stuff some -hay under the pad, which I lit with a match. The horse was stimulated -but quite uninjured. - -Then there was the affair of the bill-poster. I had been driving round -the country all day in a side-car, seeing the boys, and late at night -we stopped at a small inn. I was standing in the doorway smoking a -pipe, and feeling cold and rather jaded, when I noticed a bill-poster -hard at {134} work, pasting placards upon the wall of an adjacent -building. I could see that they were the green placards of my -opponent, my own colours being blue and white. - -I strolled across, and sure enough, there was my bill-poster sticking -up "Vote for Longbottom, the Friend of the People." - -"And what are ye doing, my fine peacock?" said I. - -"Sure I'm posting the bills of Misther Longbottom, the Friend of the -People," said he. - -"'Tis a grand occupation," said I. "Vote for Longbottom, the Friend of -the People, and to hell with Lord Char-less," said I. - -"To hell with Lord Char-less," says he. - -"Come," says I, "let me show ye the way to paste bills, ye omadhaun." - -"And what do ye know about pasting bills?" - -"Haven't I been a billposter all me life, then?" says I. "Here, let me -get at it, and I'll shew ye the right way to paste the bills of -Longbottom, the Friend of the People." - -He handed me his long hairy brush, and a pailful of a horrible stinking -compound, and I pasted up a bill the way I was born to it. - -"Sure," says he, "ye can paste bills with anny man that God ever put -two legs under. 'Tis clear ye're a grand bill-poster," says he. - -"Didn't I tell ye?" says I. - -And with that I caught him a lick with the full brush across the face, -so that the hairs flicked all round his head, and with a loud cry he -turned and fled away. Armed with the pail and the brush, away I -started after him, but my foot caught in the lap of the long coat I had -on, and down I came, and knocked my nose on the ground, so that it bled -all over me, and I had to go back to the inn. I took the rest of the -placards, and the pail and the brush, and drove home, arriving very -late. My brother Bill was in bed and sound asleep. Without waking -him, I pasted the whole of his room with bills, "Vote for Longbottom, -{135} the Friend of the People." I pasted them on the walls, and on -the door, and on his bed, and on his towels, and on his trousers, and -on the floor. Then I went to bed. - -In the morning he awakened me, wearing a pale and solemn countenance. - -"Charlie," said he, "there's some bold men among the enemy." - -"What do you mean?" said I. - -"They are great boys," says he. "Why, one of them got into my room -last night." - -"Impossible," said I. - -"Come and see," said he. "When I woke this morning I thought I had -gone mad." - -Upon the eve of the election, a man whom I knew to be a Fenian, came up -to me and said, "I shall vote for ye, Lord Char-less. I don't agree -with your politics, but I shall vote for ye." - -"And why would you?" I said. "You that's a Fenian, you should be -voting for Mr. Longbottom, the Friend of the People, like an honest -man." - -"Not at all," says he. "When ye go to the market to buy a horse, or a -cow, or a pig, what is it ye look for in 'um? Blood," says he. "An' -it's the same in an iliction. Ye are well-bred, annyway," says he, -"but as for this Mr. Longwhat's-'is-name, he's cross-bred." - -When I was holding a meeting, one of the audience kept interrupting me; -so I invited him to come up on the platform and have it out. - -"Now what is it, ye old blackguard," I said. "Speak out." - -"Lord Char-less," says he, "ye're no man." - -"We'll see about that," says I. "Why do you say so?" - -"Lord Char-less," he said solemnly, "I remimber the time one of your -family stood for th' county of Waterford, I was up to the knees in -blood and whisky for a month, and at this iliction, begob, devil a drop -of eyther have I seen." - -The old man referred to the election of 1826, in which {136} Lord -George Beresford was beaten by Lord Stewart de Decies, an event which -was partially instrumental in bringing about the emancipation of the -Roman Catholics in 1829. - -I have always preferred a hostile political meeting to a peaceable -assembly; nor have I ever failed to hold a hostile audience except upon -one occasion, during the York election. I had sent a speaker to occupy -the attention of an audience, largely composed of my own countrymen, -till I came, and by the time I arrived he had succeeded in irritating -them beyond the power of pacification. - -But one can hardly save oneself from one's friends. During the -Waterford election I came one evening to Youghal and went to the hotel. -I was peacefully smoking outside the inn, when a party of the boys came -along, hooting me, and presently they began to throw stones. When I -advanced upon them they ran away and were lost in the darkness. As I -turned to go back to the hotel, a large missile caught me behind the -ear, knocking me over. - -Next morning I related the incident to one of my most enthusiastic -supporters in the place. - -"'Tis a disgrace," said I, "throwing stones in the dark. And as for -that boy who made a good shot, if I could get hold of him I would -scatter his features." - -"Ye would not," said he. - -"And why wouldn't I?" said I. - -"Because," says he, "it was myself that threw that brick. An' didn't I -get ye grand!" says he. "But ye're not hurted. Sure ye're not hurted, -or I wudn't have told ye annything about it." - -It wasn't disloyalty on his part. It was simply that he couldn't -resist what he considered a joke. - -The result of the polling was: Beresford, 1767; Esmonde, 1390; -Longbottom, 446. - -A salient characteristic of the Irish race is that they will not endure -condescension towards them. They admire resolution and determination, -and will submit to the sternest discipline if it is enforced upon them -by a man who understands {137} them and whom they respect. Conversely, -they will yield nothing to weakness, and will return any assumption of -superiority with hatred and contempt. Hence it is that the English -have so often failed in their dealings with the Irish. In spite of the -violence the Irish often exhibit in politics, their pride of race and -pride in one another remain their notable characteristics. - -I recently overheard a remark which illustrates the Irish master -sentiment. During the debates upon the Home Rule Bill which took place -in the House of Commons in 1912, one of his Majesty's Ministers, having -made a long and an eloquent speech in support of that measure, -punctuated by enthusiastic cheers by the Nationalist members, had it -knocked to smithereens by Sir Edward Carson. Afterwards, I heard one -Nationalist member say to another, "Wasn't that grand, now, to see the -Irishman knocking spots out of the Saxon!" Yet it was the Saxon who -was fighting for the Nationalist cause, which the Irishman, Sir Edward -Carson, was strenuously opposing. - - - - -{138} - -CHAPTER XVI - -MEMBER FOR WATERFORD, AND COMMANDER, ROYAL NAVY - -I shall never forget my first impressions, when, in 1874, I entered -Parliament. There was a discussion upon a matter of Local Government. -I listened to the speeches made on both sides of the House, each -speaker taking a different point of view, and I became more and more -doubtful concerning the solution of the problem in hand. At last a -Radical member, whose name I forget, drew all the yarns into one rope, -making what appeared to me to be a clear, concise and reasonable -proposal. - -Sitting among my friends, several of whom had been at school with me, I -said: - -"That is the only man who has solved the difficulty, and if he divides -I shall vote with him." - -My innocent remark was received with a volley of expostulations. I was -told that I had only just joined political life, and that I did not -understand it; that the Radical speaker's plan was excellent, but that -the other side could not be allowed to take the credit of producing a -good scheme, because it would do our side harm in the country; that the -scheme would be thrown out for the time, in order that our side might -be able later on to bring in the same scheme and reap the credit of it, -and so forth. - -"Well," I said, "if this kind of tactics is required in politics, it is -no place for me. I had better go back to sea." - -Whereupon I was told that I should shake down to political methods when -I had been a year or two in the {139} House. But I have spent years in -politics and I have never shaken down to political methods. A thing is -either right or wrong. I have never scrupled to vote against my own -party when I thought they were in the wrong. - -Upon one occasion, someone told Disraeli that I was intending to vote -against the party. He put his arm on my shoulder, and said in his -orotund, deliberate enunciation: - -"My boy, don't you know that it's your first duty to vote with your -party? If everyone voted according to his convictions, there would be -no party system. And without a party system the Government could not -be carried on, as you will discover in time." - -I have also discovered that when politicians think only of issues as -affecting themselves and not as affecting the State, party politics -fall to a very low level, and those who believe in great national and -Imperial ideas are regarded as freaks and faddists. - -Disraeli was very friendly both to my brother Waterford and myself. -Upon the first occasion of a division in which I took part, he walked -through the lobby with his arm on my shoulder, rather to the surprise -of the old members. - -"Who the devil is that young man to whom Dizzy is talking?" I heard -them murmur. - -I sat immediately behind Disraeli; and one night, Lord Barrington, a -great friend of his, hurried into the House, and squeezing himself in -between me and the next man, leaned over and said to Disraeli in a -whisper: - -"Poor Whyte-Melville has been killed!" - -Disraeli turned slowly round, fitting his glass into his eye. - -"Dear, dear," said he deliberately; "and pray, how did _that_ happen?" - -"Killed in the hunting-field!" - -"How very dramatic!" said Disraeli solemnly. - -We stayed at Sandringham, and went for long walks together, during -which Disraeli talked and laughed with the greatest enjoyment. But I -remember how, in the pauses of {140} the conversation, he would stand -still, and, glass in eye, dreamily surveying the landscape, would make -some such observation as "The air is balmy ... and serene!" or "The -foliage is stunted ... but productive!" with the most weighty and -measured emphasis, as though these were prophetic utterances. I was -quite bewildered; for I did not then know whether he were serious, or -were indulging a recondite wit. He was a visionary, dwelling much in a -world of his own; and I know now that he was perfectly natural and -serious on these occasions. - -He and his wife were devotedly attached to each other. Having taken -Lady Beaconsfield in to dinner one evening, I noticed some red marks -upon her arm and her napkin. She was wearing red roses, and at first I -thought some petals had fallen from them. Then I saw that she was -wearing a bandage on her arm, and that blood was oozing from under it. -I told her that her arm was bleeding. - -"Please don't say a word, Lord Charles," she said hastily, "it would -distress Dizzy so much." And she furtively twisted her napkin about -her arm. Lord Beaconsfield, who was sitting opposite to us, stuck his -glass in his eye and stared across the table--I was afraid for a moment -that he had overheard what his wife had said. Poor lady, she died -shortly afterwards. - -When I entered Parliament in 1874 it was still the day of the great -orators: of Disraeli, Gladstone, Bright, David Plunkett, O'Connor -Power; whose like, perhaps, we shall not see again. There was a -tradition of eloquence in the House of Commons of that time; members -declined to listen to a bore; and debate was conducted almost entirely -by the two Front Benches. It was in my first Parliament that Disraeli -touched the zenith of his extraordinary and splendid career; during -which he formulated the principles of a national policy, a part of -which himself carried into execution, but whose complete fulfilment -remains to be achieved. Disraeli established a tradition; and like all -those who have a great ideal--whether right or wrong is {141} not here -the question--he still lives in the minds of men, and his name still -carries inspiration. His great rival, who wore him down at last, -bequeathed no such national inheritance. - -It was in this my first Parliament that Mr. Parnell emerged as the -leader of the Irish party. He was a cold, unapproachable person; he -kept his party under the most rigid control, with a tight hold upon the -purse. He had great ability. I have often seen him stalk into the -House in the middle of a debate, receive a sheaf of notes from his -secretary, Mr. O'Brien, with whom he would hold a whispered -consultation, then rise and deliver a masterly speech. He sat with me -on the committee of the Army Discipline Bill; speaking seldom, but -always to the point. - -Lord Randolph Churchill entered Parliament at the same time as myself; -and he was always a great personal friend of mine. - -Although we were opposed in politics, the other four Waterford members -were on excellent terms with the only anti-Home Ruler in the five. -There were Dick Power, F. H. O'Donnell, J. Delahunty, and Purcell -O'Gorman, who weighed twenty-eight stone or so; and they all came to my -wedding. Another Waterford man was Mr. Sexton. As a boy, he -manifested so brilliant a talent for oratory, that he was sent into -Parliament, where, as everyone knows, he speedily made his mark. I -remember, too, The O'Gorman Mahon, who, if I am not mistaken, fought -the last formal duel in this country. - -When I entered Parliament the automobile torpedo was a comparatively -recent invention. Mr Whitehead had begun his experiments in 1864; -after four years' work and at the cost of £40,000, he produced the -formidable engine of war known as the Whitehead torpedo, the type from -which all subsequent improvements have been evolved. I have heard it -stated that the British Government could have bought the invention -right out for £60,000. Whitehead invented the device of using -hydrostatic pressure to regulate the depth of the immersion of the -torpedo, and employed compressed air {142} as its motive power. The -new weapon was adopted by the British Navy and by other naval powers. -In the year 1876 the type in use was the 14-in., length 14 ft. 6 in., -weight 525 lbs. - -In my view, the capabilities of the new weapon had not been fully -appreciated; that opinion may or may not have been justified; but I -considered it to be my duty publicly to insist upon the importance of -the torpedo in naval warfare. I spoke on the subject both inside the -House of Commons and on the platform, and was so fortunate as to win -the approval of _The Times_. - -The Admiralty, however, were deeply affronted. The First Lord, Mr. -George Ward Hunt, informed me that the Board took great exception to my -speaking in the House upon naval subjects, and desired me to understand -that I must choose between the career of a sailor and that of a -politician. My reply was that I considered the request to be a breach -of privilege. Mr. Ward Hunt admitted the point; but argued that the -employment in the House of Commons of my knowledge of the Service was -prejudicial to discipline. He was of course right in so far as the -conditions did undoubtedly afford opportunities for prejudicing -discipline; but as there was no regulation forbidding a naval officer -to sit in Parliament, a dual position which had been frequently held by -members of the Board of Admiralty, the responsibility rested upon the -individual. - -However, it was not a case for argument; and I appealed directly to Mr. -Disraeli, telling him that I regarded the request of the Admiralty as a -breach of privilege; that I had no intention of relinquishing my naval -career; and that I had entered Parliament solely in the interests of -the Service. Disraeli listened with his customary sardonic gravity. - -"What," he asked, "do you intend to do?" - -I said that if the matter were pressed to a conclusion, I should resign -my seat, in which event Waterford would very probably be captured by a -hot Home Ruler. - -"My dear boy," said Disraeli, in his deliberate way, "I {143} am quite -sure that you will do nothing heroic. I," he added,--"I will see the -Secretariat." - -And that was the last I heard of the affair. - -Among other Service matters in which I did what I could in the House of -Commons to obtain reforms, were the training of the personnel, the more -rapid promotion of officers, promotion from the lower deck to officers' -rank, and the necessity for building fast cruisers to protect the trade -routes. I advocated more time being spent by the men upon gunnery -training, and less upon polishing bright-work; and brought forward a -motion to stop the men of the Fleet "doing 'orses" (as they called -hauling carts laden with stores about the dockyard), instead of being -trained in their proper work. These subjects no longer possess any -interest save in so far as the circumstances resemble those of the -present day. But I find recurring to-day many of the difficulties of -thirty or forty years ago. - -At that time the Admiralty had abolished the short service system under -which highly efficient seamen were recruited direct from the mercantile -marine, and the Board had become responsible for the whole supply and -training of men for the Fleet. But the Admiralty had neglected to -constitute an efficient system of training. A very large proportion of -men were employed at sea upon duties which precluded them from -receiving war training of any kind; another large contingent was kept -idle in hulks and receiving ships while waiting to be drafted into -sea-going vessels. The suggestion was that barracks should be erected -for their accommodation and provided with attached vessels; and that a -complete system of training should be organised; so that every man upon -going to sea in a ship of war should be acquainted with his duties. -Commander Noel (now Admiral of the Fleet Sir Gerard H. U. Noel, K.C.B., -K.C.M.G.) kindly sent to me a most valuable memorandum upon the -subject, in which he presented an admirable scheme of organisation, the -principles of which were afterwards carried into execution. Of late -years those principles have been {144} infringed; but the exigencies of -the Service will compel the authorities to return to the essential -conditions laid down by Sir Gerard Noel, whose authority is entitled to -the greatest respect. I also received a sagacious letter on the same -subject from Commodore John Wilson, under whom I afterwards served as -commander in the _Thunderer_, indicating the necessity of framing a -scheme of organisation to come into force as soon as the barracks were -completed. - -With regard to the promotion of officers and men, the state of things -nearly forty years ago finds a parallel to-day. Then, as now, a very -large proportion of officers, from the rank of commander downwards, -cannot hope to be promoted. It was then suggested that the retiring -allowance should be increased. It is true that in 1873 Mr. Goschen, by -granting an increased retiring allowance for a limited period, had done -his best to effect a temporary relief. But the permanent reform, which -is more necessary now than ever before, still awaits achievement. In -the meantime the discontent to which I drew attention in 1875, is by no -means less detrimental than it was. The whole difficulty, as usual, is -financial. Government after Government, of what political complexion -soever, refuse to pay the Services properly. The condition of affairs -is a national disgrace. - -At that time, too, the Fleet was highly deficient in cruisers; and, in -consequence, the sea-borne trade of the country was exposed to great -danger in the event of war, as I explained to the House of Commons. In -later years the requisite ships were provided; only, in a moment of -retrograde impulse, to be abolished. After a period of insecurity and -uneasiness, the cruiser force is once more being slowly increased. - -In later years my political opponents found great solace at elections -in saying that I had objected to the abolition of flogging in the Navy. -The question arose in my first Parliament. What I actually did--as a -reference to Hansard will confirm--was to point out that in many cases -they were the best men, the men who had the pluck to get {145} into a -row. High-tempered, full of exuberance, they were flogged for offences -against discipline, and whereas a flogging was soon over and done with, -the alternative proposed would break a man's heart in prison and -deprive the Navy of valuable services. Which, then, was the more -humane course? To-day, the circumstances and conditions have changed. -Discipline is better, and flogging, thank goodness, is abolished. - -But when the matter was under discussion, a certain ex-naval officer -assembled a public meeting, at which he attacked me with great -vehemence and impassioned eloquence. He was interrupted by an old -fellow at the back of the hall, who, refusing to be silenced, was asked -to speak from the platform. He did. He gave the meeting a dose of -lower-deck phraseology, hot and strong; and told the audience they were -not to believe a word they had heard concerning myself; that he had -been shipmates both with the speaker of the evening and with myself. -He devoted some complimentary remarks to me, "but," says he, "as for -the other, he flogged every man in the ship three or four times." -Whereupon the audience rose in its wrath and drove my opponent from the -platform. - -Mr. Disraeli asked me to survey the three battleships building for -Turkey and the one battleship building for Chile, and to give him my -opinion as to whether or not they were worth buying. Disraeli said he -preferred to ask me rather than the Admiralty, as I could, if -necessary, speak on the matter in Parliament. "And," said Disraeli, in -his pontifical way, "I like young brains." I advised the purchase of -the ships; and purchased they were, being added to the British Navy -under the names of _Superb_, _Belleisle_, _Orion_ and _Neptune_. - -In those days I owned a bull-dog of marked personality. He never -fought unless he were attacked; but his favourite recreation was to -rush at full speed, head down, at every dog bigger than himself. The -instant he caught sight of a big dog, he shot away like a projectile -discharged from a gun; nothing stopped or turned him; and the -unsuspecting object {146} of the manifestation would go down like a -ninepin. Then, unless he were detained by reprisals, Butcher would -return to his master with the air of a dog who knew his duty and who -had done it. At that time the streets of London were haunted by -Italian image-venders, who carried the Twelve Apostles and other sacred -statuettes neatly arranged upon a board, which the merchant balanced on -his head. One of those pious venders was walking directly in the -headlong path of Butcher, who flashed between his legs. Down came the -Apostles, who were dashed to fragments, for which I had to pay about -£12 to the pedlar of saints. - -When my dog thought I wanted a hansom, he used to scramble into it, -jump upon the seat, and sit there panting with his tongue hanging out. -He performed this feat one day when an old gentleman, without noticing -him, had hailed a hansom. The old gentleman, climbing slowly into the -cab, suddenly saw the dog on the seat, and was so startled that he -tumbled backwards and knocked his head on the pavement. - -In 1876, having passed in torpedo work in the _Vernon_, I applied for -the appointment of second in command in a big snip, holding then, as I -hold now, that every officer who hopes to obtain flag rank should gain -experience in detailed routine work and in handling and organising men, -which can only be acquired as first lieutenant or commander. The -second in command of a man-of-war gains invaluable experience. He must -always look ahead in order to _prevent_ things occurring which would -cause confusion or discomfort. He has literally not one minute to -himself in the day; thinking ahead, waylaying the wishes of his -captain, and providing not only for what _will_ occur but for what -_may_ occur, and being ready to encounter the constant unforeseen -emergencies inseparable from life at sea in a man-of-war. - -I was accordingly appointed to the _Thunderer_ as commander. Her -captain was John Crawford Wilson (afterwards Rear-Admiral). The Navy -lost one of the best officers that ever sailed the seas when he died in -1885. He {147} was mentioned in the Admiral's dispatch for gallant -conduct in the affair of the Peiho Forts in 1859, served on the Pacific -Station, and was commodore of the Australian station. He was commander -of the _Bombay_ screw wooden first-rate, when she was burned off -Montevideo on the 14th December, 1864, and when 97 officers and men -perished. Many of those who were lost had climbed out on the bowsprit, -and when they were forced overboard by the heat, the melting lead of -the gammoning (the lead covering to the chain gammoning securing the -bowsprit) dropped on them and killed them. It was largely due to the -splendid discipline maintained by Wilson that the loss was not far -greater. The men held their posts although the flames were licking up -through the skids, so that the falls of the last boat, lowered from the -yard-arm, were actually burned through. It should be added that in -this disaster the Royal Marines enhanced their unrivalled reputation, -34 out of 97 lost belonging to the corps, the sentries dying at their -posts. - -The _Thunderer_ was of 9190 (4407) tons, 6270 (800) h.p., and belonged -to the Channel Squadron. She was an improved central battery -twin-screw ironclad, designed, with the vessels of a similar type, -_Devastation_ and _Dreadnought_, by Mr. E. T. Reed, C.B. In these -ships there was no propulsion by mast and sail power. They also -embodied the idea of limiting the armament to heavy guns, the secondary -armament of lighter guns being omitted. This arrangement, after having -been wisely abandoned for many years, was repeated in the _Dreadnought_ -of the year 1906, only to be once more recognised as a mistake. One of -many reasons why a secondary armament was essential, particularly with -muzzle-loading guns, was that, lacking it, the men might have been -exposed to the enemy's fire for some time before they could reply, a -most demoralising position. These considerations were constantly -represented by Captain Wilson to the Admiralty. While the science of -gunnery progressed, the element of time has remained a {148} factor in -the problem, though under different circumstances. The _Thunderer_ -carried two pairs of muzzle-loading guns in two turrets; the foremost -pair being 38-ton guns, hydraulic loading, the after pair 35-ton guns, -hand-loading. She was belted with 14-inch armour along the water line; -and the armour projecting squarely from the hull, its edge struck the -water so hard when the ship rolled, that she was shaken throughout her -structure. To remedy this defect, wedge-shaped pieces were fitted -along the lower edge of the armour. Before I joined the ship she had -burst a boiler, the escaping steam causing great loss of life. Captain -Wilson, who was in the engine-room at the time, was saved by his -stature; although he was scalded, his face was above the level of the -steam, being between the deck-beams where there was an air cushion. - -That the boiler exploded was due to the remarkable coincidence of two -factors. The box safety-valve jammed, owing to the two different -metals of which it was constructed expanding in different degrees. And -the pressure-gauge tell-tale, which was fitted in a cogged circle, had -the needle forced right round the circle twice or more, so that it -showed a normal pressure. The actual pressure must have been terrific. - -And after I left the ship one of her guns burst. This accident -contributed another instance in favour of breech-loading as opposed to -muzzle-loading guns. - -The accident occurred during practice at quarters in the Gulf of Ismid, -on 2nd January, 1879, in the fore-turret. Captain Alfred John -Chatfield had succeeded Captain Wilson in command. Two officers and -nine men were killed, and thirty-five persons injured. The muzzle was -blown off from about two feet in front of the trunnions. There was -much discussion then and subsequently concerning the cause of the -accident. The probability is that the bursting of the gun was due to -its having been double-loaded, after a previous miss-fire, which, in -the simultaneous discharge of the rest of the guns, had not been -noticed. The committee {149} which reported on the matter on 1st -March, 1879, adopted this hypothesis, in preference to the theory that -there had been a flaw in the material. - -Captain Edward Seymour (afterwards Admiral of the Fleet the Right Hon. -Sir E. H. Seymour), who was then in command of the troopship _Orontes_, -in his book, _My Naval Career and Travels_, thus refers to the -incident:-- - -"From Malta I brought home the main part of the ship's company of -H.M.S. _Thunderer_, on board which ship the terrible explosion of the -38-ton muzzle-loading gun had lately occurred in her foremost turret. -Both turret guns were being fired simultaneously, but evidently one did -not go off. It may seem hard to believe such a thing could happen and -not be noticed, but from my own experience I understand it. The men in -the turret often stopped their ears, and perhaps shut their eyes, at -the moment of firing, and then instantly worked the run-in levers, and -did not notice how much the guns had recoiled. This no doubt occurred. -Both guns were then at once reloaded, and the rammer's indicator, -working by machinery, set fast and failed to show how far home the new -charge had gone. This, too, may seem unlikely, but no doubt it -happened; and the gun on being then fired burst, killing two officers -and several men, and wrecking the turret. Experiments made with a -similar gun double-loaded, burst it in exactly the same way." - -I agree. I have frequently been in the turret during practice, and I -have myself fired several rounds and I can testify that the concussion -was so tremendous that it was impossible to hear whether one gun was -fired or both guns were fired. Without insisting upon details, it was -also the fact that the men in the turret could not tell by the position -of the hydraulic rammer whether or not the gun had already been -charged, as the rammer was three-jointed and telescopic: the indicator -which was designed to show the position of the rammer was totally -unreliable; while the actual loading of the gun was done upon the -battery deck below the turret. {150} Hence the loading crew must also -have been unaware that there had been a misfire. The system in use in -the _Thunderer_ was experimental, and after the accident its defects -were remedied. I then wrote to _The Times_ explaining what the system -had been and how it had been improved, in order both to remove any -misapprehension there might have been with regard to the efficiency of -the officers and men who perished in the disaster, and with regard to -the future safety of guns' crews. I was reprimanded by the Admiralty -for having published the letter while on full pay in the command of the -_Osborne_; but the reprimand was (like the Bishop's apron) a mere form, -for I also received a private letter of thanks. - -After the bursting of the boiler, but before the gun accident, the -Prince of Wales at my suggestion very kindly came on board, in order -that the men's belief that the _Thunderer_ was an unlucky ship should -be removed. The Prince fired the fore turret guns at a target from the -captain of the guns' firing position, and made a rattling good shot. - -The _Thunderer_ was employed in experimental work, such as measuring -her turning-circle (the diameter of which is the smallest distance the -ship can set between the point at which she begins to describe a -semi-circle and the point at which she ends it), and noting her -behaviour under various circumstances and stresses of weather. I -gained much valuable experience in her, and I shall always remember -Captain Wilson as one of those officers from whose skill and experience -I learned the most. - -While I was in the _Thunderer_ (1876-7) I made one of the first working -models of the telephone used in this country, and had the honour of -presenting it to H.R.H. the Princess of Wales. The invention was first -exhibited before the British Association by Mr. W. H. Preece on 23rd -August, 1877; and it was shown to Queen Victoria at Osborne on 15th -January, 1878. The Telephone Company was established during the same -year. - -[Illustration: LADY CHARLES BERESFORD] - -The _Thunderer_ was sent to blow up a vessel which had {151} capsized -and which was floating in the Channel, a danger to mariners. -Explosives attached to her side tore pieces out of her, but the wreck -continued to float. In these cases it is necessary to disintegrate the -vessel, whether sunk or floating, into fragments. I suggested that the -hull should be girdled with an iron hoop to which explosives were -attached at intervals, and the device was successful. The explosion -cut her into holes like the perforations of a sheet of postage stamps -and she broke up. - -The _Thunderer_ was lying off Queenstown, and I was watching a cutter -which was running out of the harbour. On the deck was a group of Irish -farmers. The cutter suddenly gybed, the boom knocking down the -farmers. Getting up, they instantly fell upon one another with sticks; -and they were hard at it when over came the boom again, and again -felled them all to the deck. It could be they had had a drop of liquor -taken, which confused their intellects. - -In the year 1878 I married Miss Jeromina Gardner, daughter of the late -Richard Gardner, M.P. for Leicester, and of Lucy Countess Mandelsloh, -whose father, Count Mandelsloh, was for some years Minister in London, -representing Würtemberg. - -Shortly afterwards I was appointed to command the royal yacht -_Osborne_. The _Osborne_ was used by the Prince of Wales (afterwards -King Edward VII). In those days she was not kept in commission for -more than a few months in each year. - -Several cruises were made to Denmark, and there were many shooting -expeditions. On one such occasion I was the only person present who -was not either a king actual or a king prospective. There were the -King of Denmark, the King of Norway and Sweden, and the King of Greece, -the Prince of Wales, the Cesarewitch, the Crown Princes of Denmark, of -Norway and Sweden, and of Greece. We shot foxes, hares, deer, and -anything that came along; and I was laughed at when my instincts -forbade me to shoot a fox. - -{152} - -Upon a return voyage, when all the Royal children were on board, a gale -sprang up just off the Skaw. The starboard paddle-wheel was smashed -upon some wreckage; and the next thing I saw was a small craft being -driven on a lee shore. The _Osborne_ dropped anchor, in order both -that the paddle-wheel should be repaired and that the crew of the -driving vessel might be assisted. The only way to rescue them was to -veer a boat astern with a hawser. Just as the arrangement was ready, -to my delight I perceived the crew--there were four--embarking in their -own boats. They reached the shore in safety, but their ship was -wrecked. - -It was then the system in the royal yachts to retain the officers in -her for long periods. One officer had been in the _Osborne_ for -fourteen years. I ventured to suggest to the Prince of Wales that -under these conditions his acquaintance with the officers of the Fleet -was necessarily limited, and that by means of restricting the time of -service in the _Osborne_ to two years, he might become acquainted with -a succession of officers. With his habitual courtesy and address, the -Prince adopted the suggestion. - -Queen Victoria was, however, a little perturbed by the change. Her -Majesty said to me that she hoped I should not endeavour to change the -officers in the royal yacht. - -"No, ma'am," I replied. "I have no such power. I only made a -suggestion to the Prince." - -"You may be right," said the Queen, "but I am an old woman now, and I -like to see faces I know about me, and not have to begin again with new -faces." - -We had some excellent boat-racing in the _Osborne_. One famous race -was rowed at Cowes between the officers of the royal yachts _Victoria -and Albert_ and _Osborne_, in six-oared galleys. Her Majesty Queen -Victoria came down to the jetty to witness the contest. The stroke of -the _Victoria and Albert_ was my old comrade in the _Marlborough_ and -_Bellerophon_, Swinton Holland. I was stroke of the _Osborne's_ crew. -At first the _Osborne_ drew ahead--rather, I think, to {153} the -Queen's dismay--but eventually the _Victoria and Albert_ won the race, -to the delight of Her Majesty. - -Another great race was rowed between the _Osborne_ six-oared galley and -the Dockyard boat. It took place off Southsea, the whole of the -foreshore being lined with people. The _Osborne_ won. Her boat was -manned by Irish bluejackets whom I had trained myself. - -While I was commanding the _Osborne_ one of the crew met with a -singular accident. We were shooting the seine off Calshot, and, as it -fouled, I sent a man down to clear it. When he came up, he said that -he had been stabbed through the hand "by some beast." I examined the -wound and found that his hand had been pierced right through, and I -thought that he must have come upon a nail or a splinter in a piece of -wreckage. But when we hauled up the seine, there was a huge sting-ray. -I cut out the sting and gave it to the Princess. There is no doubt -that the fish had transfixed the man's hand. The sailor is still -alive, and is well known in Portsmouth for his political enthusiasms. -It was in the same haul that we caught a red mullet weighing about six -pounds, the biggest I have ever seen. - -I ought here to record the very great interest taken by the Royal -Family in all matters connected with the Navy. While I was in command -of the _Osborne_, the Prince of Wales graciously consented to attend -one of the gatherings of members of Parliament who came at my -invitation to see something of the Navy. On this occasion they visited -Portsmouth Dockyard, where they were shown everything of interest. - -One of the experiments performed for the entertainment and the -instruction of the party was firing at a floating cask with bombs -thrown by hand, a method of warfare since discontinued owing to the -danger it involves to the person bombarding. When the cask exploded, a -stave flew between the Prince and the general commanding at Portsmouth, -Sir Hastings Doyle. Had it struck either of them he must have been -killed. - -{154} - -The general's brother, Percy Doyle, a dear old gentleman well known in -society, had very bad sight. I once saw him trying to eat a red mullet -done up in paper. After a good deal of harpooning, he got it out, but -put the paper in his mouth. We always told him he had swallowed the -births, deaths, and marriages column of _The Times_. - -On Sunday the 24th of March, 1878 (the date of my engagement to Miss -Gardner), the _Eurydice_, training frigate, capsized off the Isle of -Wight in a sudden squall and sank. The total loss of life was about -300, only two being saved. She was on her way home from the West -Indies. Coming under the Isle of Wight, she hauled her wind for -Spithead, thus closing the land, so that it was impossible for the -watch to see a squall coming up from windward. The captain, the Hon. -Marcus A. S. Hare, was anxious to reach the harbour as soon as possible -in order to give the men Sunday leisure. It was about four o'clock in -the afternoon when a sudden squall struck the ship, and she heeled -over; the lee main-deck ports being open, according to custom, she took -in a good deal of water, depressing her bows; so that instead of -capsizing, she simply sailed straight to the bottom, her fore-foot -being broken off with the force of the impact, and her topgallant masts -remaining above the surface. There was no time to shorten sail. When -she was raised it was found that only one rope, the mainroyal sheet, -had carried away. - -Rear-Admiral Foley, admiral-superintendent of Portsmouth Dockyard, -kindly invited me to be his guest to take part in the salvage -operations arranged for the raising of the _Eurydice_. That occasion -was, I think, the first upon which the newly invented wire hawsers were -actually tested in practical work. When they were introduced it was -thought that they would not be flexible enough for their purpose. They -were, however, used with great success in raising the _Eurydice_. The -hawsers were passed under the hull of the sunken ship and secured to -lighters moored on either side of her. As the tide went down, the -hawsers were hove taut, and water was {155} let into the lighters so -that they should be brought as low in the water as possible. The water -was then pumped out of the lighters, thus putting the utmost strain -upon the hawsers. Then, as the rising of the tide exerted a powerful -lift upon lighters and hawsers, the lighters were towed towards the -shore, in order to drag the wreck upon the beach. As soon as she -grounded, the hawsers were fleeted and the whole process gone through -again until at low tide she was nearly high and dry. - -My old ship, the _Thunderer_, which took a hawser to her after capstan -to tow the _Eurydice_, had the solid iron spindle of the capstan pulled -right out of her, as a long nail is bent and dragged out of a piece of -timber. I well remember the intense excitement when the wreck first -shifted from her bed. Eventually we hauled her up the beach. I was -just then taking a bearing for Admiral Foley, and could not have given -a better holloa if I had viewed a fox. - -Before the water was pumped out of her, and as she lay on her side on -the beach, I climbed in at a porthole, and sat there waiting till I -could enter. As the water fell, I saw emerge the sentry's clock on the -main-deck. The hands had stopped at 4.5. The bodies lay in heaps, -tangled amid ropes; some had lost a head and some a limb. Black mud -had filtered in everywhere, even (as Sir Edward Seymour remarks) into -the closed drawers of the chests in the cabins. - -When, as a cadet, I was learning to heave the lead from the chains of -the _Eurydice_, which, as I have already related, was then moored off -Haslar Creek in Portsmouth Harbour, I little thought I should one day -help to raise her from the bottom of the sea. - -Dr. Boyd Carpenter (late Bishop of Ripon), in his charming volume of -recollections, _Some Pages of my Life_, narrates a remarkable story -concerning the _Eurydice_, as it was told to him. Sir John MacNeill -was the Bishop's cousin and, like other members of his family, had the -gift of second sight. - -{156} - -"Sir John MacNeill," writes the Bishop, "was looking out of the window -in Sir John Cowell's room at Windsor, when suddenly he exclaimed: 'Good -Heavens! Why don't they close the portholes and reef the topsails!' -Sir John Cowell looked up and asked him what he meant. He said, in -reply, that he hardly knew; but that he had seen a ship coming up -Channel in full sail, with open portholes, while a heavy squall was -descending upon her. At the very time this conversation was taking -place the fatal storm fell upon the _Eurydice_, and she foundered as -she was coming in sight of home." - -In 1880, while I was still in command of the _Osborne_, I lost my seat -at Waterford. In the following year, desiring to hold another -independent command before my promotion to captain, I applied to go to -sea again, and was appointed to command H.M.S. _Condor_. - - - - -{157} - -CHAPTER XVII - -WITH THE PRINCE IN INDIA - -In September, 1875, I was appointed A.D.C. to the Prince of Wales (our -late King) to accompany his Royal Highness upon his visit to India. -The complete list of the suite was as follows: The Duke of Sutherland, -K.G.; Sir Bartle Frere; Lord Suffield, Head of the Prince's Household; -Major-General Lord Alfred Paget, Clerk-Marshal to H.M. the Queen; Lord -Aylesford; Major-General Probyn, V.C., Equerry to the Prince, in charge -of the transport and sporting arrangements; Colonel Arthur Ellis, -Grenadier Guards, Equerry to the Prince; Mr. Francis Knollys -(afterwards Lord Knollys), the Prince's private secretary; -Surgeon-General Fayrer, Physician to the Prince; Captain H. Carr Glyn, -Royal Navy, A.D.C. to H.M. the Queen commanding H.M.S. _Serapis_; -Colonel Owen Williams; Lieutenant Lord Charles Beresford, Royal Navy, -A.D.C. to the Prince; Lord Carington, A.D.C. to the Prince; the Rev. -Canon Duckworth, Chaplain; Lieutenant (afterwards Colonel) Augustus -FitzGeorge, Rifle Brigade extra A.D.C. to the Prince; Commander -Durrant, Royal Navy, commanding royal yacht _Osborne_; Dr. W. H. -Russell, hon. private secretary to the Prince, chronicler of the -voyage; Mr. Albert Grey (afterwards Lord Grey), private secretary to -Sir Bartle Frere; Mr. Sydney Hall, artist. - -The Indian officers, who joined the suite at Bombay, and whose energy -and ability were beyond all praise, were Major-General Sam Browne, -V.C., in charge of transport; Major Williams, in charge of horses and -grooms; Major {158} Bradford, head of the police and responsible for -the safety of the person of the Prince; Major Sartorius, V.C., in -charge of tents and servants; and Major Henderson, linguist. - -The first announcement of the intention of the Prince to visit the -Indian Empire was made by Lord Salisbury to the Council of India on -16th March, 1875. The matter was subsequently discussed at length both -in Parliament and in the Press. The condition of affairs in India, -where the mass of the ruling princes and chieftains had still to -realise that the rule of the Honourable East India Company had given -place to a greater governance, rendered the visit of the future -Sovereign of paramount importance; and the Prince's sagacity was seldom -more admirably exemplified than in his determination to visit India as -the Heir-Apparent of the Crown. That the scheme was entirely and -supremely successful in achieving the object for which it was designed, -was due to the Prince's zeal, ability, tact and indomitable vigour. He -gave his whole mind to the enterprise; thought of everything in -advance; and set aside his personal comfort and convenience from first -to last. Only one regret was present in the minds of all: the regret -for the unavoidable absence of the Princess. - -The whole history of the episode has been so excellently well told by -the late Dr. William Howard Russell, the famous war correspondent, who -was a member of the suite, in his _The Prince of Wales's Tour_ (London, -1877; Sampson Low) that any detailed account of it on my part would be -superfluous. - -The Prince left England on 11th October, 1875, and embarked in H.M.S. -_Serapis_ at Brindisi on the 16th. In the Suez Canal we heard of the -purchase of Suez Canal shares by the British Government. The _Serapis_ -arrived at Bombay on 8th November. - -Thenceforward the Prince's tour was an unresting progress of Durbars, -receptions, dinners, visits, processions, ceremonies, speeches, -addresses, fireworks, entertainments, investitures, reviews, varied -only by intervals of sport. From Bombay, {159} the Prince went to Goa, -and thence to Ceylon, visiting Colombo, Kandy, where he viewed the -sacred tooth of Gotama Buddha, and Ruanwalla, where there was an -elephant hunt. Then he went to Tuticorin, Madura, Trichinopoly, -Madras, Calcutta, Bankipoor, Benares, Lucknow, Cawnpore, Delhi, Lahore, -Cashmir, Umritsar, Agra, Gwalior, and Jeypoor. From Jeypoor he went -into camp in the Terai and enjoyed excellent sport. Then, in Nepal, -under the auspices of Sir Jung Bahadur, there was the great elephant -hunt. From Nepal the Prince went to Allahabad, then to Bombay, whence -he sailed on 11th March, 1876, having been in India seventeen weeks -exactly. "The Prince," wrote Dr. Russell on that date, "has travelled -nearly 7600 miles by land and 2300 by sea, knows more Chiefs than all -the Viceroys and Governors together, and seen more of the country in -the time than any other living man." - -On the outward voyage his Royal Highness visited the King of Greece. -When the King and Queen were leaving the _Serapis_ after dining on -board, we showed them compliment and honour by setting them alight. -The blue lights burning at the main-yard being exactly above the boat -in which their Majesties were going ashore, dropped flakes of fire upon -them. The Prince also visited the Khedive. On the return voyage, the -Prince met at Suez Lord Lytton, who was on his way to India to succeed -Lord Northbrook as Viceroy; was again entertained by the Khedive; -visited Malta; called at Gibraltar; and visited the King of Spain and -the King of Portugal. The _Serapis_ was accompanied by the royal yacht -_Osborne_, Commander Durrant, and H.M.S. _Raleigh_, Captain Tryon. The -Prince landed in England on 11th May, 1876. - -It is worth noting that Lord Lytton went out in the _Orontes_, one of -the Imperial Service troopships, as they were called. The troopship -service was then at times conducted by the Royal Navy, a practice since -discontinued. The _Orontes_ was commanded by Captain E. H. Seymour -(afterwards Admiral of the Fleet the Right Hon. Sir Edward {160} -Seymour, G.C.B., O.M., G.C.V.O., LL.D.) In his very interesting book, -_My Naval Career and Travels_, Sir Edward Seymour writes: "At Suez, by -arrangement, we met H.R.H. the Prince of Wales (our late King) on his -way home in the _Serapis_. At Aden Lord Lytton landed in state, it -being the first point reached of his new dominions." The point -illustrates the working in detail of the great scheme of Imperial -organisation which was conceived by the master-mind of Disraeli, and -which he continued to carry into execution so long as he was in power. - -Upon landing at Bombay, I rode up to Government House with my brother, -Lord William, precisely as I had ridden up with another brother, Lord -Marcus, exactly six years previously, on the same day of the year. -Lord William was then extra A.D.C. to the Viceroy, Lord Northbrook, -having been appointed to that post as a subaltern in the 9th Lancers. -He was subsequently appointed A.D.C. to Lord Lytton, in which capacity -he attended the Viceroy at the Durbar at which Queen Victoria was -proclaimed Empress of India. He was afterwards military secretary to -three successive viceroys, Lords Ripon, Dufferin and Lansdowne; -altogether he served on the personal staff of five viceroys. From 1877 -to 1879, while nominally in attendance upon the Viceroy, Lord William -fought in the Jowaki expedition of 1877-78, the Afghan war, during -which he was present at the capture of Ali Musjid, and the Zulu war of -1879. "In the latter," wrote a military correspondent of _The Times_ -(31st December, 1900), "he served as a staff officer during the -reconnaissance across the White Umvolusi River and at the battle of -Ulundi. It was in Zululand, in July, 1879, that Beresford won the V.C. -for halting, when closely pursued by the enemy, to take a wounded -non-commissioned officer on his horse. When the soldier at first -declined to risk the officer's life by giving the latter's horse a -double burden, Beresford is understood to have hotly declared that -unless the man immediately got up on the saddle he would himself -dismount and 'punch his head.'" - -{161} - -For his services in the Burmese expedition of 1886, he received a -brevet-colonelcy; and in 1891 he was promoted full colonel; in 1894 he -received the K.C.S.I.; and thereafter remained on the active list of -the Army, but unemployed. Of his exploits on the turf it is not here -the place to speak; but I may be pardoned if I have placed on record in -this place some account of Lord William's Indian service which extended -over nearly twenty years. Few men have earned so universal an -affection as that which Lord William inspired, alike in European and -native. His ability in matters of administration was remarkable, and -he acquired an extraordinary influence over the natives of India. The -correspondent of _The Times_, already quoted, observes that Lord -William might have had a distinguished career in any profession; that -he might have been a great soldier, a great diplomat, a great political -officer, had not his passion for the turf diverted a part of his -energies. It may be so; but perhaps one may be allowed to say that one -liked him for what he was and not for what he might have been; and also -that he did not do so badly. The warmest affection existed between my -brother and myself; and his death, which occurred in 1900, was a great -grief to me. But that was in the far future when I landed from the -_Serapis_ and we rode up to Government House together. - -Of the other members of the Prince's suite I retain the most pleasant -recollections. Among them I especially recall Major-General Probyn -(afterwards General the Right Hon. Sir Dighton Macnaghten Probyn, V.C., -etc. etc.); Major-General Sam Browne, V.C. (afterwards General Sir -Samuel James Browne, V.C., K.C.S.I., etc.); Major Bradford (afterwards -Sir Edward Ridley Colborne Bradford, Bart., K.C.S.I., G.C.V.O.); -Surgeon-General Fayrer (afterwards Sir Joseph Fayrer, Bart.); and Dr. -Russell (afterwards Sir William Howard Russell, C.V.O., LL.D.). - -Major-General Probyn, of magnificent presence, black-bearded, -hawk-eyed, a hero of the Mutiny, was universally respected and beloved -by the native population, over {162} whom he owned a great influence. -He was one of the finest soldiers and most delightful companions it has -been my fortune to know. In 1876, he already had twenty-five years' -service, including the Trans-Indus frontier affair of 1852-57, the -Mutiny (in which his name was a terror), in China in 1860, in the -Umbeyla campaign of 1863. He was Colonel of Probyn's Horse, 11th King -Edward's Own Lancers; afterwards Keeper of the Privy Purse, Comptroller -and Treasurer of the Household of the present King when he was Prince -of Wales; and since 1901, extra Equerry to the King. - -Probyn and I assisted at a surgical operation. A mahout had his hand -smashed; and we held him while the surgeon amputated his finger and -thumb. - -Major-General Sam Browne, V.C., had served in the second Sikh war with -distinction, and during the Mutiny led the surprise attack upon the -rebels at Sirpura, at dawn upon 31st August, 1858. Almost -single-handed, he charged the guns, receiving the wound resulting in -the loss of his arm. For this service, he was awarded the V.C. During -the Prince's tour he represented the Indian Army; nor could a finer or -more efficient representative have been selected. - -Major Bradford had performed gallant and distinguished service in the -Mutiny. He had lost an arm, under circumstances which may be worth -repetition. Together with a brother officer, Captain Curtis, and a -trooper, Bradford was tiger-shooting. Seated in a mechan -(tree-shelter), he wounded a tiger, breaking its back; his second -barrel missed fire; and Bradford fell from the mechan on the top of the -tiger, which seized him. Bradford thrust his fist down the beast's -throat; and while Curtis was trying to get another shot, the tiger -mangled Bradford's arm up to the shoulder. Curtis eventually killed -the animal. The party had a long and painful distance to traverse -before they reached help. Bradford's arm was amputated without -chloroform. In 1890, Bradford was appointed commissioner of police in -the Metropolis, at a time when there was a good deal of {163} -discontent in the Force, and speedily proved the worth of his -unrivalled experience and ability. - -Surgeon-General Fayrer, I remember, had a remarkable way with snakes. -He kept a selection of the most deadly reptiles in a wheelbarrow, -nestled in straw. With his naked hands he would uncover them, and, -deftly catching them by the neck, force them to exhibit their fangs. - -Someone composed a set of irreverent verses dedicated to the -surgeon-general: - - "Little Joe Fayrer - Sent for his bearer - And asked for his Christmas pie. - e put in his thumb, - And pulled out a plum, - And found it a K.C.S.I." - - -Dr. W. H. Russell, the famous war correspondent, who in his letters to -_The Times_ during the Crimean war did so much good service, was a most -delightful companion. He is remembered by all who knew him, both for -his talents and for his sympathetic and affectionate disposition and -his unfailing sense of humour. He was one of my greatest friends. -During the voyage, he occupied the cabin next to mine. - -The Prince having requested him to provide himself with a uniform, Dr. -Russell designed a kind of Ambassadorial dress of great splendour, with -so generous a gold stripe to his kersey breeches, that we told him he -had gold trousers with a white stripe inside. These effulgent garments -unfortunately carried away when the doctor was climbing upon an -elephant, on his way to a Durbar. I executed temporary repairs upon -his person with safety pins; and implored him not to stoop. But when -it came to his turn to bow, bow he must; the jury rig parted, and a -festoon of white linen, of extraordinary length, waved behind him. -Fortunately, the assembled Indian Princes thought it was part of his -uniform. - -At Mian Mir, during the ceremony of a great review of troops, Dr. -Russell, who was riding among the suite mounted on a half-broken Arab, -was suddenly heard to shout, "Whoa, you villainous brute!" At the same -moment, several of the {164} suite were knocked endways. The Arab then -got the bit in his teeth, and tore away past the Prince down the whole -line. Dr. Russell's helmet was jerked to the back of his head, his -puggaree unfurled in a long train floating behind him, he vanished into -the distance and we did not see him again until dinner-time. He passed -so close to the Prince, that had the doctor another thickness of gold -on his gold trousers, there would have been an accident to his Royal -Highness. - -The Duke of Sutherland, during the Prince's journeys overland in India, -took an intense delight in driving the engine, from which it was hard -to tear him away. We had halted at a station where the customary -ceremonial had been arranged, and had changed into uniform, all save -the Duke, who was nowhere to be seen. - -"Where can he be?" said the Prince. - -I submitted that he might be on the engine, and went to see. Sure -enough, the Duke was sitting on the rail, his red shirt flung open, his -sun-helmet on the back of his head. In either black fist he grasped a -handful of cotton waste, with which he was mopping up the perspiration -of honest toil. He hurried to his carriage to change into uniform; and -presently appeared, buttoning his tunic with one hand. In the other he -still grasped a skein of cotton waste. The Prince looked at him. - -"Can nothing be done?" said the Prince sadly. - -The great elephant hunt in Nepal took place on the 25th February, 1876, -under the auspices of Sir Jung Bahadur (afterwards the Maharaja Sir -Jung Bahadur, G.C.B., G.C.S.I.). A herd of wild elephants, captained -by a male of gigantic size and valour, who had already vanquished Sir -Jung's most formidable righting elephants, had been tracked down in the -forest. Sir Jung determined that, come what would, he should be -captured. Sir Jung led the Prince and several of his suite, all well -mounted on horses, into the forest, to the rendezvous, to which the -wild herd was to be driven. But in the meantime, the big elephant had -given the hunters the slip. - -I was of the hunting party, and I had the stiffest run of {165} my -life, and at the end of it there were left besides myself only my -companion--I think he was Mr. Greenwood--and six Indian notables. -Mounted on swift pad elephants, we pursued that tremendous beast at top -speed from four o'clock in the morning till six in the evening, -bursting through the jungle, splashing through rivers, climbing the -rocky steeps of hills upon which there appeared to be no foothold -except for monkeys, and down which the elephants slid upon their -bellies. So we rode hour after hour, hanging on the ropes secured to -the _guddee_, lying flat upon the steed's back to avoid being scraped -off his back by branches, until the quarry, escaping us ran straight -into Sir Jung Bahadur's party of horsemen. - -There, in an open space set with sword-like reeds, stood the elephant, -his flanks heaving, his head and trunk moving from side to side. He -had one huge tusk and the stump of the other. - -It was the business of the horsemen in front to keep him employed in -the open while the champion fighting elephants, Jung Pershaud and Bijli -Pershaud, were being brought up. Again and again he charged, the -riders eluding his rushes, the Prince among them. A stumble or a -fall--and nothing could have saved the rider. Presently the elephant, -wearying of these profitless tactics, wheeled and took refuge in a -swamp, where the reeds and rushes hid him. But there was nothing to do -but await the arrival of the fighting elephants. The fugitive employed -his respite in cooling himself by pouring water over his heated person. -In the meantime, Jung Pershaud, the terrible rogue elephant, somewhat -fatigued like his quarry, was drawing near. Jung Pershaud, in order to -give warning of his very dangerous presence, was hung about the neck -with a large bell, like a railway-station bell. When he was not in -action he was secured with ropes. - -Presently, from out the jungle, there sounded the uneven, minatory -clangour of the bell. Everyone shouted that Jung Pershaud was coming. -The hunted elephant paused in his ablutions, turned about, and, pushing -the foliage aside with {166} his trunk, gazed in the direction of the -warning note. Then emerged into view the vast head of Jung Pershaud, -painted scarlet. He moved steadily and directly upon his quarry, who -lowered his head, presenting his long sharp tusk. The tusks of Jung -Pershaud were four to five feet long and ringed with brass. - -Jung swung his trunk and dealt the hunted elephant a blow on the head, -then charged him in the flank with a resounding impact, drew back and -charged the reeling beast from behind. The hunted elephant took to -flight, pursued by Jung Pershaud, heading straight for the place where -I was watching the combat among the pads and smaller fighting -elephants. These turned and fled in terror. - -The hunted elephant plunged into the wood, ploughing his way through -the undergrowth, leaving Jung Pershaud behind him. Sir Jung Bahadur, -following with the Prince and the rest of the party, adjured us to keep -out of the way of the fleeing beast while keeping him in sight. The -quarry checked at an opening in the forest and remained in the shelter -of the trees, while the Prince, with Sir Jung Bahadur and Dr. Russell, -rode across a stream into the open space. Sir Jung Bahadur sat on his -horse and cursed the elephant; who, after hearkening attentively for a -few minutes, suddenly charged the horsemen. - -At the same instant, the second fighting elephant, Bijli Pershaud, -burst out of the jungle, and the two animals met forehead to forehead -with a crash. Bijli Pershaud drew off and charged again, striking the -hunted elephant on the shoulder, and running beside him, charged him -heavily again and again, until the poor driven beast dropped his trunk -and uttered a pitiable cry. He was beaten at last. - -As we came up, it was discovered that the elephant was blind of one -eye; everyone commiserated the defeated gladiator; and Sir Jung Bahadur -offered to let him go free should the Prince so desire. - -The Prince having accepted the suggestion, the elephant was led captive -away and was secured with thick ropes to a {167} tree. He bent his -vast strength to a last effort to escape, so that the tree creaked and -shook under the strain. He cried aloud in despair, and then stood -silent, refusing all food. - -They set him free upon the following day, having sawn off his great -tusk; which was presented by Sir Jung Bahadur to the Prince. - -A few days before the great hunt took place in Nepal, Sir Jung -Bahadur's regiment of elephants paraded before the Prince. They -numbered more than 700, and were drilled to manoeuvre in companies to -the sound of the bugle. After the hunt, the Prince reviewed Sir Jung's -army: a corps which, as the message from the Queen delivered by the -Prince recalled in gracious terms, had tendered valuable help to the -British arms upon an important occasion. The total strength of the -army was 114,000 infantry and 420 guns. The infantry, in addition to -rifle and bayonet, carried the _kukri_, or curved knife, the national -weapon. We witnessed an exhibition of its use by the soldiers, who -vied with one another in cutting, with a single action, slices of soft -wood from a baulk, the cut making a diagonal section. More by good -luck than by merit, I succeeded in cutting the widest section; and -perceiving it to be extremely improbable that I could repeat the -performance, I refused the invitation to try again. Sir Jung Bahadur -presented me with the _kukri_ I had used. I have the weapon now. - -With this weapon, I slew a boa-constrictor. Riding an elephant after -tiger, on which occasion shooting at any other game was forbidden, I -saw a boa-constrictor, and dismounted. The great snake was lying -asleep, coiled in a hole in the ground and half hidden in foliage. -Selecting a narrowing coil, I cut nearly through it. The snake darted -at me, and I finished it with a stick. Although it was dead, its body -continued to writhe until sunset. For a long time I kept the skin, but -unfortunately it decomposed. - -My brother Lord William and I were out pig-sticking, and were riding -after a boar. I got first spear, when the {168} boar knocked both me -and my horse clean over. The boar went on, then turned, and as I was -in the act of getting up, came right at me. Remembering what an old -pig-sticker, Archie Hill, had told me a man should do if he were bowled -over and a boar attacked him, I rolled over on my face, presenting my -least vital aspect to the enemy. But my brother, cleverly turning his -horse, killed the boar within a few feet of me. The beast's head is -preserved at Curraghmore. - -During the whole time of the Prince's stay in India, one of his suite, -the members of which took it in turns to discharge the duty, remained -on guard over his person at night. I have in my possession the pair of -pistols with which the gentleman on watch was armed. - -On 10th January, 1876, the Prince visited the Cawnpore Memorial. -"There was deep silence," writes Dr. Russell, "as the Prince read in a -low voice the touching words, 'To the memory of a great company of -Christian people, principally women and children, who were cruelly -slaughtered here'--the name of the great criminal and the date of the -massacre are cut round the base of the statue. No two persons agree as -to the expression of Marochetti's Angel which stands over the Well. Is -it pain?--pity?--resignation?--vengeance?--or triumph?" Perhaps my -aunt, Lady Waterford, could have enlightened the learned doctor; for -she it was who designed the monument, which was carried into execution -by Marochetti. - -A certain officer in high command was extremely agitated concerning the -exact degree of precedence due to him--or rather, to the Service to -which he belonged; a matter not easy to settle amid the throng of -British dignitaries and Indian potentates. The officer chafed sorely -at the delay; nor was he soothed by the injurious remarks of a junior -member of the suite, who dealt with his dignity in a spirit of -deplorable frivolity. At last, however, the junior member approached -him with the aspect of sympathetic gravity proper to the occasion. - -{169} - -"I congratulate you, sir. That matter of your order of precedence has -been settled at last." - -"I am glad to hear it--very glad to hear it," said the officer. "The -delay has been simply scandalous. What is to be my position?" - -The junior member appeared to reflect. - -"Oh, of course," he said, at length. "Now I remember. Your place, -sir, is between the Ram of (something) and the Jam of (something else)!" - -The distinguished officer: "...!!!" - -On 30th November, 1875, while the _Serapis_ was on her way from Bombay -to Colombo, the Prince kindly presided at a dinner given in honour of -my promotion to the rank of commander. In a letter written to me by -his Royal Highness some years afterwards, he recalls that festivity, -with a note of regret that those jolly days were gone. Three years -afterwards, upon the occasion of my marriage, the suite presented me -with a most beautiful silver bowl, which remains one of my most highly -prized possessions. - -There were many Babu poems composed to celebrate the Prince's prowess -as a hunter. Among them, I remember the following:-- - - "Beautifully he will shoot - Many a royal tiger brute; - Laying on their backs they die, - Shot in the apple of the eye." - - -Seven years afterwards, I visited India again. It seemed to me that in -the interval the relations between the Indian and the Englishman had -changed for the better; in that the natives were less afraid of the -white man, and that a better feeling had grown up between East and -West. The principle upon which India is governed is the principle of -establishing justice and humanity. India is governed by the sword; but -the sword is sheathed. - - - - -{170} - -CHAPTER XVIII - -THE EGYPTIAN WAR - -I. THE BEGINNING OF TROUBLE - -NOTE - -The story of the Egyptian war may conveniently begin with an account of -the affair of the 9th September, 1881, when Tewfik, Khedive of Egypt, -met Arabi Pasha face to face in the Square of Abdin at Cairo, and -failed to take advantage of the greatest opportunity of his life. Had -he acted there and then upon the counsel of Mr. (afterwards Sir) -Auckland Colvin, British Controller, it is possible that the Egyptian -war might have been avoided. - -The beginning of the trouble was the jealousy existing between the -native Egyptian and the Turkish, or Circassian, elements of the army. -Rightly or wrongly, the Egyptian, or fellah, officers believed -themselves to be slighted. The Turkish, or Circassian, officers, being -of the same race as the ruling family, regarded themselves as the -dominant caste. In the time of Ismail Pasha, the predecessor of -Tewfik, the Minister of War, Osman Pasha Rifki, a Circassian, perceived -that his dignity was compromised by his being obliged to receive orders -from the Khedive through Ali Fehmi, captain of the Guards at the -Palace, a fellah. In the East, such a situation does not continue. -Ali Fehmi mysteriously fell into disgrace. Naturally, he had a -grievance; and he joined himself to two other officers of his race, who -also had {171} grievances. These were Abdel-el-Al and Ahmed Arabi, who -was to become better known as Arabi Pasha. They were called the "Three -Colonels," and to them came Mahmoud Sami Pasha, an exceedingly astute -politician. - -Arabi's particular injury was that he had been punished by Ismail for -creating a disturbance under the Palace windows, when he was one of the -officers of the guard. Ismail had bluntly remarked that Arabi was more -noisy but less useful than the big drum. Arabi joined a secret society -of discontented officers, and shortly afterwards again fell into -trouble under a charge of corruption while he was in command of -transports during the war between Egypt and Abyssinia. Subsequently, -Ismail allowed Arabi to join a regiment, whereupon he became chief of -the secret society. One of its members divulged the secret to the -Khedive, who adopted the Oriental method of buying the allegiance of -the disaffected officers by promoting in one day seventy of them to be -lieutenant-colonels. He also presented one of his slaves to Arabi to -wife. - -So much for Ismail Pasha. When, by order of the Sultan, he was -superseded by Tewfik, Arabi made haste to do obeisance to the new -Khedive, who made him a full colonel. But when Tewfik reduced the -army, the Three Colonels presented a petition to the Khedive, -demanding, among other matters, that an Egyptian should be made -Minister of War in place of Osman Rifki. The Three Colonels were -thereupon arrested. Mahmoud Sami Pasha, a member of the Cabinet, -secretly arranged that when they were brought before the Court-martial, -the soldiers should rescue them. On the 1st February, 1881, -accordingly, the soldiers burst into the court, turned it inside out, -and carried the Three Colonels to the Palace. The Khedive, confronted -with physical force to which he had nothing to oppose, consented to -supersede his War Minister in favour of the crafty Mahmoud Sami, to -increase the army by 18,000 men, and to abolish favouritism. - -The Khedive very soon discovered that Mahmoud Sami {172} was by no -means a desirable Minister of War, and also that the Three Colonels and -their friends continued to stir up trouble. He therefore dismissed -Mahmoud Sami and appointed in his stead the Khedive's brother-in-law, -Daoud Pasha, a Circassian, and ordered the disaffected regiments to -leave Cairo. At the same time it was rumoured that the Khedive had -obtained a secret decree from the Sultan condemning Arabi and his -friends to death. When the order to remove his regiment from Cairo was -received by Arabi, that leader of revolt informed the Minister of War -on 9th September, 1881, that the troops in Cairo would proceed the same -afternoon to the Palace of Abdin, there to demand of the Khedive the -dismissal of the Ministry, the convocation of the National Assembly, -and the increase of the army. Then came Tewfik's opportunity, which, -as already observed, he let slip. - -When the Khedive entered the Square, accompanied by Mr. Colvin, British -Controller, and a few native and European officers, he was confronted -with some 4000 soldiers and thirty guns. The following account of the -critical moment is given by the Hon. Charles Royle, in his excellent -history of _The Egyptian Campaigns_ (London, 1900). - -"The Khedive advanced firmly towards a little group of officers and men -(some of whom were mounted) in the centre. Colvin said to him, 'When -Arabi presents himself, tell him to give up his sword and follow you. -Then go the round of the regiments, address each separately, and give -them the "order to disperse."' The soldiers all this time were -standing in easy attitudes, chatting, laughing, rolling up cigarettes, -and eating pistachio nuts, looking, in fact, as little like desperate -mutineers as could well be imagined. They apparently were there in -obedience only to orders, and, without being either loyal or disloyal, -might almost be regarded as disinterested spectators. - -"Arabi approached on horseback: the Khedive called out to him to -dismount. He did so, and came forward on foot with several others, and -a guard with fixed bayonets, {173} and saluted. As he advanced, Colvin -said to the Khedive, 'Now is the moment, give the word.' He replied, -'We are between four fires. We shall be killed.' Colvin said, 'Have -courage.' Tewfik again wavered, he turned for counsel to a native -officer at his side, and repeated, 'What can I do? We are between four -fires.' He then told Arabi to sheathe his sword. Arabi did so at -once, his hand trembling so with nervousness that he could scarcely get -the weapon back into its scabbard. The moment was lost. Instead of -following Colvin's advice, and arresting Arabi on the spot, a step -which would have at once put an end to the whole disturbance, the -Khedive walked towards him and commenced to parley." - -The Khedive subsequently agreed to dismiss the Ministry at Arabi's -request; and Arabi thus advanced another step towards obtaining -military control of the country. For a time he prevented Cherif Pasha -from forming a Ministry, and summoned to Cairo the Chamber of Notables. -The members of the Chamber, however, whose office was purely advisory, -supported Cherif Pasha. By means of a skilful intrigue, Mahmoud Sami -contrived to obtain the appointment of Minister of War. Arabi then -effected a temporary retreat with his regiment to El Ouady, in the -Delta, and waited upon events. It was then October. The Khedive had -convoked an assembly of the Chamber of Notables at the end of December, -and in the meantime the elections were proceeding. - -It should here be observed that Arabi did not merely represent -discontent in the army. He had behind him a genuine and largely just -popular agitation, the result of many evils suffered by the natives. -"Ismail's merciless exactions, and the pressure of foreign -moneylenders, had given rise to a desire to limit the power of the -Khedive, and, above all, to abolish the Anglo-French control, which was -considered as ruling the country simply for the benefit of the foreign -bondholders. The control was further hated by the large landholders, -because the law of liquidation (with {174} which the Controllers in the -minds of the people were associated) had in a measure sacrificed their -claims for compensation in respect of the cancelling of a forced loan -known as the 'Moukabaleh,' and it was still more detested by the Pashas -and native officials, because it interfered with the reckless -squandering of public money, and the many opportunities for corruption -by which they had so long been benefited. In addition to this, there -was a great deal of irritation at the increasing number of highly paid -European officials which the reformed administration inaugurated in the -latter days of Ismail involved. The people began to suspect that what -was occurring was only part of a plan for handing the country over to -Europeans. The examples lately set by England with regard to Cyprus, -and by France in Tunis, were, it must be owned, but little calculated -to inspire confidence in the political morality of either of these two -Powers" (Royle, _The Egyptian Campaigns_). - -In these things consisted the reserve strength of Arabi; and while he -was ostensibly in retirement at El Ouady (probably spending a good deal -of time in Cairo with his fellow-conspirators), the native press -continued to excite irritation against the Europeans; and when the new -Chamber of Notables assembled on 25th December, 1881, they at once -presented demands which brought the whole situation in Egypt to the -notice of Europe. The Chamber demanded control of the revenues outside -those assigned to the Public Debt, together with other new powers -directly infringing the prerogatives of the Sultan and of the Khedive. -It seems that Mahmoud Sami inspired these manifestations, not with any -hope or desire that the demands of the Chamber would be granted, but -because, as they were inadmissible, the Ministry of Cherif Pasha would -be wrecked, and Mahmoud Sami thereby advantaged. - -The British and French Governments declared that the demands of the -Chamber were unacceptable. At the same time they learned that the -coast fortifications were being strengthened and that the army was to -be increased. On {175} behalf of the two Powers, a Joint Note was -presented to the Khedive in Cairo, on 8th January, 1882, stating that -England and France were united in opposing "the dangers to which the -Government of the Khedive might be exposed." - -The presentation of the Joint Note marks the beginning of that European -intervention which might have prevented, but which did not prevent, the -massacre in Alexandria of the 11th June, 1882, and which eventually -resulted in the bombardment of that city on 11th July, 1882. The -jealousy existing between France and England at that time in respect of -intervention in Egypt, nullified the effective action of either party. -Had M. Gambetta continued in power, he would probably have forced Lord -Granville to adopt a decisive policy. But M. de Freycinet, who -succeeded Gambetta while the question was still under discussion, was -as much afraid of responsibility as Lord Granville was. Diplomacy thus -returned to its customary routine of addressing Circular Notes to the -European Powers, and generally avoiding definition as long as possible. -Arabi seized his opportunity and announced that intervention on the -part of England and France was inadmissible. The Chamber of Notables -also saw their chance, and demanded the dismissal of the Ministry. The -Khedive, apparently deserted by England and France, and much afraid of -offending the Sultan, had no choice but to dismiss Cherif Pasha and to -appoint in his stead Mahmoud Sami, who thus attained his object. -Mahmoud Sami immediately appointed Arabi Pasha Minister of War. Arabi -thus achieved a military dictatorship. It will be observed that his -success was directly due to the vacillation of the English and French -Governments. Mahmoud Sami at once forced the Khedive to assent to the -demands of the Chamber, and the English and French Controllers -resigned, upon the ground that "the Khedive's power no longer exists." - -The dictators, Mahmoud Sami and Arabi (now Arabi Pasha), strengthened -the coast fortifications, ordered ninety {176} guns of Herr Krupp, and -rapidly increased the army. Then the dictators, considering that the -hour of their vengeance had arrived, arrested fifty of the hated -Circassian officers, (it is said) tortured them, and sentenced forty of -them to perpetual exile. The Khedive refused to sign the Decree; -whereupon Mahmoud Sami threatened that his refusal would be followed by -a general massacre of foreigners. A month later, on 11th June, such a -massacre occurred. In the meantime, the open quarrel between the -Khedive on the one side, and his Ministers, backed by the army, on the -other, created general alarm. Mahmoud Sami convoked the Chamber; only -to discover that the Notables were afraid to support him. Under these -circumstances, Mahmoud Sami and Arabi Pasha informed the Khedive that, -on condition that he would guarantee the maintenance of public order, -they would resign. The Khedive replied in effect that it was not he -but Arabi that troubled Israel. On the next day, 15th May, 1882, the -English and French Consuls-General warned Arabi that in the event of -disturbance, England, France and Turkey would deal with him. Arabi -retorted that if a Fleet arrived, he could not be responsible for the -safety of the public. Upon the same day the Consul-General informed -the Khedive that an Anglo-French Fleet was on its way to Alexandria, -whereupon Mahmoud Sami and the rest of the Ministry made a formal -submission to the Khedive. - -Such was the first influence, exerted from afar, of naval power. But -when, upon the 19th and 20th May, the ships arrived at Alexandria, the -effect was considerably lessened; for the force consisted of no more -than one British line-of-battle ship, H.M.S. _Invincible_, with two -gunboats, and one French line-of-battle ship, _La Gallisonière_, with -two gunboats. The object of the Granville-Freycinet diplomacy, to do -something and yet not to do it, had thus been triumphantly achieved. - -The instructions given to the British and French admirals respectively -are worth noting. - -{177} - -The British admiral was told to: - -"Communicate with the British Consul-General on arrival at Alexandria, -and in concert with him propose to co-operate with naval forces of -France to support the Khedive and protect British subjects and -Europeans, landing a force, if required, for latter object, such force -not to leave protection of ships' guns without instructions from home." - -It will be observed that Admiral Sir Frederick Beauchamp Seymour was -not given enough men to form an efficient landing party; so that the -futile clause concerning "the protection of the ships' guns" is hardly -worth considering. - -The French instructions were at least logical. The French admiral was -plainly told to do nothing except in an emergency. - -"On arrival at Alexandria communicate with the Consul-General, who -will, if necessary, indicate to you what you will have to do to give a -moral support to the Khedive. You will abstain, until you have -contrary instructions, from any material act of war, unless you are -attacked or have to protect the safety of Europeans." - -Acting on the advice of the Consuls-General, the Khedive endeavoured to -induce Mahmoud Sami and Arabi to resign. The dictators refused. The -Consuls-General thereupon presented them with an ultimatum, and the -Ministry resigned; but the Khedive was subsequently compelled by the -threats of the army and the prayers of the terrified notables to -reinstate Arabi Pasha. That leader at once published a proclamation -stating that he guaranteed the public safety, which failed, however, to -allay the public fears. On 29th May the European population of -Alexandria drew up a memorial, which was telegraphed to the Foreign -Office, stating that they were placed in extreme peril, against which -the force at the disposal of the British admiral was totally inadequate. - -Upon the same day, Admiral Seymour reported that earthworks were being -raised on shore, and asked for {178} reinforcements. On 30th May -another line-of-battle ship arrived, with two gunboats, and three -French warships. The rest of the British squadron in the Mediterranean -were directed to cruise within touch of the admiral. - -On the 7th June an Imperial Commissioner, Dervish Pasha, dispatched by -the Sultan, arrived at Cairo. He was instructed to play a double part, -the object of his mission being to counteract European influence. It -was a complicated intrigue; but it is not worth unravelling, because -Dervish Pasha presently discovered that the ruler of Egypt was Arabi -Pasha. - -Such is a summary of events up to the eve of the riots in Alexandria. -At that moment, Arabi Pasha was military dictator; backed by the army -and supported by popular sentiment: the Khedive, still nominally ruler, -was deprived of power and went in peril of his life; the Sultan, his -overlord, whose dominant motive was the desire to avoid foreign -intervention in Egypt, wrapped himself in diplomatic ambiguity; England -and France, the only interested foreign Powers, each afraid of the -other and both afraid of incurring responsibility, were in a state of -miserable vacillation, for which (as usual) many helpless and innocent -persons paid with their lives and property. In these circumstances, -the advantage lay with the man who knew his own mind. That man was -Arabi Pasha. - -It seemed that nothing could better serve his ends than an organised -massacre of Europeans by the populace, during which the police and the -army should remain passive; for nothing could more effectually -demonstrate the power of the dictator, bring the Khedive into contempt, -flout the foreign Powers which had exhibited so contemptible a -weakness, and delight the populace. - -Accordingly, on Sunday, 11th June, 1882, a devastating riot broke out -in Alexandria. The natives had been armed beforehand with _naboots_, -or long sticks; the _mustaphazin_, or military police, joined in the -attack; the soldiers remained immobile until Arabi telegraphed his -orders from Cairo, {179} when they at once stopped the disturbance. -During the day, men, women and children, European and native, were -shot, beaten, and murdered, and the town was looted. The loss of life -was estimated at 150 persons. - -In the evening the troops restored order, and subsequently maintained -it up to the day of the bombardment. During that period, large numbers -of persons left the city. Refugees of all nations were embarked in the -harbour. - -Lord Salisbury, who was then in Opposition, trenchantly exposed the -true character of a policy whose direct result was that British -subjects were "butchered under the very guns of the Fleet, which had -never budged an inch to save them." The Government had not given the -admiral an adequate force. It was the old story of the naval officer -being forced to subserve the ends of the politicians. - -In England, public indignation forced the Government to take action. -The Channel Squadron was dispatched to Malta, there to remain at -Admiral Seymour's disposal. Two battalions were sent to Cyprus. - -Arabi Pasha brought more troops to Alexandria and continued to fortify -the coast defences. In the meantime the Navy was helping to embark the -refugees. - -From this point, the general course of events may conveniently be -related in the form of a diary, thus supplementing, for the purposes of -reference, the detailed narrative of Lord Charles Beresford. - -On 11th July the British Fleet bombarded the coast forts. The warships -of other nations took no part in the action. The British force -consisted of fifteen vessels and 5728 men; eight ironclads, five -gunboats, a torpedo vessel and dispatch vessel. The forts were -silenced and the gunners were driven from their batteries. - -On 12th July the city was set on fire by the Egyptian troops. These, -accompanied by civilians, looted the city and so departed. - -On 13th July the British admiral landed 800 men. It will be observed -that had Admiral Seymour been permitted {180} to land a force upon the -preceding day, he could have disarmed the Egyptian troops and prevented -the conflagration. The Khedive had taken refuge in his Palace at -Ramleh, and the _Condor_, Commander Lord Charles Beresford, was sent to -lie off the Palace to protect him. Captain John Fisher, H.M.S. -_Inflexible_, was ordered to take command of the landing party. Upon -occupying the outer lines, Captain Fisher, finding chaos in the town, -in rear of his position, applied for an officer to exercise the duties -of provost-marshal and chief of police, and suggested that Lord Charles -Beresford should be appointed. - -On 14th July the British force was occupying all important positions. - -On 15th July Admiral Dowell, commanding the Channel Squadron, arrived -in the _Monarch_. Lord Charles Beresford was appointed provost-marshal -and chief of police to restore order. - -Mr. John Ross, the British merchant in Alexandria who gave unsparing -and generous assistance to the British forces,--services for which he -has never received recognition--writes to me as follows:-- - -"Lord Charles Beresford saved millions' worth of property, causing the -indemnity paid by the European Government to be much less than it would -otherwise have been. I can assure you that there was a chance of the -whole of Alexandria being burnt to the ground, had it not been for the -wonderfully prompt, energetic, and scientific arrangements made by Lord -Charles Beresford... I do not think England can ever be made to know -properly and understand and appreciate enough with regard to what Lord -Charles Beresford did for his country as well as for Egypt in 1882." - -On 17th July 1000 Marines and 1700 soldiers arrived. General Sir -Archibald Alison took command of the whole of the land forces, now -numbering in all, 3686. - -On the 20th July the British Government decided to dispatch an -expedition to Egypt. - -On the 21st July the water supply of Alexandria began {181} to fail, -Arabi having dammed the flow from the Nile into the Mahmoudieh Canal, -and let salt water into it from Lake Mareotis. Hitherto the supply had -been maintained by the gallant exertions of Mr. T. E. Cornish, manager -of the waterworks. Sir Archibald Alison began his attacking movements. - -On the 22nd July the Khedive dismissed Arabi Pasha from his post of -Minister of War. Arabi Pasha was now at Kafr Dowar with 5000 to 30,000 -men. A battalion of British troops sailed from Bombay. - -On the 24th July Mr. Gladstone informed Parliament that the country was -"not at war." On the same day the British troops occupied Ramleh, a -suburb of Alexandria. - -At this time Captain Fisher fitted out the armoured train. - -On the 30th July the Scots Guards sailed for Alexandria. From the -beginning to end of the war, there were dispatched, or under orders, -from Great Britain and Mediterranean stations, 1290 officers and 32,000 -men. Add the Indian contingent, 170 officers, 7100 men, consisting of -1st Seaforths, 1st Manchester, 1 Bombay and 2 Bengal battalions Native -Infantry, 3 regiments Bengal Cavalry, 1 field battery, 1 mountain -battery, and a section of Madras Sappers and Miners. Add to these, -3500 followers, 1700 horses, 840 ponies, 5000 mules. - -On the 1st August Lord Charles Beresford, having in the space of a -fortnight saved the town of Alexandria from destruction and restored -complete order, was relieved by Major Gordon. - -On the 2nd August Admiral Sir William Hewett, with six vessels of war, -occupied Suez. - -On 3rd August the National Council declared its support of Arabi Pasha. - -On 5th August General Alison attacked and defeated the enemy on the -Mahmoudieh Canal. - -On the 7th August the Khedive issued a proclamation directed against -Arabi Pasha and rebellion. - -{182} - -On the 10th August Sir John Adye, chief of staff, with the Duke of -Connaught, arrived at Alexandria. - -On the 12th August the Brigade of Guards, the Duke of Connaught at -their head, marched through Alexandria to Ramleh, greatly impressing -the populace. - -On the 15th, General Commanding-in-Chief Sir Garnet Wolseley and -Major-General Sir Evelyn Wood arrived at Alexandria. - -On the 18th August the greater part of the troops embarked for Port -Said, the transports being escorted by five ironclads. - -On the night of the 19th-20th August the Navy took entire possession of -the Suez Canal. The _Monarch_ and _Iris_ took Port Said. The _Orion_, -_Northumberland_, _Carysfort_ and _Coquette_ took Ismailia. Admiral -Hewett had already seized Suez. - -On the 20th of August the troops and warships from Alexandria arrived -at Port Said, together with Admiral Sir Beauchamp Seymour in the -_Helicon_. M. Ferdinand de Lesseps had done his utmost to prevent the -seizure of the Canal, which, he insisted, was neutral. It is said that -when the troops began to disembark at Ismailia, M. de Lesseps, erect -upon the landing-place, announced that "no one should land except over -his dead body"; to which defiance a bluejacket, gently urging aside the -heroic engineer, replied, "We don't want any dead bodies about here, -sir; all you've got to do is to step back a bit" (Royle, _Egyptian -Campaigns_). - -On the 21st August Sir Garnet Wolseley arrived at Ismailia in the -_Salamis_, and, by orders of the Khedive, issued a proclamation -announcing that the sole object of Her Majesty's Government was "to -re-establish the authority of the Khedive." - -The advance into the Delta was begun. - -On the 24th August Wolseley captured the dam on the Fresh Water Canal. - -On the 25th August the enemy were driven back upon {183} Tel-el-Kebir. -Mahmoud Fehmi Pasha, one of the original "Three Colonels," now Arabi's -chief of staff, was captured at Mahsameh railway station. - -On the 28th August occurred the action at Kassassin, in which the -Egyptians were defeated. Kassassin was occupied. During the next few -days men and stores were assembled there. - -On the 9th September Arabi attacked Kassassin in force and was driven -back to Tel-el-Kebir. Sir Garnet Wolseley made Kassassin his -headquarters. - -On the 12th September the army was concentrated at Kassassin. On that -night the troops advanced towards Tel-el-Kebir. - -On the 13th September an attack at dawn was made in three places upon -the Egyptian entrenchments. The British carried them under a heavy -fire at the point of the bayonet. The action was decisive. Arabi's -power was broken. Arabi fled to Cairo. - -The 6th Bengal Cavalry captured Zag-a-Zig the same evening; and the -Cavalry division occupied Belbeis. - -On 14th August the Cavalry Division rode from Belbeis to Cairo, -starting at dawn and arriving at Abbassieh at 4.45 p.m. The same -night, Captain Watson, R.E., disarmed the troops in the Citadel and -occupied Cairo. - -On the 15th August Sir Garnet Wolseley and the Guards arrived at Cairo, -a day before scheduled time. - -During the next week, Kafr Dowar, a place of equal importance with -Tel-el-Kebir, Aboukir, Rosetta and Damietta, surrendered. - -From the bombardment of Alexandria to the capture of Cairo was -sixty-six days, of which the campaign occupied twenty-five days. - -On the 25th September the Khedive returned to Cairo, where the greater -number of the British troops assembled. Subsequently, Admiral Sir -Beauchamp Seymour and Sir Garnet Wolseley were created Peers of the -United Kingdom. - -{184} - -Arabi Pasha was tried by court-martial on a charge of rebellion against -the Khedive, and was condemned to death, the sentence being commuted to -exile for life. In December, Arabi and six of his friends who had been -sentenced sailed for Ceylon. - - - - -{185} - -CHAPTER XIX - -THE EGYPTIAN WAR (_Continued_) - -II. THE BOMBARDMENT OF ALEXANDRIA - -My appointment to H.M.S. _Condor_ was dated 31st December, 1881. The -_Condor_ was a single-screw composite sloop gun-vessel of 780 tons and -770 h.p., carrying one 4½-ton gun amidships, one 64-pr. forward and one -64-pr. aft, all muzzle-loading guns. In June, 1882, the _Condor_ -formed part of the squadron lying off Alexandria under the command of -Admiral Sir Beauchamp Seymour. - -On Sunday, 11th June, calling upon Captain Blomfield, the -harbour-master, I found him in great distress. He had heard that there -was trouble in the city, into which his wife had gone, and he was -extremely anxious about her safety. We took a light carriage harnessed -to a pair of Arab horses and drove into the town. Presently a great -crowd came running down the street towards us. They were mostly -Greeks, many of whom were wounded and bleeding. The next moment we -were surrounded by a raging mob, armed with _naboots_, or long sticks, -with which they attacked us. The street was blocked from end to end; -and to have attempted to drive through the mob would have been certain -death. I seized the reins, swung the horses round, cleared the crowd, -and drove back to the harbour-master's house. In the meantime his wife -had taken refuge in an hotel, whence she safely returned later in the -day. - -The officers and men of the Fleet were ordered back to {186} their -ships. I went on board the flagship and reported to the admiral the -condition of the town. With the trifling force at his disposal, it was -impossible that he should send a landing-party ashore. Had he done so, -in contravention of his orders, the handful of British seamen and -Marines would have had no chance against the thousands of Egyptian -soldiers who, under Arabi's instructions, were waiting in their -barracks under arms, ready to turn out at the first attempt at -intervention on the part of the Fleet. - -During the ensuing month there poured out of Alexandria an immense -number of refugees of all nations and every class of society. These -were placed on board various vessels and were dispatched to the ports -of their several countries. I was placed in charge of these -operations; which included the chartering of ships, their preparation -for passengers, and the embarkation of the refugees. In the course of -the work there fell to me a task rarely included even among the -infinite variety of the duties of a naval officer. My working-party -was stowing native refugees in the hold of a collier, when a coloured -lady was taken ill. She said: "Baby he come, sare, directly, sare, -myself, sare." And so it was. We rigged up a screen, and my coxswain -and I performed the office of midwives thus thrust upon us, and all -went well. - -On the 10th July all merchant vessels and all foreign men-of-war left -the harbour, and the British Fleet prepared for action. Admiral -Seymour's squadron consisted of fifteen vessels: the ironclads -_Alexandra_ (flagship), Captain C. F. Hotham; _Superb_, Captain T. Le -Hunte Ward; _Sultan_, Captain W. J. Hunt-Grubbe; _Téméraire_, Captain -H. F. Nicholson; _Inflexible_, Captain J. A. Fisher; _Monarch_, Captain -H. Fairfax, C.B.; _Invincible_, Captain R. H. M. Molyneux; _Penelope_, -Captain S. J. C. D'Arcy-Irvine: the torpedo-vessel _Hecla_, Captain A. -K. Wilson; gunboats _Condor_, Commander Lord C. Beresford; _Bittern_, -Commander Hon. T. S. Brand; _Beacon_, Commander G. W. Hand; _Cygnet_, -Lieutenant H. C. D. Ryder; _Decoy_, Lieutenant A. H. Boldero; and -dispatch vessel {187} _Helicon_, Lieutenant W. L. Morrison. The coast -fortifications extended over a front of rather more than nine miles, -from Fort Marabout on the south-west to Fort Silsileh on the -north-east. Midway between the two, projects the forked spit of land -whose northern arm encircles the new Port, and whose southern arm, -extending in a breakwater, encloses the old Port. The twelve forts or -batteries mounted in all 261 guns and mortars. - -[Illustration: THE BOMBARDMENT OF ALEXANDRIA, 11TH JULY, 1882. FROM -CHART DRAW BY AUTHOR AT THE TIME] - -The bombardment of Alexandria has been so thoroughly described in -standard works that repetition must be unnecessary; and such interest -as the present narrative may contain, must reside in the record of -personal experience. I may say at once that any notoriety attached to -the part borne by the _Condor_ in the action was due to accidental -circumstance. She happened to fight apart from the rest of the Fleet -and in full view of the foreign warships and merchant vessels; and, in -obedience to the orders of the admiral, she had on board the -correspondent of _The Times_, the late Mr. Moberly Bell. The _Condor_ -was actually under way when I received instructions to embark Mr. Bell. -Mr. Frederic Villiers, the artist war-correspondent, by permission of -the admiral, had been my guest on board for several days. - -The following account of the action is taken from a private letter -written at the time:-- - -"The night before the action, I turned up all hands and made them a -speech. I said that the admiral's orders were to keep out of range -until an opportunity occurred. So I said to the men, 'Now, my lads, if -you will rely upon me to find the opportunity, I will rely upon you to -make the most of it when it occurs.' ... The Marabout Fort was the -second largest fort, but a long way off from the places to be attacked -by the ironclads. So the admiral had decided not to attack it at all, -as he could not spare one heavy ship, and of course he would not order -the small ships down there, as it was thought that they would be sunk. -The orders given to the small ships were to keep out of fire, and to -watch for an opportunity to occur, after the forts were silenced, to -assist. {188} _Helicon_ and _Condor_ were repeating ships for signals. -I took station just between the two attacking fleets. - -"Just as the action began the _Téméraire_ parted her cable and got -ashore. I ran down to her and towed her off and while doing so, saw -Fort Marabout giving pepper to _Monarch_, _Invincible_ and _Penelope_. -Not one of these ships could be spared, as they were getting it hot and -could not spare a gun for Marabout from the forts they were engaging. -Seeing the difficulty, directly I had got the _Téméraire_ afloat I -steamed down at full speed and engaged Fort Marabout, on the principle -that according to orders 'an opportunity' had occurred.... I thought -we should have a real rough time of it, as I knew of the heavy guns, -and I knew that one shot fairly placed must sink us. But I hoped to be -able to dodge the shoals, of which there were many, and get close in, -when I was quite sure they would fire over us. That is exactly what -occurred. I got in close and manoeuvred the ship on the angle of the -fort, so that the heavy guns could hardly bear on me, if I was very -careful. The smooth-bores rained on us, but only two shots hit, the -rest went short or over. One heavy shot struck the water about six -feet from the ship, wetting everyone on the upper deck with spray, and -bounded over us in a ricochet. - -"I did not fire on the smooth-bores at all until I had silenced the -heavy guns which were annoying _Invincible_, _Monarch_, and _Penelope_. -The men fired splendidly. I put all down to the lectures I have given -them at target practice, telling them never to throw a shot away, but -always to wait until they got the sights on. - -[Illustration: ON BOARD H.M.S. "CONDOR," 11TH JULY, 1882. FROM A -DRAWING BY FREDERIC VILLIERS] - -"Hedworth Lambton told me afterwards that the admiral had just sent on -the signal for the _Monarch_ to go to Fort Marabout as soon as she -could be spared, when he heard a cheer from his own men. He asked, -'What's that?' and they told him they were cheering the _Condor_. Just -then our three guns were fired, and each shot hit in the middle of the -heavy battery, and the _Invincible's_ men burst into a cheer. The -admiral said, 'Good God, she'll be sunk!' when off {189} went our guns -again, cheers rang out again from the flagship and the admiral, instead -of making 'Recall _Condor_; made 'Well done, _Condor_' ... at the -suggestion of Hedworth Lambton, the flag-lieutenant. - -"We then remained there two and a half hours, and had silenced the fort -all except one gun, when the signal was made to all the other small -craft to assist _Condor_, and down they came and pegged away. I was -not sorry, as the men were getting a bit beat. We were then recalled -to the flagship, 'Captain repair on board,' and the admiral's ship's -company gave us three cheers, and he himself on the quarterdeck shook -me warmly by the hand, and told me he was extremely pleased.... I -never saw such pluck as the Egyptians showed. We shelled them and shot -them, but still they kept on till only one gun was left in action. It -was splendid.... Nothing could have been more clever than the way the -admiral placed his ships.... The wounded are all doing well. One man -had his foot shot off, and he picked it up in his hand and hopped down -to the doctor with it.... The troops hoisted a flag of truce the day -after the action; and while we waited I sent to find out why it was -they were marched away, having set fire to the town in many places. It -has been burning ever since." ... - -The day after the bombardment, Captain Wilson (now Admiral of the Fleet -Sir A. K. Wilson, V.C., G.C.B., O.M., G.C.V.O) hauled down the flag of -the Marabout Fort and presented it to me. It is now in the Museum of -the Royal Naval College, Greenwich. The commandant of Fort Marabout -was so excellent an officer that when I was appointed provost-marshal -and governor of the town by the admiral, I placed him on my staff to -assist me in restoring order. - - - - -{190} - -CHAPTER XX - -THE EGYPTIAN WAR (_Continued_) - -III. CHIEF OF POLICE - -The bombardment took place on the 11th July. On the 12th, as I have -narrated, the Egyptian soldiery fired the city, looted it, and -evacuated the defences. On the same day the Khedive was surrounded in -his Palace at Ramleh by some 400 of Arabi's cavalry and infantry, a -force subsequently reduced to about 250 men. That evening Admiral -Seymour was informed that the Khedive was in danger. The admiral -dispatched the _Condor_ to lie off Ramleh; and there we lay all that -night, rolling heavily, with a spring on the cable to enable the guns -to be trained upon the sandy lane down which the soldiers must advance -if they intended to take the Palace. - -It was arranged that, if the Palace were attacked, the Khedive should -hang a white sheet from a window, and I would at once take measures to -secure his safety. The night went by without alarm; and next day -Tewfik, escorted by a guard of native cavalry, went to the Ras-el-Tin -Palace, where he was received by Admiral Seymour and a guard of -Marines. Commander Hammill (who afterwards performed excellent service -on the Nile), with a landing-party of 250 bluejackets and 150 Marines, -had already taken possession of the Ras-el-Tin Peninsula. - -Upon the same day Captain John Fisher, H.M.S. _Inflexible_ (afterwards -Admiral of the Fleet Lord Fisher of Kilverstone, O.M.), was ordered to -take command of the {191} landing-party whose business was to secure -the outer defences of the city. Captain Fisher, having occupied the -lines, had a zone of anarchy, incendiarism and chaos, comprising the -whole city, in the rear of his position. He at once made application -for an officer to be appointed provost-marshal and chief of police, -suggesting my name for the post; and the admiral gave me orders to -assume this office. As a narrative written at the time owns a certain -intrinsic interest, I make no apology for transcribing further passages -from private letters. - - -"CHIEF OF POLICE OFFICE - HEADQUARTERS, ALEXANDRIA - THE ARSENAL, 25_th July_, 1882 - -"... I landed on the 14th July, armed myself, got a horse and a guide -and an escort of about thirty Egyptian cavalry, and started to overhaul -the town, and see how I could best carry out my orders to 'restore law -and order as soon as possible, put out fires, bury the dead, and clear -the streets.' I never saw anything so awful as the town on that -Friday; streets, square, and blocks of buildings all on fire, roaring -and crackling and tumbling about like a hell, let loose Arabs murdering -each other for loot under my nose, wretches running about with -fire-balls and torches to light up new places, all the main -thoroughfares impassable from burning fallen houses, streets with many -corpses in them, mostly murdered by the Arab soldiers for loot--these -corpses were Arabs murdered by each other--in fact, a pandemonium of -hell and its devils. - -"I took a chart with me and arranged the different parts of the town -where I should make depots and police stations. The admiral could only -spare me 60 bluejackets and 70 Marines from the British Fleet; but he -obtained a proportionate number from the foreign warships. By sunset I -had 620 men in the different depots, mostly foreigners.... I had only -140 men to patrol the town, to stop the looting, to stop the 'fresh -burning' of houses, to bury the corpses, and to protect the lives of -those who had come on shore. By {192} quickly sending the men about in -parties in different parts of the town, and by employing Arabs to -inform me when and where certain houses might be burnt, I often managed -to get a patrol there just in time to stop it, and the people thought -there were 600 police in the town instead of 140. For the foreign -bluejackets were ordered to occupy their respective Legations and not -to take any part in restoring order. This was of course in the first -seventy-two hours, during which time neither myself nor my men slept -one wink, as at 12 o'clock on two occasions an alarm was sounded that -Arabi was attacking the lines, and all of us had to peg away to the -front, where we had to remain until daylight, expecting attack every -moment. These alarms lost many houses, as the mob set them alight -while we were at the front; however, it was unavoidable. - -[Illustration: PROVOST-MARSHAL AND CHIEF OF POLICE. ALEXANDRIA. JULY, -1882. FROM A DRAWING BY FREDERICK VILLIERS] - -"On Monday, 17th July, I was sent 400 more men (bluejackets) in answer -to my urgent appeal to the admiral, as so many fanatic Arabs were -coming into the town, ... but on Tuesday the 18th the bluejackets were -all ordered off to their ships and 600 picked Marines were sent in -their place.... After I had planned to get the town into order on the -Friday (14th) I went to the Arsenal and wrote a Proclamation.... - -"I went off to the admiral on the following (Saturday) morning, and -submitted that I should be allowed to post the Proclamation throughout -the town. Sir A. Colvin and the Khedive were strongly opposed to the -Proclamation; but the admiral approved of the scheme. Some of the -authorities suggested that if I shot anybody it would be well to shoot -him at night, or in the prisons, and then no one would know, and there -would be no row. This I stoutly refused, demanding my own way for -restoring order, and saying that a fair honest Proclamation was the -proper line to take, as all persons would then know what would happen -to them if they committed certain specified acts. I carried my point, -and the admiral supported me, and on Saturday night (15th) I had the -whole town proclaimed in Arabic, stating that persons {193} caught -firing houses would be shot, persons caught looting twice would be -shot; all persons to return to their homes, etc., with confidence, and -anyone wanting to get information or to lodge complaints to repair -instantly to the chief of police. - -"By Wednesday (19th) I had perfect order in the town, and all firing of -houses had been stopped, life was comparatively safe, looting nearly -stopped. By Friday the 21st, one week after taking charge, all the -fires were put out, all the corpses buried, and things were generally -ship-shape. I could not have done this unless the admiral had trusted -entirely to me, and given me absolute power of life and death, or to -flog, or to blow down houses, or to do anything that I thought fit to -restore law and order and to put the fires out. I only had to shoot -five men by drumhead court-martial sentence, besides flogging a certain -number, to effect what I have told you. - -"I had a clear thoroughfare through every street in the town by Monday -(24th), and all _débris_ from fallen houses piled up each side and all -dangerous walls pulled down. These things were done by organising -large working parties of from 100 to 200 hired Arabs. At first I -collected them at the point of the bayonet and made them work, but I -paid them a good wage every evening, and the bayonets were unnecessary -after the first day, when they found that England would pay well. - -"I also collected all the fire-engines I could find, bought some, and -requisitioned others, got some artificers from the Fleet and got the -engines in order, had a bluejacket fire-brigade, and also a working -party of Arabs on the same footing as the road brigade. These worked -exclusively at the fires, and not at patrolling unless at urgent -necessity. Besides these I had a sanitary committee, which buried any -bodies we might have missed, burned refuse and remains of loot about -the streets, and reburied any bodies which might not have been buried -deep enough, besides enforcing cleanliness directly the town began to -get a little bit shipshape. There was a corps of native police to work -under {194} my patrols, and when I turned all the affairs over, I had -260 of these men. - -"I disarmed all Europeans found in the streets with revolvers, and by -so doing saved many a row in the town, as the class I have mentioned -returned in thousands after the bombardment, and they treated the Arabs -as if they, the Europeans, had silenced the forts and policed the town. -I put many in irons for looting, and for shooting at inoffensive Arabs. - -"The greatest triumph was the formation of an Egyptian court to try the -serious cases I had on hand for life and death and long terms of -imprisonment. Not only did tret the court formed to try what cases I -chose to bring before it but after sentence of death I insisted on -Egyptian authorities making the Egyptian soldiers (the loyal ones) -themselves shooting the prisoners whom the court sentenced.... - -"I had four gallopers and four Marine orderly gallopers, in default of -whom I could not have done things so quickly in the many different -departments, nineteen horses, and a telephone to each station. I paid -all the carts requisitioned in the town for carrying my men's -provisions, loot, etc. etc. The officer using them signed a chit -stating the hour he had taken a cart and for what service, and then the -man came to my office to be paid, which he was instantly. By this -means good feeling was established between the people and the military -police. Each depot had two interpreters attached to it to avoid any -misunderstanding, and for explanations when trying prisoners and -interrogating witnesses.... - -"The Marine officer thoroughly investigated each case, examined all -witnesses, and then placed the evidence on a regular charge-sheet, -stating whether he believed the prisoner guilty or not guilty, and his -reason for that opinion. If it was a serious case, I again tried it -myself and judged accordingly. There were several cases of -blackmailing at first, but these were soon stopped.... - -"Besides the courts held at the Police Depots, courts were {195} held -at the Tribunal Zaptieh and the Caracol l'A'ban, at which Egyptian -officers acted as judges. In each court were three shorthand-writers, -each placed behind a separate screen, and under the charge of a -sergeant of Marines, to prevent collusion, who submitted their reports -to me, in order that I should receive three independent accounts of the -proceedings, upon which I could intervene if necessary, in order to -prevent anyone being shot if there were not the clearest and most -uncompromising evidence of his guilt. If there were any discrepancy in -the reports, I had the prisoner retried. I did this in three cases. -Another case, in which the circumstantial evidence, though very strong, -was not conclusive, I reprieved." - - -The following troops assisted the British forces in restoring order: -125 Americans, about the American Consulate; 30 Germans, about the -German Consulate and Hospital; and 140 Greeks about the Greek Consulate -and Hospital. On the 16th July, Captain Briscoe (a son of an old -Waterford man who hunted the Curraghmore hounds after the death of my -uncle, Henry Lord Waterford) of the P. and O. _Tanjore_ volunteered his -services, and with 20 Italians of his crew, did excellent work. Other -volunteers who assisted me were Mr. Towrest, a member of the Customs, -and Mr. Wallace. Major Hemel, R.M.L.I., and Captain Creaghi, R.M.L.I., -were appointed magistrates. These Marine officers performed invaluable -services. - -I had special reason to be grateful to Mr. John Ross, a British -merchant of Alexandria, who gave me every assistance in his power. He -knew every yard of the place. He gave me invaluable advice with regard -to the organisation of the city, obtained interpreters, and helped to -supply the troops, placing his stores at my disposal. He would have -dispensed with receipts for articles supplied, had I not insisted upon -his taking them. Mr. Ross supplied the whole Fleet with coal, fresh -meat, and all necessaries; his help was quite inestimable, his energy -and patriotism beyond praise; {196} but although he must have suffered -considerable losses, he received no recognition of any kind from the -Governnment except the naval medal. - -Mr. Ross gave me great assistance also in parcelling out Mehemet Ali -Square among the country purveyors of produce, each of whom received a -permit, written in English and in Arabic, to occupy a certain space, -duly pegged out, in which to put up their booths. This measure -restored confidence. One old lady, a stout person of Levantine origin, -thought that the permit entitled her to perpetual freehold; and she -subsequently attempted to sue the Egyptian Government for damages, -producing my permit as evidence. - -Upon first going ashore to restore order, I found whole streets blocked -with smouldering ruins. Putting my horse at one such obstacle, I -scrambled over it; and I had scarce reached the other side when a wall -fell bodily behind me, cutting off my escort, who had to fetch a -compass round the side streets to rejoin me. - -Without taking the smallest notice of me or of my escort, men were -shooting at one another, quarrelling over loot, and staggering along, -laden with great bundles, like walking balloons. The streets were -speedily cleared of these rioters by the use of machine guns. The -method adopted was to fire the gun over their heads, and as they fled, -to run the gun round turnings and head them off again, so that they -received the impression that the town was full of guns. On no occasion -did I fire the gun _at_ them. The principles upon which order was -restored were to punish disobedience, to enlist labour and to pay for -it fairly. - -The prisoners taken were organised in separate gangs set to work, and -paid less than the rest of the labourers! The most critical part of -the business of extinguishing fires and preventing incendiarism -occurred at the Tribunal, which was stored with property worth many -thousands of pounds. A fire-engine was purchased for its protection at -a cost of £160, 18s. 1d. The total expenses of the restoration or -{197} order were, I think, under £2000. During the fortnight I was on -shore, every station and port was visited at least once a day and twice -a night. - -On one such inspection I gave my horse to an Arab lad to hold. A few -minutes afterwards there was the crack of a pistol. I ran out, and -there was the boy lying on the ground a bullet-wound in his chest. To -satisfy his curiosity he had been fingering the 4-barrel Lancaster -pistol in the holster, and that was the end of _him_, poor lad. - -Upon another occasion, when I was at work in one of my stations, a -sudden tumult arose in the street. I went put, to perceive a huge -Irish Marine Artilleryman engaged in furious conflict with five or six -men of the patrol. They had got handcuffs on him, and he was fighting -with manacled hands. I asked the sergeant what was the matter. - -"He's drunk, sir. We are going to lock him up." - -"Let him go," I said. - -The men fell back; and the Irishman, seeing an iron railing, raised his -hands above his head and brought them down upon the iron, smashing the -handcuffs, and turned upon me like a wild beast at bay. The man was in -a frenzy. Standing directly in front of him, I spoke to him quietly. - -"Now, my lad, listen to me. You're an Irishman." He looked down at -me. "You're an Irishman, and you've had a little too much to drink, -like many of us at times. But you are all right. Think a moment. -Irishmen don't behave like this in the presence of the enemy. Nor will -you. Why, we may be in a tight place to-morrow, and who's going to -back me then? You are. You're worth fifty of the enemy. You're the -man I want." - -As I talked to him, the expression of his face changed from desperation -to a look of bewilderment, and from bewilderment to understanding; and -then he suddenly broke down. He turned his head aside and cried. I -told the sergeant to take him away and give him some tea. - -Having heard from the Governor of Alexandria that a {198} quantity of -arms was concealed in a village lying a few miles outside the city, I -took thither a party of Egyptian military police and a guard of -Marines. On the way we were joined by some 800 British soldiers, who -surrounded the village, while the police conducted a house-to-house -search. A certain newspaper correspondent accompanied me. The police -knocked at the door of a house, and received no reply; whereupon the -correspondent drew his revolver and incontinently blew in the lock. I -told him that he had no right to do such a thing; that he might have -killed innocent persons; and that he must not do it again. - -"Oh, but," says he, "you don't understand how to do these things." - -I requested him to understand that I was provost-marshal, and that -unless he obeyed orders, he would be sent back to Alexandria. - -"Oh, but," says he, "you can't do that. You don't understand----" - -"Sergeant!" said I, "a file of Marines." - -"Oh, but," protested the correspondent, "you can't----" - -"Sergeant, take this gentleman back to Alexandria." - -It was a long walk and a hot walk home. - -On the 17th July, General Sir Archibald Alison took command of the land -forces. At the request of the general, the admiral ordered me to -remain in command of the police until 1st August, when I was relieved -by Major Gordon. It was about this time that Captain Fisher devised -his armoured train, which, carrying armed bluejackets, made daily -sorties. A bluejacket sitting on the rail was ordered to come down by -his officer. - -"I can't see 'em from down below," he said. The next moment he was hit -by a bullet. "They've found the range, sir," said he, as he tumbled -over. - -Admiral Sir Beauchamp Seymour was good enough to address to me a very -gratifying letter of commendation for my services. Among the many kind -congratulations I {199} received, I valued especially the letters from -the captains under whom I had served in various ships, and many -admirals with whom I had served. On 11th July I was promoted to the -rank of captain. In the following September the Admiralty forwarded to -Admiral Sir Beauchamp Seymour (raised in November to a peerage as Baron -Alcester) the expression of their satisfaction at the services of -Captain Fisher and of myself. - -I overheard a lady finding great fault with my old chief, Sir Beauchamp -Seymour. I asked her what she had against Lord Alcester. - -"Why," said she, "he is a Goth and a Vandal. Did he not burn the -Alexandrian Library?" - -A sequel to the work in Alexandria was my conversation with Mr. -Gladstone on the subject, which took place upon my return home some -weeks later. Mr. Gladstone sent for me; and after most courteously -expressing his appreciation of my services, he discussed the question -of compensation to the inhabitants of Alexandria who had suffered loss -and damage. The information he required I had carefully collected in -Alexandria by means of an organised intelligence corps, upon each of -whom was impressed the fact that if he gave false information he would -most certainly be punished. My view was then, and is now, that the -whole of the claims might have been justly settled for a million -sterling, upon these conditions: that the question should be tackled at -once; that all palpably unwarranted claims should be repudiated from -the outset, because if they were recorded as claims there would -eventually be no way of rebutting them, and it would be found necessary -to pay them ultimately; that doubtful claims should be held over for -consideration; and that the proved claims should be paid immediately. -The important point was that in order to avoid difficulties in disputes -in the future, the matter should be dealt with at once. - -I knew of a case (and of other similar cases) in which a jeweller who -had contrived to remove the whole of his stock {200} into safety after -the riot, put in a claim for the value of the whole of the said goods. - -These considerations I laid before Mr. Gladstone, informing him also, -in the light of the special information which had come to my knowledge, -that if the matter were allowed to drift, the sum to be disbursed, -instead of being about a million, would probably amount to some four -millions. - -In the event, the International Commission of Indemnities paid -£4,341,011. - - - - -{201} - -CHAPTER XXI - -THE EGYPTIAN WAR (_Continued_) - -IV. GARRISON WORK - -When I was relieved, on 1st August (1882), of the post of -provost-marshal and chief of police, the _Condor_ was ordered to keep -the Mex lines and citadel, which defended the south-western boundary of -Alexandria, forming a barrier across the long and narrow strip of land -which extends between the sea and Lake Mareotis, and upon which the -city is built. The fortifications of the sea front were continued, -with a brief interval, at right angles to the sea face, extending no -more than some three-quarters of the distance across the strip of land, -so that between one end of the fortifications and the sea, and between -the other end and the shore of Lake Mareotis, there were undefended -spaces. It was therefore necessary to frame a plan of defence with the -force and materials at command, sufficient to hold this left flank of -the city against the large bodies of rebel soldiery and Arabs hovering -in the vicinity. Thirty men from the _Condor_ were brought on shore, -with the band, which, consisting of one drum and one fife, was few and -humble but convincing. - -The two forts on the earthwork were manned; a 40-pounder smooth-bore -taken from one of the Mex Forts was mounted on the roof of the fort -nearest to Lake Mareotis, whence it was fired at regular intervals at -the enemy occupying the earthworks on the farther shore of the Lake. -After five days they were knocked out of the place. {202} Charges were -made for the gun out of the miscellaneous ammunition found in the Mex -Forts. - -The gun used to capsize almost every time it was fired. It was served -by a Maltese gunner, who became so superstitiously devoted to his -commanding officer, that when I was relieved by Colonel Earle, my -Maltese never received an order without observing that "Lord Charles -Beresford not do that, sare"; until Earle lost patience, as well he -might. - -"D--n Lord Charles Beresford!" said he. - -Wire entanglements were fixed along the face of the earthworks. In the -two open spaces at the ends of the line of fortifications, rockets were -buried, and a lanyard was led along from the firing tube to a peg in -the ground, so that anyone passing that way at night would trip over -the lanyard, thus firing the rocket, and causing a beautiful fountain -of fire to spring from the ground, lighting up the whole locality. The -device soon stopped nocturnal intrusions. - -The open space at the Mareotis end was also commanded by a Gatling gun -mounted on the roof of the fort. In the forts and earthworks were -about twenty miscellaneous guns. These were all kept loaded; the -powder being taken from the vast amount of loose powder stored in the -Mex lines. The guns were connected with trigger lines to the forts, so -that the whole lot could be fired from one place. The railway lines -leading from Mex Harbour through the fortification, and, on the other -side of the strip of land, from the causeway leading across Lake -Mareotis into the city, were repaired. The railway bridge by Lake -Mareotis was repaired, and a torpedo was placed beneath it in case of -attack. A picquet of Marines occupied a truck placed on the bridge. -The train was set running. The two drawbridges leading to the forts -were repaired. The men garrisoning the works were housed in tents made -out of the sails of the Arab dhows lying in Mex camber. A tank was -obtained from Alexandria, and fresh water brought into it. On the sea -{203} side of the position, the _Condor_ commanded the flank of the -approaches. - -Having thus secured this flank of the city against attack, so that it -could be held against a large force, it was necessary to make -reconnaissances into the surrounding country. The little landing-party -went ashore every evening at 5.30 (with the band, few and humble but -convincing) and occupied the lines. Every morning at seven o'clock -they returned to the ship; and during the afternoon went out upon -reconnaissance, accompanied by a boat's gun mounted in a bullock cart, -and a rocket-tube mounted on another bullock cart. Two horses were -harnessed to each cart, assisted, when required, by bluejackets hauling -on drag-ropes. The men of the _Condor_ were reinforced from the Fleet -on these expeditions, so that the total force of bluejackets and -Marines was 150. The cavalry being represented solely by the colonel -and the major of Marines, and myself, who were mounted, we had no -sufficient force wherewith to pursue the flying foe. - -We used to play hide-and-seek with the soldiery and Bedouin among the -sandhills. When they approached on one flank, we shelled them with the -little gun until they retired; and then, hauling the gun-cart and -rocket-cart over the roughest ground, we suddenly appeared and shelled -them on the other flank, to their great amazement. All hands enjoyed -these expeditions amazingly. - -In the course of these reconnaissances, large quantities of stores and -ammunition were found in the neighbouring villages. About three miles -from the lines, an immense store of gun-cotton and Abel's detonators -was discovered in a quarry among the low hills, stored in a shed. As -no hostile force appeared during the next two days, I determined to -destroy the gun-cotton. Captain A. K. Wilson of the _Hecla_ sent 20 -bluejackets and six Marines to assist me. These were embarked and -landed within half a mile of the place. Outposts were set, with orders -to signal should the enemy appear, and the rest of the party set to -work. - -{204} - -Although gun-cotton does not, strictly speaking, explode except by -detonation, it is extremely difficult to define where ignition ends and -detonation begins; and there had been instances of its explosion, -supposed to be due to the internal pressure of a large mass. A -tremendous explosion of gun-cotton had occurred in 1866 at Stowmarket, -where its manufacture was being carried on under the patent of Sir -Frederick Abel, then chemist to the War Office. On another occasion, -when Sir Frederick was conducting an experiment designed to prove that -ignition was harmless, he had his clothes blown off his body, and -narrowly escaped with his life. Recollecting these things, I thought -it advisable to spread the stuff in a loose mass upon the hillside -sloping to the quarry. The gun-cotton was packed in boxes. These were -unpacked, and the contents were spread on the ground. Next to the -pile, a bucket of loose powder was poured on the ground and over the -fuse, to make sure of ignition. Into the powder was led one end of a -Bickford's fuse, which was then threaded through the discs of -gun-cotton. The fuse was timed to burn for five minutes. - -The work was highly exhausting to the men, and more than once I felt -inclined to call in the outposts to help; but I decided that it would -not be right to take the risk of a surprise attack; for we were working -in a trap, being closed in by the quarries on one side and by the low -hills on the other. And sure enough, when the men had been working for -five hours, up went the outpost's signal, and the corporal of Marines -with his three men came running in to report that large numbers of the -enemy were in sight. - -Hastening out, I saw about 50 scouts running up, an action so unusual -that it was evident they were strongly supported. Presently, about 200 -skirmishers appeared, and behind them a large body of cavalry, probably -about 700 in number. The outposts were at once recalled. The men were -ordered out of the quarry, divided into two companies {205} of twelve -men each, and retired by companies over the hill towards the shore, out -of sight of the enemy. Mr. Attwood, the gunner of the _Hecla_, a -bluejacket and myself, remained to fire the fuse. It was a five-minute -fuse. The retreating men had been told to count as they ran, and at -the end of four minutes, or when they saw us lie down, to halt and lie -down. I gave the order in case there should be an explosion. When the -men were lying down, I fired the fuse. Then the gunner, the bluejacket -and I ran about 300 yards, and flung ourselves down. - -Then there came a noise as though a giant had expelled a huge breath; -the blast of the ignition burned our cheeks; in the midst of a vast -column of yellow smoke, boxes and pieces of paper were whirling high in -air, and a strong wind sucked back into the vacuum, almost dragging us -along the sand. The enemy were so interested in the spectacle that -they gave us time to get back to the boats. - -It is probable that information had been given to the hostile forces by -the inhabitants of the village past which we went to reach the quarry -where was the gun-cotton; for, in retreating to the boats, when I -looked back, instead of the 20 or 30 native women who were usually -sitting about the place, I saw about 200 men eagerly watching us from -the house-tops, evidently in the hope of enjoying the gratifying -spectacle of our destruction. - -From the summit of the slope falling to the sea, I signalled to the -flagship, with a handkerchief tied to a pole, that I was surrounded: -one of the many occasions upon which a knowledge of signalling proved -invaluable. There was a haze upon the water, and I could not clearly -discern the answering signal; but the signalman of the flagship had -seen my figure silhouetted on the sky-line. Instantly after, Captain -John Fisher of the _Inflexible_ manned and armed boats, came ashore, -and the enemy immediately retreated. - -Shortly afterwards, as I was now a captain, I was relieved of the -command of the _Condor_ by Commander {206} Jeffreys, and went on -half-pay. I should naturally have much preferred to remain in my -little ship; but she was not a captain's command; and I left her (as I -see I wrote at the time) with a tear in each eye. Commander Jeffreys -discovered the place where she had been hit during the bombardment, one -of her under-water plates having been started. Until then, it was -thought that the only damage consisted of a hole through her awning and -the smashing of a boat. - -At the conclusion of this period of my service, I was most gratified to -receive a gracious message of congratulation from Her Majesty the Queen. - -H.H. the Khedive wrote to me, kindly expressing his sense of my -services, and at the same time offering me an appointment upon his -staff, in which capacity I was to go to the front. Lord Granville and -the Admiralty having signified their permission that I should accept -the post, I left Alexandria for Ismailia, together with several members -of the Khedival staff. - -We went by steamer, which towed a huge iron lighter carrying horses. A -beam ran from stem to stern of the lighter, and to it the horses were -tethered with halters. I remarked to the captain of the steamer that -it would be advisable, in order to avoid injuring the lighter, to take -every precaution to prevent the steamer from having to go astern. But -in Ismailia Bay, which was crowded with shipping, a vessel crossed the -steamer's bows, the steamer was forced to go astern, and she cut a hole -in the lighter with her propeller. One of the ship's officers -instantly descended the Jacob's ladder into the lighter with me, and we -cut the halters of the horses, just in time to free them before the -lighter sank, and there we were swimming about among the wild and -frightened stallions. By splashing the water into their faces, we -turned one or two shorewards, when the rest followed and came safely to -land. - -Upon discussing the matter of my appointment to the staff of the -Khedive with Sir Garnet Wolseley, to my {207} surprise he declined to -permit me to accept it. Discipline is discipline, and there was -nothing for it but to acquiesce. - -I was about packing up my things, when Mr. Cameron, the war -correspondent of _The Standard_, informed me that he was authorised to -appoint a correspondent to _The New York Herald_, and also that he had -permission to send the said correspondent to the front, where I -particularly desired to go. The notion attracted me. I applied to the -military authorities for permission to accept the offer. Permission -was, however, refused. So there was nothing to do but to go home. But -before starting, I consoled myself by sending some provisions, -privately, to the unfortunate officers at the front, who, owing to the -substitution by the transport people of tents for food, were short of -necessaries. I obtained from the Orient four large boxes filled with -potted lobster, salmon, sardines, beef, tins of cocoa, and so forth, -and sent one box each to the 1st Life Guards, the Blues, the Guards, -and the Royal Marines. The orders were that no private supplies were -to go up. These I ventured to disregard; got up bright and early at -three o'clock in the morning; and had the boxes stowed under the hay -which was being sent up in railway trucks, before officialdom was out -of bed. Then I went home. - -I consider that Sir Garnet Wolseley's conduct of the campaign, and his -brilliant victory at Tel-el-Kebir, were military achievements of a high -order. The public, perhaps, incline to estimate the merit of an action -with reference to the loss of life incurred, rather than in relation to -the skill employed in attaining the object in view. The attack at dawn -at Tel-el-Kebir was a daring conception brilliantly carried into -execution. Many persons, both at the time and subsequently, have -explained how it ought to have been done. But Sir Garnet Wolseley did -it. - -The public seem to appreciate a big butcher's bill, although it may be -caused by stupidity or by lack of foresight on the part of the general. -But if he retrieves his mistakes, the public think more of him than of -the general {208} who, by the exercise of foresight and knowledge, wins -an action with little loss of life. - -I carried home with me a 64 lb. shell fired from the _Condor_ at the -Mex magazine, intending to present it to the Prince of Wales. I found -it in the sand. It had passed right through the walls of the magazine, -and it had not exploded. Having brought it on board the _Condor_, I -caused the gunner, Mr. Alexander Greening, to sound it with a copper -rod: and he came to the conclusion that it was empty of gunpowder. I -therefore thought that it had never been filled. I intended to have it -cut in two and a lamp for the Prince made of the pieces, and took it to -Nordenfelt's works for the purpose. The foreman, desirous of taking -every precaution before cutting it, had it again filled with water and -sounded with a copper rod, when it suddenly exploded, blowing off the -foot of the workman who held it, and doing other serious damage. The -explanation seems to be that the force of the impact when the shell was -fired had solidified the powder into a hard mass. But explanation -would have little availed had the shell burst in the smoking-room at -Sandringham, where a fragment of it remains to this day. - - - - -{209} - -CHAPTER XXII - -PASSING THROUGH EGYPT - -At the beginning of the year 1883 I was on my way out to India with -Lady Charles in the P. and O. s.s. _Malwa_. Proceeding into Ismailia -Lake, the _Malwa_ was rammed by another vessel which tried to cross the -_Malwa's_ bows. I was looking over the side of the _Malwa_ and I saw a -curious thing. I saw the colliding vessel rebound from the _Malwa_ and -strike her again. I ran up to the bridge, where the captain had -already given orders to stop the engines. The ship was sinking; it was -no time to stand upon ceremony; and I ventured to suggest to the -captain that he should put his engines full steam ahead, when he might -hope to beach the vessel, whereas if she stayed where she was, she -would infallibly go down in deep water. The captain, like a good -seaman, gave the order, and the chief engineer carried it into -execution with admirable promptitude. I went down into the engine-room -and found the water already rising through the foot-plates. - -As the ship steamed towards the shore, settling down as she went, I -stood with Lady Charles on the bridge, telling her that, if the vessel -sank, I should throw her overboard--although she could not swim--and -should jump in after her. To which she merely replied, "That will be -very disagreeable!" - -The ship was safely beached, though not before the water had risen to -my cabin. She was afterwards salved by the help of the Navy. H.M.S. -_Carysfort_, commanded by Captain H. F. Stephenson, C.B. (now Admiral -Sir Henry F. Stephenson, {210} G.C.V.O., K.C.B., Gentleman Usher of the -Black Rod), sent a carpenter and a working party; and they did -excellent service in the _Malwa_. - -Our party went to Cairo, there to await the next steamer. - -Hicks Pasha and his staff dined with us upon the night before they left -Cairo, upon their fatal expedition. Colonel W. Hicks had been -appointed by the Khedive chief of the staff of the Army of the Soudan. -In the following August he was appointed commander-in-chief. From -Cairo he went to Souakim, thence to Berber, and thence to Khartoum. On -the 28th April, he fought a successful action on the White Nile, south -of Khartoum, in which his Egyptian troops did well. In September, -Hicks left Duem with his staff and some 10,000 men and marched into the -desert, which swallowed them up. The whole army was exterminated by -the Mahdi's dervishes. Gordon said that the Mahdi built with the -skulls of the slain a pyramid. - -I applied for permission to accompany Hicks Pasha, but my old friend -Lord Dufferin was determined that I should not go upon that hazardous -enterprise. I believe he telegraphed to the Government on the subject. -At any rate, he had his way, and so saved my life. - -In October, before the news of the disaster had reached Cairo, the -British Army of Occupation had been reduced from 6700 men to 3000. -Subsequently, the British Government proceeded with the policy of -abandoning the Soudan, in one phase of which I was to bear my part. - -In the meantime, Lady Charles and I joined the Duke of Portland and his -party, among whom were Lord de Grey and Lord Wenlock; went to India; -enjoyed some excellent sport; and returned home. - - - - -{211} - -CHAPTER XXIII - -THE SOUDAN WAR OF 1884-5 - -I. SUMMARY OF EVENTS - -NOTE - -A year before the British forces restored order in Egypt, trouble was -beginning in the Soudan. One Mahomet Ahmed, who was the son of a -boat-builder, and who had the peculiar conformation of the teeth which -betokened the fore-ordained of the Prophet, announced that he was the -Mahdi. In July, 1881, the holy man dwelt upon the island of Abba, on -the White Nile, above Khartoum. Thence he caused it to be made known -that he was the chosen instrument for the reformation of Islam, and -that all those who denied him would be abolished. Reouf Pasha, who was -then Governor-General of the Soudan, summoned the Mahdi to Khartoum, -there to give an account of himself. The Mahdi naturally refused; and -when Reouf sent soldiers to fetch him, the Mahdi slew most of them, and -departed into the hills, he and all his following. The Governor of -Fashoda took an expedition to Gheddeer, and was also slain, together -with most of his men. Then Giegler Pasha, a German, acting as -temporary Governor-General of the Soudan, succeeded in defeating the -forces of the Mahdi. But Abdel Kader, who, succeeding Reouf, took over -the command from Giegler, was defeated in his turn. On 7th June, 1882, -the Egyptian forces were cut to pieces near Fashoda. In July, the -Mahdi was besieging Obeid and {212} Bara. By October, 1882, both -places were in danger of falling, and Abdel Kader was demanding -reinforcements from Egypt. - -The Soudan is a country as large as India; at that time it had no -railways, no canals, no roads, and, excepting the Nile during a part of -the year, no navigable rivers. In November, 1882, the British -Government informed the Khedive that they declined to be responsible -for the condition of the Soudan. Lord Granville's intimation to this -effect was the first step in the policy which progressed from blunder -to blunder to the desertion and death of General Gordon. - -The Egyptian Government, left in the lurch, hastily enlisted some -10,000 men, the most part being brought in by force, and dispatched -them to Abdel Kader at Berber. At Abdel Kader's request, Colonel -Stewart and two other British officers were sent to Khartoum to help -him to deal with the raw and mutinous levies. - -In December, a number of British officers were appointed to the -Egyptian Army in Egypt, in accordance with the recommendations of Lord -Dufferin, and Sir Evelyn Wood was appointed Sirdar. The British Army -of Occupation had now been reduced to 12,000 men, under the command of -General Sir Archibald Alison, who, in the following April (1883) was -succeeded by Lieutenant-General F. C. S. Stephenson. - -In January, 1883, Colonel W. Hicks, afterwards Hicks Pasha, was -appointed by the Khedive chief of the staff of the Army of the Soudan. -Before he proceeded to the theatre of war, Abdel Kader had lost and won -various engagements, and had reoccupied the province of Sennar; while -the Mahdi had taken El Obeid and Bara and occupied the whole of -Kordofan. - -In February, it was announced in the Queen's Speech that "the British -troops will be withdrawn as promptly as may be permitted by a prudent -examination of the country"; a declaration provoking intense alarm -among the European {213} inhabitants of Egypt. Their protests, -however, were totally disregarded. The Egyptians naturally concluded -that England owned no real interest in that reform of administration -which her influence alone could achieve. - -On 7th February, 1883, Colonel Hicks left Cairo for Khartoum, with his -staff, consisting of Colonels Colborne and De Coetlogon, Majors -Farquhar and Martin, and Captains Warner, Massey and Forrestier-Walker. -Upon the night before their departure, Colonel Hicks and his staff -dined with Lord and Lady Charles Beresford in Cairo. Lord Charles -Beresford, who was then on half-pay, had expressed a wish to accompany -Colonel Hicks, but Lord Dufferin disapproving of his suggestion, Lord -Charles Beresford withdrew it. - -Hicks and his men disappeared into the desert, which presently -swallowed them up. - -On the 28th April, Hicks defeated a large force of the Mahdi's army on -the White Nile. The Egyptian Government then decided to reconquer the -province of Kordofan, and dispatched reinforcements to Khartoum. On -the 9th September, Hicks Pasha, at the head of 10,000 men, marched for -Duem. The last dispatch received from him was dated 3rd October, 1883. -Upon a day early in November, Hicks and his whole army were annihilated. - -His defeat left Khartoum in great danger. On 9th November, before the -news of the disaster reached England, the British Government stated -that all British troops were to be withdrawn from Egypt. When the fact -was known, the decision of the Government was modified; but they still -declined to interfere in the Soudan; and advised the Egyptian -Government to evacuate at least a part of that territory. The Egyptian -Government protesting, the British Government, on 4th January, 1884, -sent a peremptory message insisting that the policy of evacuation -should be carried into execution. The inconsequence of Her Majesty's -Ministers is sufficiently apparent. - -In the meantime, during August of the preceding year, {214} 1883, -trouble had arisen in the Eastern Soudan, where Osman Digna, a trader, -joined the Mahdi, and brought all the tribes of that country to his -standard. At the beginning of November, 1883, just at the time when -Hicks Pasha and his army had come to their end, an Egyptian force under -Mahmoud Talma Pasha was defeated by Osman Digna in the attempt to -relieve Tokar, besieged by the rebels, Captain Moncrieff, Royal Navy, -British Consul at Souakim, being killed in the action. A second -expeditionary force under Suleiman Pasha was cut to pieces on 2nd -December at Tamanieh. - -The Egyptian Government then dispatched reinforcements under the -command of General Valentine Baker, among whose staff were Colonel -Sartorius, Lieutenant-Colonel Harrington, Lieutenant-Colonel Hay, -Majors Harvey, Giles, and Holroyd, Morice Bey and Dr. Leslie. On the -4th February, 1884, Baker was defeated at El-Teb, with the loss of -nearly two-thirds of his force. Morice Bey, Dr. Leslie, and nine other -European officers were killed. Souakim being threatened, Admiral -Hewett, on 10th December, was given the command of the town, having -under him some 3800 troops. Two days later came the news of the taking -of Sinkat by the rebels, and of the massacre of the garrison. During -the period in which these successive disasters occurred, the British -Army of Occupation was kept idle in Cairo by the orders of the British -Government. - -The current of events now divides, one leading to Khartoum, the other -still flowing in the Eastern Soudan. The British Government, -hopelessly at fault, turned to General Charles Gordon, as the one man -in the world who could apparently perform miracles. Ten years -previously, "Chinese" Gordon, as Governor-General of the Soudan, and -again in 1877, as Governor-General of the Soudan, Darfur and the -Equatorial Provinces, had freed the country from Turkish rule, broken -the slave trade, established peace, opened trade routes, and laid the -foundations of civilisation. Since 1877 he had been engaged in setting -wrong things right in Egypt {215} in the Soudan again, in Abyssinia, in -China, in the Mauritius, at the Cape, in Palestine, and in the Congo. - -On 18th January, 1884, Gordon was instructed by the British Government -to report upon the best method of evacuating the Soudan. When he -arrived at Cairo, these instructions were radically altered by Sir -Evelyn Baring (afterwards Lord Cromer), who, on the 25th January, -informed Gordon that he was required actually to direct the evacuation -of Khartoum and of the whole Soudan, and afterwards to establish an -organised government in that country. Gordon arrived at Khartoum on -the 18th February, where he was hailed as the father and saviour of the -people. - -On the same day, Major-General Sir Gerald Graham left Suez to join at -Souakim the force which had been placed under his command. That force -was chiefly drawn from the British Army of Occupation in Egypt. The -object of the expedition was the relief of Tokar, or, if that place had -already fallen, the protection of Souakim, an alternative which -involved an attack upon Osman Digna's victorious army. Tokar was in -fact taken by the enemy before the expedition started. - -The British Government, whose original intention had been to refrain -from any action in the Soudan whatsoever; which had been compelled by -force of circumstances, including the most frightful bloodshed, to -change a wholly negative policy to a definite scheme of evacuation; now -perceived, of course too late, that if the European population was to -be brought away, at least some measure of military force must be -employed. What Her Majesty's Ministers were unable to see, or what, if -they saw, they chose to ignore, was the plain fact that the same force -and the same measures and the same promptitude would be required for -the salvation of Europeans in face of the enemy, as for the reconquest -and reoccupation of the country. In this delusion, or dereliction, -resides the explanation of an affair which has left an indelible stain -upon British honour. - -{216} - -On 28th February, 1884, Graham defeated the enemy, inflicting upon them -severe losses, at El-Teb, near the spot upon which Baker's disastrous -action had occurred some three weeks previously. On 13th March, after -a hard and at times a dubious fight, Graham won another victory at -Tamaai, and the power of Osman Digna was broken. Graham was then -ordered to return, and the expedition was over. - -By withdrawing Graham's troops, the Government both threw away the -fruits of his success, and deliberately abandoned the control of the -Souakim-Berber route from Khartoum, by which alone Gordon could have -brought away the refugees. Berber was the key to the Soudan. -Thenceforth, the Souakim-Berber route was impracticable; and it was for -this reason that Lord Wolseley was obliged to take the much longer Nile -route. - -On the very day after Graham's victory at El-Teb, and before Graham had -left Souakim, Gordon had telegraphed from Khartoum as follows:-- - - -"There is not much chance of the situation improving, and every chance -of it getting worse; for we have nothing to rely on to make it better. -You must, therefore, decide whether you will or will not make an -attempt to save the two-thirds of the population who are well affected -before these two-thirds retreat. Should you wish to intervene, send -200 British troops to Wady Halfa, and adjutants to inspect Dongola, and -then open up Souakim-Berber road by Indian Moslem troops. This will -cause an immediate collapse of the revolt." - - -On 2nd March he telegraphed again to the same effect; but Lord -Granville declined to accede to General Gordon's suggestions. A few -days later, when the Eastern Soudan and the Souakim-Berber route had -been definitely abandoned, Sir Evelyn Baring strongly advised the -British Government to obtain command of the Souakim-Berber route. But -the {217} advice was refused by Lord Granville, and the most urgent -appeals continued to be addressed to him in vain. - -Deserted by the Government, Gordon tried, and failed, to raise money -privately for the purpose of engaging Turkish troops. Early in April, -Khartoum was closely besieged. At this time, Lord Wolseley urged upon -the Government the necessity of relieving Gordon. In May, preparations -for war were begun. A part of the British Army of Occupation in Egypt -was sent up the Nile; and Commander Hammill and other naval officers -were employed to report upon the navigation of the river. These facts -did not prevent Lord Hartington from informing the House of Commons, -early in July, that the Government had no intention of sending an -expedition to relieve General Gordon, unless it were made clear that by -no other means could he be relieved, and adding that the Government had -"received no information making it desirable that we should depart from -that decision" (Royce, _The Egyptian Campaigns_). On 24th July, Lord -Wolseley made a spirited protest against the procrastination of the -Government. The pressure of public opinion could no longer be entirely -withstood. On 30th July, Gordon sent a message in which he declared -his retreat to be impossible. - -On 5th August, Mr. Gladstone asked and obtained a vote of credit. -Then, and not until then, were the preparations for war begun in -England. Having decided, upon the advice of Lord Wolseley, to follow -the Nile route instead of the Souakim-Berber route, the Government -ordered 800 boats. These were 30 feet long, having six feet six inches -beam, two feet six inches draught, fitted with 12 oars, two masts and -lug sails; each designed to carry two boatmen and 10 soldiers with -provisions, arms and ammunition. Eight steam pinnaces and two -stern-wheel paddle-boats were also fitted out; the Nile steamers -belonging to the Egyptian Government were taken over; and 380 -_voyageurs_ from Canada were engaged. The total force of troops -selected numbered 7000. Messrs. Thomas Cook & Son contracted to -transport the {218} whole expedition to above the Second Cataract. -Lord Wolseley was appointed commander-in-chief; General Sir Redvers -Buller was chief of staff; General Earle was given command of a -brigade; special service officers were: Colonels Sir Charles Wilson, -Brackenbury, Harrison, Henderson, Maurice, Lord Anson (Royce, _The -Egyptian Campaigns_). Lord Charles Beresford was attached to Lord -Wolseley's staff. - -Even now, the Government failed to recognise the plain facts of the -case. Their instructions to Lord Wolseley were that the main object of -the expedition was to rescue General Gordon. Her Majesty's Ministers -considered that it might be practicable to achieve his release without -going to Khartoum, and that in any case it was desirable to avoid any -fighting so far as possible. - -When Lord Wolseley started from Cairo on 27th September, 1884, the -advance was already going rapidly forward. Under the direction of Sir -Evelyn Wood and Commander Hammill, a number of the whaler boats had -been transported to Wady Halfa, which is nearly 900 miles from -Khartoum, the total length of the Nile route being 1650 miles. Along -the river, up to Wady Halfa and a little beyond to Sarras, bases of -supply had been established; an advance guard was already at New -Dongola, about 100 miles above Wady Halfa, under the command of General -Sir Herbert Stewart, he who afterwards led the Desert Column. - -Arriving at Wady Halfa on 5th October, Lord Wolseley received news that -Colonel J. S. Stewart, Mr. Power, British Consul at Khartoum and -correspondent of _The Times_, M. Herbin, French Consul, and a party of -Greek and Egyptian refugees, who had left Khartoum in the steamer -Abbas, had all been slain. Stewart had with him Gordon's papers, -which, of course, were taken by the Mahdi's men. - -On the 8th October a letter from M. Herbin was received at Cairo. It -was dated from Khartoum, 29th July, 1884, and stated that there were -then provisions for two months in the {219} place. The time had thus -expired--and M. Herbin had been murdered--ere the letter arrived. - -A temporary base was formed at Wady Halfa; and bases of supplies were -established along the river up to New Dongola. By means of -extraordinary exertions, boats and steamers were hauled up to Dongola -through the rapids. Lord Wolseley formed a Camel Corps of 1500 men, -consisting of four regiments, Heavy Cavalry, Light Cavalry, Guards, and -Mounted Infantry, with a detachment of Royal Marines. Early in -November, a general advance was made from Wady Halfa. Wolseley arrived -at Dongola on 3rd November. Two days previously, on 1st November, Sir -Evelyn Baring had received a message from Gordon, dated 13th July, -saying that he could hold out for four months. The limit, therefore, -had nearly been reached by the time the expedition was leaving Wady -Halfa, 900 miles from Khartoum. - -Lord Wolseley, early in November, considered that it would take to the -end of the year to concentrate his forces at Ambukol, just above Old -Dongola. He returned to Wady Halfa to expedite progress; and by the -middle of December headquarters were established at Korti, and by -Christmas the greater part of the force was concentrated there. During -the whole of this period, Wolseley's army must be figured as a river of -men flowing along the river Nile, the infantry struggling up in boats, -the mounted men toiling along the banks; the stream of men banking up -at headquarters, the military front, which is steadily pushed forward -from Wady Halfa to New Dongola, from New Dongola to Old Dongola 60 to -70 miles farther up, from Old Dongola to Korti. - -On 17th November a letter was received from Gordon saying that he could -hold out for forty days from the date of the superscription, 4th -November, 1884, thus leaving Wolseley barely four weeks to accomplish a -task needing as many months. On 28th November another letter from -Gordon, dated 9th September, gave the relief expedition four months, -thus leaving Wolseley five weeks from the {220} date upon which the -letter was received. It was now clear that the expedition could not -reach Khartoum in time. - -When Lord Wolseley, towards the end of December, had his forces -concentrated at Korti, he decided to divide them into two columns, the -Desert Column and the Nile Column. The reasons for his scheme can only -be clearly apprehended by a reference to the map. At Korti, the Nile -turns north-east, looping back again, and resuming its southward course -at Metemmeh. A straight line drawn across the Bayuda Desert from Korti -to Metemmeh is the short cut. This was the route given to the Desert -Column. The Nile Column was to proceed up the loop of the river to -Hamdab, there to avenge the murder of Colonel Stewart and his party, to -proceed higher up to Berti, and thence to secure the bend of the river -and to open up the desert route back to Korosko, below Wady Halfa, and -from Korosko it was intended to attack Berber, and thence to join -forces with the Desert Column at Metemmeh. - -The Nile Column, numbering about 3000 men, under the command of -Major-General Earle, Brigadier-General Brackenbury being second in -command, left Korti on 28th December, 1884. - -The Desert Column was placed under the command of General Sir Herbert -Stewart. With him was Colonel Sir Charles Wilson, who was instructed -to take a body of troops from Metemmeh to Khartoum. The Column -consisted of sections of the Camel Corps, a company of the Royal -Engineers, a detachment of the 19th Hussars, detachments of the -Commissariat and Medical Corps, and the Naval Brigade, which was placed -under the command of Lord Charles Beresford. The total force numbered -73 officers, 1032 non-commissioned officers and men, 2099 camels, and -40 horses. The Desert Column left Korti on 30th December, 1884. It -was, in fact, a forlorn hope. - -(The writer desires to acknowledge the use he has made of the excellent -narrative of events contained in _The Egyptian Campaigns_, by the Hon. -Charles Royle.) - - - - -{221} - -CHAPTER XXIV - -THE SOUDAN WAR (_Continued_) - -II. HOW WE BROUGHT THE BOATS THROUGH THE GREAT GATE - -In January, 1884, General Gordon was entrusted by the British and -Egyptian Governments with the impossible task of evacuating the Soudan -and of organising its future internal administration, in the face of a -vast horde of armed fanatics. In April, the investment of Khartoum, in -which Gordon was shut up, was complete. In May, preparations for war -were begun in England and in Egypt. It was not, however, until 8th -August that Lord Hartington informed General Stephenson, commanding the -British Army of Occupation in Egypt, that measures would be taken to -relieve Gordon. During the same month the whale-boats for the Nile -route were ordered. On 26th August General Stephenson was informed -that Lord Wolseley would command the expedition. - -In August, while I was staying with the Duke of Fife at Mar Lodge, I -was appointed to Lord Wolseley's Staff. - -I sailed with Lord Wolseley and the rest of his Staff. We arrived at -Alexandria on 9th September, 1884, and went on to Cairo, where we -lodged in the Palace on the Shoobra Road. Here were Lord Wolseley, -General Sir Redvers Buller, Colonel Swaine, Major Wardrop and Lord -Edward Fitzgerald, A.D.C. to Buller. Sir Evelyn Wood and Commander -Hammill were already up the Nile {222} organising transport and supply. -General Sir Herbert Stewart and General Earle were at Wady Halfa. - -It is not my intention to relate the history of the war, which has been -admirably recorded in the various works dealing with the subject; but -rather to narrate my personal experiences during the campaign. And the -reader will also be left to his own consideration of the contemporary -affairs of the great world: the marrying and giving in marriage, losses -and gains, desires foiled and ambitions achieved, the shifts and -intrigues and gossip of domestic politics, the portentous manoeuvres -upon the clouded stage of international drama: all of which, to the -sailors and soldiers of the forlorn hope strung along the gigantic -reaches of the Nile, toiling and fighting in the desert, went by as -though it had never been. It is an old story now; very many of my -gallant comrades have passed away; but the record of their courage and -endurance remains, and shall remain. - -When we arrived in Cairo there were already 29 naval officers and 190 -men, divided into several sections, at work along the Nile. These were -sent by Admiral Lord John Hay, commander-in-chief in the Mediterranean. -In addition, the Admiralty had appointed two or three senior officers, -among whom was Captain Boardman (afterwards Admiral F. R. Boardman, -C.B.). At Lord Wolseley's request, Boardman was placed in command of -the whole naval contingent, which had not hitherto been under either a -naval officer in chief command or the military authority. My own -position with regard to the naval contingent was simply that of Lord -Wolseley's representative. - -While we were in Cairo I purchased for £24 my famous racing camel -Bimbashi. Buller also bought a camel, and we rode together daily. He -used to laugh till he nearly fell out of his saddle, when my camel ran -away with me through and over foot-passengers, donkeys, carriages and -dogs. I might haul Bimbashi's head round till it was under my knee, -and he was looking astern, and still he charged onwards. - -{223} - -The whale-boats designed to transport the expedition were then arriving -in large numbers. The total number was 800. They were similar to the -man-of-war 30-foot whaler, but fuller in the body to enable them to -carry more weight. Each boat was 30 feet long, with six feet six -inches beam, and two feet six inches draught, fitted for 12 oars, and -two masts with lug sails, and capable of carrying 10 soldiers, two -boatmen (Canadian _voyageurs_), 1000 rations and ammunition. - -There was a story current when the boats were struggling up the Nile, -that one of them, manned by a sergeant and eight soldiers, but without -a _voyageur_ on board, having run athwart a rock and upset, a soldier -observed to the sergeant that "the cove who sent nine men in a boat -with 1000 rations must have been this here journey before!" - -There were also to be provided eight steam pinnaces, two stern-wheel -paddle boats, and a number of hired Egyptian Government steamers. The -whale-boats as they arrived were sent, first, by rail and river to -Assiout. Thence they were towed to Assouan, where is the First -Cataract. Here they were either railed on trucks, or hauled through -the rapids to Shellal, eight miles up. From Shellal to Wady Halfa, 200 -miles farther, was plain sailing. At Wady Halfa is the Second Cataract -and the formidable rapid of Bab-el-Kebir, or the "Great Gate." - -Early in September I was ordered by Lord Wolseley to go up the Nile, -overhauling the arrangements for the water transport, right up to Wady -Halfa, which would be the temporary military base, I went by train from -Cairo to Assiout, the hottest journey I had ever endured. India was -nothing to it. The desert gathered itself up to destroy me. Any -little spot upon my person which was not deep in desert was a -fly-bazaar. But at Assiout a cold shower-bath paid for all. Here I -investigated the transport arrangements made by Captain Boardman, and -found them excellent. I may say at once that the whole of Captain -Boardman's work was admirable, and that his management {224} throughout -the campaign was marked by the greatest good feeling, tact, and -patience. - -I left Assiout in one of Messrs. Cook's steamers, the _Fersaat_, which -had the appearance of a boat and the manners of a kangaroo. She was -loosely concocted of iron and leaked at every rivet; she squealed and -grunted; her boiler roared like a camel; she bounded as she went. Her -Reis (captain and pilot) was a sorrowful old Mohammedan, whose only -method of finding out if the shoals and sands were still in the same -place was by running upon them; and his manner of getting off them was -to cry "Allah Kerim!" ("God is great!") and to beat his poor old -forehead on the deck. In the meantime one of his Arabs, tastefully -attired in a long blue night-gown, an enormous pair of drawers, and -decorated elastic-sided boots, stripped and jumped overboard and pushed -the boat, and while he pushed he chanted a dirge. As the boat began to -move, he made sounds which suggested that he was about to be violently -sick but could not quite manage it satisfactorily, although encouraged -thereto by the loud objurgations of the two stokers. When he clambered -back on deck, he put on the decorated boots and walked about in them -till he was dry enough to dress; while the Reis gave thanks to his -Maker, and the two stokers, men who knew nothing and feared nothing, -piled wood on the furnaces and drove the boat along again. - -If anyone walked from port to starboard or touched the helm, the boat -rolled over, and until the next roll maintained a list of ten degrees, -so that I was frequently shot off the locker upon which I was trying to -sleep, landing upon the top of José, my Maltese interpreter, and -followed by field-glasses, filter, sword and boots. The -mosquito-curtains carried away, and the mosquitoes instantly attacked -in force, driving me nearly mad with loss of blood, irritation, and -rage. My only comfort was a pneumatic life-belt, which had been sent -to me by Lady Charles, and which I used as a pillow. - -{225} - -So we struggled along against the stream for the 330 miles to Assouan; -and the weather was not too hot, and the nights were cool, and the -banks were fringed with date-palms, and every night the sun sank from -the intense blue of the zenith, laced with long-drawn clouds of rose, -to the lucent green low in the west, and the sand turned to gold colour -and rose, until the sun dropped suddenly out of sight and all turned -grey like ashes. Then a cold little wind sprang up out of the desert -and the night deepened into the velvet dark flashing with a myriad -stars. - -On 23rd September I came to Assouan: reorganised the postal service to -bring two mails a week by steam-launch: made arrangements for the rapid -working of the water transport generally, ready for the time of -pressure, and sent an urgent request for flexible wire hawsers, as I -was sure they would be urgently required. - -Leaving Assouan on 24th September, I arrived at Wady Halfa on the 27th. -Here were Sir Evelyn Wood and his Staff; among whom was my old friend -Zohrab Pasha. I was immediately set to work trying camels, as I had -become acquainted with these singular animals in India. - -Upon the day of my arrival I went out with a young officer in the -Mounted Infantry. His camel blundered over an irrigation ditch, and -flung my young friend head over heels into the mud, where he sat -looking sadly up into the face of his steed, which was complaining, as -camels do, making a peculiar mumbling noise like an old woman kept -waiting for her tea. Having been restored to his seat, this -unfortunate youth immediately rode too close to the river and -incontinently fell into a deep mud hole from which he had to be dug out. - -On 5th October Lord Wolseley arrived at Wady Halfa, as cheery as usual, -and took up his quarters in a _dahabieh_. Sir Redvers Buller and -Zohrab Pasha were also dwelling in _dahabiehs_. I was attached to Sir -Evelyn Wood's mess, Sir Evelyn being in charge of communications. I -lived in a small bell tent close to the river, chiefly furnished with a -{226} penny whistle, a photograph of Lady Charles, my letters from -home, and a stag beetle big enough to carry me to hounds, which I -generally had to chase from my bed. - -Upon Lord Wolseley's arrival we heard the rumour of the murder of -Colonel Stewart at El-Kamar, and of the slaying of his companions. -Ultimately, the news was confirmed. Stewart, with three steamers, had -left Khartoum on 10th September. After shelling the forts at Berber, -two of the steamers returned; while Stewart, in the Abbas, which was -towing two boats carrying refugees, went on to Abu Hamid, where the -natives opened a heavy fire. The boats were cast adrift and their -passengers captured. Stewart went on; his steamer was wrecked near the -village of Hebbeh, at which, having been induced to land by treachery, -Stewart, M. Herbin, French Consul at Khartoum, Mr. Power, _Times_ -correspondent, and a number of Greeks and Egyptians, were slain. It -was a pitiful end to all Colonel Stewart's gallant service with Gordon. - -During the first part of my time at Wady Halfa I was engaged under Lord -Wolseley's instructions in the inspection of the transport up and down -the river, often riding more than forty miles in a day upon a camel. -Wady Halfa was then being formed into the base camp preparatory to the -general advance: and troops and stores were arriving daily. The -railway ran along the east bank of the river to Sarras, 33 miles -distant. - -One day, when Sir Evelyn Wood and a party of soldiers were going by -train to Sarras, and Commander Hammill and I were accompanying them, -the engine broke down half-way. The Egyptian engineer and stoker being -helpless, Hammill and I examined the locomotive, Hammill taking the top -part, while I lay on my back underneath, close to the furnace, where -the sensation was like being baked in an oven. The bearings were -overheated, a lubricating tube having become unscrewed. After two -hours' hard work, we managed to reverse the tube end for end and to -refix it. Sir Evelyn Wood helped to pull me from under the engine, -{227} and laughed till he cried. I was covered with black grease from -top to toe, and my clothes were scorched to tatters. Hammill was in no -better case, his suit being drenched with oil. The spectacle may have -been very amusing to the general; but neither Hammill nor I had more -than two suits, and here was one of them destroyed entirely. - -By the 5th October, when Lord Wolseley arrived at Wady Halfa, Sir -Herbert Stewart had been for several days at Dongola with 250 Mounted -Infantry, who were transported in _nuggars_ (native boats) from Sarras. -The whale-boats were arriving daily at Wady Halfa, the first boat -having been hauled through the rapids on 25th September, and by the 5th -October there were 103 whalers assembled at Wady Halfa. At Wady Halfa -is the Second Cataract, at the lower end of which is the gorge of -Bab-el-Kebir, the Great Gate. Between Wady Halfa and Dal are the -cataracts of Samneh, Attireh, Ambigol, Tangour and Akasha. At -intervals of about 33 miles from Sarras to (New) Dongola, stations were -established with commissariat depots. The transport of troops and -stores from the base camp at Wady Halfa to Dongola consisted of the -steamers, whale-boats, and _nuggars_ along the river, the train from -Wady Halfa to Sarras, from Sarras to Ambigol by camel, thence by water. -The Camel Corps marched along the east bank to Dongola. It was -composed of four regiments, Heavy, Light, Guards, and Mounted Infantry, -each being composed of detachments from cavalry and infantry regiments, -each detachment consisting of two officers, two sergeants, two -corporals, one bugler, and 38 men; total, 94 officers, 1700 N.C.O.'s -and men. - -Such, in brief, was the condition of affairs early in October (1884), -when I was stationed at the Second Cataract at Wady Halfa. Here the -Nile divides into two, flowing on either side of a group of rocks and -islands for about 20 miles, and at the other (or upper) end of the -group of rocks and islands, on the east (or left) bank, is the -sickle-shaped gorge of Bab-el-Kebir. At this time, although the {228} -river was falling, the roar of the torrent pouring through the Bab was -so tremendous, that no voice could be heard, and we communicated with -one another by semaphore. When I left the Bab, goats were feeding in -the bed of the river. - -Lord Wolseley told me that he was informed that it was impossible to -haul the steamers up the Second Cataract, and asked me if I could do it. - -I replied that nothing was impossible until it was proved to be -impossible; and that, in the case under consideration, I would admit -the impossibility when I had smashed two steamers in trying to get them -through; while if I smashed only one, I might thereby get experience -which would enable me to succeed with the other. - -The steamers were hauled through successfully while the Bab-el-Kebir -was still full and roaring, the current being so powerful that the -steamers forging against it trembled like a whip. - -Some 4000 natives were put on the hawser of the first steamer; and as -they hauled her up, she had but a foot's clearance between her sides -and the rocks. The torrent flung her against them, and if she had not -been defended by timber and mats, she would have been smashed to -pieces. About the middle of the gorge the natives could move her no -farther. Whereupon they cried to Allah to strengthen them, and to -order the rope to pull harder and to slacken the water. But as their -prayers availed not, I eased the steamer back again, and put about 1500 -British soldiers on the hawser. They did not pray; indeed, their -language was as it were the reverse of prayer; but they dragged the -steamer right through. Theologically speaking, the victory should have -gone to the natives. I put the problem to a bishop, but he was unable -to solve it. - -The task of hauling the whalers through the Second Cataract was at -first entrusted to Koko, the native pilot Of Bab-el-Kebir. His method -was to take a line, dive with it into the rapids, and carry it across -the river. The line was {229} frequently torn from him by the current, -and many of the boats were stove in against the rocks. - -I designed a scheme of haulage, and was eventually placed by Lord -Wolseley in charge of the whole of the water transport from Wady Halfa -to Gemai, a stretch of about 17 miles. At Gemai was established a -dockyard, where damaged boats were repaired and equipped for the rest -of the voyage. - -My scheme for hauling the boats consisted of a stout standing guess -warp rigged as nearly as possible at right angles to the course of the -boat to be hauled, and secured at either end to rock or tree; one end -of a short hawser was hooked to the guess warp, so that it could move -freely up and down it, and a block was secured to the other end. -Through the block was rove a towing rope proper, one end secured to the -boat, and the working party on land tailing on to the other. As the -course of the river shifted, the guess warp was moved; the whole -passage being accomplished by a series of these operations. In certain -places two blocks were used, a standing block and a pendant block, a -pendant being rove through the standing block, one end secured to the -pendant block, men hauling on the other end; and through the pendant -block was rove the hauling line, one end secured to the boat, men -hauling on the other upon the bank opposite to that on which were the -pendant crew. By hauling on the hauling line, then easing the pendant, -and then hauling again on the hauling line, the boat was brought clear -of the Cataract and hauled round the corner into smooth water. - -Each boat was supplied with two poles for punting and a long line for -tracking, besides oars and sails. - -The whole equipment of the boats was organised by Sir Redvers Buller, -who utilised his experience of the Red River expedition, and nothing -could have better served its purpose. - -The _nuggars_, or native boats, were bought near Assouan, and were then -brought up to Wady Halfa, whence they were hauled through the Cataract, -then loaded with stores and {230} sent on up river. It was of the -utmost importance that they should be dispatched as quickly as -possible; for an army moves on its stomach, and the _nuggars_ carried -the wherewithal. Their sails, being invariably rotten, were blown to -pieces in the Cataracts. They were constantly crashing into the rocks, -which made holes in them, when they were hauled by main force to the -shore, where a dock was excavated in the sand to receive them. Here -they were repaired and thence dispatched up river. - -A _nuggar_ would come sailing along, when there was a sudden crash, the -bluejacket at the helm was pitched headlong into the bottom of the -boat, while the sail split into ribbons, and the native crew embraced -the mast crying that Allah was great! - -[Illustration: THE AUTHOR'S METHOD OF HAULING BOATS THROUGH THE -BAB-EL-KEBIR. AA. HAWSER: BB. HAULING LINE; C. GIBGUY; J. AND I. MEN -HAULING; H. FIXED POINT; G. PURCHASE FOR SETTING TAUT. AFTER A DRAWING -MADE ON THE SPOT BY THE AUTHOR] - -When the whale-boats came along, their passage was so arranged that a -regiment, or part of a regiment, was kept together; the distribution -being maintained all up the river, so that a homogeneous body could be -landed at any moment for attack or defence if necessary. - -So furious was the torrent, that whoso fell into it seldom rose again, -unless he were one of the expert Dongola divers. The men coming up in -the boats, who had done and suffered much before reaching Wady Halfa, -had repaired their trousers with biscuit tins. I overheard the -following dialogue between one of these tin-bottomed weary heroes and a -comrade on the bank: - -"Hullo, Bill, 'ow are you getting on?" - -"Me? I've been pulling on this here ruddy river for about two years. -'Ow far is it to Gemai?" - -"About fifteen miles, mate." - -"O my Gawd! Is there an 'orspital there?" - -Late in October, the _voyageurs_ arrived, a fine body of men, 380 -strong. - -Being acquainted with rapids and understanding their navigation, the -_voyageurs_ were invaluable in bringing the boats through the long and -difficult reaches of the Nile up to Wady Halfa, and from Wady Halfa up -to Korti. The {231} task could never have been accomplished in the -time, and the losses of boats would have been heavier, had it not been -for the _voyageurs_. - -As the boats came through the Bab or across the portage, the -_voyageurs_ took charge of them and sailed them up to Gemai. Here they -were overhauled and fully equipped, the soldiers were embarked, and -away they went up river. - -By the 6th November, 60 boats had left Gemai with the Sussex regiment -on board. The river was then falling so swiftly that a new course for -the boats must be found almost every day. Hitherto the boats had been -passed through the Cataract almost without a scratch or the loss of a -single article of gear. Now the rocks began to show through the surf -in the Bab. - -A boat was smashed. We caught her lower down; and with 200 men -portaged her over a rocky hill, across the neck of land formed by the -curve of the Bab, then laid her keel upwards across two other boats, -and so floated, took her up to Gemai dockyard. I was the more pleased -with this piece of salvage, because everyone said it was impossible to -save the boat. The last nine boats, after being emptied of all gear, -were hauled clean over the rocks by main force. They came prettily -lipping through the boiling torrent from rock to rock, taking the blows -upon keel and bilge pieces, so that they were scarcely damaged. - -Early in October, foreseeing that, as the water fell, the Bab-el-Kebir -would become impracticable, I had designed a scheme for a portage. The -alternative would have been to entrain the boats from Wady Halfa to -Sarras, an expedient which, as the whole of the train service was -required to carry provisions, would have involved immense delay. - -My plan was to haul the boats up to the entrance of the Bab and then to -carry them across the neck of land formed by the curve of the Bab, a -distance of 2488 yards, which required 400 men, who should be divided -into sections of 40 to each boat. The boat was hauled on shore, her -masts, oars, and poles laid on the ground to serve as bearers; the boat -was {232} laid on these keel uppermost, and was then lifted and -carried, the masts, oars, and poles resting on the men's shoulders, and -other men supporting the boat by resting thwarts and gunwale on their -shoulders. My scheme was at first received with incredulity by all -except Lord Wolseley. But I made a trial trip with 30 men, and had the -boat across the portage, including six stoppages for rest, and in the -water with all her gear without a scratch, in an hour and twenty -minutes. The passage of Bab-el-Kebir, low as the water had become, -would have taken at least six hours, with great risk of disaster. - -Now, having hauled the last nine boats through, over the rocks, the -portage scheme came into operation; and on the 6th November I closed -the Bab, and used the portage, by means of which alone it was made -possible to continue the supply of boats at the same rate. -Thenceforward we were able to put the boats through quicker than they -were supplied. - -Many of the boats were poisonous to handle, as their matting was -infested with scorpions. - -My dwelling was at first a tent at Wady Halfa, and afterwards a hut on -the bank beside the Bab-el-Kebir. It stood within six feet of the -roaring river, in a grove of mimosa. The camels lunched daily upon the -long sharp thorns of the mimosa, apparently relishing these spines as a -form of Worcester sauce. - -Rising at daylight, every day I covered some thirty miles up and down -the shore of the Cataract, superintending operations from dawn till -dark. I rode one of my camels, Bimbashi or Ballyhooly or Beelzebub, or -my donkey, County Waterford, so named because the second time I -contested him I lost my seat: a political allegory. Being short of -both officers and men, my presence was required everywhere at once. By -haulage and portage a perpetual procession of whaleboats and _nuggars_ -was kept moving up to the dockyard at Gemai. - -From Wady Halfa to the Bab the Cataract was divided {233} into reaches, -a post being stationed at each. At the first reach were Peel of the -2nd Life Guards and 200 Dongola men; at the Naval Camp, on the second -reach, were Lieutenant Colbourne and 350 Dongola men; at Palm Tree -Camp, in the third reach, were an Egyptian officer and 100 Dongola men; -for the portage at Bab-el-Kebir I had 500 men of the 2nd Egyptian -battalion under their colonel, and another of their officers, -Shakespeare of the Marines, who had been with me in the _Thunderer_. -All along the Cataract were stationed small parties of carpenters and -sailmakers in order that damages should be repaired on the spot. -Living with me was Colonel Grant, who was in command of all the Dongola -men. Later, the Canadian _voyageurs_ camped beside my hut. - -By means of the distribution of work, each section being placed under a -responsible officer, progress speedily became three times as fast. -Officers and men worked magnificently. I was proud of the old Navy. - -The routine for the bluejackets was: Turn out 4.30 a.m., breakfast; -walk seven to ten miles through the desert along the river, often -having to retrace their steps to help a boat in distress; work all day -till sunset, no spell for dinner, which consisted of biscuit; at -sunset, walk seven miles back to camp, supper and turn in. The -officers walked with the men, giving their camels to the men who -suffered from sore feet. Officers and men were burned as black as the -natives. - -Until my arrival, the nine naval officers and the doctor had been -living at the Naval Camp nine miles from Wady Halfa, without a single -servant or a cook. They were allowed neither servants nor the money -with which to hire natives. But nothing could exceed the kindness and -good-will of General Buller, who at once granted all my requests, and -if I found it necessary to order first and report afterwards, -sanctioned my requisitions. - -I had with me in my hut for a time F. H. Pollen, who could dive and -swim better than the Dongola men, using like them a blown-up goatskin. -The constant immersion {234} brought on an attack of dysentery. I kept -him in bed, taking away his clothes so that he could not get up, and -doctored him till he recovered. - -At this time I acted as doctor to the men under me. Every case of -sickness was reported to me at once. If the patient suffered from -diarrhoea I exhibited castor oil. A petty officer having been thus -treated, said he felt easier. I asked him if he would like another -dose, and he said he would like it. The same night he died. I sent -his body on a camel to the nearest medical officer, who found seventeen -date-stones in his stomach. I had the sorry consolation of knowing -that the poor fellow must have died in any event. - -On the 17th November, Lord Wolseley, returning from Dongola, arrived -suddenly at Wady Halfa, where he remained for twenty-four hours, -afterwards returning to Dongola. All we knew was that he had come to -press matters forward. History relates how that on the 17th November, -Wolseley received a letter from Gordon dated 4th November, in which -Gordon wrote: "We can hold out forty days with ease; after that it will -be difficult." In reply Wolseley telegraphed from Wady Halfa: "Yours -of 4th just received 17th; the first I have had from you. I shall be -at Kasr Dongola in four days." Wolseley at the same time informed Lord -Hartington that while the news would not affect his plans, it seemed to -show that Gordon's relief could not be accomplished without fighting. - -Lord Wolseley made no announcement on the subject at the time, merely -telling General Buller and myself that we were to stay where we were -for the present. Our impression was that Wolseley had abandoned the -idea of making a dash across the desert from Korti to Metemmeh. - -At that date, 17th November, we had more than 200 boats ready to embark -troops at Gernai, from which twenty to thirty boats were being -dispatched daily. Nearly 200 boats had already gone, carrying -detachments of the Essex, Stafford, and Cornwall Regiments, the -Engineers, and Commissariat. About 200 more boats had still to pass -the {235} Cataract. I was very pleased with the work and behaviour of -the 2nd battalion of the Egyptian Army, which was working the portage. -I expressed my satisfaction to them, and gave every man a quarter of a -pound of native tobacco, whereupon they declared with one voice that, -"if God was willing, they would go to hell with my Excellency." - -At about this time I received a private intimation from Lord Wolseley -that, when the general advance began, he intended to place me in -command of a naval brigade. - -By 22nd November, 549 boats had been passed through the Second -Cataract, 166 of which had been hauled through the Bab-el-Kebir, the -rest portaged. Of the whole number of boats, only three were smashed; -and very few received any damage. Accidents were few, although the -work was dangerous. On 21st November a _voyageur_ was drowned. Three -_voyageurs_ went overboard, and two were saved by catching hold of a -rope. The third scorned the rope, relying upon his ability to swim, -and was never seen again. Up to that date five men altogether had been -drowned, two soldiers, two Canadians, and one native. Later, another -native, and he an Esneh swimmer, was drowned. The river was -extraordinarily fatal. Not one man who went under upon falling -overboard was saved. The natives always used to do their best to keep -on the surface. - -Lord Wolseley was so good as warmly to commend the work done on the -Second Cataract; and Sir Redvers Buller, who at first declared the -portage scheme to be impossible of execution, generously expressed his -appreciation of its success. - -Having shot a little alligator, I skinned it myself. The Arab -camel-man in my service, who spoke French, argued with me in that -language for a long time that an alligator had no tongue, but fed by -suction, like a snipe. As I had cut out the tongue of my little -alligator, I knew it had one; but my Arabian naturalist refused to be -persuaded. - -At this time and afterwards while I was in Egypt, my servant, -interpreter and cook was the excellent José Salvatro, {236} a Maltese. -If he happened to be absent, I conveyed my instructions to the natives -through my French-speaking camel-man, in French. Between my French and -his French and his Arabic, I used to wonder how the meaning filtered -through; but I have a note in my diary that "it comes all right, the -natives are cheery fellows and work capitally with me, and a good smack -upon the 'sit-upon' of a lazy one keeps the whole lot going." - -Towards the end of November I was living alone in my hut on the -Bab-el-Kebir, attended only by a bluejacket and the faithful José, who -ceased not from scrubbing and washing, so that I was never a day -without clean things, an inestimable comfort in that climate. Here I -was haunted by an Arab maniac who dwelt in some indiscoverable antre of -the rocks. At night I heard him howling to himself. In the daytime, -he ran here and there, his only garment being the dust he cast upon his -shaven head, crying upon Allah. He ate sand and offal, a diet which -left him hungry, for he would come to my tent for food, which I gave -him. He seemed to know me in a vague way. I gave him some calico to -cover his nakedness withal, but he tore the stuff into fragments and -ate them. One day he rushed into my tent, clawed some mutton-broth out -of the cooking-pot with his horrible hands and crammed it boiling hot -into his mouth. I was obliged forcibly to eject him lest he should -take the whole; but I had no stomach for the rest. My fear was lest he -should burst in at night and I should be obliged in self-defence to -shoot him. Eventually, José lost patience, seized a huge wood-axe, and -chased the maniac for a mile. The poor wretch ran like a hare and -vanished into his hole in the rocks. - -I made a match with Colonel Brocklehurst, head of the Remount -Department, to ride my camel, the bold Bimbashi, against any one of -Brocklehurst's camels, for £25. The course was six miles long across -the desert, from Peel's Camp at the beginning of the Cataract to Sir -Evelyn Wood's flagstaff at Wady Halfa. Brocklehurst's rider was his -interpreter, {237} a lean rat of an Arab Sheikh, who was absolutely -certain he would win. His camel was the favourite of Wood's mess and -was reputed to be the best in Egypt. The betting was fifty to one -against me. But I had been riding Bimbashi 30 miles or so a day, and -we were both in fine hard condition. - -The Sheikh started at a gallop. First his turban, then his goatskin -saddle-rug, carried away. Both rider and camel were blowing and -perspiring ere they had run three miles. For the first two and a half -miles I waited on the Sheikh, then came away and won in a canter half a -mile ahead. At the finish the troops lined up and made a course for -us. Thus I won my first camel race, owner up. No one was better -pleased than my old friend Colonel Brocklehurst. - -Bimbashi (according to my journal) covered the six miles in a little -over eighteen minutes. That gallant steed had already been ridden the -nine miles from my camp to the starting-point; and when I rode him back -in the evening, he was so fresh that he ran away with me, grumbling -loudly, because he was offended at the sight of a dead donkey lying -wrong side up beside the railway. - -I invented a saddle for camels, and I believe the pattern is still in -use. The saddle-tree is a triangular wooden framework, like the gable -of a roof. I covered the wood with oakum and canvas; abolished all -buckles, made the girths and stirrups of raw hide thongs, and put the -stirrups forward, instead of behind. Count Gleichen, in his -interesting book, _With the Camel Corps up the Nile_, relates how the -saddles and equipment served out to the Camel Corps gave the men -infinite trouble and discomfort. The unseasoned wood came to pieces, -the straps broke, the water-skins and water-bottles leaked; but one -instance of the departmental mismanagement which caused our men so much -unnecessary suffering. - -By the end of November, the river was falling so swiftly that what was -smooth water yesterday was to-day a {238} frivolous series of -waterfalls with a twist in them. Every alteration in the river -involved a new device for haulage, and it would alter at three or four -places in a mile, and there were 11 miles of rapids. I was generally -able to judge by the look of the water when and where it would change -its course during the next few hours. In order to avoid the least -delay, new arrangements must be devised beforehand; and my mind was so -absorbed in these schemes, that I dreamed of them nightly. By that -time I had 1400 men working under me, whose work must be organised, and -stations allocated. The Bab-el-Kebir, that formidable rapid, was now a -grazing ground for goats. - -I shifted my quarters from the Bab to Wady Halfa, as the difficulties -were now all at that end of the Cataract. Peel and Colbourne, in -command respectively of the next two reaches, found no day too long and -no work too hard. - -In order to supervise the whole length of the operations as quickly as -possible, I kept one camel, Ballyhooly, at the Bab; the big white -donkey County Waterford half-way there; and Bimbashi the bold and -Beelzebub at Wady Halfa. Bimbashi could trot 16 miles in the hour. A -Bedouin Sheikh offered me £3$ for him. As I had bought him for £24 I -concluded that his vender had stolen him. I won more than his price in -the race with Colonel Brocklehurst's Sheikh. While at Wady Halfa I -rode him six miles out in the heavy sand against Sir Evelyn Wood and -his A.D.C., who rode horses, and Bimbashi beat the horses fair and -square. - -Lord Wolseley sent me a telegram ordering me to form a naval brigade of -100 men and 10 officers. But as the bluejackets were of inestimable -service in getting the remainder of the boats through the Cataract, and -fitting them out at Gemai, where the soldiers embarked, he desired to -keep them where they were as long as possible. On 27th November, we -hoped to get all the boats through during the next five days. Up to -that date--the last for which I have a note--687 boats had been passed -through the Cataract, with {239} a loss of 4 only; about 27 men of all -sorts had been drowned; and 337 boats had left Gemai with troops and -stores. - -On 6th December the last boat was passed through. On the same day, Sir -Evelyn Wood and Sir Redvers Buller received a telegram reporting a -block of boats at Ambigol and Dal Cataract; and I was ordered there at -a moment's notice. - -On 27th September I had arrived at Wady Halfa; on 10th October I -schemed the portage; and for eight weeks since that date I had been -continuously hard at work passing the boats through the Second -Cataract; which the Arabs call "the belly of stone." - - - - -{240} - -CHAPTER XXV - -THE SOUDAN WAR (_Continued_) - -III. UP THE CATARACTS AND ACROSS THE DESERT - - "To Assiout, in a cloud of dust - We came, and it made us smile, - To see each other's features, till - We washed them in the Nile. - From there, by boat, to Assouan - We came, and every night - Made fast, for the boatmen wouldn't steam - Excepting in daylight." - _Songs of the Camel Corps_ (Sergt. H. EAGLE, R.M.C.C.) - - -On the 6th December, 1884, Peel and Colbourne, my two gallant comrades -who had done so splendid a work upon the Second Cataract, quitted the -Belly of Stone, embarking in two boats manned by Kroomen. The names of -these big black men were Africa, Ginger Red, Bottled Beer, Sampson, Two -Glasses and Been-Very-Ill-Twice; and when they were excited, as they -nearly always were, they took to the English tongue, and kept us -laughing for a week. When the wind was fair and we sailed up against -the rapids, the Kroo boys were terribly anxious, knowing that if the -wind failed we should slide all the way back again. - -By this time the whole expedition was moving up river. The conduct of -the soldiers was magnificent, achieving wonderful results. Of the -sailors, accustomed to the work, and knowing the shortest way of doing -things, one expected much--and got even more. It was hard enough for -the {241} seamen. Although they, the soldiers, knew nothing of boats, -they worked like heroes. And the navigation of the Nile from Gemai to -Dal enforced hard continuous toil from dawn to dark day after day. The -_voyageurs_ did splendid service; the expedition could not have -advanced so rapidly without them; and although they knew nothing of -sails, being acute adventurous fellows they soon picked up enough -knowledge to carry them through. - -An officer of cavalry in charge of a convoy of stores on the river -worked by Dongola men, describing his adventures with what he called -his "peasant crews," pathetically observed: "You know, I know nothing -whatever about a boat, or what it ought to do, and I am not ashamed to -tell you that the whole time I am sweating with terror. And every -night when I go to bed I dream of whirlpools and boiling rapids and -then I dream that I am drowned." - -But his visions of the night affected neither his nerve nor his -indomitable energy. - -Our daily routine along the river began at 4.30: all hands turn out, -make up tent (if there were one), breakfast, and start, sailing or -tracking or rowing according to the state of the river. But whether -you sailed or tracked or rowed, before long the river changed and you -must row instead of track, or sail instead of row. Then you would come -to a difficult place, and you would heave the cargo on shore, and get -the empty boat up a fall or a heavy rush of water, and portage the -cargo on to the boat. So on to midday, when an hour was allowed for -dinner; then at it again, sailing, tracking, rowing, in and out cargo, -till sundown. Then haul into the bank and eat bully beef without -vegetables. After supper, roll in a blanket and sleep on the soft sand -the profound and delicious slumber of weary men. - -Occasionally a boat would strike a rock; or at rare intervals an -accident would happen, and part of a crew would be lost, and the boat's -gear swept away; or a hole would be knocked in the boat, when she would -be emptied of gear and cargo, hauled up, and patched. Under these -circumstances, {242} the boats often made no more than three or four -miles' advance in a day. Overloaded as were many of the boats, they -served their purpose admirably well. - -At the big Cataracts were stationed working parties, which emptied the -boats of gear and cargo, portaged them overland, and hauled the boats -through the rapids. - -So we struggled up the broad and rushing river from Gemai to Dal, -sailing and towing and rowing, capsized and righting again. And one -night a sandstorm waltzed out of the desert and blew away our tent and -with it knives, forks, slippers, lamp, candles, matches and everything. -And the next morning Peel dropped his knife, and in trying to save it -he upset our whole breakfast of sardines and coffee into Colbourne's -boots. And half my kit was stolen, and I was reduced to one broken -pair of boots, and the natives stole my tooth powder and baked bread -with it. And we had boils all over us like the man in the Bible, -because every little scratch was poisoned by the innumerable flies of -Egypt. But we were so busy that nothing mattered. - -Fighting every mile of the great river pouring down from Khartoum, we -on the Cataracts had no news of Gordon. All we knew was that there was -need to hurry, hurry all the way. At such times as the mail from home -arrived upon a dyspeptic camel, we got scraps of news of home affairs. -People who knew much more than Lord Wolseley, were saying he ought to -have taken the Souakim-Berber route instead of the Nile route. I said -then, as I say now, he had no choice. At this time of crisis, when the -Navy was dangerously inadequate, one political party was screaming -denunciations against "legislation by panic." Encouraging to sailors -and soldiers sweating on service! But we knew what to expect. I -observe that in a private letter written in December, 1884, from the -banks of the Nile, at the end of a long day's work with the boats, I -said, "Both sides are equally to blame for the defective state of the -Navy. Tell ---- and ---- not to be unpatriotic and make the Navy a -party question, or they will not do half the good they might." - -{243} - -We came to Ambigol to find the boats had been cleared by Alleyne of the -Artillery. I was able to improve the organisation there, and to give -help along the river I was in time to save three boats. At Dal, I laid -lines along the centre of the two and a half miles rapid, so that in -calm weather the boats could haul themselves through. - -In the meantime, the Naval Brigade of which Lord Wolseley had ordered -me to take command, had been selected, at my request, by Captain -Boardman. - -On 19th December, my first division came to Dal. Up they came, all -together in line ahead, under all possible sail, using the boat awnings -as spinnakers. They had sailed up the rapids where the other boats -were tracking; and the soldiers cheered them as they went by. There -was not a scratch on any boat, nor a drop of water in any of them. -Every cargo was complete in detail, including machine guns, ammunition, -oil and stores. Had I not a right to be proud of the seamen? I put an -officer at the helm of each boat, and told them to follow me through -Dal Cataract; and led them through, so that the same night the boats -were reloaded with the gear and cargo which had been portaged, and were -going on. The passage of Dal Cataract usually occupied three days. - -I sent on the first division, and stayed at Dal to await the arrival of -the second, in order to get all my men together. As it happened, I did -not see it until it reached Korti. On 21st December it had left -Sarras, bringing oil and stores to be used in the Nile steamers of -which I was to take charge. For by this time I had been informed of -Lord Wolseley's intention to send the Naval Brigade with the Camel -Corps to make a dash across the Bayuda Desert to Metemmeh. The Naval -Brigade was then to attack Khartoum in Gordon's steamers, while the -Camel Corps attacked it by land. - -So I remained yet a little while at Dal, helping the boats through the -Cataract, and camping in the sand. I found a baby scorpion two and a -half inches long in my {244} handkerchief. The officer whose tent was -next to mine, shared it with a sand-rat, which used to fill his -slippers with _dhura_ grains every night, and which jumped on and off -my knee when I breakfasted with my friend. Actually there came two or -three days when I had nothing to do; and when I could take a hot bath -in peace, with the luxury of a cake of carbolic soap, and sit in my -little canvas chair, which was, however, speedily stolen. - -My poor servant José was suddenly taken with so sharp an attack of -fever that he was stricken helpless and could hardly lift a cup to his -lips. His pulse was going like a machine gun. He was too ill to be -moved on mule-back to the hospital, which was eight miles distant; and -I had to doctor him myself. I gave him castor-oil, deprived him of all -food for twenty-four hours, gave him five grains of quinine every two -hours, and plenty of lime-juice to drink; and he was soon well again. - -Lord Avonmore, Lieutenant-Colonel J. Alleyne, Captain Burnaby and -myself subscribed to a Christmas dinner of extraordinary charm, eaten -with the Guards. The menu was:--soup made of bully beef, onions, rice -and boiled biscuit, fish from the Nile, stewed bully beef and chicken -_à la_ as-if-they-had-been-trained-for-long-distance-races-for-a-year, -_entremet_ of biscuit and jam. Rum to drink. - -I should have missed that feast, and should have been on the way to -Korti post-haste several days before Christmas, had it not been that a -telegram sent by Lord Wolseley to me had been delayed in transmission. -On 27th December I received an urgent telegram from General Buller, -asking where I was and what I was doing. A week previously Lord -Wolseley had telegraphed instructions that I was to proceed to Korti -with all speed to arrive with the first division of the Naval Brigade. -Having received no orders, I was waiting for the second division so -that I might see that it was complete and satisfactory. (It arrived at -Dal the day after I left that place in obedience to General Buller's -orders.) - -{245} - -From Dal to Korti, as the crow flies, is some 200 miles to the -southward; following up the river, which, with many windings, flows -north from Korti, the distance is more than half as much again. I was -already (by no fault of mine) a week behind; my instructions were to -proceed by the shortest possible route by the quickest possible means, -camels or steam pinnace; and immediately I received General Buller's -telegram I dashed off to the Commissariat. Here I obtained four camels -to carry José, myself and my kit to the nearest point at which I could -catch a steam pinnace on the river. Also, by riding the first stage of -the journey, I could avoid two wide bends of the Nile. The camels were -but baggage animals; they all had sore backs; and I could get no proper -saddle. I strapped my rug on the wooden framework. We started the -same evening at seven o'clock. - -The night had fallen when we left behind us the stir of the armed camp -and plunged into the deep stillness of the desert. The brilliant -moonlight sharply illumined the low rocky hills, and the withered -scrub, near and far; the hard gravelly track stretched plainly before -us; and the camels went noiselessly forward on their great padded feet. -So, hour after hour. It was one o'clock upon the following morning -(21st December) when we rode into a dark and silent village. Lighting -upon an empty hut, we crawled into it, cooked a little supper, and went -to sleep. - -Before daylight we were awakened by the noise of voices crying and -quarrelling; and there were two black negresses upbraiding us, and -beyond them was a group of agitated natives. It appeared that we were -desecrating the village mosque. Having soothed the inhabitants, we -started. That day we rode from 6 a.m. to 7.30 p.m. with a halt of an -hour and a half at midday, travelling 40 miles in twelve hours, good -going for baggage camels with sore backs. By that time I was getting -sore, too. We slept that night at Absarat, started the next morning -(29th December) at 8.30, and rode to Abu Fatmeh, arriving at 4 p.m. -Starting next morning at nine o'clock, we arrived at Kaibur at 5 p.m. -Here, to my {246} intense relief, we picked up Colville and his steam -pinnace, in which we instantly embarked for Korti. - -During the last three days and a half we had been thirty-two hours in -the saddle (which, strictly speaking, my camel had not) and a part of -my anatomy was quite worn away. I lay down in the pinnace and hoped to -become healed. - -We did not know it; but the same evening, General Sir Herbert Stewart's -Desert Column left Korti upon the great forced march of the forlorn -hope. - -The pinnace, whose furnaces were burning wood, most of which was wet -and green, pounded slowly up river until we met the steamer -_Nassifara_, into which I transferred myself. Blissful was the rest in -that steamer after my two months' tremendous toil getting the boats -through the Bab-el-Kebir and the long ride across the desert. So I lay -in the steamer and lived on the height of diet, fresh meat, milk, -butter and eggs, till my tunic hardly held me. I did not then know why -Lord Wolseley had sent for me in so great a hurry. - - - - -{247} - -CHAPTER XXVI - -THE SOUDAN WAR (_Continued_) - -IV. THE FIRST MARCH OF THE DESERT COLUMN - -NOTE - -By the end of December, 1884, the whole of the expedition was in -process of concentrating at Korti. At Korti the Nile fetches a wide -arc north-eastward. The chord of the arc, running south-eastward, runs -from Korti to Metemmeh, and Shendi, which stands on the farther, or -east, bank. From Korti to Metemmeh is 176 miles across the desert. -Shendi was the rendezvous at which the troops were to meet Gordon's -steamers sent down by him from Khartoum. Wolseley's object in sending -Lord Charles Beresford with the Naval Brigade was that he should take -command of the steamers, which, filled with troops, were to proceed up -to Khartoum. The first business of the Desert Column under General Sir -Herbert Stewart, was to seize the wells of Jakdul, which lay 100 miles -distant from Korti, and to hold them, thus securing the main water -supply on the desert route and an intermediate station between Metemmeh -and the base at Korti. Having obtained possession of the wells, the -Guards' Battalion was to be left there, while the remainder of the -Column returned to Korti, there to be sufficiently reinforced to return -to Jakdul, and to complete the march to Metemmeh. Such was the -original idea. The reason why sufficient troops and transport were not -sent in the first instance, thereby avoiding the necessity of the -return {248} of the greater part of the Column to Korti, and its second -march with the reinforcements, seems to have been the scarcity of -camels. - -When the Desert Column made its first march, Lord Charles Beresford and -the Naval Brigade were still on their way to Korti. The first division -under the command of Lord Charles marched with the Desert Column on its -return. - -The first Desert Column numbered 73 officers, 1212 men and natives, and -2091 camels. It consisted of one squadron of the 19th Hussars, Guards' -Camel Regiment, Mounted Infantry, Engineers, 1357 camels carrying -stores and driven by natives, Medical Staff Corps, and Bearer Company. -Personal luggage was limited to 40 lb. a man. An account of the march -is given by Count Gleichen, in his pleasant and interesting book (to -which the present writer is much indebted) _With the Camel Corps up the -Nile_ (Chapman & Hall). Some years previously the route from Korti to -Metemmeh had been surveyed by Ismail Pasha, who had intended to run a -railway along it from Wady Halfa to Khartoum; and the map then made of -the district was in possession of the Column. The enemy were reported -to be about; but it was expected that they would be found beyond the -Jakdul Wells; as indeed they were. - -The Desert Column started from Korti on the afternoon of Tuesday, 30th -December, 1884. The Hussars escorted a party of native guides and -scouted ahead. The Column marched the whole of that night, in the -light of a brilliant moon, across hard sand or gravel, amid low hills -of black rock, at whose bases grew long yellow savas grass and mimosa -bushes, and in places mimosa trees. - -At 8.30 on the morning of the 31st December they halted until 3 p.m., -marched till 8.30 p.m., found the wells of Abu Hashim nearly dry, -marched on, ascending a stony tableland, and still marching, sang the -New Year in at midnight; came to the wells of El Howeiyat, drank them -dry and bivouacked until 6 a.m. on the morning of the 1st January, 1885. - -{249} - -All that morning they marched, coming at midday to a plain covered with -scrub and intersected with dry water-courses; rested for three hours; -marched all that night, and about 7 a.m. on the morning of 2nd January, -entered the defile, floored with large loose stones and closed in with -steep black hills, leading to the wells of Jakdul. These are deep -pools filling clefts in the rock of the hills encompassing the little -valley, three reservoirs rising one above the other. Count Gleichen, -who was the first man to climb to the upper pools, thus describes the -middle pool. - - -"Eighty feet above my head towered an overhanging precipice of black -rock; behind me rose another of the same height; at the foot of the one -in front lay a beautiful, large ice-green pool, deepening into black as -I looked into its transparent depths. Scarlet dragon-flies flitted -about in the shade; rocks covered with dark-green weed looked out of -the water; the air was cool almost to coldness. It was like being -dropped into a fairy grotto, at least so it seemed to me after grilling -for days in the sun." - - -When the Desert Column reached that oasis, they had been on the march -for sixty-four hours, with no more than four hours' consecutive sleep. -The time as recorded by Count Gleichen was "sixty-four hours, -thirty-four hours on the move and thirty broken up into short halts." -The distance covered was a little under 100 miles; therefore the -camels' rate of marching averaged as nearly as may be two and -three-quarter miles an hour throughout. A camel walks like clock-work, -and if he quickens his speed he keeps the same length of pace, almost -exactly one yard. - -The Guards' Battalion, to which were attached the Royal Marines, with -six Hussars and 15 Engineers remained at the Wells. The rest of the -Column left Jakdul at dusk of the day upon which they had arrived, to -return to Korti, bivouacking that night in the desert. - -The detachment at Jakdul made roads, built forts, and laid out the camp -for the returning Column. On 11th {250} January, a convoy of 1000 -camels carrying stores and ammunition, under the command of Colonel -Stanley Clarke, arrived at Jakdul. - -In the meantime, on 31st December, the day after which the Desert -Column had started for the first time, Lord Wolseley had received a -written message from Gordon, "Khartoum all right," dated 14th December. -Should it be captured, the message was intended to deceive the captor. -The messenger delivered verbal information of a different tenure, to -the effect that Gordon was hard pressed and that provisions were -becoming very scarce. - -At the time of the starting of the Desert Column upon its second march, -when it was accompanied by the first division of the Naval Brigade -under the command of Lord Charles Beresford, and by other -reinforcements, the general situation was briefly as follows. - -The River Column, which was intended to clear the country along the -Nile, to occupy Berber, and thence to join the Desert Column at -Metemmeh, was assembling at Hamdab, 52 miles above Korti. It was -commanded by General Earle. The four steamers sent down the river from -Khartoum by General Gordon in October, were at Nasri Island, below the -Shabloka Cataract, half-way between Khartoum and Metemmeh, which are 98 -miles apart. Korti and Berber, as a glance at the map will show, -occupy respectively the left and right corners of the base of an -inverted pyramid, of which Metemmeh is the apex, while Khartoum may be -figured as at the end of a line 98 miles long depending from the apex. -The Desert Column traversed one side of the triangle, from Korti to -Metemmeh; the River Column was intended to traverse the other two sides. - -[Illustration: THE NILE from Wadi Halfa to Khartoum] - - - - -{251} - -CHAPTER XXVII - -THE SOUDAN WAR (_Continued_) - -V. THE DESERT MARCH OF THE FORLORN HOPE - - "When years ago I 'listed, lads, - To serve our Gracious Queen, - The sergeant made me understand - I was a 'Royal Marine.' - He said we sometimes served in ships, - And sometimes on the shore; - But did not say I should wear spurs, - Or be in the Camel Corps." - _Songs of the Camel Corps_ (Sergt. H. EAGLE, R.M.C.C.) - - -Korti was a city of tents arrayed amid groves of fronded palm -overhanging the broad river; beyond, the illimitable coloured spaces of -the desert, barred with plains of tawny grass set with mimosa, and -green fields of _dhura_, and merging into the far rose-hued hills. All -day long the strong sun smote upon its yellow avenues, and the bugles -called, and the north wind, steady and cool, blew the boats up the -river, and the men, ragged and cheery and tanned saddle-colour, came -marching in and were absorbed into the great armed camp. Thence were -to spring two long arms of fighting men, one to encircle the river, the -other to reach across the desert, strike at Khartoum and save Gordon. - -The day after I arrived at Korti, 5th January, 1885, the desert arm had -bent back to obtain reinforcements; because there were not enough -camels to furnish transport for the first march. - -{252} - -The first division of the Naval Brigade, under Lieutenant Alfred -Pigott, also arrived on the 5th. Officers and men alike were covered -with little black pustules, due to the poison carried by the flies. -Nevertheless, they were fit and well and all a-taunto. They were -brigaded under my command with Sir Herbert Stewart's Desert Column. -The intention was that Gordon's steamers, then waiting for us somewhere -between Metemmeh and Khartoum, should be manned with the sailors and a -detachment of infantry, and should take Sir Charles Wilson up to -Khartoum. The second division of the Naval Brigade was still on its -way up. It eventually joined us at Gubat. I may here say, for the -sake of clearness, that Gubat is close to Metemmeh and that Shendi lies -on the farther, or east, bank of the Nile, so that Gubat, Metemmeh and -Shendi were really all within the area of the rendezvous at which the -River Column under General Earle was intended to join forces with the -Desert Column. - -Sir Herbert Stewart arrived at Korti on the 5th and left that place on -the 8th, the intervening days being occupied in preparations. An -essential part of my own arrangements consisted in obtaining spare -boiler-plates, rivets, oakum, lubricating oil, and engineers' stores -generally, as I foresaw that these would be needed for the steamers, -which had already been knocking about the Nile in a hostile country for -some three months. At first, Sir Redvers Buller refused to let me have -either the stores or the camels upon which to carry them. He was most -good-natured and sympathetic, but he did not immediately perceive the -necessity. - -"What do you want boiler-plates for?" he said. "Are you going to mend -the camels with them?" - -But he let me have what I wanted. (I did mend the camels with oakum.) -With other stores, I took eight boiler-plates, and a quantity of -rivets. One of those plates, and a couple of dozen of those rivets, -saved the Column. - -The Gardner gun of the Naval Brigade was carried in pieces on four -camels. Number one carried the barrels, {253} number two training and -elevating gear and wheels, number three the trail, number four, four -boxes of hoppers. The limber was abolished for the sake of handiness. -The gun was unloaded, mounted, feed-plate full, and ready to march in -under four minutes. When marching with the gun, the men hauled it with -drag-ropes, muzzle first, the trail being lifted and carried upon a -light pole. Upon going into action the trail was dropped and the gun -was ready, all the confusion and delay caused by unlimbering in a -crowded space being thus avoided. - -At midday the 8th January, the Desert Column paraded for its second and -final march, behind the village of Korti, and was inspected by Lord -Wolseley. The same thought inspired every officer and man: we are -getting to the real business at last. - -The Desert Column, quoting from the figures given in Sir Charles -Wilson's excellent work, _From Korti to Khartoum_, was composed as -follows: - - N.-C. Officers - Officers and Men - - Staff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 6 - Naval Brigade . . . . . . . . . . . 5 53 - 19th Hussars . . . . . . . . . . . 9 121 - Heavy Camel Regiment . . . . . . . 24 376 - M. I. Camel Regiment . . . . . . . 21 336 - Royal Artillery . . . . . . . . . . 4 39 - Royal Sussex Regiment . . . . . . . 16 401 - Essex Regiment . . . . . . . . . . 3 55 - Commissariat and Transport . . . . 5 72 - Medical Staff . . . . . . . . . . . 3 50 - -- ---- - 98 1509 - == ==== - -And four guns (one Gardner, three 7-pr. screw guns), 304 natives, 2228 -camels, and 155 horses. Already there were along the route at the -wells of Howeiyat (left on the first march) 33 officers and men of the -M. I. Camel Regiment and 33 camels; and at Jakdul 422 officers and men -of the Guards' Camel Regiment (including Royal Marines), Royal -Engineers, and Medical Staff, and 20 camels. {254} The Desert Column -picked up these detachments as it went along, leaving others in their -places. - -The Column rode off at 2 o'clock p.m. amid a chorus of good wishes from -our comrades. I rode my white donkey, County Waterford, which had been -sent up to Korti by boat, We marched ten miles; halted at sunset and -bivouacked, and started again half an hour after midnight. The moon -rode high, and it was very cold; but the cold was invigorating; and the -hard gravel or sand of the track made good going. Desert marching with -camels demands perpetual attention; the loads slip on the camels and -must be adjusted; a native driver unships the load and drops it to save -himself trouble; camels stray or break loose. By means of perpetual -driving, the unwieldy herd creeps forward with noiseless footsteps, at -something under three miles an hour. - -Although the camels were so numerous, their numbers had been reduced to -the bare requirements of that small mobile column, which alone could -hope to achieve the enterprise. - -At 10 o'clock a.m. on the 9th, we halted for four hours in a valley of -grass and mimosa trees; marched till sunset and came to another grassy -valley and bivouacked. On the 10th we started before daylight, and -reached the wells of El Howeiyat at noon, very thirsty, and drank muddy -water and breakfasted; marched on until long after dark over rough -ground, the men very thirsty, the camels slipping and falling all over -the place, and at length bivouacked. Starting again before daylight on -the 11th, we came to the wooded valley set among granite hills, where -are the wells of Abu Halfa, men and animals suffering greatly from -thirst. The wells consisted of a muddy pond and a few small pools of -bitter water. More holes were dug, and the watering went on all the -afternoon and all night. - -Next morning, 12th January, we loaded up at daylight, and marched -across the plain lying beneath the range of yellow hills, broken by -black rocks, called Jebel Jelif; entered a grassy and wide valley, -ending in a wall of rock; turned {255} the corner of the wall, and came -into a narrower valley, full of large round stones, and closed in at -the upper end by precipices, riven into clefts, within which were the -pools of Jakdul. We beheld roads cleared of stones, and the -sign-boards of a camp, and the forts of the garrison, and stone walls -crowning the hills, one high on the left, two high on the right hand. -In ten days the little detachment of Guards, Royal Marines and -Engineers under Major Dorward, R.E., had performed an incredible amount -of work: road-making, wall-building, laying-out, canal-digging and -reservoir-making. All was ready for Sir Herbert Stewart's force, which -took up its quarters at once. - -That evening the Guards gave an excellent dinner to the Staff, -substituting fresh gazelle and sand-grouse for bully-beef. All night -the men were drawing water from the upper pool of the wells, in which -was the best water, by the light of lanterns. - -The next day, 13th January, all were hard at work watering the camels -and preparing for the advance on the morrow. The camels were already -suffering severely: some thirty had dropped dead on the way; and owing -to the impossibility of obtaining enough animals to carry the requisite -grain, they were growing thin. It will be observed that the whole -progress of the expedition depended upon camels as the sole means of -transport. - -When a camel falls from exhaustion, it rolls over upon its side, and is -unable to rise. But it is not going to die unless it stretches its -head back; and it has still a store of latent energy; for a beast will -seldom of its own accord go on to the last. It may sound cruel; but in -that expedition it was a case of a man's life or a camel's suffering. -When I came across a fallen camel, I had it hove upright with a -gun-pole, loaded men upon it, and so got them over another thirty or -forty miles. By the exercise of care and forethought, I succeeded in -bringing back from the expedition more camels, in the proportion of -those in my control, than others, much to the interest of my old friend -Sir Redvers {256} Buller. He asked me how it was done; and I told him -that I superintended the feeding of the camels myself. If a camel was -exhausted, I treated it as I would treat a tired hunter, which, after a -long day, refuses its food. I gave the exhausted camels food by -handfuls, putting them upon a piece of cloth or canvas, instead of -throwing the whole ration upon the ground at once. - -Major Kitchener (now Lord Kitchener of Khartoum), who was dwelling in a -cave in the hillside, reported that Khashm-el-Mus Bey, Malik (King) of -the Shagiyeh tribe, was at Shendi with three of Gordon's steamers. (He -was actually at Nasri Island.) Lieutenant E. J. -Montagu-Stuart-Wortley, King's Royal Rifles, joined the column for -service with Sir Charles Wilson in Khartoum. Little did we anticipate -in what his plucky service would consist. Colonel Burnaby came in with -a supply of grain, most of which was left at Jakdul, as the camels -which had brought it were needed to carry stores for the Column. There -were 800 Commissariat camels, carrying provisions for 1500 men for a -month, the first instalment of the depot it was intended to form at -Metemmeh, as the base camp from which to advance upon Khartoum. - -With Burnaby came Captain Gascoigne, who had special knowledge of the -Eastern Soudan, and who afterwards went up to Khartoum with Sir Charles -Wilson. - -The Column left Jakdul at 2 o'clock p.m. on 14th January, and marched -for three hours. It was generally supposed that we might be attacked -between Jakdul and Metemmeh, a distance of between 70 and 80 miles; -although the only intelligence we had was Major Kitchener's report that -3000 men under the Mahdi's Emir were at Metemmeh. We did not know that -the occupation of Jakdul by Sir Herbert Stewart on the 2nd of January, -had moved the Mahdi to determine upon the destruction of the Desert -Column between Jakdul and Metemmeh. The news of the occupation of -Jakdul had travelled with extraordinary swiftness. It was known on the -4th January, or two {257} days after the event, in Berber, nearly 90 -miles from Jakdul as the crow flies; and on that day the Emir of Berber -dispatched his men to reinforce the Emir of Metemmeh. If the news were -known in Berber and Metemmeh it must have run through the whole -surrounding area of desert. The ten days occupied by the Column in -returning to Korti and returning again to Jakdul, gave the enemy the -time they needed to concentrate in front of us. Moreover, Omdurman had -fallen during the second week in January, setting free a number of the -Mahdi's soldiers. But of these things we were ignorant when we pushed -out of Jakdul. We picked up a Remington rifle, and saw some -horse-tracks, and that was all. - -During the second night out from Jakdul (the 15th-16th) the camels were -knee-lashed and dispositions were made in case of attack, but nothing -happened. It was the last night's rest we were to have for some time. - -On the morning of the 16th we started as usual in the dark. When the -light came, we saw the hills of Abu Klea in the distance, and after -marching nearly to them, halted for breakfast, In the meantime -Lieutenant-Colonel Barrow, with his squadron of the 19th Hussars, had -gone ahead to occupy the wells of Abu Klea. About 11 a.m. Barrow -returned to report that there was a large force of the enemy between us -and the wells. The column was then lying in a shallow valley, whence -the track led uphill over rough ground towards a pass cleft in the -range of hills, beyond which were the wells. - -The Column fell in and mounted at once. Through glasses we could -clearly distinguish innumerable white-robed figures of Arabs, relieved -upon the black cliffs dominating the pass, leaping and gesticulating. -Here and there were puffs of smoke, followed after an interval by a -faint report; but the range was too far, and no bullet arrived. Nearer -hand, were swiftly jerking the isolated flags of the signallers, -communicating from the advanced scouts to the main body. The Naval -Brigade with the {258} Mounted Infantry, which were on the left of the -Column, were ordered to ascend the hill on the left of the line of -advance, to guard the flank of the Column. - -We dragged up the Gardner gun, placed it in position, and built a -breastwork of loose stones. By the time we had finished, it was about -4 o'clock. Beyond and beneath us, a line of green and white flags was -strung across the valley, fluttering above the scrub, and these, with a -large tent, denoted the headquarters of the enemy. - -The rest of the Column were hurriedly building a zeriba in the valley. -As the twilight fell, a party of the enemy crept to the summit of the -hill on the right flank, opposite to our fort, and dropped bullets at -long range into the Column below, which replied with a couple of screw -guns. As the darkness thickened, there arose that maddening noise of -tom-toms, whose hollow and menacing beat, endlessly and pitilessly -repeated, haunts those who have heard it to the last day of their -lives. Swelling and falling, it sounds now hard at hand, and again far -away. That night, we lay behind the breastwork, sleepless and very -cold; and the deadly throbbing of the drums filled the air, mingled -with the murmur of many voices and the rustle as of many feet, and -punctuated with the sullen crack of rifles, now firing singly, now in a -volley, and the whine of bullets. At intervals, thinking the enemy -were upon us, we stood to arms. - -When at last the day broke, there were thousands of white-robed figures -clustering nearer upon the hills, and the bullets thickened, so that, -chilled as we were, rather than attempt to warm ourselves by exercise -we were fain to lie behind the breastwork. The Naval Brigade had no -casualties. - -Our detachment was speedily called in, so that we had no time for -breakfast, which was being hastily eaten under fire by the rest of the -Column. All we had was a biscuit and a drink of water. We took up our -position on the right front. Sir Herbert Stewart waited for a time in -case the {259} enemy should attack. Major Gough, commanding the -Mounted Infantry, was knocked senseless by a bullet graze; Major -Dickson of the Royals was shot through the knee; Lieutenant Lyall of -the Royal Artillery was hit in the back. - -Sir Herbert Stewart and Colonel Burnaby were riding about on high -ground, a mark for the enemy. I saw the general's bugler drop close -beside him, and running up, implored both him and Burnaby to dismount, -but they would not. I had hardly returned to my place when I heard -another bullet strike, and saw Burnaby's horse fall, throwing its -rider. I went to help Burnaby to his feet, and as I picked him up, he -said a curious thing. He said, "I'm not in luck to-day, Charlie." - -When it became evident that the enemy would not attack, Sir Herbert -Stewart decided to take the initiative. He ordered a square to be -formed outside the zeriba, in which the baggage and the camels were to -be left in charge of a small garrison. - -In the centre of the square were to be camels, carrying water, -ammunition, and cacolets (litters) for the wounded. I do not know how -many camels there were. Count Gleichen says about 30; Colonel -Colville, in the official history, gives the figure as 150. In the -front of the square (looking from the rear of the square forward), -left, and nearly all down the left flank, were Mounted Infantry; on the -right front, and half-way down the right flank, Guards' Camel Regiment. -Beginning on the left flank where Mounted Infantry ended, and -continuing round the rear face, were the Heavy Camel Regiment. Then, -in the centre of the rear, was the Naval Brigade with Gardner gun. On -the right of rear face, the Heavy Camel Regiment extended to the angle. -Round the corner, lower right flank, were the Royal Sussex, then came -the Royal Marines, continuing to the Guards' Camel Regiment. Behind -the centre of the front ranks were the three screw guns. In case of -attack, I was directed to use my own judgment as to placing the Gardner -gun. - -{260} - -The square was thus formed under fire. Bear in mind that the column -was upon the floor of a valley commanded by slopes and hill-tops -occupied by the enemy. The route of the square lay over the lower -slopes of the hills on the right, thus avoiding the hollow way on the -left commanded by the enemy's breastworks. Captain Campbell's company -of Mounted Infantry, and Colonel Barrow with his Hussars, went ahead to -skirmish on the front and on the left flank, and somewhat checked the -fire, while Lieutenant Romilly and a detachment of Scots Guards -skirmished ahead on the right. - -It was about 10 a.m. when the square began to move. The enemy, -increasing their fire, kept pace with it. The route, studded with -rocky knolls, furrowed with watercourses, and sharply rising and -falling, was almost impassable for the camels. They lagged behind, -slipping and falling, and we of the rear face were all tangled up with -a grunting, squealing, reeking mass of struggling animals. Their -drivers, terrified by the murderous fire coming from the right, were -pressing back towards the left rear angle. By dint of the most -splendid exertions, the sailors kept up, dragging the Gardner gun. Men -were dropping, and halts must be made while they were hoisted into the -cacolets and their camels forced into the square. Surgeon J. Magill, -attending a wounded skirmisher outside the square, was hit in the leg. -During the halts the enemy's fire was returned, driving off large -numbers on the hills to the right. In about an hour we covered two -miles. - -Then we saw, on the left front, about 600 yards away, a line of green -and white flags twinkling on long poles planted in the grass and scrub. -No one knew what these might portend. As the fire was hottest on the -right, we thought that the main body would attack from that quarter. -Suddenly, as we halted, more and yet more flags flashed above the -green; and the next moment the valley was alive with black and white -figures, and resounding with their cries. The whole body of them moved -swiftly and in {261} perfect order across our left front, disappearing -behind rocks and herbage. - -The square was instantly moved forward some thirty yards on the slope, -in order to gain a better position. Ere the movement was completed, -the enemy reappeared. - - - - -{262} - -CHAPTER XXVIII - -THE SOUDAN WAR (_Continued_) - -VI. THE FIGHT AT ABU KLEA - - "England well may speak with wonder - Of the small heroic band, - Fearlessly, though parched and weary, - Toiling 'cross the desert sand; - How they met the foeman's onslaught, - Firm, undaunted, with a cheer, - Drove ten times or more their number, - Down the vale of Abu Klea." - _Songs of the Camel Corps_ (Serg. H. EAGLE, R.M.C.C.) - - -Before the square was completely formed on the top of the knoll at the -foot of which it had been halted when the thousands of Arabs sprang -into view on the left front, the Arabs reappeared on the left rear, -about 500 yards distant. They were formed into three phalanxes joined -together, the points of the three wedges being headed by emirs or -sheikhs, riding with banners. The horsemen came on at a hand-gallop, -the masses of footmen keeping up with them. Our skirmishers were -racing in for their lives. The last man was overtaken and speared. - -At this moment the left rear angle of the square was still unformed. -The camels were still struggling into it. Several camels, laden with -wounded, had lain down at the foot of the slope and their drivers had -fled into the square; and these animals were being dragged in by -soldiers. The appalling danger of this open corner was instantly -evident. I told the bugler to sound the halt, and having forced my way -through the press to the front of the square, and reported the case to -Sir Herbert Stewart, who said, "Quite right," I struggled back to the -rear. - -{263} - -Then I ordered the crew of the Gardner gun to run it outside the square -to the left flank. At the same time, Colonel Burnaby wheeled Number 3 -Company (4th and 5th Dragoon Guards) from the rear face to the left -flank. Number 4 Company (Scots Greys and Royals) had already wheeled -from the rear to the left flank, so that they were just behind me. -Five or six paces outside the square we dropped the trail of the gun. -So swiftly did these things happen that the leading ranks of the enemy -were still 400 yards away. - -They were tearing down upon us with a roar like the roar of the sea, an -immense surging wave of white-slashed black forms brandishing bright -spears and long flashing swords; and all were chanting, as they leaped -and ran, the war-song of their faith, "_La ilaha ill' Allah Mohammedu -rasul Allah_"; and the terrible rain of bullets poured into them by the -Mounted Infantry and the Guards stayed them not. They wore the loose -white robe of the Mahdi's uniform, looped over the left shoulder, and -the straw skullcap. These things we heard and saw in a flash, as the -formidable wave swept steadily nearer. - -I laid the Gardner gun myself to make sure. As I fired, I saw the -enemy mown down in rows, dropping like ninepins; but as the men killed -were in rear of the front rank, after firing about forty rounds (eight -turns of the lever), I lowered the elevation. I was putting in most -effective work on the leading ranks and had fired about thirty rounds -when the gun jammed. The extraction had pulled the head from a -discharged cartridge, leaving the empty cylinder in the barrel. -William Rhodes, chief boatswain's mate, and myself immediately set to -work to unscrew the feed-plate in order to clear the barrel or to take -out its lock. The next moment the enemy were on top of us. The -feed-plate dropped on my head, knocking me under the gun and across its -trail. Simultaneously a spear was thrust right through poor Rhodes, -who was instantly killed at my side. Walter Miller the armourer was -speared beside the gun at the same time. I was knocked off the trail -of the gun {264} by a blow with the handle of an axe, the blade of -which missed me. An Arab thrust at me with his spear, and I caught the -blade, cutting my hand, and before he could recover his weapon a bullet -dropped him. Struggling to my feet, I was carried bodily backwards by -the tremendous impact of the rush, right back upon the front rank of -the men of Number 4 Company, who stood like rocks. - -I can compare the press to nothing but the crush of a theatre crowd -alarmed by a cry of fire. Immediately facing me was an Arab holding a -spear over his head, the staff of the weapon being jammed against his -back by the pressure behind him. I could draw neither sword nor -pistol. The front ranks of our men could not use rifle or bayonet for -a few moments. But the pressure, forcing our men backwards up the -hill, presently enabled the rear rank, now occupying a position of a -few inches higher than the enemy, to fire over the heads of the front -rank right into the mass of the Arabs. The bullets whizzed close by my -head; and one passed through my helmet. The Arabs fell in heaps, -whereupon our front rank, the pressure upon them relaxing, fired, and -fought hand to hand with the bayonet, cursing as the rifles jammed and -the shoddy bayonets twisted like tin. - -The enemy wavered and broke away, some retreating, but the greater -number turning to the rear face of the square, carrying some of the -Naval Brigade with them. The rest of my men manned the gun and opened -fire on the retreating enemy. But by the time the gun was in action -the retreating dervishes had hidden themselves in a nullah, and the -main body of the enemy had burst into the gap left by the camels in the -rear face. My men joined in the furious hand-to-hand fighting all -among the jam of men and camels. The ranks of the front face of the -square had turned about face and were firing inwards. Poor Burnaby -(who was "not in luck to-day") was thrown from his horse, and was -killed by a sword cut in the neck as he lay on the ground. - -{265} - -Fighting next to me in the square was "Bloody-minded Piggot"--Captain -C. P. Piggot of the 21st Hussars--using a shot-gun charged with -buck-shot. The Arabs were crawling and twisting under the camels and -in and out the legs of the men, whom they tried to stab in the back, -and Piggot was loading and firing, and the bluejackets kept calling to -him, "Here's another joker, sir!" I saw the bald head of an Arab -emerging from a pile of bodies, and as Piggot fired I saw the bald -crown riddled like the rose of a watering-pot. - -One mounted sheikh, at least, won right into the square, where the -bodies of himself and his horse were found afterwards. - -Numbers 4 and 5 Company, who had withstood the first rush until they -were pressed back upon the mass of camels, were still fighting in front -when they were attacked in rear. There, the left wing of the Heavy -Camel Regiment--Scots Greys, Royals, and 5th Dragoon Guards--did -desperate hand-to-hand fighting in the square, while the right wing and -the Royal Sussex by their steady fire kept off the rest of the enemy. -The stress endured only a few minutes. Every Arab inside the square -was slain. The camels, which had made the weak corner of the square, -afterwards saved it by presenting a solid, irremovable obstacle to the -enemy. - -As the enemy retired, Sir Herbert Stewart gave the word, and our men -cheered again and again, and the retreating Arabs turned and shook -their fists at us. - -Their desperate courage was marvellous. I saw a boy of some twelve -years of age, who had been shot through the stomach, walk slowly up -through a storm of bullets and thrust his spear at one of our men. I -saw several Arabs writhe from out a pile of dead and wounded, and -charge some eighty yards under fire towards us, and one of them ran -right up to the bayonets and flung himself upon them and was killed. I -saw an Arab, who was wounded in the legs, sit up, and hurl his spear at -a passing soldier. As the soldier stopped to load his rifle, the Arab -tried to {266} reach another spear, and failing, caught up stones and -cast them at his foe; and then, when the soldier presented his rifle -and took a deliberate aim, the Arab sat perfectly still looking down -the barrel, till the bullet killed him. - -Surgeon-General Sir Arthur W. May tells me of an instance of the spirit -of the men. A huge able seaman, nicknamed Jumbo, who was one of the -gun's crew when it was run outside the square, was thrown upon his face -by the charge; and apparently every Arab who went past or over him, had -a dig at the prostrate seaman. - -After the action, with the help of able seaman Laker, I carried him to -the doctor. He was a mass of blood, which soaked my tunic. I tried to -wash it afterwards with sand. He must have weighed about sixteen -stone. Quite recently, at Stornoway, where he is chief petty officer -of the Coast-guard, I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Laker, and we -recalled the salving of poor Jumbo. - -He had seventeen wounds, spear-thrusts, and sword-cuts. Upon visiting -him in the Field Hospital a few days later, Surgeon May, intending to -console the patient, said: - -"You will be able to be sent back with the next convoy of wounded, -after all." - -"Sent back?" returned Jumbo indignantly. "I haven't done with the -beggars yet!" - -He recovered, but not in time to gratify his ardour. - -The square was moved some 50 yards from the field of battle and was -formed anew. I went to try to find any wounded men of my Brigade. -Having brought in two, I was starting for a third time, when someone -shouted, "Look out, Charlie!" and I turned about to see an Arab -charging at me with a spear. I ran to meet him, sword in hand, parried -his spear, then held my sword rigid at arm's length. He ran right up -the blade to the hilt, against which his body struck with so great -force that he fell backward. - -I picked up a man who was shot through the back, and put him upon a -camel upon which was a wounded Arab. Presently I heard my man singing -out; and I {267} found his thumb was being chewed off by the Arab, whom -I hauled off the camel and of whom I disposed in another way. - -The bodies of most of my men who were killed were found some 25 yards -from the place at which we had worked the gun. Here were the bodies of -my poor comrades, Lieutenants Alfred Pigott and R. E. de Lisle. Pigott -had been promoted to commander, but he never knew it. De Lisle had his -whole face cut clean off. Captain C. P. Piggot (not to be confused -with the naval officer, Commander Alfred Pigott), who fought like a -Paladin in the square, and who knew not fear, died some years -afterwards in England. (I took him on my coach to Lord's; he was so -weak that he could not get upon it without the help of a footman, and -he looked dreadfully ill. He told me that the doctor had given him -three weeks to live; but he was dead in three days.) - -Eight of the Naval Brigade were killed and seven were wounded, out of -40 who went into action. Every man of the Brigade handling the gun -outside the square was killed, excepting myself. - -I observed that the rows of bullets from the Gardner gun, which was -rifle calibre .45-inch, with five barrels, had cut off heads and tops -of heads as though sliced horizontally with a knife. - -The official account gives the loss of the enemy at 1100 in the -vicinity of the square. - -Nearly half the British rifles jammed, owing to the use of leaf -cartridges. The Remington rifles used by the Mahdi's soldiers had -solid drawn cartridges which did not jam. During the action of Abu -Klea the officers were almost entirely employed in clearing jammed -rifles passed back to them by the men. The British bayonets and -cutlasses bent and twisted, the result of a combination of knavery and -laziness on the part of those who were trusted to supply the soldier -with weapons upon which his life depends. The bayonets were blunt, -because no one had thought of sharpening them. The spears of the Arabs -were sharp like {268} razors. The cutlasses of the Naval Brigade were -specially sharpened. - -I noticed that when a soldier was killed, a bluejacket always -endeavoured to secure his bayonet; and that when a sailor was killed, a -soldier always tried to take his hat, preferring it to the Army helmet. - -The official report of Sir Charles Wilson states the total number of -the enemy to have been from 9000 to 11,000, consisting of men from -Berber, Metemmeh, Kordofan, and 1000 men of the Mahdi's army. Of the -total number, it was estimated that 5000 or 6000 attacked. The British -numbered something over 1200 men; but, these being in square, the -weight of the attack fell upon no more than about 300 men. There were -342 men of the Royal Artillery on the front face of the square; 235 men -on the left flank, reinforced when the charge came by some of the Naval -Brigade and a company from the rear face; 300 men and the Naval -Brigade, between 40 and 50 strong, on the rear face; and 307 men on the -right flank. The centre was a solid mass of camels. This thin -framework of men, forced back upon the camels, resisted the tremendous -impact of thousands of frenzied fanatics who knew not fear, and whom -nothing stopped but death. - -I cannot better describe the result than by quoting the words of -Colonel the Hon. Reginald Talbot, 1st Life Guards, who commanded the -Heavy Camel Regiment at Abu Klea (_Nineteenth Century_, Jan. 1886): - -"It was an Inkerman on a small scale--a soldiers' battle; strength, -determination, steadiness, and unflinching courage alone could have -stemmed the onslaught." - -It was a soldiers' battle, because the attack was sudden; it came -before the square was formed; and in the stress and tumult orders were -useless. - -[Illustration: THE AUTHOR, 1912] - - - - -{269} - -CHAPTER XXIX - -THE SOUDAN WAR (_Continued_) - -VII. THE FIGHT TO REACH THE RIVER - - "We had beat the foe at Abu Klea, and now had marched all night, - Parching with thirst, each longed to see the first faint streak of light, - For all expected with the dawn to see the river flow. - 'Twas there all right, but in our path stood thousands of the foe; - We halted, and a barricade of biscuit boxes made, - And swift their deadly bullets flew round that frail barricade, - And many a gallant fellow dropped before the welcome cry, - 'Form square' was heard, 'we must advance, and reach the Nile or die.'" - _Songs of the Camel Corps_ (Sergeant H. EAGLE, R.M.C.C.) - - -By the time the wounded were picked up, the dead counted, and their -weapons destroyed, and the square was ready to start, it was half-past -three in the afternoon. There was no food, and hardly any water. The -soldiers suffered dreadfully from thirst; their tongues were so swollen -as to cause intense pain, their lips black, their mouths covered with -white mucus. Several men fainted. Luckily I had put a skin of water -upon a camel just before the action, so that the men of the Naval -Brigade all had a drink, and there was a little water over for the -wounded. The sailors persisted in smoking; they said it did them good; -so I let them. - -{270} - -The wells of Abu Klea lay some three miles ahead. The Cavalry, the -horses weak, emaciated, and tormented by thirst, were sent on to -reconnoitre. The square followed slowly. So short-handed was the -Naval Brigade that I had to clap on to the drag-ropes myself. We -hauled the gun through the sand and across nullahs and over rocks till -about 5.30 p.m., when we came to the wells, which were small pools in -the soil, and which, when they were emptied, slowly filled again. The -water was yellow and of the consistency of cream; but it was cool, -sweet, and delicious. - -Three hundred volunteers from the Heavy Camel Regiment, the Guards' -Camel Regiment, and the Mounted Infantry left the wells soon after -sunset to march the six weary miles back again to fetch the camels and -commissariat. They marched and worked all night; yet their lot was -better than ours; for they got food and could keep warm. As for -ourselves, we lay down where we were, without food or blankets, and -suffered the coldest night in my remembrance. It is suggested to me by -a friend who has seen much active service in many wars, that, owing -probably to the exhaustion of the nerves, men are far more susceptible -to cold after a battle. He himself recalls the night after -Magersfontein as the coldest he ever experienced. At any rate, we were -cold to the marrow that night of 17th-18th January; cold and bruised -and very hungry, the most of us having had no food for twenty-four -hours. I must here record my admiration of the medical staff, who -worked hard all night, doing their utmost for the sick and wounded. - -I sat on an ammunition box and shivered. The wound upon my finger, -where the Arab's spear had cut it, though slight, was -disproportionately painful. Lieutenant Douglas Dawson (of the -Coldstream Guards) came to me and asked me if I had any tobacco. I -told him that my tobacco, together with my field-glasses, had departed -into the desert with my steed County Waterford, which had run away. -Dawson had six cigarettes, of which he gave me three. I would -cheerfully have given a year's income for them, as {271} I told him. -We agreed that it was hard to have to die without knowing who had won -the Derby. - -At about seven o'clock next morning (18th January) the convoy returned -with the rest of the camels and the commissariat. We had our first -meal for some thirty-six hours. Then we went to work to build a fort -in which to leave the wounded, and to prepare for the march to the -river, some 25 miles distant. A burying party went back to the field -of Abu Klea and interred our dead. Some prisoners captured by the -convoy on its way back to the camp, reported that Omdurman had fallen; -but the information was not made generally known. I did not hear it -until we reached Metemmeh. - -Sir Herbert Stewart then determined to reach the Nile before next -morning. A small detachment of the Royal Sussex was left to guard the -wounded. The column marched about 3.30 p.m. It was a desperate -venture, for the men had had no sleep for two nights, had fought a -battle in between, had suffered agonies of thirst and the exhaustion of -hunger. But Sir Herbert Stewart had learned from the prisoners that -the enemy who had fought at Abu Klea were no more than the advanced -guard of the main body, which would probably come out from Metemmeh to -meet us, and that the fall of Omdurman had released a number of the -Mahdi's army; and the general wished to reach the river before fighting -again. He hoped to be upon the Nile before daylight. In any event, -the enterprise of the Desert Column was a forlorn hope; and by this -time we all knew it. - -Cameron, war correspondent of _The Standard_, came to me with a very -grave face. He was not alarmed for his own safety, for he was a most -gallant man; but he feared for the Column. - -"Lord Charles," he said, "have you any influence with General Stewart? -If so, for God's sake implore him not to go on without reinforcements. -I know these people and he does not." - -{272} - -The next time I saw poor Cameron was upon the following day, when he -was lying with a bullet-hole in his forehead, dead. - -The Column was guided by Ali Loda, a friendly desert freebooter who had -been captured during the first march to Jakdul. He was accompanied by -Captain Verner and Colonel Barrow. Half the force marched on foot, in -case of attack; the mounted men each leading a camel. The commissariat -camels were tied in threes, nose to tail, the leading camel being -ridden by a native driver. Although both men and camels were tired -out, they went bravely along the track leading across a wide plain, -with grass and scrub in the distance. By the time it was dark, we had -come to the long savas grass, and the tracks, hitherto plain to see in -the brilliant starlight, became obscured. Then began the confusion. -By this time men and camels were utterly exhausted. There was no moon, -but no lights were allowed, and all orders were to be given in a -whisper. The camels, weary and famished, lagged and tumbled down; -their riders went to sleep and fell off; the leading camels fell -behind; and the rear camels, most of them riderless, straggled up to -the front. The formation was totally disordered. In the darkness the -confusion speedily became inextricable. When there was a halt to wait -for stragglers, the men lay down and dropped asleep. About this time -the Column blundered into a wood of acacia trees armed with long sharp -thorns. There ought to have been no such wood; indeed, Count Gleichen -avers that no one ever found it afterwards. - -In this state of affairs, the Column lost in the dark in an unknown -country, utterly worn out, and inextricably tangled upon itself, I made -the Naval Brigade unspan and gave them tea. Then we struggled on, hour -after hour. As for silence, the noise might have been heard and -probably was heard at Metemmeh. An immense multitudinous murmur went -up from the unhappy mob of swearing men and roaring, squealing, -grumbling camels. A longer or more exhausting nightmare I never -suffered. - -{273} - -Daylight came at last. It was about 6 o'clock on the morning of 19th -January. The least we had hoped was to have come within sight of the -Nile. But when the Column halted there was no Nile; only a long gravel -slope rising before us, set with scattered trees rising from the -eternal savas grass and low scrub. Captain Verner went ahead to -reconnoitre, and the Column toiled on up the ridge. Then, at last, -upon reaching the top at about 7 o'clock, we beheld the wide valley, -and the Nile flowing between broad belts of green, and on the left, the -roofs of a chain of villages, and the walled town of Metemmeh. Beyond, -upon the farther bank, clustered the huts of the village of Shendi. -But we had not yet come to the river. And moving out from Metemmeh -were crowds of the enemy, moving out to cut us off from the blessed -water. Once more, the whole air was throbbed with the boding war-drums. - -Sir Herbert Stewart determined to give the men breakfast and then to -attack. As usual, a zeriba must first be constructed and the force put -in laager. The Column was halted upon the top of the rising ground, in -a space some 300 yards square, surrounded by a sea of thin scrub, in -which the enemy could find cover. A parapet, square in plan, and about -two feet six inches high, was constructed of saddles and biscuit boxes -and anything else which would serve the purpose. The camels were -pushed inside it, and knee-lashed, and in the centre was placed the -hospital. During the progress of the work the enemy, concealed in the -scrub, crept nearer and opened fire. - -The men breakfasted in a rain of bullets. So wearied were they, that -some fell asleep over their food, bullets singing all about them. Many -of the men got no food at all. I saw two men shot while they slept. -One Dervish in particular sniped the Naval Brigade all breakfast-time. -I subsequently discovered him in the bush, lying dead, a bullet through -his head, in a litter of about 200 spent cartridges. One of my men was -shot, and a spoke was knocked out of the wheel of the Gardner gun. A -soldier was shot through {274} the stomach, and was carried screaming -to the doctors, who gave him laudanum. - -The situation was far from encouraging. During the night--the third -without sleep--the men had marched for 14 hours, covering 19 miles, and -losing some hundred camels. We were still four miles from the river, -and between the river and our exhausted force were thousands of raging -Dervishes. We were caught in a trap. - -Seventy yards from our left flank was a little hill. In order to -prevent its capture by the enemy, 30 Guardsmen were told off to occupy -it. Volunteers carried saddles and boxes across the bullet-swept space -and built a small breastwork with them. Several men were knocked over. -In the meantime a company was extended along the ridge some 50 yards -beyond the zeriba to check the enemy's fire; but they had nothing at -which to aim except the puffs of smoke rising above the scrub. The -Naval Brigade had no better luck with the Gardner gun, placed outside -the zeriba near the left angle of the front. - -At some time between 9 and 10 o'clock Sir Herbert Stewart was hit in -the groin and severely wounded. The knowledge of this disaster was -concealed from the men as long as possible. Then followed a terrible -interval, which lasted for hours. Under that pitiless fire, exposed to -an invisible enemy, men and camels were being hit every minute. All -this time the heat was intense. There we lay in the blazing sun, -helpless, the rattle of rifles all around us, the thin high note of the -bullets singing overheard, or ending with a thud close at hand; men -crying out suddenly, or groaning; camels lying motionless and silent, -blood trickling from their wounds; and no one seemed to know what we -were going to do. Of all things, the most trying to a soldier is to -lie still under fire without being able to reply. It is true that -there was volley firing in reply to the enemy, but they were invisible. - -The command had naturally devolved upon Colonel Sir Charles Wilson, -R.E., head of the Intelligence Department. {275} It was clear to me -that unless we marched against the enemy at once, we were done. I -dispatched a written message to Sir Charles Wilson. The messenger was -killed. I sent a second message by Sub-Lieutenant E. L. Munro, R.N., -who was struck by a bullet which wounded him in seven places. - -Shortly afterwards I received a message from Sir Charles Wilson -informing me that he was about to march against the enemy. I was -ordered to remain in command of the zeriba, with Colonel Barrow. - -Before forming square, Sir Charles Wilson ordered the breastwork -surrounding the hospital and that defending the little knoll occupied -by the Guards in our rear, to be strengthened into redoubts, in case of -attack. The ammunition boxes must be shifted from the inside of the -main zeriba, and carried across and among the baggage and the packed -and helpless camels, a slow, laborious and dangerous business performed -under fire. Men and officers worked with a will; yet it was 2 o'clock -in the afternoon before they had done. Just then St. Leger Herbert, -private secretary to Sir Herbert Stewart and correspondent of _The -Morning Post_, was shot through the head. - -The square was composed of half the Heavy Camel Regiment, Guards, -Mounted Infantry, Royal Sussex, Royal Engineers, and some dismounted -Hussars. Sir Charles Wilson placed it under the executive command of -Lieutenant-Colonel the Hon. E. E. Boscawen. The square was formed up -in rear of the zeriba at 2.30 and marched at 3 o'clock. The men were -cool, alert, and perfectly determined. The British soldier had shut -his mouth. He was going to get to the river, enemy or no enemy, or -die. By this time the enemy were plainly visible in full force in -front, horse and foot gathering behind a line of green and white -banners. The moment the square moved beyond the redoubt, it received a -heavy fire. Several men were hit, and were carried back to the zeriba -by our men, while the square moved forward at quick march. It made a -zig-zag course in order to take {276} advantage of the clear patches of -ground among the scrub; lying down and firing, and again advancing. - -The Naval Brigade mounted the Gardner gun in the angle of the redoubt, -and, together with the Royal Artillery and two of their screw-guns -under Captain Norton, maintained a steady fire at the three distinct -masses of the enemy. Two of these were hovering in front of the -advancing square, upon the landward slope of the hill rising between us -and the river; the third threatened the zeriba. In all of these we -dropped shells, paying particular attention to the body menacing the -zeriba. When the shells burst in their midst, the dervishes scattered -like a flock of starlings. - -In the zeriba were the most of the Hussars, whose horses were worn out, -the Royal Artillery, half the Heavy Camel Regiment, half the Royal -Engineers, what was left of the Naval Brigade, and the wounded in the -hospital. Some 2000 camels were knee-lashed outside and all round the -larger zeriba, forming a valuable breastwork. - -All we could do was to work our guns. As the square went on, the -enemy, moving in large masses, shifted their position, and as they -moved, we dropped shells among them. We judged their numbers to be -greater than at Abu Klea. Would the square of only 900 men ever get -through? If ever a little British army looked like walking to certain -death, it was that thin square of infantry. - -Presently it disappeared from view. Soon afterwards we heard the -steady roll of volley firing, and we knew that the enemy were charging -the square. Then, silence. Whether the enemy had been driven back, or -the square annihilated, we did not know. What we did know was that if -the square had been defeated, the zeriba would very soon be attacked in -overwhelming force. But as the moments passed the strain of suspense -slackened; for, as the fire of the enemy directed upon the zeriba -diminished and soon ceased altogether, the presumption was that the -square had been victorious and had got through to the river. - -What had happened was that the Arabs, charging downhill {277} at the -left front angle of the square, had been met by concentrated rifle -fire, our men aiming low at a range of 400 yards, steady as on parade. -Once more the British soldier proved that no troops in the world can -face his musketry. The front ranks of the charging thousands were -lying dead in heaps; the rear ranks fled over the hills; and the square -went on, unmolested, very slowly, because the men were tired out, and -so came to the river. - -Count Gleichen, who marched with the square, recounting his experiences -(in his _With the Camel Corps up the Nile_), writes: "Soon in the -growing dusk a silver streak was visible here and there in amongst the -green belt, but it was still a couple of miles off.... Our pace could -not exceed a slow march. The sun went down, and the twilight became -almost darkness; ... a two-days-old crescent was shining in the sky, -and its feeble light guided us through the gravel hills right to the -brink of the Nile. The men were as wild with joy as their exhausted -condition would allow. The wounded were held up for one look at the -gleaming river, and then hurried to the banks. Still, perfect -discipline was observed. Not a man left his place in the ranks until -his company was marched up to take its fill.... A chain of sentries -was established on the slopes overlooking the square, and in two -minutes the force was fast asleep." Sir Charles Wilson (_From Korti to -Khartoum_) adds: "The men were so exhausted that when they came up from -their drink at the river they fell down like logs...." - -They had been marching and fighting for four days and three nights -without sleep, and with very little food and water, and had lost a -tenth of their number. That night we in the zeriba also slept. I -remember very little about it, except that Lieutenant Charles -Crutchley, Adjutant of the Guards' Camel Regiment, woke me twice and -asked me for water. He made no complaint of any kind, and I did not -know that he had been hit early in the day and that he had a bullet in -his leg. General Crutchley, who was so kind as to {278} write to me in -reply to my request that he would tell me what he remembers of the -affair, says: "I remember lying on a stretcher that night, and people -knocking against my leg, and that my revolver was stolen, I believe by -one of the camel boys." Crutchley was carried down to the river by my -bluejackets next day, and was taken into hospital. As I remember the -occasion, he left the decision as to whether or not his leg should be -amputated, to me. At any rate, the surgeon had no doubt as to the -necessity of the operation, at which I was present. With his finger he -flicked out of the wound pieces of bone like splinters of bamboo. The -leg was buried, and was afterwards exhumed in order to extract the -bullet from it. I think I remember that Crutchley, seeing it being -carried across to the hospital, asked whose leg it was. He was carried -upon a litter back to Korti, and the shaking of that terrible march -made necessary a second operation, which was successful. - -Sir Charles Wilson's force, having bivouacked that night beside the -Nile, were up at daybreak; took possession of the empty village of mud -huts, called Abu Kru, but always known as Gubat, which stood on the -gravel ridge sloping to the Nile, 780 yards from the river; and placed -the wounded in Gubat under a guard. The force then returned to our -zeriba. - -When we saw that gallant little array come marching over the distant -hill-top, and through the scrub towards us, we cheered again and again. -Hearty were our greetings. Our comrades, who had marched without -breakfast, were speedily provided with a plentiful meal of bully-beef -and tea. - -Then we all set to work to dismantle the zeriba, to collect the stores -of which it was constructed and to sort them out, to mend the broken -saddles, and load up the wretched camels, who had been knee-lashed and -unable to move for twenty-four hours. About a hundred camels were -dead, having been shot as they lay. As there were not enough camels to -carry all the stores, a part of these were {279} left under an -increased garrison inside the redoubt upon the knoll in rear of the -zeriba, Major T. Davison in command. - -At midday we buried the dead, over whom I read the service, Sir Charles -Wilson being present as chief mourner. - -The last of the wounded to be moved was Sir Herbert Stewart, so that he -should be spared as much discomfort as possible. He was doing fairly -well, and we then hoped that he would recover. - -Before sunset we were all safely lodged in Gubat. The Desert Column -had reached the river at last. It was the 20th January; we had left -Korti on the 8th. In the course of that 176 miles we had gone through -perhaps as sharp a trial as British troops have endured. - -At the fight of Abu Klea, nine officers and 65 non-commissioned -officers and men were killed, and nine officers and 85 non-commissioned -officers and men were wounded. On the 19th January, between the wells -of Abu Klea and the river, one officer and 22 non-commissioned officers -and men were killed, and eight officers and 90 non-commissioned -officers and men were wounded. The general, Sir Herbert Stewart, had -received a wound which was to prove mortal. All the officers of the -Naval Brigade, except Mr. James Webber, boatswain, and Sub-Lieutenant -Munro, who was wounded, and myself, had been killed. The losses were -roughly one-tenth of the total number of the Column. The camels which -survived had been on one-third rations and without water for a week. -They were hardly able to walk; ulcerating sores pitted their bodies; -their ribs actually came through their skin. Count Gleichen says that -his camel drank from the Nile for 14 minutes without stopping; and that -subsequently the poor beast's ribs took a fine polish from the rubbing -of the saddle. The horses of the Hussars had been 58 hours, and many -of them 72 hours, without water. I cannot mention the Hussars without -paying a tribute to the admirable scouting work they did under -Lieutenant-Colonel Barrow during the whole march, up to the time the -last zeriba was formed, when the gallant little horses were dead beat. -{280} The present field-marshal, Sir John French, did splendid service -with the Hussars throughout the campaign. - -When we came into Gubat I was painfully, though not seriously, ill. -The galling of the makeshift saddle during my three days' ride across -the desert from Dal to Abu Fatmeh on my way to Korti, had developed -into a horrid carbuncle; and I was unable to walk without help. - - - - -{281} - -CHAPTER XXX - -THE SOUDAN WAR (_Continued_) - -VIII. DISASTER - - "Comrades, who with us side by side, - Did in the brunt of battle stand, - Are absent now, their manly forms - Lie mouldering in the desert sand." - _Songs of the Camel Corps_ (Sergeant H. EAGLE, R.M.C.C.) - - -On 21st January, the day after the main body of the Desert Column had -come to Gubat, an attack was made upon Metemmeh, which resolved itself -into a reconnaissance in force. Lord Wolseley's instructions to Sir -Herbert Stewart were "to advance on Metemmeh, which you will attack and -occupy." These instructions Sir Charles Wilson, upon whom the command -had devolved, determined to carry into execution, although there was a -doubt whether under the circumstances the attempt would be justified. -Metemmeh was a walled town of considerable strength, lying two miles -down the river from the encampment. Between the encampment and the -town rose low ridges, in whose folds clustered the huts of deserted -villages. - -The Naval Brigade joined in the attack; and as I was out of action, Mr. -Webber, boatswain, was in command, and did admirably well. - -While Sir Charles Wilson's force was firing upon the town, whence the -enemy briskly replied, Gordon's four steamers arrived. His black -troops instantly landed with guns, and joyfully bombarded the mud -walls; while Sir {282} Charles Wilson conferred with Khashm-el-Mus Bey, -Malik (King) of the Shagiyeh tribe, and Abd-el-Hamid Bey, a young Arab -greatly trusted by Gordon, who were in command of the steamers. Abd el -Hamid subsequently deserted, and was, I think, shot by the Mahdi. -Khashm-el-Mus having reported that a large force was on its way down -from Khartoum under Feki Mustapha, Sir Charles Wilson decided that he -ought not to incur the further loss of men involved in the capture of -Metemmeh. He therefore withdrew from Metemmeh, and returned to Gubat, -destroying the three intervening villages on the way. - -During the reconnaissance of Metemmeh, Major William H. Poe, of the -Royal Marines, was severely wounded in the leg. He insisted upon -wearing a red coat, saying that his other coat was not fit to be seen; -and he made a conspicuous target. His leg was amputated, and he -eventually recovered; and he rides to hounds to this day. - -In view of the approach of the enemy, the wounded were brought from the -fort on the ridge to an entrenched camp on the river; and opposite to -it, upon Gubat Island, a breastwork was constructed, and was occupied -by some of Gordon's Soudanese who had come in the steamers. Major T. -Davison's outlying detachment, with the remaining stores, was brought -in. - -It was now necessary very carefully to consider the situation. Sir -Charles Wilson read the letters dispatched by Gordon and brought in one -of the steamers, the _Bordein_, which had left Khartoum on 14th -December. Sir Charles gave me these letters to read. In a letter -addressed to the Officer Commanding H.M. Troops, Gordon requested that -"all Egyptian officers and soldiers" be taken out of the steamer. "I -make you a present of these _hens_," he wrote, "and I request you will -not let one come back here to me." In another letter, addressed to -Major Watson (colonel in the Egyptian Army), dated 14th December, -Gordon wrote that he expected a crisis to arrive about Christmas; and -implied that he had abandoned hope of relief. - -{283} - -It was now nearly a month after Christmas, and Khartoum was still -holding out. But it was no longer possible to carry into execution -Lord Wolseley's original intention: that Sir Herbert Stewart should -capture and occupy Metemmeh; that I should man Gordon's four steamers -with the Naval Brigade and should take Sir Charles Wilson with a -detachment of infantry up to Khartoum. Now, Sir Herbert Stewart was -incapacitated by his wound; it was not considered practicable to take -Metemmeh; all the officers of the Naval Brigade were killed or wounded -except Mr. Webber; and I myself was so ill as to be unable to get about -without help. Moreover, the weakened Desert Column, including more -than a hundred wounded, would in all likelihood shortly be attacked by -a greatly superior force. - -Two main provisions of the original plan, however, had been fulfilled. -The Column had reached the river; and Gordon's steamers had joined the -Column. And it was then supposed that Wolseley was marching across the -Bayuda Desert with reinforcements. - -Sir Charles Wilson determined to go to Khartoum (a decision in which I -strongly supported him), provided that he could make reasonably sure -that the force to be left behind was not in immediate danger of attack. -He reckoned that the news of the defeat of the Mahdi's forces at Abu -Klea would have served both to inspirit the garrison at Khartoum, and, -owing to the dispatch of a number of the enemy to meet us, to relieve -them in some measure. And after examining the commanders of the -steamers on the point, he was satisfied that the delay of two days -spent in reconnoitring, would not be material; a conclusion which was -not shared by Khashm-el-Mus, who was eager to go to Khartoum. - -Accordingly, on 22nd January, Sir Charles Wilson took three steamers -down stream to reconnoitre. The four boats sent down by Gordon were: -the _Bordein_, under Abd-el-Hamid; _Talahawiyeh_, under Nusri Pasha; -_Safieh_, under Mahmoud Bey; and _Tewfikiyeh_, under Khashm-el-Mus. -{284} Sir Herbert Stewart was moved on board the _Tewfikiyeh_, a small -boat, which was employed as a ferry between Gubat Island and the -mainland. I went with Sir Charles Wilson in the _Talahawiyeh_. I was -not of much use, as I had to be helped on board, and was obliged to lie -down in the cabin. In the same steamer were Major Phipps and two -companies of Mounted Infantry. Old Khashm-el-Mus was made commandant -of the boat instead of Nusri Pasha. In the _Bordein_ were Captain -Verner, Abd-el-Hamid, and native soldiers. The _Safieh_ had her own -crew and captain. - -These vessels, about the size and build of the old penny steamboats on -the Thames, had been ingeniously protected and armed by poor Colonel -Stewart, he who was treacherously murdered on 18th September, 1884, -after the wreck of his steamer _Abbas_ at Hebbeh. (It will be -remembered that Colonel Stewart was sent by Gordon, with a party of -refugees, to communicate in person with the authorities in Egypt.) In -the bows was a small turret constructed of baulks of timber, and -containing a 9-pr. brass howitzer (_canon rayé_) to fire ahead; -amidships, between the paddle-boxes, was the central turret, also built -of timber, and mounting a gun to fire over the paddle-boxes. Astern, -on the roof of the deckhouse, was an enclosure of boiler-plate, -protecting the wheel and giving shelter to riflemen. The sides and -bulwarks were covered with boiler-plate, above which was fixed a rail -of thick timber, leaving a space through which to fire. The boiler, -which projected above the deck, was jacketed with logs of wood. The -improvised armour of wood and iron would stop a bullet, but was -pervious by shell. - -The ships' companies were an interesting example of river piracy. The -steamers had been cruising up and down the Nile since October, a period -of four months, during which the crews lived on the country, raiding -and fighting. Everything was filthy and neglected except the engines. -The forehold was crammed with ammunition, _dhura_ {285} grain, wool, -fuel, and miscellaneous loot. The main-hold was inhabited by women, -babies, stowaways, wounded men, goats, amid a confusion of ammunition, -sacks of grain, wood fuel, bedding and loot. The after-hold held the -possessions, including loot, of the commandant. Below the forward -turret slave-girls ceased not from cooking _dhura_-cakes. Rats swarmed -everywhere; the whole ship exhaled a most appalling stench; and the -ship's company shouted and screamed all day long. - -First there was the commandant, who was theoretically in chief command -of the ship, and who commanded the soldiers on shore; then there was -the officer commanding the regular soldiers, Soudanese. He was black, -and so were his men, who were freed slaves. The officer commanding the -Artillery was an Egyptian. The Bashi-Bazouk contingent was composed of -Shagiyehs--who were of the tribe ruled by Khashm-el-Mus--of black -slaves, and of half-castes. Their officers were Turks, Kurds, and -Circassians. The captain of the ship was a Dongolese, and his sailors -were blacks. Under the captain were numerous petty officers, such as -the chief of the sailors, the chief of the carpenters, and so forth. -The chief engineer and his staff were Egyptians. The Reis (pilot) and -his assistants were Dongolese. - -Into this wild medley, in the _Talahawiyeh_, Sir Charles Wilson brought -a company of Mounted Infantry; and thus reinforced, we steamed down -river; while I lay in the cabin, in a good deal of pain, and chatted to -Khashm-el-Mus, who became a great friend of mine. He was a short, -grey-bearded, dignified man of middle age, owning great power over his -own people. He remained loyal to Gordon under very trying conditions, -and he stuck by us to the last. - -Near Shendi, one of Khashm-el-Mus's men came on board and reported that -the force advancing from Berber had met the fugitives from Abu Klea and -had come no farther. Another Shagiyeh gave the same information. The -people of Shendi fired on the steamers, which replied {286} with ten -rounds of shell from each gun. We then went about and returned to -Gubat. At my request, Sir Charles Wilson conferred upon Mr. Ingram, of -_The Illustrated London News_, the rank of acting-lieutenant in the -Royal Navy. Ingram had been of the greatest service. He had brought -his own launch up from Korti, volunteered to the Desert Column, and -fought gallantly at Abu Klea and at the reconnaissance of Metemmeh. As -all the naval officers had been killed or wounded, and I was -comparatively helpless, I was delighted to secure Mr. Ingram, who was -exceedingly useful. - -His subsequent history was remarkable. He was killed while hunting big -game in Africa, and was buried upon an island which was afterwards -washed away. The story goes that the manner of his death and the -bearing away by a flood of his remains, were the fulfilment of a curse, -which fell upon him when, in spite of warnings, he purchased a certain -Egyptian mummy. - -Sir Charles Wilson, being assured that no attack was intended from the -direction of Berber, began immediately to prepare for his expedition to -Khartoum. Most unfortunately, I was compelled to retire into hospital; -but I was able to issue instructions which I hope were of use. At Sir -Charles Wilson's request, I advised him to take the two larger and -better protected steamers, _Bordein_ and _Talahawiyeh_. - -The work of preparing them began next morning, 23rd January. The first -thing to be done was to sort out from their crews the Egyptians, Turks, -Kurds, Circassians, the "hens" whom Gordon had refused to have again in -Khartoum, and to man the two vessels with Soudanese sailors and -soldiers. Captain Gascoigne and Lieutenant Stuart-Wortley toiled at -this tiresome job nearly all day. - -At my suggestion, the people removed from the steamers were placed in a -camp by themselves up stream, on the Khartoum side of Gubat; so that in -the event of a force advancing from Khartoum, and the consequent revolt -{287} of the "hens," we should not be placed between two fires. The -military objection was that they would foul the water; which was -obviated by my building wooden piers projecting into the stream. - -An engine-room artificer from the Naval Brigade was sent on board each -steamer, in which they went to work to repair defects. Wood for the -steamers was obtained by cutting up the _sakiehs_, or water-wheels, up -and down the river, a slow process as performed by natives receiving -orders through interpreters. Khashm-el-Mus was placed in command of -the _Bordein_, and Abd-el-Hamid of the _Talakawiyeh_. Sir Charles -Wilson was to go in the _Bordein_, together with Captain Gascoigne, 10 -non-commissioned officers and men of the Royal Sussex, one petty -officer and one artificer Naval Brigade, and no Soudanese soldiers. In -the _Talahawiyeh_ were Captain L. J. Trafford, in command of 10 -non-commissioned officers and men of the Royal Sussex, one of whom was -a signaller, one engine-room artificer Naval Brigade, and some 80 -Soudanese soldiers. The _Talahawiyeh_ towed a _nuggar_ carrying about -50 Soudanese soldiers and a cargo of grain for Khartoum. According to -Gordon's express desire, the British troops were clad in red tunics, -which, being borrowed from the Guards and the Heavy Camel Regiment, -were far from being a regimental fit. - -By the time the preparations were complete, it was too late to start -that night, and the Royal Sussex, folded in their red tunics, -bivouacked on the bank. - -During the day, the entrenchments upon the hillside and by the river -were strengthened; and the same evening a convoy and an escort under -the command of Colonel Talbot started for Jakdul to fetch stores. -Captain C. B. Piggot, the man who knew not fear, carrying dispatches to -Korti, accompanied them. - -It should be borne in mind that the chief object of the expedition to -Khartoum, apart from the necessity of communicating with Gordon -himself, was to produce a moral {288} effect upon the Mahdists; -Gordon's idea being that the presence of a small force of British -soldiers would inevitably convince the native that powerful -reinforcements might be expected immediately. In the journal of Sir -Charles Wilson (_From Korti to Khartoum_) he makes the following -comment: - - -"The original plan was for Beresford to man two of the steamers with -the Naval Brigade, mount his Gardner gun on one of them, and after -overhauling them, take me to Khartoum with about fifty men of the -Sussex Regiment. This was now impossible: all the naval officers were -killed or wounded except Beresford, who was himself unable to walk, and -many of the best petty officers and seamen were also gone. Beresford -offered to accompany me; but he had done himself no good by going down -the river the day before, and there was every prospect of his getting -worse before he was better. Besides, I felt I could not deprive the -force of its only naval officer, when it was quite possible the -steamers left behind might have to take part in a fight." - - -That possibility was fulfilled. In the event, if I may say so, it was -lucky that I was there. - -At eight o'clock on the morning of the 24th January, the two steamers -started, flying the Egyptian flag, the slave-girls frying _dhura_-cake -under the fore turret, old Khashm-el-Mus smoking and drinking coffee on -the cabin sofa, both vessels crammed with yelling and joyous savages, -among whom were a bare score of British soldiers. They must pass -powerful batteries, a single shot from which would sink them, and -dangerous cataracts sown with rocks, and finally the guns of Omdurman, -which was now in possession of the enemy. And having survived these -perils, they might be unable to return, for the river was rapidly -falling. Slowly they steamed away against the strong stream, and -vanished; and for seven days we waited for news of that desperate -enterprise. - -{289} - -In Sir Charles Wilson's absence, the military command devolved upon -Colonel Boscawen, and after a few days, Colonel Boscawen being ill with -fever, upon Colonel Mildmay Willson of the Scots Guards. The actual -senior officer was myself. I issued a proclamation to the natives. - - -(_Translation_) - -"To the people of the river districts. - -"This is to make it known to you that we are the advanced portion of -the two great English armies which are now marching on Khartoum to -punish the rebels. - -"We do not wish to do you any harm if you will come to see us. You -will receive no hurt; and we will pay you for your cattle and crops. - -"If, however, you do not tender your submission, we will punish you -severely. Your cattle will be taken, your villages and _sakiehs_ -burnt, and you yourselves will be killed, even as those unfortunates -who ventured to oppose us at Abu Klea and Metemmeh. - -"Any person desirous of speaking with the English general should carry -a white flag, and come by the river bank alone. He will not be -detained, and he will be guarded from all danger. - - "The SIRDAR - "Advanced Guard, English Army" - - -I was in hospital for only two days. The surgeon's knife relieved my -pain, and I was speedily healed. On the 26th January, and the -following day, I took the _Safieh_ down to Metemmeh and shelled that -place, covering the advance of a foraging party. There were daily -expeditions both by the river in the steamer, and by land, to get goats -and cattle, vegetables for the sick, and green-stuff for the camels, -which had already eaten up all the vegetation about the camp. We -weighed anchor daily at 6 a.m., taking a party of twenty picked shots -from one of the regiments. Small {290} parties of riflemen used to -fire at us from the left bank, but we had no casualties. - -All the villages in the neighbourhood were deserted; but there was -nothing to be taken from them except a few beans and lentils, and the -native wooden bedsteads. A good deal of long-range sniping went on, -but no one was the worse for it. - -The British sailors and soldiers had trouble with the native bulls, -which, docile enough with natives, resisted capture by white men. -Nusri Pasha, the Egyptian, who had come down in command of the -_Talahawiyeh_, was standing on the deck of the _Safieh_, watching my -men trying to compel a recalcitrant bull down the bank. - -"Let me try," said Nusri Pasha. "He'll obey me. You see." - -And he crossed the plank to the shore, and went up to the angry bull. -No sooner did the Pasha lay hand on the rope, than the bull charged, -caught the unhappy Egyptian between his horns, carried him headlong -down the slope and into the water, and fetched up against the steamer -with his horns fixed in the sponson, while Nusri disappeared into the -river, the beholders yelling with laughter. The Pasha was fished out, -chastened but not much the worse for his extraordinary escape. Had he -been impaled upon the horns, there would have been no more Nusri, tamer -of bulls. - -Every night the tom-toms beat in Metemmeh; and on the 28th, there was a -great noise of firing, which we supposed to be the celebration of a -religious festival. Alas, it was something else. - -On 31st January, Colonel Talbot returned from Jakdul with a large -convoy of supplies. He was accompanied by the second division of the -Naval Brigade, which, it may be remembered, had not arrived at Korti -when the Desert Column left that place. With the Naval Brigade came -Lieutenant E. B. van Koughnet, in command, Sub-Lieutenant Colin R. -Keppel (son of my old friend Sir Harry {291} Keppel), Surgeon Arthur -William May (now Surgeon-General Sir A. W. May, C.B.), and Chief -Engineer Henry Benbow (now Sir Henry Benbow, K.C.B., D.S.O.). Never -was reinforcement more timely; and it was with inexpressible pleasure -that I greeted my shipmates. Once more I had officers; in the -meantime, I had put the _Safieh_ into fighting trim; and now we were -ready for emergency. It came. - -Every night I used to haul off the _Safieh_ into the stream; and I -slept on deck. Very early in the morning of the 1st February, I was -awakened by a voice hailing the _Safieh_. I ran to the rail, and -there, in the first light of the dawn, was a boat, and Stuart-Wortley's -face was lifted to mine. He climbed aboard. - -"Gordon is killed and Khartoum has fallen," he said. Then -Stuart-Wortley told me how Sir Charles Wilson's two steamers were -wrecked, how his force was isolated up the river, and how the Mahdi -might be marching down with his whole triumphant horde armed with all -the guns and rifles of the fallen city. - -"Then the soldiers had better run up more wire entanglements and -earthworks as quick as they can. And I wish to God I had those two -steamers!" I said. - -I told Stuart-Wortley I would at once proceed to the rescue of Sir -Charles Wilson's party, and sent him on shore to tell the news to -Colonel Boscawen. - -How the tidings came to the camp, is related by Lieutenant Douglas -Dawson, who recorded in his diary how one "drew his curtains in the -dead of night and told him" ... (The diary was published in _The -Nineteenth Century_ for November, 1885. I quote from the copy kindly -lent to me by the author): - - -"_February 1st_. No member of our small force as long as he lives will -ever forget this morning. Just at dawn I was woke by someone outside -our hut calling for Boscawen. I jumped up and went out to see who it -was, and then made {292} out to my surprise Stuart-Wortley, whom we all -thought at Khartoum. - -"I looked towards the river, expecting in the faint light to see the -steamers, then seeing nothing, and observing by his face that there was -something wrong, I said, 'Why, good heavens! where are the steamers, -what is the news?' He said, 'The very worst.'" - -The full story of a very gallant exploit, Sir Charles Wilson's daring -voyage to Khartoum, has been modestly and clearly told in his book, -_From Korti to Khartoum_. The _Bordein_ and the _Talahawiyeh_ towing -the _nuggar_, came to the Shabloka Cataract upon the day (25th January) -after they had started. Here the _Bordein_ stuck; and having been got -off after many hours' work, she ran aground again off Hassan Island -next day, during which the expedition advanced only three miles. On -the afternoon of the 27th, a man appearing on the left bank cried that -Khartoum had fallen and Gordon was slain. No one believed him, because -the air was full of false rumours. The next day, 28th, in the morning, -a man on the right bank cried that Khartoum had fallen and that Gordon -had been killed, two days before. No one believed him. But it was -true. It was on that night that we in Gubat heard the guns firing in -Metemmeh. - -By this time, those in the steamers could catch a far glimpse of the -roofs and minarets of Khartoum pencilled upon the blue above the trees -of Tuti Island; and at the same time, a heavy fire was opened from the -battery of Fighiaiha on their right hand. Then they came to Halfiyeh, -where a battery of four guns fired upon them, on their left hand. The -naked black men in the steamers served their guns with a furious zeal, -while the British infantry fired steadily, and so through the smoke the -red flags went on, safely past the point of the long island that ends -opposite to Halfiyeh, the Soudanese ecstatically shrieking defiance and -brandishing their rifles. At Halfiyeh were boats lying, and -Khashm-el-Mus said to Sir Charles Wilson, "Gordon's troops must be -there, as the Mahdi has no boats." - -{293} - -Then, from the _Bordein_, which was leading, they could see Government -House in Khartoum plain above the trees, but there was no flag flying -from its roof. As they passed between the island on their left hand -and the mainland on the right, two more guns opened, and there began a -heavy rifle-fire from both sides which continued for the rest of the -way. Tuti Island, the upper end of which faces Khartoum, and about -which on either side the Blue Nile stretches an arm to join the White -Nile, was lined with riflemen firing over a dyke. At first Sir Charles -thought them to be Gordon's men, and took the steamer nearer in, when -the fire increased. So, writes Sir Charles, "we went on, old Khashm -protesting it was all up, and predicting terrible disaster to -ourselves. No sooner did we start upwards than we got into such a fire -as I hope never to pass through again in a 'penny steamer.' Two or -more guns opened upon us from Omdurman fort, and three or four from -Khartoum or the upper end of Tuti; the roll of musketry from each side -was continuous; and high above that could be heard the grunting of a -Nordenfelt or a mitrailleuse, and the loud rushing noise of the Krupp -shells..." - -They rounded the curve of the island, and there beyond the space of -rushing water torn with shot, and the flash and smoke of bursting -shells, Khartoum rose into full sight; and there, ranged on the sandy -shore beneath the walls, the Mahdi's banners fluttered above the massed -ranks of the dervishes. - -All was done. Sir Charles Wilson had fought his way to the end, -determined to go on till he was certain of the fate of the city. Then -he knew; then, and not until then, did he give the order to go about. - -At the word, as he relates, the Soudanese, who had lost all they had in -the world, were stricken mute and impotent. Poor old Khashm-el-Mus -wrapped his mantle about his head, crouching in a corner. They ran -down stream through the fire, the Soudanese bravely returning it, the -British infantry steady as ever, and won clear. During four hours they -had {294} been under fire. They ran down some 30 miles, and moored for -the night. - -The next day, 29th January, the _Talahawiyeh_ struck on a rock in the -Shabloka Cataract, and must be abandoned. The British were transhipped -to the _Bordein_, the natives bivouacked on an island. Next day the -natives were sent on ahead in the _nuggar_, hitherto towed by the -_Talahawiyeh_, and the _Bordein_ followed. The day after, 31st -January, during the afternoon, the _Bordein_ struck a rock, began to -fill, and was run on shore upon a small island close to the large -Mernat Island. When the accident occurred, Sir Charles Wilson was just -preparing to run at full speed past the fort and battery of Wad -Habeshi, which lay on the left hand some three and a half miles lower -down. Mernat Island lies about 35 miles above Gubat by land, and -nearly 40 by river. - -Sir Charles Wilson landed guns, ammunition and stores. At first he -intended to make a night march down on the right bank; but he changed -his plan and decided to remain where he was for the night. - -Lieutenant Stuart-Wortley was dispatched to carry the news to Gubat in -one of the two small boats, a felucca. He left at 6.45 p.m., taking a -crew of four English soldiers and eight natives. They were fired at -and missed by the Wad Habeshi fort; and working splendidly, traversed -the 40 miles in a little over eight hours, arriving at Gubat, as -already related, at 3 a.m. on the morning of 1st February. -Stuart-Wortley and his men faced death every mile of the way; and their -voyage deserves to be remembered as a bold, determined and gallant -achievement. - - - - -{295} - -CHAPTER XXXI - -THE SOUDAN WAR (_Continued_) - -IX. THE RESCUE - - "And while lying near Metemmeh - He went--many a time you know-- - Up the river in his steamer, - Dealing havoc on the foe; - And each gallant tar and Jollie - That was with him, fighting there, - Now would follow without question, - Let him lead them, anywhere." - _Songs of the Camel Corps_ (Sergeant H. EAGLE, R.M.C.C.) - -[The men used to sing 'Our Navy on the Nile,' of which the above is an -excerpt; but the rest is so complimentary to the author, that he is -obliged to omit it.] - - -At two o'clock in the afternoon of the 1st February the _Safieh_ left -Gubat to proceed to the rescue of Sir Charles Wilson's force. From the -time the news arrived until we started, we were occupied in getting -wood and stores. With me were Lieutenant E. B. van Koughnet, -Sub-Lieutenant Colin R. Keppel, Surgeon Arthur William May, Chief -Engineer Henry Benbow, Acting-Lieutenant Walter Ingram, Mr. Webber, -boatswain, all of the Royal Navy, Lieutenant R. L. Bower, King's Royal -Rifle Corps, and Lieutenant Stuart-Wortley, who had brought the news of -the disaster. The vessel was manned by picked men from both divisions -of the Naval Brigade, and carried twenty non-commissioned officers and -men, picked shots, of the Mounted Infantry, under the command of -Lieutenant {296} R. L. Bower. The engine-room staff consisted of Chief -Engineer Benbow; two engine-room artificers, Royal Navy, J. T. Garland -and G. Woodman; and one chief stoker, Royal Navy; an Arab or Egyptian -engineer, and six Soudanese stokers. We mounted the two Gardner guns -in echelon on the platform made of railway sleepers and boiler-plate -amidships, and one of the two brass 4-pr. mountain guns was placed in -the turret forward, the other in the turret aft, both turrets being -built of railway sleepers and boiler-plate, with which defences the -ship had been cased above water. The Reis (native pilot) was stationed -inside the barricade protecting the wheel, to guide the helmsman, who -was a bluejacket. The native boats always carry two Reises, one to -look out, the other to steer. Our Reis was mounted upon a box so that -he could see over the barricade. In order to guard against the kind of -accident which had befallen Sir Charles Wilson's steamers, I informed -him that if he took us safely up and down he would be rewarded, but -that upon any indication of treachery he would be shot at once. He was -then handcuffed to a stanchion, and Quartermaster Olden, with a loaded -revolver, was placed at his side. Surgeon-General A. W. May, who very -kindly sent me his recollections of the trip, writes: "A quartermaster -with the nickname of 'Punch' was told off to look after him, and he -stood as grim as death at his side, revolver in hand, quite ready at -the slightest sign of treachery to carry out his orders ... I always -attribute our getting up and down when the river was low and dangerous -to your wise warning of the pilot." - -The _Safieh_ was simply a penny steamer in a packing-case. Where the -packing-case was deficient, bullets went through her as through paper, -and a shell would pierce her wooden jacket. The pinch would come when -we sighted the fort at Wad Habeshi, which lay on our right hand, -between us and Mernat Island, where was Sir Charles Wilson's party, and -which was some 36 miles up stream from Gubat. - -On 1st February we shoved along at the rate of 2.5 {297} miles an hour, -the most the _Safieh_ could do against the current, stopped to get -wood, and anchored in the stream during the night. It was impossible -to navigate in the dark. The next day was almost entirely occupied in -collecting wood, which was laboriously obtained by dismantling and -cutting up the _sakiehs_, native water-wheels. That evening we arrived -within three or four miles of Wad Habeshi, and again anchored for the -night. After weighing next morning, I assembled the ship's company and -briefly addressed them. I told them that we were in a tight place, but -that we would get out of it; that if we failed to rescue Sir Charles -Wilson, the Mahdi's men would get them and would then come down upon -Gubat; but that we would save Wilson's party. The men were as cheery -and steady as possible. - -At 7 a.m. we sighted Wad Habeshi on the starboard hand; and we saw, far -up the river, the trees of Mernat Island, and the tilted hull and -funnel of the stranded _Bordein_. - -By 7.30 a.m. we were within 1200 yards of the fort, and I opened fire -with the bow gun. Wad Habeshi was a strong earthwork, with four -embrasures, mounting four guns, and manned, according to -Stuart-Wortley's report, by 5000 riflemen. The only practicable -channel ran within 80 yards of the fort. We could only crawl past the -battery, and as we were defenceless against gun-fire, our only chance -was to maintain so overwhelming a fire upon the embrasures as to -demoralise the guns' crews. It was an extreme instance of the -principle that the best defence resides in gun-fire rather than in -armour; for we had no effective armour. - -Accordingly, the starboard Gardner and the two brass guns, the 20 -soldiers and 14 bluejackets, poured a steady and an accurate fire into -the fort, disregarding the parties of riflemen who were shooting at us -from the bank. There were some 600 or 800 of these, and one gun opened -fire from the side embrasure of the fort. Poor von Koughnet was shot -in the leg, and second-class petty officer Edwin Curnow, number two of -the crew of the starboard Gardner, fell mortally wounded, and died that -evening. But so {298} deadly was the fire we poured into the -embrasures of the fort, that the enemy could not fire the two guns -bearing upon the _Safieh_ while she was bore abeam of them. We passed -the fort, and by the time we had left it about 200 yards astern, our -fire necessarily slackened, as our guns no longer bore upon the battery. - -Suddenly a great cloud of steam or smoke rose from the after hatchway. -Instantly the fire of the enemy increased. Chief Engineer Benbow, who -was standing with-me on the quarter-deck, ran to the engine-room. A -Maltese carpenter rushed up to me crying, "All is lost, sare, myself -and my brother, sare! The ship he sink, sare!" and was promptly kicked -out of the way. - -I saw the black stokers rushing up from the stoke-hold hatchway. At -the moment it was uncertain whether the ship was on fire or the boiler -injured; but as she still had way upon her I ordered her to be headed -towards the bank, away from the fort, and so gained another few yards. -The carpenter's mate reported that there were three feet of water in -the well, and that the vessel was sinking. - -Then she stopped. In the meantime our fire upon the side embrasure of -the fort was continued by the riflemen; and it went on without pause, -lest the enemy should get another shot in. I dropped anchor, and -addressed the men. I told them that the vessel was all right, as she -had only a foot of water under her bottom; that the stores and -ammunition must be got up on deck in case she settled down; that no -relief was possible; but that not a single dervish would come on board -while one of us was alive. - -The men were quite cool and jovial. - -"It's all right, sir," said one cheerfully. "We'll make it 'ot for the -beggars!" - -Mr. Benbow, chief engineer, came to me and reported that the water must -have come from the boiler, because it was hot; and that, as the shot -which had pierced the boiler had entered above the water-line, the -vessel was safe. I then {299} countermanded the order to bring up the -ammunition and stores. - -In the meantime the two engine-room artificers, Garland and Woodman, -had been carried up from the engine-room, so terribly scalded that the -flesh of their hands, forearms and faces was hanging in strips, like -the flesh of a boiled chicken. They had been stationed by Mr. Benbow -between the boiler and the ship's side, with orders to insert -shot-plugs if the side was pierced; and in that position were farther -from the exit than the Soudanese stokers, and therefore were more -severely injured. The stokers were badly scalded, two days afterwards, -an odour as of the grave pervading the upper deck, a search discovered -a black stoker under the fortified superstructure. He was hauled out -with a boat-hook, and was then still alive, although his flesh was -peeling from his bones. He had resigned himself to die, as Asiatics -will; and he died. - -Considering the situation, I thought that upon the _Safieh_ probably -depended not only the fate of Sir Charles Wilson's party, who were -isolated in a hostile country between the strong force at Wad Habeshi -and the Mahdi's host marching down from Khartoum, and who could not -even rely upon the native soldiers with them, but the fate of the whole -Desert Column; because if we failed to bring away Wilson, and his party -were captured or slain, the enemy would be encouraged to descend upon -the Desert Column at Gubat. I was, of course, at that moment ignorant -of the movements of the Mahdi's army; and could only conjecture that -they were even then marching upon us. As a matter of fact, they were; -but the exact sequence of events did not become known for a long time -afterwards. - -I asked Mr. Benbow if he could repair the boiler. - -He replied, "I think I can do it." - -He added that it was still too hot to examine. The time was then -between nine and ten a.m. Mr. Benbow, assisted by the leading stoker -R.N., who had been stationed on deck as stretcher-bearer, drew the -fires and pumped out the boiler, {300} when he found a hole some three -inches in diameter, round which the plate had bulged inwards, its edges -being torn and jagged. - -By the time the examination was completed, it was about eleven o'clock. -Mr. Benbow then set to work to make a new plate with his own hands. He -had brought with him from the depot at Wady Halfa some engineer's -stores: a piece of sheet-iron, and some bolts and nuts; part of the -equipment I had brought from Korti, when General Buller asked me if I -was going to mend camels with them. I remembered his chaff in that -hour. - -Mr. Benbow, with no other assistance than that of the leading stoker, -had to cut a plate, 16 inches by 14, drill the holes in it to receive -the bolts, drill holes in the injured boiler plate corresponding to the -first to a fraction, and cut the threads of the screws upon bolts and -nuts. The new plate being too thin to take the pressure, he also had -to bolt an iron bar across it, drilling the holes through the bar, -through the new plate, and through the injured boiler plate. - -During the whole time he was below in the stifling hot engine-room at -work upon a task demanding at once great exertion and the utmost -nicety, the fire from the fort never ceased. Bullets pattered -continually upon the hull, some of them piercing it, and striking the -wounded men who lay below. At any moment another shell might burst -into the engine-room. But Mr. Benbow went on with his work. - -On deck, we continued to maintain a steady fire, hour after hour, upon -the fort. It was our only chance. The slightest cessation, and they -would bring their gun to bear on us. The range was between 200 and 300 -yards. As we hung at anchor, the fort bore almost directly astern. It -was therefore necessary to alter the position of our guns. A rough -platform was built aft, upon which one of the Gardners was mounted, and -where it was admirably served all day by Acting-Lieutenant Walter -Ingram. Lieutenant Colin Keppel, in order to have room inside the -narrow wood-protected casemate astern to train his brass howitzer, -sawed off its {301} trail. The result was that after each discharge -the gun leaped into the air and fell upon its back. After laying the -gun, and before firing, Keppel removed the sight to prevent its being -injured, and put it in his pocket. Keppel and Mr. James Webber served -the gun all day, firing 150 rounds. The casemate itself was -strengthened to take the shock of the gun by buttressing it with a -stout strut of timber. At every discharge the whole crazy vessel shook -and trembled; her plates started; and her bows opened. The fire from -the Gardner and the rifle-fire, directed upon the side embrasure of the -fort, were so accurate and incessant that the gunners of the enemy -never had a chance, either to get their gun to bear or to remove it to -another position. The few shots they fired travelled about 100 yards -to the right of the steamer. - -Meantime, Mr. Benbow, down below, went on with his work. - -The noise of the engagement was so deafening and continuous that we did -not hear the three shots fired upon Mernat Island, the signal arranged -by Sir Charles Wilson with Stuart-Wortley to show that the party was -safe; and we were so busy that we did not see the flags hoisted upon -the wreck of the _Bordein_ with the same object. At that time Sir -Charles Wilson's party were themselves engaged with the enemy, who were -firing upon them from the bank. Sir Charles Wilson was able to make -out that the _Safieh_ was at anchor and was heavily engaged. He then -thought that we had the two steamers, the _Tewfikiyeh_ as well as the -_Safieh_, that one had been injured, and that the _Safieh_ was covering -her from the fire of the fort. He immediately broke up his zeriba, -embarked the wounded, some of the natives, the guns, ammunition and -stores, and a small guard of the Royal Sussex, in the _nuggar_, and -sent it down stream under the command of Captain Gascoigne. The -embarkation was carried into execution under fire. Sir Charles then -landed the rest of his force on the right bank (Wad Habeshi and the -enemy were on the left bank) in his remaining small {302} boat, a -felucca. The whole party then marched down the right bank to a point -opposite to the _Safieh_, Captain Gascoigne taking down the _nuggar_ -and the felucca. "As we got nearer," writes Sir Charles, "we could -make out the white ensign flying bravely in the breeze, a pleasant -sight for hard-pressed Britishers." - -Upon the arrival of his force, it immediately opened fire upon the -fort. I signalled to Sir Charles, informing him of the condition of -affairs, and suggesting that he should move to a place lower down, -where I would pick him up on the morrow. The _Safieh_ lying some 500 -yards from the bank, and Sir Charles having a difficulty in replying to -my signals, Captain Gascoigne volunteered to go aboard. He took a -native crew in the felucca and pulled across under a hot fire from the -fort, which did not discompose him in the least. There was never a -cooler man under fire than Gascoigne. He brought with him the two -engine-room artificers of the Naval Brigade who had accompanied Sir -Charles Wilson, and who at once went below to help Mr. Benbow to repair -the boiler. - -Captain Gascoigne returned with a message from myself to Sir Charles -Wilson suggesting that, in order to divert the attention of the enemy -from the _Safieh_, he should continue to maintain a fire upon the fort -with a part of his force, while the rest proceeded farther down to form -a zeriba at a spot suitable for embarkation; and that the women, sick -and wounded should proceed in the _nuggar_ during the night to the same -place, to which I would bring the steamer on the following morning. -Captain Gascoigne rejoined Sir Charles Wilson without casualty. - -Sir Charles then sent Captain Trafford forward with the Royal Sussex, -Khashm-el-Mus and most of the Soudanese, while Sir Charles himself -remained with 30 men and one gun. They maintained a steady and a -useful fire until sunset, when they marched after the rest of the party. - -Meantime, Mr. Benbow, down below, went on with his work. - -{303} - -It was about two o'clock when the artificers joined him, so that he had -already been toiling single-handed, except for the leading stoker, for -three hours. After another three hours, at five o'clock, the plate and -bar were made, the holes drilled in them and in the boiler, and the -threads cut upon the bolts and nuts. But the boiler was still so hot, -that it was impossible for a man to be in it, and the plate could not -be fixed, because it was necessary to pass the bolts through the plates -from inside the boiler. Mr. Benbow pumped cold water into the boiler -and out again once or twice; but by 6 o'clock the heat was still too -great for a white man to endure. We smeared a negro boy with tallow, -and I promised him a reward if he would go into the boiler. He was -delighted. He was lowered down, to climb out again faster than he went -in. After a short pause, he had another try. This time, in a frying -heat that only a black skin could bear, he stayed inside, passing the -bolts through, while Mr. Benbow caulked plates and bolts and screwed -them home. The boy was none the worse in body and richer in -possessions than ever in his life. By seven o'clock the job was done. - -You can see what it was for yourself; for the plate is now in the -Museum of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich. Rear-Admiral Sir Colin -Keppel (sub-lieutenant in 1885), writing to me on the subject, says, -"When in command of the gunboats under Lord Kitchener in 1898, on our -way to Fashoda, about 300 miles above Khartoum on the White Nile, I -again came upon our old _Safieh_, then again in the hands of the -dervishes, with whom we had a short action. The first thing I did -afterwards was to go down below (I knew where to look!) and found the -patch which old Benbow had put on more than 13 years before." - -Lord Kitchener afterwards had the plate cut out, and he very kindly -sent it to me. - -By ten o'clock that night, the boiler was repaired and the fires were -laid. In the meantime, as soon as the twilight fell that evening, the -fire from the fort slackened. {304} It was my object to delude the -enemy into the belief that we had abandoned the steamer; for, if they -thought she was empty, they would not fire upon her, lest they should -damage an invaluable prize. Moreover, did the enemy suppose that we -were staying by the ship, they would during the night shift a gun from -the fort, dragging it along the bank to a point abreast of the steamer; -whence they could see the vessel looming on the water, whereas we in -the steamer could not see them; whence the range was no more than about -80 yards; and whence a single hit would disable us. - -But all depended upon our running the gauntlet in the morning. -Therefore, in the hope of deceiving the enemy, as the darkness -gathered, the four boats brought down to embark Wilson's party were -ostentatiously hauled alongside, as if to take off the ship's company. -Then all firing stopped; and after that thirteen hours' furious -fusillade, the immense and crystal silence of the desert submerged us -like the sea. Talking above a whisper was forbidden; every aperture -was closed below, where the lamps were burning to light Mr. Benbow at -his work, and no spark of light was allowed on deck. The men lit their -pipes at a slow match burning in a bucket, and smoked under cover. - -After leaving the _Safieh_ in the afternoon, Captain Gascoigne had more -adventures with his _nuggar_, of which by this time he must have been -weary. It went ashore opposite to the fort, which of course shot at -it, and Gascoigne must embark all except the badly wounded, under fire -as usual. Luckily, the enemy failed to get the range. By sunset, the -united exertions of Sir Charles Wilson's firing party had refloated the -_nuggar_. - -Late that night, we saw her drift past us in the darkness. - -The fort fired upon her, but apparently without result, for she drifted -on and disappeared. Then the enemy opened fire again upon the steamer. -They had run the guns outside the fort in the interval, and fired a few -rounds at us, accompanied by a heavy rifle fire. But the _Safieh_ -remained dumb and motionless. The firing ceased, the {305} enemy -evidently believing that we had abandoned the vessel. - -I slept in snatches on deck, waking every now and then to look round. -The officers were sound asleep, lying in a neat row on the deck. It -occurred to me that, taking into consideration the position in which -they lay relative to the gun on the bank, a single shot might kill them -all. So I roused them up very quietly, and bade them dispose -themselves in various places. I remember how they waked with a sleepy -grin, each looking for a separate corner, dropping into it and falling -asleep again. - -So far, our ruse had succeeded. At five o'clock the next morning (4th -February) Mr. Benbow lit the fires, using the utmost caution, keeping -the ash-pit draught plates almost shut, in order to prevent sparks, -which would instantly betray us, from flying up the funnel. On deck, -we were in suspense, all staring at the shot-riddled funnel. It kept -its secret for fifty minutes; then suddenly it belched a fountain of -hot ashes. It was then within ten minutes of daylight. Almost at the -same moment a great shouting broke out in the fort, and a convulsive -beating of tom-toms. Then the guns and rifles began to speak again. - -What had happened was that when the pressure-gauge indicated 10 lb. of -steam, the Arab captain of the stokers suddenly appeared at the -engine-room hatch, and spoke swiftly in Arabic to his men, who, before -Mr. Benbow could interfere, flung open the draught plates. - -It was a close-run business. In the next ten minutes the steam had run -up to 20 lb. pressure. Instantly we weighed anchor. The moment the -steamer began to move, such a yell of rage went up from the Dervishes -in the fort, as I never heard before or since. Leaping and screaming -on the bank, they took up handfuls of sand and flung them towards us. -They had thought us fled, and the steamer theirs. And there we were, -and there was the steamer moving away up river towards Khartoum; and -the men of Wad Habeshi were naturally disappointed. - -{306} - -I took the _Safieh_ about a quarter of a mile up stream, both to -confuse the enemy and to enable me to turn outside the narrow channel, -and at a comparatively safe distance. Then we went about, and ran down -at full speed, again concentrating our fire upon the embrasures of the -fort. Once more, as we came abreast of Wad Habeshi, we turned both -Gardners and both howitzers upon the embrasures, in one of which we -burst a shell; while the 20 soldiers and the 14 bluejackets maintained -their steady rifle fire. - -We were running now with the stream instead of against it, and our -speed was the greater, and we stormed past the fort without a single -casualty; and then, just as we thought we were clear, lo! there was -Gascoigne's hapless _nuggar_, stuck and helpless some 400 yards below -Wad Habeshi, and in full bearing of its side embrasure. As all -depended upon the safe passage of the _Safieh_, I ran on until we were -a mile from the fort and out of its range, and then dropped anchor. - -[Illustration: "RUNNING THE GAUNTLET." THE ACTION OF THE "SAFIEH" AT -WAD HABESHI, 14TH FEBRUARY, 1885] - -I dispatched Keppel with six bluejackets in a small boat to the -assistance of the _nuggar_. Rear-Admiral Sir Colin Keppel very kindly -sent to me his account of the affair, based upon the notes made in his -diary at the time. "The riflemen, having got rid of the steamer, -concentrated their fire on the _nuggar_. However, the range was long -and their fire was not very accurate. After we had anchored you -dispatched me in a small boat with six bluejackets to the assistance of -the _nuggar_. After attempting to pull up to her, we found that the -stream was too strong, and so I decided, having obtained your approval -by semaphore, to land on the right bank, track the boat up until well -upstream of the _nuggar_, and thus reach her. I found the only thing -to do was to lighten her; and while Gascoigne and I were throwing -overboard sacks of _dhura_ and other things, I was struck in the groin -by a bullet which went through my breeches but did not penetrate the -skin. It only raised a bruise which made me limp for a few days. -There was a considerable number of wounded in the _nuggar_. When {307} -she was afloat again we drifted down. You got under way in the steamer -and picked us up." - -Such is Keppel's modest account of what was a very gallant piece of -service on his part and on the part of Captain Gascoigne, who with -their men were working in the _nuggar_ under fire for three hours. Had -they failed where they so brilliantly succeeded, the whole Column, as -we learned afterwards, would have been jeopardised; for the steamer, -returning to their assistance, would again have come within range of -the fort. - -The _nuggar_ was taken in tow, and Captain Gascoigne's heroic struggles -with that unlucky craft were thus ended for the time. A mile below us, -Sir Charles Wilson was waiting for us with his whole detachment. They -were all embarked, and by 5.45 p.m. we had safely arrived at Gubat. - -That night I slept so profoundly that I do not know when I should have -awakened, had not first one rat, and then another, walked over my face. - -Mr. Benbow's skilled and intrepid service had saved the Column with a -piece of boiler plate and a handful of bolts. He received the special -compliments of Lord Wolseley, who presented him with his own silver -cigarette case; and was promoted to the rank of chief inspector of -machinery. He ought to have received the Victoria Cross; but owing to -the fact that I did not then know that the decoration could be granted -for a service of that nature, I did not, to my great regret, recommend -him for the honour. Mr. James Webber was promoted to be chief -boatswain; and in 1887, his services being once more exceptionally -recommended, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant. - -Surgeon Arthur May's services were inestimable. Always cheery, -indefatigable and zealous, when he was not attending to the wounded -under fire, he was on deck, rifle in hand, among the marksmen. It was -a great pleasure to me to report in the highest terms of the conduct of -the officers and men under my command, and specially to recommend -Lieutenant E. B. van Koughnet, Sub-Lieutenant {308} C. R. Keppel, -Acting-Lieutenant Walter Ingram, Chief Engineer Benbow, Surgeon Arthur -William May and Mr. James Webber, boatswain, and Lieutenant Bower, -commanding the Mounted Infantry. - -During the engagement with the fort at Wad Habeshi 5400 rounds were -fired from the Gardner guns, and 2150 from the rifles. The figure for -the brass howitzers is uncertain, the official report giving 126, but -Sub-Lieutenant Keppel, who served one of the guns, mentioned 150 as the -number fired from one gun in one day. - - - - -{309} - -CHAPTER XXXII - -THE SOUDAN WAR (_Continued_) - -X. THE EFFECT OF THE ACTION OF WAD HABESHI - -The proximate result of the fight of the _Safieh_ was of course the -fulfilment of its immediate object, the rescue of Sir Charles Wilson's -gallant detachment. But, years afterwards, it was made known that the -full effect actually extended so far as to include the salvation of the -whole Desert Column. In _The Royal Navy: A History_, vol. vii., Sir -William Laird Clowes briefly mentions the fact, referring to Sir F. R. -Wingate's letter to Lord Wolseley of 18th March, 1893. The passages in -that letter to which he refers are as follows: - -"... It is therefore on these grounds only that I have ventured to -collate evidence on an episode which may be considered to have been -finally dealt with.... Moreover, with the light which this evidence -throws on the situation, the results of Beresford's action cannot but -be enhanced ... that he was the means of saving Sir C. Wilson and his -party is an admitted fact; but when it is realised that added to this, -his action really saved the Column, it is, I consider, my duty to bring -before you this evidence which, had it been known at the time, might -have secured for Beresford and Benbow the greatest reward soldiers and -sailors can hope to obtain. But late as it is, it may not be too late -for the question to be reopened.... - -"In order to arrive at the actual details of the Dervish movements -subsequent to the fall of Khartoum, a meeting {310} was held at the -Intelligence Department, Egyptian Army, Cairo, on the 23rd February, -1893, at which the following were present, namely, Father Orhwalder, -Kasha el Mus Pasha, Major Hassan Agha Mohammed (Kassala), Hassan Eff. -Riban (late Maowin Berber District) and present at Berber at that time; -the Emir Sheikh Medawi (one of the principal Dervish Emirs present in -the attack on Khartoum).... - -"In the unanimous opinion of the above Committee, the credit of having -delayed the Dervish advance and thus enabling the British Column to be -retired safely is due to the action of Lord Charles Beresford at Wad -Habeshi...." - -The following short extracts may be cited from the evidence which led -the Committee to their conclusion. The first is taken from the -statement of Esh Sheikh Murabek Wad el Tilb, a Kordofan merchant who -arrived in Cairo on 30th May, 1888, from Omdurman: - - -"... There were 3000 Dervishes there (at Wad Habeshi) under the Emir -Ahmed Wad Faid and Sheikh Mustafa el Amin. These Dervishes thought -they could easily capture the steamer in which there were only about 30 -men, but the English stood up and fought like men for many hours, they -inflicted great loss on the Dervishes, and forced them to draw off and -disperse. Their Chief Emir was killed as well as their Artillery -Officer. - -"The effect of this defeat on the Dervishes was immense, and it also -affected the whole situation. The survivors fled in many directions, -spreading the news of the English victory far and wide.... - -"If the Dervishes at Wad Habeshi had succeeded in capturing the -steamer, there is no doubt Nejumi would have hastened his march and -would have intercepted the English before they could have got away from -Gubat, but instead of that he halted when he heard of Wad Faid's death, -and delayed some days in consequence at Wad Bishara and at Gereishab. -He had a very large force with him ... - -"(Signed) MURABEK WAD EL TILB" - - -{311} - -The second extract is translated from the German of Father Orhwalder, -long a prisoner of the Mahdi: - - -"... It is an undoubted fact that Lord Charles Beresford's gallant -action at Wad Habeshi was the means of saving the lives of Sir Charles -Wilson and his party, who would have suffered a like fate to that of -Colonel Stewart and his companions, and it is an equally undoubted fact -that the Mahdi's success at Khartoum shook the fidelity of the -Shagiyeh, but Lord Charles Beresford's victory at Wad Habeshi had the -effect of making Nejumi dread meeting the English on the river, and -decided him to attack them on the desert. - -"Lord Charles Beresford deserves the credit of having effected this and -was thus the means of saving the entire British force. - - "(Signed) DON GUISEPPE ORHWALDER -"(23_rd February_, 1893)" - - -It is obvious that the estimation of the conduct of the officers and -men who fought at Wad Habeshi remains unaffected by the results of the -action, which were neither definitely contemplated nor clearly -foreseen. And the evidence I have quoted being irrelevant, strictly -speaking, to any criticism of the action itself, is here cited, not in -order to enhance the credit of the officers and men concerned but, for -the sake both of its intrinsic interest, and for the purpose of -illustrating, incidentally, the methods occasionally adopted under the -system controlling the Royal Navy. - -The effect of the action at Wad Habeshi exemplifies the extraordinary -potency of the element of chance in war. Under what conceivable theory -of tactics could it have been maintained that a penny steamer had the -smallest chance of rescuing a detachment isolated in a hostile country, -upon condition of twice engaging a powerful battery at short range, and -twice defeating its garrison of sixty or a hundred to one? Or what -self-respecting tactician would have {312} predicted that in the -extremely improbable event of success, its effect would have been to -check, even momentarily, the advance by land of the main force of the -enemy? - -But the unexpected happened; and as it did happen, it would have been -in accordance with a courteous precedent on the part of the authorities -to have recognised the fact. I make no complaint of their action as -regards myself; and only recall it here in the hope that no repetition -of it will be permitted in respect of others perhaps less fortunate -than I. The Admiralty refused to allow me to count my service in the -Soudan either as time spent in command of a ship of war, or, as part of -a period of command spent both in peace and war. Their Lordships' -refusal might have involved my retirement before I had completed the -time required to qualify for flag rank. The Queen's Regulations -ordained: that a captain must have completed six years' service, of -which the first three years must be in command of a ship of war at sea; -or that he must have completed four years during war; or five years, of -war and peace combined. - -After having been for over two years in command of H.M.S. _Undaunted_, -I applied (in May, 1892) for permission to count the 315 days in the -Soudan during which I was borne on the books of H.M.S. _Alexandra_, -which were allowed as sea-time by the Admiralty, in the required five -years of war and peace combined. The application was refused, on the -ground that war service could not be reckoned by a captain unless he -was in command of a ship of war actually employed in active service at -sea. - -Having completed my three years' service in command at sea, I applied -(in April, 1893) for permission to count the 315 days sea-time, -although they preceded the three years in command at sea, as part of -the required six years' service. The application was refused, upon the -ground that its acceptance was not necessary in order to save me from -retirement. - -A year and a half afterwards (in January, 1895) I repeated my -application, pointing out that in three cases {313} the Admiralty had, -by order in council, conceded similar claims of admittedly much less -force than my own, and that the only naval officers engaged in the -Soudan war who were not allowed to count their time towards promotion -were Captain Boardman and myself. Their Lordships then merely referred -me to their previous answers. I may mention that my application was -warmly and emphatically supported by Lord Wolseley. - - - - -{314} - -CHAPTER XXXIII - -THE SOUDAN WAR (_Continued_) - -XI. THE RETREAT - -Upon the day after the rescue of Sir Charles Wilson's party, a court of -inquiry, under my presidency, was held to investigate the conduct of -the captains of the two wrecked steamers, and one of the Reises. The -captains were acquitted. The Reis was found guilty of treachery, but -his punishment was remitted in consideration of the fact that he had -brought Lieutenant Stuart-Wortley safely down the river after the wreck -of the _Bordein_. - -The little _Safieh_ was riddled with bullet-holes; she leaked like a -sieve, so that even before the action of Wad Habeshi, the pumps must be -kept going continually; and her bows, under the incessant concussion of -the guns, had opened out like a flower. The sides came away from the -stem, and in order to stop the water coming in, the natives had stuffed -rags and mud into the openings, which of course widened them. Upon our -return to Gubat, I caused a dry dock to be excavated in the bank; ran -the bows of the steamer into it; closed it against the water with mud; -and kept two black men baling out the water as hard as they could go -for eight hours on end, while we cut and fitted a new stem and bolted -the sides to it; a very difficult job, because the sides of the steamer -were rotten. The other repairs having been effected, I took the -_Safieh_ (which was so decayed that the pumps must still be kept going) -out {315} daily for foraging expeditions, to get cattle, sheep and -vegetables, and also to show there was fight in us yet. There were no -fowls, because the Mahdi had declared them to be unclean. - -Captain Gascoigne and Khashm-el-Mus used to accompany me upon these -expeditions, Gascoigne taking command of the raiding parties on shore: -Lieutenant Robert A. J. Montgomerie (afterwards Rear-Admiral -Montgomerie, C.B., C.M.G.) was of the greatest service. Montgomerie -was of extraordinary physical strength and prowess. He joined me on -11th February, with Lieutenant G. W. Tyler, at Gubat. While helping to -work the boats up the river, Montgomerie saved a gun which sank when -the boat in which it was capsized. The weight of muzzle or breach -(whichever it was) was well over 200 lb., and the water was -shoulder-deep. Montgomerie picked up the gun, hove it upon his -shoulder and waded ashore with it. - -His exploits at Ismailia are still remembered. He was sitting in a -saloon, where three French natives determined to provoke the English -officer. They chose the wrong man. One of the trio upset -Montgomerie's glass of beer, and although he did not apologise, -Montgomerie, supposing him to have done it by accident, took no notice. -A second man did the same, with the same result. Then the third hero -deliberately threw down Montgomerie's glass with his hand. Montgomerie -then acted instantly and with great rapidity. He knocked one man -senseless, picked up another and threw him on the top of his friend, -took the third and flung him up on the roof of the balcony. - -Surgeon-General A. W. May reminds me that he and Montgomerie -discovered, at some distance from the river, a garden wherein grew -onions and limes. Montgomerie pulled the onions, while May collected -the limes for the sick in hospital. But a lime-tree is armed with long -and sharp thorns; and May, desiring to preserve his one and only -uniform, stripped and climbed the tree in his birthday suit. Suddenly -Arabs appeared; and May had but the {316} time to descend, pick up his -clothes and fly with Montgomerie back to the steamer. - -Surgeon-General May also reminds me that upon another foraging trip, we -landed a party of Gordon's Soudanese troops to capture a flock of -sheep. Before the blacks had time to get away with the sheep, the -Arabs came down, and began to fire at them and also at the steamer. I -sent a black sergeant-major and a bugler to hasten the retreat of the -Soudanese. Two of them, each of whom was carrying a sheep, lagged -somewhat; whereupon the sergeant-major lay down, took careful aim, and -fired at them. Neither he nor they seemed to consider the method -unusual. It was on one of these foraging parties that Quartermaster -Olden saved the entire raiding party. Captain Gascoigne, in command of -a wild lot of Bashi-Bazouks and the most of the men from the _Safieh_, -had gone some little distance inland to a village. I was left in the -_Safieh_ with six men to serve the Gardner gun. The steamer was lying -alongside the bank, but not close in; for it was necessary to keep a -certain depth of water under her keel in a falling river, and to be -able to shove off quickly. I had poles ready rigged for this purpose. -The Bashi-Bazouks, who began firing from the hip at random with loud -cries so soon as they came on shore, had vanished into the distance -with the rest of the party; when I perceived afar off a crowd of -Dervishes gathering at a place at right angles to the line upon which -the raiding party must return, and nearer to the _Safieh_ than the -village where was the raiding party. The Dervishes, therefore, -evidently intended to cut off the British force. - -I sent for Olden, gave him his instructions, and sent him on shore with -two riflemen. The three ran like hares through the scrub towards the -enemy. They ran at full speed for about 600 yards to get within range. -Then they scattered, concealed themselves and fired; moved again -swiftly, and fired again; and kept on repeating the manoeuvre, until -the Dervishes, believing that the scrub was {317} swarming with English -riflemen, drew off; and the raiding party returned in safety. For this -service, Olden was recommended by me for the conspicuous gallantry -medal. - -The black soldiers, going barefoot, used to come in with their feet -transfixed by long thorns; these I cut out with a horse-lancet fitted -to my knife; and the operation was like cutting leather. I had gained -experience in performing it while getting the boats through at Wady -Halfa. At Ismailia a more delicate operation fell to me. While -fishing, my hook caught in a man's eyelid. The French surgeon who was -summoned went to work with a lancet, and tried to pull the barb through -the wound, causing the patient acute agony. I sent the doctor aside, -and using one of a pair of breeches' bow-ties (for tying bows at the -knees) drew the hook through to the shank, and severed it, much to the -surgeon's indignation. - -The expeditions up and down the river in the _Safieh_ were amusing -enough; but we were only making the best of the interval before the -next move. Sir Charles Wilson had left Gubat on 6th February for -Korti, where he arrived on the 9th bearing the news of the fall of -Khartoum, and a full account of the condition of the Desert Column. -Lord Wolseley telegraphed the information to Lord Hartington (Secretary -of State for War), who telegraphed in reply: "Express warm recognition -of Government of brilliant services of Sir C. Wilson and satisfaction -at gallant rescue of his party." - -Lord Wolseley, upon receipt of Sir C. Wilson's dispatch containing the -account of the action at Abu Kru, fought on the 19th January, when Sir -Herbert Stewart was wounded, had appointed Major-General Sir Redvers -Buller to take command of the Desert Column, Sir Evelyn Wood being -appointed chief of staff in his place. Buller had left Korti on 29th -January, and had arrived at Jakdul on the 2nd February. Lord Wolseley -had also dispatched the Royal Irish Regiment to reinforce the Desert -Column. The Royal Irish marched on foot the whole way across the {318} -Bayuda Desert, each man carrying 70 rounds of ammunition, filled water -bottles and rolled greatcoats. The first detachment left Korti on the -28th January, the second on the 30th; both arriving at Jakdul on the -4th February. They left Jakdul on the 7th. Buller left on the -following day; and upon arriving at Abu Klea, he left there two -companies of the Royal Irish, the rest of which accompanied him to -Gubat, for which place he started on the 10th. I saw the Royal Irish -march in; a splendid body of fighting men, trained down to the last -ounce, lean as hounds, and spoiling for a fight. - -It will be observed that Buller was at Jakdul, half-way across the -Desert, on the 4th February, on which date Lord Wolseley learned from -Sir Charles Wilson of the fall of Khartoum. Lord Wolseley dispatched -three sets of orders to Sir Redvers Buller in quick succession, the -last reaching him at Abu Klea on the 10th, before he had resumed his -march to Gubat. - -Lord Wolseley's dispatch instructed Sir Redvers Buller to make every -preparation for the evacuation of Gubat and the withdrawal of the -Column. At the same time, its tenor left a certain discretion to -Buller; who, replying to it in a private letter carried by the -returning messenger to Lord Wolseley, "spoke," says Colonel Colville, -in his official _History of the Sudan Campaign_, "hopefully of the -situation." I think the presence of the Royal Irish, in magnificent -condition, suggested to Buller that he could fight anybody anywhere. - -In fact, when Sir Redvers came in to Gubat on 11th February, he wanted -to remain and fight. At his request, I stated to him my view of the -situation; which was, briefly, that unless we departed swiftly, we -should be eaten up by the enemy, who were known to be advancing in -immense force. I also reported officially that until the Nile rose, -the two steamers remaining to us were practically useless: a -consideration which proved conclusive. Sir Redvers Buller's dispatch, -dated at Gubat 12th February, and addressed to {319} the chief of -staff, describes the conclusions to which he came after having -carefully reviewed the situation (_History of the Sudan Campaign_--Part -II. p. 56). The camels were greatly reduced in number and were nearly -worn out; but if the Column were to attempt any further enterprise, the -camels must be sent to Jakdul and back to bring supplies, a journey -which would take at least ten days. This circumstance was virtually -conclusive. Sir Redvers adds: "I regret to have to express now an -opinion different to that which I expressed to Lord Wolseley in a -letter dated the night of the 10th instant; but when I then wrote, I -was not aware of the condition of the steamers and of the fact that the -big one could not pass a sandbank 25 miles below this. Lord C. -Beresford considers it doubtful if the other one can either.... Since -writing this I am confirmed in my opinion by the news that Mohammed -Ahmed (the Mahdi) left Khartoum _en route_ here on the 9th instant." - -[Illustration: FIELD-MARSHAL THE RT. HON. VISCOUNT WOLSELEY, K.P., -P.C., G.C.B., G.C.M.G., D.C.L., LL.D., O.M. 1833-1913] - -In the meantime, Lord Wolseley had ordered the River Column to halt on -its way. On the 10th, General Earle, in command of the River Column, -had been killed at the action of Kirbekan. Lord Wolseley, until he -received Sir Redvers Buller's account of the desperate condition of the -River Column--deprived of transport, encumbered with wounded, short of -stores (owing to bad packing), and without boots--retained his -intention of effecting a junction of the two columns at Berber. At the -end of the third week in February that scheme was necessarily -abandoned. The River Column was recalled; and Buller, then on his way -back with the Desert Column, was instructed to return direct to Korti. - -On the morning of 13th February the sick and wounded were dispatched -with a convoy under the command of Colonel Talbot. Eight or nine miles -out, the convoy was attacked, surrounded on three sides, and exposed to -fire from the enemy concealed in the bush. Among the wounded were the -scalded engine-room artificers; one of whom, recalling the incident in -conversation with me {320} recently, said: "That was the first time my -heart sank--when the bearers put down my litter, and the firing began." - -After about two hours' engagement, when the convoy had lost eight -killed and wounded, the Light Camel Regiment, under the command of -Colonel Clarke, marching from Jakdul, opportunely appeared, and the -enemy drew off. - -Colonel Talbot (my cousin) very kindly sent me a copy of his diary, -kept at the time. His account of the affair gives little indication of -what was in fact a passage of very considerable danger. He was -encumbered with a large number of sick and wounded; his force was -small; the force of the enemy, though it was impossible to estimate the -exact numbers, was formidable; and in spite of Talbot's skilful and -prompt dispositions of defence, the issue must have been very doubtful -had not the Light Camel Regiment arrived. - -Colonel Talbot's account runs as follows: "_February_ 13_th_.--Received -orders from Sir R. Buller to march for Jakdul at dawn with 75 sick and -wounded, Sir H. Stewart and the worst cases carried in litters borne by -Egyptian soldiers from Khartoum. Escort of 300 men joined from the 3 -Camel Regiments and about 200 Gordon's Egyptians from Khartoum. - -"_February_ 14.--Marched at dawn 8 miles, and halted for breakfast. -Outposts, just as we were about to resume march, sent in report of -approach of large force of Arabs--mounted men, riflemen, and spearmen. -The Column was formed up, the wounded in the centre surrounded by -camels lying down, and outside them the Egyptian soldiers. The Camel -Corps troops were formed in two squares, one of the Heavy and Guards' -Camel Regiments in front of the Column, and the other of the Mounted -Infantry in rear. Skirmishers were sent into the bush to feel for the -enemy. The enemy opened fire and worked all round our force, -apparently trying to ascertain our weakest point. It was impossible to -estimate the strength of the enemy owing to the thick bush, but a -considerable number of riflemen, supported by a large {321} force of -spearmen, were seen, and about 30 horsemen were counted. After the -affair had lasted about two hours, and we had lost 8 men killed and -wounded, the Light Camel Regiment on the march to Gubat appeared -unexpectedly, and narrowly escaped becoming engaged with us, owing to -both forces being unaware of the proximity of the other, and through -the bush it was difficult to distinguish the Arabs from ourselves. No -doubt the arrival of the Light Camel Regiment accounted for the sudden -disappearance of the enemy." - -It was Colonel Brabazon (now Major-General Sir J. P. Brabazon, C.B., -C.V.O.), second in command of the Light Camel Corps, who, when the -Column had marched nearly half-way from Abu Klea to Metemmeh, went to -his commanding officer, Colonel Stanley Clarke, and suggested that the -Column should be immediately diverted to the scene of action. Colonel -Brabazon led the Column in the direction of the firing, and his two or -three hundred camels made so great a dust that the Arabs thought a -whole army was advancing upon their flank, and instantly fled away. -The result was that, hidden in the bush, the Light Camel Corps occupied -the ground vacated by the enemy, unknown to the convoy, which continued -to fire at the place they supposed the Arabs to be. General Brabazon's -account of the affair, which he very kindly sent to me, is as follows: - -"I halted the Column, and the bush being very thick, the trees stopped -most of the bullets; nevertheless, they were knocking up the dust at -the feet of our camels, and a bullet struck my mess-tin. I ordered our -regimental call to be sounded, 'The Camels (Campbells) are coming,' -'Lights Out,' and finally 'Dinners.' But it was not until two or three -of us pushed our way through the bush into the open, whence I saw the -convoy preparing to give us another volley, that they realised we were -friends and not foes, and precious glad they were to see us. They had -only a small escort and were of course hampered with the sick and -wounded, and I think everyone who was there will agree {322} that they -were in a bad way.... I dined at the Guards' mess afterwards, and -Douglas Dawson said that he had just given his men the range -preparatory to their firing another volley, when he put up his glasses -and made out the helmets and red morocco coverings of the camel -saddles, and shouted, 'Come down! They are our fellows.' Then, Dawson -said, his soldier servant, who was standing behind him, remarked: 'Why, -I could have told you they were our fellows ten minutes before!' I -suppose he had recognised the 'Dinners' call." - -So ended a comedy which had come very near to being a tragedy. -Gordon's Egyptian soldiers, who were carrying the wounded, put the -litters down when the firing began. Among the wounded were poor Sir -Herbert Stewart, devotedly nursed by Major Frank Rhodes, Major Poe, -Royal Marines, Sub-Lieutenant E. L. Munro and Lieutenant Charles -Crutchley. Poe and Crutchley each had a leg amputated. All the -wounded were lying helpless on the sand, listening to the firing, and -moment by moment expecting the terrible Dervish rush. A violent death -was very close to them, when Brabazon and his men came in the nick of -time. The convoy had one of the narrowest escapes in the history of -the British Army. It remains to add that Colonel Brabazon received no -recognition of his action of any kind from the authorities. - -Colonel Talbot had been continuously employed upon the difficult and -arduous convoy duty since the arrival of the Desert Column at Gubat on -the 21st. Two days later Talbot started to return to Jakdul to fetch -supplies. Not he nor his men nor his camels had a day's rest from the -8th January, when the Desert Column left Korti, till the 27th, when the -convoy was back again at Jakdul. The convoy reached Gubat on the 31st -January; next day came the news of the fall of Khartoum; and the same -evening the convoy marched again for Jakdul with sick and wounded. -From Jakdul it returned with Sir Redvers Buller; arrived at Gubat on -the 11th February; and started again on the 13th, {323} as already -related, with another party of sick and wounded. On the way back to -Korti, Colonel Talbot, without engineers or commissariat, constructed a -camp and built forts at Megaga Wells, where the main body, including -the Naval Brigade, joined his convoy on 2nd March. - -After Colonel Talbot's convoy had left Gubat on 13th February, I -disposed of the poor old _Safieh_ and the _Tewfikiyeh_, lest upon our -departure they should be taken by the enemy. The six brass guns were -spiked and thrown overboard, the ammunition was destroyed, the -eccentric straps were removed from the machinery, and finally the -valves were opened and the vessels sunk. - -Then came the sad destruction of the stores for which we had no -transport. The number of camels would only suffice to carry rations -for three days, by the end of which the Column would have arrived at -Abu Klea, where were more stores. When Colonel Talbot's convoy of -supplies reached Gubat two days previously, the garrison had for ten -days been living on short rations: nevertheless, more than half of what -he brought must be destroyed. Count Gleichen (_With the Camel Corps up -the Nile_) says that "19,000 lbs. of flour, 3000 lbs. of biscuit, -21,220 lbs. of beef, 900 lbs. of bacon, 1100 lbs. of tea, oatmeal, -preserved vegetables, coffee, and all sorts of stores were pierced and -thrown into the river"--an example of waste in war resulting from -deficient transport. - -Some of the medical comforts, small bottles of champagne and port, were -distributed. One among us--I think his name was Snow--took a bottle of -wine and swore he would keep it till he drank it in Khartoum. _And he -did_. He went into Khartoum with Kitchener thirteen years afterwards, -and drank his libation in the conquered city. - -That incident reminds me that, when I went with the party of members of -the House of Commons to Russia in 1912, a Russian farmer sent a note to -the British admiral, of whom he said he had heard, together with a -bottle containing mustard which he had grown, and which he sent {324} -as a token that the aforesaid British admiral would give his enemies -mustard when he met them; for, said the farmer, the enemies of England -would certainly be the enemies of Russia. I have that bottle of -mustard. - -What went to my heart when the stores were destroyed, was the dreadful -waste of my drums of precious lubricating oil, carried so far with so -great labour. My tears mingled with the oil as it was poured out upon -the sand. - -On the 14th February, at 5.30 a.m., the Desert Column quitted Gubat and -started on the long return march to Korti, officers and men alike on -foot, excepting the Hussars. There was hardly a pair of boots in the -whole column. Some of the men cut up old rifle-buckets and tied the -pieces with string to the soles of their feet. As for my sailors, they -marched barefoot, every man carrying his rifle, cutlass, and 70 -cartridges, and many of them towing reluctant camels. One camel to -every four men was allotted to carry saddle-bags and blankets; and the -camels kept dropping and dying all the way. By the time he had been -three days out, Count Gleichen, in charge of the baggage, had lost 92 -camels. At first the weather was cool with a northerly breeze, and all -started well. On the march, in default of water, I used to spread my -clothes in the sun while I rubbed myself all over with sand; a dry bath -that was highly cleansing and refreshing. On the 15th February we came -to Abu Klea, somewhat weary. - -We were of course in constant expectation of attack. On the next day -(16th) the Naval Brigade occupied a sand redoubt, on which the two -Gardner guns were mounted. - -Sir Redvers Buller, finding that the water supply was insufficient and -that there was not enough food for the camels, sent on the Soudanese -troops, baggage, stores and camp-followers under escort to Jakdul, -while he halted at Abu Klea to keep the enemy in check, until the -unloaded camels returned from Jakdul, and until further instructions -arrived from headquarters. The remainder of the Column, entrenched at -Abu Klea, thus became the rearguard, in the {325} air, as the phrase -is; isolated for the time being and deprived of transport and reserve -stores; a dangerous position forced upon the general by the lack of -camels. - -In the evening began the customary desert performance, opened by the -Dervishes firing at long range from a hill-top commanding the camp, and -continued during the long, cold, sleepless night with intermittent -sniping to a tom-tom accompaniment. But our men were seasoned by this -time; and although one among them was hit now and again, the situation -no longer set a strain upon their nerves, but was accepted as part of -the routine. That night two men were killed and thirteen wounded. It -is true that the faithful José Salvatro, my Maltese servant, who had -done and suffered so much, lost patience on this occasion. He was -heating cocoa over the fire, when a bullet struck the tin and splashed -the hot cocoa all over him. - -"Why they fire _me_, sare?" said José. "Always firing _me_. _I_ never -did them any harm." - -In the morning (the 17th) the enemy opened fire with a gun; which, -after three or four rounds, was knocked out by the Naval Brigade with a -Gardner. - -I had walked a little way from the redoubt, when I was knocked over by -a stunning blow striking me at the base of the spine, and lay helpless. -I thought I was done; and I thought what an unlucky dog I was to have -come through so much, to die on the way back from a wound in a place so -undignified. But it was only a ricochet; my men carried me in; and I -speedily recovered. - -During the day Major F. M. Wardrop, D.A.A.G., and Lieutenant R. J. -Tudway of the Mounted Infantry, with three men, employed the tactics I -had used outside Alexandria two years previously. Riding swiftly from -one point to another, and concealing themselves in the intervals, they -impressed the Dervishes with the delusion that a large force threatened -them in rear, and so caused them to retreat. In the afternoon, -Lieutenant-Colonel H. McCalmont arrived with the news of the action of -the River Column at Kirbekan {326} on the 10th, and of the death of -General Earle. The mail from Korti contained a kind message of -congratulation addressed by the Khedive to myself, referring to the -engagement at Wad Habeshi, as well as congratulations from home. The -total number of killed and wounded during the 16th and 17th was three -men killed, and four officers and 23 men wounded. We heard on the 21st -of the death of our beloved General, Sir Herbert Stewart, who, in spite -of all our hopes, had succumbed to his wound on the 17th, during the -march of Colonel Talbot's convoy, seven miles north of Geb-el-Nus. He -was buried with full military honours on the following day near the -wells of Jakdul. - -On the 22nd February a convoy under Colonel Brabazon arrived with 782 -camels. These were only just sufficient to move the stores and -supplies. - -It may here be noted that it was only a day or two previously that Lord -Wolseley had received at Korti Sir Redvers Buller's letters describing -the complete collapse of the transport of the Desert Column; and it was -this information, together with a minute from Sir Evelyn Wood, who was -at Jakdul, that finally decided Lord Wolseley to abandon his intention -of combining the Desert and River Columns to hold posts along the Nile -preparatory to an autumn campaign. At the same time, great anxiety -with regard to the Desert Column prevailed at home. - -Upon the morning of the next day (the 23rd) our picquets reported that -the enemy had received a reinforcement of some 8000 men and six guns. -Perhaps the Column had never been in more imminent danger than it was -at that moment. - -Sir Redvers Buller discussed the situation with me. I expressed the -opinion that the large force of the enemy would cut off our advance, -rush us, and then move upon Jakdul and so on to Korti itself; and -remarked that the Column was short of transport and of provisions, and -would be short of water. - -{327} - -"What would you do if you were in command?" said Buller. - -I told him that in the evening I would light a larger number of -camp-fires than usual, and, leaving them burning in order to deceive -the enemy, I would then depart in silence and with speed. - -"For a sailor ashore," said Buller, "you've a good head. I'll do it." - -And he did. - -At two o'clock the same afternoon, Sir Redvers Buller sent on his sick -and wounded--32 of all ranks--with a convoy of 300 men commanded by -Colonel Stanley Clarke; and that night, at 7.30, the rest of the Column -stole forth into the desert, leaving a ring of camp-fires flaming in -the dark behind us. We halted after four hours' march and bivouacked -in peace. Next day (the 24th) we were sniped by a few wandering -scouts: and save for these, saw no enemy. Then began the three days' -hard marching, on short rations, and very little water, in great heat, -to Jakdul. Many of the men fell out: but not one man of the Naval -Brigade. - -We arrived at Jakdul on the 26th February. I did not keep a diary: but -Lieutenant Colin Keppel's journal defines the situation in three -eloquent words: "Water, mails, cigarettes!" - -Next day I found time to write home, the first opportunity for so doing -during the past six weeks. - -"Even now (I wrote), I am writing in a storm of sand and wind, my paper -blowing one way and my helmet another, among my camels, who smell most -poisonous. Poor things, they were eight days without water, and had -only what food they could get when foraging in the desert. And they -have so many and so large holes in their backs, that I am obliged to -put shot-plugs in, to keep the water in when they drink...." - -It was true that I put shot-plugs in the camels. My official report -(and what can be truer than an official report?) {328} contains under -date 27th February the sole entry: "Employed repairing camels' sides by -plugging them with oakum!" Lord Wolseley laughed when he read it. But -although the surgery may appear empirical, it was wonderfully -successful. The admixture of tar acted as an antiseptic. - -On the following day (28th February) we resumed the march to Korti; on -2nd March the Naval Brigade joined Colonel Talbot's convoy at Megaga -Wells, with the Heavy Camel Regiment and Royal Artillery. The Guards' -Camel Regiment had gone on to Abu Halfa. The remainder of the Column -under Sir Evelyn Wood left Jakdul on 3rd March. - -At Megaga Wells Colonel Talbot took command and we left for Korti, -officers and men continuing to march on foot, very few having soles to -their boots. There was one camel allocated to carry the kits of five -men; 30 camels carried water; and 10 carried the sick. The thermometer -registered 112° in the shade, and a hot wind blew. And so we came to -Korti on the 8th March, two months after we had left it. - -Lord Wolseley inspected the Naval Brigade on parade; and expressed his -extreme satisfaction at the work they had done, and the manner in which -it had been performed. The next day the Brigade was broken up, and -told off to different stations, under the command of Captain Boardman. -I was ordered to rejoin the staff of Lord Wolseley. - -Colonel Talbot notes that the Heavy Camel Regiment, of which he was in -command, had marched about 850 miles; that the strength of the regiment -upon leaving Korti was 23 officers and 373 men; and that its strength -upon its return was 15 officers and 256 men. - -Only four of his men arrived on camels. Not one of my sailors fell out -during the whole way from Gubat to Korti. - -Here, perhaps, it is not inopportune to place on record how delighted I -was to work with the Army. We are really only one Service, for the -protection of one Empire. - -Nor, perhaps, to relate how that Her Majesty Queen {329} Victoria, when -she pinned the C.B. to my coat, said low, "I am very glad to give you -this, Lord Charles. I am very pleased with you." - -Her Majesty's words were my reward; for I will own that decorations as -such have never attracted me. - -I desire to record the excellent service of Captain F. R. Boardman -(afterwards Admiral Frederick Ross Boardman, C.B.), who invariably did -his utmost at the base to keep the Naval Brigade supplied. It was not -Captain Boardman's fortune to be in the first fighting line, where is -all the fun and where is often all the renown; yet the success of the -fighting line depends entirely upon the energy, forethought and -unselfish loyalty of those at the base of supply. - -I happened to be discussing this point with a certain highly -distinguished personage. - -"We got all the credit," I said, "but not half enough was given to -those at the base who sent forward the bullets and the grub." - -"Grub? What is grub?" inquired the highly distinguished personage. - -"I beg your pardon, sir. It is a slang term for food and provisions." - -"So grub is food, is it? How very interesting!" said the highly -distinguished personage. - -The sequel to our expedition was of course Lord Kitchener's masterly -campaign. After the capture of Omdurman, and the blowing up of the -Mahdi's tomb, it was publicly stated that a certain officer was -bringing home the skull of the holy man, intending to make it into an -inkpot. The House of Commons (of which I was then a member) having -nothing better to do, discussed the matter on 5th June, 1899. Lord -Kitchener sat in the Distinguished Strangers' Gallery. Mr. John Morley -(now Lord Morley) protested against the desecration of the tomb of the -Mahdi. I replied to Mr. Morley, protesting against his assumption of -authority in the matter. I said: - -"Now I wish to take, most respectfully, issue with the {330} right -honourable the Member for Montrose upon this point. I say this with -great respect and with great earnestness that so far as I can judge -from the right honourable gentleman's writings and by his teachings, he -is no judge of religious fanaticism whatever. I say this with respect -because, as I understand what he has written, he does not regard -religious fanaticism as anything that can ever be powerful, because he -says himself that he does not understand the question at all. That -being so, I cannot accept the right honourable gentleman as a guide as -to what should be done to check religious fanaticism.... The right -honourable the Member for Montrose does not believe in the power of -religious fanaticism...." - -Mr. Morley: "The Noble Lord cannot have read my writings, or else he -would have seen that fanaticism was one of the things I have written -most about" (Hansard 5th June, 1899). - -A member said to me in the lobby afterwards: "You really ought not to -say these things. Why do you make these assertions?" - -"Because," I said, "I have read Mr. Morley's works." - -"You know very well," said my friend, "that you have never read any of -his books." - -"I beg your pardon," I replied. "I never go to sleep without reading -one of Mr. Morley's books, and I never read one of Mr. Morley's books -without going to sleep." - - - - -{331} - -CHAPTER XXXIV - -THE SOUDAN WAR (_Continued_) - -XII. SEQUEL AND CONCLUSION - -For the first few weeks after the return of the Desert Column to Korti, -we all believed that there would be an autumn campaign, and we looked -forward to the taking of Khartoum. Lord Wolseley distributed his -troops among various stations along the Nile from the Hannek Cataract -to Abu Dom, there to remain in summer quarters. In his dispatch of 6th -March, 1885 (Colville's _History of the Soudan Campaign_, Part II.), -Lord Wolseley indicated the force he would require, and requested that -the railway might be continued from Halfa to Ferkeh, a distance of 47 -miles. The railway was begun and was eventually completed. By 1st -April the troops were occupying their allotted stations. One -distinguished officer was so certain of remaining in his quarters, that -he sowed vegetables in his garden. But upon 13th April Lord Wolseley -was ordered to consider the measures requisite to effect a total -withdrawal; and British faith was once more broken by a British -Government. - -By that time Lord Wolseley, to whose personal staff I was once more -attached, had been to Dongola and had come to Cairo. - -The news from home consisted chiefly of rumours of war with Russia; and -I was gratified to learn that largely in consequence of my -representations 50 machine guns had been sent to India. Machine guns -were then upon {332} their trial; and I had been consulted by the -authorities as to their precise utility. We also heard of the hearty -cordiality and enthusiasm with which the Prince and Princess of Wales -were being greeted in Ireland upon the occasion of their visit to my -country. There had been some misgivings upon the subject; and I had -had the honour to suggest to the Prince that if, as well as visiting -towns and cities in state, he went into the country among my people and -shot with them and hunted with them like the sportsman he was, he would -find no more loyal or delightful people in the Queen's dominions. - -As a matter of fact, neither in the towns nor anywhere else in Ireland, -did the Prince and Princess receive aught but a most hearty welcome. -Nor did the Nationalist party even attempt to arouse a formal -demonstration directed against their visitors. They might have -suggested, but did not, that some such conventional protest was due to -the doctrine representing Ireland as a conquered country. - -At the end of April Lord Wolseley and his staff including myself, -embarked in the s.s. _Queen_ for Souakim. - -The Souakim expedition under the command of General Sir G. Graham was -then in full progress. On the 20th February he had been directed to -destroy the power of Osman Digna, and to guard the construction of the -Souakim-Berber railway. On the 20th March, Graham fought the -successful action of Hashin. On the 22nd was fought the bloody -engagement of McNeill's zeriba. The British were surprised while at -work upon the construction of the zeriba; the first shot was fired at -2.50 p.m., and the cease fire was sounded at 3.10. During that twenty -minutes of confused and desperate fighting, some 1500 Arabs out of an -attacking force of 5000 were killed. Desultory firing continued for an -hour, when the enemy retreated. According to the official history, the -British losses were 150 killed, 148 missing, 174 wounded, and 501 -camels killed and missing. - -The field of battle lay some six miles from Souakim; I {333} rode out -with Lord Wolseley to see it. Before we had ridden three miles in the -dust and the glare of sunlight, the hot air carried a dreadful waft of -corruption. The stench thickened as we drew near. A dusky cloud of -kites and vultures hovered sluggishly and unafraid among a wilderness -of discoloured mounds. The sand was heaped so scantily upon the dead, -that lipless skulls, and mutilated shanks, and clenched hands, were -dreadfully displayed. The bodies of the camels were mingled in a pile -of corruption, clustered upon by the birds of prey. - -And wandering about that charnel-ground, raking in it with a hooked -stick, was a strange man whom I had met years ago in Japan, where he -used to photograph the cruel executions of that country. He spoke no -known tongue, but chattered in a jumble of languages; and here he was, -equipped with a camera, and placidly exploring horrors with a hooked -stick. Whence he came, and whither he went, we stayed not to inquire. - -Day after day, for many days, the convoys of the expedition must pass -and repass this place, which lay in their direct route, at the slow -march of laden camels, and walking warily, lest they stepped ankle-deep -into a festering corpse. - -General Graham, having occupied Tamai, Handub, and Tambuk, dispersed -the force of Mohammed Sardun on the 6th May; an operation which left -him practically master of the district. But on the 11th May, Lord -Wolseley, acting upon the instructions of the Government, ordered the -general withdrawal of all troops from the Soudan. On the 19th, we left -Souakim for Cairo. On the 27th June, Lord Wolseley turned over the -command of the forces in Egypt to General Sir F. Stephenson, and with -his staff left Cairo for Alexandria, there to embark for England. - -Seven days previously (on 20th June), though we knew not of it, the -Mahdi, who had given us so much trouble, had died in Khartoum. There -he lay, listening perhaps for the footsteps of the returning English; -for he knew that, although the English are ruled by people having the -appearance of {334} men but the ways of a weathercock, they may go, but -they always come back. Thirteen years the false prophet slept in -peace: and then the man who had sojourned in a cave at the wells of Abu -Klea secretly collecting information, what time the Desert Column -followed a forlorn hope, rode into the Dervish city, and destiny was -fulfilled. Lord Kitchener of Khartoum fulfilled it, as strong men have -a way of doing. A poet once said that the soul of Gladstone is now -probably perching on the telegraph wires that bridge the desert where -we fought to save Gordon, too late. I know nothing about that; but I -know what the betrayal cost. - -We learned afterwards that ere the Mahdi died, he had begun to -concentrate his armies upon Dongola, a movement that was continued -after his death, until the Dervishes were finally defeated by General -Stephenson, at Ginnis, on 30th December, 1885. - -General Dormer had a way of his own with the Mahdi's disciples. -Addressing a prisoner, he said: - -"I suppose you believe in the Mahdi because he can work miracles. Can -your prophet pluck out his eye and put it back again? Well, I am no -prophet, but I can." - -And with that, Dormer took his glass eye from its socket, tossed it in -the air, caught it, and replaced it. The Arab was dumbfounded. - - - - -{335} - -CHAPTER XXXV - -ORGANISATION FOR WAR - -There is nothing quite so dead as dead politics; therefore I do not -intend to dwell upon my political experiences, except in so far as they -relate to the purpose for which I entered Parliament. That purpose was -to serve the interests of the Royal Navy. Politics, as such, have -never greatly interested me; the Party system always appeared to me to -involve a sacrifice of principle; and if I am associated with the party -with which I am naturally most in sympathy, at least I may claim to -have attacked them quite as often as I have attacked their political -opponents. In return, they have often declined to support me in my -proposals; which, however, have always been supported by the public, -and which as a rule have ultimately been adopted by the authorities. - -In 1885, the Parliamentary tradition which I had known ten years -previously, remained unchanged. During the succeeding generation it -became gradually transformed. Old members, like myself, will -understand what I mean. New members can have little notion of the -House of Commons their fathers knew. In one respect, at least, the -alteration is even startling. The public interest in politics and in -Parliament, once so general and so sincere, has now almost ceased to -exist. What that contemptuous indifference may portend, is another -question. - -In June, 1885, the Liberal Government, having passed their Franchise -and Redistribution Bills, and having aroused general and deep -indignation concerning their conduct of {336} the Soudan campaign, -chose to resign upon an amendment to Mr. Childers's Budget. Lord -Salisbury accepted office, and wound up the session. The general -election took place during the autumn. I stood for East Marylebone, my -opponents being the Rev. J. R. Diggle and Mr. D. Grant. Mr. Diggle -apparently withdrew; for I find that my majority of 944 votes was over -Mr. Grant's poll. The main topic of my speeches was the necessity of -increasing the Fleet, and of maintaining the Union. For rumours that -Mr. Gladstone intended to bring forward a Home Rule policy were in the -air. - -The result of the election was: Liberals 334, Conservatives 250, Irish -Nationalists 86; placing the Conservatives at the mercy of the Irish. -Lord Salisbury's Government were defeated upon an amendment to the -Address, brought forward by Mr. Jesse Collings, in January, 1886. Lord -Salisbury resigned, and Mr. Gladstone returned to office. Then came -his conversion to Home Rule, and the secession of the Liberal -Unionists. On 7th July, 1886, the Government were defeated on the Home -Rule Bill. At the general election which followed, the Radicals and -Home Rulers were returned in a minority of 118. I was again returned -for East Marylebone, my opponent being Professor Beesly, with an -increased majority. In the new Parliament, Lord Salisbury was Prime -Minister and Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs; Lord Randolph -Churchill, Chancellor of the Exchequer; Mr. W. H. Smith, Leader of the -House of Commons; and Lord George Hamilton, First Lord of the Admiralty. - -It was during one of the Marylebone elections that I was visited by a -deputation of clergymen of various denominations, who solemnly assured -me that, if I persisted in supporting the proposal to open museums and -picture-galleries on Sundays, they would not vote for me. - -"Gentlemen, has it ever occurred to you that I have not asked you to -vote for me?" said I. "Or that I have never in my life asked a man for -a vote?" - -{337} - -They looked at one another. In the ensuing silence, I told them that -if they did not approve of me, they ought, as honest men, to vote for -my opponent. They sadly and silently departed, and I saw them no more: -nor do I know for whom were cast the votes of those men of God; but I -was returned to Parliament. - -Lord Folkestone was standing for Enfield; and when I went down to speak -for him, I found bread upon the waters which returned to me after many -days, in the shape and size of a Royal Marine. While I was speaking, -there arose a tumult at the back of the hall. So far as I could make -out from the platform, a man was insisting on being heard. I called to -him to come up to the platform, where, if he had anything to say, he -could say it. Whereupon a large, resolute and aggressive person came -swiftly up to me. I thought he wanted to fight, and was ready for him. -But he seized my hands in his, shook them warmly, then turned to the -audience and told them the whole story of how I had saved his life off -the Falkland Islands, years before, when I was a lieutenant in the -_Galatea_. The ship was lying at anchor; it was a dark night; when the -Marine somehow fell overboard I had just come on board from a shooting -expedition, and my pockets were full of cartridges. I dived after the -man and seized him. Catching the end of a coil of rope I went down and -down, wondering if the other end of the rope I held was fast, until at -last I felt myself and the Marine being pulled upwards. As we came to -the surface the ship's corporal, who had jumped overboard, got hold of -us, and we were hauled in-board by the quartermaster. - -The story was received with great enthusiasm, and I cannot but suppose -it contributed to win the election for my friend, none the less because -there was no real connection whatever between its subject and politics. - -Upon my return from Egypt in 1885, I was convinced of the superiority -in guns and armour and general excellence of the French ships of war -over our own, because I had utilised many opportunities of comparing -the vessels of {338} the two navies. Observation and reasoning had -also taught me that in many most essential respects the British Navy -was deficient. And above all, it was deficient in organisation for -war. In these opinions I was confirmed by a large number of my brother -officers, among whom I may mention Lord Alcester, Admiral of the Fleet -Sir Henry Keppel, Admiral Sir Thomas M. C. Symonds, Admiral Sir -Geoffrey T. Phipps Hornby, Captain E. R. Fremantle, Admiral Sir Charles -G. J. B. Elliot, Vice-Admiral Sir William Montagu Dowell, Vice-Admiral -Sir R. Vesey Hamilton. - -Accordingly, I enforced the necessity of reform in these matters in my -public speeches, which were numerous. At that time, in the summer of -1885, I find that I was demanding a loan of twenty millions to be -expended upon a shipbuilding programme. - -During the previous year, 1884, there had appeared in the _Pall Mall -Gazette_, then edited by the late Mr. W. T. Stead, the famous series of -articles over the signature of "One who knows the Facts," dealing with -the state of the Navy, which did more than any other Press -representations before or since to awaken public opinion to the true -condition of our defences. It was those articles, together with -articles in _The Times_ and other newspapers, and the excellent letters -of naval officers--notably those of Admiral of the Fleet Sir T. -Symonds--which prepared the way for me. - -International relations with both France and Russia were uneasy; and -war was always a possibility. I knew that we were unprepared for war. -I knew that so long as there was no department charged with the duty of -representing what was required, why it was required, and how much it -would cost, that we should continue to be unprepared for war. I -believed it to be my duty to awaken public opinion to the danger in -which the country undoubtedly stood. - -Nor was I alone in this respect. Not only a number of brother -officers, but many students of the subject, did {339} their best to -enlighten the nation. We were of course told that we were creating a -scare; but a study of the Press of those days shows that nearly every -great newspaper, irrespective of its politics, demanded the -strengthening and reorganisation of our defences. Personally, I -received great support from the Press. Writers on the subject of -national defence were at least sure that I had, personally, nothing to -gain by publishing the truth. - -Indeed, I had thus early in my career, when I was a junior captain, to -choose between the stormy enterprise of the reformer, and the safer -course of official acquiescence and party obedience, leading to -promotion and to office. In making the choice, I had to consider that -as a naval officer advocating this and that in spite of the -authorities, I laid myself open to the charge that such matters were -none of my business, which was to obey orders. The argument is quite -legitimate. On the other hand, knowing the facts of the case, clearly -perceiving the danger, and (as I believed) knowing also how to remedy -what was wrong, I might (and did) justly contend that my duty to -Sovereign and country came before all. I admit that these things were -not necessarily my business; not, at least, until I made them my -business. But I may also remark that the deplorable condition of the -national defences in 1885 was the result of the united negligence of -the people whose business it was to maintain them, and who had no -department which could supply them with the necessary information; and -that, in consequence, someone had to do something. The history of -England was made by persons who did what it was not their business to -do, until they made it their business. - -My difficulties were then, and have always been, inherent in the nature -of the case. It is part of the character of the English people to -trust in authority, as such; and they are quite right in principle; -whose observance, however, induces them to be slow to act when -authority has proved untrustworthy. Again, in order that my case -should be proved beyond cavil, the supreme demonstration of war was -required. It is not {340} enough that because my recommendations were -carried into execution, war was prevented; for only the few who know -the facts and who are acquainted with the complex shifts of -international policy, understand the value of potential armed force in -the exercise of diplomacy. I may claim, indeed, I do claim, that -sooner or later my recommendations have been adopted by the -authorities, who thereby proved the justice of my case. Nor do I -complain because they have gained the credit accruing to their action; -for it must always be the man who does the thing who earns the laurel. -And he who insists upon assuming the office of reformer, must make up -his mind at the beginning to renounce without bitterness whatever -delight he might discover in reward or fame or renown. Moreover, the -credit belongs to no one man, but to the many fearless officers who -urged reform, and not less to the great body of those officers of the -Service who silently and loyally kept the routine going, and without -whom no reforms could avail. - -The whole position is of course quite illogical; as illogical as that -venerable anomaly, the British Constitution, which exists entirely in -the brains of the learned. A certain set of persons are selected to -govern the nation by a majority of votes, those votes being allocated -upon an accidental system which gives to a small number exactly the -same representation as an immensely larger number. Out of that set a -few are selected to form a governing committee called the Cabinet, -which is virtually omnipotent so long as it continues to act more or -less in accordance with the wishes of the majority which elected it. -The Cabinet is, therefore, in practice, constrained to act in -accordance with the known opinions of its supporters; a course of -action which is a totally different thing from the course which it is -theoretically supposed to follow. Theoretically, the Cabinet shapes -its policy to ensure the welfare of the whole nation. Theoretically, -the business of the Government is to govern. Theoretically, its -members are the men in the country best fitted for the work. Sometimes -they are; and in proportion as they are, they will {341} approximate to -the conventional theory and will depart from the common practice, and -will do what is right instead of what is expedient. Thus every -Government oscillates between pure opportunism and honest patriotism. -And in the result, the only method of obtaining reform in any direction -is so to persuade the public of its necessity, that the party in power -will perceive that it is more to their own profit to grant than to -withhold it. And in justice to the politicians, it should be added -that under the existing system, many concessions must be made by the -most austere statesman, if the Duke of Wellington's ultimate principle -is to be observed; the principle that the King's Government must be -carried on. - -In July, 1884, Lord Northbrook, the First Lord of the Admiralty in Mr. -Gladstone's administration, publicly declared that if he had £3,000,000 -to spend upon the Navy, that force was so sufficient and so efficient -that he would not know on what to spend the money. Before the end of -the year he was compelled to find out how to spend £5,500,000, and to -spend them. From a Liberal Government the Salisbury Government of 1886 -inherited the completing of the Northbrook shipbuilding programme; -whose provisions were based, not upon any intelligible scheme of -preparation for war but, upon the Russian war-scare. Those who were -acquainted with the real posture of affairs were not deluded by the -mere haphazard expenditure of a few millions, voted in order to soothe -public opinion. - -Nor did ministers themselves deny the total inadequacy of their -measures. In March, 1886, when the Liberal administration was still in -power, I brought forward in the House of Commons an amendment -empowering the Government to expend an additional sum of over -£5,000,000 upon the construction of 35 cruisers, three armoured -cruisers, and 21 torpedo craft; pointing out at the same time that the -expenditure would provide employment for a large number of unemployed -workmen, both skilled and unskilled. Of course the amendment was -defeated; but it is significant that {342} the necessity of such an -increase was virtually admitted by the Government spokesmen. I also -urged the abolition of 69 useless vessels of war, which I specified, -and the expenditure of the money saved in their maintenance, upon new -vessels. - -At that time, it was nearly impossible to obtain accurate official -information with regard to naval affairs. I asked for a return of the -relative strength of the Fleets of this and other countries; which was -granted; and which aroused considerable comment in the Press. The -return has since been issued every year; first in my name, then in the -name of Sir Charles Dilke, and at present in the name of Mr. Dickenson. - -But the first half of the year 1886 was consumed with the Home Rule -Bill. Turn to the files of the time, and you shall see precisely the -same arguments, declarations, denunciations, intrigues and rumours of -intrigues, charges and counter-charges which were repeated in 1893, and -which are being reiterated all over again as if they had just been -discovered, in this year of grace 1913. We who stood to our guns in -1886 know them by heart. We have been denounced as traitors and rebels -because we stand by Ulster, for so long, that we are beginning to think -we shall escape hanging at the latter end of it. - -I know my countrymen, both of north and south, for I am of both; and -they know me. Isaac Butt once asked me to lead the Home Rule party; -because, he said, my brother Waterford was widely respected and -popular, and was thoroughly acquainted with the Irish question, of -which I also had a sufficient knowledge. I might have accepted the -invitation, had I believed that Home Rule was what my countrymen -needed. But it was not. The settlement of the land question was and -is the only cure for Irish ills. Mr. Wyndham with his Land Act did -more for Ireland than any Government that ever was; and I say it, who -have lost a great part of my income under the operation of the Act. - -Not that the Irish would have obtained the Wyndham Act, had they not -been incorrigibly intractable. By {343} demanding a great deal more -than they wanted, which they called Home Rule, they got what they did -want, which was the land. Their avidity for the land never diminished; -whereas the cry for Home Rule died down; until, by one of the -inconsistencies of Irish politics which so bewilder the Englishman, it -was revived by John Finton Lalor and Michael Davitt, who welded the two -aspirations together. In order to rid themselves of the Home Rule -spectre, the English Government conceded the land. And then, owing to -another unexpected twist, they found the spectre wasn't laid after all. -For the English had not learned that so long as they permit Ireland to -be so superbly over-represented, so long will they have trouble. Sure, -they'll learn the lesson some day, if God will; for there's no lack of -teaching, the way it is. In the meantime, it is hard for the English -people to argue against what appears to be the demand of the majority -of the Irish people. - -But so far was the Government in power in 1912 from understanding or -attempting to understand Irishmen, that the defence of the Home Rule -Bill was constantly relegated to two eminent descendants of an -interesting Asiatic race; who, however distinguished in their own walk -of life, could never in any circumstances know or care anything -whatsoever about Ireland. The Ulstermen, at least, resented the -proceeding. - -One of the Nationalists attacked me with great ferocity in the House. -He accused my family for generations past of having committed atrocious -crimes, and asserted that I myself had entered Parliament for the sole -purpose of escaping active service in case of war with a foreign Power. - -"Why did you say all those things?" said I to him in the lobby -afterwards. - -"Sure, Lord Char-less," says he, "ye're an Irishman, and ye'll -understand I didn't mean a word of it." - -Mr. Gladstone's Home Rule Bill having been rejected in 1886, Lord -Salisbury returned to power with a majority that defied Mr. Parnell and -his friends, and so there was no {344} more Home Rule for a while. -'Tis the pure morality of the Home Rule demand that moves the political -conscience; and that the morality always acts upon that sensitive organ -when there is a controlling Irish vote, and not at any other time, is -of course a mere coincidence. - -In August, 1886, I was appointed junior lord at the Admiralty, -succeeding Captain James E. Erskine. - -"No doubt you'll try to do a number of things, but you'll run up -against a dead wall. Your sole business will be to sign papers," said -Captain Erskine, and so departed. - -I speedily discovered that there was at the Admiralty no such thing as -organisation for war. It was not in the distribution of business. -Lest I should seem to exaggerate, I quote the testimony of the late Sir -John Briggs, Reader to the Lords and Chief Clerk of the Admiralty. -Referring to the period with which I am dealing, Sir John Briggs writes -as follows (_Naval Administrations, 1827 to 1892_. Sampson Low. 1897): - -"During my Admiralty experience of forty-four years, I may safely -affirm that no measures were devised, nor no practical arrangements -thought out, to meet the numerous duties which devolve upon the -Admiralty, and which at once present themselves at the very beginning -of a war with a first-class naval Power; on the contrary, there had -been unqualified apprehension on the mere rumour of war, especially -among the naval members, arising from their consciousness of the -inadequacy of the Fleet to meet the various duties it would be required -to discharge in such an eventuality." - -The fact was that after Trafalgar this country had attained to so -supreme a dominance upon all seas, with so high a degree of -sea-training acquired in independent commands, that organisation for -war was taken for granted. We were living on the Nelson tradition. -The change came with the advent of steam, which altered certain -essential conditions of sea warfare. The use of steam involved a new -organisation. Other nations recognised its necessity. We {345} did -not. Nor was it that the distinguished naval officers composing -successive Boards of Admiralty neglected their duty, for organisation -for war did not form part of their duty, as they conceived it. -Moreover, they were wholly occupied with the vast labour of routine -business, which developed upon them when the old Navy Board was -abolished. The Navy Board, in the old wars, was charged with the -provision of all matters of supply, leaving the Lords Commissioners -free to conduct war. - -That there existed no department charged with the duty of constantly -representing what was required in ships, men, stores, docks, under -peace conditions, or what would be required under war conditions, was -obvious enough. But in the course of the execution of my duties as -junior lord, it immediately became equally clear that the Navy was -deficient in those very matters and things concerning which it would -have been the business of such a department to report. Among them was -coal, which was in my charge. Not only was there an immense deficiency -in the war reserve of coal, but there was no plan for supplying it. - -What my friends used to call my "craze," which they regarded as an -amiable form of lunacy, for organisation for war, showed me that -without it, all naval force, though it were twice as powerful, would be -practically wasted in the event of emergency. - -I went to the First Lord and asked him if it would be in order for me -to draw up a memorandum on any subject to be laid before the Board. -Lord George Hamilton, with his invariable courtesy, replied that any -such paper would be gladly considered. - -Within six weeks of my appointment to the Admiralty, I had drawn my -Memorandum on War Organisation calling attention to the necessity of -creating a Naval Intelligence Department at the Admiralty. - -In that document, it was represented: - -1. That although recent events had revealed approximately our -deficiencies in the event of war with a {346} second-rate maritime -Power, no measures had been taken to prepare a plan showing how the -requirements were to be met. - -2. That other countries possessed departments charged with the duty of -preparing plans of campaign and of organising their every detail so -that they could be instantly carried into execution. - -3. That the deficiencies in the numbers of the personnel known to be -required, were such and such. - -4. That the Medical stores were deficient in such and such respects. -(They were kept in bulk, so that in the event of war, the medical -stores would have had to be selected and distributed: a system I was -able to alter.) - -5. That there existed no organisation of any kind with regard to the -use of merchant shipping in war for the transport of coal, ammunition, -and stores, and for hospital ships. - -6. That there existed no organisation for rapidly mobilising the -reserves. - -7. That in order rightly to fulfil these requirements, there must be -designed plans of campaign to meet all probable contingencies. - -8. That in order to obtain such plans of campaign, there should be -created a new department charged with the duty of drawing them up. - -There followed a detailed scheme for a new Intelligence Department, at -an increased expense of no more than £2251. - -The Memorandum concluded as follows: - -"1. Can it be denied that the gravest and most certain danger exists to -the country if the facts stated in this paper are true? - -"2. Can it be denied that these facts are true? - -"3. If not, should not immediate steps be taken to minimise the danger?" - - -The Memorandum was laid before the Board. My colleagues came to the -unanimous conclusion that my statements were exaggerated; and also -that, as a junior, I was {347} meddling with high matters which were -not my business; as indeed I was. Having been thus defeated, I asked -the permission of Lord George Hamilton to show the Memorandum to Lord -Salisbury, and received it. - -Lord Salisbury very kindly read the document then and there from -beginning to end. He pointed out to me that, on the face of it, I -lacked the experience required to give force to my representations, and -that I had not even commanded a ship of war in a Fleet. - -"You must have more experience, on the face of it," he repeated. - -And he observed that, practically, what I was asking him to do, was to -set my opinion above the opinion of my senior officers at the -Admiralty, and their predecessors. - -I replied that, since he put the matter in that way, although it might -sound egotistical, I did ask him to do that very thing; but I begged -him, before deciding that I was in the wrong, to consult with three -admirals, whom I named. - -A week later, I saw Lord Salisbury again. He told me that in my main -contentions, I was right; that he was sure I should be glad to hear -that the three admirals had agreed with them; and that the Board of -Admiralty had decided to form a new department upon the lines I had -suggested. - -The new Naval Intelligence Department was then formed. - -The Director was Captain William H. Hall. His assistants were Captain -R. N. Custance (now Admiral Sir Reginald N. Custance, K.C.B., K.C.M.G.) -and Captain S. M. Eardley-Wilmot (now Rear-Admiral Sir S. M. -Eardley-Wilmot). - -There was already in existence a Foreign Intelligence Committee, whose -business it was to collect information concerning the activities of -foreign naval Powers. In my scheme the new department was an extension -of the Foreign Intelligence Committee, which was to form Section 1, -while {348} the duties of Section 2 were "To organise war preparations, -including naval mobilisation and the making out of plans for naval -campaigns to meet all the contingencies considered probable in a war -with different countries, corrected frequently and periodically." The -whole of the department was to be placed under an officer of flag rank; -a part of my recommendations which was not carried into effect until -1912, when the War Staff was instituted at the Admiralty. - -It will be observed that, although I designated the new department the -Intelligence Department, it was in fact planned to combine Intelligence -duties proper with the duties of a War Staff. What I desired was a -department which reported "frequently and periodically" upon -requirements. But as it was impossible to know what those requirements -would be without plans of campaign which specified them, the same -department was charged with the duty of designing such plans. - -In the result, that particular and inestimably important office was -gradually dropped. The department became an Intelligence Department -alone. The First Sea Lord was charged with the duty of preparation and -organisation for war. After various changes in the distribution of -business, it was again discovered that there was no organisation for -war; that the First Sea Lord, though (as I said in 1886) he had a head -as big as a battleship, could not accomplish the work by himself; and a -War Staff, affiliated to the Intelligence Department, was constituted -in 1912. - -In other words, twenty-six years elapsed before my scheme was carried -into full execution. - -On the 13th October, 1886, the substance of my confidential Memorandum -on Organisation for War was published in the _Pall Mall Gazette_. It -was stolen from the Admiralty by an Admiralty messenger, who was -employed by both the First Sea Lord and myself. The contents of -several other confidential documents having been published, suspicion -fell upon the messenger, and a snare was laid for {349} him. An -electric contact was made with a certain drawer in the desk of the -First Sea Lord, communicating with an alarm in another quarter of the -building. Upon leaving his room, the First Sea Lord told the messenger -to admit no one during his absence, as he had left unlocked a drawer -containing confidential documents. A little after, the alarm rang, and -the messenger was discovered seated at the desk, making a copy of the -documents in question. He was arrested, brought to trial, and -sentenced. - - - - -{350} - -CHAPTER XXXVI - -THE TWENTY-ONE MILLION - -In January, 1887, my routine work at the Admiralty was varied by a trip -in the new submarine _Nautilus_ to the bottom of Tilbury Dock, which -was very nearly the last voyage of the party in this world. The owners -of the boat, Mr. Edward Wolseley and Mr. C. E. Lyon, had invited -several guests, among whom was Mr. William White (afterwards Sir -William Henry White, K.C.B., F.R.S., etc.), together with some -officials of the Admiralty. The theory was that by pushing air -cylinders to project from each side of the boat, her buoyancy would be -so increased that she would rise to the surface. We sank gently to the -bottom and stayed there. The cylinders were pushed out, and still we -remained there. I was looking through the glass scuttle, and, although -in a submarine the motion or rising or sinking is not felt by those -within, I knew that we had not moved, because I could see that the -muddy particles suspended in the water remained stationary. The Thames -mud had us fast. In this emergency, I suggested rolling her by moving -the people quickly from side to side. The expedient succeeded, none -too soon; for by the time she came to the surface, the air was very -foul. - -During the same month, Mr. William White, Chief Constructor to the -Admiralty, read a paper at the Mansion House dealing with the design of -modern men-of-war, which marked an era in shipbuilding. Sir William -White restored to the ship of war that symmetry and beauty of design -which {351} had been lost during the transition from sails to steam. -The transition vessels were nightmares. Sir William White designed -ships. A man of genius, of a refined and beautiful nature, a loyal -servant of the Admiralty, to which he devoted talents which, applied -outside the Service, would have gained him wealth, his recent death was -a great loss to his country. The later Victorian Navy is his splendid -monument: and it may yet be that history will designate those noble -ships as the finest type of steam vessels of war. - -About the same time, I brought forward another motion in the House of -Commons, to abolish obsolete vessels, of which I specified fifty-nine, -and to utilise the money saved in their maintenance, in new -construction. The scheme was carried into execution by degrees. - -In June of 1887, I invited a large party of members of the House of -Commons to visit Portsmouth, where they were shown something of the -Navy. - -In December of the same year, speaking in public, I affirmed the -following principles: that in time of war our frontiers were the ports -of the enemy; that our main fleets could be required to watch those -ports; and that the strength of the Fleet required should be calculated -upon the basis of the work it would be required to perform. I also -urged that the line of communications should be instituted, by means of -establishing a system of signalling between the ships of the Navy and -the ships of the mercantile marine, and between all ships and the -shore. At that time there was no such system. - -The Press and the public received the exposition of these elementary -principles of organisation for war as a complete novelty; by many they -were welcomed like a revelation; circumstances which exemplify the -general ignorance prevailing at the time. - -Of even more significance were the official declarations on the -subject. The First Lord of the Admiralty, Lord George Hamilton, had -publicly stated in November, 1886, that this country had more ships in -commission than the {352} three other European Naval Powers next in -order of strength. The statement was correct; but among the ships in -commission were included many vessels of no fighting value, such as the -_Indus_, _Asia _and _Duke of Wellington_. As an estimate of -comparative fighting strength, the statement, like many another -official statement before and since, required qualification; as I -remarked in the House of Commons in the course of my reply to Lord -George Hamilton. - -In December, 1886, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Lord Randolph -Churchill, suddenly resigned. He afterwards explained that his -resignation was a protest against extravagance and waste in the -administration of the Services. There were extravagance and waste; -but, in my view, which I represented to Lord Randolph, it would take -several years to reform the administration, and it was far more -important to set right our defences, even if their administration cost -more in the meantime. - -I recall these things because they serve to illustrate the trend of -events. On the one side were the Government and their official -advisers at the Admiralty, convinced that all was very well as it was. -On the other side, were the rapid development of the fighting ship in -all countries, which owing to Mr. W. H. White, was particularly marked -in this country; the greatly increased public interest in naval -affairs; and the constant representations of a number of naval -officers, myself among them, to the effect that great reforms were -urgently required. - -We believed that there existed at the Board of Admiralty no system of -direct responsibility; that Parliament and the nation had no means -either of ascertaining upon what principle the money was expended upon -our defences or of affixing responsibility whether it were expended ill -or well; that there existed no plan of campaign at the Admiralty; that -the Navy and the Army had no arrangement for working together in the -event of war; and that, in point of fact, the Navy was dangerously -inadequate. And in attempting to achieve reform, we were confronted -{353} by a solid breastwork, as though built of bales of wool, of -official immovability. Had it been a hard obstacle, we might have -smashed it. - -Towards the end of 1887, the Admiralty did a very foolish thing. They -decided to cut down the salaries of the officers of the new -Intelligence Department by £950. In my view, this proceeding both -involved a breach of faith with the officers concerned, and would be -highly injurious to the efficiency of the department for whose success -I felt peculiarly responsible. My protests were, however, disregarded; -the First Lord asserted his supreme authority; and the thing was done. - -The efficiency of the whole Service was, in my view, bound up with the -efficiency of the Intelligence Department; because that department was -created for the express purpose of estimating and reporting what was -required to enable the Navy to fulfil its duties. It was in view of -the main question of the necessity of strengthening the Fleet, that I -decided to resign my position upon the Board of Admiralty, and to -declare publicly my reasons for so doing. On the 9th January, 1888, I -sent my resignation to Lord Salisbury; who, courteously expressing his -regret, accepted it on 18th January. - -In making my decision to take this extreme action, I was influenced by -the conviction that nothing short of the resignation of a member of the -Board of Admiralty would induce the authorities to reorganise and -strengthen our defences. Whether or not I was right in that belief, I -do not know to this day; but, as the strengthening of the Fleet was -shortly afterwards carried into execution in precise accordance with my -recommendations, there is some evidence in my favour. My constituents -in East Marylebone were strongly adverse to my course of action. Many -of my friends begged me not to resign. General Buller, in particular, -pointed out to me that no good was ever done by an officer resigning -his post, because the officer who resigned ceased by his own act to -occupy the position which entitled {354} him to a hearing. I daresay -he was right. At any rate, I was well aware that I was jeopardising my -whole career. For an officer to resign his seat upon the Board of -Admiralty in order to direct public attention to abuses, is to commit, -officially speaking, the unpardonable sin. When, three or four years -later, Sir Frederick Richards, the First Sea Lord, threatened to resign -if the Government would not accept his shipbuilding programme, although -I am certain he would have pursued exactly the same course had he stood -alone, he had the support of the rest of the Board. I had the rest of -the Sea Lords against me. That is a different affair. A united Board -of Admiralty can generally in the last resort prevail against the -Government. A single member of that Board who attempts the same feat, -knows, at least, that never again will he be employed at the Admiralty. -But when Sir Frederick Richards and his colleagues threatened -resignation, they were in fact risking the loss of employment and -incurring the possibility of spending the rest of their lives in -comparative penury. A later Liberal administration has dismissed one -Naval Lord after another, without a scruple. - -In my case, I had the advantage of possessing a private income, so that -I was independent of the Service as a means of livelihood. It is -necessary to speak plainly upon this matter of resignation. It is most -unfair to expect naval officers to resign in the hope of bringing about -reform, when by so doing their income is greatly reduced. If the -British public desire it to be understood that a Sea Lord is expected -to resign should the Government in power fail to make what he believes -to be the necessary provision for the national security, then the -public must insist that the Sea Lords be granted an ample retiring -allowance. - -In the following February (1888) Lord George Hamilton made a speech at -Ealing, in which he dealt with my protests in the most courteous -manner. He stated that I had resigned because I objected to the -exercise of the supreme authority of the First Lord over the Board of -Admiralty. I had certainly objected to its exercise in a particular -instance. {355} And at that time I was constantly urging that -Parliament and the country had a right to know who was responsible for -the actions of the Admiralty. My theory was that there should be some -means by which Parliament and the public should be assured that any -given course of action was founded upon professional advice. That no -such means existed was notorious. It was within the legal right of a -First Lord to announce a policy contravening or modifying the views of -the rest of the Board. - -My view was, and is, the view tersely stated by Admiral Phipps Hornby, -who said that it was the right of the Cabinet to formulate a policy, -and that it was the duty of the Sea Lords to provide what was required -in order to carry that policy into execution; but that the Cabinet had -no right whatever to dictate to the Sea Lords in what the provision -should consist, for that was a matter of which the Sea Lords alone were -competent to judge. - -But if the Board of Admiralty be placed under the supreme jurisdiction -of the First Lord, a civilian and a politician, the country has no -means of knowing whether or no the recommendations of the Sea Lords are -being carried into execution. I said at the time that some such means -should be instituted; afterwards, perceiving that no such demand would -be granted, I urged that the Cabinet at least ought to be precisely -informed what were the requirements stated by the Sea Lords to be -necessary in order to carry into execution the policy of the Government. - -In claiming supreme authority as First Lord over the Board of -Admiralty, Lord George Hamilton was legally and constitutionally in the -right. The Royal Commission on the administration of the Navy and -Army, over which Lord Hartington presided, reported in 1890 (when I was -at sea) that the Admiralty had long ceased to be administered in -accordance with the terms of its original Patent, and that "the present -system of administration in the Admiralty is the result of -Parliamentary action upon what was once in fact as well as name an -executive and administrative {356} Board. The responsibility, and -consequently the power of the First Lord has continually increased, and -he is at present practically the Minister of Marine." In other words, -by slow degrees the politician had transferred the powers of the Board -to himself, where they remain; the other members of the Board becoming -merely his advisers. The result is that there is nothing, except the -personal influence of the Naval Lords upon the First Lord, to prevent -the Navy from being governed in accordance with party politics, without -reference to national and Imperial requirements; a system which -produces intermittent insecurity and periodical panics involving -extravagant expense. - -The Commissioners also found that there was a difference of opinion -among the Naval Lords themselves concerning their responsibility with -regard to the strength and efficiency of the Fleet. It was, in a word, -nobody's business to state what were the requirements of the Fleet. -The First Lord might ask for advice, if he chose, in which case he -would get it. If he did not so choose, there was no one whose duty it -was to make representations on the subject. Admiral Sir Arthur Hood -stated that never in the whole course of his experience had he known a -scheme comprehending the naval requirements of the Empire to be laid -before the Board. He also stated that the method of preparing the Navy -Estimates was that the First Lord stated what sum the Cabinet felt -disposed to grant for the Navy, and that the Naval Lords then proceeded -to get as much value for their money as they could. - -No wonder the Sea Lords were expected to sign the Estimates without -looking at them. When I was junior lord, responsible for the provision -of coal and stores among other trifles, a clerk came into my room with -a sheaf of papers in one hand and a wet quill pen in the other. - -"Will you sign the Estimates?" says he. - -"What?" said I. - -"Will you sign the Estimates for the year?" he repeated. - -"My good man," I said, "I haven't seen them." - -{357} - -The clerk looked mildly perturbed. He said: - -"The other Lords have signed them, sir. It will be very inconvenient -if you do not." - -"I am very sorry," said I. "I am afraid I am inconvenient in this -office already. But I certainly shall not sign the Estimates." - -The clerk's countenance betrayed consternation. - -"I must tell the First Lord, sir," said he, as one who presents an -ultimatum. - -"I don't care a fig whom you tell," said I. "I can't sign the -Estimates, because I have not read them." - -Nor did I sign them. They were brought before the House of Commons -without my signature. The First Lord said it did not really matter. -My point was that I would not take responsibility for a document I had -not seen. The fact was, that the custom of obtaining the signatures of -the Board is a survival of the time when the Sea Lords wielded the -power and responsibility conferred upon them by the original Patent. - -The Commissioners also reported that the lack of "sufficient provision -for the consideration by either Service of the wants of the other" ... -was an "unsatisfactory and dangerous condition of affairs." - -Here, then, were all the points for which my brother officers and -myself were contending, and in order to illuminate which I had -resigned, explicitly admitted. But the proofs did not appear until a -year after my resignation took effect, when the Select Committee on the -Navy Estimates began to take evidence; nor were they published for -another year. - -In the meantime, the naval reformers fought as best they might. Freed -from the restraint necessarily imposed upon me by my official position -at the Admiralty, I was able to devote my whole energies to making -known the real state of affairs. - -Upon the introduction of the Navy Estimates of 1888-9 I challenged the -votes for shipbuilding, the Secretary's {358} Department, the -Intelligence Department, the Reserve of merchant cruisers, the Royal -Naval Reserve and naval armaments, in order to call attention to -requirements. - -In the course of the debates, the official formula was: "At no time was -the Navy more ready or better organised for any work which it might be -called upon to do than to-day." My reply was that these words "have -rung in our ears as often as the tune '_Britannia_ rules the waves,' -and have been invariably falsified when war appeared imminent." And -who would have to do the work? The officials who said that all was -ready, or the admirals who said that all was unready? - -In May, a meeting to consider the needs of national defence was held in -the City, at which I delivered an address. Speaking at the Lord -Mayor's banquet in November, the First Lord admitted that there might -be room for improvement in the Navy. It was a dangerous, if a candid, -admission. For if the Navy were not strong enough, _how weak was it_? - -Exactly how weak it was in June, 1888, in the opinion of the First Sea -Lord, Admiral Sir Arthur Hood, was explained by him before the Select -Committee on Navy Estimates (13th June, 1888). "I should have -preferred by the end of 1890 to have had six more fast cruisers. I do -not consider it a point of vital importance," said Admiral Hood. But -as, upon his own showing, within his recollection no one at the -Admiralty had ever produced a scheme comprehending the naval -requirements of the Empire, his view was hardly conclusive. I had the -audacity to consider that if no one had ever attempted, or thought of -attempting, to estimate the requirements of the naval defence of the -Queen's dominions, it was time that some one did attempt to do so, even -if that some one were myself. Accordingly, I made a careful -calculation of the work the Fleet might under probable contingencies be -required to perform, and upon that calculation based an estimate of the -classes and numbers of ships which would be needed. - -{359} - -I showed my estimate to Admiral Hornby, who said that, although the -ships were absolutely necessary, I was asking too much and I should in -consequence get nothing. He also pointed out that I had made no -provision for the increase of personnel required to man the proposed -new ships. I replied that if the ships were laid down, the authorities -would be obliged to find the men for them. The sequel showed that I -was wrong and that Admiral Hornby was right. He knew his responsible -authority better than I did. Six years later, when what should have -been the increased personnel would have been trained and available, the -Fleet was short of 20,000 men. - -My cousin, General Sir Reginald Talbot, reminds me of a conversation -which befell between Mr. Goschen, then Chancellor of the Exchequer, and -myself, in November of the same year, 1888, when we were staying at -Wilton, the house of my cousin, Lady Pembroke. Mr. Goschen began to -talk about the Navy, and he was so good as to express high disapproval -of my course of action. He said I was doing a great deal of harm, that -I was presuming to set my rash opinion above the considered judgment of -old and distinguished officers who had commanded ships before I was -born, and so forth. - -"Do you know what I am shortly going to propose to Parliament?" said I. -"No? I'll tell you. I am going to ask for seventy ships to cost -twenty million sterling." - -Mr. Goschen became really angry. He said the notion was preposterous. - -"You won't get them," he said. "You wouldn't get even three ships, if -you asked for them. And for a very simple reason. They are not -wanted." - -"Mr. Goschen," said I, "I shall bring in that programme, and it will -cost twenty million; and you will all object to it and oppose it; and -yet I'll venture to make a prophecy. Before very long you will order -seventy ships at the cost of twenty million. And for a very simple -reason. Because you must." - -{360} - -On the 13th December, 1888, speaking on Vote 8 (ship-building, repairs -and maintenance), I expounded my ship-building programme to the House -of Commons. I based it upon the following principles: - - -"The existence of the Empire depends upon the strength of the Fleet, -the strength of the Fleet depends upon the Shipbuilding Vote.... I -maintain the Shipbuilding Vote is based on no policy, no theory, no -business-like or definite idea whatever, to enable it to meet the -requirements of the country, the primary object of its expenditure.... -I hold that the Government, which is and must be solely responsible, -should first lay down a definite standard for the Fleet, which standard -should be a force capable of defending our shores and commerce, -together with the punctual and certain delivery of our food supply, -against the Fleets of two Powers combined, one of which should be -France; and that the experts should then be called together and say -what is necessary to get that standard, and give the reasons for their -statement...." - - -The programme included four first-class ironclads, 10 second-class -ironclads, 40 cruisers of various classes, and torpedo craft: 70 -vessels in all, to be built at a cost of £20,100,000. - -I also affirmed the proposition made by Admiral Sir Anthony Hoskins, -the Secretary of the Admiralty, and the Civil Lord, to the effect that -"the British Fleet should be more than a match for the combined fleets -of any two European Powers that were likely to be our foes, one of -which must necessarily be France." Here, so far as I am aware, was the -first definite demand for the Two-Power Standard; which was maintained -until it was abandoned by the Government which came into power in 1906. - -[Illustration: THE AUTHOR SPEAKING IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS ON HIS -TWENTY-ONE MILLION SHIPBUILDING PROGRAMME, 13TH DECEMBER 1888. FROM -THE DRAWING, BY J. WALTER WILSON, IN THE POSSESSION OF THE AUTHOR] - -Lord George Hamilton received my proposals with caution. He was "far -from saying it (the Fleet) was strong enough." And he told the House -that next year he hoped {361} to lay before the House a larger and more -comprehensive programme than was provided by the current estimates, -"desiring that when they moved their movement should be genuine and -prolonged." - -Twelve weeks later, Lord George Hamilton brought in a shipbuilding -programme consisting of 70 vessels, to be built at a cost of -£21,500,000. - -Yet nothing had happened since the previous June, when Sir Arthur Hood -declared that he would have preferred six more cruisers, but that they -were not of vital importance? - -Nothing, that is to say, with regard to the international situation, -and the increase of foreign navies, and the requirements of Imperial -defence. But several things had happened at home. Of the most -important of these, I knew nothing until many years afterwards. It was -that Captain W. H. Hall, Director of the new Intelligence Department, -whose institution I had recommended for this very purpose, had worked -out the problem of naval requirements independently, and, with all the -sources of information available in the Admiralty at his command, had -arrived at precisely the same result (except for an increase of cost) -as that to which I had arrived, without the information possessed by -Captain Hall. I may mention here that Captain Hall was a most -distinguished and patriotic officer, with whom no considerations of -personal interest ever weighed for an instant against what he conceived -to be his duty to his Sovereign and to his country. What happened at -the Admiralty when his report was laid before the Board, I do not know, -as I never had any communication with Captain Hall on the subject. All -I know is that his scheme, which was identical with the scheme which I -had presented to the House, was accepted by the First Lord. - -Another circumstance which may have influenced the Government was the -very remarkable evidence, which I have already summarised, given before -the Select Committee on the Navy Estimates. And another factor, of -enduring import, was the famous Report of the Three Admirals: {362} -Admiral Sir William Dowell, K.C.B., Admiral Sir R. Vesey Hamilton, -K.C.B., and Vice-Admiral Sir Frederick Richards, K.C.B., on the Naval -Manoeuvres of 1888, presented to both Houses of Parliament in February, -1889. Sir Frederick Richards was mainly responsible for drawing up -that masterly document, which, extending beyond its terms of reference, -formulated the principles of British sea-power; and definitely affirmed -the absolute necessity for establishing and maintaining the Two-Power -Standard. - -With reference to the condition of the Navy at the time, the Three -Admirals reported that the Navy was "altogether inadequate to take the -offensive in a war with only one Great Power"; and that "supposing a -combination of even two Powers to be allied as her enemies, the balance -of maritime strength would be against England." - -How swiftly is the false coin of "official assurances" consumed by the -acid of professional knowledge! The whole episode of the Twenty-One -Million is so typical of the methods of British governance, that I have -thought it worth while to relate it somewhat at length. Those methods, -in a word, consist in the politicians very nearly losing the Empire, -and the Navy saving it just in time. The same thing happened all over -again in 1892. It occurred again 1909, with a difference. Both in -1892 and in 1909 I drew up shipbuilding proposals. In 1892, the -Government eventually adopted the Spencer programme, which was actually -larger than mine. In 1909, the opportunity of restoration was lost; -and the failure cost, and will cost, the country many millions. - -One of these days we shall be hit, and hit hard, at the moment when the -politicians have been found out, and before the Navy has had time to -recover. - -Something to this effect was said to me by Bismarck, when I visited -him, in February, 1889. In truth, I had a little wearied of the polite -and stubborn opposition of my own people, and I went to Berlin to see -what was happening abroad. Prince Bismarck invited me to lunch. - -{363} - -Bismarck said that he could not understand why my own people did not -listen to me (nor could I!); for (said he) the British Fleet was the -greatest factor for peace in Europe. We had a most interesting -conversation upon matters of defence and preparation for war; and his -tone was most friendly towards the English. He very kindly presented -me with his signed photograph. I stayed with him for two hours; and we -drank much beer; and all the time his gigantic boar-hound, lying beside -him, stared fixedly at me with a red and lurid eye. - - - - -{364} - -CHAPTER XXXVII - -H.M.S. _UNDAUNTED_ - -I. WITH THE MEDITERRANEAN FLEET - - "Undaunteds be ready, - Undaunteds be steady, - Undaunteds stand by for a job!" - Bugle call of H.M.S. _Undaunted_ - - -It was invented by the first lieutenant, William Stokes Rees (now -Vice-Admiral W. S. Rees, C.B.), who was one of the best gunnery -officers I have known. I was appointed to the command of the -_Undaunted_ in November, 1889. The commander was Robert S. Lowry (now -Vice-Admiral Sir Robert S. Lowry, K.C.B.). It was the _Undaunted's_ -first commission. She was a twin-screw, first-class armoured cruiser -of 5600 tons displacement and 8500 h.p., ordered to join the -Mediterranean Fleet, under the command of Vice-Admiral Sir Anthony H. -Hoskins, K.C.B. He was succeeded in September, 1891, by my old friend, -Admiral Sir George Tryon, K.C.B., whose tragic death was so great a -loss to the Service and to the country. - -The first essential of good discipline is to make officers and men as -happy and as comfortable as the exigencies of the Service permit. I -believe that the _Undaunted_ was a happy ship; I know that the loyalty, -enthusiasm and hard work of the officers and men under my command -earned her a good record. - -In every vessel there are improvements to be made which, perhaps -trifling in themselves, greatly add to the {365} welfare of the -officers and ship's company. At that time, for instance, the -arrangements for the stokers were so bad, that there was only one bath -available for twenty men. My recommendation was that tubs of -galvanised iron should be supplied, fitting one into another in nests, -so that the extra baths occupied less space than the one regulation -bath. I also had lockers of lattice-work supplied for the stokers' -dirty clothing, instead of closed and insanitary lockers. It is true -that at first the men objected to the open-work, because their pipes -dropped through it. Again, the hatchway ladders were made with sharp -nosings, against which the men injured their legs; and I suggested that -these should be formed with rounded nosings instead. A ship of war is -naturally uncomfortable; but why make it unnecessarily disagreeable? -At that time, too, the rate of second-class petty officer did not exist -among the stokers. The result was that if a leading stoker was -disrated he was reduced to stoker. For this reason, I urged the -institution of the rate of second-class petty officer stoker, a reform -which was eventually instituted. Some years afterwards, the rate of -second-class officer was abolished altogether, a retrograde measure -which I believe to be injurious. - -When a petty officer loses his rate in consequence of a mistake or a -lapse, he should be enabled to recover it by good behaviour. - -One of my countrymen on board, whom we will call Patrick, an able -seaman of long service, perpetually failed to attain to the rating of -petty officer owing to his weakness for strong waters. In other -respects he was admirably qualified to rise. I sent for him, told him -I would give him a chance, and made him a second-class petty officer. -I believe that he succumbed once or twice, and that the commander let -him off. But one fine day Patrick returned on board from leave ashore, -fully attired--cap, coat, boots and socks--with the single exception of -his trousers. The case having been officially reported to me, I had up -the delinquent before the assembled petty officers. I made it a rule -{366} not to disrate a petty officer in the presence of the ship's -company. - -The charge having been duly read, I asked Patrick what he had to say on -the subject. - -"Do you moind now, sir," says Pat, "that I was drunk the same day last -year?" - -I told him I did not remember anything of the sort. - -"Well, sir," continued Patrick, unabashed, "to tell you the truth, 'tis -my mother's birthday, and I had a drop of drink taken." - -I told him that it was impossible to allow petty officers to disgrace -the ship by coming on board without their trousers; that I should take -away his petty officer's rate, but that I would leave him his badges. - -He had three badges. Had he lost them, he would have lost his badge -pay during a period of six months for each badge, so that it would take -him eighteen months of "very good" conduct to regain them. In -addition, he would have lost the good conduct medal, a part of his -pension and a part of his gratuity on leaving the Service. The -severity of the punishment in comparison with what is not perhaps a -serious offence, is not always recognised by authority. - -"May I say a word to you, sir?" asked Patrick, having received his -sentence. - -"You can say what you like," said I, "but I am afraid it won't save -your rate." - -"Well, sir," says he, "'tis this way, sir. If you'll think over it the -way it is, I was fourteen years getting th' rate, and you'll be takin' -it away from me in one moment." - -Pat used to delight his audiences at the ship's concerts. He sang -among other beautiful legends, the Irish ditty, "Brannagan's Pup." He -led upon the stage my bull-dog, who came very sulkily. It never could -be (as Pat would have said) that the concertina accompaniment began -when he began. When the concertina started ahead of him, Pat shifted -the bull-dog's leash to his other hand, put his hand to the side of his -mouth, and staring straight upon the {367} audience, uttered the -following stage direction in a furious whisper which was heard all over -the ship. - -"Don't you shtart that ruddy pump till I hould up me hand!" - -Some years after I had left the _Undaunted_, arriving in a P. and O. -steamer off a Chinese port, I semaphored to a man-of-war asking the -captain to send me a boat, as I wished to have the pleasure of calling -upon him. The coxswain of the captain's boat was no other than my old -friend. - -"I'm very glad to see you've kept the rate," said I. "I suppose you -run straight now and keep clear of liquor?" - -"Well, sir," says Paddy, "to tell you the truth, I've taken an odd toss -or two since I saw you, but I've got it back again!" - -He meant that he had been disrated again once or twice but had won back -his rate again; indeed, he had won it back while under my command. I -always told my men that if they were tried by court-martial--as the men -now desire to be tried--it would go harder with them. Had Patrick been -tried by court-martial, it is very unlikely that he would have got back -his rate; and his deprivation, being endorsed upon his certificate, -would have affected his chance of gaining employment in civil life upon -leaving the Service. - -I had a case of a man who, because he put his helm over the wrong way, -ran into another boat, with the result that a man was drowned. The -culprit was disrated; but I gave him his rate again before I left the -ship. It is the personal knowledge of a man possessed by his captain -which alone enables his captain to make distinctions. A court-martial -must judge of the offence without personal knowledge of the character -of the offender. - -I had a sergeant of Marines, a man with an excellent record, a strict -disciplinarian, popular among his men, who, within nine months of the -expiration of his time, came aboard blind drunk and disorderly. The -penalty was to be reduced to the ranks. But it is often forgotten what -under {368} such circumstances that penalty involves. The -non-commissioned officer loses his N.C.O.'s time and pension, his badge -pay for six months, and the gratuity of his rank. It is a tremendous -penalty to pay, when, except for the one mistake, he has a clean sheet -all through. I had the man up before the petty officers and -non-commissioned officers, explained that there were only two courses -of action: either to reduce him or to let him off altogether; and told -them that I intended to count his long and excellent service and -exemplary character as outweighing a single failure. - -Here was an exceptional case; and because it was exceptional, it was -wise to depart from the rule, and to give reasons for disciplinary -action. Had no explanation been given, the next man disrated or -reduced might have considered that he had been unfairly treated; but he -could have no such grievance, when the circumstances in which the -non-commissioned officer had his punishment remitted had been made -known at the time. - -Ships, like men, have their weaknesses; and the weakness of our fine -new steam navy consisted in the unprotected ends of our armoured -vessels, in which respect they were inferior to the French ships. The -section of a wooden man-of-war was, roughly speaking, V-shaped below -the water-line; and when she was pierced in action, the water entering -through the shot-holes ran down to the bottom of the vessel, where the -extra weight, although it might sink her lower in the water, acted as -additional ballast, resisting any tendency to capsize. But the section -of a steel man-of-war is roughly a square, with the lower edges -rounded. The protective steel deck, covering the engines, extends the -whole length and width of the ship. Above the water-line there are the -immense weights of armour and guns. If the ship is pierced in her -unprotected ends above the steel deck, the water, entering through the -holes, is held high up in the section, giving her a list, and dragging -her over, so that a badly wounded ship must capsize. Such was my -theory, which I set forth at length in a letter sent to the -commander-in-chief, {369} Sir Anthony Hoskins. He considered the point -of importance, but held that it was a matter rather for the constructor -than the seaman, a view with which I did not agree. - -Sir Anthony Hoskins, who was about to haul down his flag, turned the -letter over to Sir George Tryon, who sent it to the Admiralty. The -Admiralty, I believe, considered that, under certain conditions, the -theory was correct. - -Those conditions occurred on 22nd June, 1893, when the _Victoria_ was -rammed by the _Camperdown_ off Beyrout. The _Camperdown_ struck the -flagship on the starboard bow, and in ten minutes she had capsized and -sunk. As the _Victoria_ was carrying her scuttles open, and received -an injury equivalent to the damage which would be inflicted by a large -shell, the conditions of an action, in which the hull would be pierced -with many small holes and further wounded by heavy projectiles, were -produced, with the result whose probability, if not certainty, I had -indicated. - -In dealing with this subject, I also represented that the French ships -of the period, having a powerful fore and aft fire, might choose in -time of war to fight a retreating action, in which case they could so -damage the unarmoured ends of our vessels, that our vessels could not -be steered, and, being forced to ease speed, would be placed at a -serious disadvantage. - -The _Hecla_, torpedo school ship in the Mediterranean, was commanded by -my old friend, Captain John Durnford (now Admiral Sir John Durnford, -K.C.B., D.S.O.). Together with the officers under my command, I -attended the torpedo classes on board. - -Captain Durnford accompanied me in the _Undaunted_ when we conducted -experiments in the dropping of mines. The mines were the clever -invention of Lieutenant Ottley (now Rear-Admiral Sir Charles C. Ottley, -K.C.M.G., C.B., M.V.O.). By means of an ingenious mechanical -contrivance, they sank themselves to the required depth. We designed -and constructed the dropping gear, rigging it abaft the propellers. -The mines were dropped by hand, the ship {370} steaming at 18 knots. A -certain area was fixed within which the mines were to be sown. We -steamed across it at night, in thick darkness, along a narrow channel. -Unable to take bearings, as the position of the scattered lights on -shore was unknown, we sent out two boats carrying lights. We touched -the ground once, the shock throwing Captain Durnford and myself against -the rail. In four minutes all the mines were dropped without a single -mistake. The experiment was also carried into execution in daylight. -In those days there were no mine-laying vessels, and the _Undaunted_ -was somewhat of a pioneer in the science of mining waters at full speed. - -My experience while in office at the Admiralty had led me profoundly to -suspect (among other things) the adequacy of the provision for reserve -ammunition. And upon making inquiries at Malta, I found that if the -_Undaunted_ in the event of war had expended the whole of her -ammunition, the renewal of the supply for her main armament of 6-inch -guns would (excluding practice ammunition) exhaust the whole reserve -supply. There were no spare guns in reserve at all. My -representations on the subject were by no means gratefully received by -the Admiralty, which considered that the supply of reserve ammunition -and guns was not the business of a captain. I suggested that the -ammunition papers should go to every captain; an arrangement which was -afterwards carried into execution. At this time I also represented -(but in other quarters) the urgent necessity of building a new mole at -Gibraltar, which was then not a naval but a military base, although in -time of war it would be required to serve as one of the most important -naval bases in the world, either for the blue water route or the narrow -sea route. My representations were made with the object of inducing -the Government to transform Gibraltar from a merely military fortress -to a properly equipped naval base. I took soundings and drew out a -scheme. The plan eventually adopted was an improvement upon mine. - -It is not of course implied that I was alone in urging {371} these -reforms and such as these; there were many patriotic men, both in the -Service and outside it, who were engaged in the same endeavour. What I -did must be taken to represent the unrequited labours of others as -well. Sir George Tryon, my commander-in-chief, that splendid seaman -and admirable officer, was always most sympathetic and showed to me the -greatest kindness. I am proud to say that I never served under a -commander-in-chief with whom I was not upon the best of terms. - -Sir George Tryon having received letters from H.H. the Khedive and from -the British Minister Plenipotentiary in Egypt, instructed me to proceed -to Alexandria with a small squadron. H.H. the Khedive welcomed me with -great cordiality, being so kind as to say that I had saved his father's -life during the troubles of 1882, when the _Condor_ kept guard over the -Ramleh Palace. I remained at Alexandria for some time, being senior -officer there. - -In order to relieve the monotony of sea-routine, the men were landed by -companies in the Mex lines, a place with which I had many interesting -associations dating from 1882, for rifle practice, sleeping under -canvas. The water on shore being undrinkable, the men were ordered to -use the distilled water supplied daily from the ship. - -Visiting the hospital tent, I thought one of the patients had cholera. - -"It looks very like it," said the staff-surgeon. - -"Have you been drinking the shore water?" I asked the patient. - -He confessed that he had. I asked him why he had done so. - -"Please, sir," said he, "the distilled water had no taste in it." - -Having arranged with my old friend, Sir William Butler, commanding the -garrison at Alexandria, to combine with the soldiers in field exercise, -I took a landing-party ashore at Ras-el-Tin. We started early in the -morning, embarking the field-guns. The seamen waded ashore with them, -and {372} attacked a position held by the soldiers on the top of the -hill. It looked impregnable, the ground being a steep, sandy slope -covered with scrub. But the bluejackets dragged the guns up through -the sand and bushes. We battled all the morning with great enjoyment; -returned on board, and shifted into dry clothes in time for dinner. -The benefit of such exercises is that all learn something. - -In July, 1891, was held at Alexandria the great regatta, in which 26 -boats of all classes were entered, including a cutter from the -Portuguese sloop _Fieja_ and Arab boats. It was on this occasion that -the galley of the _Undaunted_ ran upon the breakwater, was knocked into -smithereens, and sank. By an extraordinary coincidence, she was an old -boat which the Admiralty had persistently refused to replace. - -Upon leaving Alexandria, the _Undaunted_ touched a rock. We had been -helping the contractor to blow up the rocks in the Borghiz Channel (a -proceeding for which I was subsequently reproved) and left the harbour -steering by stern marks. The staff-commander knew exactly where he was -going, but by a slip of the tongue he gave the order "port" instead of -"starboard," adding that he wanted to close certain buoys marking the -passage. The injury to the ship was very slight, but peculiar. Her -bottom was pierced, and a little fish swam into the ship. I have the -fish with a small piece broken off the keel by the impact, in a bottle. - -In December, 1891, the second annual regatta of the Mediterranean Fleet -was held in Marmorice Bay. In the officers' race, I pulled stroke in -the galley of the _Undaunted_, in spite of Sir George Tryon's kindly -warning that my heart would give way. We beat the _Australia's_ boat -by about two seconds. In the next race, held the following year, the -_Australia_ beat us. - -There were seventeen ships on the station, and 9000 men. The -_Undaunted_ won 22 prizes (12 of them, I think, first prizes) out of -29. All her ratings were regularly practised in all her boats, each -boat racing against the other. In {373} order to equalise chances, the -boats started in rotation, the time allowance being given at the start, -instead of being calculated at the end as in yacht racing, so that the -boat first across the line at the end of the course won the race. The -launch, being the heaviest boat, started last, manned with four men to -the midship oars, three men to the after oars, and two men to the -foremost oars. The boats would often all come in together. The -enthusiasm of the men was immense. At that time the island of Crete -was in a state of chronic agitation, which culminated in the troubles -of 1897, and their suppression by the Council of Admirals, of which -Admiral Sir Robert H. Harris, who represented Great Britain with so -great ability and resource, gives an excellent account in his book, -_From Naval Cadet to Admiral_. In the meantime, Christians and -Mohammedans were joyfully shooting one another, while the Turkish -garrison endeavoured to keep order by shooting both parties -impartially. Riding up from Suda Bay to call upon a certain -distinguished Turkish Pasha, an old friend, I passed several corpses, -both of Christians and Mohammedans, lying on the roadside. - -"Cannot you stop these murders?" I said to the Pasha. "It is really -very distressing to see so many dead bodies." - -"Yes, Lord," said the Pasha (he always called me Lord). "Very sad, -Lord. I am sure you must feel it very much, Lord. It must make you -think you are back in your own country." - -The retort was apposite enough, for moonlighting was then the joy of -Ireland. - -Not that the Turkish soldiers neglected musketry practice. Riding up -to Canea, I was met by bullets whistling past my head. I pulled off -the road, and was joined by an old Turk, who was riding a donkey and -carrying a large white umbrella. Presently we perceived a pot placed -in the middle of the highway, and then we came upon a party of Turkish -soldiers lying in a row and firing at it; whereupon the aged Turk -climbed from his donkey, rolled up his umbrella, and belaboured the -soldiers with it. - -{374} - -I once asked my friend the Pasha why he had not ere then been promoted. - -"I do not know, Lord. The Government does not know. God Almighty does -not know. Even his Imperial Majesty the Sultan does not know!" quoth -the Pasha. - -The _Undaunted_ visited Sorrento in 1891, when Lord Dufferin was -staying there. None who had the privilege of his acquaintance will -need to be reminded of the singular charm of a talented, witty and -urbane personality. Lord Dufferin had the unconscious art of -impressing upon those whom he met that he had been waiting all his life -for that moment. The small sailing yacht, _Lady Hermione_, which he -kept at Sorrento, was a marvel of ingenious contrivance. She was a -decked boat, with a well into which the ropes and gear were led and -were attached to all sorts of levers, tackles and winches, to enable -her to be sailed single-handed. Lord Dufferin, accompanied by Lady -Dufferin, frequently sailed her in the Bay of Naples. On one such -voyage, wishing to tauten up the peak halliards, he told Lady Dufferin -to heave upon a certain lever. She seized the wrong handle, and away -went the anchor with 130 fathoms of chain, which ran out to the clinch. -Then the rest of the equipment became really useful, Lord Dufferin -rigging up purchase on purchase with it, and so heaving up the anchor. -After four hours' incessant toil he succeeded in getting it berthed, -and returned in a state of exhaustion. - -The _Lady Hermione_ persuaded Lord Dufferin to learn Morse and -semaphore. She was moored at the foot of the cliff, beneath Lord -Dufferin's hotel, from whose balcony he used to shout his orders for -the day to the boy who was in charge of her, and who often -misunderstood his instructions. I suggested that he should learn to -communicate with his ship's company by signal, and drew up both the -Morse and semaphore codes for his benefit. In six weeks he sent -letters to me written in both codes; an instance of determined -application. During that time he insisted on practising for so many -hours every day with his wife and daughter, so {375} that at the end of -it the whole family were proficient in signals. - -An interesting example of the manoeuvres of those days occurred at -Volo, when Captain Wilson, V.C., disguised his ship, the _Sanspareil_, -in olive trees. The _Undaunted_ was told off to make a torpedo attack -at night in the narrow channel where lay the _Sanspareil_. Captain -Wilson (now Admiral of the Fleet Sir A. K. Wilson, V.C., G.C.B., O.M., -G.C.V.O.) had constructed a dummy ship on the side of the channel -opposite to which lay the _Sanspareil_, completely clothed in olive -trees. I sent a midshipman to cut the cable of the searchlight playing -upon the entrance to the channel. The _Undaunted_ steamed into the -channel, discovered first the wrong ship, and then the right one, at -which I discharged two torpedoes, which were found next morning under -the bottom of the _Sanspareil_. - -At the conclusion of all manoeuvres, Sir George Tryon invariably gave a -critical lecture upon them to his officers; a method which I adopted in -later years. No practice can be more useful; for, while the events are -fresh in mind, it demonstrates what was wrong, and why. Often what -looks wrong at first, turns out to have been a good idea. But for -years all reports of manoeuvres remained locked in the Admiralty. Many -of the manoeuvres were useless; but for lack of information admirals -afloat continued to repeat them. - -During my time in the _Undaunted_, my knowledge of signalling saved -Captain Harry Rawson (afterwards Vice-Admiral Sir H. H. Rawson, K.C.B.) -and myself a deal of trouble on one occasion. We had been out shooting -all day, had missed the way, and as darkness fell, found ourselves on -the wrong side of the bay in which the Fleet lay at anchor, with the -prospect of a further tramp of twelve or fourteen miles. Rawson used -to chaff me for doing what he called "boatswain's work." - -"You always want," he used to say, "to go down to the store-room and -cut off 30 fathoms of rope yourself." - -To which I used to reply that I wanted to do nothing of {376} the sort; -but what I did want to do was to see that a piece of 30 fathoms of rope -_was_ cut off. On the same principle, Rawson used to deride my -acquaintance with signals. Now that we either had to attract the -attention of the Fleet or walk for another three or four hours, I told -Rawson that if I could find a shepherd's hut I would get a boat over. -He did not believe me. - -But we found a hut, and in the hut, an oil lamp and a bucket, out of -which I constructed a signalling apparatus. I had hardly made the -_Undaunted_ pennant, when it was answered from the ship, and inside a -quarter of an hour the boat waiting for us on the other side of the bay -had been recalled, and another boat was rapidly approaching us. Rawson -left off chaffing me after that. - -It was at this time that my old friend, Captain Gerard Noel (now -Admiral of the Fleet Sir G. H. U. Noel, G.C.B., K.C.M.G.), one of the -smartest seamen in the Service, performed a brilliant feat of -seamanship. Captain Noel commanded the twin-screw, rigged ironclad -_Téméraire_, of 8540 tons displacement, one of the types in which -sail-power was employed as well as steam. She was brig-rigged, and I -think her main-yard measured 104 feet, or about four feet longer than -the main-yards of the sailing line-of-battleships of, say, 1850-60. On -the 3rd October, 1890, Captain Noel beat her under sail alone against a -head wind up Suda Bay, a long narrow arm of the sea, with shoal water -in places, which added to the difficulty of handling the ship. If I am -not mistaken, that occasion was the first and last time an ironclad -beat her way under sail into an anchorage. The _Téméraire_ made -thirteen tacks and anchored within two cables (400 yards) of her -appointed berth with the Fleet. By that time the wind had failed and -it was useless to attempt to tack again. - -It was early in the commission of the _Undaunted_ that I read Captain -(now Admiral) A. T. Mahan's admirable book, _The Influence of Sea Power -upon History_; of which it is not too much to say that it has changed -the whole trend of {377} modern thought in respect of the relation of -sea warfare to land warfare. Preparation for war now turns upon a new -pivot. The result has been that extraordinary increase of foreign -navies which necessarily imposes upon us a proportionate increase of -our own Navy. I was so greatly impressed with the work of Captain -Mahan, that I wrote to him to express my admiration for it. I received -in reply the interesting letter which follows, and which Admiral Mahan -has kindly permitted me to quote: - - -"75, EAST 54TH STREET, NEW YORK - 7_th February_, 1891 - -"DEAR LORD CHARLES BERESFORD,--I thank you very much for your letter, -which was received a few days since. The reception my book has had on -your side of the water has been very grateful to me. Commendation is -pleasant, but there has been a degree of thoughtful appreciation in -England, both by the Press and naval officers which has exceeded my -expectations and, I fear, the deserts of the work. That it will -produce any effect upon our people is unlikely; too many causes concur -to prevent a recognition of the truth that even the most extensive -countries need to make themselves outside. After our own, nothing will -give me greater pleasure than that it should contribute in your country -to a sense of your vital interest in this matter. Your naval officers -have an inducement to study those great questions which is almost -wanting in ours; for if your Fleet is not all that you could wish, you -still have some instruments to work with, a force superior to any other -if not adequate to all your needs, and the inadequacy can be greatly -remedied by judicious and careful planning and preparation. - -"... The number and dissemination of your external interests throws -England largely on the defensive, necessarily so. It was so in the -great days of Pitt and Nelson, though the fact is obscured by the great -naval preponderance you then had. You have now greater and more -extensive interests to defend....--Believe me to be, very truly yours, -"A. T. MAHAN" - - - - -{378} - -CHAPTER XXXVIII - -H.M.S. UNDAUNTED (_Continued_) - -II. THE SALVING OF THE SEIGNELAY - -The _Undaunted_, lying at Alexandria in 1891, was being rigged up for a -ball; when a telegram arrived ordering her to go to the rescue of the -French cruiser _Seignelay_, which had gone ashore near Jaffa, on 26th -April. The telegram arrived at one o'clock in the morning of the 28th -April. Before daylight, the ball-room was unrigged, the decorations -were taken down, 300 guests were put off by telegram, and we were -steaming at full speed to the _Seignelay_, distant 270 miles. In a -private letter printed in _The Times_ of 20th October, 1894, describing -the affair, the anonymous writer says: "It was a good sample of the -vicissitudes of naval life, and I think we all rather enjoyed it." (I -do not know who wrote the letter, but it must have been one of my -officers; who, without my knowledge, published it, or sanctioned its -publication, more than a year after the _Undaunted_ had paid off. The -proprietors of _The Times_ have kindly given me permission to quote -from the document, which was written at the time of the occurrence of -the events which it describes, and which contains details I had -forgotten.) - -At daylight on 29th April, we found the _Seignelay_ driven high up on a -sandy beach, embedded in five and a half feet of sand in shallow water. -She had parted her cable in a gale of wind, had driven on shore, and -had scooped out a dock for herself. Had she been built with a round -stern {379} each succeeding wave of the sea would have lifted and then -dropped her, bumping her to pieces. But as she had a sharp stern, the -breakers lifted her bodily and floated her farther on. The _Seignelay_ -was a single-screw wooden cruiser, of 1900 tons displacement and 18 -feet 4 inches draught. When his ship struck, the captain telegraphed -to his admiral saying that he feared she was hopelessly lost. The -French admiral dispatched a squadron of three ships to take off the men -and stores; but by the time they arrived the _Seignelay_ was afloat -again and lying at her anchor almost undamaged; and the senior French -captain amiably remarked: "You English do not know the word impossible." - -The British sloop _Melita_, Commander George F. King-Hall (now Admiral -Sir G. F. King-Hall, K.C.B, C.V.O.), was already endeavouring to help -the _Seignelay_ when the _Undaunted_ arrived; but the water was so -shallow that the _Melita_ could not approach nearer than 300 yards, and -the _Undaunted_ 850 yards, to the _Seignelay_. - -I went on board the _Seignelay_, and found her captain seated in his -cabin, profoundly dejected at the disaster. I cheered him as well as I -could, telling him that of course I understood that he had only been -waiting for more men to lighten his ship, and that I would send him 130 -men with an officer who understood French to act as interpreter. - -There was a heavy sea running; and the anchor I had brought in the -launch was laid out astern of the _Seignelay_ with considerable -difficulty, and the end of the cable was brought on board the -_Seignelay_. - -Besides the _Melita_, the Austrian steamer _Diana_, the French steamer -_Poitou_ and the Russian steamer _Odessa_ had all been endeavouring to -rescue the _Seignelay_, but they had neither the men nor the gear -required for the task. What was done subsequently was narrated in _The -Times_, more than three years afterwards, by the anonymous writer -aforesaid. - -"Our First Lieutenant (Lieutenant Stokes Rees) went as {380} -interpreter, and all our Captain wanted done was suggested by him to -the French. He gave the orders to junior officers over our men, and I -believe worked the French crew also by his suggestions, a fine old -sailor who was one of their chief petty officers giving what orders -were necessary. He hardly left the deck for three days and nights, and -did his work splendidly. - -"The ship was embedded 5½ feet in the sand, and so had to be lightened -that much before we could hope to move her. This we spent all -Wednesday afternoon in doing. - -"On Thursday morning the _Melita_ with a light draught Turkish steamer -(the _Arcadia_) tried to pull her off but failed, while the _Melita_ -was very nearly wrecked herself. Nothing but very smart seamanship in -making sail and casting off hawsers with cool judgment on the part of ----- ... saved her from being dashed in a good sea upon a jagged reef -of rocks close to leeward. Her screw got fouled, and the willing but -awkward Turk towed her head round towards the reef and she only just -managed to get sail on her and shave it by 50 yards. She could not -anchor or she would have swung on top of it. We were looking on -powerless from our deep draught of water, though we hurried out -hawsers, but it was one of the nearest shaves I have seen, and with the -large number of men they had away in working parties, a thing to be -very proud of and thankful for...." - -What happened was that the _Melita_ fouled her screw with a hawser. I -had warned her commander both orally and by signal to beware above all -of fouling his screw. But circumstances defeated his efforts. When a -man is doing his best in difficulties, there is no use in adding to his -embarrassments by a reprimand. I signalled to Commander King-Hall to -cheer up and to clear his screw as soon as he could; and I have reason -to know that he deeply appreciated my motive in so doing. - -To continue the narrative, which I have interrupted to quote an -instance of disciplinary action in an emergency: - -{381} - -"All Thursday we worked on at lightening her, getting out 300 tons of -coal, all her shot, shell, small guns, provisions and cables on board -our ship, until every part of the ship was piled up with them, and all -our nicely painted boats reduced to ragged cargo boats, besides being a -good deal damaged owing to the exposed anchorage and seaway. We got -out one strong, and two light, wire hawsers and with them the two ships -tried to tow, but we parted the light hawsers at once. - -"Then the Captain let me try a plan I had all along been urging but -which he ... and the French called a physical impossibility." - -(The fact was, that the lighters and native boats were so unseaworthy -that, until the weather moderated, the scheme, with all deference to -the writer, was impracticable.) - -"We hired native boats and large lighters, got out strong chain cables -into them, and laid out 450 yards of chain cable between the _Melita_ -and ourselves, floated on these lighters. Thanks to the skill of our -boatswain and a big quantity of men in the lighters this was done most -successfully, though three lighters were sunk or destroyed in doing it. - -"That afternoon, Friday the 1st, having got 450 tons out of the ship in -forty-four hours, we got a fair pull at her with all three ships, the -little Turk tugging manfully at his rotten hawser at one quarter and -giving her a side pull occasionally. We gradually worked our mighty -engines up to full speed, the chain cable tautened out as I have never -seen chain do before and off she came. - -"We manned the rigging and gave her cheer on cheer, the band playing -the _Marseillaise_ as the _Melita_ towed her past our stern, while the -Frenchmen hugged and kissed our men on their checks. It was a scene to -be long remembered. The crowds of spectators lining the beach and -walls, and our own men, 'spent but victorious' after their long -forty-four hours of almost unceasing work, hardly anyone lying down for -more than three or four hours either night.... - -"By noon on Saturday we had replaced all their {382} gear on board, -picked up their anchors and cables, etc., so that when their squadron -came in that evening they found nothing left to do. They were really -grateful and showed much good feeling, coming to call on us and being -most friendly. - -"On Monday night, when we left, the whole squadron cheered us -manfully...." - -The British admiral was afterwards asked by the French Government to -allow the _Undaunted_ to proceed to the Gulf of Lions where the French -Fleet was lying, in order that the officers and men of the _Undaunted_ -might attend a reception in her honour. The _Undaunted_ steamed down -between the French lines, playing the _Marseillaise_, the French -manning ship and cheering. Officers and men were most hospitably -entertained with every mark of friendship and goodwill. The French -Government most courteously presented me with a beautiful Sèvres vase, -which is one of my most valued possessions. - -When the time came for the _Undaunted_ to go home, the -commander-in-chief paid her a high compliment. The whole Fleet steamed -out of Malta Harbour in line ahead, the _Undaunted_ being the rear ship -of the line. When we were to part company, every vessel, except the -_Undaunted_, turned 16 points to port in succession (the line thus -curving back upon itself) and steamed past the stern of the -_Undaunted_. The commander-in-chief gave orders to cheer ship as each -vessel passed the _Undaunted_: a stately farewell to the homeward bound. - -On the passage home, in order to test the actual working of -communication by signal between the Navy and the mercantile marine, a -system whose reform had constantly urged, I signalled, between Malta -and Plymouth, to 33 merchantmen. Of the whole number, only three -answered my signal, and of the three, only one answered it correctly, -although several vessels passed within 600 yards of the _Undaunted_. -The signals I made were short, such as "Where are you bound?" "Where -are you from?" {383} "Have you seen any men-of-war?" "What weather have -you had?" and some of them required only one hoist in reply. - -The Royal Navy, a great part of whose duty in time of war would be the -protection of commerce, was in fact at that time practically unable to -communicate with the Merchant navy, either for the purpose of giving or -receiving information, except by means of sending a boat to the vessel -in question, a proceeding which must often be impossible, and which -would always involve a delay which might bring serious consequences. -No condition of affairs could more powerfully exemplify the national -neglect of preparation for war. For in war, the maintenance of the -lines of communication from ship to ship and ship to shore, is of the -first importance. - -The difficulty discovered by merchant vessels in signalling or replying -to a signal consisted in their ignorance of signalling. They were -seldom required to signal; the use of the commercial code involved a -tedious process, impossible to accomplish quickly without constant -practice; they were equipped with neither Morse nor semaphore -apparatus, nor had officers or men learned how to use it. When a -man-of-war signalled to a merchantman, the merchant skipper or mate -must first try to decipher the flags of the hoist, an exercise to which -he was totally unaccustomed. When he had decided that the flags were, -say, blue with a white stripe, and red with a yellow stripe, he had to -turn them up in the signal-book to discover what they meant. All this -time the distance between the two ships was rapidly increasing. Having -made out the signal, the merchant sailor must refer to his signal-book -to find what flags made his reply; and having found them, he had to -pick out the flag itself from a bundle. By the time he had finished -these operations, if he ever finished them, the ships were nearly out -of sight of each other. - -The reform was eventually achieved largely by the personal enterprise -and energy of the mercantile marine officers {384} themselves, who -learned signalling, and who often paid for the necessary apparatus out -of their own pockets. - -The _Undaunted_ paid off early in 1893. Upon the evening of the day -upon which I arrived in London, I went to the House of Commons to -listen to the debate upon the Navy Estimates. - - - - -{385} - -CHAPTER XXXIX - -THE SECOND SHIPBUILDING PROGRAMME - -It is easier to take the helm than to be on the con. I have always -been on the con. To drop the metaphor, I have looked ahead in matters -of naval defence and have pointed out what (in my view) ought to be -done. In 1889, I resigned my post at the Board of Admiralty in order -to fasten public attention upon the instant necessity of strengthening -the Fleet by the addition of 70 vessels at a cost of £20,000,000. In -the same year, the Naval Defence Act provided those vessels at a cost a -little in excess of my estimate. That was my first shipbuilding -programme. Many other forces were of course exerted to the same end: -the representations of distinguished brother officers; the many -excellent articles in the Press; and the steadily increasing pressure -of public opinion, then much less warped by party politics than it has -since become. Apart from these influences, which were fortified by the -irresistible logic of the truth, my own efforts must have availed -little. But above all (to resume my metaphor), it was the helmsman at -the Admiralty who put the wheel over. Captain W. H. Hall, Director of -the Intelligence Department, worked out the requirements of the case, -unknown to me, and arrived at the same conclusions as those at which I -had arrived, and the Board of Admiralty adopted his scheme. By the -irony of circumstance, the Intelligence Department had been instituted, -in consequence of my representations, before I left the Admiralty, for -the precise purpose of reporting upon the requirements of defence; and -the first report of its fearless {386} and enlightened chief completely -upset the comfortable theories both of the Board and of the Government. - -I have briefly recalled these matters, fully related in a previous -chapter, because they present a curious parallel with the events of -1893-4. - -In July, 1893, while still on half-pay, I addressed the London Chamber -of Commerce on the subject of "The Protection of the mercantile marine -in War." Since I had left the _Undaunted_, early in the year, I had -been occupied once more in drawing up a scheme of naval requirements, -specifying what was required, why it was required, and how much it -would cost, and giving a detailed list of the necessary vessels. The -protection of the mercantile marine was the first part of it; the whole -was not completed until just before I was appointed captain of the -Steam Reserve at Chatham; and it would have been improper for me to -have published the paper while on active service. It was intended that -I should read it before the London Chamber of Commerce, following upon -and amplifying my address dealing with the protection of the mercantile -marine in war. But as there was no time available for the purpose -before I went on active service, I gave the scheme to Mr. John Jackson, -for the London Chamber of Commerce. I may take this opportunity of -paying a tribute to the disinterested and untiring patriotic zeal of -the late Mr. Jackson, between whom and myself a warm friendship existed. - -In my address upon the protection of the mercantile marine in war, the -abrogation of the Declaration of Paris of 1856 was urged as a primary -condition of British naval supremacy: a condition unequivocally laid -down in the Report of the Three Admirals in 1889. Subsequent events -have shown that successive British Governments, far from recognising -the essential elements of sea power, continued to yield point after -point, until at the Naval Conferences of 1907 and 1909, whose -recommendations were embodied in the Declaration of London, British -Ministers virtually conceded nearly every right gained by centuries of -hard fighting {387} in the past. Fortunately, public indignation has -hitherto prevented the ratification of that fatal instrument. - -It was also shown in my address that, at the time, the naval protection -for the mercantile marine was in the ratio of one small cruiser to 71 -sailing vessels and one small cruiser to 41 steamers; that there were -dangerous deficiencies in the supplies of reserve coal and ammunition; -that a reserve force of at least 20 battleships was required; and that -there was urgent need for the immediate construction of the mole and -other works at Gibraltar. - -The shipbuilding programme was designed to show how these and other -requirements were to be met. Mr. John Jackson caused it to be -published on his own responsibility. The execution of the requirements -therein specified involved an expenditure of 25 millions spread over -three and a half years. Their necessity was supported by Vice-Admiral -P. H. Colomb, writing in _The United Service Magazine_; by many letters -in the Press written by my brother officers; by further excellent -articles in _The Times_ and other papers; and by Lord George Hamilton, -ex-First Lord of the Admiralty. - -In November, Lord Salisbury publicly stated that "men of different -schools with respect to maritime and military defences, men of very -different services and experiences and ability," were united in urging -that steps should be at once taken to re-establish the maritime -supremacy of this country. - -The fact was, of course, that the provision made by the Naval Defence -Act of 1889 was running out, and that in the revolution of the party -political machine, the periodic neglect of the Navy had occurred as -usual. As one party attains a lease of power, it is forced to increase -the strength of the Fleet; the effort expends itself; then the other -party comes in, and either reduces the Fleet, or neglects it, or both, -until public opinion is once more aroused by infinite shoutings and -untiring labour, and the Government are coerced into doing their plain -duty. - -Such was the situation in 1888-9; such was it in 1893-4. {388} In -1888-9, a Conservative administration was in power; in 1893-4, Mr. -Gladstone was Prime Minister. The difficulty of the situation in -1893-4 was therefore more obstinate, inasmuch as Mr. Gladstone's -Ministry held that the reduction of expenditure upon defence was an act -of moral virtue; whereas Lord Salisbury's Government merely waited to -be convinced of the necessity of increase, before doing their duty. - -Nevertheless, what happened? The Navy Estimates of March, 1894, -provided for an expenditure of no less than 30¼ millions upon new -construction spread over five years; as compared with my proposal of 25 -millions spread over three and a half years. The Government actually -provided more than was contained in my programme. - -The Spencer programme, as it is called, was a much bigger scheme than -the programme of 1888-9. It not only provided the ships required, but -included a scheme for manning them. It included a comprehensive -programme of naval works in which, for the first time in history, the -defence of the Empire was treated as a whole. Provision was made for -deepening and improving the harbours of Portsmouth, Chatham, Devonport, -Haulbowline, for the Keyham extension, for naval barracks at Chatham -and Walmer, for the new works at Gibraltar, for the construction of -harbours at Portland, Dover, and Simon's Bay, and for large extensions -of the dockyards at Malta, Hong Kong and Simon's Bay. The cost of the -works was to be met by monies raised under a Naval Loan Act. That Act -is still in force, but a later Government declined to utilise it; with -the inevitable result that the neglected and dismantled condition of -the coaling stations and naval bases abroad, constitute a present -danger to the Empire, and will in the future require a vast -expenditure, which need never have been incurred, to be devoted to -their restoration. - -To what extraordinary influence, then, was the conversion of Mr. -Gladstone and his colleagues to be attributed? There was, in fact, no -conversion. It was a case of coercion; {389} or, as Mr. Gladstone -entertained a strong dislike to the word, let us call it moral suasion. -The explanation is simple and sufficient. In August, 1893, which was -the time when the representations concerning naval deficiencies were -becoming insistent, Admiral Sir Frederick Richards was appointed First -Sea Lord. Sir Frederick Richards, it will be remembered, was one of -the Three Admirals who drew up the historic "Report on The Naval -Manoeuvres of 1888," and it was chiefly due to his genius and -patriotism that from a technical disquisition the Report became a -masterly exposition of the true principles of British sea power. -Incidentally, it endorsed the whole of my representations set forth in -my shipbuilding programme, which were embodied in the Naval Defence Act -of 1889. - -Sir Frederick Richards, too, had been a member of the Hartington -Commission on Naval and Military Administration, which reported in -1890; and which, although its recommendations were for many years -neglected by successive Governments, at least taught its members what -was the real condition of affairs, and what were the requirements of -organisation for war. Sir Frederick, therefore, came to his high -office furnished not only with the sea experience of a flag officer -afloat, but equipped with a detailed knowledge of administration and -organisation; and endowed, in addition, with so remarkable a genius, -that he was one of the greatest naval administrators known to the -history of the Royal Navy. - -His devotion to duty was the master motive of his life; nor was there a -man living who could turn him by the breadth of a hair from what he -believed to be right. Having planned, as the proper adviser of Lord -Spencer, the First Lord, the great shipbuilding and naval works scheme -of 1894-5, he was confronted by the strong opposition of Mr. Gladstone -and his Cabinet. - -Sir Frederick Richards and the whole of his naval colleagues on the -Board immediately informed the Government that, unless their proposals -for strengthening the {390} Fleet and for providing for the naval -defence of the Empire, were accepted, they would resign. It was -enough. The Government yielded. - -The Naval Lords were: Admiral Sir Frederick Richards, K.C.B.; -Rear-Admiral the Lord Walter Talbot Kerr; Rear-Admiral Sir John -Arbuthnot Fisher, K.C.B.; and Captain Gerard Henry Uctred Noel. - -It was in commemoration of the action of Sir Frederick Richards that -the Navy caused his portrait to be painted, and presented it to the -nation. Inscribed with the legend "From the Navy to the Nation," it -hangs in the Painted Hall at Greenwich, where it was placed during the -lifetime of the admiral, an unique distinction. - -As in 1889, when many of my brother officers and myself were conning -the ship, it was the helmsman at the Admiralty who put the wheel over, -and again I was wholly ignorant of his intentions. But this time the -helmsman was none other than the First Sea Lord, and with him were his -naval colleagues. With him, too, was the great body of public opinion -in the country; and as in 1888, those of us who had been toiling to -educate it, may at least claim to have set in motion a force lacking -which it is almost impossible, under a pseudo-democratic government, to -accomplish any great reform whatever. - -It is not too much to say that to the shipbuilding and naval works -programme initiated and planned by Sir Frederick Richards in 1894-5, -and carried by his courage and resolution, the Empire owes its -subsequent immunity from external attack, notably at the time of the -Fashoda incident and during the South African war. - -Sir Frederick Richards was so great a man, that he could even nullify -the injurious effect of the legal supremacy of the civilian First Lord -over the Board, which technically deprives it of collective -administrative authority. He served, however, with two high-minded -gentlemen, Lord Spencer, and Mr. Goschen who succeeded Lord Spencer. - -{391} - -I have had to do with three great shipbuilding programmes. The first -was carried after the resignation of one member of the Board, myself; -the second, by the threatened resignation of all the Naval Lords! Of -the third anon. - - - - -{392} - -CHAPTER XL - -STEAM RESERVE - -In the days of the sailing Navy, when an accident occurred, the captain -knew every method by which it could be repaired, and gave directions -exactly how the work was to be done. He was not necessarily able to do -the work with his own hands (although I know at least one captain who -could); but (what was more important) he knew how it ought to be done. -Should a topsail-yard carry away, for instance, the captain would know -whether to have it sawn in half longitudinally and the halves reversed; -or to cut out the damaged piece and replace it with a new piece woolded -on and wedged; or to fish the yard. - -There was once a captain on the China station who asked the Admiralty -for a baulk of timber, because his main-yard had carried away; -whereupon the Admiralty officially desired to be officially informed -who had carried it away, where to, and why. - -In the steam Navy, it is equally necessary that a captain should be -acquainted with the various methods of handling material and machinery, -in order that he may be able to direct the trained artificer. One case -among many which fell under my own observation illustrates the point. -A cylinder having cracked, the engineer officer proposed to drill the -holes for the bolts securing strengthening pieces in a row; when it was -shown to him that the result would be to make the cylinder, like a -sheet of postage-stamps, liable to tear; but that if he set his holes -in an in-and-out pattern he would avoid that weakness. As the captain, -so the {393} admiral. Every admiral in command of a fleet should be -competent to direct the execution of even the smallest repairs; for -upon what seems a trifling detail may depend the safety of the ship. - -Such, at least, were the considerations that induced me to apply for a -dockyard appointment. And upon the 15th July, 1893, I was appointed -captain of the Steam Reserve at Chatham Dockyard, under the command of -Rear-Admiral George D. Morant, flying his flag in the _Algiers_, -guardship of Reserve. Rear-Admiral Morant (now Admiral Sir G. D. -Morant, K.C.B.) was a first-rate officer, of indefatigable energy, an -excellent administrator, and a most charming chief. - -All vessels under construction and repair were under the -admiral-superintendent; I was his executive officer; and the object of -appointing a sea-going officer was that details of construction should -be tested in accordance with the use to which they would be put at sea. -Let us say, for instance, that two ships were under construction, one -which was 43 feet in the beam, and the other 65 feet. Awning -stanchions of the same size were fitted to both ships; and when the -awning was rigged in the larger vessel, the stanchions came home. -Another advantage of sea-going knowledge was impressed upon me while I -was in the _Thunderer_. She had some forty or fifty deck-plates, -covering valves and ventilating shafts. The deck-plates and shafts -were of various sizes, involving the use of a large number of spanners -to fit them. These took up space and added an unnecessary weight. A -seaman would have made a standard pattern with one or two spanners to -fit the whole number. - -It was my duty to take command in all steam trials of vessels, and -tests of appliances and machinery, and to compare all work with its -specification. - -During 1893-4, the _Magnificent_ was being built by Chatham in rivalry -of Portsmouth, which was building her sister battleship the _Majestic_. -It was becoming a close thing, when the _Magnificent_ received from the -manufacturers {394} a lot of armour plates, which might have gone to -the _Majestic_, and which enabled us to gain a lead. The _Magnificent_ -was launched by the Countess Spencer, in December, 1894. The ship was -built in thirteen months from the date of laying the keel-plate; an -achievement for which high credit was due to the chief constructor, Mr. -J. A. Yates, and to the constructors, Mr. H. Cock and Mr. W. H. Card. - -When I took the _Magnificent_ upon her trials, Lord Wolseley, Colonel -Brabazon, and Mr. Baird, American Ambassador, accompanied me as guests. -We returned from the Nore in a torpedo-boat, at full speed, in the -dark. In those days there were no lights in the Medway; and we jumped -the spit. Lord Wolseley inquired if "we always took short cuts across -the land." - -When a new ship was completed by the Royal Dockyards, the task of -cleaning her and completing arrangements in detail was performed by -working parties, which usually consisted of pensioners. The principle -was that when she was taken over from the Dockyard authorities to be -commissioned, she should be ready for sea. In the case of the -_Magnificent_, for instance, when Lord Walter Kerr hoisted his flag in -her, in December, 1895, she was absolutely complete in every detail: -decks spotless, store-rooms labelled, hammock-hooks numbered: there was -nothing for officers and men to do but to find their quarters. - -An instance of the necessity of testing appliances according to sea -requirements occurred when I was testing capstans. The ships were -taken into deep water, so that the whole length of the cable was run -out by the time the anchor touched bottom; and it was then discovered -that the capstan was too weak to lift the amount of vertical chain -specified. - -When I was trying a torpedo-boat at full speed, the helm suddenly -jammed, and the boat instantly went out of control in the neighbourhood -of a number of trawlers. Luckily, she went round and round in a circle -until she was stopped. {395} She did not hit a trawler; but it was a -very lively minute or two. - -A party of us went to a ball at Sheerness, going thither in a tug; and -intending to return the same night, we left the house at about one -o'clock. There was a thick fog, and the captain of the tug declined to -start. As I made it a rule to sleep in my own quarters at Chatham if I -possibly could, I said I would take the tug back. As there were no -lights, I found the channel by the simple method of hitting its banks; -and cannoning off and on all the way, we made the passage. - -In November, 1892, the _Howe_ battleship had struck upon an uncharted -rock in Ferrol harbour; and Rear-Admiral Edward Seymour (now Admiral of -the Fleet Sir E. H. Seymour, G.C.B., O.M., G.C.V.O.) was appointed to -inspect the salvage operations. These occupied nearly five months. -Sir Edward gives a brief but interesting account of the work in his -book, _My Naval Career_. After the _Howe_ had been floated, she was -dry-docked at Ferrol, where she remained for nearly two months, while -temporary repairs were being effected. When she struck the rock, her -port side forward was stove in for nearly half her length, and her -after part remained resting on a "rocky shoal of hard granite." Sir -Edward Seymour says "that after the ship was got into dock at Ferrol, I -could stand on a temporary flooring where the bottom of the ship used -to be, and holding one hand over my head could not touch where the -ship's bottom plates had been driven up to." He adds that "the mud, -slime and dirt covering everything as the water was cleared from below, -and the bad smell were almost beyond belief." - -We at Chatham could confirm the observation; for it was to Chatham that -the _Howe_ returned to be repaired. When she arrived, she was still -coated with stinking mud, and we did our best to clean her. But -notwithstanding our utmost diligence, a minute quantity of this -virulent slime was afterwards found under the rolling-plate of the -turrets. {396} The men who slung their hammocks near the turrets fell -sick of fever; and its origin was traced to the mud. - -The salving of a vessel so badly injured was a fine achievement. Sir -Edward Seymour brought her to Sheerness under her own steam at eight -knots. We dealt with her for a few months, until she was all a-taunto -again, when she was re-commissioned and went to the Mediterranean. - -It is the duty of a captain of the Dockyard Reserve to make -representations, through the admiral-superintendent, to the Admiralty, -with regard to improvements in construction and material. My -suggestions concerning water-tight doors in ships were subsequently -embodied in a paper read before the Institution of Naval Architects. -In the design of the first ironclads, the vessels were actually divided -into water-tight compartments by bulkheads without doors or apertures. -In later designs, numerous doors were cut in the bulkheads for the sake -of convenience of access, which, together with the many ventilating -shafts and valves, in effect nullified the system of dividing a vessel -into water-tight sections. The doors themselves were hung on hinges -and closed with hanks and wedges; an inefficient method. My -suggestions, which were afterwards adopted, were that the number of -doors should be greatly reduced; and that they should be vertical, and -made to screw up and down; and that the ventilating shafts fitted with -an automatic closing apparatus which did not work should be abolished. - -Among other proposals were the substitution of ships' names, plainly -lettered, for figure-heads and scroll-work, and the abolition of the -ram. At that time, our men-of-war were built with unarmoured ends, -only the protective steel deck extending the whole length and breadth -of the ship. It followed that if the side of a hostile vessel were -pierced by the long projecting ram of a British ship, the force of her -impact would strip her bows of the light construction above the -protective deck, and she would remain toggled in the enemy and -helpless. Far more effective, if ramming is to {397} be done, would be -the direct blow of a vertical bow. At the same time, I continued to -represent the radical weakness of unarmoured ends. - -In 1894, five years after the passing of the Naval Defence Act, and the -elate at which the great Spencer shipbuilding programme, involving a -large increase of officers and men, was begun, the serious deficiency -in the personnel became manifest. The fact was, that the Naval Defence -Act of 1889 had not included proper provision for manning the new ships -as they came into commission; and just when the boys who ought to have -been entered in 1889 would have become available as able seamen, it was -discovered that they did not exist. But by that time, of course, the -Government responsible for the deficiency was out of office, and, as -usual, there was no one to be called to account. - -In September, 1894, Mr. Spenser Wilkinson, who has performed so much -invaluable service in educating the public to logical ideas upon -organisation for war and problems of national defence, began to publish -his excellent articles dealing with "The Command of the Sea," in which -the demand for the institution of a Naval War Staff was formulated. It -was for the purpose of enforcing this necessity that the Navy League -was founded by "four average Englishmen" in December, 1894. Among its -original supporters were Earl Roberts, V.C., Lord George Hamilton, Sir -Charles Dilke, Sir John Puleston, the Master of Trinity House, Sir -Charles Lawson, Mr. Joseph Cowen, Mr. Arnold-Forster, and myself. - -It will be observed that the original aim of the Navy League was to -ensure the fulfilment of the idea upon which the Intelligence -Department was founded upon my representations in 1888. The Navy -League subsequently added to itself other objects, which perhaps -obscured its first purpose. The War Staff at the Admiralty was -constituted in 1912, in accordance with the recommendations of the -Beresford Inquiry of 1909. - -In 1893, the year before the Navy League was founded, {398} and just -previous to my appointment to Chatham, I publicly advocated the -institution of a Council of Defence, under the presidency of a -Minister, composed of the best admirals and generals. The project was -afterwards carried into execution by Mr. Balfour; but its utility was -vitiated by being framed to suit the ends of party politics. - -In May, 1894, the U.S. cruiser _Chicago_ anchored off Gravesend; and at -a banquet given to the American admiral and officers, I had the -pleasure of renewing my old acquaintance with the American Navy, begun -in 1882 at the bombardment of Alexandria. Admiral Erben flew his flag -in the _Chicago_, and Captain Mahan was flag-captain. - -It was a great pleasure to meet Captain Mahan (now Admiral Mahan), -whose classic work on _The Influence of Sea Power upon History_ came to -me while I was in command of the _Undaunted_, and concerning which, as -before related, some correspondence had passed between us. - -Captain Mahan and myself contributed articles to _The North American -Review_ of November, 1894, on "The Possibilities of an Anglo-American -Reunion." Captain Mahan, preferring to postpone the advocacy of a -formal alliance between the two nations, looked forward to the -development of such relations as would make it feasible; while I urged -the conclusion of a defensive alliance for the protection of those -common interests upon which depends the prosperity of the two -countries. That the English-speaking nations should combine to -preserve the peace of the world, has always seemed to me a reasonable -aspiration, and I have said so in both countries when opportunity -served. - -In December, 1894, desiring to represent the interests of the Service -in Parliament as soon as might be, I applied once more to the Admiralty -to be permitted, according to precedent, to count my service in the -Soudan campaign as time spent in the command of a ship of war; but the -application was again refused. From many constituencies invitations to -stand were sent to me; among them were {399} Stockport, North -Kensington, Birkenhead, Liverpool, East Toxteth, Armagh, Dublin, -Cardiff, Chatham, Devonport, Pembroke and Portsmouth. - -In those days Mr. W. L. Wyllie (now R.A.) used to haunt the Medway and -the Nore, boat-sailing and painting. He can handle a boat as well as -he handles his brush; that is, to perfection. Mr. Wyllie gave me a -boat which he had built with his own hands, I think out of biscuit -boxes. I tried it in a basin at Chatham, accompanied by a warrant -officer of the _Pembroke_. We were becalmed; a sudden puff came; and -over we went. In memory of the disaster, I gave the warrant officer a -pipe, the bowl of which was appropriately carved to represent a -death's-head. - -While I was at Chatham, my home was Park Gate House, Ham Common. Here -I had a model farm, producing milk, eggs and poultry, which were -readily sold in Richmond, whose streets and thoroughfares were greatly -enlivened by the daily procession of my large and shining brass -milk-cans. I was not in the sad case of Captain Edward Pellew -(afterwards Lord Exmouth), who upon quitting the sea and taking a farm, -in 1791, complained that the crops grew so slowly that they made his -eyes ache. - -During my absence a burglar entered the house. The butler, hearing a -noise, rose from his bed, took a revolver, and sought for the intruder, -who fled before him to the roof, whence he fell headlong through a -skylight. He must have been a good deal cut, for he bled all over the -place. The butler, following, also fell through the skylight; but, -presumably falling through the same hole, was little damaged. -Continuing the chase, he was brought up short by a wire entanglement -previously set by the burglar for the butler's confusion. So he sat -where he was, and continued to fire steadily in the direction he -supposed the burglar to have gone, until his ammunition was all -expended. - -It may be interesting to recall that in September, 1893, Sir Augustus -Harris was appointed manager of Drury Lane Opera House by the committee -which was then organising {400} the opera in this country. I urged his -selection on account of his great administrative ability; and prevailed -over the objection that he was only skilled in pantomime. - -The committee had been formed to improve the opera, which was then -performed at three different theatres: Covent Garden, Drury Lane, and -Her Majesty's; so that the available talent was scattered. Sir -Augustus Harris combined the three into one at Drury Lane. - -In October, 1895, occurred the death of my brother, Lord Waterford, at -the age of fifty-one. He had been for long completely disabled by a -bad accident in the hunting field; and although his sufferings were -constant and acute, he continued staunchly to discharge his many duties -to the end. He was succeeded in the marquisate by his son. - -My appointment at Chatham terminated in March, 1896; and a few days -later I delivered at Birmingham an address dealing with the -requirements of naval defence. - - - - -{401} - -CHAPTER XLI - -VIEWS AND REVIEWS - -The three years succeeding the termination of my appointment at Chatham -were mainly occupied with questions of naval reform. The task was of -my own choosing; and if, in comparison with the life I led, the -existence of the early martyrs was leisured, dignified and luxurious, -it is not for me to draw the parallel. The chief difficulty -encountered by any reformer is not an evil but a good. It is the -native virtue of the English people, which leads them to place implicit -confidence in constituted authority. The advocacy of a change implies -that constituted authority is failing to fulfil its duty. You cannot -at the same time both trust and distrust the men in charge of affairs. -Again, reform often involves expenditure; and the dislike to spend -money upon an idea is natural to man. And it is the custom of -constituted authority to tell the people that all is well, in fact -never so well. They have all the weight of their high office behind -them; and people will believe what they are told by authority in -despite of the evidence of their senses. - -Moreover, there are endless difficulties and disappointments inherent -in the very nature of the task of the naval or military reformer. The -problems of defence are highly intricate; and although the principles -governing them remain unaltered, the application of those principles is -constantly changing. The most skilled officers may differ one from -another; and a man who is devoting his whole time and energy to benefit -the Service to which he belongs, {402} will often be disheartened by -the opposition of his brother officers. - -The influence of society, again, is often baneful. Society is apt to -admonish a public man, especially if he be popular, perpetually telling -him that he must not do this, and he must not say that, or he will -injure his reputation, ruin his career, and alienate his friends; -until, perhaps, he becomes so habitually terrified at what may happen, -that he ends by doing nothing, and spoiling his career at the latter -end after all. Public life to-day is permeated through and through -with a selfish solicitude for personal immunity. But it remains the -fact that he who intends to achieve a certain object, must first put -aside all personal considerations. Upon going into action, a fighting -man is occupied, not with speculations as to whether or not he will be -hit, and if so where, but in trying to find out where and how soon and -how hard he can hit the enemy. Even so, he may be beaten; but at least -he will have nothing to regret; he will be able to say that if it were -all to do again, he would do the same; for he will know that on any -other terms his defeat would be assured. - -If, then, these pages record in brief the continual endeavours of those -who made it their business to represent to the nation the requirements -of Imperial defence, it is for the purpose of once more exemplifying -the defects in our system which periodically expose the country and the -Empire to dangers from without and panics from within, and involve them -in a series of false economies alternating with spasms of wasteful -expenditure. The remedy advocated was the constitution of a body whose -duty it should be to represent requirements. Such a body was not -created until 1912. In the meantime, more money was spent than would -purchase security, which was not always obtained. Nor have we yet -produced what is the first essential of national security, the feeling -of the officers and men of the fighting services that they are being -justly treated by the nation in the matter of pay and pension and -proper administrative treatment. - -{403} - -In 1896, the most pressing need of the Navy was for more officers and -men. As already explained, the failure to enter the number required to -man the ships of the Naval Defence Act of 1889, had now become -manifest. Battleships are a showy asset; the absence of men is not -noticed by the public; therefore the politician builds the ships and -omits the men. In an address delivered before the Liverpool Chamber of -Commerce in July, 1896, I stated that the deficiency in the personnel -was 27,562 men, including a deficiency of 5000 in engine-room ratings. -A resolution urging the necessity of an immediate increase in the -personnel was passed by the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce, and was sent -to the First Lord, Mr. Goschen. - -The First Lord replied to the resolution, stating that the increase in -the personnel since 1889 had been 31,360. These figures, however, -included the whole of the numbers borne, without distinction of the -numbers available for sea service, and represented the numbers voted, -irrespective of deaths or retirements. The true increase was estimated -by me, upon the evidence of the Navy Estimates, at 17,262; and the -total number required at 105,000. - -A good deal of public interest having been aroused on the subject, Mr. -Goschen stated in the House that it would be his duty next year "to -propose such a number of men for the Navy and Reserves as we judge to -be rendered necessary by the extension of the Fleet." - -The increase of personnel was provided accordingly. Here is one -instance among many, of a responsible statesman declaring in all good -faith that matters were perfectly satisfactory as they were; being -obliged by the insistence of outside representations to examine -requirements; and then discovering that these were in fact what had -been represented. Mr. Goschen was necessarily dependent upon the -advice of the Sea Lords; but the Sea Lords themselves were immersed in -the mass of routine work involved in keeping the machine going. The -business of supply and the business of {404} organisation for war were -confused together; with the inevitable result that organisation for war -was neglected. - -The personnel was increased in 1897-8 by 6300 (numbers voted). In the -following year, 1898-9, my estimate of 105,000 men was passed, the -numbers voted being 106,390; and, excepting intervals of false economy, -continued to rise until they now (1913) stand at 146,000. - -The proposals with regard to the personnel were supported by (among -others) Admiral Sir R. Vesey Hamilton, who, in a letter to _The Times_ -of 2nd April, 1897, stated that "an ex-Controller of the Navy said to -me when I was at the Admiralty, 'Your building programme is ahead of -the manning.' And he was right, more particularly in officers." Sir -R. Vesey Hamilton was a Lord Commissioner of the Admiralty from -January, 1889, the year of the Naval Defence Act, to September, 1891. -His testimony is therefore authoritative. It was, of course, no fault -of Sir Vesey Hamilton that the personnel was deficient. - -It is not too much to say that owing to the omission from that Act of -the requisite increase in the personnel, the Navy has been short of men -ever since. - -In December, 1896, I suggested in a letter to the Press that promotion -to flag-rank should take place at an earlier age in order that officers -might gain the necessary experience while still in the vigour of youth. -Officers who remain too long in a subordinate position are liable to -have the faculty of initiative taken out of them, and to fall into the -habit of thinking that things will last their time. The services of -old and experienced officers are of course invaluable; but officers -should acquire the knowledge of the duties of an admiral (upon whom in -modern warfare all depends) as early in life as possible. Progressive -pay for all ranks from lieutenants upwards, was also advocated. - -The requirements of the time were set forth by me in an article -contributed to _The Nineteenth Century_ of February, 1897. Briefly, -these were as follows: - -{405} - -1. The necessity of obtaining the requisite number of personnel for -active service, long service ratings, such number to be definitely -specified by the Board of Admiralty as being necessary to fulfil stated -requirements. - -2. A thorough reorganisation of the Royal Naval Reserve. A scheme of -reorganisation, founded on the proposals of Captain Joseph Honner, -Royal Navy, Captain Crutchley, R.N.R., and others, was explained by me -to the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce. In order to meet the emergency, -it was suggested that 5000 men should be annually joined for five -years, after which they should pass into the first-class Reserve; at -the same time, 5000 men should be annually joined for two months' -training, after which they should pass into the second-class Reserve. - -Such emergencies periodically occur, because the authorities neglect to -look ahead. - -3. Seventeen old but useful ironclads to be re-armed with modern guns. - -A list of these was drawn up; the proposed alterations in each vessel -were specified in detail, together with their cost; a task which took -me some three months to accomplish. - -The principle of the suggestion was that the invention of the -quick-firing gun was actually a far more important revolution than the -change from muzzle-loading to breech-loading guns. It was calculated -that the older vessels were strong enough to withstand the increased -strain. The proposal was not made in order to avoid the necessity of -building new vessels, but as an expedient to make up a deficiency in -ships. Building new vessels was the preferable course of action, which -the Admiralty rightly decided to adopt. - -4. The advisability of eliminating altogether from the number of ships -in commission or in reserve those vessels which could neither fight nor -run away, and of replacing them by modern vessels. - -The scheme was carried into effect by degrees. Such an elimination -should take place periodically, upon the {406} industrial principle of -replacing obsolete plant with new machines. In later years, the -elimination of old vessels which was carried into effect by the -Admiralty, was effected without replacing them by new ships, a course -of action which contravened the very principle upon which it was -ostensibly based. - -5. The advisability of holding annual manoeuvres in combination with -the Army at all naval bases of operation. - -6. The designing of a definite plan of Imperial defence, or plan of -campaign; and the provision and equipment of such naval bases and -stations abroad as should enable such plan to be put into effective -operation. - -It will be observed that all the aforesaid recommendations of my -brother officers and myself were directed to the fulfilment of Sir -Frederick Richards' great scheme of 1894-5, as already described. In -the result, the Naval Works Bill, March 1897, showed that work was in -progress at Gibraltar, Portland, Dover, Keyham, Portsmouth, Hong Kong, -Colombo, Pembroke, Haulbowline; on barracks at Chatham, Sheerness, -Portsmouth, Keyham, Walmer, the new college for engineers at Keyham and -new magazines, the money voted being just under a million. - -Writing from Cairo, in March, 1897, to the secretary of the Guildhall -Club (the letter being published at the time) I said that Mr. -Brodrick's speech showed that the Government had a definite plan of -campaign, which was "proved by the proposal to fortify important -strategic bases at present absolutely undefended; ... without such -fortified bases it is palpable that no clear plan of campaign existed -at headquarters; and a happy-go-lucky method must have prevailed in the -event of war. The Government appear to me to have really begun to put -our defences into business-like trim and to have looked into and -endeavoured to make complete all those auxiliaries, any one of which -being imperfect would jeopardise the defences of the Empire as a -whole.... It is always very hard for authorities to make proposals -involving large sums of money unless the public {407} and the Press -combine to show that they wish such expenditure." - -There remained, and still remains, an essential reform to be -accomplished. I have never ceased to advocate as a matter of -elementary justice such an increase of the pay of officers and men as -should bear some proportion to the responsibilities with which they are -charged and the duties which they fulfil. In 1897, the increase of the -officers' pay, the rate of which had hardly been altered since the time -of Nelson, was an urgent necessity. As a result of the steady refusal -of the Government to grant anything except the most meagre concessions, -officers are now leaving the Service almost daily, and among those who -remain there is considerable discontent. At that time, the pay of the -men was, if not generous, still adequate. Owing to a variety of -causes, it has since become totally inadequate; the concessions wrung -from the Government in response to perfectly reasonable demands are -ridiculously insufficient; and numbers of trained men are leaving the -Service as soon as they can. - -In view of the obstinacy of the Government upon this matter, it is -worth recalling that, speaking at Newbury in May, 1897, I put the whole -case for the officers as plainly as possible. It was pointed out that -every condition of life had improved during the Queen's reign, except -the pay and prospects of the officers and men of the Royal Navy, -although their responsibilities had increased a hundred-fold. The -lieutenant's pay was £15 a month; after eight years he could get £3 a -month extra; and after twelve years another £3 extra. Except for -specialist duty, such as gunnery, torpedo and navigation, he could not -get another shilling. There were over 200 lieutenants then on the list -of over twelve years' service, who were only getting £21 a month. They -could get no more, although some among them had twenty-one years' -service. Half-pay, often compulsory, was a shameful scandal to the -country. It was not even half-pay, but very often barely a third. -Rear-admirals of forty {408} years' service were sent on shore with -£450 a year to live upon. Captains were even worse off, often getting -four years on compulsory half-pay at £200 a year. - -That was sixteen years ago. The Government have done nothing worth -consideration in the interval. - -The case was again publicly represented by me in 1912. By that time, -owing to the increase in price of the necessities of life and other -causes, the pay of the men had become grossly inadequate. In order -that it should be commensurate with the pay obtained by an equivalent -class of men in civil employment, it ought to have been doubled. All -that the Government did was to grant a trifling increase to men of a -certain term of service. How long will the nation allow the Navy to -continue a sweated industry? - -Another measure of reform which is still far from accomplishment, is -the manning of British ships by British seamen. The principle, as I -stated in May, 1897, is that in dealing with the innumerable -emergencies inseparable from the life of the sea, it is better to -depend upon British seamen than upon foreigners. In May, 1897, it was -estimated that of the total number of men employed in the mercantile -marine, the proportion of British seamen was no more than three-fourths. - -In the same year, 1897, the question of the contribution of the -Colonies to Imperial Naval Defence, which, for practical purposes, was -first raised at the Imperial Conference of 1887, was the subject of one -of those discussions which have occupied the public mind at intervals -ever since; and which have eventually resulted in the decision of -Australia and New Zealand to establish navies of their own. - -In a letter written in reply to a correspondent and published in the -Press in June, 1897, I expressed the opinion that: - -"It certainly would help in Imperial defence if the Colonies did -subscribe some portion of the money necessary to secure adequate -Imperial defence, but I think that all such proposals should emanate -from the Colonies in the first instance." - -{409} - -In another communication I observed that: "We can only be prepared for -war thoroughly when the Colonies offer to join us in a definite scheme -of Imperial defence, and the Colonies and their trade are inseparable -portions of the question of Imperial defence. We must, however, offer -them an inducing quid pro quo. We cannot expect that they will bear a -share of the costs unless we are prepared to give them a voice in the -administration of Imperial affairs. Imperial consolidation must be -real, not one-sided, and we must devise a scheme for admitting the -Colonies to Parliamentary representation on all questions affecting -Imperial policy." - -And in a letter to the Secretary of the Toronto Branch of the Navy -League, I said: "The great necessity of the times is to have thoroughly -equipped and efficient naval bases in all the Colonies, so that no -matter where a British man-of-war meets the enemy, she will practically -be fighting in home waters with a good base within easy reach for -repairs, stores, coal, etc." - -I still think that this was a practical suggestion. Some years -afterwards, Canada took over certain naval bases; but the result has -not been a success. But she took them over at a time when the British -Government were engaged in dismantling and abandoning naval bases all -over the world. These have still to be restored. But as the danger is -out of sight, the public do not perceive that the demolition of naval -bases abroad may very likely, in the event of war, result in disaster -to the British Navy. - -In June, 1897, was celebrated the Diamond Jubilee of Her Majesty Queen -Victoria. Some observations contained in an article contributed by me -to _The Navy League Guide_ to the great naval review held at Spithead, -may perhaps be historically interesting. It was shown that the two -great naval reviews, that of the Jubilee in 1887 and the Diamond -Jubilee of 1897, mark important epochs in the history of the British -Navy. The Fleet of 1887 was in no way adequate to our needs at that -time, and many of the ships assembled for review could not have taken -their places in the fighting line. {410} (So it was represented at the -time; luckily, the supreme test of war was escaped; the proof that the -need existed, therefore, resides in its ultimate recognition by the -authorities.) In 1897, on the contrary, there was assembled a fleet of -warships representing a large proportion of the Navy we then possessed, -which was rapidly becoming equal to our necessities both in numbers and -efficiency. In 1887, the battleship fleet was represented by only four -vessels of less than ten years of age, _Collingwood_, _Edinburgh_, -_Conqueror_ and _Ajax_. Two out of the four were armed with -muzzle-loading guns, although all foreign navies had mounted nothing -but breech-loaders for several years previously. The contrast afforded -by the 1897 review was remarkable. Nothing could better have displayed -the giant strides we had made both in construction and fighting -efficiency, than the eleven splendid first-class battleships assembled -on 26th June, 1897. - -A suggestion was added which was not adopted; nor has the proposal yet -been carried into execution upon a large scale, probably because the -authorities are afraid of accidents. "To make the review a success and -to test the capabilities of the captains, it would be well if the Fleet -could be got under way and ordered to pass the royal yacht which should -be anchored as the saluting base. Possibly a few accidents would -occur, but it would be a capital display of seamanship and the art of -handling ships; and no Fleet in the world could execute so imposing a -manoeuvre so well as our own." - -Indeed, I have always held that a naval review should be conducted like -a military review. The Sovereign should first proceed between the -lines; then the ships should get under way and should steam past the -saluting base. - -The Dean of Saint Paul's unexpectedly provided a diversion in naval -affairs. In order to make room in the Cathedral for the monument to be -erected to the memory of the late Lord Leighton, _P_.R.A., the Dean -proposed to remove the monument to Captain Richard Rundle Burges, R.N., -from the south aisle to the crypt; a proceeding to {411} which I -expressed strong objection on behalf of the Service to which I had the -honour to belong. The controversy was conducted in the columns of _The -Times_. - -The Dean, writing on 7th July, 1897, protested that the "monument is -unsightly. Captain Burges making love to Victory over a gun is not a -very suitable monument for a church, and during the twenty-eight years -I have been connected with the Cathedral I have been most anxious to -see this monument in a less conspicuous place." - -In my reply, I said that, in the first place, I was not prepared to -accept his description of the sculptor's work; and secondly, that it -was rather late in the day to criticise it. And I submitted to the -Dean and Chapter, that as the Cathedral did not appear to have suffered -by the retention of that monument for the last hundred years, no harm -could possibly result from allowing it to remain. And I submitted with -great respect that the twenty-eight years' repugnance of the present -Dean had curiously enough only found vent in action at the time when it -was found necessary to select a spot for the site of a monument to the -late distinguished President of the Academy. I added that "Lord -Leighton was a personal friend of my own, but I have yet to learn that -he was the sort of man who would have wished to usurp the place of any -one, or that he would have even admitted that an artist, however -distinguished, takes precedence in the nation's history of those heroes -to whom the existence of our Empire is due. I rather think from what I -knew of Lord Leighton's character that had such a hypothesis been -presented to him in his lifetime his answer would have been like that -of her gracious Majesty the Queen, who, it is reported, when it was -suggested to her that Queen Anne's statue should be moved to make room -for one of herself, replied, 'Certainly not; why, you would be -proposing to move myself next.'" - -Then, on 12th July, 1897, Mr. Balfour stated in the House of Commons -that "the Dean and Chapter, after reviewing all the circumstances of -the case, had decided not to carry out {412} their intention of -relegating the Burges Memorial to the crypt." _The Times_ remarked -that "The public will be interested to know that among the -circumstances which have brought about this welcome change of purpose -an important place must be assigned to an appeal by the Prince of -Wales. His Royal Highness holds very strongly the opinion that if -memorials are to be liable to removal in this summary manner whenever -the taste of a later generation pronounces them unsightly, the door -will be opened to grave abuses. He accordingly expressed to the Dean -and Chapter his hope that they would see their way to retain the Burges -Memorial in its present position, and it is largely in deference to his -wishes that the monument remains where it was erected at the expense of -the nation." - -So the good Dean was fated still to be scandalised by the "unsuitable" -spectacle of the gallant captain "making love to Victory over a gun"; -although, personally, I doubt if Captain Burges's statue is really -doing anything of the kind. In January, 1897, I had the honour of -being appointed A.D.C. to the Queen. In July, 1897, when the intention -of the Duke and Duchess of York to visit Ireland was announced I seized -the opportunity to advocate a project which I had long desired to see -adopted, and for whose adoption, in fact, I am still hoping. That -project is the building of a Royal residence in Ireland. It has -hitherto been foiled by timid Ministers. Writing to _The Times_ (24th -July, 1897), I pointed out that the total sojourn of the Royal Family -in Ireland during the past sixty years had been fifty-nine days in all. -The letter continues: "In my humble opinion it is impossible to -overrate the harm that this apparent neglect has done to the cause of -loyalty in Ireland. I am convinced that many misfortunes and -misunderstandings would never have taken place if the Royal Family had -been permitted by Governments and courtiers to make more frequent -visits to Ireland, and to render such visits possible by the -establishment of a Royal residence in that country. I know for a fact -that Her Majesty has on one occasion, and I believe more, {413} made -strenuous efforts to obtain a Royal residence in Ireland. Her -Majesty's generous wish was never fulfilled, owing to opposition on the -part of her advisers, who have invariably entertained an ungenerous and -unworthy doubt of the Irish character.... Vice-regal rule from the -Castle at Dublin is hated with all the passion of resentment of a -generous-minded but impulsive people, who possibly regard it as placing -them on the same footing as the conquered and coloured races under -British domination. It must not be inferred that I in any way intend -to say a word against the present or preceding Viceroys of Ireland. I -only wonder that men could ever have been found with patriotism enough -to fill the office; but in common with patriotic Irishmen of all -parties, I object to the sham court of the rule of men who, so far from -really representing the Sovereign, represent merely the political party -which has the upper hand in England at the time of their holding -office--unlike the Viceroy of India, who holds office for a term of -years independent of the political party that appointed him.... I -believe Irishmen would like to have Royalty permanently among them, and -to see Ireland put on an equal footing with the rest of the United -Kingdom in these matters." - -The project was received with the general approval of the public, in so -far as their opinion was represented by the Press. The truth was, the -Queen often wished to go to Ireland; but her Ministers prevented her -from visiting my country; and their action was keenly resented by -Irishmen. Personally, I protested against it; affirming what I believe -to be the fact, that the Irish are the most chivalrous people in the -world. In her sentiment towards my country, and in all her dealings -with the Irish, Her Majesty was invariably most charming. It is very -much to be regretted that the anomaly of Castle government was not -ended long ago: that it must be ended, is certain. - -The Duke and Duchess of York, visiting Ireland in August, 1897, were -received with the greatest possible enthusiasm. The township of -Kingstown presented an {414} address in which the hope was expressed -that their visit might lead to the establishment of a Royal residence -in Ireland; and thirteen other addresses presented on the same day -expressed a like aspiration. - -In the same month (August, 1897) I was promoted to rear-admiral. - -Among other occupations, I had been collaborating with Mr. H. W. Wilson -in the preparation of a Life of Nelson. The work was published under -the title of _Nelson and his Times_, by Messrs. Harmsworth, in October, -1897. - -In the meantime the Government had been making tentative efforts -towards the constitution of a Council of Defence, upon which both -Services should be represented, and which should form a kind of -advisory body. The President of the new body was the Duke of -Devonshire, who, universally esteemed and respected for the -high-minded, conscientious statesman that he was, had neither the -training nor the aptitude required to fulfil such an office. At the -same time, the Duke was not only occupied with the affairs of his great -estates, and in the discharge of many social duties, but he was also -head of the Education Department. While expressing the utmost respect -for the Duke, I did not hesitate publicly to express my opinion, in the -course of an address delivered at the Cutlers' Feast at Sheffield in -November, 1897, that under the circumstances it was impossible to take -the new Council seriously. Nor is it probable that anyone did take it -seriously, least of all Her Majesty's Ministers. - -It was in 1897 that I first saw Mr. Marconi's invention for wireless -telegraphy. Mr. Marconi, to whom I recently wrote asking him for -particulars of the occasion, very kindly replied as follows: - -"In July, 1897, you first saw my original apparatus working at 28 Mark -Lane in the City of London, the corresponding instrument being placed -in another office in the City. Among others who witnessed the tests -was the late {415} Mr. Ritchie, then, I believe, President of the Board -of Trade." - -But the time was shortly to arrive when I was once more to take part in -doing what I could to represent the interests of the Navy in -Parliament. Since 1890, I had been approached by forty constituencies -as to whether I would become a candidate. One invitation came upon me -unawares. It was in the garden of my house at Ham Common. I was -seated at my sailmaker's bench, clad in my old canvas jumper and -trousers, employed in fitting a dipping lug I used to have in the -_Undaunted_, for the roof of a summer-house; when to me entered a party -of gentlemen, immaculately clad in frock coats and silk hats. I had -not the least idea who they were; but they conversed with me very -affably, fell to criticising my work, and presently inquired if I had -seen Lord Charles, as they had been told that he was on the lawn. At -that, I suddenly recollected that I had promised to receive a -deputation. - -During 1897, I had accepted the invitation to stand for a division of -Birmingham; but in consequence of a misunderstanding, the intention was -abandoned. Then, in December, owing to the death of my old friend Sir -Frank Lockwood, the seat of York became vacant. My opponent was Sir -Christopher Furness (afterwards Lord Furness). First in my election -address was placed the necessity for improving the efficiency both of -the Navy and Army by connecting the two Services in a plan of combined -defence. The advisability of altering the Constitution of the House of -Lords was also urged, together with the necessity of constituting a -strong Second Chamber. - -The election campaign was lively enough. Sir Christopher's main -supporter was no other than Mr. Sam Story, who afterwards became an -enthusiastic Tariff Reformer. He and I interchanged ideas in a debate -conducted for the edification of an audience of 12,000 people, turn and -turn about for twenty minutes each. - -My brothers Lord William and Lord Marcus were {416} helping me. Lord -Marcus accompanied me to a meeting, and I told him that he must make a -speech. - -"I can't," he said. "I don't know what to say." - -I told him to begin, because he was sure to be interrupted, and then, -being an Irishman, he would certainly find something to say. Lord -Marcus thereupon rose to his feet; and a voice immediately shouted: - -"Who are ye?" - -It was enough. The fire kindled. - -"Who are we?" cried Lord Marcus. "I'll tell you who we are. We are -three brothers, and our names are Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. And -we have come here to put out the burning fiery Furness!" - -There was a good deal of excitement during the election, and sometimes -stones would be flying. A cousin of mine, a lady, was driving along -the street, when a stone lodged in her bonnet. Lord William caused it -to be mounted in silver, upon which was inscribed the legend: "This -proves that our opponents left no stone unturned to win the York -election"; and presented it to the lady to use as a paper-weight. - -It was a close contest indeed. On the night of the poll, the Mayor -most unfortunately succumbed to the strain and died suddenly. - -In the result I won the seat by a majority of 11 (after two counts), on -a poll of over 11,000 votes. - -When I had taken my seat in the House, a political opponent whose -opinions were as changeable as the wind, who had held high office, and -who was distinguished by a handsome and majestic presence, said to me -in the smoking-room: - -"Well, my dear Charlie, you have not much of the appearance of a -statesman." - -"My dear old friend," I said, "you must not judge by appearances. You -have not the appearance of a weather-cock--but you are one." - -At Christmas, 1908, Mr. Henniker Heaton's indomitable {417} -perseverance had resulted in the establishment of Imperial penny -postage in every part of the British Empire except Australia and New -Zealand. Lord Randolph Churchill and myself were hearty supporters of -Mr. Henniker Heaton, who gave to each of us a golden penny in -commemoration of the event. - - - - -{418} - -CHAPTER XLII - -COVETED CHINA - -NOTE - -As the significance of Lord Charles Beresford's doings in China cannot -be appreciated save in the light of the knowledge of the international -situation in 1898, a brief analysis of it may here serve the -convenience of the reader. - -The governing factor of the problem was the fear of Russian ambition -and of Russian aggrandisement. Both Russia and Great Britain are great -Oriental Powers. The Asiatic possessions or dependencies of Russia -consisted of over six million square miles, containing a population of -about thirteen millions. The Asiatic possessions or dependencies of -Great Britain consisted of something over one and a half million square -miles, containing a population of some three hundred millions. A -comparison between the two demonstrates this remarkable disparity: that -whereas Russia had four times as much Asiatic territory as England, -England ruled over thirteen times as many Asiatic people. The Russian -pressure towards the seaboards, wealthy lands and vast populations of -the East, extended along a line measuring 7600 miles, and verging all -the way upon India, Turkey, Persia and China. In 1898, Russia was -steadily advancing towards India, throwing forward railways through -Central Asia, and at the same time inexorably thrusting the -Trans-Siberian Railway towards Manchuria and the Amur regions. That -line, which to-day bands the entire continent {419} from St. Petersburg -to Vladivostock on the Sea of Japan, in 1898 had not reached within 500 -miles of Irkutsk on Lake Baikal, which marks roughly two-thirds of the -whole distance of 4000 miles from St. Petersburg to Vladivostock as the -crow flies. - -The vast, inscrutable, dreaded giant Russia, lying right across the top -of Europe and Asia, was ever pushing downwards to the south upon -Turkey, Persia, Afghanistan and China, and reaching an arm sideways to -the east and the sea across the upper corner of China. The shoulders -of the British Empire were taking some of the weight; and lest China -should crack under it and fly asunder, many people were urging that -England should prop up that passive and unwieldy bulk, Lord Salisbury -standing back to back with the Son of Heaven. - -The common interest was of course commercial. Great Britain had 64 per -cent. of China's total foreign trade, with some £32,000,000 a year; had -invested some hundreds of millions in the Far East; and was amiably and -openly desirous to invest a great deal more in what was largely an -unexplored and an immense field of profit. But she wanted security, -first. - -It was Lord Charles Beresford's business to discover what were the -existing commercial conditions, how they might be improved and -extended, and what was the security required for so much improvement -and extension. This enterprise was known as the policy of the "Open -Door"; for the British principle was that all nations should enjoy -equal opportunities. The alternative policy was known as "Spheres of -Influence," which virtually meant the partition of the Chinese Empire -among the nations of Europe. Such was the Russian policy, in which she -was supported, or was believed to have been supported, by both France -and Germany. Russian diplomacy was active at Pekin; Russian agents -were numerous in the trading centres of China; and it was constantly -alleged at the time by students of the subject, that the Chinese -Government regarded Russia as a more {420} powerful friend than -England. In the light of subsequent experience, it would perhaps be -more accurate to say that whereas China hated and distrusted all -foreigners, she hated and distrusted the English less than the -Russians, but that the vacillations and inconsistencies of British -policy had inspired her rulers with a deep suspicion. - -A good deal of nonsense, inspired by a large and generous ignorance of -Chinese conditions and affairs, was talked and written in 1898. China -was represented as an eccentric barbarian of great size, of uncertain -temper, but on the whole amenable to good advice, who was merely -waiting pathetically for the English to teach him what to do and how to -do it. - -In truth, China, in 1898, that is, political China, while haunted by a -dread of foreign aggression, was intensely occupied with her own -affairs. These were indeed exigent enough. In the summer of 1898, -occurred the Hundred Days of Reform, followed by the _coup d'état_, and -the imprisonment of the Emperor. The visit of Lord Charles Beresford -to China coincided with the triumph of the reactionary Conservative -party at Court and the restoration to absolute power of the Empress -Dowager, Tsu Hsi. The history of the affair is related in detail by -Messrs. J. O. P. Bland and E. Backhouse, in their work, _China under -the Empress Dowager_ (Heinemann, 1910); but its intricacies were not -divulged at the time. A study of the correspondence contained in the -Blue Books of the period reveals the singular innocence of the British -diplomatic methods employed at this critical moment. - -The Emperor, Kuang-Hsu, who had always been at variance with his astute -and powerful aunt, the Empress Dowager, the real ruler of China for -fifty years, had espoused the cause of the Reform, or Chinese, party of -the South, as distinguished from the Manchu, or Conservative, party of -the North. - -The enmity of the South towards the North, the latent inbred hostility -of the Chinese to the Manchu, had been {421} roused to violence by the -defeat of China by Japan in the war of 1894-5. It was very well known -that the Empress Dowager had spent the money allocated to the Navy and -other departments of State upon the rebuilding of the Summer Palace at -Pekin and other æsthetic diversions. But the Empress Dowager, with her -habitual skill, contrived to shift the responsibility for the disaster -upon the puppet Emperor, who in fact was guiltless of it. The -injustice so exasperated the young man, that he joined the Reform -Party, and issued Decree after Decree, all of which were tinctured with -Western ideas, and all of which were expressly repugnant to the Empress -Dowager. Tzu Hsi, however, approved the Decrees without remark, biding -her time. It came. The Emperor was induced to assent to a plot to -seize the person of the Empress Dowager, and afterwards to sequester -his terrible aunt for the rest of her life. - -Now came the intromission of Yuan Shih Kai, who had been Imperial -Resident in Corea. In 1898, he was Judicial Commissioner of Chihli, -and exerted considerable influence at Court. Yuan Shih Kai, professing -great interest in reform, won the confidence of the Emperor; who, -believing that in Yuan he had gained an adherent at Court, informed him -of the details of the conspiracy. That design included the -assassination of Yung Lu. Now Yung Lu was Governor-General of Chihli, -commander-in-chief of the foreign-drilled army, which was one of the -efficient armies in China, an old friend and a loyal servant of the -Empress Dowager, and altogether a most formidable person. The -Emperor's plan was to slay Yung Lu swiftly, to put himself at the head -of Yung Lu's ten thousand soldiers, and then to march with them upon -Pekin and seize the Empress Dowager. All might have gone well, had not -Yuan Shih Kai (according to Messrs. Bland and Backhouse) been -blood-brother to Yung Lu, and also, presumably, loyal to the Empress -Dowager. In any case, Yuan went straightway to Yung Lu and divulged -the plot. - -{422} - -The next day, it was the Emperor Kuang Hsu, and not his aunt, who was -ceremoniously escorted to prison. - -Six of the conspirators were subsequently executed. Another, Kang Yu -Wei, escaped under British protection in October, 1898. Dr. Sun -Yat-sen was another fugitive. It was in October, 1898, that Lord -Charles Beresford arrived at Pekin. - -The Empress Dowager resumed the Regency and therewith the formal -investiture of that supreme power which she had exercised since, as a -girl of twenty-two, a lady in waiting at Court in the time of the -Emperor Hsien-Feng, she had unofficially assumed the conduct of -affairs, and which she continued to wield until the end. Yung Lu was -appointed to be member of the Grand Council, and Minister of War. When -he was in Pekin, Lord Charles Beresford had an interesting conversation -with Yung Lu. - -The Emperor Kuang Hsu remained imprisoned in his palace in the Ocean -Terrace at Pekin; and it was rumoured throughout the South that he -would presently die. Whether or not the Empress Dowager desired his -death, she considered it politic, having regard to the anger which his -dethronement inspired in the South, to keep him alive. Moreover, the -British Minister, referring to the reports that "the Empress Dowager -was about to proceed to extreme steps in regard to the Emperor," -solemnly suggested that any such course of action would be highly -repugnant to the susceptibilities of Foreign Powers. - -Such, briefly indicated, was the posture of affairs in 1898, when the -British Government was being urged to initiate a definite policy in -China, and when Lord Charles Beresford went to investigate commercial -conditions in that puzzling Empire. But the British Government had the -rest of the world to consider, as well. - -In the preceding year, 1897, it was announced that Russia would winter -at Port Arthur; whereupon Lord Charles Beresford remarked in the House -of Commons that the winter would probably be of long duration. Germany -{423} was in occupation of Kiao Chao, originally demanded as -compensation for the murder of a German missionary--a most profitable -martyrdom. There were troubles on the Indian frontier; there was -fighting in Crete, and consequently there was danger of a war breaking -out between Greece and Turkey. It is sufficiently obvious that, under -such conditions--at a time when the European nations were each waiting -to take of China what it could get; when Russia was more or less in -agreement with France and Germany; and when England stood alone;--any -very definite move on her part might have led to bigger difficulties -than she cared to encounter. At any rate, peace was maintained; the -policy of the "Open Door" prevailed; and the influence exerted by Lord -Charles Beresford upon international affairs, although perhaps not to -be defined, was considerable. For further information concerning this -epoch, the student may be referred to _China under the Empress -Dowager_, by Messrs. J. O. P. Bland and E. Backhouse (Heinemann, 1910); -_China in Transformation,_ by A. R. Colquhoun (Harper, 1898); and the -Blue-book _China. No. 1 (1899) C.--9131_. - -While one British admiral, Rear-Admiral Noel, stopped the trouble in -Crete, which had defeated the united intellect of Europe for -generations; another, Rear-Admiral Lord Charles Beresford, was employed -in conducting a swifter, more thorough and more practical investigation -into the commercial military and social conditions of China than had -ever before been accomplished; so that its results, set forth at the -time in the admiral's many speeches and afterwards in his book _The -Break-up of China_, struck the two great English-speaking peoples of -the world, the British and the American nations, with something of the -force of a revelation. - - - - -{424} - -CHAPTER XLIII - -THE INTROMISSION OF THE ADMIRALS - -In August, 1898, I received from the Associated Chambers of Commerce of -Great Britain, whose President was Sir Stafford Northcote, an -invitation to proceed on their behalf to China, "to obtain accurate -information as to how security is to be ensured to commercial men who -may be disposed to embark their capital in trade enterprise in China." -Sir Stafford Northcote added that he desired to obtain a report on -these matters from a "non-official source," and that, further, it -should be supplied by an officer of naval or military experience, by -reason of the importance of the question of adequate protection for -British commercial ventures. - -Accompanied by Mr. Robin Grey, who acted as an additional secretary, -and by my secretary, Mr. Macdonald, I sailed for China towards the end -of August. My commission, to report on the future prospects of British -trade and commerce in China and especially to what extent the Chinese -Government would guarantee the safe employment of British capital, was -sufficiently wide in its scope. - -At that time, there was much public discussion concerning the rivalry -manifesting itself among the European nations interested in China, -particularly with regard to railway concessions and like privileges. -The public in general were of opinion that the British Government was -very slow to assert British rights. In July, 1898, Sir Claude -Macdonald, British Plenipotentiary at the Court of Pekin, was -"authorised to inform the Chinese Government that Her Majesty's -Government {425} will support them in resisting any Power which commits -an act of aggression on China or on account of China having granted -permission to make or support any railway or public work to a British -subject." - -This was something, but it was not much; for China, comparing British -assurances with Russian actions, entertained her own opinion concerning -their comparative value. Nevertheless, the British policy was quite -definitely the policy of the "Open Door"; which Mr. Balfour defined -(10th August, 1898) as "the right of importing goods at the same rate -that every nation imports goods, the same right of using railways that -other nations possess. In other words, equal trade opportunities." -The alternative policy of "Spheres of Influence," Mr. Balfour -oracularly described as "a wholly different set of questions connected -with concessions, and they cannot be treated in the same simple and -obvious manner." But in what the treatment should consist, the public -were not told. - -It was not, perhaps, understood by the public at the time, how delicate -was the international situation, nor how serious might be the -consequences, not only of hasty action but, of any decisive action; and -although it did not necessarily follow that nothing should be done, the -difficulties and complications, many of which were known only to the -Government, should be taken into consideration. - -Russia was establishing herself in Manchuria, and was arming Port -Arthur and Talienwan. Germany had declined to pledge herself not to -levy preferential duties at Kiao Chao, and claimed exclusive rights -over railway construction through the Shantung Province. France was -claiming preferential rights with regard to her leasehold in Southern -China. France and Russia were interesting themselves in the sanctioned -trunk line from Pekin to Hankow and from Hankow to the south. - -Nothing was settled with regard to the important question of the rights -over the Yangtse basin. - -Lord Salisbury had stated that he did not consider it to {426} be the -duty of Her Majesty's Government to make railways in China, or to find -the money to make them; and both Lord Salisbury and Mr. Curzon -(afterwards Viscount Curzon of Kedleston) affirmed that the failure of -British syndicates to apply for concessions in China was due to their -lack of initiative. - -On the other hand, it was argued in the Press that the lack of -initiative on the part of British enterprise was due to the lack of -support and to the absence of a definite policy on the part of the -Government, a criticism which, among others, was formulated by Sir -Edward Grey, who was then of course in Opposition. - -At the same time, underlying these controversies, there was the -consciousness that detailed practical information concerning the real -posture of affairs in China was lacking. Under these conditions, -considerable responsibility attached to the task upon which I had -entered. Its rapid and successful fulfilment clearly depended upon the -method of its organisation. Before starting, a letter was addressed by -me to every Chamber of Commerce in China, requesting it to prepare a -report giving details of: - -1. The State of British trade now. - -2. The state of British trade ten years ago. - -3. The state of foreign trade. - -4. Increase and decrease of trade. - - -By this means, the reports were ready for me upon my arrival; and I was -immediately placed in possession of the material which served to guide -my inquiries and upon which I could base my observations. As these are -set forth in detail, in my book _The Break-up of China_, published by -Messrs. Harper and Brothers in 1899, and as the conditions have since -changed, I do not propose to repeat them at length in these pages. I -have here to acknowledge the courtesy of Messrs. Harper and Brothers in -granting me permission to quote from _The Break-up of China_. - -I wrote that work in thirty-one days; a feat of which I was {427} not -unjustly proud; for it was a long book, crammed with facts and -statistics, extracted from a pile of memoranda and documents three feet -high. I used to ride before breakfast in Richmond Park; after -breakfast, I worked all day until 7.30; and when I had finished the -book, I said I would never write another. - -While I was on my way to China--while all the Chambers of Commerce in -China were hard at it compiling reports for me--a brother officer, -Rear-Admiral Noel, was engaged in settling, in his own supreme way, a -difficulty which had long exercised the Chancelleries of Europe in -vain, and which might at any moment have given rise to what are called -European complications. - -In January, 1897, broke out the insurrection of the Christians in -Crete; which, put shortly, was the result of two centuries of -oppression under Moslem rule. During the previous year (to go no -farther back) the Sultan of Turkey, at the request of the Powers of -Europe, had promised to introduce certain reforms. As these were not -carried into execution, the Cretan Christians, encouraged thereto by -Greece and aided by Greek soldiery, rose in rebellion. Roughly -speaking, the Christians held the country districts, and the Turkish -garrison, reinforced by an irregular and undisciplined horde of -Bashi-Bazouks, occupied the towns. No doubt but Turkey could have put -down the revolt by extensive bloodshed; but the Powers of Europe had -forbidden the Sultan either to reinforce his garrison in Crete, or (at -first) to make war upon the insurgents. The Powers were therefore -morally bound to restore order themselves. Recognising this -obligation, they dispatched men-of-war to Crete. Italy, France, -Russia, Austria, Great Britain and Germany were represented. -Vice-Admiral Count N. Canevaro, the Italian, being senior officer, was -president of the Council of Admirals. Great Britain was represented by -Rear-Admiral Sir Robert Harris. The admirals arrived off Canea in -February, 1897; intercepted and sent away a Greek squadron of -reinforcements; {428} established a blockade; and proceeded, as best -they might, to enforce order. They succeeded for the time being; but -it was not within their province to attempt a radical remedy. So long -as the Turks remained in Crete, so long would the trouble continue. -The Christians dared not resume their occupations, for fear of a -further outbreak of Moslem aggression, when they could not rely upon -the Turkish garrison for protection; the Moslems, dreading Christian -reprisals, clung to the Turkish troops as their only salvation. - -In the face of this dilemma, Germany and Austria withdrew from the -concert, and the island remained in charge of Great Britain, France, -Russia and Italy, each Power being assigned a district. Great Britain -retained Candia, where the British garrison was reduced to one -regiment, the Highland Light Infantry. The discontent, temporarily -quelled, soon became acute. - -The decision of the Council of Admirals to collect a proportion of the -export duties aroused intense indignation. When, on 6th September, -1898, the British came to take over the Custom House at Candia, the mob -rose, attacked the tiny force of British seamen and soldiers and the -British camp and hospital, and massacred some 500 Christians in the -town. The British fought like heroes and lost heavily; but for the -moment they were helpless; the only man-of-war off Candia being the -gunboat _Hazard_. - -Then, on 11th September, Rear-Admiral Gerard Noel (now Admiral of the -Fleet Sir Gerard H. U. Noel, G.C.B., K.C.M.G.), who had relieved Sir -Robert Harris early in the year, arrived at Candia in H.M.S. _Revenge_. -The next day, he landed, inspected the scenes of the recent fighting -and ordered the Turkish governor, Edhem Pasha, to repair on board the -_Revenge_. - -Admiral Noel required the governor to demolish all houses from which -the insurgents had fired upon the British camp and hospital; to give up -to British troops certain forts and positions; and to surrender the -principal persons concerned in the rioting and attack. The admiral -also {429} informed the governor that the Moslem population would be -disarmed. - -The governor broke into a cold perspiration and accepted the admiral's -demands. He was then suffering under the delusion that he could evade -them. He never made a bigger mistake. When he tried to avoid the -demolition of the houses, he was suddenly confronted with the spectacle -of two hundred British seamen coming ashore to do the work, and -hurriedly gave in. When he endeavoured to postpone the delivery of the -prisoners, he was informed that if they were not delivered by the hour -appointed, they would be taken. His every excuse and pretext were met -by the same composed and invincible determination. At the last moment, -when the scaffold awaiting the malefactors stood stark upon the highest -point of the bastions, Edhem Pasha's frantic plea for delay was -received by a terse intimation that if he did not hang the prisoners, -he, Edhem Pasha, would himself be hanged. - -The disturbers of peace were hanged at the precise time appointed; and -swung in a row until sundown, in sight of all the city. Twice again -the bodies of murderers darkened above the ramparts, to the abiding -terror of evil-doers. - -The Powers ordered the evacuation of the island by the Turks within a -month, which expired on 5th December. On the evening of the 4th, some -600 troops had still to leave, together with their women, horses and -baggage. Admiral Noel ordered the baggage to be embarked on board the -British transport _Ocampo_ and a small Turkish transport that night. -Next day, the governor, Shefket Bey (who had succeeded Edhem Pasha), -informed the admiral that he had received orders from the Governor of -Crete to keep the remaining troops and to disembark the baggage. What -followed is described in an account of the affair contributed by "A -Naval Officer" to _The United Service Magazine_, February, 1899. - -"An armed boat was sent to prevent interference with {430} the Turkish -transport. The admiral signalled to the Fleet: 'Prepare to man and arm -boats. I intend to compel the Turkish troops to embark by force after -noon'; and to the commandant of British troops, 'All Turkish troops -remaining in the town after noon are to be made prisoners and compelled -to embark at the quay.'" - -It was a bold decision, worthy of the Royal Navy. For all the admiral -knew, the Turks might have fought, in which case they would have been -reinforced by some thousands of Bashi-Bazouks. But they gave in, and -were marched on board. Their "furniture, beds, pianos, carpets and -general loot and rubbish, making a pile as big as a frigate," says the -eye-witness aforesaid, "which, together with nearly three hundred -horses, was bundled into boats and lighters by the seamen of the -_Revenge_ and _Empress of India_, and stowed away on board the -transports, the work taking all night." - -Thus did Rear-Admiral Gerard Noel cut the knot which all the -diplomatists in Europe had failed to unloose. The Marquess of -Salisbury publicly complimented the admirals upon their diplomatic -ability, saying that he wished the Cabinets of Europe could work -together with equal unanimity and rapidity. - -In December, 1908, H.R.H. Prince George of Greece took over the -government of Crete from the admirals. - -The settlement of the Cretan difficulty undoubtedly exercised an -appreciable effect upon the international situation, with which my own -enterprise in China was necessarily connected. For Admiral Noel had -removed what had been a chronic danger to the peace of Europe; and in -so doing had demonstrated that combined action on the part of the Great -Powers (if entrusted to naval officers) could be both cordially -conducted and successfully accomplished. I have recalled the affair, -not only because it gives me pleasure to record the ability, courage -and resolution of my old friend and brother officer, but because no -account of the time, lacking the Cretan episode, can be wholly -intelligible. For, {431} although it is consistently neglected by -political historians, whose views are usually distorted by party, it -remains, and will remain, a classic example of the consummate exercise -of British sea-power for the inspiration and instruction of honest men. - - - - -{432} - -CHAPTER XLIV - -TRAFFICS AND DISCOVERIES - -I. CHINA - -THE MISFORTUNES OF KANG YU WEI - -On my way up to Pekin, I visited Hong Kong, arriving there on 30th -September. The island of Hong Kong, being British territory, is a city -of refuge; to which sanctuary, just before my arrival, had fled Kang Yu -Wei, the leader of the Reform Party. To the influence of Kang Yu Wei -may be ascribed the conversion of the young Emperor, Kuang Hsu, to -Reform; and the issue by the Son of Heaven of the series of Decrees, -during the Hundred Days of Reform of the preceding summer. The -movement culminated in the plot to seize the person of the Empress -Dowager, which was frustrated by the _coup d'état_. But before that -decisive event occurred, Kang Yu Wei receiving a broad hint from the -Emperor that his arrest had been ordered by the Empress Dowager, took -the next train from Pekin to Tongku, and embarked on board the coasting -steamer _Chungking_ bound for Shanghai. - -The Taotai at Shanghai informed Acting-Consul-General Brenan that he -had received orders to arrest Kang Yu Wei upon his arrival, and that a -reward of 2000 dollars was offered for his capture, and requested Mr. -Brenan to search for the fugitive in all British ships arriving at -Shanghai. By this time the Chinese detectives and policemen were -wildly excited by the prospect of securing 2000 dollars that Mr. Brenan -feared they would attempt forcibly to {433} board British ships before -they entered the harbour. He therefore determined to intercept the -_Chungking_ before the Chinese officials could reach her; but desiring -to avoid the open implication of the Consulate in the matter, he -accepted the services volunteered by Mr. J. O. P. Bland (joint author -of _China under the Empress Dowager_). Mr. Bland, who spoke Chinese, -took a steam-launch, met the _Chungking_ some miles out at sea, -transhipped Kang Yu Wei, and put him on board the P. and O. steamer -_Ballaarat_, then lying outside Woosung. Captain Field, commanding the -_Ballaarat_, placed an armed sentry upon Kang Yu Wei's cabin. The -people in the _Chungking_, knowing that H.M.S. _Esk_ was at Woosung, -told the Chinese officials at Shanghai that Kang Yu Wei had been put on -board her. This information diverted attention from the _Ballaarat_ -for the moment. - -The Chinese officials, however, eventually determined to follow the -_Ballaarat_ in a gunboat, when, two days later (29th September), the -_Ballaarat_ sailed for Hong Kong. The British authorities, learning -also that two more Chinese gunboats were ordered to lie in wait for the -P. and O. boat, arranged that she should be escorted to Hong Kong by -H.M. cruiser _Bonaventure_, commanded by my old friend and -brother-in-arms in the Soudan campaign, Captain R. A. J. Montgomerie. -Being pursued by the Chinese gunboat, Montgomerie cleared for action; -luckily for them, the Chinese declined to risk an affair with one of -the finest fighting officers in Her Majesty's service; and Kang Yu Wei -was landed in safety at Hong Kong. Here, Major-General Black placed -him under police protection. The procedure followed by Captain -Montgomerie in accordance with the orders of Vice-Admiral Sir Edward -Seymour, then commander-in-chief on the China station, not only saved -the life of the patriot Kang Yu Wei, but prevented the occurrence of -the difficulties which would have arisen had the Chinese attempted to -board the _Ballaarat_. - -With the object of ascertaining the views of the Reform Party -concerning the future of China and its relation to the {434} extension -of trade and commerce, I invited Kang Yu Wei to visit me. He arrived -surrounded by a bodyguard of policemen, for a price was set on his -head. Apparently the poor man felt it already loose, for, as he -talked, he kept turning it over his shoulder; and little wonder; for it -was only three or four days since his brother and five of his -colleagues had been executed in Pekin. - -"Reforms in the East," said Kang Yu Wei, "invariably demanded martyrs; -and, if China did not go to pieces in the meantime, posterity would -honour the six dead gentlemen." In reply to my question as to the -present position of the Reform Party, he said it was "completely -crushed, but not killed," and would ere long revive; a prophecy which -has been fulfilled. - -Kang Yu Wei affirmed that, contrary to the general opinion abroad, all -educated Chinamen believed that Reform alone could prevent the -dissolution of an Empire 4000 years old; that by degrees the mass of -the people were accepting the new doctrines; that the Reformers relied -upon Great Britain to help them to carry their schemes into execution; -and that, were they to attain power, they would certainly open China to -the trade and commerce of the world, because such a policy would -increase the strength and riches of the Empire. - -The impression left upon my mind by Kang Yu Wei was that he was loyal, -patriotic, and unselfishly devoted to his country, and undoubtedly he -was in earnest. - -[Illustration: FROM AN ORIGINAL DRAWING BY PHIL MAY IN THE POSSESSION -OF THE AUTHOR] - -In the course of many conversations held with the compradors (managers) -of the great mercantile houses in China, I ascertained that, while -several of them were frankly in favour of Reform, all of them agreed -that the Reformers had acted in haste, neglecting to prepare their way -by means of careful organisation. - - - -THE CHINESE NEW MODEL - -Arriving at Pekin on 16th October, 1898, I was kindly invited by Sir -Claude Macdonald, British Minister {435} Plenipotentiary, to stay at -the Legation. To all Foreign Ministers accredited to Pekin I paid my -respects and presented my credentials, which were given to me by the -President of the Associated Chambers of Commerce of Great Britain, Sir -Stafford Northcote, and which showed that I had been asked to make a -report on British trade and commerce, its future development, and what -security existed throughout the Chinese Empire for such trade and -commerce. - -On 20th October, I visited the Tsung-li Yamen; a body created, in 1861, -for the purpose of conducting diplomatic negotiations with the -representatives of Foreign Powers, and consisting of eight members, of -whom three are Manchus and five are Chinese. I was presented to Prince -Ching, the President, and was requested to address the members. In my -speech, I dwelt upon the anxiety as to the future on the part of -British traders on account of the want of security for capital, and the -ignoring of treaties by the Chinese; suggested that, unless China -organised her military and police forces in order to give security for -trade and commerce, foreign countries would adopt the policy embodied -in the expression "Spheres of Influence"; affirmed that the British -desired no addition to be made to the British Empire, either in the -nature of dominion, sphere of influence, or protectorate; explained -that what the commercial communities desired was free and uninterrupted -opportunities for trade, with equal rights and privileges for all the -nations of the world, a policy expressed by the words "Open Door"; and -stated that in order to establish such a policy, it was essential that -China should maintain her integrity. - -Prince Ching asked me how I thought trade and commerce could be better -protected that it was at present. - -I replied that the only effective method would be thoroughly to -reorganise the Chinese army, abolishing the system of maintaining -provincial armies; that, as Great Britain had 64 per cent. of the whole -foreign trade of China, she was naturally anxious as to its adequate -security; and that it was possible that the British Government would -allow {436} a British officer to assist the Chinese in putting their -army in order; adding that I had no official authority whatever to make -the statement, but merely put it forward as a suggestion. I also -suggested that should the Chinese Government consider the proposal, it -might be well for them to invite other nations which had large trading -interests with China, to lend a few officers and non-commissioned -officers to work with the British in the reorganisation of the army. - -Prince Ching observed that they already had German officers to drill -some of their troops; and that Captain Lang, the British naval officer, -was in the Chinese service to help them to organise their Fleet. He -did not mention, however, what I afterwards discovered, that Captain -Lang had found the admiral sitting on the quarter-deck playing fan-tan -with his own sentry. Captain Lang subsequently resigned his -appointment. - -When Prince Ching and some members of the Tsung-li Yamen returned my -visit, Prince Ching informed me that the Emperor and the Empress -Dowager approved of my suggestions; and that his Excellency Chung Chi -Tung, Viceroy of Hunan and Hupeh, had been ordered to have 2000 of his -troops ready to be placed under a British officer for drill and -organisation, as an experiment, which might possibly lead to the -reorganisation of the army as a whole. I replied that as I was in no -way authorised to take any responsibility with regard to this matter, -any action taken on the part of the Tsung-ii Yamen must go through the -British Minister to the British Government. Prince Ching said that it -was the intention of the Tsung-li Yamen formally to inform Sir Claude -Macdonald of the wishes of the Chinese Government. - -My interpreter on these occasions was Mr. Fulford of the British -Legation, and all that passed between myself and the high Chinese -officials in Pekin was made known by Mr. Fulford to the British -Minister. - -The question of providing adequate security for British subjects and -for British trade and commerce, was thus {437} frankly raised at the -beginning. Indeed, all hinged upon its solution. The safety of life -and property always depends ultimately upon disciplined force. The -force at the disposal of the Chinese Government was scattered, -ill-organised and largely inefficient. But, with the men, money and -resources actually available, it would have been perfectly feasible to -have formed an army of a million men. Such was my view at the time, -and I have seen no reason to change it since. - -At the request of the Tsung-li Yamen, I drew up the entire scheme -complete in every detail for the organisation of the Chinese army; and -on several occasions it was discussed with me by the Chinese Ministers -at great length. - -Briefly described, my scheme was based upon the principle upon which -the Imperial Maritime Customs had been formed. The Imperial Maritime -Customs was charged with the duty of collecting Custom House dues, -which were hypothecated to secure the external indebtedness of China. -All nations were represented upon it, and, because Great Britain -possessed by far the larger share of Chinese trade, a British officer -was placed at its head. The business was impartially managed under the -Chinese Government for the common welfare of China and of other -nations; and in the result the arrangement worked admirably. - -The proposal was, then, to organise the army upon the same basis; -appointing officers of those nations who owned interests in China; and, -as Great Britain possessed the largest interests, placing a British -officer in command under the Chinese Government. Under these -conditions, the army would be enabled to secure China both against -foreign aggression and internal disturbance. In a word, it would -ensure stable government. Under existing conditions, stable government -was impossible; for the methods of the Empress Dowager consisted in -playing off one party against another, and one viceroy against another. -Tsu Hsi succeeded in maintaining her personal ascendancy; but at the -cost of so weakening the State, that it was liable to fall a prey to -foreign ambition and foreign cupidity. - -{438} - -The Chinese high officials argued the whole subject with great acumen. -They objected that the commander-in-chief might embark upon a career of -personal aggrandisement. I replied that as he would be under the -Chinese Government, and that as he would be further restricted by his -dependence upon an international body of officers, there could be no -such danger. And I asked the Chinese whether they had any reason to be -dissatisfied with Sir Robert Hart's administration of the Customs. -They answered at once that his services were invaluable to China, and -said that he worked so hard in Chinese interests that "he might have -been a Chinaman." - -I then pointed out that a British officer at the head of the army would -occupy the same position with regard to the army as Sir Robert Hart -occupied with regard to the Customs; offered to select for them the -best general I could find for the executive command; and informed them -that I was myself prepared to undertake the administrative command. - -The objection that the creation of such an army might offend foreign -susceptibilities, was also met by the argument that foreign officers -would command it. - -In reply to a courteous question, I stated that my object in proposing -the scheme was to benefit China; and that the reason why I desired to -benefit China was that an improvement in Chinese administration must -necessarily profit British interests. - -I also discussed the subject with his Excellency Yung Lu, he who had -executed the _coup d'état_ which resulted in the defeat of the -Reformers and the imprisonment of the Emperor Kuang Hsu. Yung Lu, who -commanded one of the foreign-drilled armies, stated that the -reorganisation of the Chinese army under British and foreign officers -would be carried into execution; and asked me whether, supposing that -China put the whole of her armies under British officers, Great Britain -would assist her in any quarrel that might arise between her and any -other Power. - -{439} - -The direct question was highly significant. - -My reply, of course, was that I was unable to discuss political -questions; but that Great Britain had no desire to involve herself in -quarrels which might arise among other countries. - -Yung Lu courteously invited me to visit the military forces then -quartered round Pekin; a privilege of which I afterwards availed myself. - -Having formulated my scheme for the reorganisation of the Chinese army, -founded upon a general knowledge of the requirements of the situation, -I proceeded to fulfil in detail that part of my instructions received -from the President of the Associated Chambers of Commerce directing me -to report "whether the organisation of the Chinese civil and military -administration is sufficiently complete to ensure adequate protection -to commercial ventures." Accordingly, I visited all the forts and -arsenals forming the coast and river defences of the Chinese Empire, -and utilised the opportunities, most courteously extended to me by the -various viceroys, of inspecting the Imperial military forces. - -For the sake of simplicity, the results of my investigations into -military and naval conditions are here grouped together; although these -investigations were necessarily conducted side by side with my -inquiries into commercial affairs, the two elements being often present -in the same locality. - -China's military forces were then sharply divided between Manchu and -Chinese, or North and South. The Manchu, or Northern, forces were -manned and officered entirely by Manchus, and enjoyed privileges which -were denied to the Chinese army. Nearly every Southern army was -commanded by two generals, a Manchu and a Chinese, the Manchu being the -real head. - -The provincial armies are maintained at the expense of the viceroys. -In the Province of Chihli, General Yuan Shih Kai's army, and the -Imperial armies at and around Pekin, are maintained by the Board of -Revenue out of {440} Imperial taxes; so that the Imperial armies -permanently quartered round Pekin are State-paid. The generals in -command of the Provinces administer their armies entirely according to -their own discretion. As these officers are responsible for the -payment and maintenance of the forces under their command, much of the -money which should go to the army is apt to stick with its general. - -When I mentioned these circumstances to the members of the Tsung-li -Yamen, one of them blandly asked me if I included his army in my -description. - -I replied that his Excellency could not but be aware that he received -supplies of pay, clothes and rice for an establishment of 10,000, -although the actual number was one half or less; and that when his army -was inspected, he filled the ranks by hiring coolies for the occasion. -My response evoked an irreverent outburst of applause from the -interested audience of coolies. "The English Mandarin," they cried, -"knows all about our old mandarins! That is just what happens." - - - -YUAN SHIH KAI - -In October, 1898, I went to Hsiao Chao to visit Yuan Shih Kai, the high -official who informed Yung Lu of the plot of the Reformers to seize the -Empress Dowager, and so brought about the _coup d'état_. I remained -two days and a night with the general; witnessed the parade of all his -troops, and their manoeuvres, and examined their equipment and -victualling. I was permitted to examine the pay-sheets, and obtained -every detail connected with the establishment and maintenance of the -force. - -General Yuan Shih Kai is a Chinaman, and his army was composed of -Chinese. It numbered 7400 men. They appeared to be smart, of fine -physique, well fed, and their uniforms were well kept. Their parade -and manoeuvres were smartly executed, their discipline was excellent. -All their equipment was serviceable and efficient, with the exception -of their artillery. - -{441} - -It was on this occasion that I had a conversation with Yuan Shih Kai, -which, in the light of subsequent events in China, it may be not -uninteresting to recall. - -Yuan Shih Kai expressed his anxiety concerning the future of his -country; which, he said, was in a lamentable state of weakness, and -which the States of Europe were desirous of dividing among themselves; -and in this connection he was inclined favourably to regard the -proposal to combine the various Chinese armies into one great Imperial -force. - -Upon that, I asked Yuan if he were acquainted with the history of -China. Being one of the governing class, and therefore a scholar of -the ancient meticulous pedantic class, he probably knew the whole of it -by heart; and he replied in the affirmative. - -"Then," I said, "have you not observed that every Chinese dynasty has -been founded by a successful general?" - -The man who is now (1913) President of the Chinese Republic looked at -me impassive as a statue, and held his peace. - -Yuan Shih Kai was well aware of the fact that throughout the East the -ruler is always "He," never "They"; and for this reason he subsequently -endeavoured, after the death of the Empress Dowager, to preserve the -authority of the Emperor. - -Years afterwards, before leaving England for China, Dr. Sun Yat-sen, -who was accompanied by General Homer Lea of the United States, lunched -with me. General Homer Lea was, I think, to conduct the reorganisation -of the Chinese army. - - - -ARMS AND MEN - -The armies which I had the privilege of inspecting, or concerning which -I obtained information, were: the army of General Sung, distributed -along the coast about Kinchow, which apparently consisted of 10,000 men -out of a paper strength of 20,000; the army of General Soon Ching at -{442} Lutai, which was also at half strength, consisting of 7000 men -out of 15,000, distributed among 30 camps, and having some Russian -officers; and the army of General Tung Fu Chan, near Pekin, which was a -disorderly and an undisciplined rabble; the army of General Nieh, which -consisted of about 13,000 men, distributed among 30 camps between Hsiao -Chao and Tientsin, with five Russian instructors; the Pekin Field -Force, which was commanded from the Palace, and which consisted of -10,000 picked men, well armed but badly drilled; the cavalry camp at -Kaiping, theoretically consisting of 1500 men, and having three Russian -officers; and the army of General Yi Ke Tong, consisting of from 8000 -to 15,000 men scattered about in Manchuria. I also saw the armies, or -some part of them, of the Viceroys Chung Chai Tung, Liu Kwen Yi, Hsu -Ying Kwei, Tau Chung Liu, and Kwei. Besides these, I was informed that -there were in Mongolia 100,000 cavalry. - -Among the various armies were distributed 14 different patterns of -rifles, varying from the Mauser to the gingal. Some contingents were -armed with bows and arrows; others carried bird-cages and fans, being -distinguishable as soldiers only by their badge. The armies exhibited -as many degrees of efficiency among themselves as their weapons. - -Nevertheless, I came to the conclusion that here was all the material -from which to evolve an excellent army. The Chinese have all the -qualities of a good soldier: they are sober, obedient, quick to learn -and courageous. The requirements were proper food, pay, clothing, -drill and competent officers. - -While I was at Newchwang I obtained what information was available with -regard to the numbers and location of the Russian troops in Eastern -Siberia and in Manchuria The total number was then about 12,000 men. - -In the course of my inspection, at the Viceroy's invitation, of the -powerful forts on the Yangtse River, I observed that one fort, which -was intended to fire up the river, was so constructed that only one gun -out of six could be trained in {443} the required direction, so that if -the other guns were brought to bear, the guns' crews would be killed. -The face of the fort, instead of being at right angles to the course of -the river, was parallel to it. At my suggestion, a dummy figure was -placed in position; a gun was fired in the required direction; and sure -enough the shot blew the effigy to pieces and went wandering among the -junks crowding the river. The Chinese said that the English Mandarin -was the cleverest mandarin they had ever seen; and explained that the -fort had not been built in the right position because the ground was -swampy. - -Among my observations of forts elsewhere, I noted a battery of 60-ton -muzzle-loading guns, which were loaded by depressing their muzzles into -the magazine. I ventured to suggest that any carelessness in sponging -out the guns might result in the explosion of the magazine. The -general said that the English Mandarin was extraordinarily clever; and -explained that a year previously a magazine had been blown up for the -very reason I had indicated, had killed forty-two men, and had then -been rebuilt upon the same plan. - -At another fort I noted that the powder used for the heavy guns was -unsuitable, and ventured to suggest that it might burst the gun. - -"Yes, it does," said the general simply. "We have lately blown the -breech off two 12-inch 50-ton Krupp guns, killing and wounding thirty -men." And he congratulated the English Mandarin upon his extraordinary -powers of divination. After the general's explanation I understood how -it was that in another fort two 12-inch Krupp guns were fitted with -Armstrong breech mechanism. The Krupp breech having been blown off, -the Shanghai arsenal had neatly fitted them with Armstrong breeches. - -Observing that a powder-mill at Canton had open gratings for windows, -and stood in the midst of a sandy plain, I ventured to suggest that the -sand might blow in, and that a spark from it might cause an explosion. - -"Yes, it does," said the mandarin. "It blew up two {444} years ago and -killed and wounded twenty men." He added that although it had been -rebuilt upon the same plan, it was not intended to use it again; and -expressed his admiration for my remarkable penetration. - -At one of the arsenals, the workman boring a 6-pounder gun had his -speed too fast and his feed too thick, so that his machine was taking -out chips of metal and jumping under the strain. My guide observed -placidly that the man didn't seem to know how to do it. The European -instructor, he explained, had left. I offered to replace him for the -occasion; took off my coat; and being an old hand at the lathe managed -to set the machine right in about an hour's work. Then there suddenly -arose a great crying and calling among the coolies outside. I thought -a riot was beginning; but the tumult was only the coolies in their -innocent way screaming their delight that "the English Mandarin could -do what their own old mandarins couldn't." - -I drew up a report with regard to the forts and arsenals in China. The -general conclusion was that enormous sums of money were being expended -on war material which, in most cases, was totally useless, although the -establishments were often capable, under European instructors, of -turning out work which would compare with the best in Europe. Two or -three of these arsenals, rightly managed, would serve to equip a -million men for less money than was already being expended. - - - -H.I.M. NAVY - -I also visited the Chinese Navy, which was divided into two squadrons, -the Peyang squadron in the North and the Nanyang squadron in the South. -The Peyang squadron consisted of three cruisers, one torpedo cruiser, -and one torpedo gunboat. The Nanyang squadron was composed of seven -cruisers, four old gunboats, and four torpedo boats. The Fleet as a -whole was undermanned, but there were many men who had been well -trained by English instructors. The only dockyard is at Foochow. - -{445} - -Many Chinese authorities having asked my advice as to the fleet, I -recommended them to put their ships in order for police purposes, and -to utilise them for the purpose of checking piracy; advised them not to -spend any more money on their navy, because their army was of greater -importance; and pointed out the waste involved in keeping about the -coasts and in the river hundreds of man-of-war junks. - -Throughout China, I found among the high officials at least an -ostensible agreement with my views concerning the necessity of -reorganising the army: agreement which was no doubt largely dictated by -the very present fear of Russian aggression. - -His Excellency Li Hung Chang, whom I visited, was an exception to the -rule; for the great Minister, one of the Six Grand Secretaries, was -growing old and infirm; and having offended the Reform Party, it was -not improbable that he was looking to Russia to protect him in case the -Empress Dowager's support failed him. His case was typical of the -Chinese attitude, in which the regard for personal wealth and safety, -threatened so subtly and from so many dark quarters, is naturally apt -to override patriotism. - -At the same time, China is one of the most democratic countries in the -world. I have seen the great Li Hung Chang stepping into the Yamen -over the bodies of the coolies, who refused to move and who chaffed him -as he passed. I have seen a whole Council huddle up their fans and -disperse like startled poultry, because a coolie put his head in at the -door and exhorted the old gentlemen to be quick, because it was going -to rain, and the coolies were going home. - -It is the rule of the road in China that all passengers must give way -to carriers of burdens, and it was enforced without respect of persons. -Being carried in a sedan, with four bearers and four coolies running -alongside, I was horrified to perceive the head coolie incontinently -knock down an {446} old mandarin who was in the way. The poor old -gentleman rolled over and over, Red Button and all; and when he arose, -his gorgeous silks all befouled with mud, the coolie spat in his face. -China is full of the unexpected. - - - -HIGHLY COMMERCIAL - -As already explained, the two aspects of my investigations, the -military conditions and the commercial conditions, are here treated -separately for the sake of simplicity, although at the time they were -necessarily conducted together. The following brief account of the -results of my inquiries into the state of trade and commerce contains -those particulars which may still retain their interest. - -From Pekin I went to Tientsin, where I attended a meeting of the -Chamber of Commerce, which vehemently protested against the "Sphere of -Influence" policy, declaring that the future trade of Tientsin would be -entirely dependent on preserving the integrity of China, and upon the -existence of a guarantee of the policy of the "Open Door." The British -section of the Chamber of Commerce presented to me a memorandum, which -they desired me to transmit to the Associated Chambers of Commerce in -England, protesting against the absence of any definite policy, and -stating that considerable anxiety existed with regard to the safety of -capital already invested in China. The fear of Russian aggression had -virtually paralysed the movement of capital in the northern part of -China. The general opinion was that if the "Open Door" policy were -established and secured, these apprehensions would disappear. - -I was most courteously received by the Chinese authorities at Tientsin, -who expressed great friendliness towards Great Britain; and who, as -usual, affirmed that China was helpless and that all the European -countries were taking advantage of her weakness. In the case of -Russia, they stated that concessions were being demanded throughout the -whole country which China was unable to refuse. - -{447} - -From Tientsin I went to Tongshan, travelling upon the Shanhaikwan -railway, which had been built by Scotch engineers under the direction -of Mr. Kinder, a British subject of great talent and energy, who had -married a Japanese lady. Of the two people whom I met who seemed to me -really to possess an intimate knowledge of China and the Chinese, Mr. -Kinder was one. The other was Dr. Morrison, _The Times_ correspondent. - -With Mr. Kinder's assistance, I collected the whole of the statistics -regarding the working of the Tongshan railway workshops, of the -Shanhaikwan railway, and of the coal mine, in which Chinese miners were -employed under European foremen. - -Upon my arrival at Newchang, I was received by the British residents. -The British merchants here, like the others elsewhere, wished me to -represent to the Associated Chambers of Commerce of Great Britain that -trade in the North of China must be secured against foreign aggression, -and transmitted to me a number of resolutions to this effect. - -The Russians had settled at Newchang, taking the land without -permission, and paying the native occupiers nominal prices. Since 1897 -the Russians had been pouring troops into Manchuria, and their number -was steadily increasing. I prepared a detailed report upon the trade -of Newchang. - -Chefoo I visited twice, first on 13th October and again on 9th -November. The British merchants here complained of the extension of -German interest, which began with the opening of Kiao Chao. I thought, -however, that their alarm was not justified. Kiao Chao had been -declared by Germany to be an open port. - -Upon visiting Wei-hai-wei, I observed that with a comparatively small -expenditure of money it could be made into a most efficient and -powerful naval base. Already, in the few months which had elapsed -since the British flag was hoisted on 24th May, 1898, Commander {448} -E. F. A. Gaunt (now Commodore Gaunt, C.M.G.), in command of a party of -bluejackets and Marines, had accomplished a most admirable piece of -administrative work, in cleaning up the place and in enforcing law and -order so tactfully and skilfully that the only punishments inflicted -had consisted in docking the pigtails of two offenders. There were no -guns mounted at Wei-hai-wei; but at Port Arthur, 80 miles distant -northwards across Korea Bay, the Russians had already mounted seventy -guns. - -I also observed that the island of Wei-hai-wei, which is two-thirds the -size of Gibraltar, was the best place on the China Station for the -establishment of a sanatorium for the Fleet. - -My visit to Kiao Chao was made in response to a cordial invitation sent -to me by Rear-Admiral H.R.H. Prince Henry of Prussia. The harbour is a -difficult place for vessels to make, particularly in foggy weather. -The Germans were as busy as bees, clearing the ground, building -barracks, making parade grounds and preparing emplacements for guns. -Prince Henry was most kind to me, and showed to me everything. His -administration and organisation were admirable; and afforded another -example of the achievements of naval officers. - -But the place was still under military rule, which discourages -commerce. On my voyage out, three Germans had come on board at -Singapore. They told me that, although they had been very happy under -British rule, they preferred their own colony, and intended to start a -hotel at Kiao Chao. Some time afterwards I met those three patriotic -Germans again. They were on their way back to Singapore; because, so -they said, they could not make a living at Kiao Chao! They told me -that they were obliged to pay a tax of five per cent. upon their -investment, with the prospect of paying another five per cent. when, -after a period of years, their property should again be surveyed. - -At Shanghai, which, being situated at the entrance Of {449} the Yangtse -Valley, is the most important Treaty Port in the Far East, I framed an -elaborate report upon its trade. The China Association presented to me -a memorandum containing the usual protest against the insecurity of -British interests in China. - -While I was at Shanghai I had three interviews with the Marquess Ito, -lately Prime Minister of Japan. The Marquess, I believe, was -unofficially employed in endeavouring to extend Japanese interests in -China. He expressed the greatest friendliness towards Great Britain. -During the political disturbances in Japan, the Marquess Ito had fled -to England as a sailor before the mast in a British vessel. He told me -that, landing at Gravesend very hungry, he went into a shop and bought -a loaf, putting down half a sovereign. The shopman, presumably taking -advantage of the fact that he was a Japanese, refused to give him the -change. The Marquess told me that he was sadly shocked; for, until -that moment, he had believed the English to be the most honest people -in the world. - -In Shanghai, I learned that one of the leaders of the Reform Party, -Huang Chin, a victim of the _coup d'état_, had been arrested and was -about to be sent to Nanking for execution. I urged his Excellency Kwei -Chun, Viceroy of Szechuan, to use his influence to save Huang's life, -pointing out to him that these political executions were exceedingly -distasteful to the British people. I am glad to say that my -intervention was effectual, in that Huang Chin, instead of being -executed, was banished. - -His Excellency Liu-Kwen-Yi having most courteously placed H.I.M.S. -_Nanshin_ at my disposal, I took passage in her to Nanking. - -I was much interested in the arrangement and armament of the Chinese -man-of-war; but as she was warmed by means of charcoal stoves, my -investigations were conducted in a condition of partial suffocation -from the fumes. - -Upon arriving at Nanking in the Nanshin, I received a salute of fifteen -guns; and proceeded to the Yamen of his {450} Excellency the Viceroy -Liu-Kwen-Yi between the lines of troops and banner-bearers, numbering -some thousands, who were ranged along the whole route of four and a -half miles in my honour. Liu-Kwen-Yi, who received me with the -greatest courtesy and kindness, said that he was anxious to show his -friendship for Great Britain in every way. In the course of two long -and interesting conversations with the Viceroy, who expressed his fear -of the present unstable posture of affairs, I suggested that there were -two contingencies to fear: a rebellion against the Government and an -insurrection against foreigners; either of which would be fatal to -commercial security. His Excellency, however, assured me that there -was no danger of disturbances inspired by dislike of the foreigner. -Herein he was mistaken; for within two years occurred the Boxer -outbreak, which had the approval, secret or overt, of the Empress -Dowager. At the Viceroy's request, I drew up a memorandum containing -my scheme for the reorganisation of the army on the principle of the -Imperial Maritime Customs, which I had proposed at Pekin. A -translation of this document was sent by the Viceroy to Pekin. - -On my return journey, I inspected the army, the fleet, the arsenal and -the Imperial naval college. - -I arrived at Hong Kong for the second time on Christmas Day, 1898. The -views of the China Association and of the British merchants here were -of the same tenor as those, already described, expressed by the British -communities at all the trading centres visited by me. - -To complete my itinerary in brief, other places visited by me were -Wuhu, Kinkiang, Chinkiang, Kiangzin, Hankow, Foochow, Swatow, Amoy, -Canton, and Wuchow. At each place I drew up a report describing the -local conditions and embodying the representations of the British -communities. - -Their common complaint was that British trade was declining. But an -examination of the detailed reports which in response to the letters -sent by me beforehand, were ready for my inspection, showed that on the -contrary the branches {451} of trade already possessed by the British -had increased; and that it was in new branches started by foreign -nations that the British were not succeeding. Their comparative -failure in this respect I held to be partly due to the fact that -foreign nations supplied what the people wanted, while the British -insisted on trying to sell to them what the British thought they ought -to want. - - - -CONCLUSION - -The following reports were framed by me: report on the railways and -waterways; report upon the British Consulate; a general comprehensive -report upon Trade, Treaties and Tariffs; and a highly elaborate report -upon the complicated question of Finance and Currency. All these are -set forth in my book, _The Break-up of China_, which also includes a -summary of the reforms which appeared to me to be most requisite. -These were:-- - -1. An Imperial coinage. - -2. Reform in the method of collecting the land-tax. - -3. Removal of restrictions on the export of grain. - -4. Modification of the laws governing the salt monopoly. - -5. The right of foreigners to reside in the interior for purposes of -trade. - -6. The registration and protection of trade marks and copyright. - -7. The removal of the remaining restrictions on inland water navigation. - -8. The abolition of the likin, or a change of administration which -would ensure that likin should be collected once only. - -9. Greater facilities to be given to respectable foreign syndicates to -work minerals. - -10. The establishment of reformed departments for the regulation of -finance, railways, waterways, roads, posts and telegraphs, and a bureau -to deal with all questions connected with trade. The existing {452} -telegraph service was so bad, that a letter sent from Tientsin to -Shanghai has been known to arrive before a telegram sent at the same -time. _The Times_ correspondent at Pekin told me that his telegrams -very often cost as much to send from Pekin to Shanghai as from Shanghai -to London. - -11. One other bureau was urgently needed, a Trade Intelligence -Department, to deal with scientific and practical questions relating to -the natural products available in China for commercial purposes. What -is an insignificant export to-day may become a valuable article of -commerce to-morrow. There should be a scientific classification of the -products of China on the same lines as the classification of products -in India. - - -I may here quote what, in relation to the whole matter, I wrote at the -time: - -"If it be said that my policy for the reorganisation of the Chinese -army and police is a warlike policy, I reply that it is the only plan -yet suggested which gives any guarantee of peace. Great Britain's -strongest guarantee of peace has been the reorganisation of her Fleet. -Without peace commerce must perish. To keep the peace, authority must -be properly equipped. Our choice with regard to the Chinese Empire is -simple: we may choose to wreck or we may choose to restore." - -The resolutions passed by the British mercantile communities and the -many letters I received from them subsequently, testify to their -approval of my recommendations. The following documents express the -sentiments of the Chinese themselves, and of the foreign merchants: - -"At a meeting of Chinese merchants and traders, and other Chinese -gentlemen resident in Hong Kong, held at the Chinese Chamber of -Commerce on 22nd January, 1899, on {453} the motion of Mr. Ho Tung, -seconded by Mr. Leung Shiu Kwong, it was resolved: - -"'1. Having closely followed with great and attentive interest, and -carefully considered what Lord Charles Beresford has said and done in -China in connection with his recent mission on behalf of the Associated -Chambers of Commerce, we, the Chinese community of Hong Kong here -assembled, are in accord with and heartily support the policy the noble -lord proposes in regard to the "Open Door" as regards commerce, and -also with regard to the reorganisation of the Chinese army. - -"'2. That we recognise the combined proposals, if carried out, will -benefit China quite as much as, if not more, than England, and other -nations, in her trading interest, and we therefore hope that Lord -Charles will be intrusted by the British Government with the carrying -out of the views he has so closely enunciated, as we, the Chinese -people of Hong Kong, observe that his efforts are directed to the -benefit of both his country and our country, and to the benefit of the -trade of China and the trade of England. - -"'3. That we recognise and make our cordial acknowledgments for the -sympathetic manner with which he has approached our country; and - -"'4. That we desire emphatically to express our full confidence in Lord -Charles Beresford, whose ability, integrity and zeal we are sure -peculiarly fit him successfully to carry out the proposals he has made -for the furtherance of trade and the preservation of the Chinese -Empire.' - -"(Signed) Lo CHI TIU, Chairman - H. O. FOOK, Secretary" - - -The General Foreign Commercial Community of Shanghai, on 8th January, -1899, passed the following resolution: - -"That our cordial thanks be tendered to Lord Charles Beresford for the -service he has rendered to the foreign communities in China by personal -investigation into the conditions of the various interests we -represent." - -{454} - -Upon my return, I represented what I believed to be the real posture of -affairs in China, when the subject was discussed in the House of -Commons. In November, 1899, I read a paper upon "Engineering in China" -before the Institute of Mechanical Engineers. - - - - -{455} - -CHAPTER XLV - -TRAFFICS AND DISCOVERIES (_Continued_) - -II. JAPAN - -Having received invitations to visit Japan from the Chambers of -Commerce and from prominent persons interested in the China trade, I -stayed for a short time in that country on my way home. Thirty years -previously, accompanying H.R.H. the Duke of Edinburgh in the _Galatea_, -I had seen the Old Japan. I was now to see, super-imposed upon the -Old, the New Japan. That which China was groping after, Japan had -seized and made her own. What we call Western civilisation: the -civilisation of commerce, of science, of mechanical invention: Japan -had put on like a garment. - -Both the army and the navy, whose supreme commander is the Emperor, -were organised, efficient, and in process of augmentation. China -feared Russia; but Japan was even then preparing to fight Russia. - -As in arms, so in manufactures, Japan already rivalled the West. The -foreigner, who, a generation previously, walked in peril of his life, -was now welcomed, imitated, and loaded with civilities. - -During my brief sojourn, the swift and shining manifestations of the -new spirit (which was the old spirit seeking a new avatar) surrounded -me. At Osaka, quick-firing field artillery and magazine rifles were -being made to Japanese patents, excellent in design and construction; -and the humming factories were turning out sugar, cotton, matches, -{456} iron and steel; and, at a meeting of the Chamber of Commerce, the -Mayor declared that it was imperative in the interests of Japanese -trade that the policy of the "Open Door" should prevail in China. The -Chamber of Commerce said the same at Kioto. A generation since, the -two-sworded samurai were guarding the door of Japan, lest it should be -opened. - -At Kioto, electricity, generated by water power, lighted the streets -and houses, worked the trams, pumped the water; the use of electric -power was then more common, I believe in Japan than in any other -country; and there were telegraphs and telephones in nearly every town. - -In Tokio, I had the honour of meeting several members of the Ministry, -who, stating that they regarded the "Spheres of Influence" policy to be -fatal to Japanese interests, expressed their desire to work together -with other nations in favour of the policy of the "Open Door." Having -been invited by the Chamber of Commerce to address a public meeting, I -spoke on the subject of the future development of trade with China. -The meeting was attended by Ministers, military and naval officers, the -President and many members of both Houses, and representatives of the -mercantile community. The Japanese interpreter sat beside me and -equipped with inkpot, paper and brush, he painted down my words in the -Japanese character. When I sat down, the interpreter rose and repeated -my speech in Japanese, his delivery occupying the same time as mine. -Every now and then he was interrupted by applause, the audience tapping -with their fans. The British Minister told me that it was aroused by -the mention of the identity of Japanese and British interests, and -especially by the comparison drawn between Japan and Great Britain. - -The authorities kindly conducted me over the various schools of -military training, in which the system was perfect; the arsenal, -employing 6000 men, and turning out work second to none; and the -barracks, a model of efficiency. The Minister for War, General -Viscount Katsura, courteously {457} held a parade of troops for my -benefit. All arms were admirable alike in organisation, appearance, -and discipline. - -Before leaving Tokio, I had the opportunity of paying my respects to -his Majesty the Emperor; who was so good as to say he remembered the -visit of the Duke of Edinburgh of whose suite I had been a member, and -invited me to an afternoon's sport in his private pleasaunce. Every -foot of the garden was wrought like a gem. Diversified with miniature -mountains, tiny grottoes, and brilliant foliage, it was intersected by -narrow rivers which were haunted by wild duck. Two or three days -before the sport took place, the garden was left solitary, so that the -ducks should come into it. The method was to catch the duck in a -hand-net as it rose from the water. - -His Majesty said that the development of trade with China must -strengthen the friendship between the peoples of Great Britain and -Japan, the interests of both countries being the same; and expressed -the hope that the endeavours of the Associated Chambers of Commerce of -Great Britain might be the beginning of a great extension of trade, in -which Japan would take a prominent part. - -At Yokohama, Admiral Yamamoto, Minister of Marine, courteously invited -me to visit the dockyard and fleet at Yokohama, placing H.I.M. cruiser -_Takasago_ at my disposal. The vessel was throughout in as good -condition as a man-of-war could be; and her ship's company were smart, -well dressed and well disciplined. - -At Yokosha is a large torpedo depot, at which everything connected with -torpedo warfare is organised under its own administration; a system -preferable to the British method, in which the torpedo departments are -auxiliary to the dockyards. - -The impression disengaged by my sojourn of a fortnight in Japan was -that both the political and commercial classes were determined to -enforce the "Open Door" in China, where their commercial interests were -extensive. I observed that the nation was arming itself steadily and -effectively; and that a spirit of patriotism was universal. Four years -later, the Russo-Japanese war broke out. - - - - -{458} - -CHAPTER XLVI - -TRAFFICS AND DISCOVERIES (_Continued_) - -III. THE UNITED STATES - -The many invitations sent to me while I was in China from the United -States determined me to visit that country on the way home; in order to -explain to the American nation the situation in China; to encourage if -it might be, the growth of amity between the English and the American -peoples; and incidentally to mark the contrast between the most ancient -and static Empire of the East and the restless dynamic forces of the -latest experiment in Western civilisation. I had arrived at Nagasaki -on the 11th January, 1899; traversed Japan as a half-way house, in -which West and East had married, and in which their offspring were -presently to astonish the world; and came to San Francisco on the 10th -of February. - -Immediately the wheels of life began to revolve with an extraordinary -velocity. I was caught up in the sumptuous hospitality of that -generous people--deluged with invitations; and haunted by interviewers. -In looking back, great cities rise one upon another, like cities in a -dream; I seem always to be speaking to a field of keen, upturned -countenances; the only respite comes in the days and nights, all run -into one to the long roll of the cars, as the train eats up the miles -of that land of vast spaces; and everywhere there are welcome and -cordiality and friendship. - -And everywhere there were Irishmen, rushing to shake hands with a -countryman; rushing any distance, often {459} hundreds of miles, just -to exchange greetings at the latter end. Irishmen are so, the world -over. - -One among my countrymen had travelled a thousand miles to see me, when -he called at my hotel. I told him that I had twenty minutes before -starting for Chicago, and that I must retire to my room to bathe, shave -and prepare a speech in that time. - -"I'll come wid ye," said he, cheerfully; and while I made my -dispositions, he sat in the adjoining room and talked of the old -country with that pride and affection which all Irishmen feel for their -native land. - -San Francisco, Denver, Chicago, Buffalo, Washington, New York: these -were the great towns strung among the lesser. At San Francisco, I -addressed the Chamber of Commerce. At Chicago, I was entertained by -Mr. McCormick, President of the Associated Chambers and of the -Committee of the Commercial Club. - -All unknown to me, it had been arranged that I should address a large -meeting at eleven o'clock on the morning of my arrival. When the train -came in at ten o'clock, I was informed of the arrangement; went to the -hotel, dictated notes to my secretary while I made my toilette, arrived -at the meeting punctually, and spoke for half an hour. - -Here, and throughout America, I kept strictly to my terms of reference: -dwelling upon the opportunities for extending trade in China; the -necessity for pursuing the policy of the "Open Door"; and the community -of interest existing between America and Great Britain. - -The Board of Trade, which is the Stock Exchange of Chicago, invited me -to visit them; and when I was introduced as the representative of the -Associated Chambers of Commerce of Great Britain, the whole business of -the great market was stopped in order that I might address the members; -an event which, I was informed, was without precedent. The Commercial -Club having kindly invited me to be the guest of their periodical -banquet, the Committee most courteously altered the date in order to -suit my {460} convenience. In this case, there was a precedent; for -the date of the occasion had been altered when General Grant had been a -guest of the Club. - -At Washington, I was most hospitably entertained by Mr. Hay, Secretary -of State and late Ambassador in Great Britain. I had the privilege of -paying my respects to President McKinley, and of meeting many -distinguished Americans, Senators and others, all of whom expressed -great interest in the enterprise of the British Associated Chambers of -Commerce. At this time I first met Colonel Robert M. Thompson, who -became a great friend of mine; and Admiral Brownson, whose skill in -handling a fleet I subsequently admired. - -Upon my arrival at New York, I fulfilled an engagement to address the -American Asiatic Association. Mr. Whitelaw Reid, afterwards Ambassador -in Great Britain, in an eloquent speech, declared that the policy of -the "Open Door" was that which was best suited for the development of -American trade, and that the American Government intended to institute -it in the Philippine Islands. - -Addressing the New York Chamber of Commerce, I found the members to -express the same sympathy and interest with which my representations -had been received throughout the United States. The American attitude -was, in fact, that while they were desirous of strengthening their -friendship with England, and approved the policy of the "Open Door," -they did not feel justified in going beyond a moral support of it. - -Upon visiting New York a second time, I was introduced into the Stock -Exchange by Mr. Rudolph Kepler, the President, who took me up the floor -to the rostrum. The proceedings were stopped; and at the President's -request, I addressed the members for two or three minutes. Some one -said that my speech was at the rate of 100,000 dollars a second. I -hope he was exaggerating. - - - - -{461} - -CHAPTER XLVII - -H.M.S. _RAMILLIES_ - -When the men who had gone out to South Africa to take part in the -Jameson Raid were passing through the Suez Canal on their way back -again, I saw and heard the people in the British ships cheering them as -they went by; a popular effusion which (in my view) boded trouble in -the future. Soon after my return from the United States in 1899, an -instalment of the trouble arrived. The burghers of the Transvaal and -of the Orange Free State crossed the British frontiers on the 12th -October. - -This country began as usual by underrating the strength of the enemy. -Many of us remember the talk about rolling them up, and all the rest of -it; all very bright in its way; but not the way to begin a war, much -less to end it. Those of us who understood war, were by no means so -confident; and I expressed their opinion, when, as I may perhaps here -venture to recall, speaking at the Cutlers' Feast at Sheffield on the -2nd November, and again at Sunderland on the 6th November, 1899, I most -emphatically advocated the dispatch of a much larger force than the -Government had allocated for the purpose; on the principle that "in the -fire brigade, if an officer thought a fire needed four engines to put -it out, he would send eight." - -Matters have changed so little since the South African war that, -although our Army and Navy are relatively inferior to what they were in -1899, the politicians are still alternately boasting of what will be -done in an emergency, and declaring that war is no longer possible. - -{462} - -In December, 1899, I was appointed second in command of the -Mediterranean Fleet under the command of Vice-Admiral Sir J. A. Fisher, -K.C.B. (now Admiral of the Fleet Lord Fisher of Kilverstone, G.C.B., -O.M., G.C.V.O.), flying his flag in H.M.S. _Renown_, and thereupon -resigned my seat at York. The London Chamber of Commerce were so good -as to invite me to a banquet prior to my departure. Speaking upon that -occasion, I pointed out that under our existing system of -administration, while the Cabinet must always bear the ultimate -responsibility, there was not yet in existence a department whose duty -it was to represent what were the requirements, present and future, of -Imperial defence. So far as the Navy was concerned, the duty was -charged upon the First Sea Lord; but it involved a task so vast and -complex, that no one man could possibly fulfil it; nor had the -Intelligence Department been developed, according to its original -purpose, into a War Staff. - -In the event of a disaster in war, resulting from lack of organisation -and preparation, the Government, being rightly held responsible, are -perhaps turned out of office; when the nation may derive what -consolation may accrue from losing both its Government and the Empire -upon the same day. - -My first command as rear-admiral coincided with the final disappearance -from the Navy of the old masts and sails training which was the delight -and pride of the sailors of my generation. Before the decision of the -Admiralty had been finally made, I suggested (in _The Times_, 9th -December, 1899) that, as there were then only four training ships, so -that no more than a proportion of boys could be passed through them, -either the system should be abolished, or two squadrons of six ships -should be provided, and all boys trained in them. The Admiralty, -however, considered that it would be inadvisable to send away so many -young seamen; and they were right. - -I hoisted my flag in H.M.S. _Ramillies_ on 12th January 1900. She was -a first-class battleship of the _Royal Sovereign_ {463} class, of -14,150 tons. At that time she was six or seven years old; at the time -of writing, although she is no more than twenty, she has been sold for -old iron; and when they took her away to break her up, she got adrift -in a seaway off the Isle of Wight. - -I saw the last of my old flagship as I was passing through the gut of -Gibraltar, on board the R.M.S. _Orvieto_, on 25th November, 1913. She -was being towed by a small tug to her last home, the yard of an Italian -ship-knacker. I thought of the old happy days on board her, and all -the sport, when she held the record in the Fleet for most of the drills -and all the boat-racing. - -The flag-captain was Robert S. Lowry (now Vice-Admiral Sir R. S. Lowry, -K.C.B.), who had been with me in the _Undaunted_ as commander. The -commander was the Hon. Horace L. A. Hood (now Rear-Admiral Hood, C.B., -M.V.O., D.S.O.). The flag-lieutenant was Maurice J. G. Cay, and the -secretary, Paymaster John A. Keys (now Fleet Paymaster J. A. Keys), who -was with me afterwards in my flagships. - -At that time, apart from being charged with the duty of carrying into -execution the orders of the commander-in-chief, an officer second in -command had no individual responsibility. In other words, he had -little opportunity of acquiring from his superior officer that -knowledge which, in the event of war, he would require in an emergency. - -Upon the adequacy of the Mediterranean Fleet depends the safety of the -Empire in time of war; but although war was then waging in South -Africa, although the other European Powers regarded Great Britain with -open or covert hostility, and although a combination of France and -Russia against this country was by no means improbable, the -Mediterranean Fleet was barely sufficient to meet the French Fleet -alone with any reasonable certainty of success. In other words, so far -as numbers and composition were concerned, the Mediterranean Fleet was -incapable of carrying into execution the duties with which it must be -charged in {464} the event of war. Under the command of Sir John -Fisher, its efficiency was admirable. - -The bare statement of the requirements sufficiently indicates their -necessity. An increase of the supply of reserve coal, then dangerously -deficient; the provision of fleet colliers, fully equipped, of -distilling ships, of telegraph ships, and of hospital ships, of which -until quite recently there was only one in the Navy, and that one a -present from the United States; of store ships, reserve ammunition -ships and parent ships for torpedo craft: thirty-four vessels in all, -representing those auxiliaries without which no Fleet is adequately -fitted to fulfil its duties in war. These deficiencies fall to be -recorded, because, although some of them have since been supplied, it -is still the habit of the authorities to neglect the provision of fleet -auxiliaries, and the public are taught to believe that a squadron of -battleships is self-sufficient. - -The construction of submarines, which had long been the subject of -experiment in France, having been begun by the United States, induced -me to write to Lord Goschen, First Lord, observing that whether or not -the new arm might prove valuable in war, at least it ought to be -tested, and suggesting that two experimental boats should be ordered. -The Admiralty shortly afterwards purchased five submarines of the -Holland Torpedo Boat Company, U.S.A., of a similar design to the six -Hollands of the _Adder_ class ordered by the United States in June, -1900. The Hollands were followed by the construction in this country -of the "A" class; and as everyone knows, the type was rapidly developed -until Great Britain now possesses a large fleet of these vessels. - -Having investigated when I was in the _Undaunted_ the French system of -nucleus crews, under which the older men and pensioners were employed -to form skeleton crews for the ships in Reserve, upon the understanding -that they were not to go to sea in full commission except in the event -of war, I sent home a report upon the subject, indicating the advantage -enjoyed by the French naval seaman, who, under {465} the nucleus crew -system, could look forward with certainty to spending the end of his -career comfortably in a home port, and suggesting that a modification -of the system might be introduced into our own Service. Under the -British system, the ships in the Steam Reserve were then kept in order -by working parties composed of men temporarily under training in the -depots attached to the dockyards, an arrangement which had the -disadvantage that the men who formed the crews in the event of war, -would not be the men who were familiar with the ships. - -Some years later, the Admiralty introduced the nucleus crew system, -which differed entirely from the principle upon which was based the -French method, in that a proportion of active service ratings were -placed on board the ships of the Reserve, and that these crews were -being constantly shifted from ship to ship. After a series of -experiments, it was officially decided to man a number of ships in -active commission with nucleus crews, which are officially stated to be -as efficient as full crews; a state of things which is as dangerous to -the national security as it is unfair to officers and men. - -The accident occurring on board the French man-of-war _Admiral -Duperré_, leading to the conclusion that if cordite were exposed to -heat above a certain temperature its ignition would cause an enormously -increased pressure upon the gun, induced me officially to represent the -necessity of keeping ammunition at an even temperature. Several years -afterwards, a large quantity of cordite distributed among the Fleet was -found to be in so dangerous a condition that it was destroyed, and the -ammunition chambers were equipped with cooling apparatus. - -My interest in signalling inspired me to invent a new drill for the -signalmen, in which the men themselves represented ships. Linked -together with a tack-line, in order to keep them in station, the men -executed the evolutions of a fleet in obedience to signals. I also -advocated that all captains and commanders should pass the signal -school as {466} a qualification for flag-command. Every admiral ought -to be familiar with manoeuvre signals at least; for in default of that -knowledge, he does not know that a wrong signal has been hoisted in his -flagship until he sees the ships making a wrong manoeuvre. An admiral -who understands signals will seldom, if ever, be observed hoisting a -negative. - -It was in the year 1900 that H.M.S. _Terrible_, commanded by Captain -Percy M. Scott (now Admiral Sir P. M. Scott, K.C.B., K.C.V.O.) on the -China station, distinguished herself by making a gunnery record of a -percentage of 76.92 hits, as compared with the mean percentage of all -ships in commission, of which the highest was 46.91 (10-inch gun), and -the lowest was 28.2 (16.25 inch and 13.5 inch). Comparing the -_Renown_, flagship of the Mediterranean, with the _Terrible_, both -really smart ships, it was clear that there must be something radically -wrong with our gunnery training, when the _Terrible_ made more than -twice the number of hits with her 6-inch guns in the same number of -rounds. - -I wrote home, suggesting that, as Captain Percy Scott had solved the -difficulties with which we were all struggling it would be advisable to -send him to the various Fleets and Squadrons to teach us the right -methods. I also wrote to Captain Percy Scott, expressing my interest -in his achievement, and received from him a courteous reply, enclosing -much useful information: which enabled me to represent to the -commander-in-chief that consideration should be given to the new -arrangements for shooting instituted on the China station, owing to the -inventions and the industry of Captain Percy Scott. It was also urged -that a gunnery training ship should be attached to each Fleet. - -Among the excellent practices introduced by the commander-in-chief, was -the writing of essays by officers upon a given subject--the interchange -of ideas being of much educational value; and perhaps of hardly less -utility, was the exercise in composition. Many naval officers evince -marked literary ability; but there is always a proportion who find -accurate expression a difficulty. Few, however, so {467} dismally -succumb to it as the author of the following signal, made in response -to a request from an admiral for the explanation of a mistake in -manoeuvring. The reply was: - -"When signal A2 pendant was made ---- reduced to 30 revolutions and as -she gradually dropped astern to get astern of ---- observed her bearing -she suddenly seemed to stop and turn towards us and we stopped and went -astern on seeing flagship passing ahead of ---- altogether we had -turned 6 points by that time. My object was to get under her stern by -dropping and watching her thinking that she was dropping gradually to -get astern." - -At this time, the Board of Admiralty effected many improvements. The -coal supply for the Mediterranean was increased, the Mediterranean -Fleet was strengthened, and provided with colliers and with a hospital -ship; better ships were allocated for gunnery training at the home -ports; the old coastguard ships were replaced with modern vessels; -submarines were added to the Fleet; the signalling was improved; the -regulations for training gunnery and torpedo ratings were revised; -obsolete ships were removed from the effective list; a naval tactical -school was established; and combined manoeuvres of the Channel and -Mediterranean Fleets were instituted. - -While Vice-Admiral Sir John Fisher was commander-in-chief of the -Mediterranean Fleet, he greatly improved its fighting efficiency. As -the result of his representations, the stocks of coal at Malta and -Gibraltar were increased, the torpedo flotillas were strengthened, and -the new breakwaters at Malta were begun. Some of Sir John Fisher's -reforms are confidential; but among his achievements which became -common knowledge, the following are notable: From a 12-knot Fleet with -breakdowns, he made a 15-knot Fleet without breakdowns; introduced long -range target practice, and instituted the Challenge Cup for heavy gun -shooting; instituted various war practices for officers and men; -invited, with excellent results, officers to formulate their opinions -upon cruising and battle formation; drew up complete {468} instructions -for torpedo flotillas; exercised cruisers in towing destroyers and -battleships in towing one another, thereby proving the utility of the -device for saving coal in an emergency; and generally carried into -execution Fleet exercises based, not on tradition but, on the -probabilities of war. - -The _Ramillies_ competing in rifle-shooting, hockey, pistol shooting -and the squadron athletic sports, took the Mediterranean Jewel and £1; -was first in the sweepstakes; tied first for the Pembroke Plate; won -the tug-of-war twice, and the greasy pig race twice; altogether, the -ship took six firsts, nine seconds, and five thirds, out of 19 events. - -In the early days of motor-cars, a motor-car race between Captain -George Neville and myself was arranged, the course being from the -bottom to the top of the Rock of Gibraltar. My car broke down, and -Neville won the race. Another breakdown in the same car occurred 20 -miles distant from Vigo. That night I was giving a dinner in Vigo to -the Municipality and all the notabilities. I had not recovered from a -bad fall I had had with the Pytchley a few weeks previously, when I -broke my pelvis. I was riding a first-class hireling hunter; a -bullfinch had been cut, and the hedging was in the field towards us; my -horse took off at the end of the hedging in the field, and (as they say -in Ireland) threw a magnificent lep, but failed to clear the top of the -wattles, and came over on top of me. - -So, when the car broke down, I could not walk. There was no help near. -The two friends who accompanied me, Hedworth Lambton and Hwfa Williams, -volunteered to get assistance. Finding none, they had to walk -twenty-one miles into Vigo. Hwfa Williams was wearing pumps. For -several days previously, distrusting the car, he had equipped himself -with stout boots in case of accident; now, of course, he had left them -in the ship. When he had first arrived on board, he had declared that -he was so ill that he could not be long for this world; but the walk -into Vigo cheered him up wonderfully. - -{469} - -I was eventually towed in the car into Vigo, arriving about two o'clock -in the morning. In the meantime, the Staff had entertained my guests. - -When I had been some six months in the Mediterranean, I was approached -as to whether I would accept the command of the Australian squadron. -Considering that the appointment would not afford the opportunities I -desired of learning how to handle a fleet, I intimated my preference -for remaining in the Mediterranean; where I remained for my full time -accordingly. - -On 5th February, 1902, a few days before I completed my fifty-sixth -year, I hauled down my flag; and, in pursuance of a stately old custom -often practised on such an occasion, I was rowed ashore by twelve -officers in the cutter. Landing at Naples, I went home, arriving in -London just in time to attend the debate upon the Navy Estimates in the -House of Commons. - -In the following June, Admiral Sir John Fisher succeeded Vice-Admiral -Sir A. L. Douglas upon the Board of Admiralty as Second Sea Lord. - - - - -{470} - -CHAPTER XLVIII - -HER MAJESTY'S MIDSHIPMEN - -Having adopted the practice of asking the officers in the Fleet under -my command to write essays upon subjects connected with the Service, I -once received a disquisition in which the author (a midshipman) dwelt -sorrowfully upon the unaccountable indifference manifested by senior -officers towards the opinions of midshipmen, who, said the writer, -having young and vigorous minds, were naturally better fitted to -grapple with problems which baffled the older and slower intellect. - -This particular young gentleman must I think have applied his vigorous -mind to the problem of how to obtain a generous allowance of leave. I -trust I did him no injustice; but whenever the Fleet lay off the coasts -of Scotland, he was afflicted with a grievous toothache, requiring an -immediate visit to the dentist. When he had gone ashore to have a -tooth out in every port in Scotland, I sent for him. - -"Tell me," I said, "how many teeth you have left? For I make out that -you have had forty-six teeth extracted in Scotland alone." - -Many a delightful day have I had with the midshipmen of the ships and -fleets in which I have served. We fished together, rode, shot, hunted -and raced together. Memory does not always supply episodes in their -chronological order; and I set these down as they occur to me. - -When I was lieutenant in the _Bellerophon_, stationed at Bermuda, I -used to take the midshipmen out fishing. In {471} those seas, the -water is so clear that one can watch the fish taking the bait. Once, -deep down, I saw the head of a conger eel protruding from the cleft of -the rocks in which he lay. I dropped the bait in front of his nose, -and watched his head move back and forth, until he took the bait. Then -I shifted the midshipmen to the farther side of the boat to -counterweigh the strain and to get a purchase on the line, and hauled -out the great eel, piece by piece, and we dragged him into the boat. - -About that time, the midshipmen saved me from a highly disagreeable -death. We were out fishing in my boat, and one of the midshipmen threw -my housewife for snooded hooks at another, and missing him, it went -overboard. Now my fishing housewife was a most valuable possession; I -had made it myself; and when I saw it sinking slowly down through the -clear water, I dived for it and caught it. By the time I rose to the -surface, the boat had drifted away from me. Hailing the crew, I swam -after the boat; and as I reached her, I was suddenly hoisted bodily -inboard by the slack of my breeches. Almost at the same moment, the -fin of a shark shot up beside the gunwale. The midshipmen, my -saviours, observed that "it was a sell for the shark." - -We sailed one day to North Rock, which lies about twenty-two miles from -Bermuda, and there we fished. Towards evening, it came on to blow. -The ship was invisible from North Rock, and it was impossible to -return. We tried to secure the boat to the rocks, but failed. There -was nothing to be done but to lay to and bale. As the dark fell, I -found we had no light. By this time the midshipmen were utterly -exhausted, and were lying helpless. I made a lantern out of the -mustard-pot, using oil from a sardine tin, and fabricating a wick from -a cotton fishing line, and slung it on the beam. It burned all night. -And all night, one of the worst nights in my recollection, we tacked to -and fro close-reefed. At dawn, we started on the return trip; and, so -whimsical a thing is destiny, no sooner had we {472} sighted the Fleet, -than a puff of wind carried away the mast which had stood so stoutly -all the night of storm. - -My boat was what was called a "Mugian" boat, built in Bermuda. Her -crew consisted of one man. His name was Esau, and he was a liberated -slave of an incomparable obstinacy, a fault of which I cured him in one -moment. When we took the boat for her first trip, I was persuaded that -I could steer her among the reefs as well as Esau. But Esau was of -another opinion. When argument failed, he tried to wrest the tiller -from me, whereupon, unshipping it, I brought it down on Esau's head. I -was a powerful youth, and I struck hard; yet it was not the head of -Esau which was broken, but the tiller, though it was of oak. In trying -to steer with a short piece of the tiller, we were nearly wrecked; but -Esau ventured no further remonstrance, neither then nor afterwards. - -There is a right way and there is a wrong way of dealing with -midshipmen; and a little imagination may reveal the right way. When I -was in command of the _Undaunted_, stationed at Malta, I noticed that -the midshipmen, returning on board after taking violent exercise on -shore, were often overheated, with the result that they caught a chill, -and the chill brought on Malta fever, the curse of that island in those -days. I issued an order that overcoats were to be taken ashore and -worn while coming off to the ship; and I caused a room in the Custom -House to be fitted with pegs, upon which the coats might be left until -they were required. - -The next thing was that a boy who came on board without his overcoat, -had his leave stopped by the commander. There was a boxing match on -shore, which I wished all the midshipmen to see. I intended that he -should see the match; and it was also necessary that, without severity -on the one hand or indulgence on the other, the occasion should be -stamped upon his memory. So when the rest of the midshipmen had gone, -I sent for the solitary youth, and bade him explain his case. When he -had finished, I told {473} him that I intended to inflict upon him an -additional punishment. He regarded me with a face of alarm. - -"You will go ashore," I said, "and you will write for me a full and an -exact account of the boxing match." - -He saw the match; and after the pains of literary composition, he would -not so easily forget his overcoat. - -In the _Undaunted_, the midshipmen were taught to make their own canvas -jumpers and trousers. - -I used to keep two or three extra guns for the use of the midshipmen, -whom I took out shooting whenever an opportunity occurred. Some of the -boys had never handled a gun before. A midshipman once shot a hare -when the animal was right at my feet. - -"Wasn't that a good shot, sir!" said he joyously. - -It did not occur to his innocence that he might have brought me down -instead of the hare. - -On Saturdays, I took out shooting the torpedo classes of midshipmen, -which were conducted by my old friend, Captain Durnford (now Admiral -Sir John Durnford, K.C.B., D.S.O.). We advanced in very open order, -placing the midshipmen some 200 yards apart from one another, for fear -of accidents, and we fired at everything that came along, in every -direction. Upon one such occasion, I took out the warrant officers, -among whom was the carpenter, who had never shot anything in his life. -We were after snipe--I think at Platea--a bird whose flight, as all -sportsmen know, is peculiar. A snipe in mid-flight will dive suddenly, -dropping to earth out of sight. The old carpenter raised his gun very -slowly, and aimed with immense deliberation, the muzzle of his gun -cautiously tracing the flight of the bird, thus expending cartridge -after cartridge. Suddenly his bird dropped. He shouted with delight -and, holding his gun high over his head, ran as hard as he could pelt -towards the spot upon which, as he believed, the bird had fallen dead. -We saw it rise behind him; but nothing would persuade him that he had -not slain his quarry. He searched and searched, in vain. Going back -in the boat, I noticed that {474} he was sunk in a profound melancholy, -and bade him cheer up. - -"It do seem 'ard, sir," he said sadly, "that the only bird I ever shot -in my life, I shouldn't be able to find it." And sad he remained. - -After one of these excursions, a midshipman brought to me the gun I had -lent to him, with the barrels bent. - -"I am very sorry, sir," he said. "The fact is, I slipped on the rocks, -and fell with the barrels under me. But," he added eagerly, "it shoots -just as well as it did before, sir." - -I turned to another midshipman who had been of the party. - -"Did you see him shoot before the accident?" - -"Yes, sir." - -"Did he hit anything?" - -"No, sir." - -"Did you see him shoot _after_ the accident?" - -"Yes, sir." - -"Did he hit anything?" - -"No, sir." - -"Then," I said to the first midshipman, "your statement is correct. -Will you please take the gun to the armourer to be repaired?" - -I landed at Gibraltar very early in the morning, about four o'clock, -with the intention of cub-hunting. At the stables I found a -midshipman, dressed in plain clothes, whom I did not know. I asked him -what he was doing. He said that he wanted to go cub-hunting, but that -he hadn't a horse. I gave him a mount and told him to stick to me. He -did as he was told, literally. He was in my pocket all day; he jumped -upon the top of me; I couldn't get rid of him. When I remonstrated, he -said: - -"You told me to stick to you, sir. And I say, sir, _isn't it fun_!" - -He reminds me of the first time Fred Archer, the famous jockey, went -out hunting. He stuck as close {475} behind his host as my midshipman -did to me; but his reply to all remonstrance was: - -"What are you grumbling at? I'm giving you half a length!" - -Part of my scheme of training midshipmen in the Mediterranean was to -send them away, under the charge of a lieutenant, for two days at a -time, to fend for themselves upon one of the islands. I sent them away -in the pinnace, and they took guns and provided their own food, and -enjoyed themselves to the full. - -At Alexandria, the midshipmen of a United States warship challenged the -midshipmen in the Fleet to a pulling race. At that time I had a -private galley, the _Hippocampe_, which had never been beaten; while -the Americans had a boat of special construction, much lighter than our -Service boats. As the _Hippocampe_ was not a regulation Service boat, -I asked the American captain whether he had any objection to her. He -said he had none. I trained a crew selected from the midshipmen of the -Fleet. The American midshipmen were of course older and heavier than -our boys, as they enter the Navy at a later age. At one point in the -race they were ten lengths ahead; but at the end they were astern. - -While I was in command of the _Undaunted_, two of the midshipmen of the -Fleet performed the feat of climbing the Great Pyramid on the wrong -side, where the stone is rotten. It was a most perilous proceeding; -and as I was responsible for the party, when the boys, having nearly -reached the top, crawled round to the safe side, I was greatly -relieved, and so was the Sheikh, who was imploring me on his knees to -stop them. The fact was that the midshipmen had refused to take the -Arab guides, and had started before I knew what was happening. - -I used to take the midshipmen out for paperchases at Malta. The -flag-lieutenant and myself, being mounted, were the hares. Crowds used -to watch us, and we finished up with a big tea. Races on horseback for -the midshipmen {476} were held at St. Paul's Bay, myself being the -winning-post, at which they arrived hot and panting. There were only -two accidents on record, a broken arm and a broken leg. - -We ascended Vesuvius together, taking a heliograph, with which we -signalled to the flagship, lying below in the Bay of Naples. Upon the -very day the last great eruption began, we looked down the crater and -saw the lava heaving and bubbling like boiling coffee in a glass -receiver, and smoke bursting from it. The guides hurried us away and -down; and no sooner had we arrived at the station, than there sounded -the first explosion, which blew up the spot upon which we had been -standing. - -Seldom have I been more anxious than upon the day I stood on the roof -of the Palace at Malta, and watched a crew of midshipmen struggling to -make the harbour in a whole gale of wind. I had sent them in the -launch to Gozo, and they had taken my bull-dog with them to give him -some exercise. While they were on shore, the gale blew up; and rather -than break their leave, the boys set sail. To my intense relief, I saw -them make the harbour; and then as they hauled the sheet aft to -round-to, over went the boat, and they were all swimming about in the -harbour; but happily they all came safely to land, including my -bull-dog. - -There was once a midshipman (an Irishman) who, perceiving treacle -exposed for sale upon the cart of an itinerant vender of miscellaneous -commodities, was suddenly inspired (I do not know why) with a desire to -buy that condiment. - -"What should the like of you be wanting with treacle?" said the man, -who was a surly fellow. - -"Why shouldn't I buy treacle?" said the boy. - -"How much do you want?" - -"As much as you've got." - -"I've got nothing to put it in," grumbled the man. - -"Put it in my hat," insisted the midshipman, proffering that -receptacle. It was a tall hat, for he was in mufti. - -{477} - -The vender of treacle reluctantly filled the hat with treacle. - -"What are you going to do with it?" he asked again. - -"I'll show you," returned the midshipman; and he swiftly clapped the -hat over the other's head, and jammed it down. - - - - -{478} - -CHAPTER XLIX - -THE PARLIAMENTARY ANVIL - -Shortly after the expiration of my appointment as second in command in -the Mediterranean, I was back again in the House of Commons, this time -as member for Woolwich, having been returned unopposed. Many -improvements in the Navy had been accomplished under Lord Salisbury's -administration; but the central defect in the system remained; and the -name of it was the want of a War Staff. There was no one in existence -whose duty it was to discover and to represent what were the present -and the future requirements of Imperial defence. The purpose with -which the Intelligence Department had been constituted at the -Admiralty, that it should be developed into a War Staff, had not been -fulfilled. The First Sea Lord was indeed charged with the duties of -organisation for war and the preparation of plans of campaign; but no -one man could by any possibility accomplish so vast and so complex a -task. How, then, was it done? The answer is that it was not done. -The extraordinary achievement of the late Sir Frederick Richards may of -course be cited to exemplify what one man can do; but Sir Frederick was -the man of a century, alike in knowledge, ability and character; and -that he was enabled, as First Sea Lord, temporarily to conquer the -difficulties inherent in the system, merely proves that the system was -so bad that a man of genius was required to overcome its defects, and -(in a word) to achieve his purpose in spite of it. The supply of such -men is extremely {479} limited. When such an one appears, which (with -luck) is once or twice in a generation, the system may be disregarded, -for he will make his own system. - -But the need of a War Staff is sufficiently proved by the fact that, -ever since it was established in 1912, its members have been working -day and night. Two flag officers, four captains, five commanders, one -lieutenant; three majors, Royal Marines, six captains, Royal Marines; -one engineer-commander, three paymasters, and a staff of clerks: 25 -officers and 19 civilians; now (1913) constitute the three divisions of -the Admiralty War Staff; more than double the number composing the -Intelligence Department when in 1912 it became one of the Divisions of -the War Staff. The balance of officers and clerks was added to the -Admiralty to discharge new duties. Who performed these duties before -the addition was made? No one. What was the result? The Government -were ignorant of all save obvious requirements, and often of those; and -in the result, occurred periodical revelations of deficiencies -(sometimes called panics), involving that excessive expenditure which -is the price of neglect. - -I have wrought hard to reform the system all my life. My successive -sojourns in Parliament have been chiefly dedicated to that enterprise. -So in 1902 I began again to hammer on the Parliamentary anvil. In -March, I addressed the London Chamber of Commerce upon the lack of -administrative efficiency in national organisation for defence. In -June, I moved the reduction of the First Lord's salary in order to call -attention to defects in Admiralty administration. It was pointed out -that the time of commanders-in-chief upon most naval stations was -habitually expended in representing to the Admiralty deficiencies which -would never have occurred were there a Department at the Admiralty -charged with the duty of providing against them; and that, in the lack -of such a War Staff, the Budget for naval purposes was based upon -financial and political considerations, leaving naval requirements out -of the reckoning. - -Mr. H. O. Arnold-Forster, Parliamentary Secretary to {480} the -Admiralty, admitted that "there was need for reinforcement in the -intellectual equipment which directed or ought to direct the enormous -forces of the Empire." That was one way of putting it; he was -perfectly right in affirming that (in similar language) a thinking -department was required in which the best sailors and soldiers should -combine to formulate the requirements of Imperial defence for the -information of the Cabinet. - -The Government would then (at least) know what the requirements were. -In default of that knowledge, Ministers were open to the reproach -expressed bluntly enough by _The Saturday Review_ at the time (28th -June, 1902): - -"That the one essential qualification for commanding a great service -such as our Navy should be an utter and entire ignorance of it and of -everything belonging to it, so that this commander may approach the -consideration of all questions relating to its well-being with absolute -impartiality and perfect freedom from prejudice, is surely one of the -most monstrous propositions ever put before men who were not candidates -for Government departments at Yarmouth" (lunatic asylum). - -In the following month (July) I asked Mr. Balfour (who succeeded Lord -Salisbury as Prime Minister) in Parliament a question based upon Mr. -Arnold-Forster's statement aforesaid, as it was the considered -admission of a member of Government. The question was: "Whether the -attention of the Government had been given to the need for some -reinforcement of the intellectual equipment for directing the forces of -the Empire and for better preparation in advance with regard to the -defence of the Empire." - -Mr. Balfour replied that he would be delighted to increase in any way -the intellectual equipment in connection with this or any other -subject. Upon being further asked what steps he proposed to take, Mr. -Balfour merely added that he would be glad to avail himself of such -talent as may be available. - -The Press thereupon accused the Prime Minister of {481} frivolity. In -December (1902), however, Mr. Balfour, in reply to another question -asked by me in the House, said that the "whole subject is at this -moment engaging the very earnest attention of the Government." There -was already in existence a Committee of Defence constituted by Lord -Salisbury, as described in a previous chapter, but apparently it had -only met on one occasion, nor could anyone discover that it had ever -done anything. In 1902, nearly twelve years had elapsed since the -Hartington Commission had recommended the "formation of a Naval and -Military Council, which should probably be presided over by the Prime -Minister, and consist of the Parliamentary Heads of the two Services, -and their principal professional advisers.... It would be essential to -the usefulness of such a Council and to the interests of the country -that the proceedings and decisions should be duly recorded, instances -having occurred in which Cabinet decisions have been differently -understood by the two departments and have become practically a dead -letter." - -It may be hoped, indeed, that records are kept of the meetings of the -Committee of Imperial Defence. They should contain some singularly -interesting information when the time comes for their publication, -which will be when the nation insists, as it does insist now and then, -upon finding a scapegoat. - -To Mr. Balfour belongs the credit of having constituted the Committee -of Imperial Defence. After the experiences of the South African war it -could scarcely be argued that some such body was not needed. Here, -then, was a ripe opportunity, not only for co-ordinating the -administration of the two Services, not only for rightly estimating the -requirements of Imperial defence, but for lifting the Services above -party politics. That opportunity was lost. The Committee of Imperial -Defence immediately became, what it has remained, a sub-committee of -the Cabinet, wholly in subjection to party politics. - -But in 1903, another and a highly important step was {482} taken -towards organisation for war, in the formation of the Commercial Branch -of the Intelligence Department at the Admiralty, charged with the duty -of dealing with the relations of the Navy and the mercantile marine in -time of war and with the protection of commerce and food supply. - -A few years later, the Department was abolished during a period of -confusion; but it was restored as part of the War Staff soon after the -constitution of that body. - -It will be observed that the utility of the Committee of Imperial -Defence depended primarily upon the work of a War Staff; for its naval -and military members could only be placed in possession of the -information with regard to requirements which it was (theoretically) -their duty to impart to the political members, by means of a War Staff. -But for several years after the formation of the committee, there was -no War Staff in existence at the Admiralty. - -In December, 1902, occurred an opportunity for introducing physical and -military instruction into the elementary schools. The Education Bill -was then before Parliament; in the elementary school system, the -machinery required to provide physical and military training already -existed and in my view, it should be utilised, "in order that our -manhood should have had some previous training if called upon to fight -in defence of the Empire." With regard to physical education, its -necessity was exemplified in the large number of recruits rejected for -disabilities during the South African war; and as to military -instruction, the proposal was based upon the necessity of teaching -discipline and the rudiments of manly accomplishments to the young, by -means of education in marching, giving orders, swimming, and shooting -with a small-bore rifle. These considerations were placed by me before -the Duke of Devonshire, who had charge of the Education Bill in the -House of Lords, at the same time asking him to exert his influence to -obtain the insertion of a clause embodying the proposals. - -The Duke replied that Lord Londonderry, who was then Minister of -Education, was considering how far it was {483} possible for the Board -of Education to effect the objects desired. But he added the -surprising information that "a considerable portion" of my suggestions -"referred to matters which can only be dealt with by the War Office." - -In the House of Commons, I moved that "physical and military -instruction shall be compulsory in all schools supported by public -funds." Then it was stated that the question of physical education -could not be debated with reference to the Bill, but that there would -be no objection to such a clause being inserted in the Education Code. - -When I proposed accordingly that such a clause should be inserted in -the Code of Education, Lord Londonderry said that he agreed with the -Duke of Devonshire that such suggestions could only be dealt with by -the War Office. I had no idea then, nor have I any conception now, -what that cryptic statement meant. I pointed out at the time that it -was wholly incomprehensible, the War Office having nothing whatever to -do with elementary schools, but to no avail. The proposal was largely -supported in the Press, but without effect upon the Government. The -War Office phantom, which was about as relevant to the discussion as -the ghost of Cæsar, proved irresistible. Nothing was done; except that -the Government laid another brick in their favourite pathway of lost -opportunities. - -The use of oil fuel in battleships began in February, 1903; when the -_Mars_ and _Hannibal_ went to sea, each fitted to burn oil in two -boilers out of eight. One ship emitted white smoke, the other yellow; -and both gave forth a smell so dreadful that, when I was in command of -the Fleet, I told the captains of those vessels that I should place -them to windward of the enemy as the two most formidable ships -available. Nothing is better than oil fuel, on one condition--that you -have got it. - -The necessity of promoting officers to flag rank earlier, in order that -they might gain the requisite experience while still young, was again -urged by me, and to this end I advocated an increase of the -rear-admirals' list. An {484} improvement has since been made in this -respect. In 1902 there were 39 rear-admirals; in 1913, the number had -been increased to 55. - -Early in 1903, I visited America (for the third time), being most -hospitably entertained by my old friend, Colonel Robert M. Thompson. -During my stay with Colonel Thompson, who has been connected with the -United States Navy, I saw much of the American Fleet, and had the -pleasure of becoming acquainted with many American naval officers. -Admiral Brownson I knew already; I had met Admiral Bob Evans in the -Mediterranean when he was a commander; and I had enjoyed a conversation -with Captain (now Admiral) Mahan upon his visit to England some years -previously. - -Admiral Evans was kind enough to place a torpedo-boat at my disposal, -the _Worden_, in which I went from Pensacola to Pontagoorda. I -astonished the signalman by reading a semaphore signal made to me by -the flagship, before he did. The hospitality extended to me by the -officers of the United States Navy was almost embarrassing in its -profusion; and I shall always retain the pleasantest memories of that -Service. - -At a dinner of the Pilgrims' Society held at the Waldorf Hotel, New -York, on 4th February, in the course of my address I observed that -"battleships are cheaper than battles"; accidentally inventing a maxim -of five words which does in fact contain the essence of naval policy, -and which, touching the practical American imagination, ran throughout -the United States. - -In October, 1902, I was promoted to the rank of vice-admiral. - -In February, 1903, having been offered the command the Channel Fleet, I -resigned my seat at Woolwich; where I was succeeded by Mr. Will Crooks, -who was elected on 11th March by a majority of 3229. - - - - -{485} - -CHAPTER L - -THE CHANNEL FLEET - -H.M.S. _Majestic_, first-class battleship, completed in 1895, sister -ship to the _Magnificent_ (which was built at Chatham during my time at -that port as captain of the Steam Reserve), was one of nine ships of -the same class; the rest being _Magnificent_, _Hannibal_, _Prince -George_, _Victorious_, _Jupiter_, _Mars_, _Cæsar_ and _Illustrious_. -These represented an improvement on the preceding Royal Sovereign -class, the _Renown_, a beautiful, somewhat smaller vessel, being a -class by herself. - -The _Majestic_ is of 14,900 tons displacement, carries four 12-inch and -twelve 6-inch guns, was of 17.5 knots designed speed, and had a -complement of 772. My flag was hoisted in the _Majestic_ on 17th -April, 1903. The Channel Fleet, of which I was now in command, -consisted of the _Majestic_ (flag of vice-admiral), _Magnificent_ (flag -of Rear-Admiral the Hon. A. G. Curzon-Howe, and afterwards of -Rear-Admiral the Hon. Hedworth Lambton), _Jupiter_, _Hannibal_, _Mars_, -and _Prince George_, battleships; _Hogue_ and _Sutlej_, armoured -cruisers; and _Doris_, _Pactolus_ and _Prometheus_, small cruisers. - -Vice-Admiral Sir A. K. Wilson (now Admiral of the Fleet Sir A. K. -Wilson, V.C., G.C.B., O.M., G.C.V.O.), whom I relieved, was a -consummate master of the art of handling a Fleet, a great tactician, a -man inexorably devoted to the Service, to which he gave unsparing -labour. - -The Staff in the _Majestic_ consisted of the flag-captain, Hugh -Evan-Thomas; the flag-commander, Michael Culme-Seymour; the -flag-lieutenant, Charles D. Roper; and the {486} secretary, John A. -Keys. The commander was Henry B. Pelly (now Captain Pelly, M.V.O.). - -As the efficiency of the Fleet depends upon its admiral, so the admiral -depends upon the officers of his staff and upon the captains under his -command; because it is theirs to execute his policy. I have always -said that they were the officers who did the work and who were entitled -to the credit of it. In the conduct of a Fleet, it is first of all -necessary that the admiral and the officers of the Fleet should work -together in a common understanding. For this reason, the captains -should have access to the admiral at all times of the day or night, and -in all matters affecting the organisation and fighting efficiency of -the Fleet they should be in full possession of his views, and the -admiral of their views. - -Efficiency consists in the maintenance of the most rigid discipline, -together with cheerfulness, contentment and smartness. To this end, -definite and strict orders must be issued; no mistake or failure, -however small, must be allowed to pass, and, conversely, merit should -be commended; and as much leave should be given as the exigencies of -the Service permit. The admiral is responsible for the whole -administration, smartness and efficiency of the Fleet. The captains -are responsible for the administration, smartness and discipline of the -individual ships of the Fleet. The officers and men of the Royal Navy -are loyal to the core; and when a mistake occurs, it is usually due, -not to a deficiency on their part but, to the failure of the senior -officer of the Fleet to give his orders clearly and to show beforehand -what is to be done and how it is to be done. - -But for the adequate treatment of the subject of Fleet Administration, -a volume would be needed; the principles only can be indicated in these -pages, together with such instances of its practice as may serve a -useful purpose or may possess intrinsic interest. - -The question of giving leave, for example, is of essential importance, -because the comfort and contentment of officers and men so largely -depend upon the system employed. In {487} the Channel Fleet, the -system was to give week-end leave, from after dinner on Saturday, every -week, the liberty men being due on board at seven o'clock on the -following Monday morning, so that, if the Fleet were at Portland, they -had only one night at home. Many of the men were therefore obliged to -spend Sunday night in travelling; often, if they were not to break -their leave, arriving at the port hours before they could get a boat -off to their ship, and spending the interval shelterless and miserable. -In the result the number of leave-breakers was usually very large. - -By means of altering the system, the number was at once reduced to a -fraction, such, for instance, as eight men, all of whom were accounted -for. Under the new arrangement weekend leave was allowed once a month, -when the liberty men of one watch left their ships on Friday after -dinner instead of upon Saturday, and returned on board at noon on -Monday, instead of at seven o'clock in the morning. Thus they had -three nights at home once a month, instead of one night at home twice a -month; and had to pay only one fare for three nights, instead of two -fares for two nights. In these matters the question of expense should -always be considered. Another advantage was that whereas heretofore -one watch was always absent on Sundays, under the new arrangement all -officers and men were on board upon two Sundays in every month. - -The Navy, unlike the Army, is always on active service, and is -perpetually practising in peace what it will be required to do in war. -In the Navy, the only difference between peace and war is that in war -the target fires back. Hence it is that the record of a command afloat -consists almost entirely of incessant routine work; such as the -evolutions of: _clear ship for action, boats pull round Fleet, -collision and grounding stations, fire stations, out fire engine, moor -ship, unmoor ship, out nets, in nets, taking in tow, casting off tow, -let go sheet anchor, let go stern, kedge, bower anchors, weigh and cat -sheet anchor by hand, in boom boats, let go and pick up both lifebuoys -at sea, coaling, flag-signalling, man and arm boats, running {488} -torpedoes, field-gun and company landing, rifle practice_, etc. These -are matters of course. The Fleet is constantly exercised in manoeuvres -and in tactics; there is gunnery practice; and there are the periodical -combined manoeuvres. - -In the Fleet under my command, the drills and exercises were -particularly onerous; for it was a rule never to go to sea or to steam -from port to port without practising some exercise or tactical problem. -For every pound's worth of coal burnt, a pound's worth of training. -Officers and men delighted in these exercises; and all (including the -commander-in-chief) learned something from them. - -In July, 1903, the Channel Fleet assembled at Spithead to welcome the -United States Squadron, consisting of the _Kearsage_, flag of Admiral -Cotton, _Chicago_, _San Francisco_ and _Machias_. The American -officers were entertained to lunch by the Pilgrims' Society, and it -fell to me to propose the United States Navy, Admiral Cotton -responding. H.R.H. the Prince of Wales accepted an invitation to -breakfast on board the American flagship. - -In August took place the combined manoeuvres of the Channel, Home and -Mediterranean Fleets; at their conclusion, the Fleets met in Lagos Bay -for tactical exercises; 25 battleships, 42 cruisers, and gunboats and -destroyers under the supreme command of Admiral Sir Compton E. -Domville, G.C.V.O., K.C.B. - -Colonel Robert M. Thompson was a welcome guest of mine at this time, -and subsequently in all the ships in which I flew my flag. Colonel -Thompson afterwards published some observations upon the manoeuvres in -the _Evening Post_, U.S.A., from the point of view of an American -officer who began his career in the United States Navy. - -"When the three Fleets participating in those manceuvres were combined, -there were 72 battleships and cruisers, with nearly 40,000 men, all -under the command of one admiral; probably the strongest Fleet ever -brought together in the history of the world. This enormous assemblage -of vessels was handled without a single break. When the entire 72 -{489} ran to anchor in eight lines, had there been a straight-edge -placed in front of them it would not have shown a ship, it seems to me, -a foot out of position. They made a 'flying moor,' and when you -consider that in point of time, at the speed the ships were going, they -were only one minute apart, every seaman will appreciate how -wonderfully they must have been handled." - -Colonel Thompson very kindly presented a challenge shield for the best -gun in the flagship of the Channel Fleet (afterwards Atlantic Fleet), -to be inscribed with the names of the crew of the best gun at the -annual gunlayers' competition; and at the same time generously placed -in trust a sum of money the interest of which, amounting to £10 a year, -was to be presented to the winning gun's crew. The record for the -_Cæsar_ while my flag was flown in that vessel was 18 hits out of 21 -rounds in two minutes. - -In September, 1903, the Fleet visited Scarborough; in pursuance of the -principle that to afford the public opportunities for seeing the Fleet -and for making acquaintance with the ships, arouses and maintains a -healthy interest in the Service. Upon this occasion, I invited my old -constituents at York to visit the Fleet. They came in thousands; but -sad to say, the weather was so bad that they could not leave the shore. - -When the Fleet was visiting Ireland, a certain worthy character, very -well known in Kingstown, Dublin, whose chosen occupation is--or -was--selling newspapers, came to me, as his countryman, on board the -_Majestic_, to his intense excitement. - -"Glory to God, Lord Char-less," he screamed, "is that yourself in the -gold hat!" And he shrieked like a macaw, so that the men began to -crowd on deck to see what was the matter. I had to tell him to pipe -down, or they would turn the fire-engine on him. - -The story of the accident to the _Prince George_ and its repair serves -to illustrate the emergencies of sea life. The Channel Fleet was -engaged in manoeuvres without lights off {490} Cape Finisterre, on the -night of 17th October, 1903. Two midshipmen of the _Prince George_ -were relaxing their minds after the strain of the day's work with a -hand at cards, when the game was interrupted by the entrance into the -gun-room of the stem of the _Hannibal_, before which apparition the -young gentlemen incontinently fled. - -The signal instantly made by the _Hannibal_, "Have collided with the -_Prince George_," was received on board the flagship at 9.41 p.m. -During the next half-hour the masthead flashing lamps winked their -messages back and forth; and at 10.10 the _Prince George_ signalled -that there was a large hole in her gun-room, and that the submerged -flat, cockpit and steering compartment were full of water. - -The actual extent of the injury, as afterwards ascertained, caused by -the impact upon the port quarter of a 15,000 ton battleship travelling -at about nine knots, was an indentation in the form of an inverted -pyramid, the apex at the level of the protective steel deck, the base -level with the upper deck, measuring 24 feet 8 inches in height, and 6 -feet 6 inches across at the upper deck, and diminishing to a crack at -the apex, where the ship's side had been driven in to a depth of 1 foot -4 inches, by the impact of the _Hannibal_. In the centre of the -indentation was a triangular rift, starting from the crack at the -bottom, measuring 3 feet 4 inches in height and 1 foot 6 inches in -breadth at the top. - -At 11 o'clock p.m. I went on board the _Prince George_; examined into -the damage; made a general signal to the Fleet ordering all hand-pumps -and 14 foot planks and plenty of wedges to be sent on board the _Prince -George_. Under Captain F. L. Campbell, perfect discipline had been -maintained; the collision mat had been placed over the injury; and the -men were working cheerily with hand-pumps and baling out with buckets -the water from the gun-room. The rudder was out of action, the -steam-pipes being full of water. The engineer-commander had wisely -shut off steam when the helm was amidships, thus avoiding the jamming -of the rudder. Had the rudder jammed to {491} starboard or to port, -the difficulty of steering by the screws would have been greatly -increased. The bulkheads closing in the compartments which were full -of water, and all horizontal water-tight doors, were shored up with -baulks of timber. But the water was still coming in, because, owing to -the indentation in the side of the ship, the collision mat did not fit -tightly to it. - -The Fleet was ordered to proceed to Ferrol. - -I sent on a boat to buoy the sunken rocks; a proceeding which aroused -the suspicions of the Spanish authorities; who, however, upon learning -the circumstances, were most courteous and obliging. The boat, -however, was only able to get down one buoy. - -The _Howe_ had gone aground in the passage into Ferrol in 1892, and -three vessels had gone aground subsequently. - -Captain Campbell took the _Prince George_ into Ferrol harbour, up the -tortuous channel, which, owing to unbuoyed sunken rocks, is difficult -and dangerous. Under my directions Captain Campbell steered by the -screws, both screws going slow, or going astern slow with one -propeller, and stopping the other, according to which way it was -necessary to turn her head, and thus reducing her way if she were -nearing a rock, and by this method keeping her under perfect control. -At this time the ship was heavily down by the stern, drawing 25 feet 2 -inches forward and 34 feet 6 inches aft. Her stern walk was flush with -the water. - -Immediately upon the arrival of the _Prince George_ in Ferrol harbour -(on Sunday, 18th October) divers and working parties were sent to her -from all the other ships, and the Spanish Government courteously placed -the resources of the dockyard at my disposal. The working parties -worked day and night in three watches. On Monday, the _Hogue_, -armoured cruiser, Captain John L. Marx, M.V.O., was placed alongside -the _Prince George_ and employed her salvage pumps. - -The first thing to do was to prevent more water from coming in and to -get rid of the water already in the ship. {492} Mats were made of -canvas, thrummed with blankets, and these, with collision mats cut up, -and shot mats, were thrust horizontally through the holes in the ship's -side and wedged up so that the ends of the mats projected inside and -out; and the moisture, causing them to swell, closed up the holes. At -the same time the water was being pumped out and coffer-dams were being -constructed on the inside of the ship. - -The coffer-dam was a stout wooden partition built round the injury in -the ship side, thoroughly buttressed from within the ship with stout -baulks of timber. It thus formed a chamber, which was filled up with -all sorts of absorbent and other material, such as seamen's beds, -blankets, rope, hammocks, pieces of collision mats, gymnasium -mattresses, cushions, biscuit tins, etc. Thus the coffer-dam formed a -block, part absorbent and part solid, wedged and shored over the site -of the injury. In addition, the splintered wood sheathing was cut away -and trimmed up, and the mouth of the submerged torpedo tube was stopped -up with blankets and wedges, and sealed up with 3/16-inch steel plate -bolted to the ship's side. - -The extent of the injury may be exemplified by the amount of stuff used -for filling up the coffer-dams and for stopping the leaks, which was: -10 shot hole stopper mats; two collision mats 15 feet by 15 feet; 350 -seamen's hammocks, nine boats' covers, 14 coat-shoot covers, eight -steaming covers, 11 coaling screens, 1500 yards of deckcloth, 23 -shot-hole stopper mats cut into pieces, 57 blankets, one cwt. of oakum -and cotton waste, and about 1000 wooden wedges, etc. etc. Over 145 -tons of ammunition and stores were shifted in order to trim the ship. - -The divers and carpenters of the Fleet worked continually in three -watches from 3 p.m. on Sunday, 18th of October, till 6 a.m. on Friday, -23rd of October. There were employed: 24 engine-room artificers, 24 -stokers, 88 carpenter ratings, 43 divers and attendants. The majority -of the divers and carpenters were working in three watches {493} for -the whole time; that is, from 30 to 40 working hours each. From the -time stated, a period of in hours, 178 men were employed for various -periods. The total "men-hours" amounted to 3898, of which 3219 were -done by 27 divers and 60 carpenters. Two engineer sub-lieutenants from -other vessels of the Fleet assisted the engineer staff of the ship. - -At the completion of the repairs the _Prince George_, leaving Ferrol on -24th October, proceeded to Portsmouth escorted by the _Sutlej_. -Although the weather was rough, the total amount of water shipped by -the Prince George during the voyage was one gallon; a proof of the -excellent work done by the artificers. - -The repairs were carried out in six days altogether; the carpenters of -the Fleet being under Mr. Lavers, chief carpenter of _Majestic_, and -the divers of the Fleet under Mr. Manners, gunner of _Majestic_. The -total cost of the stores purchased at Ferrol was £116, 2s. 4d. The -whole incident is an example, but one of many, of the ability of the -Fleet to execute its own repairs. - - -In the following year, the officers and men of the _Majestic_ turned -over to the _Cæsar_, in which ship my flag was hoisted on 2nd February, -1904, and in which it was flown during the remainder of the commission. - -His Majesty the Emperor of Germany visited Gibraltar in March, in the -s.s. _König Albert_, escorted by H.I.M. cruiser _Friedrich Karl_. His -Majesty hoisted his flag as Honorary Admiral in the Royal Navy in the -_Cæsar_. On the 20th, his Majesty honouring me with his presence at -dinner in the _Cæsar_, the boats of the Fleet were lined on either side -of the passage between the _König Albert_ and the _Cæsar_; and when the -Emperor proceeded between the lines, every boat burned a blue light, -all oars were tossed, blades fore and aft, in perfect silence, the -midshipmen conveying their orders by signs. After dinner, when it fell -to me to propose his Majesty's health, and I stood up, glass in hand, -as I {494} said the words "Emperor of Germany," a rocket went up from -the deck above, and at the signal every ship in the Fleet fired a Royal -Salute. - -As the Emperor was leaving that night, the German flag and the Union -Jack were hoisted on the Rock, half the search-lights of the Fleet -being turned on the one flag, and half on the other. Precisely as the -_König Albert_ passed between the ends of the breakwaters, two stands -of a thousand rockets, each stand placed upon the end of a breakwater, -were ignited and rushing upwards, met in a triumphal arch of fire high -over the mast-heads of the Emperor's ship. - -In the following October (1904) occurred one of those sudden and -unforeseen emergencies which test alike the readiness of the Fleet and -the temper of the nation. The Fleet was ready, and the nation lost its -temper. - -The Russo-Japanese war was then waging. The Channel Fleet, which had -been coaling, left Portland at midday on 17th October for Gibraltar. -On the 21st, the Fleet left Lagos. On the same day, just before -midnight, the Russian Baltic Fleet, commanded by Admiral Rojdesvenski, -who believed that his Fleet was about to be attacked by Japanese -torpedo-boats, fired upon the British Gamecock Trawling Fleet in the -vicinity of the Dogger Bank, in the North Sea. The steam trawler -_Crane_ was sunk, her captain and third hand were killed, and the -Russian Fleet proceeded upon its course. Of these things we in the -Channel Fleet were of course ignorant. The next day, the Channel Fleet -was exercised in running torpedoes, and a torpedo attack for exercise -upon Gibraltar was arranged for the night of the 23rd-24th. - -In the meantime, the news of the North Sea incident had run about the -world; democracy in England wanted war; and the occurrence of highly -strained relations between Great Britain and Russia coinciding with the -arrival of the Channel Fleet at Gibraltar, upon which the torpedo-boats -were innocently making a night attack, might have resulted in their -being mistaken for a real enemy. Fortunately {495} no such catastrophe -occurred. At seven o'clock upon the morning of the 24th, the Fleet was -anchored in the harbour of Gibraltar; I learned the news; received my -instructions by telegram, and made my dispositions. - -On that day, peace and war hung in the balance. The Home, Channel and -Mediterranean Fleets were instructed to act in concert, a detachment of -the Mediterranean Fleet being ordered to reinforce the Channel Fleet at -Gibraltar. The Russian Baltic Fleet was then proceeding to Vigo, a -detachment of it being already at Tangier. On the following day (25th -October) King Edward received a message from the Czar expressing the -profound regret of his Imperial Majesty. It is a matter of history how -the negotiations proceeded until an amicable settlement was arranged. -The uncertainty, however, lasted until the 7th November. - -It is a subject for thankfulness that there was no engagement. The -Russian ships were so loaded with coal and stores that their upper-deck -guns could not have been worked, and a fight would have been murder. -Nor would war have been justified. The popular indignation was due to -a misunderstanding, and the misunderstanding arose because the Russian -admiral did not proceed to the nearest British port and explain the -circumstances. If he believed that the Fleet was about to be attacked -by torpedo craft, he was right to fire upon what he thought was the -enemy, nor could he risk the time required to exchange recognition -signals. - -The result of the Russian admiral's mistake was to kindle a sudden -resentment in this country which as nearly as possible forced a war -between the two nations. It is one of the dangers inherent in the -nature of democracy in all countries, that while democracy dislikes and -hinders organisation and preparation for war, the moment that its -vanity or self-respect is injured, democracy wants to fight. It is the -impulse of the mob. The North Sea incident was one example of this -disastrous tendency; the Spanish-American war was another. - -{496} - -But had war been most unfortunately declared by Great Britain in -October, 1904, the Navy would have been quite ready. All it had to do -was to proceed to the scene of operations. In this respect, it owns an -advantage over the Army, because the Navy is always on active service, -and does nothing in war which it is not doing every day in peace; if it -is not fighting an enemy, it is fighting the elements; and whether in -peace or in war, it goes to dinner at the same time. The Army, on the -other hand, must do in war what it cannot do in peace; it changes from -one condition to quite another; and the transition stage involves -immense organisation, expense and discomfort. - -In December, 1904, owing to the redistribution of the Fleet, the -Channel Fleet became the Atlantic Fleet, which was under my command -until the 5th March, 1905, when I hauled down my flag. - - - - -{497} - -CHAPTER LI - -BOAT RACING - -The enthusiasm which I have always felt for the noble sport of rowing -induced me, while in command of the _Undaunted_, to publish some notes -on the subject of men-of-war pulling races, and how to win them, the -substance of which is here reproduced, in the hope that they may still -prove of use in the Service. - -One of the results of steam and machinery having succeeded masts, yards -and canvas in a man-of-war was the creation of greater interest in -pulling races. The regattas held in different fleets and squadrons had -become yearly events keenly looked forward to by both officers and men. -This was very desirable, not only for the sake of the exercise which it -encouraged (physical exercise of an arduous character being in a -measure lost to the Service since the necessity for masts and yards had -been so diminished) but, for the well-being and good feeling which -healthful exercise invariably produces. Committees were formed, rules -and regulations were laid down in a clear and business-like manner, and -sums of money were given in prizes; which sums amounted on the -Mediterranean Station to about £200--£50 or £60 being given by the -Malta Canteen, and the remainder being raised by subscription among the -officers of the fleet. - -Man-of-war boats, being built for fighting and weight carrying are -different from boats built for racing purposes on fresh water; but the -prize will generally be gained by the crew of the man-of-war boat which -has carefully and {498} consistently followed the fundamental -principles upon which races pulled in racing boats on fresh water are -won. - -From the time the boat's crew is selected, until her stem has passed -the winning-post, no detail which may add to the chance of a boat -winning should be omitted, no matter how small it may appear. - -In selecting a boat's crew, endeavour should be made to have the men -near about the same height, in order to enable them all to take the -same length of stroke with ease to themselves and to make their effort -at the same moment. There should be no great disparity in their -weights. The men all round should be a fairly level lot, which will -make it easier for them to train as a whole. A crew resembles a chain, -in that a crew is no stronger than its weakest man, just as a chain is -no stronger than its weakest link. If a weak or an untrained man be -placed in a boat, he will, soon after the start, throw extra work on -the others. An indifferent crew of twelve men trained alike as to -condition, length of stroke, and pulling accurately together, provided -the boats are equal, will surely win a long race against a crew -composed of ten vastly superior and two indifferently trained men. -Similarly, a heavy boat with an indifferently sized crew, well trained, -will undoubtedly beat a magnificent crew in a good boat, untrained. - -A rule should be strictly enforced that individual members of one crew -are not to be trained or to pull with another crew. It is very much -the habit at men-of-war regattas to encourage the best oars in a ship -to pull in two or three (sometimes in four or five) races. This -practice is much to be deprecated, not only in the interest of the man -himself, but in the interest of boat racing. If a man who pulls in -several boats be laid up, he probably jeopardises the chances of -winning several races. - -The selection of a coxswain is a most important element in getting a -crew together. He should be a man of a certain seniority, who commands -attention, perfectly cool and collected, of good nerve and -determination. Coxswains {499} defective in these qualities have lost -many races, and coxswains possessing them have just pulled off many -races. The training of the crew must as a rule depend entirely on the -coxswain. For a 12-oared boat he should always, in order to provide -for contingencies, train at least two more men than the number required -in the race. - -For smaller boats he should always arrange to train more men than the -actual crew; many races have been lost owing to this detail having been -neglected, and one of the crew having broken down in his training just -before the race. - -After the crew is selected, the coxswain with their help and assistance -should draw up certain rules in order to ensure constant and regular -practice, as well as to avoid those hindrances to training to be found -after frequent visits to the canteen. One or two men taking a glass of -beer too much during training has indirectly been the cause of many a -race being lost, owing to the loss of practice to the crew as a whole, -and to the disturbance of that harmony which must exist if a boat's -crew is to be thoroughly trained. - -Whether it is from his early training, or from the heavy and clumsy -nature of his oars, or from the weight of the boats he has to pull, the -British bluejacket, as a rule, pulls the worst oar possible to enable -him to stay and pull through to the end a well-contested long race. If -he be left to himself, he sits bolt upright on his thwart, beginning -his stroke from that position, and apparently under the impression that -the expression "Bend your back" indicates that he should bend his back -forward instead of bending it aft; and totally unconscious that when he -falls back towards the bow he only pulls his weight, but that when he -bends forward towards the stern he pulls his strength and his weight; -and he usually holds the loom of his oar with bent arms, frequently -giving one or two jerks during the stroke, the last one of which may -bring his oar out of the water and feather it considerably above his -shoulder. He sometimes adds to these movements a rocking motion from -side to {500} side, beginning by leaning towards the middle of the boat -and then throwing himself towards the boat's side. He almost -invariably has his head turned on his shoulder to see what his oar is -doing, and he often wears a tight belt round his stomach. All these -practices are entirely wrong and are totally opposed to a common-sense -method of urging a boat at speed through the water. - -When the boat's crew has been selected, the first duty of the coxswain -is to show them how to pull and to ensure their motions being as one. -Starting from their laying on their oars, he should make them stretch -aft towards him as far as they can, with straight arms, sitting with -their chests square to their oars, with their hands, not too far from -and not too close to each other, firmly grasping the looms of the oars, -with their arms at about right angles to the body and themselves -looking the coxswain straight in the face (in river-pulling parlance -"eyes in the boat"). It is impossible for a man to sit square to his -oar if he is looking over his shoulder. The coxswain should begin -practising his crew in the above position, without allowing them to -catch the water until they are perfect. - -The oars should catch the water with a firm and vigorous grip, -absolutely simultaneously, the great effort of the man being made as -the oar catches the water and not as it leaves it. The oar should b -pulled through with a strong, steady, powerful stroke, no jerks -whatever being given. A jerk bends or breaks an oar, but it does not -send the boat ahead; and a man who pulls a steady stroke will stay -three miles to the two miles of the man who jerks. The oar should -never be feathered higher than is necessary. The oars should be -feathered as level as possible with each other in order to ensure, as -far as may be, that the blades of the oars catch the water absolutely -together. - -The coxswain should see that the crew wear no belts and that the -waistbands of their trousers are loose about the waist. If a man's -trousers are tight, they become irksome when he stretches aft as far as -he can over his toes. {501} Each one of these details requires the -earnest and constant attention of the coxswain, and he should see that -each movement is carried out slowly, deliberately, quietly and -perfectly, before he begins to get his crew into hard training. Spurts -should always be avoided until a crew is fit to pull a race. When the -coxswain wishes to spurt he should warn the crew for a spurt, state -loudly the number of strokes he wishes to spurt, and then count them -distinctly as they are pulled. The crew will then all put forth their -greatest effort together. A spurt of three strokes may win a race, in -the event of one of the opposing boat's crew catching a crab, or their -stroke becoming unequal, or one or more of them being for the moment -jaded. - -The usual method for training adopted by coxswains is, however, of a -different character. They order the men to pull hard from the moment -they form their crew; they pay not the slightest regard to the -important details which must be attended to in order that any crew may -have a chance of winning a strongly contested race; they appear to -think that a boat's crew cannot be trained unless the coxswain -oscillates his body with an excitement which apparently borders on -insanity; and they accompany these oscillations with weird and nervous -cries such as "Hup with her!" "Lift her!" "Hang on her!" "Back on her!" -"Squeeze her!" "Heave on her!" and similar noises. It is well to cheer -up a crew with vocal accompaniments to their strokes, but that is by no -means the most important factor in enabling them to win. - -As a crew proceeds in its training and becomes slowly and quietly fit, -dumb-bells and running will be found useful auxiliaries to pulling, -particularly if the regular practice is stopped while the ship is at -sea, but on no account should a coxswain allow one of his boat's crew -to be over-trained. He should inquire after the health of the crew -every morning, and should be most careful that they do not get a chill -or a cold after practice. Some men require more work than others to -get them in hard condition; a good coxswain will attend to this point, -and will be careful that all his {502} boat's crew reach the -starting-point in the pink of condition. He will also see that the -thwarts are smooth and comfortable, the looms of the oars smooth and -capable of being easily grasped, that the stretchers are secured so -that they can neither slip nor carry away, and that every small detail -(whose failure at the critical moment might jeopardise the chances of a -race) is attended to. The coxswain must also attend to the incidentals -of training, such as chafed sterns and blistered hands, which if not -treated may incapacitate a man from pulling in a race. Chafing on the -stern is best treated by fomenting with hot water and the application -of zinc powder afterwards. Blisters on hands are best treated by -pricking them with a needle in the live flesh just outside the blister, -pressing the water out of it, and wearing a rag over the injury until -the two skins have set together again. A coxswain should also attend -to the feeding of his crew during training, as no man can ever be -produced fit at the starting-post who is too much addicted to pudding. - -There are two illustrations which exemplify the necessity for a man to -lean well aft with straight arms when commencing his stroke: (1) If a -man were holding on to a ridge-rope or other rope for his life, he -would never hold on with his arms bent, but would keep them quite -straight for the simple reason that he could hold on longer and -stronger. (2) If a man, in a sitting position, wished to raise a -weight, the pulley used being rove through a block at his feet, he -would never dream of sitting upright prising with his feet and leaning -back from the upright position, but he would bend forward well on his -toes and pull with his strength _and_ his weight. Tackles and weights -were rigged in the _Undaunted_ in order that the men might learn these -truths by practice. - -Another important matter for a coxswain is to see that the conditions -on all points are clearly made out in writing before the race, and are -signed by himself and the coxswain of the competing boat. The date, -the time, the boats, the composition of the crew, the stakes, which -should always {503} be low (high stakes invariably lead to bad feeling) -and which in no case should exceed 5s. per man and 10s. per coxswain; -the precise course, _i.e._ the distance, and on which side, all marks, -etc., are to be left, and also whether the oars are to be Service or -private: all these things should be clearly defined. There has been -more bad feeling bred between vessels owing to the want of such details -having been clearly defined than to any other contingency that arises -in boat racing. This is notably the case as to oars. Wherever it is -possible a straight course should be selected, but if the length of the -race does not admit of a straight course each boat should have its own -separate buoy to round. - -Coxswains should use every endeavour to get permission to have their -boats hoisted for three or four days (with the exception of the time -necessary for practice) before any forthcoming race in order to get the -boat properly dry. They should get any ragged splinters planed off the -keel, have all surplus paint scraped off and get the bottom of the boat -as smooth as possible. They should also see the oars trimmed and -exactly suited both by length and balance of weight to the small or -great beam of the boat according to the thwart on which they are pulled. - -Boat pulling is a healthy and a manly recreation, and if properly -practised with friendly rivalry, can there be a doubt that it generates -that activity of mind which is generally associated with activity of -body? It also produces that courage, endurance, nerve and muscle which -have so long been the distinctive features of the British race. It -provokes a spirit of manliness, a generosity of mind and a love of fair -play. - -If all conditions are made out clearly and fairly, a beaten crew -invariably accepts the verdict in a gallant and a chivalrous manner. -After a race, no such remarks should be heard from the beaten crew as -an offer to double or treble the stakes and pull again or words of -similar character, showing either that the beaten crew cannot accept -their defeat in a spirit worthy of the name of British man-of-war {504} -men, or that owing to the conditions of the race not having been -clearly defined, some misunderstanding has arisen which has naturally -engendered a bitter feeling in the minds of those who have just -suffered the poignancy of defeat. - -The training and practice which are necessary to put the boats' crews -of men-of-war into that state of condition in which they may reasonably -expect to win a race, must to a large extent cultivate those habits of -discipline which are so essential for the comfort and efficiency of our -great Service. - -Admiral Sir George Tryon, while he was commander-in-chief in the -Mediterranean, and while I was in command of the _Undaunted_, caused a -boat to be specially built to race my boat. We had six races, all of -which the _Undaunted_ won. The _Undaunted's_ racing boat was built -flatter in the floor than the ordinary pattern of Service boats. One -of the races with Sir George Tryon's boat was rowed in a whole gale of -wind, over a course of four miles. The _Undaunted's_ boat was -half-full of water, and three of the knees of the thwarts were broken, -when she crossed the line. This kind of racing is extremely heavy -work, for the Service boats are massively built in order to carry -weight, such as guns, stores ammunition. The oars are so heavy that -there is nearly as much labour involved in lifting the oar from the -water and coming forward as in pulling it through the water. - -The admiral-superintendent's boat at Malta was never beaten. She was a -beautiful boat, built by Maltese, and manned by a splendid Maltese -crew. I raced her with my crew twice, once when I was captain of the -_Undaunted_, and again when I was second in command in the -Mediterranean (with flag in _Ramillies_), and lost the race on both -occasions. In the second race, the Maltese, having the inside place -resorted to the well-known manoeuvre of steering us off all the way up -to the buoy and then turning sharply to round it. - -While stationed at Alexandria during the time of my command of the -_Undaunted_, we used to have a regatta open to all comers, any boat and -any rig, every Friday. The {505} Arab boats used to enter. Their -great sail area and flat bottoms gave them a great advantage in -running, or on the wind; but they could not tack. They were obliged to -wear in a beat to windward, because their sail dipped before all. I -beat them twice with a copy of Captain (now Admiral) Fitzgerald's -racing rig, in the launch. A Service launch is of course built for -heavy work and for carrying loads, such as supplies and ammunition. -The Service rig has one mast, with mainsail and staysail, called the De -Horsey rig. Captain Fitzgerald stepped the single mast aft, and fitted -a bigger spar forward, equipped it with a big dipping lug, abolished -the staysail, and used ballast. The object of the De Horsey rig was to -give a sail equipment with as little gear as possible. Captain -Fitzgerald's object was to race; and I may take this opportunity of -saying that I consider Admiral Fitzgerald to have been the finest -boat-sailer whom I have met in the Service. - -When he was commander of the _Agincourt_ in the Channel Squadron, he -won the first Admiral's cup presented in the Navy, in 1872. In that -year, Admiral Sir Geoffrey Hornby gave a cup to be sailed for by the -boats of the Channel Squadron, being the first admiral to present a -cup. The conditions, as described by Admiral Fitzgerald in his -_Memories of the Sea_, were: "Any sails, any rig, any shaped false -keel, but no sinking ballast; that is to say, the boat must float when -full of water; and there is generally a handicap for size." - -While I was commander of the _Thunderer_, I fitted the steam pinnace as -a racing boat, taking out the engines and boilers and equipping her -with a big cutter rig. The boat had a yacht section, but was without a -heavy keel, so that I had to ballast her heavily. She went very fast -in a light breeze, but when a puff came she would heel over and take in -water. In case of accident, I ballasted her with a length of chain -cable, shackled to ringbolts on her bottom, the other end made fast to -a rope and a buoy. Rear-Admiral William Dowell, who was then second in -command of the Channel {506} Squadron (afterwards Admiral Sir William -Montague Dowell, G.C.B.), challenged me to a race in Portland Harbour. -Admiral Dowell sailed in his six-oared galley, which carried a private -rig of two dipping lugs. I was confident of beating him, but the -admiral knew better. He knew I should have to ease my sheets when the -breeze freshened. At first I went away from him, but when I was just -inside the breakwater, a puff came, over went the boat, and it went -down under me. Dowell, seeing that I was swimming safely and that the -boats of the Fleet were coming to pick me up, went on and won the race. - -When I went to dine with him that night, he greeted me with: - -"Last time I saw you, you were swimming about in the harbour." - -In the meantime, owing to the device of ballasting my boat with chain -cable and buoying the end of it, we were able to pick her up. The -_Thunderer_ came over the place where she was sunk, hauled the cable up -to the hawse pipe, and hove the boat to the surface. - -My old friend, Admiral Sir William Montague Dowell G.C.B., was a most -distinguished officer. He served in the China war, 1840-1, served as -gunnery lieutenant of the _Albion_ in the Black Sea, and was promoted -for services with the Naval Brigade at Sevastopol; served again in -China, in 1857, being present at the capture of Canton; commanded the -_Barrosa_ in the straits of Simonoseki, 1864, being specially -mentioned; received the C.B. for services in Japan. He was A.D.C. to -the Queen; commanded the West Coast of Africa and Cape of Good Hope -Station, 1867-71; after having been second in command of the Channel -Squadron, senior officer on the Coast of Ireland, and vice-admiral in -command of the Channel Squadron, he was temporarily attached to the -Mediterranean Fleet and served in the Egyptian war of 1882, receiving -the K.C.B., and the thanks of the House of Commons. He was afterwards -commander-in-chief in China, and subsequently commander-in-chief of -Devonport. {507} He was one of the Three Admirals who framed the -Report upon the Naval Manoeuvres of 1888, in which were formulated the -principles of British naval supremacy. - -I won many races in a _Una_ boat, the _Weasel_, built at Cowes, during -the time of my command of the royal yacht _Osborne_. The Prince of -Wales built a similar boat. Prince Louis of Battenberg, steering the -Prince's boat, beat me in a most exciting race, in which the betting -was long odds on my boat. The fact was, that trying to be very clever, -I put too much ballast in the boat, and so lost the race. - - - - -{508} - -CHAPTER LII - -THE MEDITERRANEAN STATION - -Forty-four years had elapsed since I was a midshipman in H.M.S. -_Marlborough_, flagship in the Mediterranean, when I hoisted my flag in -H.M.S. _Bulwark_ as commander-in-chief upon that station, in June 1905. -Those changeful years had seen the Old Navy out and the New Navy in; -their revolutions had transformed the whole material aspect of the -Navy; and the essential spirit of the Navy, adapting itself to new -conditions remained unaltered. One result, perhaps inevitable, of the -swift progress of scientific invention, was that the public attention -was concentrated upon purely material matters regarding the Navy as a -fighting machine automatically operated; and conceiving of officers and -men as workers in a factory, who had nothing to do but to press buttons -and to manipulate levers. This unfortunate delusion was fostered by -the politicians, who were quick to use it for their own ends. - -The Mediterranean Fleet consisted of _Bulwark_ (flag), _Formidable_, -_Implacable_, _Irresistible_, _London_, _Prince of Wales_, _Queen_, -_Venerable_ (flag of second in command, Vice-Admiral Sir Harry T. -Grenfell, K.C.B., C.M.G., and afterwards of Rear-Admiral Francis C. B. -Bridgeman, M.V.O.); three attached cruisers, three special service -vessels; the Third Cruiser Squadron, _Leviathan_, (flag of Rear-Admiral -the Hon. Hedworth Lambton, C.V.O., C.B.), _Carnarvon_, _Lancaster_, -_Suffolk_, two attached ships, and 22 destroyers. - -The Staff consisted of: chief of staff, Captain Frederick {509} C. D. -Sturdee, C.M.G, M.V.O.; flag-commander, Fawcet Wray; flag-lieutenant, -Charles D. Roper (signal officer); flag-lieutenant, Herbert T. C. -Gibbs; secretary, Fleet Paymaster John A. Keys; engineer-captain, Edwin -Little; intelligence officer, Major John M. Rose, R.M.A. The -flag-captain was Osmond de B. Brock; the commander Hugh P. E. T. -Williams. - -The Mediterranean is the finest training station in the world; and it -is the more to be regretted that the Mediterranean Fleet is always so -deficient in numbers, that Fleet training must be conducted at a -disadvantage. Eight battleships represent the smallest practicable -unit for tactical purposes, nor does that number allow sufficient -margin for the necessary deductions due to the absence of ships under -repair or refitting. Upon one occasion, six out of the eight were -absent under repair at one time, and in all cases the absence was -unavoidable. - -The eight battleships required twenty attached cruisers, as compared -with the three allocated. Although improvements had been effected, the -Fleet in 1905 was still deficient in auxiliaries, such as fleet -colliers, repair ships, depot ships. - -The popular and political delusion that under modern conditions the -duties of the naval officer have become mechanical is so far from the -reality, that, in truth, they have never been more complex and onerous; -nor is it possible that they should be rightly performed in war, in -default of the most assiduous practice in peace. It is thus the -business of an admiral constantly to exercise the Fleet both -collectively and individually; and as the discharge of that duty tasks -his energies to the utmost, there is little to record during a sea -command except the cruises, exercises and manoeuvres which constantly -occupy a Fleet. - -In June, 1905, for instance, the Mediterranean Fleet left Malta and -proceeded upon a cruise; met the Atlantic Fleet at the end of July; -exercised combined manoeuvres with the Atlantic Fleet; proceeded upon -another cruise, and so {510} on; never going to sea without practising -some exercise or manoeuvre. All exercises and manoeuvres of importance -were treated in a memorandum, in which was explained the lessons to be -learned from them, and which was circulated to the officers of the -Fleet. - -Every morning when the Fleet was at sea, except on Sundays and in very -bad weather, small tactical and turning movements were executed from -7.30 to 8 a.m., the movements of each individual ship being carried out -by the officer of the watch, all lieutenants taking it in turn to -relieve the deck, and being put in charge of the ship for this period -of time. The captains did not interfere in the handling of the ship, -unless the officer of the watch placed the ship, or a consort, in a -position of danger. The lieutenants themselves made out the -commander-in-chief's signals and their purport without the assistance -of the captain or of the yeoman of signals. Officers of the watch were -informed that they need not be afraid of making a mistake; for, -everyone was liable to make a mistake; and the rest of the Fleet -learned more when an error occurred than when all went smoothly and -correctly. - -During the forenoons, there was usually practised some short manoeuvre -in which an admiral or a captain took charge of the Fleet, and -manoeuvred it as he pleased, the commander-in-chief reserving to -himself the right to negative any signal which he might consider -dangerous or useless. After the admirals and captains had manoeuvred -the Fleet as a whole, it was divided into opposing Fleets, officers, -selected by the commander-in-chief, taking charge of these Fleets. -Each squadron endeavoured to gain the initial position or advantage. -Once that position was obtained, the Fleets were ordered to separate, -and two other officers respectively took charge of the opposing -squadrons. - -Great care was observed that orders relative to speed, and to the -distance within which opposing fleets were not to trespass, were -rigidly observed. Officers were informed that all peace manoeuvres -must be regarded as a game, and that {511} no game should be played -unless the rules were implicitly obeyed. The principle was that no -manoeuvre should last very long, being much more instructive if it were -short, and were frequently practised. - -The practice of taking the soldiers for short voyages was instituted. -About twenty men of the Royal Garrison Artillery at Malta, with an -officer, a sergeant and a corporal, were embarked in each vessel, the -non-commissioned officers and men messing and working with the Royal -Marines. - -The periodical delivery of lectures by officers of all branches upon -Service subjects was instituted, the lectures taking place under the -presidency of the commander-in-chief at the Royal Naval Canteen, Malta. -Discussions were encouraged, and a great deal of interest and -enthusiasm was aroused. - -My old friend and distinguished countryman, Sir George White, who was -then Governor of Gibraltar, asked me to deliver a lecture to the -soldiers of the garrison upon the advantages of temperance. In dealing -with this subject, I always tell men to box, run, ride, row, and by all -means to get physically fit, when they would be in a condition they -would not forfeit for the sake of indulgence. On this occasion, I said -that, although I was over sixty years of age, I could outlast a -youngster in endurance, adding that "I never took any liquor now." The -address must have been reported in the English papers; for I received a -letter from a dear old lady (quite unknown to me) telling me how -thankful she was that I, as a public man, had given up the dreadful -vice of intoxication. - -After I had consulted the head of every department in every ship -collectively, two detailed plans of war organisation were drawn up: -one, a plan of preparation for war; two, a plan for immediate action. -The first contained the procedure to be followed if war was expected; -the second, the procedure to be followed on the eve of an engagement. -Both covered every detail of the internal organisation of every ship in -the Fleet, and specified the duties of every officer, man and {512} -boy. These plans were circulated to the officers of the Fleet. - -Another important element of preparation for war is the rapid and -efficient repair of defects. Under the old system, a defect which -could not be repaired by the ship's artificers--as for instance, a -piece of work involving a heavy casting or forging--was left until the -ship visited the dockyard, when the dockyard officials came on board, -took measurements, executed the work and fitted it to the ship. The -result was that there were many complaints of defective fitting. - -Under the new system, introduced in the Mediterranean Fleet, all -repairs which could not be effected in the ship, were specified by the -ship's artificers, who also made measured drawings of the new work -required. The specifications and drawings were forwarded by the senior -officer to the dockyard, with directions that the work should be -executed as soon as possible, so that upon the arrival of the ship at -the dockyard, the required fitting would be at once supplied to the -ship. It would then be fixed by the ship's artificers who had -furnished the working drawings to the dockyard, and who, provided that -the work was rightly executed, would thus be responsible both for -accuracy of manufacture and of fitting. By this means, delay was -avoided and the work was efficiently and promptly executed. - -Before I left England to take up my appointment, I resolved to do my -best to eradicate that curse of the Service, Malta fever. The -authorities were naturally sceptical of my success; for, although many -attempts had been made to solve the problem, no one had hitherto -succeeded in abating the scourge. - -Certain obvious precautions were at once enforced. Junior officers -were not allowed to remain on shore after sunset, without overcoats; -all milk received on board was boiled; the Fleet was kept away from -Malta as much as possible during the dangerous months of June, July, -August and September; and the officers and men of those ships which -were at Malta during the summer, were sent upon long {513} route -marches and were afforded plenty of exercise to keep them fit. These -measures reduced the number of cases of Malta fever from 197 of the -previous year (1905) to 137. - -But the main evil remained. A large number of cases contracted fever -in the Royal Naval Hospital, to which they had been sent to be treated -for other maladies, often requiring surgical treatment only. Great -credit is due to Deputy-Inspector-General Robert Bentham for the -improvements effected by his care and foresight. In order to prevent -infection, every cot was furnished with mosquito curtains; the traps of -all drains were kept clean and disinfected; and all milk supplied to -the hospital was boiled. The patients disliked boiled milk; and as -infected milk was smuggled in, the use of milk was forbidden -altogether. An isolation ward for fever cases was provided. All -openings were fitted with wire gauze and double doors. - -The result was that in May, June and July, 1906, there were no cases of -fever contracted in the hospital. - -Finding that fever patients recovered so soon as they were to the -westward of Gibraltar, the practice of sending all such cases away in -the _Maine_ hospital ship was instituted with excellent results. For -example, of sixty-two cases sent away, all but fourteen had recovered -by the time the ship reached England. - -Deputy-Inspector-General Bentham was recommended by me for his services -to the Admiralty; but his services did not meet with the recognition -they deserved. - -Shortly afterwards, the Malta Fever Commission completed the work, by -discovering the bacillus of the disease, and by abolishing the goats, -whose milk was the chief source of infection. - -In October, 1905, the Prince and Princess of Wales, on their way to -India in the _Renown_, were met at the Straits of Messina by the -Mediterranean Fleet. - -The centenary of the battle of Trafalgar, 21st October, 1905, was -celebrated by the Mediterranean Fleet at Malta. A naval review was -held on shore in the forenoon, three {514} thousand officers and men -taking part in it. Those captains of guns, including the Royal -Marines, who had made five hits or more in the gunlayers' competition, -117 in number, were formed into a company on the right of the line and -marched past first. At four o'clock in the afternoon, flags were -half-masted. At half-past four o'clock, guards and bands being paraded -facing aft, officers and men fallen in on the quarter-deck facing aft -and uncovered, the colours of His Majesty's ships were dipped slowly -and reverently; the bands played the Dead March, and at its conclusion -the colours were slowly rehoisted. - -His Majesty King Edward VII honoured the flagship with a visit on 14th -April, 1906. About an hour before the King came on board, the awning -over the quarter-deck caught fire, owing to a short circuit of the -electric light. Lieutenant Gibbs, with great pluck and presence of -mind, instantly climbed upon the awning and extinguished the flames -with his hands, which were severely burned. - -In March, 1906, the historic International Conference summoned to deal -with Moroccan affairs, was assembled at Algeçiras. Conversing with -some of the delegates, it seemed to me that an informal and a convivial -meeting might cheer them up and perhaps help to cement a friendly -understanding; and I invited them all to dine on board the flagship. -In order to avoid the bristling difficulties connected with -arrangements of precedence, the delegates were all embarked at the same -time in the s.s. _Margherita_, lent to me for the occasion; and were -all disembarked at the same time upon a platform erected at the level -of the upper deck, being received by the full guard and saluted. For -the same reason, no national anthems were performed. The President of -the Conference the Duke of Almodovar, was given the place of honour at -the dinner, the rest of the delegates sitting in the order of their -seniority. The single toast of the evening was to "all Sovereignties -and Republics," which needed no reply. After dinner, during which the -massed bands of the Fleet played {515} on the upper deck, the company -adjourned to the quarterdeck. I was informed by one of the -distinguished guests that the meeting had done much good, as the -delegates had not hitherto had an opportunity of meeting informally -together. - -Upon the return of the delegates, magnesium lights arranged upon the -ends of the breakwater were lighted as the _Margherita_ passed between -them, and a searchlight display of 140 lights was given by the Fleet. - -Vice-Admiral Sir Harry Grenfell, second in command, was a most -distinguished officer, a great sportsman, an accomplished athlete, and -a charming friend. His premature death was a sad loss to the Service. -Grenfell was so powerful a man that he could take a small pony under -one arm and walk about with it. I saw him perform this feat at a -luncheon party given by the Governor of Algeria, to whom the pony -belonged. - -Grenfell told me the story of his extraordinary adventure in Albania. -The country is infested with wild and savage dogs, which are apt to -attack the traveller. The Albanians do not resent the dogs being -killed, if they are slain with a knife in self-defence; but to shoot -them the Albanians consider a mortal offence. Being aware of their -sentiments, I used to take with me a couple of Marines armed with -boarding pikes when I went shooting in Albania. - -But when Grenfell went, he was accompanied by another naval officer, -named Selby, who, upon being attacked by a native dog, shot it. A -party of Albanians thereupon closed in upon Grenfell and Selby and -attacked them. There was a fierce struggle, in the course of which one -of the guns went off, the charge killing an Albanian. The accident so -infuriated the rest that they beat Selby, as they thought, to death. -They smashed in his skull, so that the brains protruded, and left him -for dead. Then they took Grenfell, lashed his hands behind his back, -set him on a three-legged stool, put the bight of a rope round his -neck, {516} and secured the other end to the branch of a tree, hauling -it taut. There they left him, in the hope that the stool would slip -and that he would be strangled. He remained in that position for three -hours. - -In the meantime the interpreter who had come with Grenfell had run to -fetch an official of the country. The official arriving, released -Grenfell. Selby, dreadfully wounded as he was, actually walked back to -the ship, and lived until the next day. - -But strong as Grenfell was, his terrible experience left him with an -extraordinary optical affliction. He was constantly haunted by the -illusion of an enormous ape, which he plainly saw both by day and by -night. He used to behold the phantom enter the room and sit on a -chair; and if a visitor came to see him, he would ask the visitor to -take the chair upon which the ape was sitting; whereupon the spectre -would move to another place. I am glad to say that he was eventually -cured of this distressing affection. - -An Irish lieutenant of a regiment at Malta told me the following -pathetic story in a broad Irish brogue, his natural way of speaking: - -"Me little brother and meself were very fond of rhabitting. The -loikely place was the family cemetery. There were lashings of holes -within it. One day by-and-by the ferret himself laid up, and with that -we dug him (bad cess to the work). We out wid a shkull. Me little -brother he says, 'That's profanation; it will be the shkull of an -ancestor,' says he. 'Niver moind that,' says I, 'we'll have a joke wid -it.' I ensconced it in me pockut. On getting within, I passed through -the kitcher and dhropped me ancestor's shkull (God forgive me!) into -the stock-pot. All went very well till dinner and we through wid it, -when the cook burst in in great qualms, and sheloodering at haste to me -poor mother, says she, - -"'Glory be to God and save us, Milady, we are all desthroyed intirely, -for there's a man in the soup,' she says." - -{517} - -The same lieutenant went out shooting quail at Malta with a revolver, -and hit a Maltese in the wrong place, for which error he was heavily -fined. - -When children's picnic parties were given on board the _Bulwark_, a -quantity of sand was heaped in a well upon the quarter-deck; spades and -buckets were provided; and the children dug in the sand to find -presents. When that entertainment failed, the bluejackets, ensconced -in barrels, performed Aunt Sally, bobbing up their heads, at which the -children threw light sticks, and which they invariably missed. I -noticed a small boy of about seven years old, a Spaniard, who stood a -little way off, contemplating this performance with his large dark -eyes, his hands behind his back. Presently, with air of abstraction, -he strolled quietly to the back of a barrel, where the deck was -littered with thrown sticks. Suddenly he picked up a stick, dodged -swiftly to the front of the barrel, and as the seaman's head shot up, -hit the poor fellow right on the nose, making it bleed. Then the -little wretch roared with laughter and capered in his joy. - -On the 19th January, 1907, I took leave of the Fleet with very great -regret, and left Malta in the _Bulwark_, homeward bound. - - - - -{518} - -CHAPTER LIII - -SPORTING MEMORIES - -I. RIDING AND DRIVING - -I rode my first race in Corfu, as a midshipman. An old colonel of -artillery, who knew my father, said to me: - -"You are a Beresford, an Irishman, and a sailor, and if you can't ride, -who can? You shall ride my horse in the next race. He is a hard -puller, and if only you stick on he will win." - -He _was_ a hard puller, and he did win. I rode in my midshipman's -uniform, and lost my cap, and won the race. But the horse ran three -times round the course before I could pull him up. - -I have always said that you can do anything with horses if you -understand them. It was at a dinner party in my house in Eaton Square -that I offered to put that statement to the proof. The table at which -my guests were sitting was designed with a large tank in the centre, -which was filled with running water, in which grew ferns and aquatic -plants. Gold fish swam in the water, and little new-born ducklings -oared upon the surface. This miniature lake was diversified with -spirals and fountains fashioned of brass which I had turned myself. - -Among the company was an old friend, Harry Chaplin, than whom there is -no finer sportsman in England and who was perhaps the best heavy-weight -rider to hounds in England. - -I told my guests that I would bring in one of my horses {519} (a -bad-tempered thoroughbred), that I would lead him from the street, up -the steps into the hall, round the dining-table and so back to the -street without accident. Straw was laid on the steps and passages; and -I led in the horse. He lashed out at the fire with one leg, just to -show his contempt for everything and everybody; but there was no -casualty. - -The next day, I was driving the same horse in a buggy, when something -annoyed the animal, and he kicked the buggy to pieces, upset us in the -road, and broke my old coachman's leg. - -My uncle, Henry Lord Waterford, once made a bet that he would ride one -of his hunters over the dining-room table in his house at Melton, and -won his bet, the horse actually leaping the table towards the fire. - -Horses are like Irishmen: they are easily managed if you know how to -handle them. - -The famous horse-fair of Cahirmee is no more. But it was at Cahirmee, -according to tradition, that Irishmen acquired their habit of breaking -one another's heads. At Cahirmee Fair, the boys slept in tents, their -heads outwards; and it was the custom of the wilder spirits to go round -the tents at night, and playfully to rap the heads of the sleepers with -shillelaghs. One of the sleepers was most unfortunately killed by a -blow, and his slayer was brought before the magistrate, who condemned -him. Hereupon the policeman who had arrested the prisoner addressed -the magistrate: - -"Your Honour," says he, "sure it is very well known that the deceased -had a terrible thin skull upon him, and I would be wanting in my duty -not to be telling your Honour the way the poor man's skull was -dangerous to him." - -"'Tis the truth," broke in the prisoner eagerly. "Sure your Honour's -honour will be letting me off, for everyone knows that no man having a -thin skull does be having anny business to be at Cahirmee Fair." - -During the paper-chases which we got up at Valparaiso, I met with a -nasty accident. My horse rose at some posts and rails, and crashed -through the top bar; after which I knew {520} no more except a shower -of stars and darkness. When I recovered consciousness, I found myself -being borne home on horseback, lying face down on the Chilian saddle, -which is made of thick rugs. The horse was being led by a Chilian -farmer, who was, I thought, taking me to the mortuary. But he was -really a good Samaritan. He had bathed my wounded face with -_aquadente_, and placed me on his horse. The scent and sting of the -_aquadente_ revived the moribund, and by the evening I was all right -again. - -In the _Research_, in 1867, we had a quartette of hunting men, Cæsar -Hawkins, Lascelles, Forbes and myself. We used constantly to hunt -together. Lascelles was one of the best riders I have ever known. He -could take a horse through or over anything. The _Research_ was -stationed at Holyhead at that time, because it was believed that the -Fenians had planned to destroy the steamers running from Holyhead to -Ireland and back. I used to go across to Ireland from the _Research_ -to hunt with the Ward Union near the Curragh, and return the same -night. A long way to cover. - -"The Three Brothers'" race is still remembered in Ireland It was ridden -by Lord William, Lord Marcus, and myself. Each of us had his backers, -but the crowd was at first firmly convinced that the result of the race -had been arranged between us. I believe I had the best horse, but he -was unfortunately taken with an attack of influenza while he was coming -over from England in the boat. Lord William won by a short head from -Lord Marcus, and I was a length behind. Lord Marcus reminds me that -each of us, while secretly fancying himself intensely, enthusiastically -eulogised the other. - -I quote the enthusiastic account of the race written by an eye-witness, -which appeared in _The Waterford News_ at the time. (_The Waterford -News_, 4th January, 1901. Account by Mr. Harry Sargant, from his -_Thoughts upon Sport_, and description in _The Waterford News_, The -Three Brothers' Race, 30th April, 1874.) - -{521} - -"Lords Charles, William, and Marcus Beresford had a sweepstake of 100 -sovs. each, p.p., three miles, over the Williamstown Course, twelve -stone each, owners up. Lord Charles rode Nightwalker, a black -thoroughbred horse, and bred by Billy Power, the sporting tenant of the -course; Lord William rode Woodlark, a grey mare; and Lord Marcus was on -a bay gelding called The Weasel. They each wore the Beresford blue, -Lord Charles with the ancestral black cap, while the others had white -and blue caps as distinguishing emblems. - -"No racecourse in Ireland, except Punchestown and Fairyhouse, ever had -more people on it than Williamstown had on that, the most memorable day -in its annals. Old men and women who had never before seen a race came -50 miles to see 'the Brothers' race.'" (Many persons slept on the -ground on the preceding night.) "Not a person, except the too aged and -incapacitated, was in a farmhouse within 10 miles of the course, while -the city was as deserted as if plague-stricken--all, all, flocked to -Williamstown. Excitement rose to boiling pitch as the three brothers -filed out of the enclosure and did the preliminary. I fancy now I see -them jogging side by side to the starting-post, where poor Tom Waters -awaited them, ready with ensign in hand to send them on their journey. -The only delay was while he delivered a short but sporting speech to -these three lads, when away they went, boot to boot. The pace was a -cracker from the start, but none made the running more than another, -for all three were girth to girth most of the journey, and at no time -did two lengths divide the first and last till just before the finish. -Yes, every post they made a winning-post; and ding-dong did they go at -each other, though, of course, riding like sportsmen. Fence after -fence was charged and cleared by them locked together, and it was not -until Nightwalker was beaten, just before the last fence, they -separated. A determined struggle between Woodlark and The Weasel then -ensued; and, after a desperate finish, old Judge Hunter gave the -verdict to the former 'by a short head.' - -{522} - -"Never was seen a better race of its class, nor was any ever ridden -more determinedly for victory. The scene of excitement on Williamstown -Course before and after it beggars description. Not a mouth was shut -or a voice lower than its highest pitch." - -Two Irishmen who came from Australia, used to ride with our hounds, the -Curraghmore, in County Waterford. They were both very hard riders and -both so short-sighted as to be nearly blind. For these reasons they -used closely to follow my brother and myself; and we used to do our -best to get out of their way, as they were always on the top of us, but -in vain. For whenever they saw us sheering off they used to shout out, - -"Go on, Lord Charles,"--or Lord William, or Lord Marcus, as the case -might be--"go on, I can't see but I can ride." - -My brother Bill and I got a real good start one day with the -Curraghmore hounds. We led the field till we came to the river -Clodagh. The hounds swam the river, and we followed them, with the -water over our horses' girths. In jumping out, Bill got on the hard -bank, but in the place where I went, the water had undermined it. I -was on a little horse called Eden, which was not 15 hands, but which -had won the jumping prize at the Horse Show in Dublin. He was "a great -lepped harse," as the Irish say. He did his best, but the bank gave -under him, and he came right back on me in the water. When I got up, -both my stirrup leathers had slipped, and I saw the irons showing at -the bottom of the river. I had to go down under water to recover them. -I got out and rode to a public-house, the landlord of which was a -tenant of my brother Waterford. - -"For the love of God, Lord Char-less, how did ye get that way at all at -all?" says he. - -I told him, and, - -"Can you give me a suit of clothes, as they will draw Ballydurn in the -afternoon, and I must be there?" said I. - -"Divil a suit have I got," says he. "But there, his {523} Riverence is -just afther changing his clothes within, and I'm sure he'll be glad and -proud if you esconced yourself in his clothes, and he big enough to -cover two of yez." - -I went upstairs, and there I found his Reverence's clericals on the -bed, and with that I stripped and put on his vest, shirt, trousers and -clerical coat. His great boots were elastic-sided, and I had to put -two copies of the _Cork Examiner_ newspaper in each to make them fit -me. He was a big man, over six feet high and weighing about twenty -stone; and his trousers were so long that when I turned them up -half-way to the knee, they still could go into the top of the boots, in -which I stowed them, tying string round the boots to keep the trousers -in. The trousers were so wide round the waist, that I had to button -the top button round on the opposite side brace button behind. The -coat was so long that it reached down half-way between my knees and -ankles. - -Thus ecclesiastically garbed, I rode to the cover, and waited under a -bank for nearly an hour, hoping to hear the hounds. My teeth were -chattering with cold, and all I had on of my own was my hat. At last I -heard the horn, and at once a fine old fox broke. I waited till he got -afield and then knocked a bawl out of myself that would terrify a -neighbourhood. Out came the hounds and me on top of them, with two -fields' start, as I was wrong side of the cover down wind concealed -under a big bank. Then came over twenty minutes as hard as legs could -lay on to ground, and all the field wondering who his Reverence could -be that was leading the field, and where in God's name did he come -from--all except Bill. He knew that I had fallen in the river, he knew -Eden, and he laughed so that he could hardly sit his horse. When the -field came up, fox to ground, they nearly fell off their horses with -laughing. One farmer said to me: - -"Begob, your Riverence, you will never be so near heaven again as on -the top of that terror of a high bank ye lepped!" - -{524} - -There was a lady, a very hard and jealous rider, who often hunted with -our hounds, and who was told one day that she must hold her own with -the Curraghmores, as some ladies from the neighbouring packs were out. - -"Show me a Tipperary or a Kilkenny woman till I lep on the shmall of -her back," quoth she. - -Every sportsman knows the delight of getting a good start and of -keeping it. I was riding with the Tipperaries, when Eden jumped a -tremendous big mearing (boundary); the others who faced it either fell -or refused; and thus we got three fields ahead of the rest of the -field, and ran the fox straight to ground in thirty-five minutes, Eden -keeping right on the tail of the hounds the whole way. Two or three -times I have got such a start and kept it, another occasion being in -Leicestershire, when I was riding a horse belonging to my sister-in-law. - -Once with the Meath I got a long start by seeing which way the wind -was; and cutting a corner, I observed a man with a green collar doing -the same, and we both kept our lead. A fortnight later, stag-hunting -upon Exmoor, I got well away, when I saw a man ahead of me on my left. -At the end of the run, I observed that he had a green collar, and found -it was the same man. A curious coincidence. - -Riding another of my Irish horses, Sea Queen, we were going down a -by-road, the hounds being on the right, when we came to an iron gate, -nearly 6 feet high. I was bending down to pull back the bolt, when the -mare suddenly jumped. She got her fore-part over, and it took me half -an hour to clear her. I was obliged to break the gudgeon of the gate. - -Hunting at home at Curraghmore, I used to tell my brothers, all of whom -were cavalry officers, that I would engage to pick a hundred seamen -from the Fleet, who had never been on a horse, and to make them in six -weeks as fine a troop of cavalry as any in the kingdom. Naturally they -did not believe me, and chaffed the life out of me. But when my -brother Lord William went to South Africa, {525} to the Zulu war of -1879, he commanded three troops of irregular cavalry, the men of which -had been recruited straight from the merchant service. His troop -sergeant-major had been a mate. When my brother returned, he -acknowledged that my boast was justified. The fact was that in the old -sailing days, the sailor was so agile, athletic and resourceful a -creature, so clever with his hands, and so accustomed to keeping his -balance in every situation, that he could speedily acquire the seat and -the skill which other men must as a rule learn in childhood or not at -all. Anyhow, the seamen could stick on. - -Many men never become easy on horseback. My experience in the hunting -field taught me that a man who is always fussily shouting, "Where the -devil are the hounds, sir?" and so forth, is always nervous. I have -sometimes answered, "Keep calm, sir, keep calm. It's not a general -action." - -For a short time I was acting-Master of the Buckhounds, in place of my -brother Waterford, when he was laid up with an accident in the hunting -field, from which, poor fellow, he never recovered. As he was -galloping through an open swinging gate, the gate closed on his horse -as the horse was level with it. The jerk injured the base of the spine. - -One day with the Buckhounds we were hunting a very twisting, slow stag, -when, observing a charming country-woman of mine, I asked her if she -had another horse out. As she said she had not, I advised her to go to -a certain spot, where the deer-cart held another stag, wait there for -me, and we would have a good run, and with luck we could get back to -the station and catch a train. Sure enough, we had a splendid run, -half an hour as hard as we could go; the stag ran into the lost -property office in Slough railway station, and a train bound for London -came in at the same moment: a prophecy fulfilled. - -I was one of the original number that first played polo at Lillie -Bridge, in the early days of polo in England. We played on little -13-hand ponies, with a bamboo root rounded {526} off as a ball. I do -not think that there are many of the original number now (1913) alive; -but among them is Lord Valentia, who very kindly sent me the following -account of the introduction of polo into England: - -"The first polo match ever played in Europe was between the 9th Lancers -and 10th Hussars at Hounslow, July, 1871, but the 10th had played polo -for years then. The first game ever played was at Aldershot, on Cove -Common, in 1870; where Colonel Liddell says in his _Memoirs of the 10th -Royal Hussars_: 'The game was introduced into England by the officers -of the 10th, from a description of the game as played by the Manipuri -tribe in India which appeared in _The Field_ newspaper. Lord Valentia, -Mr. Hartopp, and Mr. George Cheape of the 11th attached to the 10th, -were the originators.' I believe the Lillie Bridge Club was formed in -1872. I well remember a day at Lillie Bridge when I think you, Bill, -and Marcus were playing, and your mother was looking on. Bill Was -knocked out by a crack on the head, and carried into the dressing room, -where he lay unconscious for a short time. Your mother was in the room -with him, and heard Tom Fitzwilliam in the next room shouting out so -that everyone in both rooms could hear, 'Oh, it's only Bill knocked -out. No matter, you can't kill a Beresford!'" - -I had entered to ride my horse Nightwalker in the steeple-chase at -Totnes, which is the most difficult course in England, up hill and down -dale, and along a narrow path beside and across the river. Just before -the race, I was warned that a plan had been formed for the jockeys to -ride me out at a post on the river at the bottom of the hill. Had I -been ridden out, I could never have recovered the ground. I kept a -vigilant look-out accordingly. Riding along the tow-path, a jockey -began to hustle me. I told him to pull back, warning him that unless -he kept clear I would have him in the river. He returned no answer, -but continued to hustle me: whereupon I pulled my horse on to him, -cannoned into him, and over he went, horse and all, {527} into the -water. Falling on a rock, he broke his thigh. I won the race. Then I -went to look after the injured jockey. Nightwalker was one of the best -horses I ever owned. I sold him to Lord Zetland, who told me that "the -horse was one of the best he had ever had, and no price would buy him." - -In 1882, while I was in command of the _Condor_, a gymkhana was -arranged which had the unfortunate and wholly unforeseen result of -bringing me into serious disfavour with an agitated husband. We rode -upon side-saddles, dressed in ladies' attire: habits, chignons, and -tall hats complete. I had a capital pony, and had won the race, my -chignon and hat blowing off on the way, when up comes an indignant -gentleman, to accuse me of insulting his wife. I had, he said, dressed -up to imitate the lady, on purpose to bring ridicule upon her. - -Naturally, I assured him that he was mistaken, and that nothing would -have induced me to commit so discourteous an action. But my gentlemen -waxed hotter than before, and violently demanded an apology. He -declined to accept my assurance; his language was highly irritating; -and I became angry in my turn. - -"You don't appear to understand the situation," I told him. "How dare -you come to me and tell me that I looked like your wife? Either you -apologise to me at once for that most improper suggestion, or..." - -He saw reason. He apologised. The biter was bit. - -While I was commanding the _Condor_ in 1882, a famous Italian -long-distance runner came to Malta, and issued a challenge, of which -the conditions were that he would run on foot any mounted man over a -twenty-mile course, himself to go any pace he chose, but the horse to -trot, canter, or gallop, not to stop or to walk. I accepted the -challenge, and went into hard training. - -I trained on ponies, confiding the pony which I was to ride in the race -to a midshipman of light weight, and reduced my weight to 10 st. 8 lb. -The greater proportion of the {528} Maltese, whose dislike of the -English was still strong in those days, were in favour of the Italian. -They assembled in vast crowds on the Marsa upon the day of the race. -We ran and rode round and round the great open space--afterwards the -parade-ground--and although my adversary tried every trick of his -trade, such as suddenly stopping, or lying down, I succeeded in winning -the race. - -I had a famous horse called Sudden Death, which I bought from Lord -Norris; and the first time I drove him tandem in the lead was on -Portsmouth Hard, where he cut across the first cab on the cab rank, -whereupon all the cabs backed out on the top of one another with -kickings, cursings and squealings. I sold Sudden Death for £15, a case -of infamous sherry, and a life insurance ticket. - -The greatest devil of a horse I ever owned I called The Fiend. He -would carry me brilliantly for a day or two, and then, for no earthly -reason, he would turn it up in a run, kick, back, rear and bite at my -foot; and if he could not get me off, he would rub my leg against a -wall or rush at a gate. Once, after carrying me beautifully in two -runs on one day, he flew into one of his tantrums. We were crossing -the bridge over the Clodagh River at Curraghmore, and he actually -jumped upon the parapet of the bridge, balanced himself upon it for a -moment, and then (thank God!) jumped into the road again. - -We had a pad groom in the Curraghmore stables, Paddy Quin, called The -Whisperer, because he could control any dangerous horse by whispering -to him. I told Quin to sell The Fiend without bringing my name into -the transaction. He sold the horse accordingly; and when the business -was completed, he told me that he had represented to the purchaser that -The Fiend "belonged to a lone widdy living by the say-side." - -I believe that I am the only man who has ever ridden a pig down Park -Lane. As I was returning home from a dance in the calm of a summer -morning, accompanied by a friend, a herd of swine came by, and among -them a {529} huge animal trotted pre-eminent. I wagered £5 that I -would ride that great pig into Piccadilly; dashed into the herd, took a -flying leap upon the pig's back, and galloped all down Park Lane, -pursued with shouts by the swineherd. As I turned into Piccadilly, the -swineherd caught me a clout on the head, knocking me off my steed. But -not before I won my wager. - -I was once prettily sold by a sportsman named Doddy Johnson. We were -of a party at Maidenhead, and we laid £5 on the winner of a swimming -race across the Thames, both to swim in our frock coats and tall hats. - -My antagonist and I were to start from a line on the lawn at Skindle's, -and the first to get ashore on the opposite bank was to be the winner. -I raced down the lawn and plunged in. About half-way across the river, -I looked back, and there was Doddy standing on the bank. He had his -jest; presumably it was worth a fiver. - -One year, three out of four horses in my coach being hunters, I was -obliged to start with the leaders, for if I started in the proper way -with the wheelers, the off wheeler invariably jumped into her collar -and kicked. Being taken to task in the Park one day by a famous -four-in-hand driver, who told me I did not know how to start a team, I -said to him that as he was an authority on the subject, I should be -very grateful if he would be so good as to start my coach for me, and -thus to show me how it ought to be done; adding that if the coach were -damaged or the horses were injured, he must hold himself responsible. - -Gladly accepting these conditions, my friend mounted to the box and -settled himself with great nicety and pulled off the leaders. Then he -touched the off wheeler with his whip. The next moment she had kicked -in the boot, and the leaders started kicking, and both fell--a regular -tie-up. The mare capped her hocks and was laid up at a vet's for a -week. - -I was driving a coach up from Sandown Races along a crowded road, when -a most unfortunate accident suddenly exposed me to the fury of the -populace. Swinging the whip {530} out in order to catch it up -properly, the thong caught under a lady's chignon, and the whip was -nearly pulled out of my hand. Chignon and hat came away together and -remained dangling. The poor lady must have been sadly hurt. -Instantly, of course, I tried to pull up in order to apologise, when -the mob rushed to the very unjust conclusion that I had insulted the -lady on purpose; there was a deal of shouting, and stones began to fly; -the horses were hit and bolted, so that I never had the opportunity of -making my apology. The Duke of Portland, Lord Londonderry and Lord -Inniskillen were on the coach. We used each of us to horse one coach -in stages for the race meetings near London. - -Upon another occasion, when I was driving the Prince of Wales on my -coach to a meet of the Four-in-Hand Club at the Magazine, Hyde Park, a -man who was quite unknown to me shouted, - -"'Ullo, Chawley, 'ow are yer? I see you've got 'Wiles' up alongside -yer." - -"Some of your friends seem very familiar," said the Prince, who took -the remark with perfect good-humour. - -I once laid a wager that I would drive round Rotten row, an exercise -forbidden by the regulations. A party assembled to watch the event; -and while they were looking out for me, a man driving the Park -water-cart came by and turned the water on them. Then the company, -looking closer at the driver, perceived that I had won my bet. - -The first racehorse owned by the Prince of Wales was a horse named -Stonehenge, which I bought for him. We were partners in the horse. -Stonehenge had won one or two races, when I went away on leave for a -few days. On my return I found that my groom, against orders, had been -galloping him, and that one of his legs had filled. Having heard that -my uncle, Lord Waterford, once trained a horse which filled his leg, by -swimming him in the sea after a boat tried the experiment with -Stonehenge. The admiral's coxswain, two hands, and myself swam -Stonehenge every {531} day about Plymouth Harbour. The horse got fit -to run for his life, and I rode him in a hurdle race at Plymouth. He -was winning easily, but, alas! he broke down at the last hurdle, and -was just beaten. - -In 1883-4, the Duke of Portland and myself, as partners, bought Rosy -Morn, as a yearling. He won several races as a two-year-old, and we -fancied him for the Derby. He was a better colt as a two-year-old than -Lord Hastings' Melton, which won the Derby. Both horses were trained -in the same stable, at Matt Dawson's, Heath House, Newmarket. - -Matt Dawson declared that we had got a Derby horse. I was getting the -boats through the Bab-el-Kebir in the Egyptian war, when I heard that -Rosy Morn had gone a roarer; and I thought it a bad omen for the -expedition. - -Lord Marcus and I organised a donkey race to enliven a South Coast -race-meeting. We hired two donkeys apiece, and each bestrode two -steeds, standing on their backs, and rode them over the wooden groynes -that descend the beach at regular intervals. - -The curse of race-meetings is the crowd of dubious characters which -infests them. Lord Marcus, travelling by rail to Newmarket, defeated -three of such persons single-handed. - -A trio of three-card-trick men tried to bully him into venturing on the -game; whereupon he set about them. Two he knocked out, and the third -piped down. They left that carriage of carnage at the next station, -protesting amid blood and tears that it was occupied by the most -furious devil allowed on earth. He was maligned: there never was a -kinder-hearted man. - -Lord Marcus, who is singularly ready with his tongue, upon being asked -whether he thought False Tooth a good name for a horse, said: - -"The best, because you can't stop him." - -The same relative committed a worse crime at the Club, where a very -deaf member appealed to him to be told what another member was saying -to him. - -{532} - -"He's wishing you a Happy New 'Ear--and God knows you want one!" -shouted Markie. - -One of the most unexpected events in which I ever took part occurred at -Scarborough, where I was staying for the races with Mr. Robert Vyner. -In the same hotel were staying two well-known members of the racing -world, Mr. Dudley Milner and Mr. Johnny Shafto. Vyner and I happened -to enter the large and long room, used for assemblies; when we -perceived Dudley Milner and Johnny Shafto standing at the other end, -and observed that they were arguing together, somewhat heatedly, in -broad Yorkshire. They were disputing, as racing men do at such times, -about weights in an impending handicap. - -There was nothing at all in the great room, so far as I remember, -except a sideboard and a dish filled with pats of butter which stood on -the sideboard. I picked up a pat of butter on the end of the ash-plant -I was carrying, and told Vyner that if he would come outside, I would -throw the pat of butter to a surprising distance. - -"Why go outside?" said he. "Why not take a shot at those two fellows -who are arguing so busily over there?" - -"And so I will," said I. - -The pat of butter described a beautiful yellow parabola at high speed -and lighted upon the eye of one of the disputants. The impact doubled -him up, and he thought that the other man had hit him. Drawing his -right fist back very slowly and carefully, he struck his friend full on -the point of the nose. The next moment they were both rolling on the -floor, fighting like cats. My companion and I were laughing so much -that we couldn't separate them; and they finally had to go to bed for a -week to recover themselves of their wounds. - -Butter produces various effects, according to its application. I was -one of the guests among a large party at a luncheon, given by an old -gentleman who had a fancy for breeding pugs, which were then the -fashionable breed of dog. On the table opposite to me was a glass bowl -{533} containing a quantity of pats of butter; and as each of the many -pugs in the room came to me, I gave him a pat of butter on the end of a -fork. He gently snuggled it down. After about ten minutes first one -pug and then another began to be audibly unwell. The old gentleman was -so terrified at these alarming symptoms, that he incontinently -dispatched a carriage at speed to fetch the nearest vet That expert, -after a careful diagnosis, reported that "someone must have been -feeding the pugs on butter." - -My brother Marcus, travelling by rail with some friends, Mr. Dudley -Milner being of the party, Markie very kindly relieved the tedium of -the journey. Dudley Milner had fallen asleep. Marcus took the ticket -from Milner's pocket. He then woke up Milner, telling him that the -tickets were about to be collected. Milner, after feverishly searching -for his ticket, was forced to the conclusion that he had lost it, and, -finding that he had very little money, begged that someone would lend -him the requisite sum. One and all, with profuse apologies, declared -themselves to be almost penniless; and Milner was nearing despair, when -my brother sympathetically suggested that, as the train approached the -station Milner should hide under the seat, and all would be well. -Thereupon Milner, assisted by several pairs of feet, struggled under -the seat, and his friends screened him with their legs. - -The collector appeared, and Marcus gave him all the tickets. - -"Here's six tickets for five gentlemen," said the collector. - -"Quite correct," said Marcus. "The other gentleman is under the seat. -He prefers travelling like that." - -An old friend of mine, Lord Suffield, has recently published his -memoirs. He was an indomitable rider, with a beautiful seat, and one -of the hardest men to hounds in his day. I well remember riding home -with him across country after the hunt with His Majesty's Buckhounds, -when, taking a turn to the right, while I took a turn to the left, he -suddenly disappeared altogether from view. As {534} suddenly he -appeared again on his horse's neck. He speedily got back into the -saddle and went away as if nothing had happened, looking neither to the -right nor left. I turned to find out the cause of his disappearance, -and found that he had come across a deep V-shaped ditch, at the bottom -of which was a very high post and rails. How any man or horse could -have got over it, it is impossible to say. When I spoke to him about -his exploit in the evening, he treated it as a matter of course, and -only said it was "a rather nasty place." - -When we were in India together, in the suite of the Prince of Wales, he -always preferred riding to going on an elephant. He was a great -yachtsman in his day, and knew as much about handling yachts as any -seaman I have ever met. He was a very good shot, and one of the -greatest friends I have ever had. - - - - -{535} - -CHAPTER LIV - -SPORTING MEMORIES (_Continued_) - -II. SHOOTING - -There are few kinds of beasts which I have not shot; and among those -few are lions and giraffes. - -When I was at Vancouver as a midshipman, I went out after deer upon a -pouring wet day. I fired at a deer; the gun, a muzzle-loader, missed -fire; I set the stock on the ground in order to ram home the charge; -and the gun went off. The bullet cut the button off the top of my cap: -a narrow escape. - -I shall never forget the excitement of three of us midshipmen of the -_Clio_, when, being out after tree grouse in the bush, we put up a big -spotted deer. It was close to us, and we killed it; we cut it up, and -tramped the miles back to the ship, laden with the haunches, shoulders -and head. Arriving on board with our clothes soaked with blood, we -were hailed as splendid sportsmen, and for days thereafter the gun-room -feasted upon venison. - -When the _Clio_ was off Juan Fernandez in February, 1865, we sent a -party of seamen across to the island to beat up the wild goats towards -the shore. The cliffs are steep-to, and along the face of them winds a -narrow path worn by the goats themselves. The pathway itself is -inclined at a steep angle. I took the cutter and hung off and on, -waiting for the goats. Presently they came down, about thirty of them, -in single file, slipping a good deal, but recovering their footing with -marvellous agility. We fired {536} at the line and knocked over three. -They fell on the rocks below. There was so much seaway that we were -unable to get the boat in. I therefore took a line and swam to shore, -collected the goats, toggled their legs together, secured them with the -line, and they were pulled off to the boat. But when I tried to swim -off, the sea was so rough that the breakers beat me back. I was hurled -against the rocks; all the wind was knocked out of me, and I was much -bruised and cut. A bluejacket swam off with a line, and although he -did not toggle my legs, he and I were hauled off to the boats, like the -goats. We brought all three goats safely on board. One of them was a -billy-goat, the other two nanny-goats, in which there was no sign of -any bullet, so that they must have been carried down with the -billy-goat. - -While I was serving in the _Sutlej_ as sub-lieutenant, the chief -engineer, James Roffey, who was a splendid shot, and myself, went upon -hunting expeditions in Vancouver. We took two horses and a couple of -dogs. At night we slept on waterproof sheets under a lean-to shelter -made of branches. We shot many partridge--as these birds are called. -Having treed them, we shot the lower birds first, and so on to the top. -The report of the guns did not disturb them, but if a bird fell from -the upper branches, the rest would take flight. I have shot these -birds in the same way, during recent visits to Canada. - -During the visit of the Duke of Edinburgh to India in 1870, I -accompanied his Royal Highness upon the great elephant hunt in Ceylon. -For months beforehand the wild elephants had been gradually driven -towards the kraal by an army of native beaters. The kraal is -constructed of huge trunks of trees, lashed together and buttressed, -making a strong stockade. In plan, covering about eight acres, it is -shaped like a square bottle, the neck representing a narrow entrance, -from which the stockade on either side runs at a wide angle, like jaws. -The elephants are driven down the narrowing jaws and through the -entrance, which {537} is closed behind them with a gate made of logs. -Once inside the kraal, the wild animals are tackled by the tame -elephants ridden by mahouts, and are secured with hide ropes to the -trees of the stockade, which is formed of stout timber for the purpose. - -Upon the occasion of the Duke's visit, I was in the arena, mounted upon -a tame elephant amid a wild heaving mob of animals. One huge beast -defeated the tame elephants, throwing the whole lot into confusion. He -suddenly charged, knocking over the tame elephant next to me, the -mahout breaking his leg in the fall. Things were looking very ugly, -when someone--against orders--fired and killed the rebel elephant, the -bullet entering his temple. - -If the day of the great elephant hunt in India, arranged in honour of -the Prince of Wales, was the hardest run of my life, hanging on to the -back of a swift pad elephant which went through the jungle for fourteen -hours like a runaway locomotive, the hardest day I ever had on foot was -in Ceylon, during the visit of the Duke of Edinburgh to that superb -country, in 1870. I have found Irishmen in most places under the sun; -and I found one in Ceylon. His name was Varian, and he was a famous -hunter of elephants. Rogue elephants were his favourite game; he -stalked them on foot; walked up to his quarry and shot it. He was I -think, eventually killed by a rogue elephant. His gun, which had -belonged to Sir Samuel Baker, was a curiosity among hand-cannon. This -formidable engine was so heavy that it was as much as a powerful man -could do to heave it up to his shoulder. The recoil--but I will relate -what kind of recoil it exercised. The gun was a single-bore -muzzle-loader, having two grooves cut within the barrel, into which was -fitted a spherical belted bullet. - -We started at three o'clock in the morning, taking with us two native -bearers to carry the guns. The bearers were little men, fragile to all -appearance as pipe-stems, and save for a loin-cloth, naked as they were -born. For seven hours we travelled ere we found fresh spoor, following -the elephant {538} trails, paths which the huge animals had cloven -through the dense jungle. The heat was intense, the walking an -extraordinary exertion; for at every few yards the soft ground was -trodden by the elephants into pools of water three or four feet deep, -through which we must plunge. - -It was blazing noon when we struck fresh tracks; and Varian halted to -load the heavy rifle. I contemplated the operation with amazement. He -poured the powder into his hand, and tilted three or four handfuls down -the muzzle. Then he wrapped a piece of waste round the projectile, and -hammered the ramrod home with a hammer. It occurred to me that if ever -a gun ought to burst in this world, that gun ought to burst. - -We tracked the elephant out of the jungle; and there he was in the open -_maidan_, placidly pulling up great tufts of grass with his trunk, and -swishing himself with them. - -"We must bend down," says Varian in a whisper, "and he may take us for -pigs." - -He held me by the arm; and bending down, we advanced directly upon the -elephant, Varian's bearer loaded to the earth with the great gun. - -"If he puts his ears forward and drops his trunk--fire! For he'll -either charge or run away," whispered Varian. - -And with the graceful courtesy of his race, he handed me the miniature -cannon. - -We were within twelve yards or so of the huge beast when his ears -jutted forward, and with his trunk he flicked the ground, producing a -hollow sound. I braced a leg backwards, and with a strong effort, hove -the gun to my shoulder, aimed at the wrinkles just above the trunk, and -fired. The elephant and I toppled over at the same moment. I thought -my shoulder was broken to pieces; but as I staggered to my feet, I saw -the elephant lying over on its side, its legs feebly waving. Varian -ran up to it and fired several more shots into its head, and it lay -motionless. - -In 1874, I was appointed to the _Bellerophon_, temporarily. {539} She -had sunk a steamer which had crossed her bows, and her senior officers -had been ordered home to attend the inquiry into the matter. When I -joined her, my old mess-mate in the _Marlborough_, Swinton C. Holland -(now admiral), was in sole command; although he was only second -lieutenant of the ship; a curious illustration of the incidents of -naval life. - -Another example of the anomalies of those days was my own position: I -was on full pay and on active service, and I was also a member of -Parliament. The dual capacity was not in itself conducive to -discipline, because it gave naval officers on full pay the opportunity -of criticising, as members of Parliament, their superior officers. I -do not think it was abused; in my own case, I think the solitary -advantage I took was to obtain a pump, which was a sanitary necessity, -for the _Thunderer_, when I was her commander: a threat of publicity -moving the Admiralty to action which previous applications had failed -to produce. In the old days, the Sea Lords used to serve in the dual -capacity of members of the Board of Admiralty and of Parliament. - -As no one had any precise idea where the _Bellerophon_ was, I took -passage to Halifax and stayed in the receiving hulk _Pyramus_, -fifth-rate, stationed at Halifax, in the hope that the _Bellerophon_ -would come north. In the meantime, I went for a shooting expedition -with a trapper. We went up into the forests of Nova Scotia, camping -out, and living upon what we could secure with our guns. We shot bear -and deer and prairie chicken. In the depth of the forest I found an -Irishman dwelling in a clearing with his wife and family. He was a -bitter Orangeman, who (so he told me) had been expatriated for shooting -at a priest. - -"I had a gun," said he, "but it was a rotten gun. I drew a bead on the -priest, and, God forgive me, the gun missed fire!" - -I remember saying to him: - -"Why the devil can't you leave another man's religious convictions -alone? He has as much right to his convictions as you have to yours. -If there were no religious wrangles {540} in our country, it would be -the happiest country in the world." - -His nearest neighbour, dwelling 20 miles away, was a Roman Catholic; -and although my friend cursed him for a Papist, their relations with -each other were quite friendly. The Irishman told me how he had once -fought to save the life of his child from a bear. He was working in -the clearing; near by, his little girl was sitting on the trunk of a -felled tree; when a bear suddenly emerged from the forest, and made -towards her. The man had for his only weapon a huge handspike, as big -as a paviour's rammer. He showed me the thing; it was so heavy that I -could scarcely realise that he could have used it as he did use it. -But with this formidable club he fought the bear for an hour. Several -times he beat the animal to the earth; but the beast returned to the -attack; and the man thought his strength must surely fail him. At -last, both man and beast were so exhausted that they stood and looked -at each other with their tongues hanging out. Then, with a growl, the -bear turned tail and rolled back into the forest. The Irishman never -saw it again; and he cherished the belief that the brute died of its -wounds. - -Shooting black buck in the plains of Central India, with the Duke of -Portland's party, in 1883, I had been out in a bullock-cart for hours. -The method is to describe a wide circle round the black buck, and -slowly driving round and round, gradually to diminish the circle. The -sun was very hot; I was very tired of the business; and I determined to -risk a shot. As I emerged from the cart into the open, a herd of black -buck galloped past in the distance in single file, passing behind two -tufts of high grass. Sighting between the tufts, I fired right and -left, and heard the bullets strike. The _shikari_ would not believe -that I had hit anything at that range. But there were the bodies of -two black buck; the distance from where I had fired to one of them was -220 yards, and to the other, 240 yards. The heads are in my collection -of sporting trophies. - -{541} - -I had been twice round the world before I ever saw a really wild man. -At last I met one when I was shooting grouse on my own property in -Cavan. His voice was a squeaky, husky whisper, like the creaking of an -old wooden frigate in a gale of wind. If I hit a bird hard and it -passed on, the wild man would say: - -"Well, that fellow got a terrible rap anyway!" - -If I killed the bird, he would say, "Well well, he has the fatal -stroke, with the help of God!" - -And if I missed a bird, he would say, "Never moind, Lord Char-less! Ye -made him quit that, annyhow." - -The incident of the Glenquoich stag occurred many years ago, when I was -staying at Glenquoich with the Duke of Marlborough. We had had a hard -day, without sighting a warrantable stag, when the stalker spied, far -on the skyline of the opposite hill, the grandest head he had ever -seen. We stalked up to him until we came to the edge of a valley. -There was the noble head scarce fifty yards away. We could see the -stag's ears moving. But he did not rise. We lay on that hill-top for -an hour and a half; the midges were eating me in platoons; and still -the stag did not get up. I could stand it no longer; and I said to the -stalker: - -"Either you must get him up or I must shoot him through the heather." - -The stalker begged me not to shoot; he whistled; then turned upon me a -face of utter bewilderment, for the stag lay where he was, moving his -ears to keep off the midges. The stalker whistled again. Still the -stag lay quiet; and the man looked at me with a countenance of such -amazement that I can see it before me as I write. It must have struck -him that here was the supernatural; for never in his life had he seen a -live stag which would stay to hearken to his whistling. - -Then the stalker shouted; then he stood upright and shouted again; and -still the stag lay where he was; and the man stared at me in silence -with consternation in his eyes. {542} I delayed no longer. I shot the -stag through the heather, and he leaped up, and fell dead. - -We found that the poor beast had a hind fetlock cut nearly through by a -bullet. The wound must have been inflicted some considerable time -previously, for it had mortified and the haunch had withered. Thus -wounded, he must have strayed from another forest, for he was a German -stag, marked with slits on both his ears; and there were no such stags -in Glenquoich forest. - -The late Kiamil Pasha, Governor of Salonika, was an old friend of mine. -I first knew him when I was in command of the _Undaunted_, in which -ship he lunched with me several times. He was a grand specimen of a -fine old Turkish gentleman, one of the best among Turkish statesmen, -intensely interested in the welfare of his country. I often went out -snipe-shooting with the Turkish commander-in-chief round about -Salonika. On these occasions, the Pasha invariably wore full uniform; -and when we arrived at the shooting ground, we were always met by a -squadron of cavalry. I imagined that the guard was furnished as a -compliment to myself; and eventually I said to the Pasha that while it -was very good of him to pay me the courtesy of a guard, I should be -quite as happy if we went out shooting without it. - -He replied that the guard was not intended as a compliment, but was -ordered for my safety. - -"What is the danger?" - -"Brigands," said the Pasha. - -"But there are no brigands here now." - -"Are there not?" said the Pasha. "I killed fourteen yesterday." - -And afterwards he showed me where he had rounded them up. - -I have seen two whales killed. I saw a whale killed in the Pacific by -an old sailing whaler. She sent four boats out and they hunted the -whale, after it was harpooned, for eight hours before they killed it. -A boat rowed close to {543} the whale, the harpooner flung his harpoon, -the whale sounded, his tail swung up like a flail and struck the water -with a report like the report of a gun, and out flew the line from the -boat. The man who eventually killed the whale was armed with a long -flexible knife, which he plunged into the whale behind the fin. The -vast carcase was towed alongside the ship, than which it was longer; -men wearing spiked boots and using sharp spades went upon the whale; -and as they sliced into the blubber, making cuts across the carcase, -the piece called the "blanket piece" was hoisted inboard by means of a -tackle, the whale thus turning gradually over until its whole -circumference was stripped. - -Many years afterwards, I saw a whale killed off Norway by a modern -steam whaler. She steamed slowly after a school of whales, and fired a -gun whose projectile was a shell attached to a harpoon. The shell -burst inside the whale, killing it. The carcase was then towed -alongside the steamer by boats, the operation taking about an hour and -a half, and was then towed by the steamer to the whaleries. The -whaling master told me that 850 whales had been killed off Norway -during that year; and that among them was a whale with an American -harpoon in it; wherefore he supposed that the whale must have voyaged -round the Horn, or else north about beneath the ice. - - - - -{544} - -CHAPTER LV - -SPORTING MEMORIES (_Continued_) - -III. FISHING - -When, as a youngster, I was sea-fishing at Ascension, my boat made fast -to a buoy, I had used all my bait without getting a fish, when a booby -gull kindly came and sat on the buoy. I knocked him over with an oar, -used his remains for bait, and caught lots of fish. - -In nearly every ship in which I have served, I had a trammel, a trawl -and a trot. As a midshipman, I used them myself; when I became a -senior officer, I lent them to the midshipmen. - -Upon visiting the island of Juan Fernandez, while I was a midshipman in -the _Clio_, we found three men living in the home of Robinson Crusoe. -They subsisted chiefly upon crayfish. We used to fish for these -Crustacea, using for bait a piece of a Marine's scarlet tunic. The -fish used to take the crayfish while we were hauling them up. In a few -hours we caught enough to feed the whole ship's company. - -Off the Horn, and in the South Pacific, I have killed many albatross in -calm weather, or when the ship was proceeding very slowly under sail. -I made a hook out of several hooks like a paternoster. If the bird -touched the bait, he was always caught. The upper mandible of the -albatross has a curve like the beak of a parrot, and that curve is all -there is to hold the hook. When the bird is being hauled on board, the -lower mandible catches the water and drives him underneath. When he -comes on board he is {545} full of water, and is immediately very sick. -Both the first and second pinion bones make beautiful pipe stems about -fourteen inches long. I brought many home for my friends. The feet, -dried, cleaned and manufactured into bags, make excellent tobacco -pouches. - -Many a shark have I caught in the old days. I have had two sharks on -my hook at once. One had taken the hook, which, barb and all, had -pierced right through his jaw; and another shark went for it and got -the end of the hook into his mouth. They were both on the hook for -some little time, and eventually I killed the first one hooked. I made -a walking-stick out of his backbone. - -The biggest shark I ever killed measured 12 feet 2 inches long. - -I bought my shark hook from a man in an American whaling; schooner at -the Sandwich Islands. I filed a little notch on the shaft of my hook -whenever I killed a shark. To my great annoyance, someone stole my -hook in after years. - -I was once towing a cod-line astern for dolphin, when a shark took the -bait. I took the line round a cleat and played him, or he would have -carried it away; got him close enough to get a bowline over his tail, -and hauled him on board. This method is generally used for getting a -shark on board. Until his tail is cut off with an axe, a shark plays -ballyhooly with all around him. A shark's heart is so muscular, and -expands and contracts so violently after death that it is impossible to -hold it in the hand. Sharks are bad eating, but in those salt-horse -days we relished them. - -My record in salmon fishing was made in Norway, when together with Lord -Wolseley, Mr. Bayard, and Mr. Abram Hewett, I was a guest on board the -yacht of my friend, Mr. Fred Wynn. In one night's fly-fishing, I -killed forty-one fish. I gave eight of them to the fishermen who -worked the canoe for me, and brought thirty-three back to the yacht. - -Tarpon fishing is the acme of sea-fishing. Whereas a {546} salmon is -killed by a rod and delicate handling, a tarpon is killed by the line -and herculean strength. The rod used is short and thick. The line is -made of cotton, thinner and lighter than a salmon line, but -extraordinarily strong. It is from 300 to 400 yards long, with four -brakes, two on the reel, and two of thick leather placed on the thumbs. -When the tarpon is struck, he invariably jumps into the air from six to -ten feet, and shakes his head to shake the hook out, an effort in which -he often succeeds. He has no teeth, but the upper part of his mouth is -as hard as a cow's hoof, and it takes a tremendous strike to get a hook -into it past the barb. The biggest tarpon I killed was 186 lb. I -think Lord Desborough holds the record with a tarpon of 240 lb., 7 feet -6 inches long, 42 inches girth. Lord Desborough killed 100 tarpon in -ten days. - -Some years ago, I was most kindly invited by my old friend, Colonel -Robert M. Thompson, to stay with him in his houseboat _Everglades_ on -the coast of Florida. The houseboat was driven by a motor and drew one -foot of water. When it came on to blow, Colonel Thompson used to run -her up on the beach. - -But upon one occasion, we went upon an adventurous voyage, right out -into the Atlantic, making a point from Florida to the north; the wind -freshened; and the houseboat had all the weather she cared for. -Colonel Thompson tells me that while securing loose gear and generally -battening down, I remarked that probably no British admiral had ever -before found himself in a houseboat drawing one foot of water 50 miles -out on the Atlantic in a seaway. - -I never had such wonderful sport as I had with Colonel Thompson in the -_Everglades_. We killed tons of fish all with the rod. One night, -with a small tarpon rod I killed seven sergeant fish, average 28 lb. -This fish takes two long runs, and then turns up on his back, dead. -Upon another night I had on an enormous tarpon; the boatman declared it -to be the biggest he had ever seen (it always is when one fails to land -it). I had just got into the shore after over an {547} hour's work at -the tarpon, when it went off again slowly, with the appearance of a -fish, but the methods of a steam roller. - -The boatman said: - -"Try to check it from going into that current; it is full of sharks." - -But the tarpon steadily proceeded. On getting into the current, it -suddenly took a run and jumped into the air. When it was half out of -the water, a shark's head appeared and bit it in two. I hauled only -the head and shoulders home. The shark was so large that we tried to -catch him next day, and hooked either him or another. He was so heavy -that we could make nothing of him. He took us where he liked, but -never left the current. So we bent a line on to the one by which we -held him, took it to the capstan of a yacht lying near by, hove him up -to the side, and shot him with a rifle. He was then triced up by the -tail by a tackle from the mast. He was a hammer-headed shark over 18 -feet long. - -He disgorged soap, bottles, sardine-tins, Armour meat-tins, a number of -large crab shells, some small turtle shells, pieces of fish, and the -midship section of a large tarpon, which was supposed to have been the -piece bitten out of my failure of the previous night. - - - - -{548} - -CHAPTER LVI - -HOME WATERS: THE LAST COMMAND - -Before taking over the command of the Channel Fleet, to which I was -appointed on 4th March, 1907, on my return from the Mediterranean, I -proceeded on leave, family affairs calling me to Mexico. - -My younger brother, Lord Delaval, had been killed in a railway accident -in the United States, on 26th December of the preceding year (1906), -while I was in the Mediterranean. He left a large property in Mexico, -whither I went to settle his affairs as his executor. - -Lord Delaval had gone to Mexico as a young man, intending to make his -fortune, and so to fulfil the terms imposed by the parents of the lady -to whom he was attached, as the condition upon which they would grant -their sanction to his marriage with their daughter. At the time of his -death, having bought out his partner, he possessed two magnificent -ranches in Mexico: Ojitos Ranch, 120,000 acres, and Upper Chug Ranch, -76,000 acres; and a third ranch at Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada. I -stayed for some time at Ojitos Ranch; where I found that my brother was -known as a dare-devil rider and an excellent rancher; managing his -ranches himself, and taking his part in rounding up his stock and -branding his cattle. - -Upon Ojitos there were about 6000 head of cattle and 1500 head of -horses, donkeys and mules. Ojitos means "little springs"; the house -stood beside the springs; and brother, who was something of an -engineer, had constructed three large reservoirs and nine miles of -irrigation {549} canals, intersecting the whole estate. These little -canals, fed by the reservoirs, were two feet broad and three inches -deep, so that they could be kept clear with the plough. As the water -was perpetually running along them, the stock could drink anywhere, an -invaluable advantage in the calving season. Upon some ranches, where -the water is scarce, cows and calves often perish for lack of ready -access to it. The vast grassy plain is surrounded by mountains, and -the estate itself is enclosed in a ring fence of barbed wire, 110 miles -in circumference. My brother's staff consisted of five Mexican cowboys -and three negroes. He left the two Mexican ranches to my brother -Marcus and myself. - -I got rid of all off-colour stock; put on a lot of new Durham bulls; -poisoned the prairie dogs which ate the grass, leaving the ground bare -as a high road; effected various other improvements, and organised the -whole upon a business plan, down to the last detail. The drought of -1909 killed off many of the stock, for although the water supply was -maintained, the grass perished. Nevertheless, the Ojitos Ranch paid -its way, and in 1912 it was sold for a good price. The other ranch, -Upper Chug, is still unsold at the time of writing (1913), owing to the -breaking out of the rebellion, the supersession of President Diaz, and -the consequent unsettled state of the country. - -It was not remarkable for peace during my sojourn at Ojitos. El Paso, -the frontier town, was full of what are called "the Bad Men of the -United States," who were wanted by the police; and who, if they were in -danger of capture, slipped over the border. The revolver is commonly -used in disputes, particularly at Casas Grandes, a Mexican town about -120 miles from El Paso. During my brief visit to that place, three men -were shot: one in a gambling hell, one in a Chinese restaurant, and one -in a lodging-house; their assailants escaping with impunity. - -Riding on the ranch, I saw a man about two miles away galloping for -dear life. The cowboy who was with me explained that the rider "had -holed a man somewhere and {550} was off up country." The fugitive -headed away from us, and coming to the wire fence, he nipped the wire, -and so rode away to the hills. - -The retainers of Ojitos Ranch, with whom I sat down to dinner every -day, were each armed with a revolver, sometimes two revolvers, and a -knife. I was the only unarmed man present. - -I had already made the acquaintance of President Diaz some time -previously, when I had been tarpon-fishing at Tampico. On that -occasion I was accompanied by my friend, Mr. Benjamin Guinness, who had -been sub-lieutenant in the _Undaunted_ when I commanded that ship. His -brother had been midshipman in the _Undaunted_ at the same time. The -two brothers left the Service to engage in business, and both have been -highly successful. - -Upon my departure from Ojitos, I went to see President Diaz. He was -most kind and helpful; both he and other prominent Mexicans informed me -that they desired to increase the number of British properties in -Mexico; and the President expressed the hope that I would retain -possession of the ranches. At the same time, he gave me all the -assistance in his power with regard to the settlement of the affairs of -the estates; nor could they have been settled satisfactorily without -his help. - -President Diaz impressed me as a quiet, strong and determined ruler, -who knew exactly how to govern Mexico, and did it. Under his rule, -revolutions were summarily checked, and Mexico flourished as never -before. - -Upon my return to England, I took over the command of the Channel -Fleet, hoisting my flag in the _King Edward VII_, at Portland, on 16th -April, 1907. The second in command was Vice-Admiral Sir Reginald -Custance (now Admiral Sir R. N. Custance, G.C.B., K.C.M.G., C.V.O.), a -most distinguished strategist and tactician, one of the most learned -officers in his profession. I have never been able to understand why -Sir Reginald Custance, instead of being placed {551} upon half-pay -until his retirement, was not appointed a Lord Commissioner of the -Admiralty. - -[Illustration: H.M.S. "KING EDWARD VII" ENGAGED IN BATTLE PRACTICE, -1907] - -The members of the Staff were: chief of staff, Captain Frederick C. D. -Sturdee, succeeded by Captain Montague E. Browning; flag-commander, -Fawcet Wray; intelligence officer at the Admiralty, Commander Godfrey -Tuke, succeeded by Captain Arthur R. Hulbert; signal officer, -Lieutenant Charles D. Roper; flag-lieutenant, Herbert T. G. Gibbs; -engineer-captain, Edwin Little: secretary, Fleet Paymaster John A. -Keys; flag-captain, Henry B. Pelly, M.V.O.; commander, G. H. Baird. -The navigating officer, Commander E. L. Booty, who had been with me in -the _Majestic_, was the best navigator I have known. - -Of the two successive chiefs of staff, Captain (now Vice-Admiral) -Sturdee, and Captain (now Rear-Admiral) Browning, to whom I owe so -much, I desire to express my appreciation. Their powers of -organisation and their knowledge of what is required for organisation -for war are of a very high degree. Among other officers, all of whom -did service so excellent, I may mention Lieutenant (now Commander) -Roper, who was one of the best signal officers in the service; -Lieutenant Gibbs, a most charming and loyal companion, who met his -death by falling overboard in the Portland race, and the loss of whose -affectionate friendship I still mourn; and Fleet-Paymaster Keys, who -was with me for more than six years, and to whose brilliant services I -owe so much. - -The composition of the Channel Fleet, in April, 1907, was 14 -battleships (eight _King Edward VII_, two _Swiftsure_, two _Ocean_, two -_Majestic_), four armoured cruisers, two second-class cruisers, and one -third-class cruiser attached. - -During this period, an extraordinary confusion prevailed at the -Admiralty. Its character may be briefly indicated by a summary of the -various changes in the organisation and distribution of the Fleet, -beginning in the previous year (1906). - -In October, the sea-going Fleets were reduced in strength {552} by -about one-quarter, and a new Home Fleet was formed of nucleus crew -ships. The Channel Fleet was reduced from sixty-two fighting vessels -to twenty-one fighting vessels, the balance being transferred to the -Home Fleet. An order was issued under which ships taken from the -Channel, Atlantic and Mediterranean Fleets for purposes of refitting, -were to be replaced during their absence by ships from the Home Fleet. - -In December, the Nore Division of the Home Fleet was given full crews -instead of nucleus crews. - -In April, 1907, an order was issued that no more than two battleships -in each Fleet were to be refitted at one time. - -In September, the Channel Fleet was increased from twenty-one vessels -to sixty vessels. - -In August, 1908, the orders substituting Home Fleet ships for ships -from sea-going fleets under repair, and ordaining that no more than two -battleships should be absent at one time, were cancelled; with the -result that the Channel Fleet went to sea in the following December -short of eight battleships, two armoured cruisers, one unarmoured -cruiser, one scout, and 20 destroyers, 32 vessels in all. - -When the Home Fleet was finally constituted, in March, 1907, there were -no less than three commanders-in-chief in Home Waters; one commanding -the Home Fleet, one the Nore Division, and one (myself) the Channel -Fleet. In time of war the supreme command was to be exercised by me, -over the whole number of fighting vessels, 244 in all. But in time of -peace they could not be trained or exercised together, nor had any one -of the commanders-in-chief accurate information at any given moment of -the state or disposition of the forces of any other commander-in-chief. - -Such, briefly presented, was the situation with which I was confronted -in this my last command. It was fraught with difficulties so complex, -and potential dangers to the security of the country so palpable, that -many of my friends urged me to resign my command in the public -interest. I decided, however, that I should best serve His Majesty the -King, the Navy and the country by remaining at my post. - -{553} - -In the summer of 1907, the Channel Fleet proceeded upon a United -Kingdom cruise, touching at various places round the coasts of these -islands. When the Fleet was at sea, individual ships were sent away -upon short cruises, in order to give the captains opportunities of -exercising independent command. When the Fleet was at anchor, the -ships were open to the public from half-past one to half-past six -daily, in order to increase their knowledge and encourage their -interest in the Royal Navy. - -It was during one of these cruises that the Irishmen in the Fleet -displayed one of their national characteristics. - -The anniversary of Saint Patrick's Day was drawing near when the Fleet -lay in Bantry Bay. On Saint Patrick's Day itself the Fleet was to -proceed to sea. Hitherto, as a rule, if the Irishmen in the Fleet -happened to be on leave on Saint Patrick's Day, many of them broke -their leave. When I made a signal, giving the Irishmen four days' -leave, and ordering them to return on board on Saint Patrick's Day, I -added that the commander-in-chief, himself an Irishman, expected every -Irishman to be back to his leave. There were 766 Irish liberty-men -went on shore for four days; and 766 were on board again ere the Fleet -sailed on the night of Saint Patrick's Day. It might be that the Saint -could mention the thing in conversation with Saint Peter at the Gate, -for future reference. For there were some 2000 Irishmen in the Fleet, -who, when the Fleet lay at Portland, could not, like the Englishmen, -visit their homes once a month. And when it is considered how -hospitable and convivial they become on the anniversary of their patron -Saint, I shall be understood when I say that the behaviour on this -occasion of the Irishmen in the Fleet affords a remarkable instance of -the Irish sense of honour. There are no other people so easily -handled, if the right way be taken with them. - -The Fleet assembled at Spithead in November, 1907, to receive his -Majesty the Emperor of Germany; and in the following May, the Fleet -assembled at Dover to receive President Fallières. - -{554} - -In the summer of 1908, the Fleet proceeded upon a cruise in Norwegian -waters. Their Majesties the King and Queen of Norway, with the little -Crown Prince Olaf, honoured the flagship with a visit when the Fleet -lay at Esbjerg. At Skagen, on the evening of 7th July, when the Fleet -was lying at anchor, the _Hohenzollern_, flying the flag of his Majesty -the Emperor of Germany, was suddenly sighted, together with the -escorting cruiser _Stettin_ and the destroyer _Sleipner_. By the time -his Imperial Majesty had reached the lines, the ships were manned and -dressed over all. A salute of twenty-one guns was fired; and the -_Hohenzollern_ was cheered as she steamed down the lines. - -During my absence in Norwegian waters, I was the subject of a violent -attack in the Press and elsewhere, due to a misapprehension. I recall -the circumstance, because I am proud to remember that it was an -Irishman, and he a political opponent, who, alone among all the members -of the House of Commons, stood up and protested against an attack being -made upon a brother Irishman when he was absent and unable to reply. - -Their Majesties King Edward and Queen Alexandra visited the Channel -Fleet on 7th August, 1908, in the _Victoria and Albert_, accompanied by -the Prince of Wales in the _Alexandra_. His Majesty honoured the _King -Edward VII_ and the _Hibernia_, second flag, with a visit. The -flag-officers of the Fleet had the honour of lunching with their -Majesties on board the _Victoria and Albert_. - -Upon one of the Fleet cruises in the north, the flagship was passing -under the Forth Bridge, when a spar caught on a girder of the bridge -and carried away. Ere it could fall, Flag-Lieutenant Gibbs, with his -customary presence of mind and pluck, threw me upon the deck, and -himself on the top of me, to save me from the falling spar. Luckily, -it touched neither of us. - -There being no provision against mines dropped in time of war, it was -suggested by me that the North Sea trawlers should be enlisted to sweep -for mines; because they were {555} accustomed to the difficult work of -towing and handling a trawl. The proposal was afterwards adopted. - -In March, 1909, the Admiralty, in addition to other changes, having -suddenly reduced the length of ships' commissions from three years to -two years, I was ordered to haul down my flag and come on shore. - -Accordingly, my flag was hauled down at Portsmouth on Wednesday, 24th -March, 1909, after fifty years' service. - - -I cannot close this chronicle without expressing my profound -appreciation of the loyalty and affection shown to me by my brother -officers and by the men of the Royal Navy. Few events in my life have -touched me more deeply than the presence of so many of my old shipmates -among the crowds which assembled upon Portsmouth Hard when I came on -shore after hauling down my flag, and which filled Waterloo Station and -its approaches when I arrived in London. Nor can I omit to record my -sense of the kind and generous reception given to me by my brother -officers, who attended, in numbers that constituted a record, the -dinner, over which I presided, given by the Royal Navy Club of 1765 and -1785, on the anniversary of the battle of Trafalgar next ensuing after -my coming on shore. - - -It was a satisfaction to me when I came on shore, and it is a -satisfaction to me now, to think that I pulled my pound in the Navy. - -Doubtless, like other men of action, I have made mistakes. But I may -justly claim that I have always held one purpose with a single mind: to -do my best for the good of the Service and for the welfare of the -officers and men of the Royal Navy; and in following that purpose, I -have tried to disregard consequences which might affect my own -fortunes, and which, in fact, have often proved injurious to them. And -to the purpose which I have followed since I was a boy, I shall devote -the rest of my life. - - - - -{556} - -POSTSCRIPT - -THE MAKING OF AN ADMIRAL - -One of our greatest naval administrators, the late Admiral of the Fleet -Sir Frederick Richards, was constantly preoccupied with a problem, of -which he used often to speak. "How are we to make great admirals?" he -would say. It is a question of the highest moment. A great admiral -may be born, but he must also be made. The making of an admiral has -been the study of the best minds in the Navy for generations. And for -this reason: _In time of war, all must depend on one man, and that man -the admiral in command_. Upon his knowledge, ability and resolution -will rest the fate of the country and of the Empire. That simple fact -is not generally realised by the public. They do not understand that -in time of war the statesman, the diplomatist, the politician must all -give place to one man, the admiral in command at sea. - -Every decade of naval officers has added something to the knowledge of -what must go to the making of a great sea-officer. The establishment -of the War College, the institution of the War Staff at the Admiralty, -the private studies of individual naval officers, the practice of -holding manoeuvres: all these things are valuable endeavours toward the -same end. It remains, however (I believe), the fact that there exists -no treatise on the ordinary administrative duties to be fulfilled by an -admiral. - -During many years I had the habit of making notes concerning all -matters connected with the administration of a Fleet. These notes I -hope to arrange and to publish. In {557} the meantime, I have ventured -to think that the contribution of some observations dealing with the -administrative duties of an admiral in command, embodying the results -of many years' experience at sea, might be of use. - - -There is no position in the world requiring more tact than that of a -commander-in-chief of a large Fleet. It is only by the exercise of -consummate tact that a Fleet can be maintained in the most rigid state -of discipline and, at the same time, cheery, happy and smart. -Therefore it is that a knowledge of human nature is essential to the -admiral. - -Two admirals may do the same thing or may give the same order; one is -perfectly successful, the other is not. One knows HOW to give an -order, the other does not. - -Success depends not only on _what_ is done, but on _the way in which_ -it is done. Cheerful obedience to an order depends, not on the order -but, on the way the order is given. In handling men, much depends on -what is said, but much more depends upon the way in which it is said. - -The art of successful administration of men consists in the prevention -of accident, misdemeanour, or regrettable incidents. It does not -consist in putting things right _after_ the unpleasant event has -occurred. Nearly all slackness and untoward incidents are preventable -by the exercise of forethought, common sense and good organisation. -Most of the matters that go wrong, causing irritation and fault-finding -on the part of the admiral, are often due to the failure to look ahead -of the admiral himself. - -When a Fleet proceeds to sea, the cruisers are often to be observed -sobbing and sighing at full speed, trying to get into the position -ordered, after the Fleet has left the harbour, when, by the use of a -little judgment, they might have been sent out previously, and so have -got on the correct line of bearing at slow speed, without any trouble. - -The usual method in life is to let a mistake occur, and then to put it -right afterwards. It is upon this point that the world forms most -unfair opinions. The man who _keeps_ {558} things right seldom gets -any credit. It is the man who puts things right who gets it. The -history of war affords many examples of this tendency. - -A commander-in-chief who, by his organisation and by his appreciation -of facts and positions, wins an action with small loss, often gets -little credit. On the other hand, an officer who makes some blunder by -which he loses a number of officers and men, but who eventually wins -his action, is made a popular hero. In other words, the man with the -blind pluck of a bulldog gets more credit than the man who, by his -strategy and tactical ability, wins a more or less bloodless victory. - -An admiral should remember that in peace or war he can satisfactorily -administer his Fleet only through the loyalty and zeal of his captains. -Frequent personal interviews promote confidence; and such confidence -must be of benefit to the admiral. He need not take his captains' -views, but he will gain a great deal of useful information from -officers who are just as keen to make the Fleet as perfect as possible -as he is himself. - -Admirals should not publicly identify themselves with their own -flagships in the same way as a captain may identify himself with his -ship. To the admiral ALL ships should be the same, and private ships -should feel that the admiral takes quite as much interest in their -well-being and their whole life as he does in his own flagship. The -admiral should therefore avoid, even in private conversation, speaking -of "my commander," "our launch," etc. etc. A flagship, her officers -and men, have many advantages. In return for these privileges, a -flagship should make every effort to be a pattern of smartness and -efficiency; and the admiral must be constantly on the alert lest he -show partiality or favour to his flagship. Nothing makes more jealousy -in a Fleet than a belief that the flagship is favoured at the expense -of the rest of the Fleet, either in routine duty or in any other -respect. - -Flagships must have many privileges, but they should not be increased. -For instance, her boats should take precedence {559} in drawing beef or -stores; but in all matters connected with competitive drills, carrying -out station orders, etc. etc., all ships must be equal in the -admiral's eye and mind. - -An admiral should continually go on board the ships of the Fleet, talk -to the captains, and obtain their ideas and recommendations on various -subjects. - -The best plan is to notify a ship a day or two beforehand that the -commander-in-chief is coming on board on Sunday at the time most -convenient to the captain; and to follow the captain's usual routine -for Sunday inspection. This method gives the captain an opportunity of -bringing to the admiral's notice any officer or man who has in any way -distinguished himself. It strengthens the captain's hands, and has a -good effect upon the Fleet. It lets the men see their admiral; while -the admiral can remark the state of the ship and run all his Fleet up -to the smartest ship. - -It is wiser to administer a Fleet by _commendation_ than by -_condemnation_. If commendation is given for good and smart actions, -condemnation for bad, slackness becomes far more severely condemned, -and no sympathy for it is aroused. - -Any smart action performed by an officer or man should be appreciated -publicly by signal. This is complimentary to the officer or man and to -the ship in which he is serving at the time. Every one is grateful for -appreciation. - -The old style in the Navy was never to commend anything that was well -done; to do well was considered to be no more than a man's duty. On -the other hand, anything that was badly done led to severe reprimands. - -When a good officer or man knows that the admiral appreciates his work, -it cheers the Fleet and raises its whole tone. It is right to be -severe on those who do their work lazily or badly; but it is quite as -necessary to appreciate those who do their work well. - -An admiral should continually inspect some of the various departments -of the ships under his command. By personal observation he is certain -to find out something {560} which would not come to his notice in any -other way, and he may therefore prevent things from going wrong in -their initial stages. - -The admiral should invariably inspect anything that may have gone wrong -in any of the ships under his command, owing to accident, carelessness, -or misadventure: such as a derrick, cable, or capstan carrying away, or -any defect in the engine or boiler rooms. He should then talk over the -method of repair with the captain and the departmental officers. This -procedure often saves time and trouble, as the admiral gives directions -for the accident to be repaired in the way he desires from the first, -thereby obviating the necessity of altering the plans afterwards. It -also encourages those who are going to execute the work. - -The admiral should let the captains know that they can come on board -the flagship and consult him at any time they like, day or night, and -that he will always be glad to see them. - -Captains should always come to see, or write to, the admiral on any -matter which they wish to be settled, no matter how trivial it may -appear. They should not go to the secretary; for, if they do, it puts -the secretary in a false position, and may cause mistakes and wrong -conceptions. - -Captains may go to the chief of the staff upon minor questions; but it -is, as a rule, better for them to go straight to the admiral. - -The consideration of captains, expressed by the words, "I don't think I -will bother the admiral about this question," is understood, but should -be regarded as mistaken. _It is the admiral's business to be bothered_. - -The admiral should be considerate and courteous to all those under his -command, remembering that there are two sides to every question. - -When the admiral personally inquires into any case, with the object of -fixing responsibility upon an individual, he should be suave in his -manner, even if condemnation is {561} given. He should endeavour to -send a man away wearing a smile rather than a scowl. - -The admiral should remember this maxim particularly when he feels -irritated at seeing something done which appears careless, or opposed -to the orders laid down. He should always maintain an unruffled -demeanour, and be perfectly calm and collected under all circumstances. -To fail in this respect is to confuse both himself and those under his -command: a condition which cannot add to that smartness and coolness so -necessary when a difficulty or an accident occurs in the Fleet. - -The management of a ship or a Fleet is full of irritation and worries. -These can only be decreased by officers remaining calm and collected. - -All men are liable to make mistakes. The best men often make the most -glaring mistakes. A smart man acting under a mistake will move his -ship to starboard or to port quicker than a slow man, and his mistake -will therefore appear the greater. - -An admiral should never make a signal to one of the captains (unless he -happens to have a very bad and slack captain), implying that the -captain could have done much better than he did. Captains, as a rule, -wish to obey loyally and thoroughly. Mistakes are not intentional. - -If a signal is executed in a manner contrary to the intention of the -admiral, either it is an ambiguous signal, or it has been -misunderstood. Unforeseen contingencies of this kind are certain to -happen in war. Practices in peace illustrate what such contingencies -may be, and develop the necessary measures to prevent them. - -A very common method of pointing out mistakes is to signal what was -_ordered_ and what should have _happened_, omitting to state what was -actually _done_. But _all_ these points should be inserted in the -signal. - -Officers or men should never be allowed to state what _might_, _could_, -or _should_ have been done. The point at issue is what WAS or what IS. -Much valuable time is lost in {562} explaining the circumstances on the -theory of what might, could, or should have been done. - -Before finding fault by signal, the admiral should ask the captain in -question how a mistake occurred. By so doing it can be seen whether it -is necessary to find fault or not. If the explanation is satisfactory -the captain should be so informed. - -Much unnecessary irritation and bad feeling caused by sudden and -drastic signals may thus be avoided. - -The admiral will often find that the mistake was a natural mistake, -which he himself might have made had he been in the captain's place. -When captains know that the admiral is scrupulously fair, they become -devoted to him. - -An admiral should always be most careful that he is right himself -before finding fault with those under him. If he should afterwards -find that his contention was wrong, or that there was a -misunderstanding, the admiral should invariably acknowledge his -mistake. This action commands respect and is only chivalrous and -seamanlike. - -When an admiral has satisfied himself that anything, no matter how -small, is not carried out according to orders, he should call attention -to it by signal (as a rule, by a general signal), and by thus pointing -out the mistake to the Fleet, he prevents the same error from occurring -again. - -In such matters as clothes not properly stopped on, boats and booms not -square, etc., an admiral should inquire who is responsible. If men are -not standing to attention when the colours are hoisted, he should ask -for the name of the officer of the watch. If a boat is improperly -handled under sail or oars, he should ask for the name of the officer -or coxswain of the boat. - -The admiral's staff should always inform him of such matters as boats -pulling badly, or not being run up to the davit head, men not standing -properly to attention, or not doubling to obey all orders of the pipe, -etc. The effect of a signal calling attention to these matters is lost -if it is made some time after the event. - -{563} - -There should always be an officer responsible for every duty on board a -man-of-war, and the admiral should always make on these occasions the -signal, "Indicate name of officer responsible." - -The admiral should always make sure, when finding fault with a ship, -that his flagship is absolutely correct as regards the particular -detail in question. If this is not the case he should call his -flagship's attention to it at the same time. - -Admirals and captains are often heard saying, "Look at the way they are -doing so and so," referring to boat pulling or to the way a rope is -handled, or a boat hoisted, quite forgetting that it is the fault of -the admiral or captain that the duties are done badly or are not -carried out according to their satisfaction. The admiral is -responsible for the whole administration, smartness and efficiency of -his Fleet; the captains are responsible for the whole administration, -smartness and efficiency of their ships. In the Royal Navy, officers -and men are loyal to the core, and everything that is done badly is due -to the senior officer of the Fleet or of the ship not giving his orders -clearly, and not showing beforehand what he wants done, and how it is -to be done. - -The admiral should never give an order relative to routine or -administration without seeing that it is obeyed. Many orders given in -a memorandum or circular are forgotten after the first few weeks or -months, and so they lapse. - -An officer should be told off to summarise and report that such orders -have been carried out during the preceding week. - -It is of no use for the admiral to give orders and directions unless he -sees that they are actually carried out in the manner he intended. - -If the admiral is not careful that all orders of his own and of the -Admiralty are punctually obeyed, he will find that some captains -accurately carry out the order and some do not. This irregularity -causes discontent in some ships {564} and slackness in others, -disturbing that harmony which should prevail in a fleet. A -"happy-go-lucky" method breeds irritation. - -If papers are ordered to be sent in, or drills are ordered to be -carried out, or if any matter connected with the Fleet is ordered to be -undertaken at some future date, the admiral should always make a signal -or reminder some days before the date. The argument that a man -"_ought_ to know and _ought_ not to forget" does not prevent irritation -if he _does_ forget. - -If an officer or man is slack, he should always be found fault with; it -distresses the good officers and men to see that a slack individual -gets along as well as those that are smart. - -If the admiral observes anything incorrect relative to individuals in a -ship's company, such as dress, etc., he should inquire whether the -irregularity is common to the ship, and have this irregularity -corrected right through the ship. Failing this method, he may be often -finding fault on the same point, instead of having the whole matter put -right by one signal or memorandum. - -The admiral should often look over his own station orders to remind -himself of the orders he has issued. - -An admiral should, if possible, always send written messages to -officers, in order to avoid constantly sending for officers. He should -always date the messages. This maxim applies to the admiral's flagship -as well as to other ships. - -Sending messages verbally may cause great irritation, and may be -prejudicial to discipline, for two distinct reasons:-- - -(i) The messenger may give the message in terms which are very -irritating. Every one on the bridge hears the message delivered. - -(ii) Human nature being what it is, the admiral, like other people, may -be in a state of irritation, more particularly if he wants a thing done -quickly or if he thinks that things are not being done well. He is not -so likely to blurt out some rough and irritating expression if he -writes the message or order. - -{565} - -In addition, it is neither good for discipline nor congenial to that -respect which is shown to officers, if the signalman or others hear a -rough message delivered to the chief of the staff, captain, or other -officers. - -The admiral should always let the Fleet under his command know -beforehand the time which he intends to carry out practices, or to -anchor or to weigh the Fleet. This rule particularly applies to the -hours set apart for meals. Disturbance in the middle of meals causes -needless irritation, and work never goes well in a man-of-war or -anywhere else under irritation. - -Admirals should as far as is possible let the officers and men of the -Fleet know the dates of arrivals and departures from ports, so that all -should be in a position to communicate with their friends and to -arrange their private affairs conveniently. - -If the admiral intends to be afloat with his flag flying very near the -dinner-hour, or at any time that station orders annul guards and bands, -he should signal "Annul Guards and Bands." Without such signal some -ships are certain to turn them up while others will not do so, causing -confusion. - -_When the admiral is inspecting a division of men, all ratings should -take off their caps_. The admiral should first inspect the chief petty -officers and petty officers, and when he has done these ratings should -be ordered to put on their caps. By so doing, the fact is emphasised -that the petty officer's position in the ship is superior, and that the -admiral recognises it to be so. - -The admiral should see the sick in hospital constantly. His visit -cheers the men, and shows them that the admiral knows that they are -sick, and that he sympathises with them. There have been many cases -where the interest shown by the admiral in a man who is dangerously ill -has so cheered the patient that he has taken a turn for the better and -has ultimately recovered. - -If a serious accident occurs on board any ship, either at {566} drill -or in the execution of other duty whereby officers or men are killed or -wounded, the admiral should inform the whole Fleet with regret, giving -the names of officers and men. This procedure is respectful to those -under his command who are killed or wounded in the execution of their -duty. They have suffered or died for their country just as much as -though killed or wounded in action with the enemy. The admiral should -personally go and see the wounded daily, if possible. - -An admiral should let his officers know that he expects everything on -board the ships to be shipshape, that is to say, kept in such condition -and order as befits one of His Majesty's ships of war. - -The admiral should always give as much leave as possible, having regard -to the exigencies of the service and of duty. A free gangway for -special leave men should be kept at all possible places, so that one -watch can always go ashore daily if they are so minded. - -Trouble with regard to breaking leave and drunkenness is generally -brought about by want of discretion on the part of the commanding -officer in giving leave. Keeping men on board for long periods, and -then letting them go ashore with a great deal of money, involves the -temptation to some to break leave, and to others to drink more than is -good for them. - -A free gangway is thoroughly appreciated by the men. The fact that -they can go ashore if they like often conduces to their health and -comfort, and does not provoke that irritation caused by the knowledge -that leave cannot be given. - -A man who breaks his leave, and so allows other men to do his work, -should be placed in a "Break Leave Party," and given any extra jobs of -work that may require execution, in order to make up for the time he -has lost. Men in the "Break Leave Party" should be mustered every two -hours from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the discretion of the captain, according -to the number of hours they have allowed other men to do their work. - -This mustering should continue on a scale of two days for {567} every -hour of absence, but a total of fourteen days should not be exceeded. - -The foregoing arrangement should not be considered as punishment, but -as making up the time lost to the State by the men's absence from their -duties, which left other men to do their work, and should therefore not -be entered in the daily record. - -A general leave man who persistently breaks his leave should be put in -the limited leave list, and the time and place at which he should be -allowed ashore should be entirely at the discretion of the captain, and -if possible he should not be allowed ashore when the rest of the ship's -company are on leave. - -When a notorious leave-breaker goes on leave, it is well to send ashore -a description, upon which are noted the hour and the date upon which he -should again be aboard his ship. By this means he is often recovered -before he has broken his leave for any length of time. - -First-class petty officers should always be given leave when chief -petty officers get leave. The former are generally far older men, and -have had longer experience in the Service than most chief petty -officers. - -Badge-men and "men who have never broken their leave in the ship" -should be given leave whenever possible. Plenty of liberty reduces -break-leave to a minimum, and also reduces inebriety to a marked extent. - - -Attention to the points of administration enumerated above will go far -to create in the Fleet, not only comfort and happiness but, that -constant readiness for emergency which is the result of a high state of -discipline. - - - - -{569} - -INDEX - - Abd-el-Al, 171 - Abd-el-Hamid, 282, 287 - Abu Klea, battle of, 257-68 - A.D.C. to Prince of Wales, appointed, 157 - to Queen Victoria, appointed, 412 - Adeane, Commander, 77 - Admiral, the making of, 556-67 - Admiralty affronted, 142 - confusion at, 550 - documents stolen, 348 - and Lord Charles' Soudan service, 312 - Lord Charles appointed Junior Lord of, 344 - reprimanded by, 150 - resignation of Lord Charles, 353 - Afterguard, 13 - Aground, _Tribune_, 61 - Ahmed Arabi, 171. See Arabi Pasha Mahomet, 211 - Albania, strange adventure in, 515 - Alexandria, action at, 187 - attack on Lord Charles at, 185 - fortifications at, 187 - issue of proclamation, 193 - operations outside, 201-6 - police work at, 191-5 - refugees from, 186 - riot in, 178 - squadron at, 186 - troops assisting at, 195 - visit to, 371 - water supply failing, 181 - Algeçiras Conference, 514 - Ali Fehmi, 170 - Alison, General Sir A., 198 - American flag incident, 58 - Ammunition, discoveries of, outside Alexandria, 203 - Reserve, inadequacy of, 370 - Animals on board ship, 66 - Arab courage, 265 - lad shot, 197 - Arabi Pasha, 171 - dismissed, 181 - condemned, 184 - Armament, secondary, essential, 147 - Arms, defective, 267 - Army, inclined to join, 8 - _Arrow_, the affair of the lorcha, 3 - Assouan, Lord Charles at, 225 - Atlantic Fleet created, 496 - Australia, voyage to, in _Galatea_, 75 - Australian Squadron, suggested command of, 469 - - - Bab-el-Kebir, 223, 228 - Bahadur, Sir Jung, 164 - Balfour, Mr., and need for War Staff, 480 - Bare feet, 16 - Baring, Sir Evelyn, 215, 216 - Bayford School, 5 - Bear, fight with a, 540 - Bell, Mr. Moberly, 187 - Benbow, Mr., 300, 303 - commended, 307 - Benicia, 69 - Bentham, Deputy-Inspector-General, 513 - Beresford, Admiral Sir John Poo, xxv - Commissioner John, xviii - Lord William, 160 - Lord Marcus and the sharpers, 531 - Marshal, xix - Bimbashi (camel), 222, 236, 238 - Bismarck, a talk with, 362 - _Black Prince_, 42 - Blasphemy, 18 - Boa constrictor killed, 167 - Boar, encounter with, 79, 168 - Boardman, Captain, commands naval contingent in Soudan, 222 - appreciation of work of, 223, 329 - Boat-pulling. See also _Gazelle_; 7, 207, 497-507 - Boat-race, women's, 29 - Boat-races, 28, 152, 207, 497-507 - Boat-sailing, 504 - Boiler of _Safieh_ repaired, 300, 303 - Boiler plates, 252 - _Bombay_, burning of, 146 - _Bordein_, s., 283, 292, 293, 294 - _Bounty_ Mutiny, 86 - Bowles, Admiral William, 6 - Boxers, famous, 69 - Boyd-Carpenter's (Dr.) remarkable story, 154 - Brabazon's, Colonel, account of attack on convoy, 321 - Bradford, Major, 162 - Brandreth, Commander Thomas, 12 - "Break-up of China," 426 - Bright-work discouraged, 120 - _Britannia_ training ship, 6, 9 - officers of, 7 - Brothers, Lord Charles Beresford's, vii - Browne, Major-General Sam, 162 - Bull, incident of, 290 - Bulldog, Lord Charles, 146 - Buller, Sir Redvers, 221, 222, 225, 229, 252, 317, 318 - _Bulwark_, flag hoisted in, 508 - Burnaby, Colonel, 256, 259 - death of, 264 - Butt, Isaac, 131, 342 - - - Cable, hemp and chain, 12 - Cadet, Naval, appointed, 11 - Cadets, training of, 6 - _Cæsar_, flag hoisted in, 493 - Calcutta, visit to, 103 - Camel Corps equipment, 237 - incident, 225 - race, 236 - Camels. See Bimbashi - invented saddle for, 237 - repairing with oakum, 328 - shortage of, 278 - sufferings of, 255 - Cameron, Mr., 207, 270 - Cannibal, talk with, 80 - Canton, bombardment of, 4 - Cape Town, visit to, 186 - _Captain_, disaster to, 49 - _Carysfort_, 209 - Casualties of Desert Column, 279 - Cawnpore Memorial, Prince's visit to, 168 - Certificate, signing of, 5 - Ceylon, climate of, 104 - Changes in Channel, Nore, and Home Fleets, 552 - in shipbuilding, 48 - proposed, 396 - Channel Fleet, in command of, 485, 550 - reductions and changes, 551 - Royal visit to, 554 - Channel Squadron (1863), 42 - Chaplain, influence of, 19 - Chatham Dockyard, appointment at, 393 - terminates, 400 - Chefoo, 447 - _Chicago_, 398 - Chicago, Lord Charles at, 459 - China, inspection of armies in, 440-44 - Lord Charles sails for, 424 - summary of reforms advocated, 451 - Chinese Army, scheme of reorganisation, 437 - commercial integrity, 102 - Ching, Prince, 435 - Cholera at Calcutta, 103 - Churchill, Lord Randolph, resignation of, 352 - Clifton, Captain, 116 - _Clio_, 48, 51 - Clippers, famous opium, 117 - Coal in Vancouver, discovery of, 60 - Cockfighting at Manila, 102 - Cockroaches, racing, 52 - Coffer-dam, 492 - Coincidence, 103, 160 - Columns. See Desert, and Nile - Colvin, Mr. Auckland, 172 - Command, first independent, 120 - Commendations, special, 70, 198, 206, 235 - Compensation to Alexandrians, 199 - _Condor_, action of, at Alexandria, 187 - appointed to, 156, 186 - gives up command of, 206 - signal to, 189 - Constituencies, invitations from, 398, 415 - Convicts at Perth, 75 - Convoy, attack on, 320 - Coode, Captain Trevenen P., 65 - Cordite, danger of heat, 465 - Corfu, 32 - Correspondent, newspaper, troublesome, 198 - desire to act as, 207 - shot, 275 - Council of Defence, 398, 414 - Courage of Arabs, 265 - Court-martial, trial by, 367 - Crete, insurrection in, 427-31 - Cruisers, deficiency of, 144 - Crutchley, General, 278 - Curraghmore, description of, viii-xii - Custance, Admiral Sir R. N., 550 - - - Dacres, Rear-Admiral Sydney C., 12 - Dal Cataract, Lord Charles at, 243 - Dawson, Lieutenant Douglas, 291 - Daymen, 14 - Decapitation in Japan, 101 - _Defence_, 41 - Defence, Council of. See Council - Delaval, Lord, death of, 548 - Delavals, the, xvi - Democracy and war, 494, 495 - Denman, Rear-Admiral the Hon. J., 65 - Desert Column, 220, 246, 247, 248 - casualties, 279 - composition of, 253 - in disorder, 272 - march back to Korti, 324 - Sir R. Buller's dispatch _re_, 319 - zeriba, 275 - Desertions at San Francisco, 69 - Diaz, visit to President, 550 - Discipline, 14, 142 - reform of, 17 - Discomforts of the Old Navy, 19 - of Nile steamer, 224 - of the Nile, 242 - Disgrace, in, 26 - Disraeli, memories of, 139 - on the party system, 139 - Dockyard appointment, 393 - Dowell, Rear-Admiral Wm., 505, 506 - Doyle, Sir Hastings, 153 - Dress, the sailor's, 19 - Drunkenness, 17, 31 - Dufferin, Lord, 374 - Dunsmuir, Mr., 60 - Duties, various, of a ship's crew, 13 - - - Earle, General, killed, 319 - East Marylebone, elected for, 336 - Eden, Captain Charles, 5, 34 - Edinburgh, Duke of, attempt to assassinate, 73 - visit to Japan of, 100 - Edward, King. See King - Egyptian War, beginning of trouble, 170 - Election incidents, 336, 337 - Elephant hunting, 164, 536-8 - in _Galatea_, 109 - Elephants, regiment of, 167 - El-Teb, 216 - Emma, Queen, 57 - Empress Dowager, 420 - Engine, repairing, 226 - Essays by officers, 466, 468 - Estimate of naval needs, 358 - Estimates, signing the, 356. See Navy - Etiquette, naval, 1 - _Eurydice_ training frigate, 6 - capsizing of, 154 - remarkable story _re_, 155 - Examination for Navy, 6 - _Excellent_, 71 - Execution of murderer, 54 - Experience in routine work, etc., necessity of, 146 - Explosion of gun-cotton, 204 - of shell from _Condor_, 208 - on _Thunderer_, 148 - - - Falkland Islands, 53 - Family history. See History - home. See Curraghmore memorials, ix - Farm, model, 399 - Fayrer, Surgeon-General, 163 - _Fersaat_, 224 - Fight at Malta, 31 - over boat-race, 29 - Fisher, Captain John, 190 - Sir John, improvements in Mediterranean fleet, 467 - Fishing incidents, 544-7 - Fit, keeping, 107 - Fitzgerald, Admiral Penrose, 49, 54, 505 - Flag rank, earlier promotion to, advocated, 404, 483 - Flogging abolished, 17 - question of, 144 - Forecastlemen, 13 - Foretopmen, 13 - Forging of cheques, 75, 83 - Freemason, made a, 108 - French, Sir John, 280 - - - _Galatea_, 73 - diversion, 108 - in Japan, 100 - Gardner gun, 252, 276, 300, 308 - jamming of, 263 - Gardner, Miss, engagement to, 154 - Gascoigne, Captain, 302, 304, 306 - _Gazelle_, 7 - Gemai, 229 - Germany's, Emperor of, visit to Gibraltar, 493 - visit to Skagen, 554 - Gibbs, Flag-Lieutenant, 551, 554 - Gibraltar, 370 - Emperor of Germany visits, 493 - Gillford, Captain, 60 - Gladstone, Mr. W. E., 33 - and compensation to Alexandrians, 199 - Glanville, John, 11, 28 - Gleichen, Count, 237, 248, 277 - Gordon, General, 214, 215 - urgent messages from, 216, 217, 219, 234, 250 - letters from, 282 - steamers sent by, 283 - death of, 291 - Goschen, Mr., conversation with, 359 - _Goshawk_, 120 - Graham, Major-General Sir G., 215, 216, 332 - Sir James, 9 - Grenfell, Vice-Admiral Sir H., 515 - Gubat, Desert Column at, 278 - Gun-cotton, explosion of, 204 - Gun explosion on _Thunderer_, 148 - Gunners, 13 - Gunnery, British and American, 67 - in the _Marlborough_, 20 - on China station, 466 - Gun Reserve, inadequacy of, 370 - - - Hall's, Captain W. H., recommendations, 361 - Hamilton, Lord George, on Lord Charles' resignation, 354 - Sir R. Vesey, 404 - Hammill, Commander, 221, 226 - _Hannibal_ rams _Prince George_, 400 - Hara-kiri, 91 - Harris, Captain Robert, 6, 7, 10 - Sir Augustus, 399 - Hartington, Lord, telegram from, 317 - Haulage of boats on Nile. See Whaleboats, and Steamers - Hawsers, wire, first used, 154 - Heaton, Mr. Henniker, 417 - Lieutenant W. H., 8 - _Hecla_, torpedo school, 369 - _Hercules_, 49 - _Hibernia_, 33 - Hicks Pasha and staff, 213 - Hildyard, General Sir H., 8 - History of family, xii-xxii - _Hohenzollern_, 545 - Home Fleet, 552 - of family. See Curraghmore - Hornby's, Admiral Phipps, views on, Cabinet and Sea Lords, 355 - Horse-racing and riding, 518-34 - Horses, runaway, 76 - saving, 206 - Hot springs in New Zealand, 79 - _Howe_, salving of, 395 - Humour, Irish, 72 - Hunting, 71, 520, 522-5 - Hurricane (Pampero) at Buenos Aires, 70 - at Port Mercy, 56 - at Vancouver, 68 - - - Idlers, 14 - Illumination of _Marlborough_, 33 - _Illustrious_ training ship, 6, 9 - Imperial Defence, committee of, 481 - Naval Defence, 408 - Improvements, value of minor, 365 - Incidents, amusing, 5, 28, 47, 104, 108, - 113, 114, 115, 116, 117, 118, - 119, 133, 135, 136, 151, 153, - 163, 164, 169, 196, 198, 199, - 202, 223, 224, 225, 227, 230, - 290, 316, 329, 334, 336, 343, - 366, 371, 373, 392, 394, 415, - 416, 445, 470-7, 489, 511, 516, - 517, 519, 522, 523, 527, 528, - 529, 530, 532, 533 - India, visit of Prince to, 157 - Ingram, Mr., 286 - Instructions to Admirals in Egypt, 177 - Intelligence Department. See Naval - Intervention, European, in Egypt, 175 - Ionian Islands, 32 - Ireland, rent question in, 128 - royal residence in, advocated, 412 - visit of Duke and Duchess of York, 413 - Irish characteristics, 136 - Irishman, a frenzied, 197 - Irishmen in United States, 458 - Irishmen's honour, 553 - Irish politics (1872), 129, 342 - Ismailia, journey to, 200 - Ito, Marquess, interviews with, 449 - - - Jackson, Mr. John, 386 - Jakdul, 249 - arrival of Desert Column, 255 - Japan, in, 100, 455 - Old, 90 - Jokes, practical, 28, 30, 56, 71, 113, 115 - Jones, "Ninepin," 23 - José Salvatro, 236, 244 - - - Kang Yu Wei, flight of, 432 - Kanwah Island, 77 - Keppel, Hon. Sir Henry, 111 - Lieutenant Colin, 300, 303, 306 - Kerry election (1872), 128 - Khartoum, fall of, 291 - in danger, 213, 217, 221 - steamers start for, 287 - Sir Charles Wilson's voyage to, 292 - Khashm-el-Mus, 285 - Khedive, appointment to staff of, 206 - message of congratulation from, 326 - in danger, 190 - of Egypt. See Tewfik - Kiao-Chao, 423, 447, 448 - Kinder, Mr., 447 - Kingcome, Admiral, 64 - King Edward visits _Bulwark_, 514 - _King Edward_, H.M.S., hoists flag in, 550 - Kitchener, Major, 256, 334 - Korti, 219 - Lord Charles' journey to, 245 - Naval Brigade arrives at, 252 - Kuang Hsu, Emperor, 420, 422 - Kukri, 167 - - - Land question in Ireland, 130 - Leave, question of, 486, 566 - Lesseps, M. de, protest of, 102 - Lewis, Mr. George, 22 - Li Hung Chang, 445 - Line, crossing the, 53 - Loan, demand for, 338 - Twenty-one million, 360 - London Chamber of Commerce, address before, 386 - banquet to Lord Charles, 462 - Lytton, Lord, 159 - - - Machine guns, 331 - M'Neill's zeriba engagement, 332 - Magellan, Straits of, first ironclads to pass through, 66 - _Magnificent_, building of, 393 - Mahan, Admiral, 376, 398 - Mahdi, death of, 333 - Mahdi's skull, 329 - Mahmoud Sami Pasha, 171 - Maintopmen, 13 - _Majestic_, 485 - Malta, precautions against, 512 - incidents at, 30 - _Malwa_ rammed, 208 - Maniac, troubled by, 236 - Manila, visit to, 102 - Manning of ships, 12 - Manoeuvres, lectures on, 375 - Maoris, 80 - Marabout Fort, 187, 188, 189 - Marconi wireless telegraphy, 414 - _Marlborough_, 11 - outbreak of fire, 14 - Marriage, 151 - Martin, Sir Wm. Fanshawe, 12 - and reform of discipline, 17 - Massacre of foreigners in Egypt, 176 - Masts out of proportion, 32 - Mate, rank of, abolished, 32 - Mauritius, arrival at, 104 - May, Surgeon-General A. W., 296, 307 - Medals received, 44 - Mediterranean, appointed second in command, 462 - appointed to command, 508 - Fleet, improvements in, 467 - Fleet deficiencies, 463, 509 - haul down flag, 469 - _Melita_, 380 - Memorandum on Organisation for War, 346 - Memorials, family, ix - _Memories of the Sea_, 49, 54 - Merchant ships and signalling, 382 - Mercy, Port, 56 - Mernat, 294, 296 - Metemmeh, attack on, 281 - Mexico, visit to, 548 - Mex lines, keeping the, 201 - Middleton, Captain R. W., 21 - Midwife, acting as, 186 - Mikado, visit to, 100 - Military instruction in schools, 482 - Mine-dropping experiments, 369 - Mines, trawlers to sweep for, 554 - Mizentopmen, 13 - Montagu's, the Hon. V., Reminiscences of Sir H. Keppel, 111 - Montgomerie, Lieutenant R. A. J., 315 - Morant, Rear-Admiral, 393 - Morley, Lord, and the Mahdi's skull incident, 329 - Motor-car race, 468 - Mullet, a huge red, 153 - Mustard, a bottle of, 323 - - - Nanking, Lord Charles' visit to, 450 - Nares, Lieutenant George S., 7 - _Nautilus_ submarine, 350 - Naval Brigade in Soudan, 220 - casualties, 267 - endurance of, 328 - under Lord Charles, 243, 252 - Naval Defence Act, 385, 389, 397 - Intelligence Department (Commercial Branch), 482 - formed, 347 - need for, 345 - salaries reduced, 353 - Works Bill, 406 - Navigation in _Marlborough_, 21 - Navy Estimates, signing the, 357 - of 1888-9 challenged, 357 - Navy, 1859, numbers and description, 2 - League founded, 397 - Lord Charles enters the, 2 - the New, 48 - the Old, 34 - _Nelson and his Times_, 414 - Nepal, Prince in, 164 - Newchang, 447 - Newspaper correspondent. See Correspondent - New York, Lord Charles at, 460 - Nile Column, 220, 250, 319 - _Nineteenth Century_, article in, 404 - Noel, Commander Gerard (Memorandum on Training), 143 - Noel's, Captain, feat of seamanship, 376 - Admiral, action in Crete, 427 - Northbrook's, Lord, declaration _re_ Navy, 341 - North Sea incident, 494 - Norwegian waters, cruise in, 554 - Nucleus crew system, 465 - Nuggar, wreck of Captain Gascoigne's, 306 - Nuggars (native boats on Nile), 227, 228 - - - Officers' pay inadequate, 407 - Oil fuel, 483 - Olden, Quartermaster, saves raiding party, 316 - Omdurman, report of fall of, 271 - "Open Door" policy, 425 - Operations, delicate, 317 - Organisation for War, 344 - plans in Mediterranean Fleet, 511 - Orhwalder, Father, letter of, 311 - _Orontes_, 159 - _Osborne_, 159 - Royal Yacht, appointed to, 151 - boat-racing, 152 - Osman Digna, 214 - Ottley's, Lieutenant, invention of mines, 369 - - - Pampero, 70 - Parkes, Sir Harry, attack on, 97 - Parliament (1874), 140 - Parnell, Mr., 141 - Party system, views on, 138, 139 - Pay of officers inadequate, 407 - Pekin, arrival at, 434 - Personnel, deficiency in, 397, 403 - Petty officer rating, 366 - Phillimore, Captain Augustus, 41 - Physique, Lord Charles', viii - Pieter Both mountain, 104 - ascent of, 105 - Pig, riding a, 528 - Piggott, Captain C. R., 265, 267 - Police, appointed Chief of, 191 - Political events (1873-80), 122 - Politics in Ireland (1872), 128 - Polo-playing, first, in England, 525 - Portage of boats. See Whaleboats - Portraits, family, x - _Prince George_, accident to, 490 - Prisons, Inspector of, 76 - Probyn, Major-General, 161 - Proclamation, issue of, 193, 289 - Promoted, 27, 64, 73, 110, 146, 169, 414 - Promotion dinner, 169 - of officers, question of, 144 - to flag rank earlier advocated, 40, 404, 483 - Provisions, sending, to officers at front, 207 - Prussia, Prince Henry of, 448 - Punishments, 17 - - - _Raleigh_, 159 - wreck of, 112 - "Ram," proposal to abolish the, 396 - _Ramillies_, hoists flag in, 462 - Ranches in Mexico, 549 - Rating, alteration in, 365 - Rations, meagre, 18, 52 - Rent question in Ireland, 129 - Reed, Sir Edward, 50 - Rees, First Lieutenant W. S., 364 - Reform of discipline, 17 - of prison rules, 76 - party in China, views of, 434 - Reforms advocated in House of Commons, 143 - in China advocated, summary of, 451 - Reis threatened, 296 - Repairs, ability to execute, 392, 493 - new system in Mediterranean, 512 - Requirements of the time, 405 - _Research_, 71 - Resignation from Board of Admiralty, 353 - Review of 1897, 409 - Richards, Sir Frederick, 389, 478 - Riot in Alexandria, 178 - River Column. See Nile - Roberts, Lieutenant, 2 - Rojdesvenski, Admiral, 494 - Ross, Mr. John, great assistance given by, 195 - appreciation of Lord Charles Beresford, 180 - Routine of work on the Nile, 233, 241 - Royal Commission on Administration of the Navy and Army, 355 - Family's interest in Navy, 153 - Irish Regiment's fine march, 317 - Marines, 13 - heroism of, 147 - Royle, Hon. Charles, 172 - Russell, Dr. Wm. Howard, 158, 163 - Russian Baltic fleet incident, 494 - - - _Safieh_, s., 283, 290, 291, 295, 314 - boiler injured, 298, 303 - raiding expeditions in, 314, 316 - Sail-drill in _Marlborough_, 21 - Sailing feats, 62 - Sail-making, 62, 71 - Saint Paul's Cathedral, Dean of, and Leighton Memorial, 410 - Salisbury, Lord, on policy in Egypt, 179 - and Lord Charles' Memorandum, 347 - Sandwich Islands, 57 - San Francisco, 69, 458 - _Sanspareil_, 375 - Saving life, 43, 44 - Scarborough, Channel Fleet visits, 489 - School, Bayford, 5 - Schoolfellows, 5 - Schooner in distress, 57 - Scott, Captain Percy, 466 - Scrapes, getting into, 26, 27, 28, 43, 45, 47, 59, 64 - Scurvy, 55, 68 - Seamanship, 7 - feat of, 42, 376 - in the _Tribune_, 62 - _Seignelay_, salving of, 378 - _Serapis_, 158 - Servants, two faithful, 82 - Service in Soudan not credited to Lord Charles, 312 - Seymour's, Admiral Sir E. H., book, 149, 159, 395 - Shanghai, Lord Charles at, 449 - Sharks, 546 - Shendi, 247, 285 - Shipbuilding programme required, 338, 387 - transition from wood to iron, 48 - Ship's personality, 51 - Ships, weakness of, 368 - Shooting incidents, 535-43 - Shouting on deck, 16 - Signalling incident at Alexandria, 205 - value of knowledge of, 374 - with merchant ships, 382 - Signalmen, new drill for, 466 - Smart, Rear-Admiral R., 41 - Souakim-Berber route, 216 - Expedition, 332 - Soudan War of 1884-5, summary of, 211 - preparations, 217 - withdrawal of troops from, 333 - Southwell, Lord, 117 - Spearing fish, 70 - Spencer programme, 388 - Sport in India, 103 - in Japan, 101 - Sporting incident, 77, 79 - Springs, hot, in New Zealand, 79 - Squadron at Alexandria, details of, 186 - Stealing stores, 43 - Steam, prejudice against, 20, 49 - Steam Reserve, appointed Captain of, 393 - Steamers on Nile, haulage of, 228 - sent by General Gordon, 283, 284 - Stephenson, Admiral Sir H. F., 209 - Stewart, Captain W. H., 12 - Colonel, murder of, 226 - Sir H., arrives at Korti, 252 - wounded, 275 - death of, 326 - "Still" bugle-call, introduction of, 16 - Sting-ray, a huge, 153 - Stores, destruction of, 323 - Stuart-Wortley, Lieutenant, 256 - brings news of disaster, 291 - voyage of, 294 - Submarine, an early, 68 - _Nautilus_, 350 - Submarines purchased, 464 - Suez Canal, purchase of shares, 158 - Suffield, Lord, 533 - Suite of Prince of Wales, 157, 161 - Surf-playing, 88 - Surgical operation, 162 - Sutherland, Duke of, 164 - _Sutlej_, 64, 74 - - - Tahiti, 87 - _Talakawiyeh_, s., 283, 285 292, 294 - Talbot, Colonel the Hon. R., 268 - march with wounded, 320 - Tamaai, 216 - Tarpon fishing, 545 - Tattooing, 101 - Telegram, delayed, 244 - Tel-el-Kebir, victory of, 183, 207 - Telephone, early working model of, 150 - _Téméraire_, ashore at Alexandria, 188 - feat of seamanship, 376 - Temperance, an address on, 511 - Teneriffe, flags at, 47 - _Terrible_, 466 - _Tewfikiyeh_, s., 283 - Tewfik Pasha, 170, 171 - Thompson, Colonel R. M., 460, 488 - Three Admirals, the report of, 362 - "Three Brothers'" race, 520 - _Thunderer_, appointed to, 146 - Tientsin, Lord Charles at, 446 - Treaty of. See Treaty - Tokio, Lord Charles at, 456 - Tombs, family, ix - Torpedo, the Whitehead, 141 - Trafalgar Centenary celebration at Malta, 513 - Training, new system advocated, 143 - of Cadets, 6, 7 - (Sir James Graham), 9 - Training ship _Britannia_, 6 - _Illustrious_, 6 - Treaty of Tientsin, 4 - _Tribune_, 61 - Trincomalee, visit to, 104 - Troopship service, 159 - Tryon, Captain, 159 - Sir George, 371 - Tsung-li Yamen, visit to, 435 - Turkish battleships, purchase of, 145 - Turnpike incident, 113 - _Turtle_, accident to, 53 - Two-Power standard, 360 - - - _Undaunted_, appointed to command, 364 - as prize-winner, 372 - high compliments paid to, 382 - _Undaunted_, salves _Seignelay_, 378 - touches a rock, 372 - Uniform, lack of rules regarding, 8 - United States, third visit to, 484 - Squadron, visit of, 488 - Unpreparedness for war, 338 - - - Valparaiso, 56 - bombardment of, 66 - Vancouver, 59 - Vesuvius, ascent of, 476 - Victoria, Queen, and change of officers, 152 - commended by, 329 - congratulated by, 206 - _Victoria and Albert_, Royal yacht, boat-racing, 152 - Villiers, Mr. Frederic, 187 - Voting in Parliament, independent, 138 - Voyageurs, 230, 241 - accidents to, 235 - - - Wad Habeshi, 296 - effect of fight at, 309 - Wadi Halfa, 219, 223, 225 - Wales, Prince of, appointed A.D.C. to, 157 - at dinner to Lord Charles, 169 - visit to Portsmouth Dockyard, 152 - visit to India, 157 - War plans in Mediterranean Fleet, 511 - Warrant-officers, 13 - _Warrior_, 42 - War Staff, constituted, 397 - need of, 478 - Washington, Lord Charles at, 460 - Watch, keeping, 52 - Watch-bills, 12 - Waterfall, shooting the, 88 - Waterford, elected for, 130 - lose seat, 156 - members of Parliament, 141 - Waterford, Lord, death of, 2, 400 - Watertight compartments, 396 - Wauchope, Major-General A. G., 8 - Weakness in new steel ships, 368 - Wei-hai-Wei, 447 - Whaleboats on the Nile, 221, 223, 227, - 229, 230, 231, 233, 235, 241 - portage, 231 - White, Sir William, 351 - Whitehead torpedo, 141 - Wilkinson's, Mr. Spenser, "Command of the Sea" articles, 397 - Wilson, Captain, 375 - John Crawford, 146 - Wilson, Vice-Admiral Sir A. K., 485 - Wilson's, Sir Charles, book, 253 - report of Abu Idea fight, 268 - voyage lo Khartoum, 292 - Wingate's, Sir F. R., letter to Lord Wolseley, 309 - Wolseley, Sir Garnet, appreciation of - his campaign in Egypt, 207 - appointed Commander-in-Chief, Soudan, 218 - appointed to staff of, 221 - arrival at Ismailia, 182 - and staff at Cairo, 221 - Wolseley, Sir G., at Wadi Halfa, 234 - Woolwich, M.P. for, 478 - Wyllie, Mr. W. L., 399 - Wyndham's Land Act, 342 - - - Yokohama, arrival at, 100 - York election, 415 - resigns seat at, 462 - Yuan Shih Kai, 421, 440 - Yung Lu, a talk with, 438 - - - Zeriba of Desert Column, 275 - Zohrab Pasha, 225 - - - - - _Printed by_ - MORRISON & GIBB LIMITED - _Edinburgh_ - - - - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Memoirs of Admiral Lord Beresford, by -Lord Charles Beresford - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MEMOIRS OF ADMIRAL LORD BERESFORD *** - -***** This file should be named 50508-8.txt or 50508-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/0/5/0/50508/ - -Produced by Al Haines -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm -concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, -and may not be used if you charge for the eBooks, unless you receive -specific permission. If you do not charge anything for copies of this -eBook, complying with the rules is very easy. You may use this eBook -for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports, -performances and research. They may be modified and printed and given -away--you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks -not protected by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the -trademark license, especially commercial redistribution. - -START: FULL LICENSE - -THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE -PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK - -To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free -distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work -(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full -Project Gutenberg-tm License available with this file or online at -www.gutenberg.org/license. - -Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works - -1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to -and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property -(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all -the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or -destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your -possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a -Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound -by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the -person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph -1.E.8. - -1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be -used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who -agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few -things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works -even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See -paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this -agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below. - -1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the -Foundation" or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection -of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual -works in the collection are in the public domain in the United -States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the -United States and you are located in the United States, we do not -claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing, -displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as -all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope -that you will support the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting -free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm -works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the -Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with the work. You can easily -comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the -same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg-tm License when -you share it without charge with others. - -1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern -what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are -in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, -check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this -agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, -distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any -other Project Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no -representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any -country outside the United States. - -1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: - -1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other -immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear -prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work -on which the phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the -phrase "Project Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, -performed, viewed, copied or distributed: - - This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and - most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no - restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it - under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this - eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the - United States, you'll have to check the laws of the country where you - are located before using this ebook. - -1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is -derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not -contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the -copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in -the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are -redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply -either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or -obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg-tm -trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted -with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution -must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any -additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms -will be linked to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works -posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the -beginning of this work. - -1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm -License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this -work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. - -1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this -electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without -prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with -active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project -Gutenberg-tm License. - -1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, -compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including -any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access -to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format -other than "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official -version posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site -(www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense -to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means -of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original "Plain -Vanilla ASCII" or other form. Any alternate format must include the -full Project Gutenberg-tm License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. - -1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, -performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works -unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing -access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works -provided that - -* You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from - the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method - you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed - to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he has - agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid - within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are - legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty - payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in - Section 4, "Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg - Literary Archive Foundation." - -* You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies - you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he - does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm - License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all - copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue - all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg-tm - works. - -* You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of - any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the - electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of - receipt of the work. - -* You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free - distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. - -1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work or group of works on different terms than -are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing -from both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and The -Project Gutenberg Trademark LLC, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm -trademark. Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. - -1.F. - -1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable -effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread -works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project -Gutenberg-tm collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may -contain "Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate -or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other -intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or -other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or -cannot be read by your equipment. - -1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right -of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project -Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all -liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal -fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT -LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE -PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE -TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE -LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR -INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH -DAMAGE. - -1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a -defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can -receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a -written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you -received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium -with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you -with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in -lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person -or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second -opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If -the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing -without further opportunities to fix the problem. - -1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth -in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO -OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT -LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. - -1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied -warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of -damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement -violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the -agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or -limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or -unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the -remaining provisions. - -1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the -trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone -providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in -accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the -production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, -including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of -the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this -or any Project Gutenberg-tm work, (b) alteration, modification, or -additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any -Defect you cause. - -Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm - -Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of -electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of -computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It -exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations -from people in all walks of life. - -Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the -assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's -goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will -remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure -and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future -generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see -Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at -www.gutenberg.org - - - -Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation - -The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit -501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the -state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal -Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification -number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by -U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. - -The Foundation's principal office is in Fairbanks, Alaska, with the -mailing address: PO Box 750175, Fairbanks, AK 99775, but its -volunteers and employees are scattered throughout numerous -locations. Its business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, Salt -Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up to -date contact information can be found at the Foundation's web site and -official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact - -For additional contact information: - - Dr. Gregory B. Newby - Chief Executive and Director - gbnewby@pglaf.org - -Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg -Literary Archive Foundation - -Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide -spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of -increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be -freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest -array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations -($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt -status with the IRS. - -The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating -charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United -States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a -considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up -with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations -where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND -DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular -state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate - -While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we -have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition -against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who -approach us with offers to donate. - -International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make -any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from -outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. - -Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation -methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other -ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To -donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate - -Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. - -Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project -Gutenberg-tm concept of a library of electronic works that could be -freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and -distributed Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of -volunteer support. - -Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed -editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in -the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not -necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper -edition. - -Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search -facility: www.gutenberg.org - -This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, -including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to -subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. - diff --git a/old/50508-8.zip b/old/50508-8.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 0583e38..0000000 --- a/old/50508-8.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h.zip b/old/50508-h.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index b5e7d90..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/50508-h.htm b/old/50508-h/50508-h.htm deleted file mode 100644 index a8dd737..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/50508-h.htm +++ /dev/null @@ -1,31010 +0,0 @@ -<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.1//EN" - "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml11/DTD/xhtml11.dtd"> - -<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en"> - -<head> - -<link rel="coverpage" href="images/img-cover.jpg" /> - -<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1" /> - -<title> -The Project Gutenberg E-text of The Memoirs of Admiral Lord Beresford, -by Lord Charles Beresford -</title> - -<style type="text/css"> -body { color: black; - background: white; - margin-right: 10%; - margin-left: 10%; - font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; - text-align: justify } - -p {text-indent: 4% } - -p.noindent {text-indent: 0% } - -p.t1 {text-indent: 0% ; - font-size: 200%; - text-align: center } - -p.t2 {text-indent: 0% ; - font-size: 150%; - text-align: center } - -p.t2b {text-indent: 0% ; - font-size: 150%; - font-weight: bold; - text-align: center } - -p.t3 {text-indent: 0% ; - font-size: 100%; - text-align: center } - -p.t3b {text-indent: 0% ; - font-size: 100%; - font-weight: bold; - text-align: center } - -p.t4 {text-indent: 0% ; - font-size: 80%; - text-align: center } - -p.t4b {text-indent: 0% ; - font-size: 80%; - font-weight: bold; - text-align: center } - -p.t5 {text-indent: 0% ; - font-size: 60%; - text-align: center } - -h1 { text-align: center } -h2 { text-align: center } -h3 { text-align: center } -h4 { text-align: center } -h5 { text-align: center } - -p.poem {text-indent: 0%; - margin-left: 10%; } - -pre.index { font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; - font-size: 100% } - -p.contents {text-indent: -3%; - margin-left: 5% } - -p.thought {text-indent: 0% ; - letter-spacing: 4em ; - text-align: center } - -p.letter {text-indent: 0%; - margin-left: 10% ; - margin-right: 10% } - -p.salutation {text-indent: 0%; - margin-left: 10% ; - margin-right: 10% } - -p.closing {text-indent: 0%; - margin-left: 10% ; - margin-right: 10% } - -p.footnote {text-indent: 0% ; - font-size: 80%; - margin-left: 10% ; - margin-right: 10% } - -p.transnote {text-indent: 0% ; - margin-left: 10% ; - margin-right: 10% } - -p.index {text-indent: -5% ; - margin-left: 5% ; - margin-top: 0% ; - margin-bottom: 0% ; - margin-right: 0% } - -p.intro {font-size: 90% ; - text-indent: -5% ; - margin-left: 5% ; - margin-right: 0% } - -p.dedication {text-indent: 0%; - margin-left: 15%; - text-align: justify } - -p.published {text-indent: 0% ; - margin-left: 15% } - -p.quote {text-indent: 4% ; - margin-left: 0% ; - margin-right: 0% } - -p.report {text-indent: 4% ; - margin-left: 0% ; - margin-right: 0% } - -p.report2 {text-indent: 4% ; - margin-left: 10% ; - margin-right: 10% } - -p.finis { font-size: larger ; - text-align: center ; - text-indent: 0% ; - margin-left: 0% ; - margin-right: 0% } - -p.capleft { margin-left: 0%; - margin-right: 1%; - margin-bottom: .5% ; - margin-top: 0; - font-weight: bold; - float: left ; - clear: left ; - text-indent: 0%; - text-align: center } - -p.capright { margin-left: 1%; - margin-right: 0 ; - margin-bottom: .5% ; - margin-top: 0; - font-weight: bold; - float: right ; - clear: right ; - text-indent: 0%; - text-align: center } - -p.capcenter { margin-left: 0; - margin-right: 0 ; - margin-bottom: .5% ; - margin-top: 0; - font-weight: bold; - float: none ; - clear: both ; - text-indent: 0%; - text-align: center } - -img.imgleft { float: left; - clear: left; - margin-left: 0; - margin-bottom: 0; - margin-top: 1%; - margin-right: 1%; - padding: 0; - text-align: center } - -img.imgright {float: right; - clear: right; - margin-left: 1%; - margin-bottom: 0; - margin-top: 1%; - margin-right: 0; - padding: 0; - text-align: center } - -img.imgcenter { margin-left: auto; - margin-bottom: 0; - margin-top: 1%; - margin-right: auto; } - -.pagenum { position: absolute; - left: 1%; - font-size: 95%; - text-align: left; - text-indent: 0; - font-style: normal; - font-weight: normal; - font-variant: normal; } - -.sidenote { left: 0%; - right: 0%; - font-size: 90%; - text-align: left; - text-indent: 0%; - width: 17%; - float: left; - clear: left; - padding-left: 1%; - padding-right: 1%; - padding-top: 1%; - padding-bottom: 1%; - font-style: normal; - font-weight: normal; - border: solid; - border-width: 1px; - margin-right: 1%; - background: aqua; - font-variant: normal; } - -</style> - -</head> - -<body> - - -<pre> - -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Memoirs of Admiral Lord Beresford, by -Lord Charles Beresford - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: The Memoirs of Admiral Lord Beresford - -Author: Lord Charles Beresford - -Release Date: November 20, 2015 [EBook #50508] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MEMOIRS OF ADMIRAL LORD BERESFORD *** - - - - -Produced by Al Haines - - - - - -</pre> - - -<p><a id="chap00a"></a></p> - -<p><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-front"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-front.jpg" alt="Charles Beresford, Admiral" /> -<br /> -Charles Beresford, Admiral -</p> - -<h1> -<br /><br /> - THE MEMOIRS OF<br /> - ADMIRAL<br /> - LORD BERESFORD<br /> -</h1> - -<p><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="t4"> - WITH TWENTY-THREE ILLUSTRATIONS<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="t4"> - FOURTH EDITION IN ONE VOLUME<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> - METHUEN & CO. LTD.<br /> - 36 ESSEX STREET W.C.<br /> - LONDON<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="t4"> - First Published (2 vols.) . . . . October 6th, 1914<br /> - Second Edition . . . . November, 1914<br /> - Third Edition . . . . December, 1914<br /> - Fourth Edition (1 vol.) . . . . September, 1916<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> - TO<br /> - MY BROTHER OFFICERS<br /> - OF THE<br /> - ROYAL NAVY<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pvii"></a>vii}</span> -</p> - -<p class="t3b"> -PREFACE -</p> - -<p> -This work is a record of my life from the -year 1859, when I entered the Royal Navy, -to the year 1909, when I hauled down my -flag and came on shore. -</p> - -<p> -For the Introduction and the Notes, which -have been written in order to amplify the personal -narrative and to connect it with the historical -events of the period, Mr. L. Cope Cornford is -responsible. -</p> - -<p> -I have dedicated the book to my brother officers -of the Royal Navy. -</p> - -<p> -As luck would have it, my career has been of -a singularly varied character. And my hope is that, -in reading its story, boys and girls, as well as their -elders, may find pleasure. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -CHARLES BERESFORD<br /> - <i>Admiral</i><br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -1 GREAT CUMBERLAND PLACE, W.<br /> - <i>June</i> 1914<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-viii"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-viii.jpg" alt="CURRAGHMORE" /> -<br /> -CURRAGHMORE -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pix"></a>ix}</span> -</p> - -<p class="t3b"> -CONTENTS -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#chap00b">INTRODUCTORY NOTE</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -CHAP. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -I. <a href="#chap01">I SEE THE FLEET</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -II. <a href="#chap02">THE BEGINNING OF SERVICE</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -III. <a href="#chap03">THE SHIP OF HAPPIEST MEMORY</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -IV. <a href="#chap04">THE SHIP OF UNHAPPY MEMORY</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -V. <a href="#chap05">THE MIDSHIPMAN OF 1864</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -VI. <a href="#chap06">STRICT SERVICE</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -VII. <a href="#chap07">THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. <i>GALATEA</i>—</a><br /> - I. TO THE ANTIPODES<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -VIII. <a href="#chap08">THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. <i>GALATEA</i> (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - II. MY TWO FAITHFUL SERVANTS<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -IX. <a href="#chap09">THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. <i>GALATEA</i> (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - III. TAHITI AND THE SANDWICH ISLANDS<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -X. <a href="#chap10">THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. <i>GALATEA</i> (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - IV. OLD JAPAN. NOTE<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XI. <a href="#chap11">THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. <i>GALATEA</i> (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - V. WITH THE DUKE IN JAPAN<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XII. <a href="#chap12">THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. <i>GALATEA</i> (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - VI. THE HOMEWARD VOYAGE<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XIII. <a href="#chap13">FLAG-LIEUTENANT AT PLYMOUTH</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XIV. <a href="#chap14">POLITICAL EVENTS OF 1873-80 AND POSTSCRIPT. NOTE</a> -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Px"></a>x}</span> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XV. <a href="#chap15">AN IRISH ELECTION AND IRISH POLITICS</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XVI. <a href="#chap16">MEMBER FOR WATERFORD, AND COMMANDER, ROYAL NAVY</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XVII. <a href="#chap17">WITH THE PRINCE IN INDIA</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XVIII. <a href="#chap18">THE EGYPTIAN WAR—</a><br /> - I. THE BEGINNING OF TROUBLE. NOTE<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XIX. <a href="#chap19">THE EGYPTIAN WAR (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - II. THE BOMBARDMENT OF ALEXANDRIA<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XX. <a href="#chap20">THE EGYPTIAN WAR (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - III. CHIEF OF POLICE<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXI. <a href="#chap21">THE EGYPTIAN WAR (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - IV. GARRISON WORK<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXII. <a href="#chap22">PASSING THROUGH EGYPT</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXIII. <a href="#chap23">THE SOUDAN WAR OF 1884-5—</a><br /> - I. SUMMARY OF EVENTS. NOTE<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXIV. <a href="#chap24">THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - II. HOW WE BROUGHT THE BOATS THROUGH THE GREAT GATE<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXV. <a href="#chap25">THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - III. UP THE CATARACTS AND ACROSS THE DESERT<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXVI. <a href="#chap26">THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - IV. THE FIRST MARCH OF THE DESERT COLUMN. NOTE<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXVII. <a href="#chap27">THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - V. THE DESERT MARCH OF THE FORLORN HOPE<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXVIII. <a href="#chap28">THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - VI. THE FIGHT AT ABU KLEA<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXIX. <a href="#chap29">THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - VII. THE FIGHT TO REACH THE RIVER<br /> -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxi"></a>xi}</span> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXX. <a href="#chap30">THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - VIII. DISASTER<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXXI. <a href="#chap31">THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - IX. THE RESCUE<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXXII. <a href="#chap32">THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - X. THE EFFECT OF THE ACTION OF WAD HABESHI<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXXIII. <a href="#chap33">THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - XI. THE RETREAT<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXXIV. <a href="#chap34">THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - XII. SEQUEL AND CONCLUSION<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXXV. <a href="#chap35">ORGANISATION FOR WAR</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXXVI. <a href="#chap36">THE TWENTY-ONE MILLION</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXXVII. <a href="#chap37">H.M.S. UNDAUNTED—</a><br /> - I. WITH THE MEDITERRANEAN FLEET<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXXVIII. <a href="#chap38">H.M.S. UNDAUNTED (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - II. THE SALVING OF THE <i>SEIGNELAY</i><br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XXXIX. <a href="#chap39">THE SECOND SHIPBUILDING PROGRAMME</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XL. <a href="#chap40">STEAM RESERVE</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XLI. <a href="#chap41">VIEWS AND REVIEWS</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XLII. <a href="#chap42">COVETED CHINA. NOTE</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XLIII. <a href="#chap43">THE INTROMISSION OF THE ADMIRALS</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XLIV. <a href="#chap44">TRAFFICS AND DISCOVERIES—</a><br /> - I. CHINA<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XLV. <a href="#chap45">TRAFFICS AND DISCOVERIES (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - II. JAPAN<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XLVI. <a href="#chap46">TRAFFICS AND DISCOVERIES (<i>continued</i>)—</a><br /> - III. THE UNITED STATES<br /> -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxii"></a>xii}</span> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XLVII. <a href="#chap47">H.M.S. <i>RAMILLIES</i></a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XLVIII. <a href="#chap48">HER MAJESTY'S MIDSHIPMEN</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -XLIX. <a href="#chap49">THE PARLIAMENTARY ANVIL</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -L. <a href="#chap50">THE CHANNEL FLEET</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -LI. <a href="#chap51">BOAT RACING</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -LII. <a href="#chap52">THE MEDITERRANEAN STATION</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -LIII. <a href="#chap53">SPORTING MEMORIES—</a><br /> - I. RIDING AND DRIVING<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -LIV. <a href="#chap54">SPORTING MEMORIES (continued)—</a><br /> - I. SHOOTING<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -LV. <a href="#chap55">SPORTING MEMORIES (continued)—</a><br /> - III. FISHING<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -LVI. <a href="#chap56">HOME WATERS: THE LAST COMMAND</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -POSTSCRIPT. <a href="#chap57">THE MAKING OF AN ADMIRAL</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#chap58">INDEX</a> -</p> - -<p class="t4"> -(The "Notes" are by L. COPE CORNFORD) -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxiii"></a>xiii}</span> -</p> - -<p class="t3b"> -LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-front">THE AUTHOR</a> … … … … … . . <i>Frontispiece</i><br /> - From a photograph by Heath<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-viii">CURRAGHMORE</a><br /> - From a photograph by G. D. Croker<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-xxii">SIR JOHN DE LA POER BERESFORD, 4TH MARQUESS OF WATERFORD</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-xxii">CHRISTINA, MARCHIONESS OF WATERFORD</a><br /> - From paintings at Curraghmore<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-006">THE AUTHOR AS NAVAL CADET</a><br /> - From a photograph<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-012">H.M.S. <i>MARLBOROUGH</i>, 1861</a><br /> - From a painting in the possession of the Author<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-064">THE OFFICERS OF H.M.S. <i>SUTLEJ</i>, 1865.</a><br /> - From a photograph<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-074">H.R.H. THE DUKE OF EDINBURGH</a><br /> - From a photograph by J. Russell & Sons<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-104">PIETER BOTH MOUNTAIN, MAURITIUS</a><br /> - From a photograph<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-114">THE AUTHOR AS LIEUTENANT</a><br /> - From a photograph<br /> -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxiv"></a>xiv}</span> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-130">THE AUTHOR ÆT. 27</a><br /> - From a photograph<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-150">LADY CHARLES BERESFORD</a><br /> - From a photograph<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-186">THE BOMBARDMENT OF ALEXANDRIA, 11TH JULY 1882</a><br /> - From a chart drawn by the Author at the time<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-188">ON BOARD H.M.S. CONDOR, 11TH JULY 1882</a><br /> - From a drawing by Frederic Villiers<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-192">PROVOST-MARSHAL AND CHIEF OF POLICE, ALEXANDRIA, JULY 1882</a><br /> - From a drawing by Frederic Villiers<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-230">THE AUTHOR'S METHOD OF HAULING BOATS THROUGH THE BAB-EL-KEBIR</a><br /> - After a drawing made on the spot by the Author<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-250">THE NILE FROM WADY HALFA TO KHARTOUM</a> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-269">THE AUTHOR</a><br /> - From a photograph by Hallen, New York<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-306">"RUNNING THE GAUNTLET"—THE ACTION OF THE <i>SAFIEH</i><br /> - AT WAD HABESHI, 4TH FEBRUARY 1885</a><br /> - From a painting in the possession of the Author<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-318">FIELD-MARSHAL THE RIGHT HON. VISCOUNT WOLSELEY</a><br /> - From a photograph by Elliott & Fry<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-360">THE AUTHOR SPEAKING IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS ON<br /> - HIS TWENTY-ONE MILLION SHIPBUILDING PROGRAMME,<br /> - 13TH DECEMBER 1888</a><br /> - From the drawing by J. Walter Wilson in the possession<br /> - of the Author<br /> -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxv"></a>xv}</span> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-434">THE AUTHOR, 1898</a><br /> - From a drawing by Phil May in the possession of the Author<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -<a href="#img-550">H.M.S. <i>KING EDWARD VII</i> ENGAGED IN BATTLE PRACTICE, 1907</a><br /> - From a photograph<br /> -</p> - -<p class="t4"> -(<i>Design of Cover by HAROLD WYLLIE</i>) -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap00b"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxvii"></a>xvii}</span></p> - -<h3> -INTRODUCTORY NOTE -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -THE HOUSE OF BERESFORD -</p> - -<p> -Lord Charles William de la Poer Beresford, born in -1846, was the second of five brothers, sons of Sir -John de la Poer Beresford, fourth Marquess of Waterford. -Lord Charles's elder brother, Sir John Henry de la -Poer Beresford (to give him his full title), Earl and Viscount -of Tyrone, Baron de la Poer of Curraghmore in the county -of Waterford, and Baron Beresford of Beresford in the -county of Cavan, in the Peerage of Ireland, and Baron -Tyrone of Haverfordwest in the county of Pembroke, in -the Peerage of Great Britain, Knight of the Most Illustrious -Order of St. Patrick, succeeded to these titles in 1866. Sir -John joined the 1st Life Guards. He died in 1895, and -was succeeded by his son (nephew to Lord Charles), as -presently to be noted. -</p> - -<p> -Of the other three brothers, Lord William de la Poer -joined the 9th Lancers and became Military Secretary to -five successive Viceroys of India, was a patron of the Turf, -and died in 1900; Lord Marcus de la Poer joined the 7th -Hussars, took charge of the King's racehorses, an office -which he still fulfils, and was appointed Extra Equerry to -King George; Lord Delaval James de la Poer (sixteen -years younger than Lord Charles) ranched in North America -and was killed in a railway accident in 1906. -</p> - -<p> -The five brothers were keen sportsmen, hard riders, men -of their hands, high-couraged, adventurous, talented in -affairs, winning friendship and affection wherever they went. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxviii"></a>xviii}</span> -Lord John-Henry, fifth Marquess, the eldest brother, -inherited the family tradition of good landlordship. There -was never any oppression of tenants on the Waterford -estate. In the House of Lords and in the country, Lord -Waterford took a strenuous part in the troubled and complex -issues of Irish politics; although during the last years -of his life he was crippled and helpless, the result of an -accident which befell him in the hunting field. Lord William -won the V.C. by an act of cool and audacious gallantry in -the Zulu war of 1879; renowned for reckless hardihood, -there was hardly a bone in his body which he had not -broken; and it is probable that his injuries, diminishing his -powers of resistance, caused him to succumb to his last -illness. Lord Charles has broken his chest-bone,—a piece -of which was cut out in his boyhood, leaving a cavity,—pelvis, -right leg, right hand, foot, five ribs, one collar-bone -three times, the other once, his nose three times; but owing -to his extraordinary physique and strict regimen, he is -younger and stronger at the time of writing than most men -of half his age. -</p> - -<p> -The family home of the five brothers was Curraghmore, -a noble estate lying some twelve miles west of Waterford. -The great house stands in a cup of the hills, whose slopes -are clothed with woods of oak, the primæval forest of -Ireland. The oak woods adjoining the house were planted -with the design of supplying timber to the Royal Navy. -Built foursquare, like most houses in Ireland, the mansion -faces upon a vast gravelled quadrangle, closed in on left -and right by the long ranges of stables. Beyond the lawns -of the terraced garden, beyond the hanging woods, the bony -shoulders of the mountains of Comeragh hunch upon the -changing sky; nearer hand, darkens the lone hill of -Croughaun; and day and night the noise of running waters, -the voice of the Clodagh River, flowing through tawny -shallow and sombre pool, breaking white-maned upon rock -and fall, rises upon the quiet air. Looking westward from -the bare summit of the hill above the deer-park, you shall -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxix"></a>xix}</span> -view the rich valley parcelled into garden and farm and -paddock, which are set among deep groves; in the midst, -flanked by a gleam of water, the house darkens upon the -westering sunlight; and beyond, the sparkling landscape -fades into the profound and aerial blue of the mountain -wall. Eastward, the rounded bosses of the forest clothe -the hills; and in the valley's gentle opening, the river Suir, -like a scimitar laid on cloth of tapestry, glimmers dark and -bright upon the plain, which, studded with woods and -dotted with white specks of villages, stretches to where the -dim sea-line merges in the sky. -</p> - -<p> -Over yonder, cloven through the heart of the ancient -woods, a green drive rises to the skyline, bordered on -either side by rhododendrons, like huge ropes of jewels, -three miles long. In the forest there is silence. Few birds or -none nest in that deep labyrinth of silver-barked and shaggy -trees, rooted for centuries in the mould of their own -perennial decay. The martin-cat is lord of that hoary solitude. -As a boy, Lord Charles trapped the martin-cats, and -presented his mother with a muff made from their skins. -</p> - -<p> -High on the hill rising to the north of the house of -Curraghmore, set in a grove of beeches and enclosed within -a wall, the last resting-place of the Beresfords opens upon -a great and shining prospect of wood and mountain. Here -is a wide and broad stone platform, like an ancient altar, -the hue of rusty iron, compact of the granite slabs whereon -the names of the dead are graven. On three sides it is -walled with the tall silver stems of beeches, whose branches -high overhead interlace in a green canopy. -</p> - -<p> -Hard by stands the private chapel, once the parish -church of Clonegam, a bleak and an unfeatured edifice. -Within, there reclines the bronze effigy of the third -Marquess, he of the aquiline profile and the full beard, who -broke his neck out hunting in 1859. Opposite to him lies -the white marble figure, urbane and majestic, of Lord John, -his successor, father of Lord Charles Beresford. In the -south wall of the chancel, in an arched recess cut out of the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxx"></a>xx}</span> -thickness of the wall, the white light falls from an unseen -opening above upon the sculptured figure of a lady, sleeping -recumbent, and beside her nestles the tiny form of her -child. She was the first wife of the fifth Marquess, and -she died in childbirth. Near by the private chapel, high -uplifted on the bare shoulder of the hill, stands a round -tower, a mark for leagues, the monument set up to the -memory of the little boy, Marcus, Lord le Poer, heir to Lord -Tyrone, afterwards first Marquess. He died from the -effects of a fall from his pony, the accident occurring when -he was jumping hurdles just outside the great courtyard of -the house. His portrait, painted by Gainsborough, hangs -in the drawing-room. It is a noble head, done with -Gainsborough's inimitable delicacy. The lad's blue eyes gaze -frankly out of the picture; his fair hair curls upon his -shoulders; his coat is scarlet, with the open falling collar of -the time; the face is of a singular beauty. -</p> - -<p> -Near by, in the centre of the wall, hangs Sir Joshua -Reynolds's portrait of Sir Francis Delaval, K.B. A -tremendous figure, Sir Francis, posed in a commanding attitude -upon a hillside, right arm extended, grasping a musket -with fixed bayonet, and clad in a rich suit of claret colour -and cocked hat. He was the uncle of the wife of the second -Marquess of Waterford. By reason of that alliance, many -of the Delaval family pictures came to Curraghmore. -</p> - -<p> -Here is Lord Delaval himself, who died in 1808, a -nobleman of a somewhat rugged and domineering countenance. -Here is the first Marquess of Waterford, with a long hooked -nose; he is thin-lipped, narrow-eyed (it seems that he had -a squint), wearing the ribbon and star of a Knight of -St. Patrick. Henry, second Marquess, was painted by Sir -Thomas Lawrence; a handsome head, crowned with a mass -of fine light hair. In the hall hangs the portrait of the -third Marquess; he whose bronze effigy lies in the chapel. -He is reading. With his pale and finely cast features, his -thick brown hair and beard, he might have been (but was -not) an ascetic student. He married the Hon. Louisa -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxxi"></a>xxi}</span> -Stuart, second daughter and co-heiress of Charles, Lord -Stuart dc Rothesay. The Marchioness was a lady of taste, -and was considered the most talented amateur painter of -her day. She laid out anew the gardens, where heretofore -the horses used to graze close to the house, took great -interest in the improvement of the mansion itself, designed -the Cawnpore Memorial, designed Ford village, formerly -the property of the Delavals in Northumberland, and -achieved a series of cartoons representing religious subjects, -which adorn the walls of the school at Ford. -</p> - -<p> -These and many other ancestral portraits gaze from the -walls of gallery and hall and chamber, in the great house -of Curraghmore. Each generation as it grew up has traced -in them its own lineaments fore-ordained, and has marked -the miracle of heredity repeated again and again, from Sir -Tristram Beresford, darkling in full armour, through the -masterful Katherine le Poer and the beautiful Susanna -Carpenter, whose mother was a Delaval, to the penultimate -head of the house of De la Poer Beresford. -</p> - -<p> -The entrance hall of the mansion of Curraghmore is the -ancient keep, which was built by the De la Poers in the -late twelfth or early thirteenth century, foursquare, the walls -ten feet thick. The rest of the house is eighteenth century. -The original edifice is briefly described in <i>The Antient and -Present State of the County and City of Waterford</i>, by -Charles Smith, published in Dublin in 1740, and in <i>The -History, Topography and Antiquities of the County and City -of Waterford</i>, by the Rev. R. H. Ryland, published by -Murray in 1824. Sir Marcus, first Earl of Tyrone, and his -son, afterwards first Marquess of Waterford, made considerable -additions, which, according to the date inscribed upon -the lead work, were completed in 1771. From the old keep, -transformed into an eighteenth-century entrance hall, a -flight of steps leads to the inner hall, whence a wide -staircase rises, following the walls, and out of which open the -reception rooms. These face upon lawn and fountain and -terrace. Over the entrance door are carved the family coat; -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxxii"></a>xxii}</span> -and the crest of the De la Poers, a stag couchant bearing a -cross upon his forehead, crowns the parapet. Upon the -garden front are sculptured the Beresford shield and their -crest, "a dragon's head erased, the neck pierced with a -tilting spear, and holding the point broken off in the -mouth." Motto, <i>Nil nisi cruce</i>. -</p> - -<p> -Such was the home of the five brothers, when their -father, Lord John dc la Poer Beresford, in holy orders, -succeeded his brother in 1859. Lord Charles Beresford, -who had been for some years at school in England, joined -the Navy in that year. He came to Curraghmore in his -brief and widely spaced intervals of leave, while his brothers -came home more frequently during their vacations. In -those days, the stables were filled with horses, the house -was populous with guests; and the great courtyard in front -of the house, now silent, resounded with the cheery bustle -of a jovial company coming and going. All winter the -house was thronged; there was hunting six days in the -week; and more than a hundred horses were stabled at -Curraghmore. Lord Charles Beresford has told how that -many a time, when, as a midshipman, he was humping beef -into the blood-boats for the Fleet, did he think not without -envy upon his brothers, each with his two or three hunters, -riding to hounds at Curraghmore. -</p> - -<p> -The house of Beresford derives from the "very old -and eminent English family of Beresford of Beresford, in -the county of Stafford," and from the De la Poers, an -ancient Breton family, and their quarterings include the -noble houses of Hamilton, Monck, Carpenter, Plantagenet, -Lastile and Leon, Mortimer, De Burgh, Holland, Wake, -Wevill, Beauchamp, Delaval, Blake. The Beresfords represented -the English plantation in the North of Ireland, until -the marriage was made which united them with De la Poers, -who were of the first English plantation in the South. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-xxii"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-xxii.jpg" alt="SIR JOHN DE LA POER BERESFORD, FOURTH MARQUESS OF WATERFORD, FATHER OF LORD CHARLES BERESFORD. CHRISTINA, WIFE OF THE FOURTH MARQUESS OF WATERFORD, MOTHER OF LORD CHARLES BERESFORD" /> -<br /> -SIR JOHN DE LA POER BERESFORD, FOURTH MARQUESS OF <br /> -WATERFORD, FATHER OF LORD CHARLES BERESFORD. <br /> -<br /> -CHRISTINA, WIFE OF THE FOURTH MARQUESS OF WATERFORD, <br /> -MOTHER OF LORD CHARLES BERESFORD -</p> - -<p> -Tristram Beresford came into Ireland in the reign of -James I., as manager of the corporation of Londoners, -known as "The Society of the New Plantation in Ulster." -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxxiii"></a>xxiii}</span> -The first Tristram settled at Coleraine, in county -Londonderry. His son, Sir Tristram, first Baronet, in common -with the first created Baronets of Ulster, bore on his shield -the open red hand of Ulster, hitherto borne by the forfeited -O'Neils. Sir Randal, second Baronet, sat in the first -Parliament held after the Restoration. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Tristram, his son, commanded a regiment of foot -against King James II., and was attainted. He it was who -married the Hon. Nicola Sophia Hamilton, concerning -whom a legend of the supernatural is current. Briefly, it -is that the friend of her early years, the Earl of Tyrone, -visited her after his death, according to agreement, and, to -prove the reality of his appearance, touched her wrist, -shrivelling nerve and sinew, so that ever afterwards she wore -a bracelet of black velvet. A picture, supposed to represent -this lady, hangs in Curraghmore. It must be said that the -evidence of it extant is so highly dubious, that the story is -not worth telling in detail. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Tristram was succeeded by his son, Sir Marcus, -fourth Baronet, who married the Lady Katherine de la Poer, -who was Baroness in her own right. Thus the two houses -were conjoined. Lady Katherine was the only daughter -and heiress of James, third and last Earl of Tyrone. She -was allowed the Barony of La Poer in fee by resolution of -the Irish House of Lords, on 16th November 1767. Sir -Marcus her husband was created Earl of Tyrone in 1746. -The son of Sir Marcus and Lady Katherine, George De la -Poer, was created Marquess of Waterford in 1789, and -Knight of St. Patrick at the Institution of the Order in -1783. First Marquess, he was the first De la Poer Beresford. -</p> - -<p> -The De la Poer, Power, or Poher, family traces its -descent from Comorre I., Count of le Poher, who married the -widow of Jonas, King of Domnonée, and who died A.D. 554. -Le Poher was one of the five independent states of Brittany, -of which the others were La Domnonée, La Cornouailles, Le -Vannes, and Le Leon. The genealogy of the Le Poers is -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxxiv"></a>xxiv}</span> -interesting, if only by reason of its romantic names. From -Comorre I., Count of le Poher, descended the Counts -Comorre, Erispoë, Rivallon, Nominoë. Nominoë married -one Argantal, defeated Charles the Bald, drove the Franks -out of Brittany, and was proclaimed King of that country -in 841. He was succeeded by his son Erispoë, who married -Mormohec. From the aforesaid Rivallon descended -Salomon, who (having achieved a little murderous intrigue) -succeeded King Erispoë, and married Wembrit. From the -brother of Salomon, Mathuedoi, descended Alain, Count of -Vannes and Duke of Brittany, who fought against the -Normans, and who was driven by them to take refuge in -England. His son Alain (called Barbe-torte) returned to -Brittany, drove out the Normans in his turn, and united Le -Poer to the Duchy. -</p> - -<p> -From the Pohers, in the female line, descended Arthur, -Duke of Brittany, who was done to death by John, King of -England, A.D. 1203. There is this other link between John -of England and the De la Poers, that in the demesne of -Curraghmore an ancient bridge of stone, over which the -English King is said to have passed, spans the river and -is called John's Bridge to this day. From the Duchess -Constance, the mother of Arthur of Brittany, descended -the Duchess Anne, who married King Louis XII. of France. -Brittany was thus incorporated in France. -</p> - -<p> -The Pohers seem to have come to England with Duke -William of Normandy, called the Conqueror. In 1066 -they are found in Devonshire; and later, in Leicestershire, -Northamptonshire, Shropshire, Warwickshire, Gloucestershire, -Wiltshire, Herefordshire; a fructuous and an acquisitive -clan. They came to Ireland in the reign of the second -Henry: then came Sir Robert, Sir Roger, William and -Simon. Sir Roger helped in the invasion of Ulster. But -the founder of the De la Poers of Curraghmore was Sir -Robert, who, in the year 1172, accompanied King Henry II. as -Knight Marshal, and to whom was given by the King, the -town of Waterford and a great parcel of county Waterford. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxxv"></a>xxv}</span> -</p> - -<p> -Towards the end of the sixteenth century, Sir Henry -Sidney, in the course of his account of the province of -Munster, communicated to the Lords of the Council, -describes his visit to John, Lord le Poer, who was born in -1527. "27th Feb., 1575. The day I departed from -Waterford I lodged that night at Curraghmore, the house that -Lord Power is baron of, where I was so used, and with -such plenty and good order entertained (as adding to it the -quiet of all the country adjoining, by the people called -Power country, for that surname has been since the beginning -of the Englishman's planting inhabitants there), it may -be well compared with the best ordered country in the -English Pale. And the Lord of the country, though he be -of scope of ground a far less territory than his neighbour -is, yet he lives in show far more honourably and plentifully -than he or any other, whatsoever he be, of his calling that -lives in his province." -</p> - -<p> -The "Peerage of Ireland" of 1768 urbanely observes: -"It is very remarkable, that in so long a succession in this -family, and in a country continually disturbed and torn by -rebellion and civil wars, that not one of this family was ever -engaged in any rebellion against the crown of England, nor -was there ever a forfeiture in the family during the space of -six hundred years that they have been planted in Ireland; -and they at this day enjoy the family lands, and reside at -the same place they were originally settled in, in the county -of Waterford. In a grant of letters patent from King -Charles II. to this Richard, Lord la Poer, bearing date the -9th May, the twenty-third year of his reign, there is this -recital. That the ancestors of the said Richard, Lord la -Poer, from their first planting in Ireland, for above four -hundred years, had entirely preserved their faith and -loyalty to the crown of England, in consideration therefore," -etc. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Tristram Beresford, up in the North, fought against -King James Second; but the De la Poers harboured that -monarch; who in the course of his retreat from Ireland, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxxvi"></a>xxvi}</span> -slept a night at Curraghmore, and departing thence took -ship at Waterford, and was no more seen in Erin. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Marcus, the son of Sir Tristram, as above recited, -united the two houses by marrying the Lady Katherine le -Poer; and their descendants, as in 1768, "at this day enjoy -the family lands and reside at the same place they were -originally settled in." The earldom of Tyrone, which was -extinguished by the death of Lady Katherine's father, the -third Earl, was revived in Sir Marcus Beresford. Tracing -back the direct line of the De la Poers of Curraghmore, we -find that Nicholas de la Poer was summoned to Parliament -in 1375, in 1378, and in 1383, by the most ancient writs -contained in the Rolls Office in Ireland. This Sir Nicholas -of Curraghmore traced his descent from Brian Boru, King -of Erin, who died in 1014. The line of Irish Kings (as -recorded in <i>Whitaker's Almanack</i>) goes back to A.D. 4; and -some say much further. -</p> - -<p> -A collateral branch of the De Pohers, or Powers, was -the Barons of Donoyle, or Dunhill, the ruins of whose castle -remain to this day. It was stoutly defended against -Cromwell by the Baroness; and, according to tradition, was -betrayed into the hands of the enemy by the lieutenant of -her garrison. These Powers were then transplanted to -Connaught, and their estates were forfeited. Another collateral -branch was the Powers of Knockbrit, county Tipperary. -In the year 1789, to Edmund Power and his wife, who was -a daughter of "Buck" Sheehy, was born Marguerite, who -became Lady Blessington. It seems that her father, -"Buck" Power, dissipated his fortune, as the mode was in -those days; that he compelled his daughter to marry one -Captain Farmer, who ill-treated her; that Mrs. Farmer left -her husband, came to London with her brother, was painted -by Sir Thomas Lawrence, and, after Farmer's death, married -Lord Blessington. Here is a link with my Lord Byron. -</p> - -<p> -The relation of the De la Poer Beresfords with the -Delavals of Seaton-Delaval in Northumberland, consists in -the marriage of Sir Henry de la Poer, second Marquess -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxxvii"></a>xxvii}</span> -(1772-1826), with Lady Susanna Carpenter, who was the -granddaughter of Lord Delaval. Her mother, daughter -of Lord Delaval, married George, second Earl of Tyrconnel. -The Lady Tyrconnel was famed for her beauty. The -portrait of her daughter, Lady Susanna, now at Curraghmore, -represents a singularly beautiful, fair-haired creature, -delicately featured, blue-eyed. The Delavals would seem -to have been a high-spirited, reckless, and spendthrift race. -Extravagant entertainments were devised at their house of -Seaton-Delaval, which was built by Sir John Vanbrugh, -playwright and architect. The actor Foote was a friend -of the family; they were devoted to amateur theatricals; -and Garrick once lent Drury Lane Theatre to them. The -Delavals were singularly addicted to practical jokes; a -tendency to the same diversion has reappeared in later -generations. Lord Delaval's only son died young, and the -title expired. There is a picture of the sturdy, brown-haired -lad at Curraghmore. It is worth noting that an ancestor -of Lady Susanna, and, therefore, of Lord Charles Beresford, -was a naval officer of some distinction. George Delaval, -vice-admiral of the Red, was present at the action fought -off Cape Barfleur in May 1692. -</p> - -<p> -The generation of the second Marquess, he who married -the Lady Susanna, produced an Archbishop: even the -Right Honourable and Most Reverend Lord John George -de la Poer Beresford, Archbishop of Armagh and Primate -of all Ireland. He was born in 1773, and died in 1862. -Possessing great wealth, he was known for his immense -benefactions. He gave largely to Dublin University, and -to the College of Saint Columba; restored the Cathedral -at Armagh at a cost of £30,000; and augmented the salaries -of his clergy. The bust of this magnificent prelate stands -in the private chapel at Curraghmore. His body is interred -in Armagh Cathedral. The Archbishop bequeathed his -Property in county Cavan to Lord Charles Beresford; the -townlands on the estate bearing such euphonious names -as Ballyheady, Corraleehan Beg, Crockawaddy, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxxviii"></a>xxviii}</span> -Kiltynaskeelan, Derrynacrieve, Gubnagree, Scrabby, -Tullynamoultra. -</p> - -<p> -The third Marquess, Sir Henry de la Poer, having met -his death in the hunting-field, was succeeded in 1859 by -his brother, Sir John, who was Dean and Prebendary of -Mullaghbrack, in the Arch-diocese of Armagh. He married, -in 1843, Christina Leslie, daughter of Charles Powell-Leslie. -She was born in 1820, and lived until 1905. The Marchioness -learned to ride when she was between forty and fifty -years of age, and speedily became a noted rider to hounds. -Their sons, as before recited, were Sir John-Henry de la -Poer, fifth Marquess of Waterford; Lord Charles, Lord -William, Lord Marcus, and Lord Delaval; of whom Lord -Charles and Lord Marcus survive at the time of writing. -Lord Charles was born on 10th February 1846 at Philipstown -Glebe, Louth. It was the year of the great famine; -and at Curraghmore, half a regiment was then quartered in -the house. -</p> - -<p> -The fifth Marquess, elder brother of Lord Charles, was -succeeded in 1895 by his son, nephew to Lord Charles. -The sixth Marquess lost his life by a sad accident in 1911. -The present heir is a minor. -</p> - -<p> -In this chronicle, brief as it is, three notable figures -cannot be omitted: Mr. Commissioner John Beresford, -Admiral Sir John Poo Beresford, and the Marshal. (For -information concerning these worthies, I have drawn upon -the <i>Dictionary of National Biography</i>.) -</p> - -<p> -John Beresford, whose name is even yet occasionally -reproached by the descendants of his political opponents, -was born in 1738, and died in 1805. He was the second -son of Marcus, Earl of Tyrone (brother of the first Marquess) -and Lady Katherine, Baroness de la Poer. Appointed -First Commissioner of Revenue in 1780, John Beresford -became in fact ruler of Ireland. He was entrusted by Pitt -with the management of all Irish affairs. Viceroys came -and viceroys went, but Beresford continued to hold a -position "greater than that of the Lord Lieutenant -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxxix"></a>xxix}</span> -himself"; much to the indignation of Lord Fitzwilliam, who, -when he was appointed Lord Lieutenant, permitted himself -to address the First Commissioner in terms so indigestible -that Beresford promptly challenged him. The duel, -however, was prevented. John Beresford took a great part -in the preparation and passing of the Act of Union; was -M.P. for Waterford and a Privy Councillor; and did much -to improve the city of Dublin, the fine Custom-house being -built under his auspices. He married Barbara Montgomery, -who was one of the "Three Graces" in the painting done -by Sir Joshua Reynolds, now in the National Gallery. The -other two Graces were her sister, Lady Mountjoy, and the -Marchioness of Townshend. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral Sir John Poo Beresford (1768 (?)-1884) was a -natural son of the first Marquess of Waterford. He entered -the Royal Navy in 1782; fought a smart action in the -capture of the French store-ships in Hampton Roads on -17th May 1795; and performed distinguished service in the -West Indies. He took part in the famous eight months' -blockade off Ferrol in 1808, and in the blockade of Lorient, -commanding one of those "weather-beaten ships upon which -the Grand Army never looked." In 1810 he was co-operating -off Lisbon with Wellington's army, with which his -younger brother the Marshal, in command of the Portuguese -Army, was also co-operating. He represented in Parliament, -in succession, Coleraine, Berwick, Northallerton, and -Chatham. In 1835 he was Junior Lord of the Admiralty. -His career, a combination of fighting seaman, member of -Parliament, and Junior Lord, presents a singular resemblance -to the career of his relative, Lord Charles Beresford. -</p> - -<p> -Marshal Beresford, or, more precisely, General Viscount -William Carr Beresford, was born in 1768 and died, full of -years and honours, in 1854. Son of the first Marquess, he -also, like the Admiral, bore the bar sinister on his -escutcheon. As captain of the 69th Regiment, he was with -Lord Hood at Toulon in 1793, and commanded the storming -party at the tower of Martello. He was present at the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxxx"></a>xxx}</span> -captures of Bastia, Calvi, and San Fiorenzo. After service -in India, Beresford's brigade led the march across the desert -in the Egyptian campaign of 1801. Eighty-four years later, -his relative, Captain Lord Charles Beresford, took his Naval -Brigade across the desert with Sir Herbert Stewart's forlorn -hope. -</p> - -<p> -Beresford was present at the capture of Cape Colony -under Baird in 1805. Then he went up to Buenos Ayres, -and with 1200 men took that place from the Spanish. -After three days' hard fighting, Beresford was driven out of -Buenos Ayres by an overwhelming force. Then he went -with Sir Arthur Wellesley to Portugal; where he commanded -two brigades under Sir John Moore. In the terrible -winter retreat to Corunna, Beresford's brigade, told off to -assist the rescue, was constantly engaged with the French -vanguard. At Corunna, Beresford fought on the English -left, achieving the greatest distinction. -</p> - -<p> -In 1809, at the request of the Portuguese Government, -Beresford was appointed to reorganise the Portuguese Army. -Gifted with that marvellous capacity for handling men and -for organisation, which Irishmen of English descent sometimes -combine with a reckless gallantry, Beresford speedily -transformed an ill-found, insubordinate mob into an -efficient, well-fed, fighting force. He knew how to establish -obedience to discipline, together with the confidence that -good conduct would be rewarded; or, in Lord Charles -Beresford's phrase, he coupled "commendation with -condemnation." The Portuguese Government made him -marshal in the Portuguese Army while he was -lieutenant-general in the British Army; nor did the annoyance -discovered by British officers at the double rank, which gave -Wellington trouble, perturb the Marshal in the least. His -Portuguese fought well alongside the English at Busaco, -an action which earned Beresford the K.C.B. and other -decorations. -</p> - -<p> -He won the battle of Albuera, defeating Soult, though -not without heavy losses. The victory was said to be due -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxxxi"></a>xxxi}</span> -to the action of one of his Staff, rather than to Beresford's -tactics; a good deal of controversy was waged on the -subject, in which the Marshal, after his retirement, took a -vigorous part; but the fact remains that Albuera was won. -</p> - -<p> -Beresford was present at the tremendous siege of -Badajoz and at the battle of Salamanca, at which he was -severely wounded. He speedily recovered, and fought at -Vittoria in 1813, in the battles of the Pyrenees, and in the -battles of Nivelle, Nive, and Arthez. He then returned to -Portugal to command the Portuguese Army; so that he was -not present at Waterloo. At the conclusion of the war he -was created Baron. He left Portugal in 1822, and took -his seat in the House of Lords, where he was a sturdy -supporter of the policy of the Duke of Wellington. In -1828 he was appointed Master-General of Ordnance. In -1830 he retired. -</p> - -<p> -Wellington wrote of the Marshal in 1812: "All that I can -tell you is that the ablest man I have yet seen with the -army, and that one having the largest views, is Beresford -... he is the only person capable of conducting a large -concern." And upon another occasion, Wellington affirmed -that if he were removed by death or illness, he would -recommend Beresford to succeed him, not because he was -a great general, but because he alone could "feed an -army." -</p> - -<p> -General Lord Beresford married the Hon. Louisa Hope, -his first cousin, daughter of the Most Rev. William -Beresford, Archbishop of Tuam and Lord Decies, and widow of -Thomas Hope, author of <i>Anastatius</i>. His stepson was -A. T. Beresford-Hope, sometime member for Cambridge -University. -</p> - -<p> -In 1824 the Marshal purchased the ancestral estate of -the Beresfords in Staffordshire. His portrait, which bears -a singular resemblance to Lord Charles, hangs in Curraghmore. -It depicts a burly, martial figure, gorgeous in full -uniform, with a broad, jovial, open countenance, and a bold -blue eye, head thrown back, and a vast spread of chest and -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="Pxxxii"></a>xxxii}</span> -shoulder. Endowed with extraordinary physical strength, -he was a born fighter, a great administrator, a big, -warm-hearted, quick-tempered, irrepressible Beresford. -</p> - -<p> -The formal list of his titles is: Viscount and Baron in -the peerage of England, Duke of Elvas in the peerage of -Spain, Conde de Trancoso in the peerage of Portugal, -K.C.B., etc., colonel-in-chief 60th Rifles, colonel 16th -Regiment, general in the English Army, marshal in the -Portuguese Army. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -The generations pass: the House remains. The House -of de la Poer Beresford derives, from among other sources -innumerable, from the Counts of Brittany, in the sixth -century; from Brian Boru, King of Ireland, in the eleventh; -from the Beresfords, that "very old and eminent English -family," Norman in origin; from the Delavals of Northumberland, -whose forefathers fought in the Crusades. This is -the virtue of ancient lineage: that from generation to -generation, an honourable tradition of service, of peculiar -obligation, gathers reinforcement. Every scion of the House -is judged by the stern company of his forefathers; who, -together with his dower of body and of mind and heritage -of land or wealth, bequeath him warning or example. No -traffic in titles can purchase that unique inheritance, nor -can any forfeiture of material possessions diminish its -essential value. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -L.C.C. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap01"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P1"></a>1}</span></p> - -<h2> -THE MEMOIRS OF ADMIRAL -<br /> -LORD CHARLES BERESFORD -</h2> - -<p><br /></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER I -<br /> -I SEE THE FLEET -</h3> - -<p> -I saw the Navy for the first time in the year 1858, -when I was twelve years old. The Channel Squadron -came into the Downs; the admiral, who was a friend -of my father, invited me to visit his flagship. The admiral -put off from Deal in a six-oared galley, and I was taken -into a second boat. Both crews began to pull with all their -might. I remember being intensely excited, beating with -my hand on the gunwale and urging the men to row faster. -We were overhauling the admiral, when the boat in which -I was slackened her pace. -</p> - -<p> -"Row!" I shouted. "Why don't you go on rowing?" -</p> - -<p> -"We can't pass the admiral, sir," said the coxswain. -And that was my first lesson in naval etiquette. -</p> - -<p> -As we drew near to the ships, there arose a great tumult -of shouting, and I could see the men running to and fro and -racing aloft, and presently they stood in rows along the -yards, manning yards in honour of the arrival of the -admiral. -</p> - -<p> -The neatness and order of the stately ships, the taut -rigging, the snowy sails, the ropes coiled down neatly on -deck: these things left an abiding impression upon my -youthful mind. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P2"></a>2}</span> -</p> - -<p> -It was in the winter of the same year, 1858-9, that a -certain young soldier, who had fought throughout the -Indian Mutiny with great gallantry and conspicuous ability, -came to his home in County Waterford on his first furlough. -He was Lieutenant Roberts, V.C.; now Field-Marshal Earl -Roberts of Kandahar. -</p> - -<p> -"During the winter months," he writes, "I hunted with -the Curraghmore hounds, and was out with them the day -before Lord Waterford was killed. We had no run, and at -the end of the day, when wishing us good-bye, he said -'I hope, gentlemen, we shall have better luck next time.' -'Next time' there was 'better luck' as regarded the hunting, -but the worst of all possible luck for Lord Waterford's -numerous friends; in returning home after a good run, and -having killed two foxes, his horse stumbled over quite a -small ditch, throwing his rider on his head; the spinal cord -was snapped, and the fine sportsman breathed his last in -a few moments." (<i>Forty-one years in India</i>. By -Field-Marshal Lord Roberts of Kandahar. Bentley. 2 vols. -London, 1897, p. 451, vol. 1.) -</p> - -<p> -My father, the Rev. Lord John Beresford, succeeded to -the marquisate. In the same year, 1859, I joined the Naval -Service. I remember, some years afterwards, thinking with -some degree of envy of my two younger brothers, each of -whom had three hunters, while I was only the "blood-boat" -(the jolly-boat bringing beef to the ship) midshipman of a -man-of-war. -</p> - -<p> -At that time the Navy consisted of both sailing ships and -steamships. Steam was used as seldom as possible in those -ships which were fitted with masts and yards. The flagships -of the Cape of Good Hope, East Indies and China, South-east -Coast of America, Pacific and North America and West -Indies stations were all sailing ships. The Navy List of -1859 gives the names of no less than 548 "effective" ships, -together with a list of 185 "steam gunboats" and a list of -121 vessels employed in Harbour Service. -</p> - -<p> -That there was so large a number of "steam gunboats" -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P3"></a>3}</span> -was the result of the Crimean war, during which very -many were built for service in the Baltic. There is a story -that an admiral returning from foreign service noticed eight -gunboats aground on the Spit. Upon his inquiry, he was -informed by one of his crew that they were "commanded -by these old Baltic War mates and second masters, the -sort what knows nothing and fears nothing." But of the -sailing master there will be more to say. -</p> - -<p> -The line-of-battle sailing ships which were flagships on -naval stations abroad were:—the <i>Boscawen</i>, 70 guns, -Rear-Admiral Hon. Sir Frederick W. Grey, Cape of Good Hope; -<i>Calcutta</i>, 84, Rear-Admiral Sir Michael Seymour, East -Indies and China; <i>Cumberland</i>, 70, Rear-Admiral Sir -Stephen Lushington, S.E. Coast of America; <i>Ganges</i>, 84, -Rear-Admiral R. L. Baynes, Pacific; <i>Hibernia</i>, 104, -Rear-Admiral H. J. Codrington, Malta; <i>Indus</i>, 78, Vice-Admiral -Sir Houston Stewart, North America and West Indies. -</p> - -<p> -The number of ships distributed among the various -stations in 1859 was no less than 130. "Trade follows -the flag." -</p> - -<pre> - East Indies and China . . . . . . . 36 - Pacific . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 - W. Coast of Africa . . . . . . . . 17 - N. America and W. Indies . . . . . 14 - S.E. Coast of America . . . . . . . 13 - Mediterranean . . . . . . . . . . . 22 - Cape of Good Hope . . . . . . . . . 5 - Australia . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 - River Gambia . . . . . . . . . . . 1 - Channel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 - --- - Total 130 - === -</pre> - -<p> -The presence of so large a force in Chinese waters was -due to the affair of "the lorcha <i>Arrow</i>," which occurred on -8th October, 1856, in the Canton River. The <i>Arrow</i>, a small -vessel flying the British flag, was captured by the Chinese -authorities and the crew were arrested on a charge of piracy. -In the result, Admiral Sir Michael Seymour bombarded -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P4"></a>4}</span> -Canton. Operations were suspended during the Indian -Mutiny, to be resumed in 1858, with the assistance of -France. Canton was captured, and the treaty of Tien-Tsin -was concluded with China. It was not, however, ratified, -and in June, 1859—six months before I entered the -Navy—hostilities were resumed, to terminate in the burning of -the Summer Palace at Pekin, and the subsequent signing of -a convention. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap02"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P5"></a>5}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER II -<br /> -THE BEGINNING OF SERVICE -</h3> - -<p> -I was sent to sea for the somewhat vague reasons which -so often determine a boy's future. There was a belief -that I was of a delicate constitution, and an impression—perhaps -justified—that I needed discipline. I was sent -to Bayford School in England when I was very young, -together with two of my three brothers. We were known -as the three "wild Irish." Among my schoolfellows were -the present Lord Rosebery, James Lowther, Lord Newport, -Lord Claud Hamilton and Lord George Hamilton, Lord -Worcester, and Lord Methuen. From Bayford I went to the -educational establishment of the Rev. David Bruce Payne -(afterwards Canon) at Deal, where I first saw the ships of -the Royal Navy, as already related. Canon Payne was a -splendid type of the best British clergyman, and I had a -great respect and affection for him. I was afterwards a -pupil of the Rev. Mr. Foster, of Stubbington, Fareham. -</p> - -<p> -I received my nomination from Captain Charles Eden, -C.B., and qualified as a naval cadet on 12th December, 1859. -The qualifying certificate must be signed by the candidate; a -regulation which, simple as it seems, was nearly my undoing. -</p> - -<p> -"Do you always sign your Christian name William with -one 'l'?" asked the examiner. -</p> - -<p> -It was a critical moment. Irish resource supplied the -answer. -</p> - -<p> -I said, "Only sometimes, sir." -</p> - -<p> -The examiner smiled grimly. But he passed me. It -was my first narrow escape in the Navy. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P6"></a>6}</span> -</p> - -<p> -I have the faded blue paper before me as I write. The -signature, laboriously written in a round hand, is "Charles -Wiliam Delapoer Beresford." -</p> - -<p> -The qualifying examination was not very formidable in -those easy days. The knowledge required consisted of a -little "English," less French or Latin (with the "aid of a -dictionary"), a "satisfactory knowledge of the leading facts -of Scripture and English History," a certain amount of -geography, and an elementary knowledge of arithmetic, -algebra and Euclid. The preliminary course of education -afforded to "Volunteers," as the naval cadets used to be -called, at the Royal Naval College, Portsmouth, had been -abolished in 1837, and for the next twenty years cadets -were sent straight to sea. In 1857, cadets were entered for -training in the <i>Illustrious</i>, Captain Robert Harris. The -number of cadets exceeding the accommodation in the ship, -the <i>Britannia</i> was commissioned on 1st January, 1859, by -Captain Harris. But not for many years did the entrance -examination become the competitive ordeal for which -cramming is the only preparation, known to the present -generation. But I remember Admiral William Bowles, -commander-in-chief of Portsmouth, taking me kindly by -the shoulder and saying, "Well, my little man, you are very -small for your age. Why are you being sent to sea?" -</p> - -<p> -I said that I wanted to go to sea. -</p> - -<p> -"Are you good at your books?" asked the admiral. -"Bless me, I know many an admiral who could not pass -the examination you have passed. Good Heavens, what -they expect boys to do nowadays!" -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Britannia</i> was then moored at the entrance to -Haslar Creek in Portsmouth Harbour, where the depot -ships of the submarines are moored to-day. Alongside -her, in the following year, lay the training frigate <i>Eurydice</i>, -which was afterwards capsized off the Isle of Wight on -24th March, 1878, when 318 lives were lost out of a -complement of 320. I learned to heave the lead from the chains -of the <i>Eurydice</i>. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-006"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-006.jpg" alt="THE AUTHOR AS NAVAL CADET" /> -<br /> -THE AUTHOR AS NAVAL CADET -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P7"></a>7}</span> -</p> - -<p> -In addition to the ordinary school curriculum on board -the <i>Britannia</i>, the cadets were taught seamanship, gunnery -and navigation. Book-work did not interest me, but I took -great pains to become proficient in seamanship, in which -I always secured a high place. -</p> - -<p> -A cadet entering the <i>Britannia</i> under 14 years of age, -would be rejected from the Service if he failed to pass the -fourth quarterly examination after his entrance. Having -entered the <i>Britannia</i> in December, 1859, I was sent to sea -in March, 1861. I was very happy during my time in the -<i>Britannia</i>. Out of school time, we did a great deal of -boat-pulling. My boat was called the <i>Gazelle</i>. I remember -that one day, when I borrowed a private boat to put off to -the <i>Gazelle</i>, my comrades pushed me out into the stream, -and I drifted out to Spithead, without oars. There was -nothing in the boat but a painter, which I considered it -to be my duty neatly to coil down. Then I sat still and -waited until a boat came to fetch me. -</p> - -<p> -Seamanship was taught by the use of models, and -sail-drill was taught upon the mizen-mast. I remember being -haunted by a doubt lest the handling of small models, and -going aloft in a stationary ship, might not enable me to -practise the knowledge thus acquired when I came to deal -with the real full-size objects and to go aloft in a ship at -sea. My prevision was largely justified; and when I came -to command a ship, I made the youngsters learn their -business by handling real things and not the models of -them. For if anything goes wrong while teaching a -youngster, for instance, to lay out a 6-ton anchor upon a -model, he puts it right with his finger and thumb and thinks -he can do the same with the real anchor. -</p> - -<p> -The captain of the <i>Britannia</i> was Robert Harris, to -whom the Service owes the inestimable benefit of cadet -training ships. The first lieutenant was George S. Nares -(now Vice-Admiral Sir George S. Nares, K.C.B.). He -commanded the <i>Challenger</i> in her voyage of scientific -discovery of 1872, during which he was recalled to proceed -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P8"></a>8}</span> -upon his celebrated voyage of Arctic exploration. Another -lieutenant was William H. Heaton, whose long whiskers -afforded the cadets much innocent amusement. On a -windy day his whiskers used to stream backwards over his -shoulders. Lieutenant Heaton chose to wear his stripes -running longitudinally up his arm, a peculiarity which -exemplifies the prevailing latitude with regard to uniform. -There was no rule prescribing the pattern of cap or -great-coat worn in the Service. Officers might wear the mohair -band and badge on any kind of cap that took their fancy. -Some of them used to transfer plain clothes buttons to a -uniform coat or greatcoat, if they were going ashore, for the -sake of economy; for we were nearly all poor in those days. -The chaplain and naval instructor was the Rev. Robert -M. Inskip. -</p> - -<p> -My chest on board the <i>Britannia</i> stood between the -chests of poor "Andy" Wauchope and Henry John -Thoroton Hildyard. Both subsequently left the Navy for -the Army. The late Major-General Andrew Gilbert -Wauchope, D.S.O., was fatally wounded at Magersfontein -during the South African war. General Sir Henry -J. T. Hildyard, G.C.B., K.C.B., retired in 1911, after long and -distinguished service. I was strongly inclined to follow the -example of my comrades and to join the Army; and I have -since occasionally regretted that I remained in the Navy, -in which Service there is less opportunity for attaining the -highest rank. -</p> - -<p> -I was raised to the rank of "captain" in the <i>Britannia</i>; -but I regret to say that my enjoyment of that dignity was -singularly brief, for I was disrated upon the same day, -even before I had time to put on the stripe. For my -delight at my promotion so exhilarated me, that I forgot -to resist the temptation to empty a bread-barge upon the -head of the old master-at-arms as he was coming up the -hatchway, and the spectacle was so amusing that I stayed to -laugh at it. -</p> - -<p> -When I entered the Service, the system of training -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P9"></a>9}</span> -young seamen, as well as cadets, was in operation. To -Sir James Graham, First Lord of the Admiralty, is due the -credit of introducing the training of seamen. In 1854, -he caused the <i>Illustrious</i>, two-decker, to be commissioned -for that purpose, under the command of Captain Robert -Harris. The fact was that as sails gave place to steam and -as the science of gunnery progressed, it became necessary -to enter seamen as boys and to train them for continuous -service. For some time the short service and long service -systems were concurrent. When I went to sea, captains -still entered men direct from the merchant service, and very -good seamen they were. They were engaged for a commission, -at the end of which they could re-engage or not as -they pleased. But in the meantime, under the admirable -administration of Captain Harris, "Jimmy Graham's -novices," as they were called, earned an excellent reputation -in the Fleet; and continuous service gradually replaced -intermittent service. In the continuous service system -resided our chief superiority over foreign Navies. The -objection to it on the part of the Government was (and is) -the increasing permanent charge of pensions. But in the -interests of the Service and of the country, it cannot be too -clearly understood that the system is well worth the cost, -and that the revival of the short service system is profoundly -to be regretted. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> -NOTE -</p> - -<p> -H.M.S. <i>Britannia</i>.—She was the seventh ship of her -name. She was launched at Plymouth in 1820, was pierced -for 120 guns, and her complement was 900 men. Her -length, beam and draught were 205 feet, 53 feet and 18 feet -respectively. In the Crimean war, she landed 200 men -as part of the naval brigade which assisted the Army at -the siege of Sevastopol, and took part in the bombardment -of that town. She was commissioned on 1st January, 1859, -by Captain Robert Harris, as a training ship for cadets. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P10"></a>10}</span> -The <i>Britannia</i> was stationed first in Portsmouth Harbour, -then at Dartmouth. She was broken up in 1869. The -memory of Captain Robert Harris deserves to be held in -high honour. Vice-Admiral Sir William Fanshawe Martin, -who himself achieved great reforms in the discipline of -the Fleet, while in command of the Mediterranean Fleet, -wrote to Captain Harris under date 18th January, 1861, -"There is no man in England whose opportunity of doing -good to our country for ages to come is greater than yours; -and assuredly the Navy is greatly your debtor." (<i>The Story of -the Britannia</i>, by Commander E. P. Statham, R.N. Cassell.) -</p> - -<p> -The successor of the <i>Britannia</i> in which Lord Charles -Beresford received his training, the eighth of her name, -known and remembered with affection by all naval officers -save the new generation, lay at Dartmouth for more than -forty years, when her functions were transferred to the -colleges on shore. (<i>The King's Ships</i>, by H. S. Lecky, -Lieut. R. N. Muirhead. Vol. 1.) -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap03"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P11"></a>11}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER III -<br /> -THE SHIP OF HAPPIEST MEMORY -</h3> - -<p> -On the 25th of March, 1861, I was appointed naval -cadet in the <i>Marlborough</i>. As I climbed up her side -by the hand-rungs, while my chest was being hoisted -in over all, I perceived two huge men looking down upon me, -and I heard one say to the other:— -</p> - -<p> -"That white-faced little beggar ain't long for this world, -Dick." -</p> - -<p> -The speaker was John Glanville (called Clamfy Glanville), -boatswain's mate (of whom more anon), and he addressed -this lugubrious remark to Dicky Horne, the quartermaster, -a very fat man. It was a far from encouraging welcome to -the sea; but the fact was that I had been ill, and was feeling -very cold as I climbed up the side of the ship. At first, I -was much disappointed at having been sent to a large -ship, for we youngsters had a notion that there were more -freedom and independence in a small ship; and besides, -I wanted to go to China. But I went to China all in -good time. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Marlborough</i> was the flagship of the Mediterranean -station. She was a wooden line of battleship, three-decker, -launched in 1835, 4000 tons burthen old measure, 6390 -displacement new measure, fitted with single screw horizontal -Maudslay engines. The length of her gundeck was 245 feet -6 inches, her extreme beam was 61 feet, her maximum -draught was 26 feet. Her complement was 950, and she -always carried 100 or more supernumeraries. She was -pierced for 131 guns and she carried 121 guns. She was -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P12"></a>12}</span> -one of the first ships to be fitted with wire lower rigging. -In the <i>Marlborough</i> the old 24-inch hemp cable was used for -laying out anchor at drill. It was the same class of cable as -that which was used in Nelson's time; it was superseded by -the chain cable. -</p> - -<p> -The vice-admiral in command of the Mediterranean -station was Sir William Fanshawe Martin (called "Fly" -Martin); the captain, William H. Stewart; the commander, -Thomas Brandreth: three of the finest officers that ever lived. -The captain of the Fleet was Rear-Admiral Sydney C. Dacres, -C.B. His duties were those of what we should now -call a chief of staff. The office was subsequently abolished; -and it was always my desire to see it restored. -</p> - -<p> -Ships in those days were manned according to the number -of guns they carried. The theory was that if the boats' -crews were absent from the ship, there should always be -sufficient men on board to work the sails and the guns. The -watch-bills were made out upon this principle, the men being -distributed among what were called the "parts of the -ship." In the case of a newly commissioned ship, the making out -of the watch-bills and assigning his place to each man, was -the first thing to be done. It was no small task, especially -as no printed forms were supplied for the purpose. The -watch-bills were ruled and entered by the officers on paper -supplied by themselves, and were arranged upon the tradition -handed down for centuries. Even the signalmen supplied -their own pencils and paper. Each ship made its own -arrangement. It was not until 1860 that uniform watch-bills, -quarter-bills and station-bills were instituted. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-012"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-012.jpg" alt="H.M.S. "MARLBOROUGH," 1861" /> -<br /> -H.M.S. "MARLBOROUGH," 1861 -</p> - -<p> -The men were classed in the following categories, each -"part of the ship" being divided into port watch and -starboard watch. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> - The Forecastlemen<br /> - The Foretopmen<br /> - The Maintopmen<br /> - The Mizentopmen<br /> - The Gunners<br /> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P13"></a>13}</span> - The Afterguard<br /> - The Royal Marines<br /> - The Idlers<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -The Forecastlemen were most experienced seamen. They -wore their caps a little differently from the others. They -manned the foreyard, and worked the foresail, staysail, jib, -flying jib, jibboom, flying jibboom and lower studdingsails. -</p> - -<p> -The Foretopmen worked the foretopsail, foretopgallant -and foreroyal yards, foretopgallantmast, foretopmast and -topgallant studding-sails. -</p> - -<p> -The Maintopmen worked the maintopsail, maintopgallant -and main-royal yards and maintopgallantmast, maintopmast -and topgallant studding-sails. -</p> - -<p> -The Mizentopmen worked the mizentopsail, mizentopgallant -and mizen-royal yards, and mizentopgallantmast, -mizentopmast and mizencourse (if there was one), also the -driver. -</p> - -<p> -The upper-yard men were the smartest in the ship, whose -character largely depended upon them. -</p> - -<p> -The Gunners, assisted by the Afterguard, worked the -mainsail and mainyard. These were generally old and steady -men, who were not very quick aloft. The gunners were -also responsible for the care and maintenance of the gun -gear, side tackles, train tackles and the ammunition. The -senior warrant officer was the gunner. -</p> - -<p> -There were only three warrant officers:—gunner, -boatswain and carpenter. -</p> - -<p> -The Royal Marines were divided between fore and aft, -working on forecastle and quarterdeck. I remember seeing -a detachment of Marines, upon coming aboard, fallen in -while the blacksmith, lifting up each man's foot behind him, -wrenched off and dropped into a bucket the metal on the -heel of his boot, lest it should mark the deck. -</p> - -<p> -The Afterguard worked on the quarterdeck and helped -with the mainyard. They were the less efficient men and -were therefore employed under the eye of the commander. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P14"></a>14}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The Idlers were not idlers. They were so called because -(theoretically) they had their nights in, although actually -they turned out at four o'clock a.m. They were artificers, -such as carpenters, caulkers, plumbers, blacksmiths, etc. -They worked all day at their several trades until their -supper-time. They were nearly all old petty officers, steady and -respectable. It was part of their duty to man the pumps -every morning for washing decks. I made up my mind -that, if ever I was in a position to do so, I would relieve them -of an irksome and an inappropriate duty. -</p> - -<p> -In action, the carpenters worked below decks, stopping -holes with shot-plugs, while many of the other Idlers worked -in the magazines. Among the Idlers was the ship's -musician—unless the ship carried a band—who was a fiddler. He -used to play to the men on the forecastle after working hours -and when they manned the capstan. Personally I always -considered the name of Idlers to be anomalous. They are -now called Daymen. -</p> - -<p> -Among the ship's company were several negroes. At -that time, it was often the case that the captain of the hold -and the cooper were coloured men. -</p> - -<p> -An instance of the rapidity and efficiency of the organisation -of the <i>Marlborough</i> occurred upon the night before she -sailed for the Mediterranean. She was newly commissioned, -and she carried a large number of supernumeraries on -passage. We took out 1500 all told. A fire broke out on -the orlop deck; the drum beat to quarters; every man -instantly went to his station, to which he had previously been -told off; and the fire was speedily extinguished. The event -was my first experience of discipline in a big ship. -</p> - -<p> -The nature of the discipline which was then in force, I -learned on the way out to the Mediterranean. In the modern -sense of the word, discipline was exemplified by the Royal -Marines alone. I cannot better convey an idea of the old -system than by means of an illustration. Supposing that a -Marine and a bluejacket had each committed an offence. -The Marine was brought up on the quarter-deck before the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P15"></a>15}</span> -commander, and the charge was read to him. The -commander asked him what he had to say. The prisoner, -standing rigidly to attention, embarked upon a long rambling -explanation. If his defence were invalid, the commander -cut him short, and the sergeant gave his order. "Right -turn. Quick march." The Marine, although continuing -to protest, obeyed automatically, and away he went. He -continued to talk until he was out of hearing, but he went. -Not so the bluejacket. He did not stand to attention, not -he. He shifted from one foot to the other, he hitched his -breeches, fiddled with his cap, scratched his head. -</p> - -<p> -"Well, sir," said he, "it was like this here, sir," ... and -he began to spin an interminable yarn. -</p> - -<p> -"That'll do, my man," quoth the commander. But, not -at all. "No, sir, look here, sir, what I wants to say is -this"—and so on, until the commander had to order a file of Marines -to march him below. -</p> - -<p> -But both Marine and bluejacket had this in common: -each would ask the commander to settle the matter rather -than let it go before the captain; and the captain, to -sentence him rather than hold a court-martial. -</p> - -<p> -The explanation of the difference between the old system -of discipline and the new is that in the sailing days it was of -the first importance that the seaman should be capable of -instant independent action. The soldier's uniformity and -military precision were wholly unsuited to the sailor, who, at -any moment, might have to tackle an emergency on his own -initiative. If a seaman of the old days noticed anything -wrong aloft, up he would run to put it right, without waiting -for orders. Life and death often hung upon his promptitude -of resource. -</p> - -<p> -In the old days, we would often overhear such a conversation -as the following:— -</p> - -<p> -Officer: "Why the blank dash didn't you blank well do -so-and-so when I told you?" -</p> - -<p> -Man: "Why didn't I? Because if I had I should have -been blank well killed and so would you." -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P16"></a>16}</span> -</p> - -<p> -Officer: "Damn you, sir, don't you answer me! I shall -put you in the report." -</p> - -<p> -Man: "Put me in the ruddy report, then." -</p> - -<p> -And the next day the commander, having heard both -sides, would say to the officer, -</p> - -<p> -"Why, the man was quite right." And to the man, "You -had no right to argue with the officer. Don't do it again. -Now get away with you to hell." -</p> - -<p> -And everyone would part the best of friends. -</p> - -<p> -The change came with the improvement and progress in -gunnery, which involved, first, the better drilling of the -small-arm companies. In my early days, the small-arm companies -used to drill with bare feet. Indeed, boots were never worn -on board. It was of course impossible to wear boots going -aloft for a sailor going aloft in boots would injure the heads -and hands of his topmates. Occasionally the midshipmen -went aloft barefooted like the men. So indurated did the -feet of the sailors become, that they were unable to wear -boots without discomfort, and often carried them when they -were ashore. -</p> - -<p> -A sailor's offences were hardly ever crimes against honour. -They rather arose from the character induced by his calling. -Its conditions were hard, dangerous and often intensely -exciting. The sailor's view was devil-may-care. He was -free with his language, handy with his fists and afraid of -nothing. A smart man might receive four dozen for some -violence, and be rated petty officer six months afterwards. -Condemnation was then the rule. Personally, I endeavoured -to substitute for it, commendation. For if there are two -men, one of whom takes a pride in (say) keeping his rifle -clean, and the other neglects it, to ignore the efficiency of -the one is both to discourage him and to encourage the other. -</p> - -<p> -Before the system of silence was introduced by the -<i>Marlborough</i> the tumult on deck during an evolution or -exercise was tremendous. The shouting in the ships in -Malta Harbour could be heard all over Valetta. The -<i>Marlborough</i> introduced the "Still" bugle-call. At the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P17"></a>17}</span> -bugle-call "Still" every man stood motionless and looked -at the officer. For in order to have an order understood, -the men must be looking at the officer who gives it. During -the Soudan war, I used the "Still" at several critical -moments. Silence and attention are the first necessities for -discipline. About this time the bugle superseded the drum -in many ships for routine orders. -</p> - -<p> -There were few punishments, the chief punishment being -the cat. The first time I saw the cat applied, I fainted. -But men were constantly being flogged. I have seen six -men flogged in one morning. Even upon these painful -occasions, the crew were not fallen in. They were merely -summoned aft "for punishment"—"clear lower deck lay aft -for punishment" was piped—and grouped themselves as they -would, sitting in the boats and standing about, nor did they -even keep silence while the flogging was being inflicted. -The officers stood within three sides of a square formed by -the Marines. Another punishment was "putting the admiral -in his barge and the general in his helmet," when one man -was stood in a bucket and the other had a bucket on his -head. -</p> - -<p> -Very great credit is due to Admiral Sir William Martin, -who reformed the discipline of the Fleet. The Naval -Discipline Act was passed in 1861; the New Naval Discipline -Act in 1866. In 1871 a circular was issued restricting the -infliction of corporal punishment in peace time. Flogging -was virtually abolished in 1879. (Laird Clowes' <i>The Royal -Navy</i>, vol. 7.) Now we have proper discipline and no cat. -In former days, we had the cat but no proper discipline. -</p> - -<p> -The men were granted very little leave. They were often -on board for months together. When they went ashore, -there they remained until they had spent their last penny; -and when they came on board they were either drunk or -shamming drunk. For drunkenness was the fashion then, -just as sobriety is, happily, the fashion now. In order to be -in the mode, a man would actually feign drunkenness on -coming aboard. In many a night-watch after leave had been -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P18"></a>18}</span> -given have I superintended the hoisting in of drunken men, -who were handed over to the care of their messmates. -To-day, an intoxicated man is not welcomed by his mess, his -comrades preferring that he should be put out of the way in -cells. It was impossible to keep liquor out of the ship. Men -would bring it aboard in little bladders concealed in their -neckties. Excess was the rule in many ships. On -Christmas Day, for instance, it was not advisable for an -officer to go on the lower deck, which was given up to license. -I remember one man who ate and drank himself to death on -Christmas Day. There he lay, beside a gun, dead. Other -cases of the same kind occurred in other ships. -</p> - -<p> -The rations were so meagre that hunger induced the men -constantly to chew tobacco. For the same reason I chewed -tobacco myself as a boy. Nor have I ever been able to -understand how on such insufficient and plain diet the men -were so extraordinarily hardy. They used to go aloft and -remain aloft for hours, reefing sails, when a gale was blowing -with snow and sleet, clad only in flannel (vest) serge frock and -cloth or serge trousers, their heads, arms and lower part of -their legs bare. Then they would go below to find the decks -awash in a foot of water, the galley fire extinguished, nothing -to eat until next meal time but a biscuit, and nothing to -drink but water. -</p> - -<p> -Seamen often curse and swear when they are aloft -furling or reefing sails in a gale of wind; but I have never -heard a sailor blaspheme on these occasions. Their language -aloft is merely a mode of speaking. Although in the old -days I have heard men blaspheme on deck, blasphemy was -never heard aloft in a gale. To be aloft in a whole gale or in -a hurricane impresses the mind with a sense of the almighty -power of the Deity, and the insignificance of man, that puny -atom, compared with the vast forces of the elements. -</p> - -<p> -In later life, I once said to a young man whom I heard -using blasphemous language in a club: -</p> - -<p> -"If you were up with me on the weather yard-arm of a -topsail yard reefing topsails in a whole gale, you would be -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P19"></a>19}</span> -afraid to say what you are saying now. You would see -what a little puny devil a man is, and although you might -swear, you would be too great a coward to blaspheme." -</p> - -<p> -And I went on to ram the lesson home with some -forcible expressions, a method of reproof which amused -the audience, but which effectually silenced the blasphemer. -</p> - -<p> -The fact is, there is a deep sense of religion in those who -go down to the sea in ships and do their business in the -great waters. Every minister of God, irrespective of the -denomination to which he belongs, is treated with respect. -And a good chaplain, exercising tact and knowing how to -give advice, does invaluable service in a ship, and is a great -help in maintaining sound discipline, inasmuch as by virtue -of his position he can discover and remove little -misunderstandings which cause discontent and irritation. -</p> - -<p> -The discomforts of the Old Navy are unknown to the -new. The sanitary appliances, for instance, were placed -right forward in the bows, in the open air. If the sea were -rough they could not be used. On these occasions, the state -of the lower deck may with more discretion be imagined than -described. As the ship rolled, the water leaked in through the -rebated joints of the gun-ports, and as long as a gale lasted the -mess-decks were no better than cesspools. It is a curious fact -that in spite of all these things, the spirits of both officers -and men rose whenever it came on to blow; and the harder -it blew, the more cheery everyone became. The men sang -most under stress of weather; just as they will to-day under -the same conditions or while coaling ship. After a gale of -wind, the whole ship's company turned-to to clean the ship. -</p> - -<p> -In those days the men used to dress in cloth trousers -and tunic with buttons. The men used to embroider their -collars and their fronts with most elaborate and beautiful -designs. They had two hats, a black hat and a white hat, -which they made themselves. The black hats were made of -straw covered with duck and painted. Many a man has lost -his life aloft in trying to save his heavy black hat from being -blown away. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P20"></a>20}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The fashion of wearing hair on the face was to cultivate -luxuriant whiskers, and to "leave a gangway," which meant -shaving upper lip, chin and neck. Later, Mr. Childers -introduced a new order: a man might shave clean, or cultivate all -growth, or leave a gangway as before, but he might not wear -a moustache only. The order, which applied to officers and -men (except the Royal Marines) is still in force. -</p> - -<p> -Steam was never used except under dire necessity, or -when entering harbour, or when exercising steam tactics as a -Fleet. The order to raise steam cast a gloom over the -entire ship. The chief engineer laboured under considerable -difficulties. He was constantly summoned on deck to be -forcibly condemned for "making too much smoke." -</p> - -<p> -We were very particular about our gunnery in the -<i>Marlborough</i>; although at the same time gunnery was regarded -as quite a secondary art. It was considered that anyone -could fire a gun, and that the whole credit of successful -gunnery depended upon the seamanship of the sailors who -brought the ship into the requisite position. The greater -number of the guns in the <i>Marlborough</i> were the same as -those used in the time of Nelson, with their wooden trucks, -handspikes, sponges, rammers, worms and all gear complete. -The <i>Marlborough</i> was fitted with a cupola for heating -round-shot, which were carried red-hot to the gun in an iron -bucket. I know of no other ship which was thus equipped. -</p> - -<p> -The gunnery lieutenant of the <i>Marlborough</i>, Charles -Inglis, was gifted with so great and splendid a voice, that, -when he gave his orders from the middle deck, they were -heard at every gun in the ship. We used to practise firing -at a cliff in Malta Harbour, at a range of a hundred yards -or so. I used to be sent on shore to collect the round-shot -and bring them on board for future use. I remember that -when, in the course of a lecture delivered to my men on -board the <i>Bulwark</i> more than forty years afterwards, I -related the incident, I could see by their faces that my -audience did not believe me; though I showed to them the -shot-holes in the face of the cliff, which remain to this day. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P21"></a>21}</span> -On gunnery days, all fires were extinguished, in case a spark -should ignite the loose powder spilt by the boys who brought -the cartridges to the guns, making a trail to the magazines. -At "night quarters," we were turned out of our hammocks, -which were lashed up. The mess-tables were triced up -overhead. The lower-deck ports being closed, there was no -room to wield the wooden rammer; so that the charges for -the muzzle-loading guns were rammed home with rope -rammers. Before the order to fire was given, the ports were -triced up. Upon one occasion, so anxious was a bluejacket -to be first in loading and firing, that he cherished a charge -hidden in his hammock since the last night quarters, a period -of nearly three months, and, firing before the port was triced -up, blew it into the next ship. -</p> - -<p> -In those days, the master was responsible for the navigation -of the ship. He was an old, wily, experienced seaman, -who had entered the Service as master's mate. (When I -was midshipman in the <i>Defence</i>, the master's assistant was -Richard W. Middleton, afterwards Captain Middleton, chief -organiser of the Conservative Central Office.) The master laid -the course and kept the reckoning. As steam replaced sails, -the office of master was transferred to the navigating officer, -a lieutenant who specialised in navigation. The transformation -was effected by the Order in Council of 26th June, 1867. -</p> - -<p> -The sail-drill in the <i>Marlborough</i> was a miracle of -smartness and speed. The spirit of emulation in the Fleet -was furious. The fact that a certain number of men used -to be killed, seemed to quicken the rivalry. Poor Inman, a -midshipman in the <i>Marlborough</i>, a great friend of mine, his -foot slipping as he was running down from aloft, lost his -life. His death was a great shock to me. -</p> - -<p> -The men would run aloft so quickly that their bare feet -were nearly indistinguishable. Topmasts and lower yard -were sent down and sent up at a pace which to-day is -inconceivable. -</p> - -<p> -I once saw the captain of the maintop hurl himself bodily -down from the cap upon a hand in the top who was slow in -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P22"></a>22}</span> -obeying orders. That reckless topman was Martin Schultz, -a magnificent seaman, who was entered by the captain -direct from the Norwegian merchant service, in which he -had been a mate. -</p> - -<p> -Mr. George Lewis, an old topmate of mine, who was one -of the smartest seamen on board H.M.S. <i>Marlborough</i>, has -kindly sent to me the following interesting details with -regard to the times of sail-drill and the risks incidental to -the evolutions. -</p> - -<pre> - Time allowed Time in - by Admiral. _Marlborough_. - Min. Sec. Min. Sec. - - Cross topgallant and royal yards 1 0 0 30 - Down topgallant yards with royal - yards across 2 0 1 13 - Up topgallant mast, cross upper - yards and loose sails 2 30 1 27 - Shift topgallant masts from royal - yards across 7 0 5 40 - Up topgallant mast and make all - plain sail 4 0 2 40 - Up topgallant mast and make all - possible sail 6 0 3 0 - Shift topsails from plainsail 6 0 4 50 - In all boom boats from away aloft 7 0 6 0 - Out all boom boats 7 0 5 40 - Away lifeboat's crew 0 30 0 20 -</pre> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -What Mr. Lewis means by "admiral's time," let him -explain in his own words. "When our admiral" (Sir -William Martin) "was captain of the <i>Prince Regent</i>, which -was considered the smartest ship in the Navy, he brought -all her times of all her drills to the grand old <i>Marlborough</i> -along with him; and you know, my lord, that he allowed -us six months to get our good old ship in trim before we -drilled along with the Fleet; but we started to drill along with -the Fleet after three months, and were able to beat them all." -</p> - -<p> -"Now, my lord," continues Mr. Lewis, "I come to one -of the smartest bits of our drill. When we were sailing in -the Bay of Naples under all possible sail, our captain wanted -to let the world see what a smart ship he had and what a -smart lot of men was under him. From the order 'Shift -topsails and courses make all possible sail again'"—which -really means that the masts were stripped of sails and again -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P23"></a>23}</span> -all sails were hoisted—"Admiral's time 13 minutes, our time -9 minutes 30 seconds. All went without a hitch, within 400 -yards of our anchorage." -</p> - -<p> -Mr. Lewis proceeds to recount a very daring act of his -own. "We were sending down upper yards and topgallant -mast one evening, and it was my duty to make fast the -lizard. But I could only make fast one hitch, so I slid down -the mast rope and it turned me right over, but I managed to -catch the lizard and hold on to it, and so saved the mast -from falling on the hundred men that were in the gangway. -No doubt if it had fallen on them it would have killed a -good many...." -</p> - -<p> -What happened was that Lewis, in the tearing speed of -the evolution, not having time properly to secure the head -of the mast as it was coming down, held the fastening in -place while clinging to the mast rope and so came hurtling -down with the mast. He adds that he "felt very proud"—and -well he might—when the captain "told the admiral on -Sunday that I was the smartest man aloft that he had ever -seen during his time in the Service." He had an even -narrower escape. "I was at the yard-arm when we had -just crossed" (hoisted into place). "I was pulling down the -royal sheet and someone had let it go on deck, and I fell -backwards off the yard head-foremost. I had my arm -through the strop of the jewel block, and it held me, and -dropped me in the topmast rigging, and some of my -topmates caught me." -</p> - -<p> -Mr. Lewis himself was one of the smartest and quickest -men aloft I have ever seen during the whole of my career. -The men of other ships used to watch him going aloft. "My -best time," he writes—and I can confirm his statement -"from ''way aloft' to the topgallant yard-arm was 13 -seconds, which was never beaten." It was equalled, however, -by Ninepin Jones on the foretopgallant yard. The topgallant -and royal yard men started from the maintop, inside -of the topmast rigging, at the order '"way aloft." The -height to be run from the top, inside of the topmast rigging, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P24"></a>24}</span> -to the topgallant yard-arm was 64 feet. From the deck to -the maintop was 67 feet. At one time, the upper-yard -men used to start from the deck at the word "away -aloft"; but the strain of going aloft so high and at so -great a speed injured their hearts and lungs, so that they -ascended first to the top, and there awaited the order -"away aloft." -</p> - -<p> -The orders were therefore altered. They were: first, -"midshipmen aloft," when the midshipmen went aloft to -the tops; second, "upper-yard men aloft," when the -upper-yard men went aloft to the tops, and one midshipman went -from the top to the masthead. -</p> - -<p> -At the evening or morning evolution of sending down -or up topgallant masts and topgallant and royal yards, only -the upper-yard men received the order, "upper-yard men -in the tops." The next order was "away aloft," the -upper-yard men going to the masthead. -</p> - -<p> -At general drill, requiring lower- and topsail-yard men -aloft, as well as upper-yard men, the orders were: first, -"midshipmen aloft"; then "upper-yard men in the tops"; -then, "away aloft," when the lower- and topsail-yard men -went aloft to the topsail and lower yards, and the upper-yard -men went aloft to the masthead. -</p> - -<p> -These arrangements applied of course only to drill. In -the event of a squall or an emergency, the men went straight -from deck to the topgallant and royal yards. -</p> - -<p> -Mr. Lewis's performance was a marvel. Writing to me -fifty years afterwards, he says:—"I think, my lord, it -would take me a little longer than 13 seconds now to get -to the maintopgallant yard-arm and run in again without -holding on to anything, which I have done many hundreds -of times." -</p> - -<p> -The men would constantly run thus along the yards—upon -which the jackstay is secured, to which again the sail is -bent, so that the footing is uneven—while the ship was -rolling. Sometimes they would fall, catching the yard, and -so save themselves. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P25"></a>25}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The foretopgallant-yard man, Jones, was as smart as -Lewis, though he never beat Lewis's record time. These -two men were always six to ten ratlines ahead of the other -yard men, smart men as these were. One day Jones lost a -toe aloft. It was cut clean off by the fid of the -foretopgallant mast. But Jones continued his work as though -nothing had happened, until the drill was ended, when he -hopped down to the sick bay. He was as quick as ever -after the accident; and the sailors called him Ninepin -Jack. -</p> - -<p> -Another old topmate, Mr. S. D. Sharp, writing to me in -1909, when I hauled down my flag, says:—"I was proud of -the old <i>Marlborough</i> and her successor up the Straits, the -<i>Victoria</i>. They were a noble sight in full sail with a stiff -breeze. No doubt the present fleet far excels the old wooden -walls, but the old wooden walls made sailors. But sailors -to-day have to stand aside for engine-men. Going round -Portsmouth dockyard some few years since, I was very sad to -see the noble old Marlborough a hulk" (she is now part of -H.M.S. <i>Vernon</i> Torpedo School), "laid aside, as I expect we -all shall be in time" (Mr. Sharp is only between seventy and -eighty years of age). "I am doubtful if there are many men -in the Navy to-day who would stand bolt upright upon the -royal truck of a line-of-battle ship. I was one of those who -did so. Perhaps a foolish practice. But in those days fear -never came our way." -</p> - -<p> -There speaks the Old Navy. -</p> - -<p> -When a ship was paid off out of Malta Harbour, it was -the custom that there should be a man standing erect on each -of the trucks, main, mizen and fore. Many a time have I seen -these men balanced more than 200 feet in the air, strip off -their shirts and wave them. And once I saw a man holding -to the vane-spindle set in the truck, and I saw the spindle -break in his hand, and the man fall.... -</p> - -<p> -In the course of my experience, I have seen a man fall -off the main-royal yard, be caught in the belly of the -mainsail slip down the sail, catch the second reef-line with his -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P26"></a>26}</span> -legs, and hold on until a topmate ran aloft with a bowline -and saved him. -</p> - -<p> -I have seen a man fall off the maintopsail yard, and be -caught in the bight of the mainsheet in the main rigging, -and run aloft again. And this was at sea. -</p> - -<p> -And several times I have seen a man fall from aloft to be -dashed to pieces upon the deck. -</p> - -<p> -One of the closest escapes I have ever had occurred aloft -in the <i>Marlborough</i>. Being midshipman of the mizenroyal, -I was furling the sail, leaning forward upon the yard, -gathering in the canvas, my feet braced backward upon the -footrope, when another midshipman, leaping upon the -footrope, accidentally knocked it from under my feet. For -two or three seconds I hung by the tips of my fingers, which -were pressed against the jackstay of the mizen-royal yard -(the rope running taut along the top of the yard to which -the sail is bent) under which I could not push my fingers, -and then, at the last moment, I found the footrope again. I -have never forgotten my feelings, when I saw certain death -approaching while my feet were clawing about for the -footrope. -</p> - -<p> -When the hands were turned out to bathe, John Glanville, -chief boatswain's mate, would go up to the main-yard, stand -with one foot on the yard and the other on the preventive -braceblock, and thence take a header. The height was -between 50 and 60 feet. Once he struck the sea sideways, -and was injured, so that he was never quite the same man -afterwards. But any other man would have been killed. -</p> - -<p> -On another occasion, when the ship was hove-to for the -hands to bathe, the captain of the forecastle hauled the jib -sheet aft, and the ship began to glide away from the officers -and men, myself among them, in the water. Luckily all got -on board again. -</p> - -<p> -In the spirit of emulation, I fell into deserved disgrace at -sail-drill. In order to be first in the evolution, I secretly -unbent the foretopgallant sheet before the men arrived at -the masthead. Another midshipman did likewise at the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P27"></a>27}</span> -main. He was Arthur Gresley, one of the smartest -midshipmen aloft, and one of the best oars in the Service, a -splendid, cheery, chivalrous, noble-minded lad. We were -discovered; and, before all the men, we were ordered down -on deck, and were severely reprimanded for having -endeavoured to gain an unfair advantage, thereby staining the -character of a ship justly noted for her scrupulous fair play. -I was taken out of my top, deprived of the command of my -boat, and disrated to cadet; and I had serious thoughts of -ending a ruined career by jumping overboard. I have never -been so genuinely unhappy before or since. But upon the -following day I was rated up again, and replaced in my -top and my boat. -</p> - -<p> -At first in the <i>Marlborough</i> I was midshipman of the -mizentop, and in charge of the jolly-boat. The midshipman -in charge of a boat learned how to handle men. As he was -away from the ship with them for long periods, he was -forced to understand them and to discover how to treat -them, thus learning the essential elements of administration. -As all my delight was in seamanship, I contrived to miss a -good deal of school. It was not difficult, when the naval -instructor desired my presence, to find a good reason for -duty with my boat. I was afterwards midshipman of the -foretop, and when I was promoted from the jolly-boat to -the second pinnace, and to the command of the first -subdivision of the three-pounder division of field-guns for -landing, being placed in charge of one three-pounder gun, I -thought I was an emperor. -</p> - -<p> -We used to land with the guns for field-battery exercises, -setting Marine sentries all round to prevent the men getting -away to drink. Returning on board, we used to race down -the Calcara Hill at Malta to the harbour. On one occasion, -we were going so fast that we couldn't turn the gun round -the corner, and gun and all toppled over the wharf into the -water..... -</p> - -<p> -I fell into another scrape in excess of zeal for -marksmanship. We used to practise aiming with rifles and -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P28"></a>28}</span> -muzzle-loading Enfields, the Service rifle of that day. We -fired percussion caps without charges, at little bull's-eyes -painted on a strip of canvas, which was stretched along the -bulwarks below the hammock-nettings. The marksman -stood on the opposite side of the deck. Another midshipman -and myself contrived to fire a couple of caps as projectiles, -which of course entered the woodwork behind the targets, -making dreadful holes. This appalling desecration, involving -the fitting in of new planking, was discovered by the -commander, Brandreth. His rage was justifiable. We -were stood on the bitts, and also mastheaded. -</p> - -<p> -Captain Houston Stewart used to fish from the stern -gallery when the ship was at anchor. He tied his line to -the rail, and went back into his cabin, returning every few -minutes to see if he had a fish. Beneath the stern gallery -opened the ports of the gunroom. With a hooked stick -I drew in his line, attached a red herring to the hook, -dropped it in again, and when the captain came to feel his -line I jerked it. He hauled it up in a hurry. Instantly -after, he sent for all the midshipmen; and, for some reason -or other, he picked me out at once. -</p> - -<p> -"<i>You</i> did that, Beresford," he said. "Most impertinent! -Your leave will be stopped." -</p> - -<p> -Next day, however, he let me off. -</p> - -<p> -Among the most delightful incidents were the boat-races. -It was before the time when fleet regattas were -instituted. What happened was that a boat would row -round from their ship, to the ship they wished to race, -and toss oars under her bows in sign of a challenge. -Then the boat's crew of the challenged ship would practise -with intense assiduity until they felt they were fit to meet -the enemy. The bitterest feeling was aroused. Even the -crews of "chummy ships" could not meet without fighting. -Hundreds of pounds were wagered on the event. In the -<i>Marlborough</i> we had the cutter, <i>Black Bess</i>, specially built -for racing. Her stroke was John Glanville, the gigantic -boatswain's mate, who, when I joined the ship, told Dicky -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P29"></a>29}</span> -Horne, the quartermaster, that I was not likely to live -long. He was the son of Ann Glanville, the redoubtable -West country woman who pulled stroke in the crew of -Saltash women that raced and beat a crew of Frenchmen -at Cherbourg, under the eyes of the Queen, the Prince -Consort, the Emperor Napoleon III., and the British and -French navies. That notable victory was won in 1858, -when Queen Victoria, accompanied by the Prince Consort, -visited Napoleon III. The Queen and the Prince sailed -in H.M.S. <i>Victoria and Albert</i>, escorted by a squadron -of men-of-war. They were received by the French Navy. -After the race, the Queen invited the Saltash women on -board the Royal yacht. Later in life, it was my privilege -to remove anxiety concerning her livelihood from fine old -Mrs. Glanville. -</p> - -<p> -I steered the <i>Black Bess</i>, and we beat the two best boats -in the Fleet; and then we were challenged by the <i>St. George</i>. -The <i>St. George</i> had taken the upper strake off her boat to -make her row easier. Now the stroke of the <i>St. George</i> -was George Glanville, brother to John, and of the same -formidable weight and size. The race was rowed in Malta -Harbour, over a 3½-mile course, and we were beaten. We -could not understand it; but beaten we were. That night -George Glanville came aboard the <i>Marlborough</i> with a bag -containing some £300 the money put up to cover the -stakes. George came to receive the stakes, and according to -custom he brought the cover-money to show that all was -above-board. To him came John his brother; and scarce a -word was said ere the two big men were fighting furiously, -the bag of gold on the deck beside them. They were torn -apart with difficulty. Nor could the respective crews be -landed together for a long time afterwards. Next year we -beat the <i>St. George</i>. -</p> - -<p> -When we lay in Corfu Harbour, the <i>Marlborough</i> was -challenged by a crew of artillerymen. It was I think on -this occasion that John Glanville headed a deputation to me, -asking me to be the coxswain. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P30"></a>30}</span> -</p> - -<p> -"Well, sir," he said, "it's like this here, sir, if you'll -pardon me. Yew be young-like, and what we was thinking -was whether you have the power of language that du be -required." -</p> - -<p> -I said I would do my best. I did. I astonished -myself. As for the artillerymen, they rowed themselves -right under. There was a little seaway, and they rowed -the boat under and there they were struggling in the -water. -</p> - -<p> -"What! Yew bain't never going to pick 'em up?" cried -John Glanville, in the heat of his excitement. -</p> - -<p> -I also rowed bow-oar in the officers' boat, the second -cutter. I was young and small, but I had great staying -power. I could go on rowing for ever. -</p> - -<p> -When my leave was stopped—which did occur occasionally—I -had a system by means of which I went ashore at -night. I lashed a hammock-lashing round the port stern-ring, -crawled out of the stern port, lowered myself to the -water, and swam to a shore boat, waiting for me by arrangement. -Maltese boats are partly covered in, and I dressed -in a spare suit of clothes. On one occasion, upon landing, -I nearly—but not quite—ran into the arms of the -commander. -</p> - -<p> -One night I went ashore, taking a painter and two men. -We lowered the painter over the edge of the cliff, and he -inscribed on the cliff in immense letters, "'Marlborough,' Star -of the Mediterranean." Next morning the whole Fleet, -not without emotion, beheld the legend. Another brilliant -wit went ashore on the following night and altered the word -"Star" into "Turtle." My reply was the addition "Until -the 'Queen' comes out." After this exploit I was sent -ashore to clean the cliff. -</p> - -<p> -There were numerous horses in Malta, and the midshipmen -and bluejackets used to hire them for half-a-crown a -day. When the horses had had enough of their riders, they -used to gallop down to the Florian Gate, kick them off, and -return to their stable. I heard one sailor remark to another, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P31"></a>31}</span> -who, sticking to his horse, was bounding up and down in -his saddle: -</p> - -<p> -"Get off that there 'orse, Jack, 'e's a beast!" -</p> - -<p> -"He aint no beast at all," retorted Jack. '"E's the -cleverest 'orse I ever see. He chucks me up and he catches -me, he chucks me up and he catches me—why, 'e's only -missed me three times in a hour!" -</p> - -<p> -There used to be very bad feeling between English and -Maltese. Both sailors and soldiers frequently lost their -lives on shore. The seamen used to be stabbed, and the -soldiers were sometimes thrown over the fortifications at -night. I have seen a dead soldier lying on the rocks where -he was thrown. A party of <i>Marlborough</i> officers drove out -in "go-carts" (two-wheeled vehicles in which passengers lay -on cushions) to Civita Vecchia, to hear the celebrated Mass -on New Year's Eve. The Cathedral was the richest church -in Europe until Napoleon confiscated its treasure. Somehow -or other, there was a row, and we were fighting fiercely with -a crowd of Maltese. A clerk of our party, a very stout -person, was stabbed in the belly, so that his entrails -protruded. We got him away, laid him in a go-cart, drove -back to Malta, a two-hours' drive, and put him on board, -and he recovered. -</p> - -<p> -At nine o'clock p.m. the seniors in the gunroom stuck -a fork in the beam overhead, the signal for the youngsters -to leave their elders in peace—too often to drink. -Sobriety—to put it delicately—was not reckoned a virtue. I -remember visiting a ship at Bermuda (never mind her -name) to find every member of the mess intoxicated. Two -were suffering from delirium tremens; and one of them was -picking the bodies of imaginary rats from the floor with a -stick, His case was worse than that of the eminent member -of a certain club in London, who, when a real rat ran across -the carpet, looked solemnly round upon the expectant faces -of his friends, and said, "Aha! You thought I saw a rat. -<i>But I didn't!</i>" -</p> - -<p> -There was no rank of sub-lieutenant, the corresponding -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P32"></a>32}</span> -grade being a "mate." Many of the mates were men of -thirty or more, who had never gained promotion and who -never would gain it. I remember an old mate who used -to earn his living by rowing a wherry in Portsmouth -Harbour. He was then (1862) on half-pay, with seniority -of 1820. His name was Peter B. Stagg, as you may see in -the Navy Lists of the period. In the Navy List of 1862, -Stagg is rated sub-lieutenant, the rank of mate having been -abolished in the previous year. -</p> - -<p> -Wisdom spoken by babes was not approved in the -<i>Marlborough</i>. I ventured to remark a thing I had observed, -which was that the masts of men-of-war were out of -proportion tall as compared with the sails they carried; or, in -technical language, that the masts were very taunt, whereas -the sails were not proportionately square. I said that the -masts ought to be lower and the sails squarer, thus -increasing the sailing power. -</p> - -<p> -"D—n it! Listen to this youngster laying down the -law as if he knew better than Nelson!" cried an old mate. -I was instantly sentenced to be cobbed; and received twelve -strokes with a dirk scabbard. -</p> - -<p> -It was true that the rig had been inherited from the men -of Nelson's day; but it was not true that I had pretended -to know better than the late admiral; for, since his death, -the ships had become longer; so that, whereas in Nelson's -time the masts, being closer together, were made taller, -with relatively narrow sails, in order that in going about the -yards should not lock, in my time the reason for the -disproportion had ceased to exist. Very shortly after I had -been beaten for the impiety of thinking for myself, the -merchant clippers adopted the very plan I had in mind, -lowering masts and increasing the size of sails and thereby -gaining a speed which was unrivalled. -</p> - -<p> -I visited Corfu during my time in the <i>Marlborough</i> when -that island, together with the rest of the Ionian -Islands—Cephalonia, Zante, Ithaca, Santa Maura, Cerigo and -Paxo—was an independent State under the protection of Great -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P33"></a>33}</span> -Britain. In the following year, 1864, the Islands were -annexed to Greece. When the Great Powers agreed that -a sovereign should be nominated to reign over Greece, it -was suggested that, as the integrity of his kingdom could -not be guaranteed, he should be provided with a place of -refuge in case of trouble. So at least ran the talk at the -time. In any case, Great Britain was induced to relinquish -these magnificent Islands, which she had won from the -French in 1809. Their loss was greatly deplored by the -Navy at the time; for Corfu has one of the finest harbours -in the world; a harbour in which a whole fleet can be -manoeuvred. The Islands, moreover, had magnificent roads, -and were furnished with barracks, and in all respects formed -an invaluable naval base. Prince William of Schleswig-Holstein -was proclaimed King George I of Greece on 30th -March, 1863. The late King was a most admirable sovereign, -whose personal friendship I was privileged to enjoy. When I -was in Corfu there was a story current to the effect that when -Mr. Gladstone came to the Islands on his mission of inquiry -in 1858, he delivered a superb oration in the Greek tongue. -He was, of course, an excellent scholar in ancient Greek; -but modern Greek differs in pronunciation and other respects. -When he had finished, the official in attendance, while -complimenting him upon his eloquence, observed what a pity it -was that Mr. Gladstone delivered his speech in the English -language. -</p> - -<p> -As I am writing, it is the fiftieth anniversary of the -marriage of the late King Edward with Queen Alexandra, -who is still spared to us. I remember that on the 10th -March, 1863, the <i>Marlborough</i> was illuminated with a dainty -splendour I have never seen surpassed, even in these days of -electricity. Every port-hole was framed in sixteen little -Maltese glass lamps; the rails and yards were set with them; -so that, ports being triced up, and the ship being lit within, -she was as though wrought in a glow of mellow fire. -</p> - -<p> -Early in the year 1863 I was ordered home, to my great -grief. I was discharged to the <i>Hibernia</i> stationed in Malta -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P34"></a>34}</span> -Harbour, to await the homeward bound P. and O. mail -steamer. Many years afterwards, when commanding the -<i>Undaunted</i>, I was tried by court-martial in the old <i>Hibernia</i> -for running my ship ashore and was acquitted of all blame. -While waiting in the <i>Hibernia</i> for a passage, I learned that -the <i>Marlborough</i> had gone to the rescue of a Turkish liner, -carrying troops, which had run aground on the Filfola rocks, -twelve or fifteen miles by sea from Malta Harbour. I was -so eager to see my old ship again, that I hired a duck-punt -and pulled all by myself to the Filfola rocks. Fortunately -the sea was calm, or I must have been drowned. I found a -party from the <i>Marlborough</i> rolling the Turkish vessel to get -her off. Each British sailor took a Turkish sailor by the scruff -of his neck, and ran with him from side to side of the ship, until -she rolled herself into deep water. I had a delightful dinner -on board the <i>Marlborough</i> and then I pulled all the way -back in the dark to the <i>Hibernia</i>. I was sad indeed that -my time in the <i>Marlborough</i> was ended; for, in the words -of George Lewis, my old topmate, "the dear old <i>Marlborough</i> -was the smartest and happiest ship that ever floated." -</p> - -<p> -I took passage home in the mail steamer, and was -appointed midshipman to the <i>Defence</i> by Rear-Admiral -Charles Eden, C.B., my "sea-daddy." He very kindly said -he wished me to gain experience of one of the new iron ships. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> -NOTE -</p> - -<p> -<i>The Old Navy</i>.—The <i>Marlborough</i> was a survival of the -Old Navy, in whose traditions Lord Charles Beresford and -his contemporaries were nurtured. It was a hard-fisted, -free-living, implacable, tragic, jovial, splendid Service; it was -England at her valorous best. -</p> - -<p> -The present generation hardly realises that the naval -cadets, who, like Lord Charles Beresford, entered the Service -in the mid-nineteenth century, were taught their business by -the men who had served with Nelson. The admirals and -old seamen of fifty years' service who are alive to-day, therefore -represent the direct link between Nelson's time and our -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P35"></a>35}</span> -own. When they entered the Navy, many of the admirals -and the elder seamen had actually fought under Nelson, and -the Service was in all essentials what it was at Trafalgar. -Admiral of the Fleet Sir Edward Seymour relates (in <i>My -Naval Career</i>) that as a cadet he often talked with -Master-Commander G. Allen, who saw Nelson embark from the -sally-port at Portsmouth for Trafalgar. -</p> - -<p> -The change from sails to steam was just beginning. -Never again will the Royal Navy be administered by men -who were brought up in that stern school, which produced a -type of men unique in history. -</p> - -<p> -The time-honoured divisions of the Fleet into Red, -White and Blue were still in use while Lord Charles -Beresford was a midshipman. They were abolished by an -Order in Council of 9th July, 1864. -</p> - -<p> -In the year 1858-9 there was only one admiral of the -Fleet, Sir John West, K.C.B. He entered the Navy in 1788, -as a "first-class Volunteer," as a naval cadet was then called. -West served on the coast of Guinea, in the West Indies, -Newfoundland and the Channel in the <i>Pomona</i>. He was -midshipman in the <i>Salisbury</i>, 50, and the <i>London</i>, 98, and was -in the <i>Hebe</i>, Captain Alexander Hood. He was lieutenant -in the <i>Royal George</i>, Captain Domett. He was present at the -action of Île de Groix of the 23rd June, 1795, under Lord -Bridport. He was promoted to captain in 1796. In 1807, -commanding the <i>Excellent</i>, 74, he was engaged off Catalonia, -helping the Spaniards to defend the citadel of Rosas, which -was besieged by 5000 French. He was promoted to -rear-admiral in 1819, and to admiral of the White in 1841. -</p> - -<p> -Here was an instance of an officer becoming a captain -at the age of 22, after no more than eight years' service; -remaining a captain for 23 years; and a rear-admiral for -22 years; and in 1859 he was still alive as an admiral of -the Fleet, being then 85 years of age. -</p> - -<p> -The Board of Admiralty in 1858-9 consisted of: the -Right Hon. Sir John Somerset Pakington, Bart., M.P.; -Vice-Admiral William Fanshawe Martin, who entered the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P36"></a>36}</span> -Navy in 1814; Vice-Admiral the Hon. Sir Richard Saunders -Dundas, K.C.B., who entered the Royal Naval College in -1814; Rear-Admiral Sir Alexander Milne, K.C.B., who -entered the Royal Naval College in 1817; and the Right -Hon. Lord Loraine, M.P. -</p> - -<p> -A very brief survey of the services of the admirals of the -Red, White and Blue shows that they derived directly from -the French wars and the time of Nelson. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral of the Red Sir William Hall Gage, G.C.H., had -been acting-lieutenant of the <i>Minerva</i>, when she bore the -broad pennant of Commodore Nelson; had fought in the -battle of St. Vincent under Sir John Jervis; and commanded -the <i>Indus</i> under Sir Edward Pellew in the action off Toulon -of 13th February, 1814. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral of the Red Sir Edward Durnford King, K.G.H., -in command of the <i>Endymion</i>, watched 26 sail of the line and -nine frigates put into Cadiz on 16th April, 1805, and carried -the information to Vice-Admiral Collingwood, who was -cruising off Gibraltar with four ships. He had the ill-luck to -be detailed for special service at Gibraltar on Trafalgar Day. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral Sir George Mundy, K.C.B., fought in the battles -of St. Vincent and of the Nile, and had a deal of other -distinguished fighting service in his record. -</p> - -<p> -Then there was Admiral of the Red the Right Hon. Thomas, -Earl of Dundonald, G.C.B., whose skill in privateering -amounted to genius. As Lord Cochrane, commanding -in 1800 the <i>Speedy</i> sloop, 14 guns and 54 men, he captured -in one year and two months 33 vessels containing 128 guns -and 533 men. Among other spirited exploits, he boarded -and carried the Spaniard <i>El Gamo</i>, 32 guns, 319 men. -Falling under the displeasure of the politicians, his rank and -his seat in Parliament were forfeited. In 1818, he accepted -the chief command of the Chilian Navy, then of the Brazilian -Navy, and then entered the Greek naval service. King -William the Fourth upon his succession reinstated Dundonald -in his rank in the Royal Navy. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral of the Red Sir William Parker, Bart, G.C.B., -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P37"></a>37}</span> -went with Nelson in pursuit of the French Fleet to the West -Indies and back in 1805. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral of the White Sir Lucius Curtis, Bart, C.B., -served in the Mediterranean in 1804 and 1805. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral of the White Sir John Louis, Bart., served in -the Mediterranean in 1804. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral of the White John Ayscough was flag-lieutenant -in the <i>Queen Charlotte</i>, Lord Rowe's flagship, in the Channel -in 1797; he afterwards served with distinction in Holland, -Quiberon, Cadiz, Egypt, the West Indies; and, with two -frigates and some sloops, protected Sicily against the invasion -of Joachim Murat. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral of the Blue Sir Edward Chetham Strode, K.C.B., -K.C.H., served under Lord Hood in the <i>Victory</i> in the -Mediterranean, taking part in the evacuation of Toulon, in -the sieges of St. Fiorenza, Bastia and Calvi, in Corsica. In -August, 1794, he was lieutenant in the <i>Agamemnon</i>, commanded -by Nelson. He performed much distinguished service -until, in 1841, he attained flag rank and went on half-pay. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral of the Blue William Bowles, C.B., entered the -Navy in 1796, was employed in the Channel and off Cadiz, -in the North Sea, West Indies, and North American station. -In command of the <i>Zebra</i> bomb, he went with Lord Gambier -to Copenhagen. In 1813, and again in 1816, he performed -excellent service in protecting British trade in Rio la Plata -and the neighbouring coasts. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral of the Blue James Whitley Deans Dundas, C.B., -entered the Navy in 1799, took part in the blockade of -Alexandria in 1800, and served with distinction in the North -Sea, Baltic and Mediterranean. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral of the Blue Henry Hope, C.B., took part in -the blockade of Alexandria in 1800, and served in the -Mediterranean. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral of the Blue the Hon. Sir Fleetwood Broughton -Reynolds Pellew performed long and gallant fighting -services in the Dutch East Indies. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral of the Blue Sir Charles Napier, K.C.B., etc. etc., -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P38"></a>38}</span> -had a most distinguished fighting record in the West Indies -and on the coast of Syria. In 1841 he represented Marylebone -in Parliament, in which respect, as in others, his career -resembled that of Lord Charles Beresford. -</p> - -<p> -In 1854, Sir Charles Napier was appointed to the -command of the great fleet which sailed for the Baltic in the -spring of that year. Admiral Penrose Fitzgerald, who -received his nomination to the Navy from Sir Charles Napier, -and who served in the second Baltic expedition of the following -year, makes some instructive observations in respect of -the treatment of Sir Charles Napier by the authorities. -</p> - -<p> -"... The issue was really decided in the Black Sea, and -both Baltic expeditions were, practically speaking, failures. -The admirals were told by the Government that they were -not to attack stone forts with their wooden ships, and were -then censured by the same Government for doing nothing, -when there was really nothing else to do. Sir Charles -Napier, who commanded the British Baltic fleet in the -summer of 1854, was shamefully treated by the politicians, -and, being a hot tempered old gentleman, he couldn't stand -it. He got into Parliament as member for Southwark and -gave them back as good as they gave.... It was the old -story—the politicians shunting the blame on to the soldiers -or the sailors when they fail to achieve such success as is -expected of them, but quite ready to take credit to themselves -for their magnificent strategy and foresight when it turns -out the other way.... When Sir Charles was peremptorily -ordered to haul down his flag, as a punishment for not -disobeying orders, he was superseded in command by -Admiral Dundas, who had been a Lord of the Admiralty -in 1854...." -</p> - -<p> -Sir Charles Napier requested the Prime Minister, Lord -Palmerston, to grant an inquiry into his case. He then -addressed the following letter to Lord Palmerston:—"I sent -your Lordship my case, which I requested you to lay before -the Cabinet, but you have not favoured me with a reply. I -am aware of the various occupations of your Lordship, but -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P39"></a>39}</span> -still there ought to be some consideration for an old officer -who has served his country faithfully, and who has held an -important command. Had my papers been examined by -your Cabinet, and justice done, instead of dismissing me, -and appointing one of the Lords of the Admiralty my -successor, you would have dismissed Sir James Graham -and his Admiralty, for treachery to me." (<i>Life of Sir -Charles Napier</i>, by General Elers Napier. Quoted by -Admiral Penrose Fitzgerald, in <i>Memories of the Sea</i>.) -</p> - -<p> -Sir Charles Napier, remarks Admiral Fitzgerald, "thus -gave his wary enemies a chance of accusing him of disrespect -towards those in authority." -</p> - -<p> -Admiral of the Blue Phipps Hornby, C.B., was promoted -acting-lieutenant from the <i>Victory</i>, flagship of Lord Nelson, -to the <i>Excellent</i>, 74. As captain of the <i>Volage</i>, 22, he -received a gold medal from the Admiralty for gallant conduct -in the action off Lissa of March, 1811, when a British -squadron of 156 guns and 859 men defeated after six hours' -action a Franco-Venetian force of 284 guns and 2655 men. -</p> - -<p> -Such is the tale of the admirals of the Red, White and -Blue in the year 1858-9. Several of them had actually -served in Nelson's ships; the most of them had served under -Nelson's command, when Lord Charles Beresford joined the -Navy. -</p> - -<p> -In the same year, the number of officers receiving -pensions for wounds on service was 104. -</p> - -<pre> - Admirals . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 - Vice-admirals . . . . . . . . . . 10 - Rear-admirals . . . . . . . . . . 4 - Captains . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 - Commanders . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 - Lieutenants . . . . . . . . . . . 24 - Masters . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 - Surgeons . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 - Mates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 - Second masters . . . . . . . . . . 1 - Paymasters . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 - --- - 104 - === -</pre> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P40"></a>40}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The total number of men in the Royal Navy in 1858-9 -was 53,700: 38,700 seamen, 15,000 Marines. In 1912-13, -the total number was 137,500: 118,700 seamen, 15,800 -Marines. In 1810, the number of seamen and Marines was -145,000: 113,600 seamen, 31,400 Marines. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap04"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P41"></a>41}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER IV -<br /> -THE SHIP OF UNHAPPY MEMORY -</h3> - -<p> -I did not like the <i>Defence</i>. I thought her a dreadful -ship. After the immaculate decks, the glittering -perfection, the spirit and fire and pride of the <i>Marlborough</i>, -the "flagship of the world," I was condemned to a slovenly, -unhandy, tin kettle which could not sail without steam; -which had not even any royal-masts; and which took -minutes instead of seconds to cross topgallant yards, a -disgusting spectacle to a midshipman of the <i>Marlborough</i>. -Instead of the splendid sun and blue waters of the Mediterranean, -there were the cold skies and the dirty seas of the -Channel. I wrote to my father asking him to remove me -from the Navy. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Defence</i> was one of the iron-built, or iron-cased, -armoured, heavily rigged, steam-driven, broadside-fire vessels -launched from 1860 to 1866. They represented the transition -from the Old Navy to the New, inasmuch as they retained -large sailing powers and broadside fire, combining with these -traditional elements, iron construction and steam propulsion. -They were the <i>Warrior</i>, <i>Black Prince</i>, <i>Defence</i>, <i>Resistance</i>, -<i>Hector</i>, <i>Valiant</i>, <i>Achilles</i>, <i>Minotaur</i>, <i>Agincourt</i>, and -<i>Northumberland</i>. The <i>Defence</i>, launched in 1861, was (in modern -terms) of 6270 tons displacement, 2540 h.p., 11.6 knots -speed, carried 22 guns, and had a complement of 450 -men. She was commanded by Captain Augustus Phillimore, -and was one of the Channel Squadron, which, in -the year 1863, was commanded by Rear-Admiral Robert -Smart, K.H. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P42"></a>42}</span> -</p> - -<pre> - CHANNEL SQUADRON - (NAVY LIST, 1863, DESCRIPTION) - - Rate H.P. Name Guns Tons Com. Officer Complement - - 2nd S. 800 Revenge (Flag) 73 3322 Capt. Charles 800 - Fellowes - Iron-cased - ship S. 1250 Warrior 70 6109 Capt. Hon. A. 704 - A. Cochrane, - C.B. - " S. 1250 Black Prince 40 6109 Capt. J. F. A. 704 - Wainwright - " S. 600 Defence 16 3720 Capt. Augustus 457 - Phillimore - " S. 600 Resistance 16 3710 Capt. W. C. 457 - Chamberlain - Gunboat S. 60 Trinculo 2 --- Tender to 24 - Revenge -</pre> - -<p> -The Channel Squadron at that time was employed in -cruising round the coasts of the British Isles, in order to -familiarise people on shore with the Fleet. In later life it -fell to me, as commander-in-chief, to conduct similar cruises, -of whose object I thoroughly approve. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Warrior</i> and <i>Black Prince</i>, in particular, were stately -and noble vessels whose beauty was a delight to behold. -Their great spread of sail, their long hulls and yacht bows, -the vast expanse of flush wooden decks, their solidity and -grace, set them among the finest ships ever built. -</p> - -<p> -I was somewhat consoled in the <i>Defence</i> by being placed -in charge of the cutter; in which I succeeded, by a small feat -of seamanship, in earning the rare commendation of the -first lieutenant. I was about to sail off to the Fleet from -Devonport, when I discovered that the yard of the dipping -lug was sprung. This was serious, as it was blowing fairly -hard. Fortunately, I had one of those knives so dear to -boyhood, containing a small saw and other implements; and -with this weapon I shaped a batten and fitted it to the yard, -woolded it with spun-yarn and wedged it tight. I did not -expect it to hold; but, double-reefing the sail, I put off. All -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P43"></a>43}</span> -the way to the ship I had an eye on the yard, and it held. -Of course I was late on board; and the first lieutenant -declined to believe my explanation of the delay until he -had had the yard hoisted on deck. Then he was kind -enough to say, "Well, my boy, if you can do a thing like -that, there's hope for you yet." Every little ray of hope is -worth having. -</p> - -<p> -But by reason of my love for the cutter, I fell into trouble. -In the dockyard at Devonport, there stood a mast newly -fitted with beautiful new white signal halliards, the very thing -for the cutter. I should explain that, as we were kept very -short of stores, stealing in the Service from the Service for -the Service, used to be a virtue. There was once an admiral -who stole a whole ship's propeller in order to melt the brass -from it; and it was another admiral who boasted to me -of his brother officer's achievement. Of course, no one -ever steals anything nowadays; nothing is ever missing -out of store; and no midshipman would dream of attempting -to convey signal halliards from the dockyard into his -boat. -</p> - -<p> -But I did. I brought an end of the halliard into an -adjacent shed, concealed in which I revolved swiftly upon -my axis, winding the rope about me. Then I put on an -overcoat, borrowed for the purpose. But my figure presented -an appearance so unnaturally rotund that a policeman -experienced in diagnosing these sudden metamorphoses, -compelled me to divest and to revolve, unwinding, in the public -eye. He also reported me for stealing Government stores. -"Zeal, all zeal, Mr. Easy!" -</p> - -<p> -It was during my time in the <i>Defence</i> that I was so -fortunate as to be enabled to save two lives. On one -occasion, the ship was lying in the Mersey, and visitors -were on board. A party of these was leaving the ship, -when their boat was slewed round by the strong tide, and -one of them, a big, heavy man, fell into the water. I dived -after him. Luckily there was a boat-keeper in the galley -secured astern of the ship. He held out a boat-hook, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P44"></a>44}</span> -which I caught with one hand, holding up my man with -the other. -</p> - -<p> -I received the gold medal of the Liverpool Shipwreck -Humane Society, and the bronze medal of the Royal -Humane Society. The name of the man who fell overboard -was Richardson. More than forty years afterwards, the -son of Mr. Richardson sent me a kind letter, enclosing a -photograph of his father, who had died in 1882, nineteen -years after his rescue. -</p> - -<p> -"My mother," wrote Mr. J. Richardson, "was in very -great terror, as my father could not swim a stroke. He was -a very fine man, and this made your task you so quickly -undertook not any the easier.... The clothes he wore on -that memorable occasion were, after their thorough wetting, -too small for him to wear again, so they were cut down for -my elder brothers, and were called by them their 'Channel -Fleet' clothes, and jolly proud they were to wear them too." -</p> - -<p> -The boys' sentiment is pleasing, whether it arose from -the exciting fact that Mr. Richardson had fallen overboard -in them—a thing which might happen to any gentleman—or -from his having in them been picked out by an officer -(however junior) of the Channel Fleet. -</p> - -<p> -The second occasion when I was successful in saving a -man from drowning was in Plymouth Sound. A string -of boats from the Fleet carrying liberty men was pulling -ashore, when a shore-boat crossed their bows and was run -down by the leading boat. I jumped in and held up one of -the passengers; and was again awarded the bronze medal of -the Royal Humane Society. -</p> - -<p> -In the <i>Defence</i>, as in my other ships, my Service -transgressions were few and venial, as in the case of the signal -halliards. My troubles arose from my intervals of relaxation -on shore. It is now so long ago that perhaps I may without -imprudence relate a sad episode in which I fell under the -condemnation of the law, with all that attendant publicity -which—as one journalist rather unctuously remarked at the -time—is so often worse than the penalty. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P45"></a>45}</span> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -"<i>Defence</i>, PLYMOUTH -</p> - -<p> -"MY DEAREST FATHER,—I am writing to you at once -to tell you what a sad scrape I have just come out of. On -Friday night I was with some other wild fellows on the -outside of a cab, pea-shooting, myself the worst, when -unfortunately I hit a lady who was leaning on a gentleman's arm in -the face. The man chased us and with a good deal of -difficulty, caught us; we were then taken to the station-house, -and given into custody. The hotel-keeper we always -go to, very kindly bailed us for the night. In the morning -we went to the station-house according to promise; and -were tried; the result was my paying £2, 10s. and costs, -or one month's imprisonment, and another £1, or 7 days. -The other two got off, no peas being found upon them. You -will see all about it in the papers I am sending you. I am -writing to you in such a hurry, as I am afraid you might -believe the papers if you saw them before my letter. I most -<i>solemnly swear</i> to you on my honour that I was <i>quite</i> sober -the whole of the day that this took place. And as for -behaving unbecoming a gentleman in the Court, I certainly -did laugh, but the judge made me, and all did so, as he was -chaffing all the time. The reason I did not apologise to -the man was because he swore on his oath that I was drunk; -which was a lie. I had been dining with Hutchinson (see -in the paper), who was giving a dinner as he was leaving the -ship. All I drank was two glasses of Moselle. The papers -I sent you are Radical so of course they run me down.... -All that remains to be said is, I hope you will look upon it -as a boyish lark and not as a disgraceful action ... and -will you send me 5 pounds as I have but 3 shillings left; -and I must have some money to pay mess, wine, etc. etc. -So now write soon to your prodigal son, -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -"CHARLIE BERESFORD" -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -I received in reply a severe but affectionate reproof from -my father. -</p> - -<p> -The gentlemen of the Press took upon themselves to -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P46"></a>46}</span> -improve the occasion, having first taken care, of course, to -describe the affair as a great deal worse than it was. "Let -this lesson be taken," says one kind journalist, "it may be a -guide and a warning for the future. The days are gone—gone -for ever—when the pranks of a Waterford would be -tolerated; but while we would hope his follies are lost, we -would likewise hope that his manly, frank, chivalrous nature -is still inherited by his kinsmen." -</p> - -<p> -Another reporter did me the justice to record that, on -being called on for my defence, I said: "I certainly do -apologise if I did strike the lady, because it was not my -intention to do so; but I certainly don't apologise for striking -Mr. Yates." I trust he bears me no malice. -</p> - -<p> -Yet another guardian of public morals observed that -"his Worship, in announcing the penalties, called attention -to the inequalities of the law, which exacted fines for the -same offence alike from the man with whom sovereigns were -plentiful as hours and the man whose night's spree must -cost him a week's fasting." Had his Worship taken the -trouble to refer to the scale of pay granted by a generous -country to midshipmen, comparing it with the scale of -rations and the price we paid for them, and had he (in -addition) enjoyed the privilege of perusing the financial -clauses of the letter addressed to me more in sorrow than in -anger by my father, he might perhaps have modified his -exordium. -</p> - -<p> -As an illustration of the strict supervision exercised by -the senior officers, I may record that I received—in addition -to my other penalties and visitations—a severe reproof from -Captain Stewart, my old captain in the <i>Marlborough</i>. -</p> - -<p> -The Channel Fleet visited Teneriffe. It was the first -iron fleet ever seen in the West Indies. -</p> - -<p> -In the cutting-out action off Teneriffe, Nelson lost his -arm, and several ensigns of the British boats were captured -by the French. Ever since, it has been a tradition in the -Navy that the flags ought to be recaptured. A party of -bluejackets did once succeed in taking them from the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P47"></a>47}</span> -cathedral and carrying them on board; but the admiral -ordered their restoration. They were then placed high up -on the wall, out of reach, where I saw them. We held a -meeting in the gun-room of the <i>Defence</i> to consider the best -method of taking the flags. But the admiral, who was of -course aware that all junior officers cherished the hope of -recovering the relics, issued orders that no such attempt was -to be made. -</p> - -<p> -I was invited by an old friend of my father, a religious -old gentleman living in Cornwall, to a couple of days' -rabbit-shooting. I was overjoyed at the opportunity, and was the -object of the envy of my brother midshipmen. Arriving -after lunch, I was brought into the great room where the -old gentleman was sitting in an arm-chair, with his feet, -which were swathed in masses of cotton-wool, resting on -gout-rests. Near him was a turn-table laden with books. -</p> - -<p> -"Don't come near me, my boy," he shouted, as I entered. -"I am very glad to see you, but don't come near me. I -have a terribly painful attack of gout, the worst I ever had -in my life. Go and sit down on that chair over there." -</p> - -<p> -With the breadth of the polished floor between us, we -chatted for a while; and then the old gentleman, pointing -to the table of books, asked me to give him a particular -volume. -</p> - -<p> -"Now be very careful," said he. -</p> - -<p> -Full of ardour, delighted to think that I should now -escape to the keeper and the rabbits, I jumped up, ran to -the table, my foot slipped on the parquet, and I fell face -forward with my whole weight upon the poor old man's feet, -smashing both foot-rests. The agonising pain shot him into -the air and he fell on my back. I have never heard such -language before or since. As he rolled off me, he shouted: -</p> - -<p> -"Ring the bell, you —— ——!" -</p> - -<p> -In came the butler. -</p> - -<p> -"Take that —— —— out of my house! Send him back -to his —— ship! Never let me see his —— face again!" -screamed my host. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P48"></a>48}</span> -</p> - -<p> -So I departed in the dog-cart. It was many a long -day ere I heard the last of my rabbit-shooting from my -messmates. -</p> - -<p> -A few months afterwards, when I had been less than a -year in the <i>Defence</i>, Rear-Admiral Charles Eden appointed -me to the <i>Clio</i> as senior midshipman. He said he wanted -me to learn responsibility. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> -NOTE -</p> - -<p> -<i>The New Ships</i>.—The predecessors of the <i>Defence</i> and -her class were wooden vessels plated with iron armour. -The first iron-built, armoured, sea-going British vessel was -the <i>Warrior</i>, launched in 1860. She was laid down in the -previous year, in which Lord Charles Beresford entered the -Navy. Several wooden ships (<i>Royal Oak</i>, <i>Caledonia</i>, <i>Prince -Consort</i>, <i>Ocean</i>, <i>Royal Alfred</i>, <i>Repulse</i>, <i>Favorite</i>, <i>Research</i>) -were converted into armoured ships during their -construction. These were launched from 1862 to 1864. For some -years the Admiralty built wooden armoured ships and iron -armoured ships simultaneously. From 1860 to 1866, ten -iron-built, armoured, sail and steam ships were launched: -<i>Warrior</i>, <i>Black Prince</i>, <i>Defence</i>, <i>Resistance</i>, <i>Hector</i>, <i>Achilles</i>, -<i>Valiant</i>, <i>Minotaur</i>, <i>Agincourt</i>, <i>Northumberland</i>. In 1864 and -1865, five wooden-built, armoured ships were launched: -<i>Lord Clyde</i>, <i>Lord Warden</i>, <i>Zealous</i>, <i>Pallas</i>, <i>Enterprise</i>. -The <i>Royal Sovereign</i>, launched in 1857 as a wooden -line-of-battle ship, was converted in 1862 to an armoured vessel -and was equipped with four turrets. She was thus the first -turret-ship in the British Navy. The next step was to -group the guns in a central armoured battery, and to belt -the ship with armour along the water-line. At the same -time, more turret-ships were constructed. Earnest -controversy was waged among naval authorities as to what -were the most important qualities of the fighting ship, to -which other qualities must be partially sacrificed; for, -broadly speaking, all warships represent a compromise -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P49"></a>49}</span> -among speed, defence and offence—or engines, armour and -guns. The controversy still continues. The disaster which -befell the <i>Captain</i> decided, at least, the low-freeboard -question in so far as heavily rigged sailing steam vessels -were concerned, for the Captain, a rigged low-freeboard -turret-ship, capsized on 6th September, 1870. (<i>The Royal -Navy</i>, vol. i., Laird Clowes.) -</p> - -<p> -Lord Charles Beresford, entering the Navy at the -beginning of the changes from sails to steam, from wood to -iron, and from iron to steel, learned, like his contemporaries, -the whole art of the sailing ship sailor, added to it the skill -of the sailor of the transition period, and again added to -that the whole body of knowledge of the seaman of the New -Navy. He saw the days when the sailing officers hated -steam and ignored it so far as possible; as in the case of -the admiral who, entering harbour under steam and sail, -gave his sailing orders but neglected the engineer, and so -fouled the wharf, and said, "Bless me, I forgot I was in a -steamship!" -</p> - -<p> -Admiral Penrose Fitzgerald, who entered the Navy five -years before Lord Charles Beresford, describes the transitional -period in his <i>Memories of the Sea</i>. Speaking of the -<i>Hercules</i>, one of the new central-battery, armoured-waterline -ironclads, to which he was appointed first lieutenant when -she was first commissioned in 1868, Admiral Fitzgerald -writes:—"The <i>Hercules</i> was the most powerful ironclad -afloat, in this or any other country. She carried 18-ton -guns—muzzle-loaders—and nine inches of armour, though -this was only in patches; but she had a good deal of -six-inch armour, and her water-line and battery were well -protected, as against ordnance of that date. She was -full-rigged, with the spars and sails of a line-of-battle ship, and -she could steam fourteen knots—on a pinch, and could sail -a <i>little</i>. In fact she was the masterpiece of Sir Edward -Reed's genius. -</p> - -<p> -"Up to the advent of the <i>Hercules</i> the three great five-masted -ships of 10,000 tons, the <i>Minotaur</i>, <i>Agincourt</i> and -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P50"></a>50}</span> -<i>Northumberland</i>, had been considered the most powerful -ships in the British Navy, and probably in the world, and -Sir Edward Reed's triumph was, that he built a ship of -about 8500 tons which carried a more powerful armament, -thicker armour, fifty feet shorter and thus much handier, -steamed the same speed, and I was going to say—sailed -better; but I had better say—did not sail quite so badly; -and it must ever be borne in mind that at this transition -stage in the development of the Navy, our rulers at Whitehall -insisted that our ships of all classes should have sail power -suitable to their tonnage. 'For,' said they, 'the engines -might break down, and then where would you be?'" -(<i>Memories of the Sea</i>, Admiral Penrose Fitzgerald, chap. xiv.) -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap05"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P51"></a>51}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER V -<br /> -THE MIDSHIPMAN OF 1864 -</h3> - -<p> -I wish I could convey to my readers something of the -pride and delight which a sailor feels in his ship. But -who that has never had the luck to be a deep-water -sailor, can understand his joy in the noble vessel, or the -uplifting sense of his control over her matchless and -splendid power, born of a knowledge of her every rope and -sail and timber, and of an understanding of her behaviour -and ability. For every ship has her own spirit, her own -personality. You may build two ships or twenty upon the -same design, line for line the same, and each will develop -her own character. As there are no two people alike, so -there are no two ships the same. -</p> - -<p> -What can be more glorious than a ship getting under -way? She quivers like a sentient thing amid the whole -moving tumultuous lusty life. Men are racing aloft; other -men, their feet pounding upon the white decks, are running -away with the ropes; the ringing commands and the shouting -fill the air; the wind strikes with a salt and hearty sting; -and the proud and beautiful creature rises to the lift of the -sea. Doctor, paymaster, idlers and all used to run up on -deck to witness that magnificent spectacle, a full-rigged ship -getting under sail. As for me, I blessed my luck when I -returned from the <i>Defence</i> to a sailing ship. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Clio</i> was a corvette pierced for 22 guns, of 1472 tons -burthen, and 400 h.p. The screw was hoisted when she was -under sail, which was nearly all the time. She was an -excellent sailer, doing fourteen to sixteen knots. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P52"></a>52}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The midshipmen's mess was so small, that there was no -room for chairs. We sat on lockers, and in order to reach -the farther side, we must walk across the table. One of our -amusements in this tiny cabin was racing cockroaches, which -were numerous. We used to drop a bit of melted tallow -from a purser's dip upon their backs, plant in it a piece of -spun-yarn, light the spun-yarn, and away they would go -from one end of the table to the other. There was once a -cockroach—but not in the <i>Clio</i>—which escaped, its light still -burning, and set the ship on fire. -</p> - -<p> -I began in the <i>Clio</i> by immediately assuming that -responsibility of senior midshipman desired by Rear-Admiral -Charles Eden. I purchased the stores for the gunroom -mess, expending £67, accounting for every penny, with the -most sedulous precision. We paid a shilling a day for -messing, and the stores were to supplement our miserable -rations. They were so bad that I wonder we kept our health; -indeed, only the fittest survived. -</p> - -<p> -We sailed from Portsmouth in August, 1864. It was my -first long voyage. It is curious that the first week of a long -voyage goes very slowly, and the rest of the time very fast. -I used to keep the first dog watch and to relieve the officer -in the morning watch. In the keen pleasure of handling the -ship—loosing sails, sheeting them home, reefing, furling, and -all the rest of the work of a sailor—I regained all my old -delight in the sea which I had lost in the <i>Defence</i>. Keeping -watch under sail required unremitting vigilance, perpetual -activity, and constant readiness. The officer of the watch -must be everywhere, with an eye to everything, forward and -aft; while the helmsman handling the wheel under the break -of the poop, keeps the weather leach just lifting. -</p> - -<p> -The memory of the continuous hard work of the daily -routine, makes the sober and pleasant background to the -more lively recollection of events, which were after all but -the natural reaction from the long monotony of sea life. -</p> - -<p> -It was my duty to preserve order in the gun-room; and -a lively lot I had in charge. One of the midshipmen, a -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P53"></a>53}</span> -big fellow, was something of a bully. He used to persecute -a youngster smaller than himself, and one day the boy -came to me and asked what he could do to end the tyranny. -I thought that this particular bully was also a coward—by -no means an inevitable combination—and I advised his -victim, next time he was bullied, to hit the bully on the point -of the nose as hard as he could, and I promised that I -would support him in whatever came afterwards. He did -as he was told; whereupon the bully came to me with a -complaint that a junior midshipman had struck him. I -formed a ring and put the two to settle the matter with -their fists. The little boy was a plucky youngster, and -clever with his fists. He knocked out his enemy, and had -peace thereafter. -</p> - -<p> -I crossed the Line for the first time. In going through -the usual ceremonies, being ducked and held under in the -big tank, I was as nearly drowned as ever in my life, being -hauled out insensible. We towed out the <i>Turtle</i>, a -Government vessel, bound for Ascension with stores. While -towing, it is necessary to wear instead of tacking, for fear -of coming on top of the tow. But the first lieutenant -thought he would tack; so he tried to go about. There was -a gale of wind; the ship missed stays, and came right on -top of the unfortunate <i>Turtle</i>, dismasting and nearly sinking -her. I was sent on board her to give assistance; and I -made excellent use of the opportunity to collect from the -<i>Turtle's</i> stores many useful little ship's fittings of which the -<i>Clio</i> was in need. We took the <i>Turtle</i> into Ascension, -where the midshipmen landed, collected the eggs of the -"wideawake" gulls, and bottled them for future consumption. -</p> - -<p> -We put in at the Falkland Islands in November. The -population consisted of ex-Royal Marines and their families. -It was considered necessary to populate the Islands; and -we always send for the Royal Marines in any difficulty. -There were also South American guachos and ranchers. -The governor came on board to ask for the captain's -help. The governor wanted a man to be hanged, and his -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P54"></a>54}</span> -trouble was that he was afraid to hang him. The prisoner -was a guacho, who had murdered a rancher, whom he had -cast into the river and then shot to death. The governor -was afraid that if he executed the murderer, the other -guachos would rise in rebellion. So he wanted the captain -to bring the murderer on board and hang him to the -yard-arm. The captain refused this request; but he offered to -hang him on shore, a proposal to which the governor agreed. -The boatswain's mate piped: "Volunteers for a hangman—fall -in." To my surprise, half the ship's company fell in. -The sergeant of Marines was chosen to be executioner. -He took a party on shore, and they constructed a curious -kind of box, like a wardrobe, having a trap-door in the top, -above which projected the beam. The man dropped -through the trap door into the box and was no more seen, -until the body was taken out under cover of night and -buried. -</p> - -<p> -The shooting on that island was naturally an intense -delight to a boy of my age. We midshipmen used to go -away shooting the upland geese. I managed to bring -aboard more than the others, because I cut off the wings, -heads and necks, cleaned the birds, and secured them by -toggling the legs together, so that I was able to sling four -birds over each shoulder. The whole island being clothed -in high pampas grass, it was impossible to see one's way. -Officers used to be lost in the Falklands. The body of a -paymaster who was thus lost was not discovered for eight -years. The cold induced sleep, and a sleeping man might -freeze to death. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral Penrose Fitzgerald, in his <i>Memories of the Sea</i>, -relating his experience as a midshipman in the Falkland -Islands, says, "Everybody has heard of the Falkland Island -geese, and they may be seen to-day in St. James's Park. -The upland geese—as they are generally called—are -excellent eating; but there are also immense numbers and -different varieties of other geese and these are known as -'kelp geese.' Alas! our ornithological education had been so -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P55"></a>55}</span> -sadly neglected that we did not know the difference with -the feathers on, though we soon found it out, when we came -to cook and eat them. All the birds we shot were kelp -geese, about as fishy as cormorants; but they were not -wasted, for we gave them to our Marine servants, who ate -them all and declared them to be excellent. 'Some flavour -about them,' as they said." -</p> - -<p> -While we lay at the Falkland Islands a merchant ship -came in whose whole company was down with scurvy. -When I joined the Navy, lime-juice, the prophylactic, was -served out under the regulation; but in the mercantile -marine scurvy was still prevalent. It is a most repulsive -disease. The sufferer rots into putrid decay while he is yet -alive. If you pressed a finger upon his flesh the dent would -remain. He is so sunk in lethargy that if he were told the -ship was sinking he would decline to move. His teeth drop -out and his hair falls off. It is worthy of remembrance that -the use of lime-juice as a prophylactic was discovered, or -at least largely introduced, by Captain James Cook the -navigator; whose statue, erected at Whitby, I had the -privilege of unveiling in 1912. Historically, I believe that -Captain Lancaster, commanding the <i>Dragon</i>, in the service -of the Honourable East India Company in the time of -James I, was the first to cure scurvy by administering three -spoonfuls of lemon to each patient, with his breakfast. -</p> - -<p> -From the Falkland Islands we proceeded to the Straits -of Magellan, where the natives of Terra del Fuego came off -to us in boats. They were totally naked, and were smeared -all over with grease. It was snowing, and they had made -a fire in the boats; and when the sea splashed upon the -fire and put it out, they beat the sea in anger with their -paddles. -</p> - -<p> -At the convict settlement there used to be a box to -hold mails fixed on the top of a pole. The letters were -taken on board the next ship passing homeward bound. -I posted a letter addressed to my mother, who received it in -due time. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P56"></a>56}</span> -</p> - -<p> -We dropped anchor off Port Mercy. It came on to blow -a hurricane. We had two anchors down ahead, struck -lower yards and topmast, and kept the screw moving to -ease the cables. Without the aid of steam, we should have -been blown away. Even so, the captain became anxious -and decided to put out to sea. We battened down and -went out under trysails and forestaysail. Instantly we were -plunged into a mountainous sea, and the wind whipped -the canvas out of us. We set close-reefed foretopsail. A -tremendous squall struck us, we shipped water and were -blown upon our beam ends. So strong was the wind that -each successive blast listed the ship right over. The captain -then determined to run back to Port Mercy. The master -set the course, as he thought, to clear the headland; and -we steamed at full speed. I was standing half-way up the -bridge ladder holding on to the man-rope in a violent squall -of hail and snow, the hail cutting my cheeks open, when I -saw land right ahead. The fact was that the master had -mistaken his course, and the ship was driving straight on -shore, where every man would have perished. I reported -my observation to the first lieutenant, who merely -remarked that it was probable that the master knew better -than I did. But presently he too saw the high rocks -looming ahead through the smother of snow and spray, and the -course was altered just in time. The wind was on the port -beam; we edged into it out to sea; and so were able to -clear the headland and get under the lee of the land. The -first lieutenant afterwards handsomely admitted that it was -a good job I was standing where I was "with my eyes -open" at the critical moment. It was in the height of this -emergency, that I first heard the pipe go "Save ship." -</p> - -<p> -We proceeded to Valparaiso, where the ship put in to -refit. At Valparaiso, we were able to get horses, and we -organised paper-chases. -</p> - -<p> -It was about this time that the incident of the Impresario -occurred. He was conducting the orchestra from the stage -itself, being seated in a hole cut in the stage, so that his legs -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P57"></a>57}</span> -rested upon a little platform below. The refreshment room -was underneath the stage, and the Impresario's legs projected -downwards from the ceiling into the room, where were two -or three midshipmen and myself. The temptation was -irresistible. We grasped the legs; hauled on them; and -down came the Impresario. Overhead, the music faltered -and died away. -</p> - -<p> -From Valparaiso we proceeded to the Sandwich Islands, -whence we were ordered to take Queen Emma to Panama, -on her way to England to see Queen Victoria. Queen -Emma was born Miss Emma Booker. She married -Kamehameha IV in 1856. We took the Queen on board -with one native lady as her attendant. The natives were -devoted to their queen, and they insisted on loading the -ship with presents for her. They brought pigs, masses of -yams, sweet potatoes, water-melons and other fruit. The -pigs were housed forward on the main deck, and the other -offerings were piled on the rigging and hammock nettings -and about the davit guys, so that the ship looked like an -agricultural show when we sailed for Panama. -</p> - -<p> -We sighted a schooner flying signals of distress. The -life-boat was called away to go to her assistance. I was in -charge of the life-boat. When a boat is called away at sea, -the crew of course take their places in her before she is -lowered. The whole operation, from the sound of the pipe -to the moment the boat touches the water, occupies no -more than a few seconds in a smart ship. There was a -little sea-way on, and the movement of the boat caused a -jerk to the falls, unhooking the safety catch, and dislodging -an enormous water-melon, which fell through about eighteen -feet upon the top of my head. I was knocked nearly senseless. -It was the melon that split upon the impact, deluging -me with red pulp; but I thought that it was my skull which -had cracked, and that they were my brains which were -spoiling my uniform, and I remember wondering that my -brains should be so queerly and vividly coloured. -</p> - -<p> -But I recovered from the shock in a few minutes. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P58"></a>58}</span> -Boarding the schooner, I found she was short of water. -But the remarkable thing about that schooner was that -although she carried a cargo of six thousand pounds in -Mexican dollars, they had only four men on board, all -told—an easy prize for a pirate. -</p> - -<p> -After touching at Acapulco, which was all heat and flies, -we landed the Queen of the Sandwich Islands at Panama. -</p> - -<p> -Some years afterwards, I went to call upon her Majesty. -In all my voyages, I carried with me a set of tandem harness; -and on this occasion, I hired a light cart and a couple of -ponies, and drove them tandem. Approaching the royal -residence, I took a corner too sharply, the cart capsized, I -was flung out, and found myself sitting on the ground in the -Queen's presence. -</p> - -<p> -But before we quitted the Sandwich Islands, an event -occurred (of which I was the humble and unwitting instrument) -which nearly brought about what are called international -complications. I should explain that feeling ran -pretty high between the English and the Americans in the -Sandwich Islands with regard to the American Civil War, -which was then waging. It was none of our business, but -we of the <i>Clio</i> chose to sympathise with the South. Now -that these unhappy differences have been so long composed, -there can be no harm in referring to them. But it was not -resentment against the North which inspired my indiscretion. -It was the natural desire to win a bet. A certain lady—her -name does not matter—bet me that I would not ride down a -steep pass in the hills, down which no horse had yet been -ridden. I took the bet and I won it. Then the same fair -lady bet me—it was at a ball—that I would not pull down -the American flag. That emblem was painted on wood upon -an escutcheon fixed over the entrance to the garden of the -Consulate. I took that bet, too, and won it. -</p> - -<p> -Having induced two other midshipmen to come with me, -we went under cover of night to the Consulate. I climbed -upon the backs of my accomplices, leaped up, caught hold -of the escutcheon, and brought the whole thing down upon -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P59"></a>59}</span> -us. Then we carried the trophy on board in a shore-boat. -Unfortunately the boatman recognised what it was, and -basely told the American consul, who was naturally -indignant, and who insisted that the flag should be nailed -up again in its place. I had no intention of inflicting -annoyance, and had never considered how serious might be -the consequences of a boyish impulse. My captain very -justly said that as I had pulled down the flag I must put it -up again, and sent me with a couple of carpenters on shore. -We replaced the insulted emblem of national honour, to -the deep delight of an admiring crowd. The <i>Clio</i> put to sea. -We heard afterwards that the American Government -dispatched a couple of ships of war to capture me, but I -do not think the report was true. -</p> - -<p> -Having landed the Queen of the Sandwich Islands at -Panama, as I have said, about the middle of June, 1865, we -left the Bay early in July, and proceeded to Vancouver, -arriving there in the middle of August. There we remained -until early in December. -</p> - -<p> -I was placed in charge of a working party from the <i>Clio</i>, -to cut a trail through the virgin forest of magnificent timber -with which the island was then covered. I was pleased -enough to receive an extra shilling a day check-money. -Where the flourishing town of Victoria now stands, there -were a few log huts, closed in by gigantic woods. When I -revisited the country recently, I found a tramway running -along what was once my trail, and I met several persons -who remembered my having helped to cut it, nearly fifty -years before. -</p> - -<p> -I believe that Canada will eventually become the centre -of the British Empire; for the Canadians are a splendid -nation, gifted with pluck, enterprise and energy. -</p> - -<p> -The free forest life was bliss to a boy of my age. To -tell the truth, we were allowed to do pretty well what we -liked in the <i>Clio</i>, which was so easy-going a ship that she -was nicknamed "the Privateer." We used to go out fishing -for salmon with the Indians, in their canoes, using the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P60"></a>60}</span> -Indian hook made of shell. To this day the Indians fish -for salmon in canoes, using shell hooks. I made a trot, a -night-line with a hundred hooks, and hauled up a goodly -quantity of fish every morning. I remember that a party of -midshipmen (of whom I was not one) from another ship -were playing cricket on the island, when a bear suddenly -walked out of the forest. The boys instantly ran for a gun -and found one in an adjacent cabin, but there were no -bullets or caps. So they filled up the weapon with stones -from the beach. In the meantime the bear had climbed a -tree. The midshipmen levelled the gun at him and fired it -with a lucifer match. -</p> - -<p> -We used to go away into the forest deer-shooting, and -on one occasion we were lost for a day and a night. It -was at this time that I made the acquaintance of the -celebrated Mr. Dunsmuir, who became a mayor and a -millionaire, simply because he slept one night in the -forest—for the sake of coolness. When he awoke in the morning, -he found that he had pillowed his head upon a lump of coal. -He subsequently obtained an enormous concession of land -from the Government and amassed a huge fortune in coal. -Two of our lieutenants put money in the scheme. I wrote -at the time to my father, asking him to let me have a -thousand pounds to invest in the coal business. But he -replied affectionately but firmly that, until I ceased to exceed -my allowance, he did not think it right that I should embark -in a gambling project. The two lucky lieutenants were -eventually bought out by Mr. Dunsmuir for a very large -sum of money. -</p> - -<p> -I was very happy in the <i>Clio</i>; but, for reasons, it was -considered expedient that I should be transferred to the -<i>Tribune</i>. Accordingly, I turned over to the <i>Tribune</i> early -in December, by the orders of my constant friend, Admiral -Charles Eden. He said it would do me good to serve under -Captain Lord Gillford. He was right. It did. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap06"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P61"></a>61}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER VI -<br /> -STRICT SERVICE -</h3> - -<p> -Captain Lord Gillford, afterwards Lord Clamwilliam, -was one of the finest seamen, and his ship was one of -the smartest ships, in the Service. The <i>Tribune</i> was -what we used to call a jackass frigate. She was pierced for -31 guns, was of 1570 tons burthen, and 300 h.p.—not that -anything could ever induce the captain to use steam. -</p> - -<p> -Before I joined the <i>Tribune</i>, she had sprung her foremast -so she went up the Fraser River to cut a new spar out of he -forest. Such things were done in those days. But on the -way up she grounded on the bar. Everything—guns, coal, -stores—was taken out of her; anchors were got out; and -every effort was made to warp her off. Still she would not -move. In this desperate pass, when every man in the ship, -except one, was hauling on the purchases, it is on record -that when the chaplain put his weight on the rope, away -she came. The power of the man of God is remembered -even unto this day. Then the <i>Tribune</i> sailed up the river, -and they cut a new spar, set it up and rigged it, and she -came home with it. -</p> - -<p> -Captain Lord Gillford prided himself on the speed of his -ship under sail. He had fitted her with all sorts of extra -gear, such as they had in the famous tea-clippers. His tacks -and sheets were much thicker than was usual; strengthening -pieces were fitted to the sails; there were gaffs for topgallant -backstays, and extra braces. His order book was a curiosity, -Day after day it bore the same entry: "The course. Carry -sail." Sailing from Vancouver to Valparaiso, the <i>Tribune</i> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P62"></a>62}</span> -beat the <i>Sutlej</i>, another fine sailing ship commanded by -another first-class seaman, by two days. -</p> - -<p> -Captain Lord Gillford's orders were that sail should never -be shortened without his permission. One night when it -was blowing hard I went down to the captain's cabin to ask -him if we might take in the topmast studding-sail. The ship -was then heeling over. The captain stuck one leg out of -his cot and put his foot against the side of the ship. "I don't -feel any water here yet," says he, and sent me on deck again. -The next moment the sail blew away. -</p> - -<p> -I can never be too grateful for the seamanship I learned -on board the <i>Tribune</i>. The captain lost no opportunity of -teaching us. On one occasion, for instance, we carried away -the starboard foremast swifter, in the fore rigging—the -<i>Tribune</i> had rope lower rigging. Captain Lord Gillford, -instead of splicing the shroud to the masthead pennants, -chose, in order to educate us, to strip the whole foremast to -a gantline. We got the whole of the lower rigging over the -masthead again. I was in the sailmaker's crew; and another -midshipman and myself, together with the forecastle men, -fitted in the new shroud, turned it in, wormed, parcelled, and -served it; put it over the masthead, and got the fore rigging -all a-taunto again. I also helped to make a new foresail and -jib out of number one canvas, roped them, put the clews in, -and completed the job. Lord Gillford's object was to teach -those under him to carry out the work in the proper -shipshape manner. The sailmaker's crew, among whom was -another midshipman, named Morrison, and myself, numbered -15 or 20 men, including able seamen, and we were all as -happy as possible. We were taught by one of the best -sailmakers in the Service, who was named Flood. We always -worked in a sailmaker's canvas jumper and trousers made by -ourselves. I could cut out and make a seaman's canvas -working suit, jumper and trousers, in 30 minutes, using the -sailmaker's stitch of four stitches to the inch. -</p> - -<p> -I had a complete sailmaker's bag with every sailmaker's -tool necessary—serving and roping mallets, jiggers, seaming -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P63"></a>63}</span> -and roping palms, all-sized marling-spikes, fids, seam-rubbers, -sail-hooks, grease-pot, seaming and roping twine, etc. etc. -</p> - -<p> -Morrison and I worked together at everything. We -turned in new boats' falls, replaced lanyards in wash-deck -buckets, as well as taking our turn at all tricks sailmaker's -crew. We put in new clews to a topsail and course. We -roped a jib and other fore-and-aft sails. Both of these jobs -require great care and practice, and both of them we had to -do two or three times before we got them right. A sailmaker -knows how difficult it is to keep the lay of the rope right in -roping a sail. We used also to go aloft and repair sick seams -in the sails to avoid unbending. -</p> - -<p> -Captain Lord Gillford himself could cut out a sail, whether -fore-and-aft or square. I have heard him argue with Flood -as to the amount of goring to be allowed, and Lord Gillford -was always right. It was he who put it into my head to try -to teach myself all that I could, by saying, "If a man is a -lubber over a job, you ought to be able to <i>show</i> him how to -do it, not <i>tell</i> him how to do it." -</p> - -<p> -We were never so proud as when Lord Gillford sent for -us and told us that we had made a good job of roping the -new jib. Among other things, I learned from the "snob," -as the shoemaker was called, to welt and repair boots. In -after years, I made a portmanteau, which lasted for a long -time, for my old friend, Chief Engineer Roffey; and I made -many shooting and fishing bags for my brother officers. -</p> - -<p> -Merely for the sake of knowing how to do and how not -to do a thing, in later years I have chipped a boiler (a devil -of a job), filled coal-sacks, trimmed bunkers, stoked fires and -driven engines. -</p> - -<p> -We used up all our spare canvas in the <i>Tribune</i>; and I -remember that on one occasion we were obliged to patch -the main-royal with a mail-bag, so that the main-royal bore -the legend "Letters for England" on it thereafter. -</p> - -<p> -While in the <i>Tribune</i>, two misfortunes occurred to me -on the same day. As we all know, misfortunes never come -singly. The sailmaker had reported me for skylarking; and it -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P64"></a>64}</span> -occurred to me that if he was going to put me in the report, -he might as well have a better reason for that extreme -action. I therefore rove a line attached to a sailmaker's -needle through the holes of the bench upon which he sat. -When he seated himself to begin his work, I jerked the line, -and he leaped into the air with a loud cry. That was my -first misfortune. The second was entirely due to the rude -and thoughtless conduct of another midshipman, who, in -passing me as I sat at my sailmaker's bench, industriously -working, tilted me over. I took up the first thing which -was handy, which happened to be a carpenter's chisel, and -hurled it at his retreating figure. It stuck and quivered in -a portion of his anatomy which is (or was) considered by -schoolmasters as designed to receive punishment. I had, of -course, no intention of hurting him. But I was reported for -the second time that day. I was put on watch and watch -for a week, a penance which involved being four hours on -and four hours off, my duties having to be done as usual -during the watch off in the daytime. -</p> - -<p> -We sailed from Vancouver early in December, 1865. On -2nd January I was promoted to be acting sub-lieutenant. -I find that Captain Lord Gillford endorsed my certificate -with the statement that Lord Charles Beresford had -conducted himself "with sobriety, diligence, attention, and was -always obedient to command; and I have been much -pleased with the zealous manner in which he has performed -his duties." -</p> - -<p> -We arrived at Valparaiso towards the end of January. -I continued to discharge my duties in the <i>Tribune</i> until the -middle of February, when I was transferred to the <i>Sutlej</i>. -</p> - -<p> -I was as happy on board the <i>Tribune</i> as I had been in -the <i>Marlborough</i> and the <i>Clio</i>, and for the same reason: the -splendid seamanship and constant sailorising. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-064"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-064.jpg" alt="THE OFFICERS OF H.M.S. "SUTLEJ," 1865. (THE AUTHOR IS THE SECOND FIGURE ON THE LEFT OF THE CAPSTAN)" /> -<br /> -THE OFFICERS OF H.M.S. "SUTLEJ," 1865. (THE AUTHOR IS THE SECOND FIGURE ON THE LEFT OF THE CAPSTAN) -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Sutlej</i> was a steam frigate pierced for guns, of 3066 -tons and 500 h.p., flagship of the Pacific station. Before -I joined her, the commander-in-chief of the station was -Admiral Kingcome, who had (as we say) come in through -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P65"></a>65}</span> -the hawse-pipe. It was the delight of this queer old admiral -to beat the drum for night-quarters himself. He used to -steal the drum, and trot away with it, rub-a-dub all along -the lower deck, bending double beneath the hammocks -of the sleeping seamen. On one of these occasions—so -runs the yarn—a burly able seaman thrust his bare legs over -the edge of his hammock, clipped the admiral under the -shoulders, swung him to and fro, and, with an appropriate -but unquotable objurgation, dispatched him forward with -a kick. -</p> - -<p> -Such (in a word) was the condition of the flagship to -which Rear-Admiral the Honourable Joseph Denman succeeded, -after the enjoyment of twenty-five years' profound -peace in the command of the Queen's yacht. -</p> - -<p> -The captain, Trevenen P. Coode, was tall and thin, -hooked-nosed and elderly, much bent about the shoulders, -with a habit of crossing his arms and folding his hands -inside his sleeves. He was a taut hand and a fine seaman. -He nearly broke my heart, old martinet that he was; for -I was mate of the upper deck and the hull, and took an -immense pride in keeping them immaculately clean; but -they were never clean enough for Captain Trevenen P. Coode. -In those days we had little bright-work, but plenty of -whitewash and blacking. The test of a smart ship was that the -lines of white or black should meet with absolute accuracy; -and a fraction of error would be visited with the captain's -severe displeasure. For he employed condemnation instead -of commendation. -</p> - -<p> -There was an old yarn about a mate of the main deck, -who boasted that he had got to windward of his captain. -We used to take live stock, poultry and sheep to sea in -those days. The captain found fault with the mate because -the fowls and coops were dirty. The mate whitewashed -the chickens and blacked their legs and beaks. Now the -poultry in question belonged to the captain. Thereafter the -fowls died. -</p> - -<p> -It was the custom for the admiral to take a cow or two -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P66"></a>66}</span> -to sea, and the officers took sheep and fowls. There is a -tradition in the Navy that the cow used to be milked in the -middle watch for the benefit of the officer on watch; and -that, in order that the admiral should get his allowance of -milk, the cow was filled up with water and made to leap -backwards and forwards across the hatchways. Another -tradition ordains that when the forage for the sheep ran -short, the innocent animals were fitted with green spectacles, -and thus equipped, they were fed on shavings. -</p> - -<p> -When we put into Valparaiso the Spanish fleet was -threatening to bombard the town. Rather more than a year -previously, in 1864, Spain had quarrelled with Chile, alleging -that Chile had violated neutrality, and had committed other -offences. In March, 1864, Spain began the diplomatic -correspondence with Chile in which she demanded reparation, -which was refused. Chile sent artillery and troops to -Valparaiso. The Spanish admiral, Pareja, then proclaimed a -blockade of the Chilian ports, and Chile declared war. -</p> - -<p> -The European residents in Valparaiso, who owned an -immense amount of valuable property stored in the custom-houses, -were terrified at the prospect of a bombardment, and -petitioned Admiral Denman to prevent it. An American -fleet of warships was also lying in the Bay. Among them -was the <i>Miantonomoh</i>, the second screw ironclad that ever -came through the Straits of Magellan, the first being the -Spanish ironclad <i>Numancia</i>. -</p> - -<p> -When the <i>Miantonomoh</i> crossed the Atlantic in 1866, -<i>The Times</i> kindly remarked that the existing British Navy -was henceforth useless, and that most of its vessels "were -only fit to be laid up and 'painted that dirty yellow which is -universally adopted to mark treachery, failure, and crime.'" -</p> - -<p> -The British and American admirals consulted together -as to the advisability of preventing the bombardment. The -prospect of a fight cheered us all; and we entered into -elaborate calculations of the relative strength of the Spanish -fleet and the British-American force. As a matter of fact, -they were about equal. The Spanish admiral, Nunez, who -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P67"></a>67}</span> -had succeeded Pareja, visited the <i>Sutlej</i> and conversed with -Admiral Denman. It was reported by the midshipman who -was A.D.C. to the admiral that, upon his departure, the -Spaniard had said: "Very well, Admiral Denman, you -know your duty and I know mine." The information -raised our hopes; but at the critical moment a telegram -forbidding the British admiral to take action was received -from the British Minister at Santiago. -</p> - -<p> -So the British and American fleets steamed out to sea -while the Spaniards fired upon Valparaiso from eight in the -morning until four in the afternoon, setting the place on fire, -and then retired to their anchorage outside. The British -and American fleets then returned to the Bay, and I -accompanied a landing-party to help to extinguish the -conflagration. -</p> - -<p> -Five of us were standing on the top of the high wall of a -building whose roof had fallen in, so that the whole interior -was a mass of burning wreckage, upon which we were -directing the hose, when the men below shouted that the -wall was falling. We slid down the ladder, and no sooner -had we touched the ground than the whole wall tottered and -fell inwards. -</p> - -<p> -We put the fires out, but the inhabitants were so angry -with us because we had not prevented the bombardment, -that they requested that the landing-party should be sent -back to their ships. Then the flames broke out afresh. For -years the resentment of the Valparaisians remained so hot -that it was inadvisable to land in the town men from British -ships. -</p> - -<p> -The meeting of the British and American seamen gave -rise to much discussion concerning the respective merits -of the British and American theories of gunnery. The -Americans advocated the use of round shot to deliver a -"racking blow"; the British preferred firing a pointed -projectile which would penetrate the target instead of -merely striking it. When an American bluejacket asked -his British friend to explain the new English system of -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P68"></a>68}</span> -shell-fire, the British bluejacket said: "We casts our shot -for the new gun so many fathoms long, and then, d'ye see, -we cuts off a length at a time, regulatin' the length required -according to the ship we uses it against. For your ship, -I reckon we should cut off about three and a half inches." -</p> - -<p> -The Spanish fleet was afflicted with scurvy; and we used -to pull over to the Spanish ships in the evenings, bringing -the officers presents of chicken, fresh meat and fruit. -</p> - -<p> -Having done with Valparaiso, the Spaniards went to -Callao; but there they had a more difficult job; for Callao -was fortified, and the Spaniards were considerably damaged -by the gun-fire from the forts. -</p> - -<p> -During the progress of hostilities between the Chilians -and the Spaniards, the Chilians constructed one of the first -submarines. It was an American invention worked by -hand and ballasted with water. The Chilians intended, or -hoped, to sink the Spanish fleet with it. The submarine -started from the beach on this enterprise; but it was never -seen again. It simply plunged into the sea, and in the sea -it remains to this day. -</p> - -<p> -We left Valparaiso about the middle of April, 1866, -and proceeded to Vancouver. On the way, the <i>Sutlej</i> ran -into a French barque, taking her foremast and bowsprit -out of her. Captain Coode stood by the rail, his arms -crossed, his hands folded in his sleeves, looking down upon -the wreck with a sardonic grin, while the French captain, -gesticulating below, shouted, "O you goddam Englishman -for you it is all-a-right, but for it it is not so nice!" -</p> - -<p> -But we repaired all damages so that at the latter end -he was better off than when he started. -</p> - -<p> -We arrived at Vancouver early in June, and left a few -days later, to encounter a terrific hurricane. It blew from the -18th June to the 22nd June; and the track of the ship on -the chart during those four days looks like a diagram of -cat's-cradle. The ship was much battered, and her boats -were lost. On this occasion, I heard the pipe go "Save ship" -for the second time in my life. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P69"></a>69}</span> -</p> - -<p> -We put into San Francisco to refit. Here many of our -men deserted. In those days, it was impossible to prevent -desertions on these coasts, although the sentries on board -had their rifles loaded with ball cartridge. Once the men -had landed we could not touch them. I used to meet the -deserters on shore, and they used to chaff me. As we had -lost our boats, the American dockyard supplied us with -some. One day the officer of the watch noticed fourteen -men getting into the cutter, which was lying at the boom. -He hailed them from the deck. The men, returning no -answer, promptly pushed off for the shore. The officer of -the watch instantly called away the whaler, the only other -boat available, intending to send a party in pursuit. But -the deserters had foreseen that contingency, and had cut -the falls just inside the lowering cleat, so that the whaler -could not be lowered. -</p> - -<p> -While I was at San Francisco, I had my first experience -of the American practical view of a situation. Bound -upon a shooting excursion, I had taken the train to Benicia, -and alighted with a small bag, gun and cartridges. I asked -a railway man to carry my bag for me to a hack (cab). He -looked at me, and said, -</p> - -<p> -"Say, is it heavy?" -</p> - -<p> -"No," I said, "it is quite light." -</p> - -<p> -"Waal then," said he, "I guess you can carry it -yourself." I had to, so I did. -</p> - -<p> -Benicia is celebrated as the birthplace of John Heenan, -the "Benicia Boy," the famous American boxer. The great -fight between Heenan and Tom Sayers was fought at -Farnborough on the 17th April, 1860. Heenan was a huge -man, six feet and an inch in height; Sayers, Champion of -England, five feet eight inches. The fight was interrupted. -Both men received a silver belt. I remember well the event -of the fight, though I was not present at it. More than -three years afterwards, in December, 1863, Tom King beat -Heenan. -</p> - -<p> -From San Francisco we proceeded to Cape Horn, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P70"></a>70}</span> -homeward bound. On these long sailing passages we used to -amuse ourselves by spearing fish. Sitting on the dolphin-striker -(the spar below the bowsprit) we harpooned albacore -and bonito and dolphin, which is not the dolphin proper -but the coryphee. -</p> - -<p> -We rounded the Horn, buffeted by the huge seas of -that tempestuous promontory. On that occasion, I actually -saw the Horn, which is an inconspicuous island beaten upon -by the great waves, standing amid a colony of little black -islands. And off Buenos Aires we were caught in a -pampero, the hurricane of South American waters. It blew -from the land; and although we were three or four hundred -miles out at sea, the master smelt it coming. Indeed, the -whole air was odorous with the fragrance of new-mown hay; -and then, down came the wind. -</p> - -<p> -We were bound for Portsmouth. And when we rounded -the Isle of Wight, and came into view of Spithead, lo! the -anchorage was filled with great ships all stationed in -review order. They were assembled for a review to be held -for the Sultan of Turkey. -</p> - -<p> -We took in the signal containing our instructions, and -fired a salute; and then, standing in under all plain sail -and starboard studdingsails, we sailed right through the -Fleet, and all the men of the Fleet crowded rails and yards -to look at us, and cheered us down the lines. For the -days of sails were passing even then; we had come home -from the ends of the world; and the splendid apparition -of a full-rigged man-of-war standing into the anchorage -moved every sailor's heart; so that many officers and men -have since told me that the <i>Sutlej</i> sailing into Spithead -through the lines of the Fleet was the finest sight it was -ever their fortune to behold. -</p> - -<p> -In the <i>Tribune</i> and in the <i>Sutlej</i> it was my luck to serve -under two of the strictest and best captains in the Service, -Captain Lord Gillford and Captain Trevenen P. Coode. I -may be forgiven for recalling that both these officers added -a special commendation to my certificates; an exceedingly -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P71"></a>71}</span> -rare action on their part, and in the case of Captain Coode, I -think the first instance on record. -</p> - -<p> -Part of the test for passing for sub-lieutenant was bends -and hitches. Captain Lord Gillford was highly pleased with -a white line which I had spliced an eye in and grafted myself. -Knowing that I was a good sailmaker, he once made me -fetch palm and canvas and sew an exhibition seam in public. -</p> - -<p> -From the <i>Sutlej</i> I passed into the H.M.S. <i>Excellent</i>, in -order to prepare for the examinations in gunnery. In those -days, the <i>Excellent</i> was a gunnery school ship of 2311 tons, -moored in the upper part of Portsmouth Harbour. The -<i>Excellent</i> gunnery school is now Whale Island. -</p> - -<p> -While in the <i>Excellent</i> I had the misfortune, in dismounting -a gun, to break a bone in my foot; and although the injury -seemed to heal very quickly under the application of arnica, -I have felt its effects ever since. -</p> - -<p> -In 1867 I was appointed to the <i>Research</i>, which was -stationed at Holyhead, and in which I served for a few -months. There was a good deal of alarm felt with regard -to the Fenians, who were active at the time, and the -<i>Research</i> was ordered to look out for them. With my -messmates, Cæsar Hawkins, Lascelles, and Forbes, I hunted -a good deal from Holyhead with Mr. Panton's hounds. I also -hunted with the Ward Union in Ireland. I used to cross from -Holyhead at night, hunt during the day, and return that night. -</p> - -<p> -Among other memories of those old days, I remember -that my brother and myself, being delayed at Limerick -Junction, occupied the time in performing a work of charity -upon the porter, whose hair was of an immoderate luxuriance. -He was—so far as we could discover—neither poet nor -musician, and was therefore without excuse. Nevertheless, -he refused the proffered kindness. Perceiving that he was -thus blinded to his own interest, we gently bound him hand -and foot and lashed him to a railway truck. I possessed a -knife, but we found it an unsuitable weapon: my brother -searched the station and found a pair of snuffers, used for -trimming the station lamps. With this rude but practicable -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P72"></a>72}</span> -instrument we shore the locks of the porter, and his hair -blew all about the empty station like the wool of a sheep at -shearing-time. When it was done we made him suitable -compensation. -</p> - -<p> -"Sure," said the porter, "I'll grow my hair again as -quick as I can the way you'll be giving me another tip." -</p> - -<p> -We had an old Irish keeper at home, whose rule in life -was to agree with everything that was said to him. Upon a -day when it was blowing a full gale of wind, I said to -myself that I would get to windward of him to-day anyhow. -</p> - -<p> -"Well, Harney," said I. "It is a fine calm day to-day." -</p> - -<p> -"You may say that, Lord Char-less, but what little wind -there is, is terrible strong," says Harney. -</p> - -<p> -A lady once said to him, "How old are you, Harney?" -</p> - -<p> -"Och, shure, it's very ould and jaded I am, it's not long -I'll be for this worrld," said he. -</p> - -<p> -"Oh," said she, "but I'm old, too. How old do you -think I am?" -</p> - -<p> -"Sure, how would I know that? But whatever age ye are, -ye don't look it, Milady." -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap07"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P73"></a>73}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER VII -<br /> -THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. <i>GALATEA</i> -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -I. TO THE ANTIPODES -</p> - -<p> -After a brief spell in the royal yacht, I was promoted -out of her to lieutenant, and was appointed to the -<i>Galatea</i>, Captain H.R.H. Alfred Ernest Albert, Duke -of Edinburgh, K.G., K.T. -</p> - -<p> -H.M.S. <i>Galatea</i> had four months previously returned from -the long cruise of seventeen months, 24th January, 1867, to -26th June, 1868, during which the Duke visited South Africa -and Australasia. While he was in Australia, an attempt had -been made to assassinate his Royal Highness, who had a -very narrow escape. The pistol was fired at the range of -a few feet, and the bullet, entering the Duke's back, struck a -rib and ran round the bone, inflicting a superficial wound. -A full account of the voyage is contained in <i>The Cruise of -H.M.S. Galatea</i>, by the Rev. John Milner and Oswald -W. Brierley (London, 1869; W. H. Allen). The <i>Galatea</i> frigate -was built at Woolwich and launched in 1859. She was of -3227 tons burthen, 800 h.p.; she was pierced for 26 guns; -maindeck, 18 guns, 10-inch, 86 cwt., and 4 guns, 10-inch, -6½ tons; on the quarterdeck, 2 guns, rifled, 64-pounders; in -the forecastle, 2 guns, rifled, 64-pounders. The 6½-ton guns -threw a shot of 115 lb., and a large double-shell weighing -156 lb. She stowed 700 tons of coal and 72 tons of water. -Previously the <i>Galatea</i>, commanded by Captain Rochfort -Maguire, had been employed from 1862 to 1866 in the Baltic, -and on the Mediterranean and West Indian stations. She -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P74"></a>74}</span> -took part in the suppression of the insurrection at Jamaica, -and, after the loss of H.M.S. <i>Bulldog</i>, destroyed the batteries -on Cape Haitien. Her sister ship was the <i>Ariadne</i>, and -Admiral Penrose Fitzgerald, who served in the <i>Ariadne</i>, in -1861, writes: "It would not be too much to say that she -and her sister ship, the <i>Galatea</i>, were the two finest wooden -frigates ever built in this or any other country" (<i>Memories -of the Sea</i>). Personally, I am inclined to consider, that fine -sailor as the <i>Galatea</i> was, the <i>Sutlej</i> was finer still. -</p> - -<p> -The Duke of Edinburgh was an admirable seaman. He -had a great natural ability for handling a fleet, and he would -have made a first-class fighting admiral. The Duke's -urbanity and kindness won the affection of all who knew -him. I am indebted to him for many acts of kindness, -and I was quite devoted to him. -</p> - -<p> -The voyage of the <i>Galatea</i> lasted for two years and a half. -We visited Cape Town, Australia, New Zealand, Tahiti, the -Sandwich Islands, Japan, China, India, and the Falkland -Islands. It is not my purpose to describe that long cruise -in detail; but rather to record those incidents which emerge -from the capricious haze of memory. In many respects, the -second long voyage of the <i>Galatea</i> was a repetition of her -first voyage, so elaborately chronicled by the Rev. John -Milner and Mr. Brierley. In every part of the Queen's -dominions visited by her son, the Duke was invariably -received with the greatest loyalty and enthusiasm. It -should be understood throughout that, when his ship was -not in company, or was in company with a ship commanded -by an officer junior to his Royal Highness, he was received -as the Queen's son; but when a senior officer was present, -the Duke ranked in the order of his seniority in the Service. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-074"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-074.jpg" alt="H.R.H. ALFRED ERNEST ALBERT, DUKE OF EDINBURGH, K.G., K.T." /> -<br /> -H.R.H. ALFRED ERNEST ALBERT, DUKE OF EDINBURGH, K.G., K.T. -</p> - -<p> -We left Plymouth early in November, 1868, and once -more I was afloat in a crack sailing ship, smart and well -found in every detail, and once more I entered into the -charm of the life in which above all I delighted. We -touched at Madeira, where I grieve to say some of the -junior officers captured a goat and some other matters during -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P75"></a>75}</span> -a night on shore; touched at St. Vincent; and arrived at -Cape Town on Christmas Day. -</p> - -<p> -At Cape Town, my set of tandem harness came again -into requisition. From the Cape we proceeded to Perth. -The fact that an attempt upon his life had been made in -Australia, was one of the reasons why the Duke chose to pay -the Colony another visit. -</p> - -<p> -Upon a part of our voyage to Australia we were accompanied -by my old ship, the <i>Clio</i>, and so admirably handled -was she, that she sometimes beat the <i>Galatea</i> in sailing. In -every place to which we went in Australia and New Zealand, -we received the most unbounded hospitality, of which I shall -always retain the most pleasant recollections. We were -asked everywhere; livery stables were put at the disposal of -the officers; we went to shooting parties, and to every kind -of festivity. -</p> - -<p> -At Perth I visited the convict settlement; and there I -found a relative or connection of the Beresford family, who -had been so unfortunate as to be transported for forgery. -He appeared to be a most respectable old gentleman, and -(with the permission of the governor) I presented him with -a small cheque. Alas! incredible as it may seem, the sight -of my signature awoke the ruling passion; and my gentleman -promptly forged a bill of exchange for £50, and (as I -found when I came home) got it cashed. -</p> - -<p> -It was in Perth, too, that I visited a prisoner, a -fellow-Irishman, who had been convicted of murder. He had been -a soldier, and had slain his corporal and his sergeant. This -man inspired me with some ideas with regard to criminals -which later in life I tried to put into practice; and also -aroused in me an interest in prisons and prison discipline -which I have always retained. He was a gigantic person, of -immense physical strength, with receding forehead and a -huge projecting jaw. He was considered to be dangerous; -five or six warders accompanied me into his cell; and they -spoke to him as though he were a dog. I looked at the -man's eyes; and I was convinced then, as I am convinced -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P76"></a>76}</span> -now, that his intellect was impaired. Criminal psychology -then hardly existed; and although it is now recognised as -a science, it must be said that existing penal conditions -are still in many respects awaiting reform. Subsequent -experience has proved to me that I was right in believing -that many crimes of violence are due to a lesion of the -brain, and cannot therefore be treated as moral offences. I -heard some time subsequently that the Irishman had been -shot for the attempted murder of a warder. Perth and New -South Wales were the only places in the British Dominions -in which there was a death penalty for attempted murder. -</p> - -<p> -I may here mention that in after years I was appointed, -together with the (late) Duke of Fife, as civil inspector of -prisons; an office which I held for a year or two. I was -able to institute a reform in the system then in force of -mulcting prisoners of good conduct marks. These were -deducted in advance, before the man had earned them, if he -gave trouble. A prisoner sentenced to a long term—who -usually gives trouble during his first two years—found, when -he began to run straight, that good marks he earned had -been deducted in advance. I was able to change the system, -so that no marks should be deducted before they were -earned. -</p> - -<p> -It was after I had been placed in command of the police -at Alexandria, in 1882, that I was offered the post of chief -commissioner of police in the Metropolis; and I was -honoured by a gracious message from a very distinguished -personage, expressing a hope that I would accept the -appointment; but, as I wished to remain in the Navy, I -declined it. -</p> - -<p> -We returned to Australia on our homeward voyage, but -for the sake of convenience I may here deal with the two -visits as one. At Sydney, I purchased a pair of horses. -They were reputed to be runaways, and I bought them for -£9 a pair, and I drove them tandem with ring snaffle bits. -They never ran away with me—except once. When they -came into my possession, I found that their mouths were -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P77"></a>77}</span> -sore, and I did what I could to cure them. Many a drive I -had, and all went well. Then one day we all drove to a -picnic. The Duke, who was very fond of coaching, drove a -coach. I drove my tandem, taking with me the commander, -Adeane. On the way home, the road was down a steep hill. -We were beginning to descend, when one of the Duke's -mounted orderlies mixed himself up with the traces between -the leader and the wheeler. The leader, taking fright, -bolted, and the sudden tightening of the traces jerked the -orderly head over heels into the bush. Away we went down -the hill as hard as the horses could gallop. The next thing -I saw was a train of carts laden with mineral waters coming -up the hill and blocking the whole road. The only way to -avoid disaster was to steer between a telegraph pole and the -wall. It was a near thing, but we did it. I gave the reins -of one horse to the commander and held on to the reins of -the other. -</p> - -<p> -Then I was aware, in that furious rush, of a melancholy -voice, speaking close beside me. It was the voice of the -commander, speaking, unknown to himself, the thoughts of -his heart, reckoning the chances of mishap and how long -they would take to repair. It said: "an arm, an arm, an -arm—a month. A leg, a leg, a leg—six weeks. A neck, a -neck a neck—O! my God!" And so on, over and over, -saying the same words. Thus did Jerry Adeane, the -commander, think aloud according to his habit. He -continued his refrain until we pulled up on the next rise. -</p> - -<p> -"Thank God, that's over," said Jerry Adeane. -</p> - -<p> -Before leaving Australia, I sold my pair of horses for -more than I gave for them. -</p> - -<p> -When the <i>Galatea</i> was in New Zealand, Sir George Grey, -who owned an island called the Kanwah, gave me permission -to shoot there. He had stocked it for years with every -sort of wild bird and beast. Indigenous to the island were -wild boar and wild cattle, which were supposed to have been -turned down there by the buccaneers. I landed early one -morning to stalk the wild cattle, with my servant, a pulpy, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P78"></a>78}</span> -bulbous sort of rotten fellow who hated walking. He carried -my second rifle. We climbed to the top of a hill with the -wind against us, to get a spy round. When I came near -the top, I perceived the unmistakable smell of cattle; and, -on reaching the top, there, within thirty yards of me, were a -great black bull and two cows. -</p> - -<p> -The bull saw me. He shook his head savagely, bellowed, -pawed the ground, put his head about, and charged straight -for me. I was standing in a thick sort of tea scrub which -was level with my shoulders, so that I could see only the -beast's back as he charged. I thought it was of no use to -fire at his back; and, remembering that the scrub was thin, -having only stems underneath, I dropped on my knee, -hoping to see his head. Fortunately, I was able to see it -plainly. I fired, and he dropped within about five yards -of me. -</p> - -<p> -I said to my man: -</p> - -<p> -"Well, that was lucky; he might have got us." -</p> - -<p> -As there was no reply, I turned round, and saw my trusty -second gun half-way down the hill, running like a hare. I -was so angry that I felt inclined to give him my second -barrel. On returning on board I dispensed with his -services, and engaged a good old trusty Marine to look -after me. -</p> - -<p> -I killed six of these wild cattle altogether, and a landing -party bringing them off to the ship, there was beef enough -for the whole ship's company. -</p> - -<p> -There was a number of sheep on the island, under the -care of a shepherd named Raynes, who was a sort of keeper -in Sir George's service. He said to me, "You have not killed -a boar yet. Come with me to-morrow, and I will take you -where we can find one." I said, "All right, I will come at -four o'clock to-morrow and bring my rifle." "No," said he, -"don't bring a rifle, bring a knife. I always kill them with -a knife." -</p> - -<p> -I thought he was chaffing, but I said, "All right, I will -bring a knife, but I shall bring my rifle as well." -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P79"></a>79}</span> -</p> - -<p> -In the morning he met me at the landing-stage with -three dogs, one a small collie, and two heavy dogs like -half-bred mastiffs, held in a leash. We walked about three miles -to a thick swampy place, with rushes and tussocks. He -chased the collie into the bush, and in about twenty minutes -we heard the collie barking furiously. Raynes told me to -follow him close, and not on any account to get in front of -him. The heavy dogs fairly pulled him through the bush. -We soon came up to the collie, and found him with an -immense boar in a small open space. -</p> - -<p> -Raynes slipped the heavy dogs, who went straight for -the boar, and seized him, one by the ear and the other by -the throat. The boar cut both the dogs, one badly. When -they had a firm hold, Raynes ran in from behind, seized one -of the boar's hind legs, and passing it in front of the other -hind leg, gave a violent pull, and the boar fell on its side. -Raynes immediately killed it with his knife, by stabbing it -behind the shoulder. I never saw a quicker or a more -skilful performance. -</p> - -<p> -I suggested to Raynes that I should like to try it. -</p> - -<p> -"Well," he said, "we will try and find a light sow -to-morrow. A boar would cut you if you were not -quick." -</p> - -<p> -On the following day, we got a sow, but I made an -awful mess of it, and if it had not been for the heavy dogs, -she would have cut me badly; as it was, she bowled me -over in the mud before I killed her. -</p> - -<p> -In New Zealand, we went up to the White Springs and -we all bathed with the Maories. You stand in the water -warm as milk, close beside springs of boiling water, and -occasionally a jet of steam makes you jump. The person -of one of the guests, a very portly gentleman, suggested a -practical joke to the Maori boys and girls, who dived in and -swam up to him under water, pinched him and swam away -with yells of laughter. The old boy, determined to preserve -harmony, endured the torment with an agonised pretence of -enjoyment. "Very playful, very playful!" he kept miserably -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P80"></a>80}</span> -repeating. "Oh, very playful indeed. <i>Tanaqui</i> (how do you -do), <i>Tanaqui</i>." -</p> - -<p> -We had an excellent lunch, of pig, fowls, and yams, all -boiled on the spot in the hot springs. I saw a live pig chased -by some Maori children into a hot spring, and it was boiled -in a moment. -</p> - -<p> -In this region I rode over soil which was exactly like -dust-shot; the whole ground apparently consisting of ore. -We visited the White Terraces, where, if you wrote your -name in pencil upon the cliffs, the silicate would preserve -the legend as if it were raised or embroidered. Some of the -signatures had been there for years. I have since heard that -the place was destroyed by volcanic eruption. -</p> - -<p> -We witnessed the weird and magnificent war dances of -the Maoris. Never have I seen finer specimens of humanity -than these men. When, after leaping simultaneously into -the air, they all came to the ground together, the impact -sounded like the report of a gun. A party of the Chiefs -came to pay a ceremonial visit to the Duke. It struck me -that they looked hungry, and I said so. They want cheering -up, I said. I went to forage for them. I took a huge silver -bowl, and filled it with chicken, whisky, lobster, beef, -champagne, biscuits and everything else I could find, and presented -it to them. You never saw warriors more delighted. They -ate the whole, using their fingers, and were greatly cheered. -</p> - -<p> -It was in New Zealand that I had an interesting conversation -with a cannibal—or rather, an ex-cannibal. I -asked him if he ever craved for human flesh, and he said no, -not now—unless he happened to see a plump woman. In -that case, he said he lusted for the flesh of the ball of the -thumb, which (he gave me to understand) was the prime -delicacy. -</p> - -<p> -Some of the half-caste women were of great beauty. -Their savage blood endowed them with something of the -untamed, implacable aspect of their ancestry. I heard of -one such woman, who, outwardly attuned to every tenet of -white civilisation, and received everywhere in white society, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P81"></a>81}</span> -suddenly reverted. A native rebellion breaking out, she -rejoined her tribe and slew a missionary with her <i>meri</i>—the -native chief's badge of office. She cut off the top of the -missionary's skull, and used it thereafter as a drinking-vessel. -Poor lady, she was (I heard) eventually captured and was -executed. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap08"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P82"></a>82}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER VIII -<br /> -THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. <i>GALATEA</i> (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -II. MY TWO FAITHFUL SERVANTS -</p> - -<p> -They came to me first in the <i>Galatea</i>, so that their -story may fitly be related in this place. Tom Fat -the China boy came to me at Kowloon. He was -brought to me by his uncle, who desired to dispose of his -nephew, for a consideration. The consideration was £5. -Lest I should be accused of Chinese slavery—and anything -is possible in these days—I should explain that the fiver -was not the price of Tom Fat, but was in the nature of a -delicate compliment paid to his uncle. Tom was a free boy; -he was entered in the ship's books as my servant, at so much -wages per month. Not that he valued his wages particularly; -he had wider views. He was an invaluable servant, -clever, orderly, indefatigable and devoted. I attired him in -gorgeous silks, and he bore my crest with perfect unassuming -dignity. He kept my purse, and expended my money -with prudence, even with generosity. When I wanted -money, Tom Fat had plenty of ready cash. I sometimes -wondered how it was that he always seemed to be provided -with a margin, for I was not conscious of practising economy. -The fact was, I was careless in those days, and kept no -accounts. It was not until he had been in my service for -some years, that I discovered the secret of his wealth. It -was simple enough. He was in the habit of forging cheques. -Altogether, he forged cheques for nearly twelve hundred -pounds. How much of that amount he kept for himself I -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P83"></a>83}</span> -never knew; but it is certain that a great deal of it he spent -upon me. Nor do I know why he did not ask for a cheque -instead of forging it. Apparently it was a point of honour -with Tom not to ask for money. When I asked him if he -wanted a cheque to defray expenses, he usually replied -cheerfully that he had no need of it. Certainly he acquired -a reputation for economy by these means. -</p> - -<p> -His methods were subtle. He was well aware that I -kept no private account book of my own, and that my -bankers did not enter the names of payees in my pass-book, -but only the numbers of the cheques cashed, and also that -the bank returned cashed cheques from time to time. On -these occasions, Tom, finding pass-book and cashed cheques -among my papers, would abstract both the counterfoils and -the cheques which he had forged, knowing that as I should -not take the trouble to compare the numbers of the cheques -with the numbers in the pass-book, I should not notice that -some cheques were missing. He was always careful to -arrange that the last counterfoil filled up—at which one -naturally looks—should be that of my cheque and not that -of his; and he never drew large sums, varying his amounts -between £5 and £20, except on one occasion, when he -forged a cheque for £50. The Oriental mind is inscrutable; -but whether or no Tom considered that he was robbing me; -whether, if he considered that he was robbing me, he -believed he was justified in so doing; he took the most -sedulous care that no one else should enjoy that privilege. -</p> - -<p> -Tom was universally popular. I took him everywhere -with me. In his way, he was a sportsman. One day, -hunting with the Duke of Beaufort's hounds, I mounted -him on a skewbald pony. We came to a nasty slippery -place, a bad take-off, a wall to jump, and the road beyond. -Tom's pony took it safely. A big, hard-riding guardsman -who was coming up behind us, not liking the look of the -place, shouted to me, "Is it all right?" -</p> - -<p> -"That hideous Chinaman has just done it!" I shouted -back. Not to be outdone by a Chinaman, the guardsman -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P84"></a>84}</span> -rode at the fence, his horse went down, and he got a -dreadful toss. When he got up, he was furiously angry -with me. -</p> - -<p> -When Tom had been with me for some years, he came -to me and said, "Master, you never give me leave! You -give others leave but not me leave. I want leave." -</p> - -<p> -The request was reasonable enough, and I sent Tom to -my house in town, there to amuse himself for a week. At -the end of the week he did not return. He was reported -missing. I advertised for him, offering a reward. The next -day he was arrested at the Criterion Restaurant, being one -of a party of thirteen (of whom twelve were ladies) to whom -Tom was about to play the host. -</p> - -<p> -It turned out that during his week in town, my faithful -servant had spent £70. He had also raised money at one -of my clubs. -</p> - -<p> -"Lord Charles want twenty-five pounds," he said to the -porter, who took him to the cashier. -</p> - -<p> -"His lordship must give me his I.O.U.," says the cashier. -</p> - -<p> -"What thing that?" says Tom. -</p> - -<p> -The cashier explained. -</p> - -<p> -"All-light," says the man of resource, and promptly -forged my I.O.U. for thirty-five pounds. -</p> - -<p> -"You said twenty-five," remarked the cashier. -</p> - -<p> -"I tink Lord Charles like little more," Tom replied. -</p> - -<p> -Of course, the cashier sent me the document. When I -investigated Tom's transactions, I found a few of his forged -cheques in the bank, and I could hardly tell the difference -between my signature and his forgeries. The cheque-books -were compared with the pass-book, and counterfoils were -found to be missing. I took legal action against him, and -he was sentenced to five years. Shortly afterwards, when -I was in Scotland, I received a letter from the hapless Tom, -saying he was dying, and asking me to come and see him. -I went at once. I found him in the infirmary, a dying -man indeed, with his face to the wall. A Chinaman dies -at will. He simply lies down and dies; but by the same -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P85"></a>85}</span> -token, he can continue to live. So I determined to rouse -him. I hailed him in a loud and cheerful voice. -</p> - -<p> -"Tom! Cheer up, Tom! What's the matter? You're -not ill. Rouse up." -</p> - -<p> -"Me die, master," said Tom. -</p> - -<p> -"Not you," I said. "Come! Cheer up, and I'll try to -get you out of this." -</p> - -<p> -And sure enough, he turned back, became quite well, -and I secured his release after he had served a short term. -I found him a place in China, sent him East, and never saw -him again. When I went to China subsequently, I failed -to find him. After his interval of Western service, China -took him and swallowed him up. And that was the end of -Tom Fat. -</p> - -<p> -He was in my service when, upon the return voyage to -Australia of the <i>Galatea</i>, we touched at Mauritius. In that -strange island I came across a youthful negro savage. I -learned his history from his master, an amiable French -gentleman. Punch, as I named him, had been brought to -Mauritius by a British cruiser. The warship had chased a -slaver, whose crew jettisoned the slaves. They were fettered -in chains and hove over the side. When the British seamen -boarded the vessel they found her holds empty, except -for the odour. In a dark corner was stowed a bundle of -rags, into which a bluejacket thrust his cutlass. The rags -sprang to life with a yell, and there was Punch with a -wound in his thigh, of which he carried the scar to his end. -</p> - -<p> -It occurred to me that Punch would serve me for a groom, -and I said so to his master. -</p> - -<p> -"<i>Tiens!</i>" said that gentleman pleasantly. "You shall -have him for five shilling." -</p> - -<p> -"Done!" said I, and paid him the money. He did not -think I was serious; but he made no bones about ridding -himself of his garden-boy. -</p> - -<p> -Punch was the most hideous savage I have ever viewed. -He was black as a boot; even his lips were black; his face -was seamed with the cicatrices which were the totem marks -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P86"></a>86}</span> -of his tribe, whatever that may have been; and his countenance -was exactly like the countenance of a bull-dog. The -scars wrinkled his cheeks, like a bull-dog's jowl. He was -densely stupid, and wild of temper. He attacked one of the -men on board with his teeth. But he was utterly fearless, -and although he knew nothing about horses, he was never -afraid of them. He was apparently constructed of -india-rubber. Nothing hurt him. When I drove a tandem, it -was his duty as tiger to spring up behind as we started. -But as my horses started at speed, Punch had not always -time to run from their heads to the back of the vehicle. -I have known him catch a spoke of the wheel and be -whirled into the air, and the wheel to pass over him, without -harming him in the least. -</p> - -<p> -At a race meeting in Australia, Punch begged for a -mount, and I borrowed a horse, which galloped away down -the course, Punch clinging to him with arms and legs -exactly like a monkey. He took two big fences like a bird; -but at the third, the horse breasted it, fell backwards and -rolled over upon his rider. I thought he was killed, but he -wasn't. He was not even damaged. -</p> - -<p> -When I went on half-pay, I placed Punch in the stables. -The women servants took a fancy to him; but Punch, -whatever he may have thought of the women, had no love -for the head groom, in whose arm he made his teeth meet. -So I found him a billet in a hairdresser's shop, which bore -the legend, "Hairbrushing by machinery." Punch was -the machinery. I saw him at it, turning a wheel in the -window. I never saw him again, and know not what became -of him. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap09"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P87"></a>87}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER IX -<br /> -THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. <i>GALATEA</i> (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -III. TAHITI AND THE SANDWICH ISLANDS -</p> - -<p> -We arrived at Tahiti in June, 1869. Here is the -most lovely climate in the world. The inhabitants -never seemed to do any work, with the single -exception of carrying bananas. In this exercise they were -extraordinarily expert, bearing enormous weights upon the -shoulders, the skin of which becomes hard like leather. I -considered myself to be fairly strong; but when I tried to -carry one of the masses of bananas under which the natives -march swiftly all day long, up hill and down, I found that -I was able to carry it only for a short distance, and with -difficulty, on level ground. The people were perfectly -delightful. We went ashore and lived among them; and it -was then that I understood how it was that the men of the -<i>Bounty</i> mutinied. The fact was that those discontented -mariners could not bear to leave islands so delectable. I do -not of course, desire to justify their very reprehensible -conduct. All I say is that I can understand the strength of -its motive. It was simply the desire to remain in an earthly -paradise which inspired the men of the <i>Bounty</i> when they -left Otaheite in April, 1789, to set Captain Bligh adrift in -an open boat, with the nineteen men who stayed by him, and -a small stock of provisions. The captain and his men made -an astonishing voyage of nearly 4000 miles, and fetched up -at the island of Timor, south of the Malaccas, in the -following June. Some of the mutineers were subsequently -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P88"></a>88}</span> -brought to justice in the year 1792. Six of them were -condemned and three were executed. In 1814 it was -discovered that ten among the mutineers had colonised -Pitcairn Island. -</p> - -<p> -We in the <i>Galatea</i> stayed at Tahiti as long as we -possibly could, and enjoyed every moment of the time. -One of our amusements was to float down a narrow and -swift stream and shoot the waterfall. At a point some -little distance from the coast, the stream ran deep and rapid -between banks which were about three feet apart. The -natives, boys and girls, used to drop into the stream and let -themselves be carried down feet foremost to a waterfall, -which descended some 40 or 50 feet in a wide pool; and -it occurred to me that what they could do, I could -accomplish. I watched these intrepid children very carefully, -and I observed that they always came to the surface some -distance away from the fall. In spite of some dissuasion, I -determined to attempt the enterprise. I floated down the -stream feet foremost, shot the fall, and the moment I reached -the foot of it I struck out under water. I was amazed to -find that the water was just like air, or an enormous -cauldron of soda water, buoying one up, and I came to the -surface without the slightest difficulty. Afterwards I went -down head first. The only thing to remember was not to -come up under the fall itself. Shooting the waterfall became -a popular amusement. -</p> - -<p> -Another of our diversions was surf-playing. This -enchanting exercise is performed with the aid of a long board -shaped like a wedge. The swimmer takes his board, pushes -it before him over the breakers, while he dives through them, -then turns, and, leaning on the board, rides back on the -crest of the surf. The speed, whatever it may be, feels like -sixty miles an hour. It is one of the most exhilarating -pastimes in the world. -</p> - -<p> -I remember that we all went to church on Sunday. -During the service, the Queen of Tahiti suddenly clapped -her hands, whereupon the clergyman desisted from his -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P89"></a>89}</span> -ministrations, while her Majesty distributed tobacco among -the congregation. When it was well alight the Queen again -clapped her hands, and the clergyman went on with the -service. -</p> - -<p> -We left Tahiti with profound regret, receiving and giving -many presents on parting. From Tahiti we proceeded to -the Sandwich Islands, where I met many old friends, made -during my sojourn four years previously. The American -population had quite forgiven and forgotten my boyish -freak, which had so agitated them at the time. Our old -friend Queen Emma, whom we had taken to Panama on her -way to England to see the Queen, had returned. I went to -call upon her, driving tandem, as already related. Turning -in at the gate, I took the corner too sharply, the wheels -locked, and the buggy capsized. In the meantime the -Queen, having heard the jingling of the Canadian sleigh -bells attached to the harness, came out to find her visitor -sitting on the grass at her feet. The horses galloped on and -wrecked the vehicle and also themselves. Altogether it was -a very expensive drive. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap10"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P90"></a>90}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER X -<br /> -THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. <i>GALATEA</i> -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -IV. OLD JAPAN -</p> - -<p class="t3"> -NOTE -</p> - -<p> -When Lord Charles Beresford visited Nippon (from -the Chinese Jih Pun, the place or rising of the -sun, changed by English pronunciation to Japan), -it was the old Japan that he saw; the Japan of centuries -of isolation, inviolate save for the intrusion of the Jesuit -missionaries in the sixteenth century, and the little wedge -of Dutch traders. It had been the Japan of the Mikado, -who was as a god; of the Tycoon, his temporal representative, -who, like a man walking the tight-rope above a -wood of transfixing swords, maintained a delicate equipoise -of power among the feudal seigneuralty, the great Daimios, -each lord of his domain and master of life and death over -thousands of retainers. It was the Japan of the Samurai, -the two-sworded rufflers; of the Ronins, the masterless men, -the outlaws, who roved the country in bands, patriotic, -ferocious and pitiless. It was still the Japan in which the -common people, men and women and maidens, walked naked -and unashamed; in which the warriors went to battle clad -in armour wrought of tortoise-shell and silk, girt with -swords and carrying bows and arrows; in which the life -of a barbarian foreigner was never safe from hour to hour, -so that he must be guarded by the two-sworded Yaconins, -the Government officers, who, knowing the hatred of the -Government towards their charges, seldom drew sword in -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P91"></a>91}</span> -their defence until it was just one blood-stained second too -late; in which a fault in honour was instantly expiated by -hara-kiri, the fatal cross-cut upon the belly, performed in -the public eye, which was justly offended if the incision -were so clumsily executed that the entrails protruded. -Such, at least, is the ceremonial theory. In practice, the -dagger is driven in below the ribs, drawn horizontally across -the belly, and up the other side; an operation requiring -inconceivable courage. -</p> - -<p> -It is the land of tea-houses and temples, of running -footmen and palanquins; where houses and string and -handkerchiefs are made of paper; where the people wash -themselves every day and their clothes never; where the -oldest profession in the world is counted honourable service, -and the pictures of courtesans adorn the temples in which -the bonzes intone prayers in the midst of games and dances: -where the writing is done from top to bottom, from right -to left, and keys are turned from left to right, and carpenters -draw their planes towards them, and the houses are built -from the roof downwards, and horses are mounted on the -off-side, and ladies black their teeth. It was a land of -immense processional pageants: the processions of the high -Daimios, who once a year quitted their ancestral homes with -a great train to dwell in Yedo, the capital of the Tycoon, -for six months; and returned again, leaving as hostages -for their loyalty their wives and children for another six -months. The two-sworded Samurai march in front, crying -"Shitanirio!" and all the spectators drop upon their knees -and hide behind their legs while the long procession ambles -by, spearmen and banners and baggage-carriers and palanquins; -the norimons, which are the palanquins of the notable, -and the cangos, which are the palanquins of the humble. -</p> - -<p> -When the foreigner rode abroad in state, he was attended -by the Ward-guards, who marched in front, striking the -earth at every step with their long staves whereon loose -iron rings were strung, so that their jingling warned the -populace to make way. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P92"></a>92}</span> -</p> - -<p> -At night, festivals were celebrated by immense processions -filling the streets, in which everyone carried a lighted lantern -swaying upon the end of a flexible bamboo, and the lanterns -were painted with bats and dragons, and the people wore -horrible masks, distended with the monstrous rictus of the -devil-gods. In the Yoshiwara, where the women, painted -and gilded, sashed and bedecked, sit in a double row, each -with her price placarded upon her knee, there were the -great priapic processions, concerning which the English -works upon Japan preserve a shocked reticence. -</p> - -<p> -In old Japan, the common ideal of the ruling classes -was that their country should maintain for ever intact its -immemorial laws, traditions and customs; an ideal whose -attainment the entrance of the foreigner would render -impossible. As for the common people, they had no -aspirations beyond the day's work. Japan, in her own -view, was complete, self-sufficient and wholly satisfied with -a civilisation compared with which the politics of the -Occident were of yesterday. The Islands of Nippon were -ensphered in holy crystal, whose flawless preservation was -the highest duty of a patriot. -</p> - -<p> -Into that rare atmosphere, surcharged with perilous -elements, sailed Commodore Perry of the United States Navy -in the year 1853. Some fifty years later, Pierre Loti entered -Japanese waters in a French warship. "Et nous entrions -maintenant dans une espèce de couloir ombreux, entre deux -rangées de très hautes montagnes, qui se succédaient avec -une bizarrerie symétrique—comme les 'portants' d'un décor -tout en profondeur, extrêmement beau, mais pas assez -naturel—on eut dit que ce Japon s'ouvrait devant nous, -en une déchirure enchantée, pour nous laisser pénétrer dans -son cceur même" (<i>Madame Chrysanthème</i>). -</p> - -<p> -It was Commodore Perry who rent open the heart of -Old Japan, and her blood flowed. The gallant commodore, -anchoring off Cape Idzu on 8th July, 1853, with two steam -frigates and two sloops of war, demanded no more than a -treaty securing help and proper treatment to sailors shipwrecked -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P93"></a>93}</span> -on the coasts of Japan. The Japanese Government -said neither yes nor no; whereupon Perry gave them a -year to consider the matter, promising to return at the -end of it with a "larger fleet." And on 12th February, -1854, there was Commodore Perry in the Bay of Yedo -with three steam frigates and four sloops of war. After -long negotiations, a treaty of amity was signed, including -a promise to succour ships in distress, and (above all) -opening two new ports. From that moment the isolation -of Japan was ended. The door opened but a crack; but -into that crack the wedge of commerce, driven by the lust -of gain, was thrust by America (1854), Russia (1857), -England and France (1858). -</p> - -<p> -In 1859, Mr. (afterwards Sir) Rutherford Alcock, British -representative of H.B.M. Government in China was -appointed her Majesty's Envoy Extraordinary and Minister -Plenipotentiary in Japan. His book, <i>The Capital of the -Tycoon</i> (London, 1863. Longman, 2 vols.), gives one of the -first authoritative accounts of Old Japan presented to the -British public. During his three years in that country -he was constantly in peril of assassination. In August, -1859, an officer and a sailor from one of the Russian ships -lying in the harbour were cut down and slashed to pieces -in the streets of Yedo, and a steward was severely wounded. -</p> - -<p> -In the following year the Japanese linguist attached -the British Legation was stabbed to death, and two -Dutch ship-captains were cut to pieces in Yokohama. The -next demonstration of the hatred of foreigners was the -murder of the Gotairo, the Regent, Iko-mono-no-kami. His -escort was suddenly attacked as it was leaving his castle -by some twenty swordsmen, wielding the terrible Japanese -two-handed weapon. The hands of the bearers of his -norimon were severed on the pole and the Regent himself -decapitated, his head being carried away as a trophy. -</p> - -<p> -In 1861, Mr. Heuskin, attached to the American -Legation, was murdered. Soon afterwards, one of the -Governors (or Under-Secretaries) of Foreign Affairs, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P94"></a>94}</span> -Oribeno-no-Kami, who had been especially friendly in his -intercourse with the Legations, "died," in the Japanese -phrase, "without the effects of medicine." To be more -precise, he had committed hara-kiri. -</p> - -<p> -In July, 1861, the British Legation at Yedo was attacked -at night by a band of swordsmen, who passed the guards -and rushed the building. Mr. Oliphant, who had recently -been appointed Secretary to the Legation, was severely -wounded. One of the guards, a porter, and a groom, and -two of the assailants, were killed outright. One of the -assailants was severely wounded, to six of the Legation -party who were severely wounded and eleven slightly -wounded. -</p> - -<p> -Such were the beginnings of Western influence in Japan. -Sir Rutherford Alcock's voluminous account of his three -years' ministry reveals a gallant, honest, kindly gentleman -sorely perplexed by the ethical problems involved in the -forcible interference of one powerful nation in the affairs of -a weaker nation, whose sole ambition was to be let alone. -Hampered, on the one hand, by the greed and discourtesy -of the European traders, and on the other, by the immitigable -duplicity and the furtive and implacable enmity of the -Japanese, yet singly determined to do his duty to his -Queen and country, Sir Rutherford Alcock honourably -fulfilled a task of extreme danger and incredible difficulty. -</p> - -<p> -Thenceforward, until the year 1869, the duel between -East and West continued with increasing ardour. The -whole polity of old Japan was shaken as by the earthquakes -which agitate and rend its soil. There were frequent -assassinations of the foreign barbarians; the governing -classes, which consisted wholly of the military caste, -employed every invidious method to restrict trade with -Europeans; while the Western nations, on their side, -brought their armed strength to bear in the enforcement of -treaty rights, which by the same means had originally been -wrung from the Tycoon's government. And here it falls to -distinguish between the divine prestige of the Mikado, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P95"></a>95}</span> -descendant of the sun-goddess, and the temporal administration -of the Tycoon, or Shogun. In that dual administration -resided a main factor of the extraordinary difficulty of -the situation. Both the spiritual and temporal rulers, the -Imperial Court and the Bakufu, or Tycoon's Government, -were equally inspired by hatred of the foreigner. But -whereas the Mikado, dwelling majestically apart, could avoid -all contact with the barbarians, the Tycoon was compelled -by superior force to negotiate with them. He was thus -placed between two fires; on the one side, the Mikado -ordered him to expel the foreigner; on the other, the -foreigner threatened him with war unless the treaties were -carried into execution. -</p> - -<p> -For long the Tycoon, or his advisers, maintained his -position with singular address. But no man born of -woman could have solved its complications. For the -great Daimios, the feudal nobility, held allegiance primarily -to the Mikado. The Tycoon could and did detach some -of the clans to his side; but the great body of the western -clans defied him. The influence of the Tycoon began -swiftly to decline. At the same time the Imperial -party began to perceive that the expulsion of foreigners -had become impossible. The immediate result was the -revolt of some of their adherents. Inspired as it was by -hatred of the foreigner, it was directed equally against -Mikado and Tycoon, and accompanied by expressions of -loyalty to both parties. -</p> - -<p> -In 1864 the troops of the Choshiu clan attempted to -capture Kioto and to obtain possession of the person of the -Mikado. They were defeated after heavy fighting. In -June of the previous year, the Choshiu men had fired upon -the American ship <i>Pembroke</i> while she was passing through -the Inland Sea, and also upon the Dutch corvette <i>Medusa</i>. -The French commander-in-chief of the station, Admiral -Jaurès proceeded to Shimoseki and destroyed the batteries. -In August a British naval force under the command of -Vice-Admiral Kuper proceeded to Kagoshima in order to enforce -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P96"></a>96}</span> -the payment of the indemnity due for the murder of -Mr. Richardson, bombarded the town and destroyed the batteries. -It was these two actions which for the first time really -convinced the ruling classes in Japan that it was hopeless -any longer to endeavour to prevent the intrusion of foreign -influence. -</p> - -<p> -In 1866 the Tycoon Iyemochi died. In the same year -a new and enlarged Convention was concluded with Great -Britain, France, America and Holland. In the following -year Keiki, very unwillingly, became Tycoon, an office which -by this time had become exceedingly insecure. In the same -year the Mikado, Komei, died and was succeeded by his -son Mutsuhito, a minor. In the following year the Mikado -assumed the whole administrative power hitherto vested in -the Tycoon, and a new system of Government was promulgated. -Followed, civil war and the defeat of the Tycoon, -who retired into seclusion. In the meantime the Mikado -had invited the Representatives of Foreign Powers to visit -him at Kioto. -</p> - -<p> -"That the Mikado of Japan, who claims to be descended -from the sun-goddess, and in whose person a peculiar odour -of sanctity was considered to exist, should voluntarily invite -to his palace at Kioto the Envoys of nations who had -hitherto been looked upon as outer barbarians, and -intercourse with whom was a profane thing, was indeed a great -step in advance. No foreigner had ever yet crossed the -Imperial threshold, or looked upon the face of the sacred -Emperor of Japan. It was a proof that a new order of -things was inaugurated, and gave good hopes for the future" -(Adams, <i>History of Japan</i>. Lond., 1875). -</p> - -<p> -But although the Imperial Government perceived the -wisdom of accepting the inevitable, the hatred of the -foreigner, bred in the blood of the military caste, could -neither be dissembled nor controlled; and the attack made -upon the British Envoy, Sir Harry Parkes, while actually -on his way to the Imperial Palace on 23rd March, 1868, -illustrates the condition of affairs. On the road to Kioto -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P97"></a>97}</span> -and in the sacred city itself, the Europeans had been regarded -by the people with a polite and respectful curiosity, nor was -there any sign of hostility. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Harry Parkes left the temple of Chi-on-in, where he -lodged, to proceed to the audience, with a mounted escort -of twelve ex-Metropolitan mounted police, under the -command of Inspector Peacock, with whom rode a -Japanese officer, Nakai Kozo. Behind these massive -veterans rode Sir Harry himself, accompanied by Goto -Shojiro, of the Japanese Foreign Department, and followed -by Mr. Mitford, Mr. Satow, Dr. Willis, and other members -of the Legation. Then came a guard of forty men of H.M.'s -9th Regiment under the command of Lieutenant Bradshaw -and Lieutenant Bruce. A native guard preceded the train, -and another guard followed it. Just as the policemen were -turning the corner of a narrow street, Sir Harry observed -signs of confusion, and the next moment a Japanese, his -great sword flashing and hewing, dashed round the corner, -closely pursued by two policemen. Sir Harry cried out to -the soldiers behind him to stop the Samurai. Turning his -head, he saw his companion, Goto Shojiro, on foot, sword in -hand rushing forward to attack a second Samurai, who was -already fighting hand to hand with Nakai Kozo, the Japanese -officer who had been riding alongside Inspector Peacock at -the head of the policemen. Behind Sir Harry, shots rang -out as the soldiers fired at the first assassin. Sir Harry -Parkes was suddenly aware of the wild figure of a Japanese -warrior, advancing towards him through the press. His face -was a mask of blood; in one hand shone a long sword, -dripping red from hilt to point; in the other, the victor -lifted the bloody head, shorn clean from the shoulders, of -his countryman. It was Nakai Kozo. Nakai gave the -following ingenuous account of his deed of arms to -Mr. Adams, secretary of the Legation, who quotes it in his -<i>History</i>, as follows:— -</p> - -<p> -"I saw a man running down the line cutting at one man -after another. I jumped off my horse, drew my sword, and -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P98"></a>98}</span> -rushed after him; he turned and we engaged; he cut me on -the head. Then Goto came up and dealt him a blow which -felled him to the ground. Unfortunately Goto's sword-hilt, -which was of lacquer, slipped from his hands, and I had to -cope with the fellow alone. I could only see out of one eye, -the other being covered with blood, but I kept chopping at -him, and after about ten blows I managed to cut his head -off. I then took the head and showed it to Sir H. Parkes." -</p> - -<p> -The soldiers bayoneted the first Samurai, who was still -alive when he was finally secured by Mr. Mitford. He was -afterwards beheaded by the Imperial Government. But -those two desperate enemies of the foreigner wounded -thirteen men and five horses ere they were cut down. One -of the wounded was a soldier, another a native groom; the -remaining nine, of whom two were so seriously hurt that they -were invalided home, were ex-Metropolitan policeman to -whom the methods of the Samurai must have been startling. -These trained fighters wield their two-handed swords, heavy, -perfectly balanced, razor-sharp weapons, with an appalling -swiftness and dexterity. At a single blow they can cleave -a man to the chin, or cut off his head, or lop off a limb. -</p> - -<p> -In May, 1868 Sir Harry Parkes presented his credentials, -which had hitherto been addressed to the Tycoon, to the -Emperor. On the 23rd was celebrated the Queen's birthday, -when many Japanese of high rank, some of whom had never -before made acquaintance with a foreigner, were entertained -by Vice-Admiral Sir Henry Keppel, commander-in-chief of -the China Station, on board H.M.S. <i>Rodney</i>. It was not -until November that the civil war was ended by the -submission of the rebels. The Emperor then took up his -residence for a time in Yedo—now called Tokio—which had -been the capital of the Tycoon, and which was henceforth to -be the eastern metropolis of the Emperor, as Kioto was the -western capital. In the following year, after another -insurrection had been suppressed, the great Daimios made -their memorable sacrifice, offering their lands and servants -to the Emperor; thereby deliberately exchanging their -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P99"></a>99}</span> -almost independent state for a condition of subservience to -the central Government. -</p> - -<p> -Such, in brief, was the beginning of the New Japan; and -it was at this stage in its development that, for the first time -in history, a foreign prince, in the person of H.R.H. the -Duke of Edinburgh, visited the Mikado. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap11"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P100"></a>100}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XI -<br /> -THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. <i>GALATEA</i> (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -V. WITH THE DUKE IN JAPAN -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Galatea</i> arrived at Yokohama on the 29th -August 1869. The Duke with his suite, including -myself, went up to Tokio (the old Yedo) and took -up his quarters at Hama-go-ten, which had been the summer -residence of the Tycoon. The estate marched with a piece -of water opening into the bay; here were many summer-houses; -and a commodious building equipped for the Duke -by the orders of the Mikado. The name was changed to -Yen-Rio-Kan, signifying a place set apart for distinguished -foreigners. -</p> - -<p> -We were entertained with the most delicate and -sumptuous hospitality by this charming people whose -courtesy greatly impressed us. Conjurers, acrobats and -wrestlers performed for the entertainment of his Royal -Highness; whenever we went abroad, thirty two-sworded -Yaconins attended us. -</p> - -<p> -The Duke went in state to visit the Mikado in his palace. -All along the route the upper windows of the houses were -sealed with paper, so that none should look down upon he -royal visitor; a precaution only taken in the case of the -highest nobility. The Duke, attended only by Sir Harry -Parkes, Admiral Sir Harry Keppel and Mr. Mitford (afterwards -Lord Reedsdale and author of the delightful <i>Tales of -Old Japan</i>), had a private audience of the Emperor, who was -presented by his Royal Highness with a diamond snuff-box. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P101"></a>101}</span> -Six of us were afterwards admitted to the presence. I -remember the dim figure of a young man seated behind a -screen at the end of the audience chamber. Many years -afterwards, when I again visited Japan, the Mikado, who -remembered my former visit, graciously invited me to lunch, -and entertained me with the royal sport of catching ducks -in a hand-net. The ducks are preserved in the royal -gardens, which are charmingly diversified with lawns and -running water, and flowering shrubs. As you enter, the -ducks rise suddenly, and the sport was to net them as they -rose. -</p> - -<p> -As we remained no longer than a week in Tokio, my -recollections are few. I was tattooed by the native artificers, -to the astonishment of the Japanese officials and nobles; for -in Japan none save the common people is tattooed. The -Japanese artist designs in white upon dark, working upon -the skin round the chief ornament in his scheme; whereas -the English tattooer designs dark upon white, using the -natural skin as a background. Both methods are beautifully -illustrated upon my person. -</p> - -<p> -I witnessed the decapitation of six criminals. The -victims stand in a row, their hands bound behind them: -each in turn is tapped on the shoulder, when he kneels down, -and bows his head. With a single half-arm stroke, the -executioner slices through the neck. I also saw a crucifixion. -The man's hands and feet are extended and tied to -cross-bars, so that he makes a figure like an hour-glass. -Then he is transfixed with a spear. -</p> - -<p> -On the 8th September, the Duke returned to Yokohama -by sea, taking with him as his guest in the <i>Galatea</i>, -Hiobukio-no-Miya, Prince of the Blood, Minister of War, and other -high dignitaries, who attended a ball given at the British -Legation. On the 16th, the <i>Galatea</i> sailed for China. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap12"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P102"></a>102}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XII -<br /> -THE CRUISE OF H.M.S. <i>GALATEA</i> (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -VI. THE HOMEWARD VOYAGE -</p> - -<p> -From Japan we proceeded to China, touching at Chefoo, -Shanghai and Hongkong. Nothing could exceed the -princely hospitality of the great British mercantile -firms in China. It was then that I learned, what subsequent -experience confirmed, the remarkable integrity of the business -dealings of the Chinese. The head of the Chinese Bank -told me that he never had a bad account with a Chinaman. -The Chinese keeps agreements to the letter, quite irrespective -of documentary contracts. -</p> - -<p> -From China we proceeded to Manila, then a Spanish -possession. My principal recollection of Manila is the -extraordinary prevalence of cock-fighting. There was a -cockpit in every street; and the sole occupation of the -inhabitants appeared to consist of betting upon their birds. -One used constantly to meet men walking in the street with -their birds under their arms. The cocks were armed with -steel spurs shaped like a scythe, and sharpened to a razor -edge. I have seen a bird spring up and slice the head of its -adversary clean off, and I have seen the chest of a bird -slashed open, almost cutting its body in two. The use of -the artificial spurs affected the betting, making the fight very -much more uncertain and therefore more exciting. For, -whereas if a cock uses its natural spurs, the best bird -probably wins, an inferior bird armed artificially might gain the -victory. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P103"></a>103}</span> -</p> - -<p> -From Manila we proceeded to Calcutta. Upon landing, -I met my brother, Lord Marcus, and with him I rode up, -together with the staff, to Government House. It is a -singular coincidence that when I landed at Calcutta, six -years afterwards, on the corresponding date, when I was a -member of the staff of the Prince of Wales (afterwards King -Edward VII), I met my other brother, Lord William, and -rode up with him to Government House. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Galatea</i> lay alongside the wharf. It was necessary -to take the most stringent precautions against cholera. -Only one boy in the ship's company was taken ill during -our stay. He died inside an hour. But in the merchant -ships lying in the port there were many deaths. Men were -employed in working parties to push off with long bamboos -the corpses that were continually floating down from the -Hooghli, lest they should foul the moorings. The bodies -used to come floating down with the birds perching and -feeding upon them. -</p> - -<p> -We went up country, and enjoyed a great deal of excellent -sport. We went out pig-sticking, which is the finest -sport in the world; we went out tiger-shooting upon -elephants; and riding upon elephants, we shot partridges—a -form of sport by no means easy. I remember an irascible -old colonel of artillery, who became very hot, and who missed -a good many partridges, saying indignantly to the Duke: -</p> - -<p> -"This is all d——d rot. I could shoot more partridges -on Woolwich Common." -</p> - -<p> -It was the same peppery soldier who, when one of the -members of the staff had fallen ill, went with me upon a -visitation to the sick. We found the invalid in a state of -extreme agitation, and surrounded with books of a religious -nature. -</p> - -<p> -"I think—I hope—" he kept saying, "that I shall be -forgiven. I think I shall—I hope so." -</p> - -<p> -"What's he saying? What's he saying?" cried the -colonel, who, as often happens to people in hot weather, -had become rather deaf. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P104"></a>104}</span> -</p> - -<p> -"He thinks he's dying," I shouted. -</p> - -<p> -Whereupon the colonel, turning angrily to the invalid, -shouted, -</p> - -<p> -"You d——d fool, you have only over-eaten yourself!" -</p> - -<p> -The sick man was so infuriated that he hurled his books -of religion at the colonel, and sprang out of bed. Next day -he was quite well. -</p> - -<p> -Another member of the staff was mounted one day upon -a red horse (they paint their horses in India), a wild, -half-broken Arab steed, which was giving its rider a deal of -trouble. I advised my friend to dismount, and left him. -Presently I rode back to find him on foot and alone. I -asked him, where was his horse? -</p> - -<p> -"Gone," said he. "Whenever that d——d horse saw a -mosquito, it sat down and cried like a child. So I kicked -it in the belly and it ran away into the jungle." -</p> - -<p> -We visited Trincomalee, where the elephants built the -dockyard. They carried the timber and they carried the -stones, and they lifted the stones into position and adjusted -them with their feet. The remarkable thing about the -climate of Ceylon is its intermittent showers of tropical -violence, followed by bursts of sunshine. In the result, you -actually see the foliage growing. I remember the -extraordinary beauty of the native decorations, which are -fabricated of palms and leaves and flowers. -</p> - -<p> -From Colombo we went to Mauritius, arriving there in -May, 1870. Here I climbed the famous mountain called -Pieter Botte, or, more correctly, Pieter Both. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-104"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-104.jpg" alt="PIETER BOTH MOUNTAIN, MAURITIUS" /> -<br /> -PIETER BOTH MOUNTAIN, MAURITIUS -</p> - -<p> -The mountain is so named after Pieter Both, Governor-General -of the Dutch East Indies in the early part of the -seventeenth century, and the founder of Dutch power in that -region. On his homeward voyage he was wrecked in the -bay overlooked by the mountain, which thereafter bore his -name. Previous ascents are recorded in the archives at -Mauritius, from which it appears that mine was the -fourteenth. Admiral Sir William Kennedy ascended Pieter -Botte in 1861; he gives an account of his climb in his -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P105"></a>105}</span> -interesting book, <i>Hurrah for the Life of a Sailor</i> (London, -Nash). Kennedy started with a party of fourteen persons, -of whom five reached the summit. -</p> - -<p> -At nine o'clock in the morning I started, together with the -captain of the maintop, Edward Hele. We took with us -ropes, a rope ladder, cod-line, and a small lead. These -were all our appliances. We drove to the foot of the -mountain and began the ascent at 11.5 a.m. Now the -mountain of Pieter Botte is shaped like a church with a -steep roof, from one end of which rises a spire. This -pinnacle of rock is crowned with a huge, rounded, -overhanging boulder. -</p> - -<p> -Part of the ridge was so sharp that we were forced to -sit on it and to proceed astride. Then we came to the -pinnacle. The ascent was so sharp and difficult that we -were obliged to take off both shoes and socks. At one -point, I lost my balance, and was only saved from falling -backwards by Hele's ready hand. Climbing the pinnacle -was far more difficult than scaling the overhanging boulder -at the top. At the top of the pinnacle there was just room -to stand beneath the overhanging boulder. The only -possible method of climbing the boulder was to get the rope -ladder over the top of it. Accordingly, one end of the rope -ladder was attached to the lead-line. In order to swing the -lead, one of us was roped with a round turn round his body, -while the other, lying on his back, held the rope while the -leadsman, leaning right backwards and outwards over the -sheer precipice of some 3000 feet fall, swung the lead. We -took it in turns to swing the lead; as we leaned outwards, -the rock spread over our heads like an umbrella; and it was -an hour and a half before we succeeded in casting it over -the boulder. Then we hauled the rope ladder over and -made all fast. It was too short, and the last few yards we -hauled ourselves up hand over hand. So we climbed to the -top, which is a platform of about 20 feet square. It was -then 1.59 p.m. We took off our shirts, and waved them to -the warships lying far below in the bay, from which we were -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P106"></a>106}</span> -plainly to be distinguished with the aid of a telescope. The -ships each saluted us with one gun. We planted on the -summit a flag upon whose staff were carved our names and -the names of our ships. When we returned, my brother -officers gave us a dinner to celebrate the event. -</p> - -<p> -Hele was eventually promoted to warrant officer. When -Hele died, I was able to help his son to gain his education, -and he did very well. It was in Mauritius that we went out -shooting with the native population; one of the most -dangerous amusements in which I have ever taken part, for -the bullets used to whistle in the air all round us. -</p> - -<p> -From Mauritius we proceeded to Cape Town. Here, on -the 12th July, 1870, the Duke inaugurated the new harbour, -breakwater and docks. I kept a team on shore, and used -to drive up from Simon's Bay to Cape Town. Every now -and then we stuck in a quicksand. On one such occasion -I had a brother officer with me; and as he was afflicted -with a cold, I took him on my back to save him from wet -feet. But I fell with him, and we were both soaked to the -skin. Upon another day, when we stuck, I put two of my -messmates on the leaders, and they pulled the coach right -through. If you want horses to pull a weight out of a tight -place, put weight on their backs. -</p> - -<p> -The Colonial Secretary at Cape Town was Mr. Southey. -He was a most delightful and sagacious person, and became -a great friend of mine. He prophesied in a most wonderful -way what would be the future of South Africa. -</p> - -<p> -"If," said he, "we could only get a big man, a master-mind, -to come out here, all that I foresee would come true." -</p> - -<p> -The right man presently arrived in the person of the late -Cecil John Rhodes, and my friend's prophecies have been -most singularly fulfilled. -</p> - -<p> -While at the Cape, we went up country, shooting. Both -Dutch and English families were most kind and hospitable -to us. Upon one of these expeditions, a member of the -staff went out by himself very early in the morning to -shoot. Observing some ostriches in the distance, he stalked -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P107"></a>107}</span> -them with immense labour and patience, and presently -succeeded in shooting a couple of birds. When he returned, -he complained that it had been very difficult to get his sights -on, owing to some high rails which were between himself -and the birds. It had not occurred to him that he had been -stalking tame ostriches on a farm. -</p> - -<p> -I once rode from Cape Town to Simon's Town and back, -between lunch and dinner, galloping the whole distance, -with four changes of horses. The distance between the two -places is about 35 miles as the crow flies. My errand was -merely to postpone the arrival of a visitor who was to come -to the <i>Galatea</i>. -</p> - -<p> -The ride, however, showed that I was in good condition. -I have always tried to keep myself fit, holding that -condition of body regulates condition of mind. Cheery people -deserve small credit, because their frame of mind is due to -their being right inside. Quarrelsome people are wrong -inside. -</p> - -<p> -On our way to England we touched at the Falkland -Islands where I visited a relative of mine who kept a ranch. -He used bull-dogs to catch his bulls, when he required them -for branding. The dogs seized the bulls by the nose and -held them while they were lassoed by the guachos. -</p> - -<p> -When we touched at Montevideo, I remember conversing -with various persons, who foretold the immense profit which -must eventually accrue if the land there was purchased at -that time. Their opinion has since proved true. But I had -no money to invest; so that the opportunity was only -another instance of what might have been. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Galatea</i> was badly strained in a gale of wind, her -deck seams opening so that the water streamed into the -cabins beneath. One lieutenant used to say to another: -</p> - -<p> -"How did you sleep last night? It was pretty rough. -</p> - -<p> -"Woke at one o'clock and saw them reefing tops'ls"—meaning -that, lying in bed, he could see clear through the -seams. -</p> - -<p> -I used my sail-making ability to make a canvas awning -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P108"></a>108}</span> -for my bed; fitted it with a ridge rope, laced it down and -hauled it taut, led a trough from it to take the water into -the slop-pail; and slept dry under it. -</p> - -<p> -It was during the visit of the <i>Galatea</i> to Australia that -I was made a Freemason; and I have always regretted that -I have never been able to devote as much time to Masonry -as I should have liked to give to the Craft. The Australian -Lodge into which I was admitted was under the impression -that I was the most timid neophyte who had ever -joined it. -</p> - -<p> -When the ceremony was ended, one of the members -of the Lodge said to me: -</p> - -<p> -"You are safely through it. But do you know that of all -the men we have had through this lodge, we never had one -so paralysed with fear as yourself. You were shivering like -an aspen!" -</p> - -<p> -The fact was that during the initiatory ceremonies -something unaccountably struck me as extraordinarily funny. -The effort to subdue my emotions caused me to tremble -all over. -</p> - -<p> -One of our diversions in the <i>Galatea</i> when she was at -sea, was to listen to the conversations which used repeatedly -to occur between a certain worthy member of the Duke's -suite and the old quartermaster. The member of the staff -in question had endeared himself to us by his high seriousness. -He dealt with the most trifling incidents of life in a -spirit of preternatural and wholly sincere solemnity. -Supposing that you told him that a common friend had fallen off -his horse and bruised his leg, our member of staff would -instantly ship a countenance of intense concern. -</p> - -<p> -"Bruised his leg? You don't say so! Good God! Has -he indeed?" -</p> - -<p> -"Yes—he's bruised his leg!" -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P109"></a>109}</span> -</p> - -<p> -"Has he now? Well, well. Bruised his leg! I hope -it's not serious. I do hope it's not serious. Tut-tut! Bruised -his leg, you say?" -</p> - -<p> -"It's not serious. But he's bruised his leg." -</p> - -<p> -"I'm delighted to hear it's not serious. But—bruised -his leg. I am really distressed." -</p> - -<p> -And so on. -</p> - -<p> -Among other matters, our friend took his family very -seriously. One of his ancestors had been an admiral; and -it was this distinguished officer who made the link between -the member of staff and the quartermaster. The member -of staff used to stroll on the quarterdeck in the evening, -and fall into talk with the seamen. -</p> - -<p> -"Well, Jones. Good evening, Jones. I suppose, now, -you've heard of my uncle, the admiral?" -</p> - -<p> -"Heard of 'im, sir? I should think I 'ad heard of 'im. -Ah, he was a <i>man</i>, he was. He could handle a ship, he -could—ah, and handle the men, too!" -</p> - -<p> -"Why, where did you serve with him, Jones?" -</p> - -<p> -"Where, sir? Where not? All over the world, sir. Ah, -he was a man!" -</p> - -<p> -"I'm delighted to meet anyone who knew a member of -my family so well, Jones—delighted, I assure you." -</p> - -<p> -"Knew 'im? Why, sir, to know 'im was to admire 'im, -as the saying is. Many a time I've seen the men turn out -<i>for</i> to admire 'im, sir. -</p> - -<p> -"Have you indeed, Jones—have you indeed! Dear me. -Most interesting, I am sure. I daresay a glass of grog -would not come amiss to you, Jones?" -</p> - -<p> -"Wery kind of you, I'm sure, sir. It 'ud be a pleasure -to drink your health, and the admiral's too, sir. Ah, he was -a man!" -</p> - -<p> -Mr Jones, afterwards, forward on the lower deck, to -envious friends: -</p> - -<p> -"Pretty sweet conversation that, mates. I wonder 'oo -the b——y h—l 'is uncle might 'a been!" -</p> - -<p> -There was another member of the suite who surely -deserves record—the elephant. He was really a member of -the ship's company, for he could do, and did, the work of -twenty men. He joined the ship in India, when he was -quite small, and he grew enormously on board. He lived in -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P110"></a>110}</span> -a house built aft, and fed upon branches of trees and bran -and biscuits and anything he could get. I trained him -myself. I taught him to obey the words of command, and he -would do anything for me. He would hoist me upon his -shoulders with a fore foot, or upon his back with a hind foot. -In the dinner hour, when most of the men were below, he -used to take his share in working the ship. We slung the -rope in a bowline round his neck, and he would clew up the -mainsail by walking on till he was told to stop. He was -never seasick. He used to balance himself, swaying to and -fro as the ship rolled. One night when the midshipmen and -I, having supper on deck aft, were called forward to trim -sails, the elephant finished the meal for us. He ate -everything on the table, put his foot on the plates and smashed -them, and squashed the big coffee-tin quite flat. Then he -looked at us like a naughty child. -</p> - -<p> -I was the only person who could persuade him to leave -the ship or to come on board again when he had been ashore. -When we reached home, he was put in a railway truck and -directed to the Zoological Gardens. His keeper, a marine -artilleryman, went with him in the truck. Elephants have -a habit of rolling on their feet and squirming their vast bulk. -When the marine was trying to pass the elephant, the great -beast unconsciously pinned his keeper against the side of the -truck, and against a projecting bolt, which broke the man's -rib, forcing it into his heart. He was taken out dead. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap13"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P111"></a>111}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XIII -<br /> -FLAG-LIEUTENANT AT PLYMOUTH -</h3> - -<p> -In 1871, I was appointed flag-lieutenant to Admiral -(afterwards Admiral of the Fleet) the Hon. Sir Henry -Keppel, commander-in-chief at Plymouth. His flag was -flown in the <i>Royal Adelaide</i>. Sir Harry, as already recorded, -had been commander-in-chief upon the China station when -the Duke of Edinburgh visited Japan, and had accompanied -his Royal Highness upon his visit to the Mikado. It was at -Plymouth that I first had the honour of serving under Sir -Harry Keppel: a splendid seaman, a most distinguished -officer, a fine sportsman, one of the best and kindest of men. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral the Hon. Victor Montagu, who served as a midshipman -under Sir Harry, relates in his <i>Reminiscences</i> some -interesting actions of his old captain, which I may be -permitted to quote. Commodore Keppel distinguished himself -by his personal gallantry and skilful leadership in the battle -of Fatshan Creek, 1st June, 1857; of which a full account is -given in Laird Clowes' <i>The Royal Navy</i>; and Admiral -Montagu records his own recollections of the affair: -</p> - -<p> -"During the many years in which I knew him I never once -Sir Harry lose his temper, except when the Chinese -war-junks beat us back on the first attack we had made on -them.... John Chinaman, seeing us retire, took the hint, -and began making off himself, which so infuriated Harry -Keppel that he jumped up on our paddle-box, shook his fist -at the war-junks, some 500 or 600 yards away, and shouted -out: 'You d——d rascals! I'll pay you out for this! Man -the boats, boys—man the boats at once! The beggars are -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P112"></a>112}</span> -trying to escape!' I never saw such a rush. At no regatta -could men have rowed faster." -</p> - -<p> -Commodore Keppel commissioned the <i>Raleigh</i> frigate, -50 guns, for the China station. Admiral Montagu states -that she was "the last man-of-war that ever sailed out of -Portsmouth Harbour." Keppel would have none of your -steam-tugs. "We ran out with a fair wind with studding-sails -set on both sides." Alas! the <i>Raleigh</i> never came back -any more. On 14th April, 1857, she struck a sunken rock -in the China Seas, near Macao. Keppel's indomitable -conduct turned a disaster into an achievement. -</p> - -<p> -"Shortly afterwards," writes Admiral Montagu, who was -a midshipman on board at the time, "we descried a French -squadron lying at anchor in Macao Roads, with an admiral's -flag flying, and, though we were firing minute guns of -distress as the water gained on our pumps, Keppel, nothing -daunted, called out: 'Up with the French flag. Give him -his salute. Sinking or not, let the Frenchmen hear us.'" -</p> - -<p> -A French frigate coming to the assistance of the <i>Raleigh</i>, -her captain asked permission "to go below to see how high -the water had risen in the ship. 'Oh,' said Keppel, 'don't -go below; look down the hatchway.' 'Ah! mon Dieu!' -exclaimed the captain." ... -</p> - -<p> -Keppel kept the pumps going, crowded sail on the ship, -and finally beached her off Macao, just in time. He landed -the ship's company, but himself stayed aboard the vessel, -sleeping on the bridge. The stores and guns were saved. -Keppel was deeply distressed at the loss of his fine ship, -"which," he wrote, "brings my career as a captain to an -end." Fortunately he was mistaken. In after years, when -I told him that the Admiralty were about to build a second -<i>Raleigh</i>, Keppel replied, "Very glad to hear it, my dear boy. -I had the honour of losing the first one." -</p> - -<p> -Admiral Montagu records that Keppel, while in command -of the <i>Raleigh</i>, challenged an American clipper ship to race -from Penang to Singapore. "We were constantly going at -a speed of thirteen knots, during heavy squalls, close-hauled, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P113"></a>113}</span> -and trailing the muzzles of our main-deck guns through the -water on the lee side, and I sometimes used to turn into my -hammock in abject terror, fearing that at any moment we -might capsize." -</p> - -<p> -Sir Harry Keppel was famous throughout the Service -when I was appointed his flag-lieutenant. One of my first -recollections of that office concerned an old-fashioned -"Eighteen-hundred-and-war-time," peppery, strict-service -captain, who, having just come home from the West -Coast of Africa, asked to see the commander-in-chief. It -happened that Sir Harry and myself were on the point of -going out hunting when the old captain called, and the -admiral was attired in hunting kit. -</p> - -<p> -"Tell him I'll see him to-morrow," said Sir Harry. -</p> - -<p> -But that wouldn't do at all, nor would any other excuse -serve. -</p> - -<p> -"I insist on seeing the admiral," said the captain. "I -have just come home and it is my duty to see him at -once." -</p> - -<p> -"Bring him in, then," said Sir Harry impatiently, "Now, -sir," said he, "my flag-lieutenant informed you that I -was engaged. Why couldn't you see the secretary?" -</p> - -<p> -"The secretary, sir? The secretary!" says the old -captain wrathfully staring at Sir Harry's informal attire. -"Indeed I am told, sir, that the secretary <i>is</i> the -Commander-in-chief here. That's what they say, sir—that's -what they say!" -</p> - -<p> -"Do they?" returned Sir Harry placidly. "And a -d——d good commander-in-chief too!" says he. -</p> - -<p> -When, in later years, I became commander-in-chief, I -made it a rule that all admirals and captains should have -direct access to myself, no matter how trifling the occasion. -</p> - -<p> -In those days, there was a turnpike-gate outside the -town. I was driving a brother officer home late one night, -after dining at a house some distance away and when we -came to the toll-gate, the keeper was in bed, and all my -knocking and shouting failed to wake him up. So I -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P114"></a>114}</span> -proceeded to heave a large stone through his window. That -fetched him; and down he came, grumbling and swearing. -I thrust a sovereign—the only coin I had—into his hand to -pay for his broken window and the toll. It was bad tactics, -for he promptly retreated into his house (with my sovereign) -leaving us still on the wrong side of the gate. There was -nothing for it but to break the rest of his windows, but still -he wouldn't come out. Evidently a surly fellow, unfit to -take charge of turnpike gates, an office demanding tact and -courtesy; and we thought it well to remove his temptation. -So my companion and I wrenched the gate from its hinges -and lashed it to the cart, vertically, so that it projected over -our heads like a kind of ornamental roof, its weight nearly -lifting the mare between the shafts off her legs and making -her kick like blazes. Then we drove into Plymouth, gate -and all. The gate was reduced to firewood before sunrise. -Next day, the town was placarded with vain offers of reward -for information concerning "some evil-disposed person or -persons unknown who," etc. -</p> - -<p> -At that time, I used to ride steeple-chases whenever I -had an opportunity, and kept myself in regular training by -hard exercise; a habit which on one occasion involved the -commander-in-chief in an alarming rumour. It arose from -the trifling circumstance that I had borrowed his overcoat. -The Fleet was at Holyhead, to celebrate the opening of the -new breakwater by the Prince of Wales; I was just going -for a training run up and down that breakwater, when, finding -I had no coat, I took Sir Harry Keppel's uniform overcoat. -I took it, without thinking, merely because I wanted it. The -next thing that happened was that the signalmen in the -Fleet reported that the Admiral must have gone mad on the -breakwater, seeing that he was racing up and down it clad -in a shooting-cap, grey trousers, muffler and uniform -overcoat. As my face was almost hidden by cap and muffler, -the signalmen were deceived by the gold lace, took me for -the admiral, and thought that poor Sir Harry was smitten -with insanity. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-114"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-114.jpg" alt="THE AUTHOR AS LIEUTENANT" /> -<br /> -THE AUTHOR AS LIEUTENANT -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P115"></a>115}</span> -</p> - -<p> -We used to hunt a good deal with the Dartmoor hounds; -and upon a day when there was no run, and everyone was -bored, one of the ladies present begged me to provide some -kind of sport, kindly suggesting that I should personate the -fox, a part I declined. -</p> - -<p> -"You <i>must</i> do something to amuse us," she said. -</p> - -<p> -"Very well, I will," said I. -</p> - -<p> -Among the officers there were an elderly admiral and an -elderly general, and I pointed them out to the lady. -</p> - -<p> -"I will get up a race between the two of them," said I. -</p> - -<p> -She bet me I would not, and I took it. I began with -the soldier. -</p> - -<p> -Ambling alongside the general, I asked him casually if -he had ridden much in his life. -</p> - -<p> -"Of course I have," says he irritably. "What do you -mean, sir?" -</p> - -<p> -"Nothing at all," says I. "I thought I would ask. The -admiral——" -</p> - -<p> -"What about the admiral?" cries the general, staring -suspiciously at the distant and unconscious officer. -</p> - -<p> -"He was saying he didn't think you knew very much -about a horse." -</p> - -<p> -The general lost his temper. He swore. He said he -would show the admiral what he knew about a horse. -</p> - -<p> -"You can easily prove it," said I; and before he -understood what was happening, he had agreed to ride a race. -Then I went over to the admiral. -</p> - -<p> -"Do you know what the general says? He says you -look like a monkey on a horse," said I; and it was the -admiral's turn to swear. -</p> - -<p> -"D——d impertinence!" says he. "I'll race him, and -beat him any day in the week." And he continued to use -forcible language. -</p> - -<p> -"You can do that," I said, for the admiral was riding -one of my best horses. -</p> - -<p> -"If you really want a race, I'll arrange the whole thing," -said I. And I brought the two wrathful old gentlemen -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P116"></a>116}</span> -together, rode with them to the starting-point, gave the word, -and off they went as hard as they could pelt. I followed, -cheering them on. The general began to draw ahead, when -his horse baulked at a soft place. The admiral's horse did -the same, throwing his rider upon his neck. -</p> - -<p> -"Get back into the saddle and he'll go through," I -shouted, for I knew the horse. The admiral hove himself -into his seat, and won the race. He wouldn't have won, if -his adversary hadn't baulked. -</p> - -<p> -The members of the Board of Admiralty came down -to Plymouth to witness the autumn military manoeuvres. -I offered to drive them all in my coach; and they were -settled in their places—Mr. Goschen the First Lord, Admiral -Sir Alexander Milne, the Earl of Camperdown and -Mr. Shaw-Lefevre—when out of the house came Rear-Admiral -Beauchamp Seymour. -</p> - -<p> -"Get down!" he shouted. "Gentlemen, you must get down." -</p> - -<p> -They asked him why. -</p> - -<p> -"You don't know that boy," said Seymour. "He's not -safe. He'll upset you on purpose, just to say he's upset the -whole Board of Admiralty!" -</p> - -<p> -And he actually ordered my guests off my coach, so that -they had to go in barouches. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Harry Keppel often came sailing with me in my little -yacht. We were out together, when I said to him, -</p> - -<p> -"I cannot weather that ironclad, sir." -</p> - -<p> -"Then run into her, my dear boy," said Keppel placidly. -</p> - -<p> -"All right, sir—obey orders." -</p> - -<p> -I held on, and we cleared the jib-boom of the ironclad -by an inch. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Harry had an old friend of his to stay with him, -Captain Clifton, a most remarkable and interesting man. -In the old days, the passage for the opium trade existing -between China and India was taken only once a year—the -opium ships running up to China with one monsoon and -down to India with the other. Clifton went to the Government -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P117"></a>117}</span> -of India and undertook, if the Government would -permit him to build vessels to his own design, to build -clippers to thrash up against the monsoon as well as run -before it, and so double the income accruing from the -opium trade. The Government consenting, Clifton designed -the <i>Blue Jacket</i> and the <i>Red Jacket</i> and vessels of that -class, which were the famous opium clippers of the "roaring -forties" and fifties. -</p> - -<p> -The Indian Government gave Captain Clifton a lakh -of rupees. On his way home, Clifton, touching at what -is now the city of Melbourne in Australia, but which was -then a small assemblage of wooden shanties, noticed the -possibilities of the magnificent harbour. He told me that -he could have bought the whole site of Melbourne for a -lakh; but on consideration, he decided against the project. -</p> - -<p> -One of my great friends, Sir Allan Young, a brilliant -seaman of the old school, commanded, at the age of -twenty-four, one of Clifton's opium clippers. -</p> - -<p> -Upon the occasion of the Prince of Wales's opening the -new breakwater at Holyhead, in 1873, his Royal Highness -was entertained together with a large party at a country -house in the neighbourhood. The Prince called to me, -and said: -</p> - -<p> -"This is very slow. You really must do something to -enliven the proceedings." -</p> - -<p> -"Well, sir," said I, "I will run a hundred yards race with -Lord ——. As he is Irish, he is sure to take me up if -I challenge him." -</p> - -<p> -Sure enough, Lord —— accepted the challenge, but on -conditions. These were: that I should race in full uniform, -excepting my sword, while himself should "take his wardrobe -from off himself." Lord —— then proceeded to divest -himself there and then of his Patrick ribbon, coat, waistcoat, -and boots, which he confided to the care of the wife of a -certain distinguished Liberal statesman. He dropped his -Patrick ribbon into her lap, saying: -</p> - -<p> -"Madam, will ye have a care now of me Jewel, for glory -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P118"></a>118}</span> -be to God there's no saying what twist this mad one might -give me!" -</p> - -<p> -Entirely at ease, with the seat of his breeches patched -with stuff of another colour from the rest, and his toes -sticking from his stockings, he was wholly unperturbed by -the laughter of the assemblage. -</p> - -<p> -Although attired in cocked hat, frock coat, and -epaulettes, I had the speed of him, and waited on him. -Then the devil entered into me; and when Lord —— -drew abreast of a big plant of pampas grass, I cannoned -into him, pitching him head first into the grass, not, of -course, intending to harm him. But to my consternation -and sorrow, Lord ——'s leg was broken below the knee. I -put the poor lord into his coach—he had a coach and -four-in-hand—and drove him back to his hotel. That excellent -and magnanimous sportsman was perfectly unconcerned. -</p> - -<p> -"You hit me a bad skelp, and I am destroyed," said he. -"Never mind, they all laughed, anny way." -</p> - -<p> -It was about this period of my life, when, returning from -a ball in London in the early morning, I came upon a -person selling whelks. He invited me to sup—or -breakfast—upon a plate of these delicacies. -</p> - -<p> -"How much do you charge for a plateful?" -</p> - -<p> -"Threepence," said he. -</p> - -<p> -"I'll give you sixpence for every plateful you eat -yourself." -</p> - -<p> -"Done," said he. -</p> - -<p> -He finished two platefuls, and had begun a third, when he -was overtaken by rebellion from within, swiftly followed by -catastrophe. -</p> - -<p> -"That's not fair," I said. "You can't count those two -platefuls." -</p> - -<p> -"O my Gawd," he said. "'Ave I got to begin again?" -</p> - -<p> -To this time, too, belong my memories of a certain -famous naval captain, who was extraordinarily particular -both as to his own dress and the wearing of proper -uniform by others. His regard for appearances, however, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P119"></a>119}</span> -did not prevent his diving overboard in full and -immaculate uniform, including white gloves, to save a -seaman. Exceedingly precise in his speech, he owned the -singular trait of becoming deprived of utterance when he -was angry; and few things made him more angry than -faulty attire in the Service. -</p> - -<p> -He was driving with me in a cab towards Plymouth, -when we met an old warrant officer, who was wearing a -purple woollen waistcoat and green gloves. My friend, -stopping the cab so suddenly that the horse slithered -along on its haunches, leaped from the vehicle. The old -warrant officer, his attention arrested, had halted and turned -round. My friend went up to him. Then I perceived -that he was stricken speechless with wrath; for, continuing -to swallow nothing, as his habit was in these crises of -emotion, he tapped the warrant officer's waistcoat and gloves. -Glaring at him and still silently swallowing, he turned about -and got into the cab. The old warrant officer stood staring -with dropped jaw, like a man petrified. -</p> - -<p> -It was my friend who, being asked at a court-martial -what he would have done in certain difficult circumstances, -replied deliberately: -</p> - -<p> -"If I was where I was not I might have done something -I did not do." -</p> - -<p> -In after years, when he was commander-in-chief at the -Nore, he was walking along the road to Sheerness, dressed -in plain clothes, when a bluejacket, who was slightly -intoxicated, lurched against him. -</p> - -<p> -"Man, man," said my friend, with his picked elocution, -"do you know what you are doing? Man, you are colliding -with the commander-in-chief." -</p> - -<p> -"Ho," returned the seaman, totally unimpressed. "Har -you, indeed? Then all I've got to say, is to say you've got -a ruddy good billet—an' wha's more, you take care you don't -lose it by getting drunk." -</p> - -<p> -Despite of my diversions, I did a good deal of hard work. -As flag-lieutenant I was in charge of the signalling, a -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P120"></a>120}</span> -science which, as it was understood in those days, I mastered -completely. -</p> - -<p> -My first independent command was the <i>Goshawk</i> -gunboat, to which I was appointed as lieutenant-commander -for the manoeuvres and for review in 1873, while I was still -flag-lieutenant to Sir Harry Keppel. I had a narrow escape -from disaster at the very beginning. Fortunately I noticed -that the navigator was going the wrong side of the buoy -off Drake's Island, and I was just in time to point out his -mistake. I remember my feeling of horror at the prospect -of running on a rock in Plymouth Sound in my first -command. -</p> - -<p> -The first thing I did in the <i>Goshawk</i> was to get from the -flagship a big working party of a hundred men to work at -holystoning our decks until they were as clean as a hound's -tooth. From that day onwards I set myself steadily against -bright-work and spit-and-polish. My objection to bright-work -is that you have first to dirty it with brick and oil in -order to clean it afterwards. There are certain things in a -ship which must be kept bright, and these I would burnish; -but everything that could be painted I would paint, and -then scrub the paint with soap and water. I remember the -shock it was to the commander when I told him to cover -the brass rails with canvas and paint it. Under the -spit-and-polish system no doubt the men take a pride in keeping the -ship bright, but such a process involves perpetual extra -bother and worry and black-list, which are quite unnecessary. -Cleaning bright-work makes the men's hands filthy at -divisions; and after ten minutes of bad weather, the copper -turns blue and the brass green, and the whole of the work -must be done over again. -</p> - -<p> -At one time the bright-work system was carried to absurd -extremes. I have known a ship actually to have a bright -cable. I have known another ship with bright hammock -hooks. The hatchways of some vessels were polished and -decorated with inlay and all kinds of ocean ornament until -the ship looked like a lady's boudoir or a transatlantic liner. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P121"></a>121}</span> -The custom came in as the old sailing ships gave place to -steam ships, when the time hitherto devoted to making a -vessel all a-taunto, ropes taut, sail furling and mending and -so forth, was given instead to polishing, burnishing and -making bright-work shine, until the present system of -gunnery and gymnastic training was introduced. Captains -and officers used to spend on their ships large sums out of -their private income, which very often they could ill afford. -"Promotion by paint" was not unknown. A ship ought to -be scrupulously clean, but she should have paint wherever -possible, and soap and water should replace spit-and-polish. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap14"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P122"></a>122}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XIV -<br /> -POLITICAL EVENTS OF 1873-80 AND POSTSCRIPT -</h3> - -<p class="t3"> -NOTE -</p> - -<p> -The following brief summary of political and -international affairs is introduced for convenience of -reference. It may be skipped by the reader, should -he disdain politics. -</p> - -<p> -The Government of Mr. Gladstone, returned to power in -1868, began to disintegrate in 1873. The proximate cause -was the Irish University Education Bill, announced in the -Speech from the Throne at the opening of the session on -6th February, 1873. Irish affairs have always been the -curse of the Liberal Party. But a popular Government -would have survived even the Irish University Education -Bill, which, designed to please all parties, failed of course to -please any. The truth is that, as people soon or late weary -of all administrations, so they turned from the Liberal -Government. Mr. Disraeli summarised the history of the -Government in a piece of invective which has become -classic: "You have had four years of it. You have -despoiled churches. You have threatened every corporation -and every endowment in the country. You have examined -into everybody's affairs. You have criticised every -profession and vexed every trade. No one is certain of his -property, and no one knows what duties he may have to -perform to-morrow. I believe that the people of this country -have had enough of the policy of confiscation." -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P123"></a>123}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The Government were beaten on the Irish University -Education Bill; Mr. Gladstone resigned; but Mr. Disraeli -declined to take office. Mr. Gladstone was therefore -compelled to carry on the Government. Early in 1874 he -suddenly appealed to the electorate; which, however, chose -to give his opponents a majority. Mr. Gladstone resigned, -or partly resigned, his leadership, and plunged into the -esoteric joys of a controversy dealing with the doctrine of -Papal infallibility. It would seem that a great ecclesiastic -was sacrificed, when the young Gladstone chose to give to -politics talents which would have won him the Archbishopric -of Canterbury. -</p> - -<p> -In Mr. Disraeli's Cabinet Lord Cairns was Lord -Chancellor; Lord Derby, Foreign Secretary; Lord Salisbury, -Secretary of State for India; Lord Carnarvon, Colonial -Secretary; Mr. Cross, Home Secretary; Mr. Gathorne -Hardy, Secretary of State for War; Mr. Ward Hunt, First -Lord of the Admiralty; Sir Stafford Northcote, Chancellor -of the Exchequer. The Duke of Richmond, as Lord -President of the Council, led the Conservative party in the -House of Lords. The Liberal leader, walking in the -Gladstonian shadow, was Lord Hartington. -</p> - -<p> -In 1874 the Bill for the Regulation of Public Worship -was passed. In the following year Mr. Plimsoll, by the -exercise of that dogged determination and gallant defiance -of Parliamentary conventions, by means of which Parliament -can sometimes be goaded into acts of justice, forced the -Government to pass the Merchant Shipping Bill. Mr. Cross, -the Home Secretary, introduced the useful Artisans' -Dwellings Bill, which was passed. Upon 25th November, 1875, -the Government, at the suggestion of Mr. Frederic Greenwood, -purchased from the Khedive of Egypt, 176,000 Suez -Canal shares for the sum of £4,000,000. -</p> - -<p> -In the same year, the Prince of Wales, afterwards King -Edward VII, went to India, whither he was accompanied by -Commander Lord Charles Beresford, M.P., as A.D.C. (Lord -Charles was promoted to the rank of commander on 2nd -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P124"></a>124}</span> -November, 1875.) The Prince received a telegram informing -him of the purchase of the Suez Canal shares when his ship -was passing through the Canal on the way to India. Lord -Lytton was appointed Viceroy of India. In 1876 it was -announced that the Queen was to assume the additional -title of "Empress of India." -</p> - -<p> -In July, 1875, there was trouble in the Near East, which, -nearly two years later, in April, 1877, resulted in the -declaration by Russia of war against Turkey. The Mediterranean -Fleet was ordered to pass the Dardanelles. In March, 1878, -Lord Derby resigned, and Lord Salisbury succeeded him at -the Foreign Office. Mr. Gathorne Hardy went to the India -Office, Colonel Stanley to the War Office, and Mr. James -Lowther became Chief Secretary for Ireland. Sir Michael -Hicks-Beach had already succeeded Lord Carnarvon at the -Colonial Office. -</p> - -<p> -In the Parliament of 1875-80, young Mr. Parnell began -his career. Indomitable, subtle, cold and inscrutable, he -speedily became a power. A Protestant in faith, he had his -foot on the necks of the Irish Roman Catholic Nationalist -members; half an Englishman by birth, he was an implacable -enemy of England. Utilising the tactics of obstruction, -he succeeded in bringing discredit upon a Government which -was powerless to control him and his led captains. He forced -the Government to pass a Bill for University Education in -Ireland; and as the measure was no better, if no worse, than -the Gladstonian scheme which had been rejected, so the result -upon the Conservative administration was equally injurious. -</p> - -<p> -Mr. Gladstone emerged from his studies in Papal infallibility -to denounce Bulgarian atrocities and the like. But -the country declined to become excited on the subject. In -the meantime the Russian army was approaching Constantinople. -The British Government took public measures of -military and naval precaution clearly implying that Russia -would not be permitted to occupy Constantinople. Prince -Bismarck thereupon intervened, and invited the nations -concerned to discuss matters at Berlin. Lord Beaconsfield (he -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P125"></a>125}</span> -had received his peerage in 1876) and Prince Bismarck were -the two most powerful men in Europe. Beaconsfield chose -himself to represent Great Britain at the Congress, which -opened at Berlin on 13th June, 1878. Lord Beaconsfield -returned in triumph, bearing with him "Peace with -Honour." -</p> - -<p> -The advance of Russian influence in Afghanistan induced -the British Government, in 1878, to dispatch an expedition -to Cabul, which was occupied by British troops, and from -which the Amir, Shere Ali, fled. Followed, the signature of -the treaty of Gandamak by Yakoob Khan, son and successor -of Shere Ali; the treacherous murder of Sir Louis Cavagnan, -British Envoy, and the greater number of his staff; and the -recapture of Cabul by British troops. The true history of -the whole affair, much distorted at the time (and since) by -political malice, is lucidly set forth in Lord Roberts's -<i>Forty-one Years in India</i>, by the great soldier who took so -distinguished a part in it. -</p> - -<p> -Another frontier war broke out in 1879. In South Africa, -Sir Theophilus Shepstone had annexed the Transvaal; Sir -Bartle Frere, Lord High Commissioner, announcing to the -Zulu king Cetewayo, that Cetewayo was entitled to a strip of -territory claimed both by Cetewayo and the Transvaal -Republic, ordered him to disband his army. The advance -of British troops was checked by their total defeat by the -Zulus on 22nd January, 1879, at Isandhlwana. Lord -Chelmsford the commander-in-chief, prosecuted the campaign, -defeated Cetewayo and took him prisoner. During the war -the young Prince Louis Napoleon, son of the Empress -Eugenie, lost his life. -</p> - -<p> -In the meantime, the trade of the country had been -profoundly depressed, with the natural result that there was -much discontent. On 24th March, 1880, Parliament was -dissolved; and the Liberal party were returned with a majority -of some hundred and twenty. The Queen sent for Lord -Hartington; sent for Lord Granville; and finally, for -Mr. Gladstone. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P126"></a>126}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The Russo-Turkish war of 1877 had brought Russia into -opposition to Austria-Hungary, thus destroying the alliance -of the three Emperors; and although Bismarck made peace -between the two Powers at the Congress of Berlin, Russia -became estranged from Germany. In order to restore her -security, Germany concluded an alliance with Austria-Hungary -and shortly afterwards with Italy, which had -quarrelled with France concerning her occupation of Tunis. -Thus was formed the Triple Alliance. Its counterpoise was -the drawing together of France and Russia, in view of whose -possibilities Prince Bismarck in 1887 increased the German -Army. In 1900 Germany passed the Navy Law, which -ordained that the German Fleet should be so strong that any -attack upon it would be dangerous to the attacking party. -</p> - -<p> -Nothing but the strength of the British Fleet, which had -been largely increased by the action of Lord Charles -Beresford in 1888, and again by the naval programme of 1893, -and whose organisation had been brought to a high state of -efficiency by Admiral Sir Frederick Richards (afterwards -admiral of the Fleet), prevented the outbreak of war between -England and France at the time of the Fashoda incident in -1897. -</p> - -<p> -The affair caused both nations to reconsider the situation; -with the result that they settled all outstanding difficulties; -and the Triple Entente of Great Britain, France and Russia -balanced the Triple Alliance. Germany, in 1912, added -some 70,000 men to her army, while Austria and Italy -increased their fleets. By the time the Allied nations of the -Near East had declared war upon the Turkish Empire, in -1912, Russia had recovered from the disastrous results of -her war with Japan, so that the Triple Entente once more -balanced the Triple Alliance. But the war in the Near East, -with the heavy losses it inflicted upon Turkey, had opened -anew the whole Eastern question. The settlement concluded -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P127"></a>127}</span> -at the Berlin Conference thirty-four years previously was -abolished in a moment. -</p> - -<p> -It has been thought worth while to trace the main -developments of European politics from 1873 to the present -time; as it happened to Lord Charles Beresford to be a -member of that Parliament which saw the triumph of the -Beaconsfield policy in foreign affairs, and to be a member -of subsequent Parliaments confronted with the emergence -of new and sinister international conditions. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap15"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P128"></a>128}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XV -<br /> -AN IRISH ELECTION AND IRISH POLITICS -</h3> - -<p> -The political situation in Ireland at the time when I -entered politics was characteristically exemplified in -the Kerry election of 1872, in which I took part. It -was fought entirely on the Home Rule issue, which had -been revived by Isaac Butt when, in 1870, he formed his -Home Government Association. -</p> - -<p> -In the Kerry election of 1872, the Roman Catholic -hierarchy was opposed to Home Rule. The anti-Home -Rule candidate, Mr. Deas, was a Roman Catholic, a local -landlord and extremely popular. His opponent, Mr. Blennerhasset, -was a Protestant and a stranger to the locality. -But because he was a Home Ruler, he was elected in spite -of the priests and of the personal claims of Mr. Deas, -winning by 839 votes. I may add that he won in spite -also of my exertions, which were considerable. I started -at two o'clock in the morning with Mr. Harry Herbert of -Muckross, and led a band of 350 tenants to the poll. (The -Ballot Act was not passed until 18th July of the same year, -1872.) -</p> - -<p> -Having polled the tenants, I was strolling in the street, -when I was stopped by one of my grand fellow-countrymen, -a huge man of about six feet five. -</p> - -<p> -"Are ye for Home Rule?" says he. -</p> - -<p> -"To hell with your Home Rule!" said I. Whereupon -he hit me on the point of the nose, knocking me over -backwards, and effectually silencing my arguments for the -space of an hour and a half. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P129"></a>129}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The nature of the problem of the land in Ireland may -be exemplified from my own experience as a landlord. I -came into my property in 1866, and when I returned from -the sea two years later, being in need of money, I wrote to -my agent, telling him that I intended to inspect the estate. -He replied asking me to come as soon as I could, and -adding that I should be able to raise the rents all round. -I told him to do nothing until my arrival. When I went -over, I drove to one of my farms upon which it was -proposed to raise the rent. The farm was about 48 acres -in extent, situated in the middle of a bog. Here I was -entertained by one of the finest old Irishmen I have ever -seen, and his three sons. Said I to him: -</p> - -<p> -"I want to talk to you about the rent. I hear that you -are paying me only 2s. 6d. an acre, whereas I can get -18s. an acre in the market." -</p> - -<p> -I shall never forget how the poor old man's face fell as -he said: -</p> - -<p> -"For the love of God, do not turn me out, Lord Charles, -I will give you 12s. an acre sooner than you should turn -me out." -</p> - -<p> -And then he told me that he had occupied the farm -during 48 years; and in that time he and his sons had -raised the original value to 18s. an acre. Of course I told -him to stay where he was at the old rent. But by the -law of the land I could have turned him out and put in a -new tenant who would have paid me 18s. an acre, the -increased value being solely due to the exertions of the old -man and his sons. Had I been an absentee landlord, it -would have been an ordinary matter of business to have -instructed my agent to turn the man out and to raise the -rent; and that very course was taken in thousands of cases. -There was no compensation for tenants' improvements -before 1870; and a farmer who did his best for the land, -and to whose exertions alone increased value was due, must -pay the increased rent or go. -</p> - -<p> -The monstrous land system in Ireland naturally caused -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P130"></a>130}</span> -the tenants to feel distrust and enmity towards the -landlords; for, although not many landlords abused their powers, -the knowledge that they <i>could</i> abuse them was alone -sufficient to create suspicion and hostility. Again, the great -companies which bought land on speculation, exacted rents -at the outside market value. A company cannot be -expected to make allowances. Nor did the companies know -the tenants or care for them. But under the Irish custom -they were the tenants who had themselves by their -improvements raised the value of the land. -</p> - -<p> -In fairness to the landlords, it should be understood that -the tenants objected to the improvement of property by the -landlord. "If you, the landlord," the tenant argued, -"improve the land, you will be raising the rent on me. I would -rather make my own improvements." -</p> - -<p> -The terms of tenure in Ireland were quite different from -the terms of tenancy in England, except in the north of -Ireland, where was the custom of tenant-right. In the -south and west, the majority of tenants had a yearly -tenancy, and were liable to six months' notice, known as -"the hanging gale." When a landlord desired to get rid -of a tenant, he "called in the hanging gale." And a tenant -habitually owed six months' rent. -</p> - -<p> -I stood for Waterford at the request of my brother Lord -Waterford. That I was elected was due to his great -personal popularity as a landlord and as a sportsman and -also to the powerful influence of a certain prominent -supporter of Home Rule, which he exercised on my behalf -because, although I was opposed to Home Rule, I supported -denominational education. I believed then, as I believe -now, that a man's religion is his own affair, and whatever it -may be, it should be respected by those who own another -form of faith. I have always held (in a word) that the -particular form of a man's religion is necessarily due to -his early education and surroundings. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-130"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-130.jpg" alt="THE AUTHOR. ÆT. 27" /> -<br /> -THE AUTHOR. ÆT. 27 -</p> - -<p> -But when in the House of Commons I publicly declared -that conviction, I received about four hundred letters of a -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P131"></a>131}</span> -most violent character, most of which were written by -clergymen of my own persuasion. I have never asked a man for -his vote in my life. When I stood for Marylebone, in 1885, -there was a controversy concerning the Sunday opening of -museums and picture galleries. I was in favour of opening -them, upon the ground that people who were hard at work -all the week might have opportunities for recreation, which -I would have extended beyond museums and galleries. -But I was waited upon by a solemn deputation of clerical -gentlemen of various denominations, who desired to make -their support of me conditional upon my acceptance of their -views. -</p> - -<p> -"Gentlemen," I said, "has it ever occurred to you that -I have never asked you for your vote? Let me tell you -that if you disapprove of my opinions, your only honest -course is to vote for my opponent." -</p> - -<p> -They were so astonished that they withdrew in shocked -silence. -</p> - -<p> -When I was in Parliament, Isaac Butt, who was failing -in his endeavour to promote an agitation, begun in 1870, in -favour of Home Government, or Home Rule, did his best -to persuade me to join the Irish party, and to obtain for it -Lord Waterford's influence, because, he said, Lord Waterford -was so universally popular and so just. Although I was -unable to join the Irish party, I was much impressed with -Butt's arguments in so far as the land question was -concerned; and I discussed the whole matter with Lord -Waterford. I suggested to him that he should form a -league of landlords pledged not to rack-rent their tenants; -pointing out that if the Irish landlords failed to take the -initiative in reform, it was certain that the people would -eventually prevail against them, and that the reforms which -would be enforced by law would bear hardly upon the good -landlords. -</p> - -<p> -Lord Waterford sympathised with my view of the -matter; but after long consideration he came to the -conclusion that the course I proposed might do more harm than -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P132"></a>132}</span> -good. The question was inextricably complicated by the -fact that many of the landlords who had raised their rents, -had been compelled to raise them by force of circumstances; -as, for instance, when they had been obliged to pay very -high charges upon succeeding to their estates. In his -position, Lord Waterford shrank from associating himself with a -scheme which must inflict hardship upon landlords poorer -than himself. Events took their course, with the result I had -foreseen. My proposal was inspired by that sympathy with -the demands of the Irish people, and that recognition of -their justice, which had been accorded by both great political -parties in turn, and which ultimately found expression in -the Wyndham Land Purchase Act. -</p> - -<p> -Not long ago I asked one of my tenants, who had -bought his holding under the Wyndham Act, and who was -a strong Home Ruler: -</p> - -<p> -"Now you own the farm, are you still for Home Rule?" -</p> - -<p> -"Faith, Lord Char-less," said he, "now I have the land -behind me, shure if it was a choice I could be given between -Home Rule and a bullock, I'd take the bullock." -</p> - -<p> -In recording the beginning of my Parliamentary career, -I may say at once that I have always disliked politics, as -such. I entered Parliament with the desire to promote the -interests of the Service; and in so far as I have been -successful, I have not regretted the sacrifices involved. -</p> - -<p> -But in 1874 my approval of denominational education—in -other words, my support of the right of every parent to -have his child educated in his own religion—outweighed -my opposition to Home Rule. One of my principal -supporters, himself a Home Ruler, suggested as an ingenious -compromise that I should so print my election address that -the words Home Rule should appear large and prominent, -and the qualification "an inquiry into," very small: a -proposal I declined. -</p> - -<p> -My opponents were Mr. J. Esmonde and Mr. Longbottom, -who was celebrated for his achievements in finance. -He stood for Home Rule. Concerning Mr. Longbottom, a -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P133"></a>133}</span> -certain parish priest, who was also a Home Ruler, addressed -his congregation one Sunday morning as follows:— -</p> - -<p> -"Now, boys," says he, "a few words about th' Election -that's pending. First of all, if ye have a vote ye'd give ut -to a genuine Home Ruler, if ye had one standing. Ye have -not. Secondly, ye'd give it to a good Conservative, if ye -had one standing. Well, ye have one in Lord Char-less -Beresford, the gr-reat say-captain. And thirdly, ye'd vote -for the Divil, but ye'd never vote for a Whig. But as for -this Mr. Long-what's-'is-name, I wudn't be dhirtying me -mouth by mentioning the latter end of him." -</p> - -<p> -One of my opponent's supporters retorted by urging the -boys to "Kape th' bloody Beresford out, for the Beresfords -were never known to shmile except when they saw their -victims writhin' on th' gibbet": an amiable reference to -John Beresford, First Commissioner of Revenue at the -period of the passing of the Act of Union, and <i>de facto</i> ruler -of Ireland. -</p> - -<p> -Other incidents of that cheery time occur to my recollection. -There was the farmer who, ploughing his field, cried -to me as I rode by, "Hurroo for Lord Char-less." -</p> - -<p> -I went up to him and asked him whether he really meant -anything, and if so, what. -</p> - -<p> -"Will you <i>do</i> anything?" said I. -</p> - -<p> -Said he, "Lord Char-less, if 'tis votes you want me to -collect, begob I'll quit th' plough an' travel for a -fortnight." -</p> - -<p> -There was the car-boys' race I arranged on Waterford -quay. Ten of them started, and I won, because I had -taken the precaution to stuff some hay under the pad, which -I lit with a match. The horse was stimulated but quite -uninjured. -</p> - -<p> -Then there was the affair of the bill-poster. I had -been driving round the country all day in a side-car, seeing -the boys, and late at night we stopped at a small inn. I -was standing in the doorway smoking a pipe, and feeling -cold and rather jaded, when I noticed a bill-poster hard at -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P134"></a>134}</span> -work, pasting placards upon the wall of an adjacent -building. I could see that they were the green placards of -my opponent, my own colours being blue and white. -</p> - -<p> -I strolled across, and sure enough, there was my bill-poster -sticking up "Vote for Longbottom, the Friend of -the People." -</p> - -<p> -"And what are ye doing, my fine peacock?" said I. -</p> - -<p> -"Sure I'm posting the bills of Misther Longbottom, the -Friend of the People," said he. -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis a grand occupation," said I. "Vote for Longbottom, -the Friend of the People, and to hell with Lord -Char-less," said I. -</p> - -<p> -"To hell with Lord Char-less," says he. -</p> - -<p> -"Come," says I, "let me show ye the way to paste bills, -ye omadhaun." -</p> - -<p> -"And what do ye know about pasting bills?" -</p> - -<p> -"Haven't I been a billposter all me life, then?" says -I. "Here, let me get at it, and I'll shew ye the right way -to paste the bills of Longbottom, the Friend of the People." -</p> - -<p> -He handed me his long hairy brush, and a pailful of a -horrible stinking compound, and I pasted up a bill the way -I was born to it. -</p> - -<p> -"Sure," says he, "ye can paste bills with anny man that -God ever put two legs under. 'Tis clear ye're a grand -bill-poster," says he. -</p> - -<p> -"Didn't I tell ye?" says I. -</p> - -<p> -And with that I caught him a lick with the full brush -across the face, so that the hairs flicked all round his -head, and with a loud cry he turned and fled away. Armed -with the pail and the brush, away I started after him, -but my foot caught in the lap of the long coat I had on, -and down I came, and knocked my nose on the ground, -so that it bled all over me, and I had to go back to the -inn. I took the rest of the placards, and the pail and the -brush, and drove home, arriving very late. My brother Bill -was in bed and sound asleep. Without waking him, I -pasted the whole of his room with bills, "Vote for Longbottom, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P135"></a>135}</span> -the Friend of the People." I pasted them on the -walls, and on the door, and on his bed, and on his towels, -and on his trousers, and on the floor. Then I went to bed. -</p> - -<p> -In the morning he awakened me, wearing a pale and -solemn countenance. -</p> - -<p> -"Charlie," said he, "there's some bold men among the -enemy." -</p> - -<p> -"What do you mean?" said I. -</p> - -<p> -"They are great boys," says he. "Why, one of them got -into my room last night." -</p> - -<p> -"Impossible," said I. -</p> - -<p> -"Come and see," said he. "When I woke this morning -I thought I had gone mad." -</p> - -<p> -Upon the eve of the election, a man whom I knew to be -a Fenian, came up to me and said, "I shall vote for ye, -Lord Char-less. I don't agree with your politics, but I shall -vote for ye." -</p> - -<p> -"And why would you?" I said. "You that's a Fenian, -you should be voting for Mr. Longbottom, the Friend of the -People, like an honest man." -</p> - -<p> -"Not at all," says he. "When ye go to the market to -buy a horse, or a cow, or a pig, what is it ye look for in 'um? -Blood," says he. "An' it's the same in an iliction. Ye are -well-bred, annyway," says he, "but as for this -Mr. Longwhat's-'is-name, he's cross-bred." -</p> - -<p> -When I was holding a meeting, one of the audience kept -interrupting me; so I invited him to come up on the platform -and have it out. -</p> - -<p> -"Now what is it, ye old blackguard," I said. "Speak -out." -</p> - -<p> -"Lord Char-less," says he, "ye're no man." -</p> - -<p> -"We'll see about that," says I. "Why do you say so?" -</p> - -<p> -"Lord Char-less," he said solemnly, "I remimber the -time one of your family stood for th' county of Waterford, -I was up to the knees in blood and whisky for a month, and -at this iliction, begob, devil a drop of eyther have I seen." -</p> - -<p> -The old man referred to the election of 1826, in which -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P136"></a>136}</span> -Lord George Beresford was beaten by Lord Stewart de -Decies, an event which was partially instrumental in bringing -about the emancipation of the Roman Catholics in 1829. -</p> - -<p> -I have always preferred a hostile political meeting to a -peaceable assembly; nor have I ever failed to hold a hostile -audience except upon one occasion, during the York election. -I had sent a speaker to occupy the attention of an audience, -largely composed of my own countrymen, till I came, and -by the time I arrived he had succeeded in irritating them -beyond the power of pacification. -</p> - -<p> -But one can hardly save oneself from one's friends. -During the Waterford election I came one evening to -Youghal and went to the hotel. I was peacefully smoking -outside the inn, when a party of the boys came along, hooting -me, and presently they began to throw stones. When I -advanced upon them they ran away and were lost in the -darkness. As I turned to go back to the hotel, a large -missile caught me behind the ear, knocking me over. -</p> - -<p> -Next morning I related the incident to one of my most -enthusiastic supporters in the place. -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis a disgrace," said I, "throwing stones in the dark. -And as for that boy who made a good shot, if I could get -hold of him I would scatter his features." -</p> - -<p> -"Ye would not," said he. -</p> - -<p> -"And why wouldn't I?" said I. -</p> - -<p> -"Because," says he, "it was myself that threw that brick. -An' didn't I get ye grand!" says he. "But ye're not hurted. -Sure ye're not hurted, or I wudn't have told ye annything -about it." -</p> - -<p> -It wasn't disloyalty on his part. It was simply that he -couldn't resist what he considered a joke. -</p> - -<p> -The result of the polling was: Beresford, 1767; -Esmonde, 1390; Longbottom, 446. -</p> - -<p> -A salient characteristic of the Irish race is that they will -not endure condescension towards them. They admire -resolution and determination, and will submit to the sternest -discipline if it is enforced upon them by a man who understands -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P137"></a>137}</span> -them and whom they respect. Conversely, they will -yield nothing to weakness, and will return any assumption -of superiority with hatred and contempt. Hence it is that -the English have so often failed in their dealings with the -Irish. In spite of the violence the Irish often exhibit in -politics, their pride of race and pride in one another remain -their notable characteristics. -</p> - -<p> -I recently overheard a remark which illustrates the Irish -master sentiment. During the debates upon the Home -Rule Bill which took place in the House of Commons in -1912, one of his Majesty's Ministers, having made a long -and an eloquent speech in support of that measure, punctuated -by enthusiastic cheers by the Nationalist members, had -it knocked to smithereens by Sir Edward Carson. Afterwards, -I heard one Nationalist member say to another, -"Wasn't that grand, now, to see the Irishman knocking -spots out of the Saxon!" Yet it was the Saxon who was -fighting for the Nationalist cause, which the Irishman, Sir -Edward Carson, was strenuously opposing. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap16"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P138"></a>138}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XVI -<br /> -MEMBER FOR WATERFORD, AND COMMANDER, ROYAL NAVY -</h3> - -<p> -I shall never forget my first impressions, when, in -1874, I entered Parliament. There was a discussion -upon a matter of Local Government. I listened to -the speeches made on both sides of the House, each speaker -taking a different point of view, and I became more and -more doubtful concerning the solution of the problem in -hand. At last a Radical member, whose name I forget, -drew all the yarns into one rope, making what appeared -to me to be a clear, concise and reasonable proposal. -</p> - -<p> -Sitting among my friends, several of whom had been at -school with me, I said: -</p> - -<p> -"That is the only man who has solved the difficulty, and -if he divides I shall vote with him." -</p> - -<p> -My innocent remark was received with a volley of -expostulations. I was told that I had only just joined -political life, and that I did not understand it; that the -Radical speaker's plan was excellent, but that the other side -could not be allowed to take the credit of producing a good -scheme, because it would do our side harm in the country; -that the scheme would be thrown out for the time, in order -that our side might be able later on to bring in the same -scheme and reap the credit of it, and so forth. -</p> - -<p> -"Well," I said, "if this kind of tactics is required in -politics, it is no place for me. I had better go back to sea." -</p> - -<p> -Whereupon I was told that I should shake down to -political methods when I had been a year or two in the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P139"></a>139}</span> -House. But I have spent years in politics and I have never -shaken down to political methods. A thing is either right -or wrong. I have never scrupled to vote against my own -party when I thought they were in the wrong. -</p> - -<p> -Upon one occasion, someone told Disraeli that I was -intending to vote against the party. He put his arm on my -shoulder, and said in his orotund, deliberate enunciation: -</p> - -<p> -"My boy, don't you know that it's your first duty to -vote with your party? If everyone voted according to his -convictions, there would be no party system. And without -a party system the Government could not be carried on, as -you will discover in time." -</p> - -<p> -I have also discovered that when politicians think only -of issues as affecting themselves and not as affecting the -State, party politics fall to a very low level, and those who -believe in great national and Imperial ideas are regarded as -freaks and faddists. -</p> - -<p> -Disraeli was very friendly both to my brother Waterford -and myself. Upon the first occasion of a division in which -I took part, he walked through the lobby with his arm on -my shoulder, rather to the surprise of the old members. -</p> - -<p> -"Who the devil is that young man to whom Dizzy is -talking?" I heard them murmur. -</p> - -<p> -I sat immediately behind Disraeli; and one night, Lord -Barrington, a great friend of his, hurried into the House, -and squeezing himself in between me and the next man, -leaned over and said to Disraeli in a whisper: -</p> - -<p> -"Poor Whyte-Melville has been killed!" -</p> - -<p> -Disraeli turned slowly round, fitting his glass into his -eye. -</p> - -<p> -"Dear, dear," said he deliberately; "and pray, how did -<i>that</i> happen?" -</p> - -<p> -"Killed in the hunting-field!" -</p> - -<p> -"How very dramatic!" said Disraeli solemnly. -</p> - -<p> -We stayed at Sandringham, and went for long walks -together, during which Disraeli talked and laughed with the -greatest enjoyment. But I remember how, in the pauses of -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P140"></a>140}</span> -the conversation, he would stand still, and, glass in eye, -dreamily surveying the landscape, would make some such -observation as "The air is balmy ... and serene!" or -"The foliage is stunted ... but productive!" with the most -weighty and measured emphasis, as though these were -prophetic utterances. I was quite bewildered; for I did not -then know whether he were serious, or were indulging a -recondite wit. He was a visionary, dwelling much in a world -of his own; and I know now that he was perfectly natural -and serious on these occasions. -</p> - -<p> -He and his wife were devotedly attached to each other. -Having taken Lady Beaconsfield in to dinner one evening, -I noticed some red marks upon her arm and her napkin. -She was wearing red roses, and at first I thought some petals -had fallen from them. Then I saw that she was wearing a -bandage on her arm, and that blood was oozing from under -it. I told her that her arm was bleeding. -</p> - -<p> -"Please don't say a word, Lord Charles," she said hastily, -"it would distress Dizzy so much." And she furtively -twisted her napkin about her arm. Lord Beaconsfield, who -was sitting opposite to us, stuck his glass in his eye and -stared across the table—I was afraid for a moment that he -had overheard what his wife had said. Poor lady, she died -shortly afterwards. -</p> - -<p> -When I entered Parliament in 1874 it was still the day -of the great orators: of Disraeli, Gladstone, Bright, David -Plunkett, O'Connor Power; whose like, perhaps, we shall -not see again. There was a tradition of eloquence in the -House of Commons of that time; members declined to -listen to a bore; and debate was conducted almost entirely -by the two Front Benches. It was in my first Parliament -that Disraeli touched the zenith of his extraordinary and -splendid career; during which he formulated the principles -of a national policy, a part of which himself carried into -execution, but whose complete fulfilment remains to be -achieved. Disraeli established a tradition; and like all -those who have a great ideal—whether right or wrong is -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P141"></a>141}</span> -not here the question—he still lives in the minds of men, and -his name still carries inspiration. His great rival, who wore -him down at last, bequeathed no such national inheritance. -</p> - -<p> -It was in this my first Parliament that Mr. Parnell -emerged as the leader of the Irish party. He was a cold, -unapproachable person; he kept his party under the most -rigid control, with a tight hold upon the purse. He had -great ability. I have often seen him stalk into the House -in the middle of a debate, receive a sheaf of notes from -his secretary, Mr. O'Brien, with whom he would hold a -whispered consultation, then rise and deliver a masterly -speech. He sat with me on the committee of the Army -Discipline Bill; speaking seldom, but always to the point. -</p> - -<p> -Lord Randolph Churchill entered Parliament at the same -time as myself; and he was always a great personal friend -of mine. -</p> - -<p> -Although we were opposed in politics, the other four -Waterford members were on excellent terms with the only -anti-Home Ruler in the five. There were Dick Power, -F. H. O'Donnell, J. Delahunty, and Purcell O'Gorman, who -weighed twenty-eight stone or so; and they all came to my -wedding. Another Waterford man was Mr. Sexton. As a -boy, he manifested so brilliant a talent for oratory, that he -was sent into Parliament, where, as everyone knows, he -speedily made his mark. I remember, too, The O'Gorman -Mahon, who, if I am not mistaken, fought the last formal -duel in this country. -</p> - -<p> -When I entered Parliament the automobile torpedo was -a comparatively recent invention. Mr Whitehead had begun -his experiments in 1864; after four years' work and at the -cost of £40,000, he produced the formidable engine of war -known as the Whitehead torpedo, the type from which all -subsequent improvements have been evolved. I have heard -it stated that the British Government could have bought the -invention right out for £60,000. Whitehead invented the -device of using hydrostatic pressure to regulate the depth of -the immersion of the torpedo, and employed compressed air -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P142"></a>142}</span> -as its motive power. The new weapon was adopted by the -British Navy and by other naval powers. In the year 1876 -the type in use was the 14-in., length 14 ft. 6 in., weight -525 lbs. -</p> - -<p> -In my view, the capabilities of the new weapon had not -been fully appreciated; that opinion may or may not have -been justified; but I considered it to be my duty publicly to -insist upon the importance of the torpedo in naval warfare. -I spoke on the subject both inside the House of Commons -and on the platform, and was so fortunate as to win the -approval of <i>The Times</i>. -</p> - -<p> -The Admiralty, however, were deeply affronted. The First -Lord, Mr. George Ward Hunt, informed me that the Board -took great exception to my speaking in the House upon -naval subjects, and desired me to understand that I must -choose between the career of a sailor and that of a politician. -My reply was that I considered the request to be a breach of -privilege. Mr. Ward Hunt admitted the point; but argued -that the employment in the House of Commons of my -knowledge of the Service was prejudicial to discipline. He -was of course right in so far as the conditions did -undoubtedly afford opportunities for prejudicing discipline; -but as there was no regulation forbidding a naval officer to -sit in Parliament, a dual position which had been frequently -held by members of the Board of Admiralty, the responsibility -rested upon the individual. -</p> - -<p> -However, it was not a case for argument; and I appealed -directly to Mr. Disraeli, telling him that I regarded the -request of the Admiralty as a breach of privilege; that I had -no intention of relinquishing my naval career; and that I -had entered Parliament solely in the interests of the Service. -Disraeli listened with his customary sardonic gravity. -</p> - -<p> -"What," he asked, "do you intend to do?" -</p> - -<p> -I said that if the matter were pressed to a conclusion, I -should resign my seat, in which event Waterford would very -probably be captured by a hot Home Ruler. -</p> - -<p> -"My dear boy," said Disraeli, in his deliberate way, "I -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P143"></a>143}</span> -am quite sure that you will do nothing heroic. I," he -added,—"I will see the Secretariat." -</p> - -<p> -And that was the last I heard of the affair. -</p> - -<p> -Among other Service matters in which I did what I -could in the House of Commons to obtain reforms, were the -training of the personnel, the more rapid promotion of -officers, promotion from the lower deck to officers' rank, -and the necessity for building fast cruisers to protect the -trade routes. I advocated more time being spent by the -men upon gunnery training, and less upon polishing -bright-work; and brought forward a motion to stop the men of -the Fleet "doing 'orses" (as they called hauling carts laden -with stores about the dockyard), instead of being trained in -their proper work. These subjects no longer possess any -interest save in so far as the circumstances resemble those of -the present day. But I find recurring to-day many of the -difficulties of thirty or forty years ago. -</p> - -<p> -At that time the Admiralty had abolished the short -service system under which highly efficient seamen were -recruited direct from the mercantile marine, and the Board -had become responsible for the whole supply and training of -men for the Fleet. But the Admiralty had neglected to -constitute an efficient system of training. A very large -proportion of men were employed at sea upon duties which -precluded them from receiving war training of any kind; -another large contingent was kept idle in hulks and receiving -ships while waiting to be drafted into sea-going vessels. The -suggestion was that barracks should be erected for their -accommodation and provided with attached vessels; and -that a complete system of training should be organised; so -that every man upon going to sea in a ship of war should be -acquainted with his duties. Commander Noel (now Admiral -of the Fleet Sir Gerard H. U. Noel, K.C.B., K.C.M.G.) -kindly sent to me a most valuable memorandum upon the -subject, in which he presented an admirable scheme of -organisation, the principles of which were afterwards carried -into execution. Of late years those principles have been -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P144"></a>144}</span> -infringed; but the exigencies of the Service will compel the -authorities to return to the essential conditions laid down by -Sir Gerard Noel, whose authority is entitled to the greatest -respect. I also received a sagacious letter on the same -subject from Commodore John Wilson, under whom I -afterwards served as commander in the <i>Thunderer</i>, indicating -the necessity of framing a scheme of organisation to come -into force as soon as the barracks were completed. -</p> - -<p> -With regard to the promotion of officers and men, the -state of things nearly forty years ago finds a parallel to-day. -Then, as now, a very large proportion of officers, from the -rank of commander downwards, cannot hope to be promoted. -It was then suggested that the retiring allowance should be -increased. It is true that in 1873 Mr. Goschen, by granting -an increased retiring allowance for a limited period, had done -his best to effect a temporary relief. But the permanent -reform, which is more necessary now than ever before, still awaits -achievement. In the meantime the discontent to which I -drew attention in 1875, is by no means less detrimental than -it was. The whole difficulty, as usual, is financial. -Government after Government, of what political complexion soever, -refuse to pay the Services properly. The condition of affairs -is a national disgrace. -</p> - -<p> -At that time, too, the Fleet was highly deficient in -cruisers; and, in consequence, the sea-borne trade of the -country was exposed to great danger in the event of war, as -I explained to the House of Commons. In later years the -requisite ships were provided; only, in a moment of retrograde -impulse, to be abolished. After a period of insecurity and -uneasiness, the cruiser force is once more being slowly -increased. -</p> - -<p> -In later years my political opponents found great solace -at elections in saying that I had objected to the abolition -of flogging in the Navy. The question arose in my first -Parliament. What I actually did—as a reference to Hansard -will confirm—was to point out that in many cases they -were the best men, the men who had the pluck to get -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P145"></a>145}</span> -into a row. High-tempered, full of exuberance, they -were flogged for offences against discipline, and whereas -a flogging was soon over and done with, the alternative -proposed would break a man's heart in prison and deprive -the Navy of valuable services. Which, then, was the more -humane course? To-day, the circumstances and conditions -have changed. Discipline is better, and flogging, thank -goodness, is abolished. -</p> - -<p> -But when the matter was under discussion, a certain -ex-naval officer assembled a public meeting, at which he -attacked me with great vehemence and impassioned -eloquence. He was interrupted by an old fellow at the back -of the hall, who, refusing to be silenced, was asked to speak -from the platform. He did. He gave the meeting a dose -of lower-deck phraseology, hot and strong; and told the -audience they were not to believe a word they had heard -concerning myself; that he had been shipmates both with -the speaker of the evening and with myself. He devoted -some complimentary remarks to me, "but," says he, "as -for the other, he flogged every man in the ship three or -four times." Whereupon the audience rose in its wrath and -drove my opponent from the platform. -</p> - -<p> -Mr. Disraeli asked me to survey the three battleships building -for Turkey and the one battleship building for Chile, and to -give him my opinion as to whether or not they were worth -buying. Disraeli said he preferred to ask me rather than -the Admiralty, as I could, if necessary, speak on the matter -in Parliament. "And," said Disraeli, in his pontifical way, -"I like young brains." I advised the purchase of the ships; -and purchased they were, being added to the British Navy -under the names of <i>Superb</i>, <i>Belleisle</i>, <i>Orion</i> and <i>Neptune</i>. -</p> - -<p> -In those days I owned a bull-dog of marked personality. -He never fought unless he were attacked; but his favourite -recreation was to rush at full speed, head down, at every dog -bigger than himself. The instant he caught sight of a big -dog, he shot away like a projectile discharged from a gun; -nothing stopped or turned him; and the unsuspecting object -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P146"></a>146}</span> -of the manifestation would go down like a ninepin. Then, -unless he were detained by reprisals, Butcher would return -to his master with the air of a dog who knew his duty and -who had done it. At that time the streets of London were -haunted by Italian image-venders, who carried the Twelve -Apostles and other sacred statuettes neatly arranged upon a -board, which the merchant balanced on his head. One of -those pious venders was walking directly in the headlong -path of Butcher, who flashed between his legs. Down came -the Apostles, who were dashed to fragments, for which I -had to pay about £12 to the pedlar of saints. -</p> - -<p> -When my dog thought I wanted a hansom, he used to -scramble into it, jump upon the seat, and sit there panting -with his tongue hanging out. He performed this feat one -day when an old gentleman, without noticing him, had -hailed a hansom. The old gentleman, climbing slowly into -the cab, suddenly saw the dog on the seat, and was so -startled that he tumbled backwards and knocked his head -on the pavement. -</p> - -<p> -In 1876, having passed in torpedo work in the <i>Vernon</i>, I -applied for the appointment of second in command in a big -snip, holding then, as I hold now, that every officer who -hopes to obtain flag rank should gain experience in detailed -routine work and in handling and organising men, which can -only be acquired as first lieutenant or commander. The -second in command of a man-of-war gains invaluable -experience. He must always look ahead in order to <i>prevent</i> -things occurring which would cause confusion or discomfort. -He has literally not one minute to himself in the day; -thinking ahead, waylaying the wishes of his captain, and -providing not only for what <i>will</i> occur but for what <i>may</i> -occur, and being ready to encounter the constant unforeseen -emergencies inseparable from life at sea in a man-of-war. -</p> - -<p> -I was accordingly appointed to the <i>Thunderer</i> as -commander. Her captain was John Crawford Wilson -(afterwards Rear-Admiral). The Navy lost one of the best -officers that ever sailed the seas when he died in 1885. He -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P147"></a>147}</span> -was mentioned in the Admiral's dispatch for gallant conduct -in the affair of the Peiho Forts in 1859, served on the -Pacific Station, and was commodore of the Australian -station. He was commander of the <i>Bombay</i> screw wooden -first-rate, when she was burned off Montevideo on the -14th December, 1864, and when 97 officers and men -perished. Many of those who were lost had climbed out -on the bowsprit, and when they were forced overboard by -the heat, the melting lead of the gammoning (the lead -covering to the chain gammoning securing the bowsprit) -dropped on them and killed them. It was largely due to -the splendid discipline maintained by Wilson that the loss -was not far greater. The men held their posts although -the flames were licking up through the skids, so that the -falls of the last boat, lowered from the yard-arm, were -actually burned through. It should be added that in -this disaster the Royal Marines enhanced their unrivalled -reputation, 34 out of 97 lost belonging to the corps, the -sentries dying at their posts. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Thunderer</i> was of 9190 (4407) tons, 6270 (800) h.p., -and belonged to the Channel Squadron. She was an -improved central battery twin-screw ironclad, designed, -with the vessels of a similar type, <i>Devastation</i> and -<i>Dreadnought</i>, by Mr. E. T. Reed, C.B. In these ships there was -no propulsion by mast and sail power. They also embodied -the idea of limiting the armament to heavy guns, the -secondary armament of lighter guns being omitted. This -arrangement, after having been wisely abandoned for many -years, was repeated in the <i>Dreadnought</i> of the year 1906, -only to be once more recognised as a mistake. One of -many reasons why a secondary armament was essential, -particularly with muzzle-loading guns, was that, lacking it, -the men might have been exposed to the enemy's fire for -some time before they could reply, a most demoralising -position. These considerations were constantly represented -by Captain Wilson to the Admiralty. While the science of -gunnery progressed, the element of time has remained a -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P148"></a>148}</span> -factor in the problem, though under different circumstances. -The <i>Thunderer</i> carried two pairs of muzzle-loading guns in -two turrets; the foremost pair being 38-ton guns, hydraulic -loading, the after pair 35-ton guns, hand-loading. She was -belted with 14-inch armour along the water line; and the -armour projecting squarely from the hull, its edge struck the -water so hard when the ship rolled, that she was shaken -throughout her structure. To remedy this defect, wedge-shaped -pieces were fitted along the lower edge of the armour. -Before I joined the ship she had burst a boiler, the -escaping steam causing great loss of life. Captain Wilson, -who was in the engine-room at the time, was saved by his -stature; although he was scalded, his face was above the -level of the steam, being between the deck-beams where -there was an air cushion. -</p> - -<p> -That the boiler exploded was due to the remarkable -coincidence of two factors. The box safety-valve jammed, -owing to the two different metals of which it was constructed -expanding in different degrees. And the pressure-gauge -tell-tale, which was fitted in a cogged circle, had the -needle forced right round the circle twice or more, so that -it showed a normal pressure. The actual pressure must -have been terrific. -</p> - -<p> -And after I left the ship one of her guns burst. This -accident contributed another instance in favour of -breech-loading as opposed to muzzle-loading guns. -</p> - -<p> -The accident occurred during practice at quarters in -the Gulf of Ismid, on 2nd January, 1879, in the fore-turret. -Captain Alfred John Chatfield had succeeded Captain -Wilson in command. Two officers and nine men were killed, -and thirty-five persons injured. The muzzle was blown -off from about two feet in front of the trunnions. There -was much discussion then and subsequently concerning the -cause of the accident. The probability is that the bursting -of the gun was due to its having been double-loaded, after -a previous miss-fire, which, in the simultaneous discharge of -the rest of the guns, had not been noticed. The committee -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P149"></a>149}</span> -which reported on the matter on 1st March, 1879, adopted -this hypothesis, in preference to the theory that there had -been a flaw in the material. -</p> - -<p> -Captain Edward Seymour (afterwards Admiral of the -Fleet the Right Hon. Sir E. H. Seymour), who was then in -command of the troopship <i>Orontes</i>, in his book, <i>My Naval -Career and Travels</i>, thus refers to the incident:— -</p> - -<p> -"From Malta I brought home the main part of the ship's -company of H.M.S. <i>Thunderer</i>, on board which ship the -terrible explosion of the 38-ton muzzle-loading gun had -lately occurred in her foremost turret. Both turret guns -were being fired simultaneously, but evidently one did not -go off. It may seem hard to believe such a thing could -happen and not be noticed, but from my own experience -I understand it. The men in the turret often stopped their -ears, and perhaps shut their eyes, at the moment of firing, -and then instantly worked the run-in levers, and did not -notice how much the guns had recoiled. This no doubt -occurred. Both guns were then at once reloaded, and the -rammer's indicator, working by machinery, set fast and -failed to show how far home the new charge had gone. -This, too, may seem unlikely, but no doubt it happened; -and the gun on being then fired burst, killing two officers -and several men, and wrecking the turret. Experiments -made with a similar gun double-loaded, burst it in exactly -the same way." -</p> - -<p> -I agree. I have frequently been in the turret during -practice, and I have myself fired several rounds and I can -testify that the concussion was so tremendous that it was -impossible to hear whether one gun was fired or both guns -were fired. Without insisting upon details, it was also the -fact that the men in the turret could not tell by the position -of the hydraulic rammer whether or not the gun had already -been charged, as the rammer was three-jointed and telescopic: -the indicator which was designed to show the position of -the rammer was totally unreliable; while the actual loading -of the gun was done upon the battery deck below the turret. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P150"></a>150}</span> -Hence the loading crew must also have been unaware that -there had been a misfire. The system in use in the -<i>Thunderer</i> was experimental, and after the accident its -defects were remedied. I then wrote to <i>The Times</i> explaining -what the system had been and how it had been improved, -in order both to remove any misapprehension there might -have been with regard to the efficiency of the officers and -men who perished in the disaster, and with regard to the -future safety of guns' crews. I was reprimanded by the -Admiralty for having published the letter while on full -pay in the command of the <i>Osborne</i>; but the reprimand -was (like the Bishop's apron) a mere form, for I also -received a private letter of thanks. -</p> - -<p> -After the bursting of the boiler, but before the gun -accident, the Prince of Wales at my suggestion very kindly -came on board, in order that the men's belief that the -<i>Thunderer</i> was an unlucky ship should be removed. The -Prince fired the fore turret guns at a target from the captain -of the guns' firing position, and made a rattling good shot. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Thunderer</i> was employed in experimental work, -such as measuring her turning-circle (the diameter of which -is the smallest distance the ship can set between the point -at which she begins to describe a semi-circle and the point -at which she ends it), and noting her behaviour under -various circumstances and stresses of weather. I gained -much valuable experience in her, and I shall always -remember Captain Wilson as one of those officers from -whose skill and experience I learned the most. -</p> - -<p> -While I was in the <i>Thunderer</i> (1876-7) I made one -of the first working models of the telephone used in this -country, and had the honour of presenting it to H.R.H. the -Princess of Wales. The invention was first exhibited -before the British Association by Mr. W. H. Preece on -23rd August, 1877; and it was shown to Queen Victoria -at Osborne on 15th January, 1878. The Telephone -Company was established during the same year. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-150"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-150.jpg" alt="LADY CHARLES BERESFORD" /> -<br /> -LADY CHARLES BERESFORD -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Thunderer</i> was sent to blow up a vessel which had -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P151"></a>151}</span> -capsized and which was floating in the Channel, a danger -to mariners. Explosives attached to her side tore pieces -out of her, but the wreck continued to float. In these -cases it is necessary to disintegrate the vessel, whether -sunk or floating, into fragments. I suggested that the hull -should be girdled with an iron hoop to which explosives -were attached at intervals, and the device was successful. -The explosion cut her into holes like the perforations of -a sheet of postage stamps and she broke up. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Thunderer</i> was lying off Queenstown, and I was -watching a cutter which was running out of the harbour. -On the deck was a group of Irish farmers. The cutter -suddenly gybed, the boom knocking down the farmers. -Getting up, they instantly fell upon one another with sticks; -and they were hard at it when over came the boom again, -and again felled them all to the deck. It could be they -had had a drop of liquor taken, which confused their -intellects. -</p> - -<p> -In the year 1878 I married Miss Jeromina Gardner, -daughter of the late Richard Gardner, M.P. for Leicester, -and of Lucy Countess Mandelsloh, whose father, Count -Mandelsloh, was for some years Minister in London, -representing Würtemberg. -</p> - -<p> -Shortly afterwards I was appointed to command the -royal yacht <i>Osborne</i>. The <i>Osborne</i> was used by the Prince -of Wales (afterwards King Edward VII). In those days -she was not kept in commission for more than a few months -in each year. -</p> - -<p> -Several cruises were made to Denmark, and there were -many shooting expeditions. On one such occasion I was -the only person present who was not either a king actual -or a king prospective. There were the King of Denmark, -the King of Norway and Sweden, and the King of Greece, -the Prince of Wales, the Cesarewitch, the Crown Princes of -Denmark, of Norway and Sweden, and of Greece. We shot -foxes, hares, deer, and anything that came along; and I was -laughed at when my instincts forbade me to shoot a fox. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P152"></a>152}</span> -</p> - -<p> -Upon a return voyage, when all the Royal children were -on board, a gale sprang up just off the Skaw. The starboard -paddle-wheel was smashed upon some wreckage; and the -next thing I saw was a small craft being driven on a lee -shore. The <i>Osborne</i> dropped anchor, in order both that -the paddle-wheel should be repaired and that the crew of -the driving vessel might be assisted. The only way to -rescue them was to veer a boat astern with a hawser. Just -as the arrangement was ready, to my delight I perceived -the crew—there were four—embarking in their own boats. -They reached the shore in safety, but their ship was -wrecked. -</p> - -<p> -It was then the system in the royal yachts to retain the -officers in her for long periods. One officer had been in -the <i>Osborne</i> for fourteen years. I ventured to suggest to the -Prince of Wales that under these conditions his acquaintance -with the officers of the Fleet was necessarily limited, and -that by means of restricting the time of service in the <i>Osborne</i> -to two years, he might become acquainted with a succession -of officers. With his habitual courtesy and address, the -Prince adopted the suggestion. -</p> - -<p> -Queen Victoria was, however, a little perturbed by the -change. Her Majesty said to me that she hoped I should -not endeavour to change the officers in the royal yacht. -</p> - -<p> -"No, ma'am," I replied. "I have no such power. I only -made a suggestion to the Prince." -</p> - -<p> -"You may be right," said the Queen, "but I am an old -woman now, and I like to see faces I know about me, and -not have to begin again with new faces." -</p> - -<p> -We had some excellent boat-racing in the <i>Osborne</i>. One -famous race was rowed at Cowes between the officers of the -royal yachts <i>Victoria and Albert</i> and <i>Osborne</i>, in six-oared -galleys. Her Majesty Queen Victoria came down to the -jetty to witness the contest. The stroke of the <i>Victoria -and Albert</i> was my old comrade in the <i>Marlborough</i> and -<i>Bellerophon</i>, Swinton Holland. I was stroke of the <i>Osborne's</i> -crew. At first the <i>Osborne</i> drew ahead—rather, I think, to -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P153"></a>153}</span> -the Queen's dismay—but eventually the <i>Victoria and Albert</i> -won the race, to the delight of Her Majesty. -</p> - -<p> -Another great race was rowed between the <i>Osborne</i> -six-oared galley and the Dockyard boat. It took place off -Southsea, the whole of the foreshore being lined with people. -The <i>Osborne</i> won. Her boat was manned by Irish -bluejackets whom I had trained myself. -</p> - -<p> -While I was commanding the <i>Osborne</i> one of the crew -met with a singular accident. We were shooting the seine -off Calshot, and, as it fouled, I sent a man down to clear it. -When he came up, he said that he had been stabbed through -the hand "by some beast." I examined the wound and -found that his hand had been pierced right through, and I -thought that he must have come upon a nail or a splinter in -a piece of wreckage. But when we hauled up the seine, -there was a huge sting-ray. I cut out the sting and gave -it to the Princess. There is no doubt that the fish had -transfixed the man's hand. The sailor is still alive, and is -well known in Portsmouth for his political enthusiasms. It -was in the same haul that we caught a red mullet weighing -about six pounds, the biggest I have ever seen. -</p> - -<p> -I ought here to record the very great interest taken -by the Royal Family in all matters connected with the -Navy. While I was in command of the <i>Osborne</i>, the Prince -of Wales graciously consented to attend one of the gatherings -of members of Parliament who came at my invitation -to see something of the Navy. On this occasion they visited -Portsmouth Dockyard, where they were shown everything -of interest. -</p> - -<p> -One of the experiments performed for the entertainment -and the instruction of the party was firing at a floating cask -with bombs thrown by hand, a method of warfare since -discontinued owing to the danger it involves to the person -bombarding. When the cask exploded, a stave flew between -the Prince and the general commanding at Portsmouth, -Sir Hastings Doyle. Had it struck either of them he must -have been killed. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P154"></a>154}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The general's brother, Percy Doyle, a dear old gentleman -well known in society, had very bad sight. I once saw -him trying to eat a red mullet done up in paper. After a -good deal of harpooning, he got it out, but put the paper -in his mouth. We always told him he had swallowed the -births, deaths, and marriages column of <i>The Times</i>. -</p> - -<p> -On Sunday the 24th of March, 1878 (the date of -my engagement to Miss Gardner), the <i>Eurydice</i>, training -frigate, capsized off the Isle of Wight in a sudden squall -and sank. The total loss of life was about 300, only two -being saved. She was on her way home from the West -Indies. Coming under the Isle of Wight, she hauled her wind -for Spithead, thus closing the land, so that it was impossible -for the watch to see a squall coming up from windward. -The captain, the Hon. Marcus A. S. Hare, was anxious to -reach the harbour as soon as possible in order to give the -men Sunday leisure. It was about four o'clock in the -afternoon when a sudden squall struck the ship, and she heeled -over; the lee main-deck ports being open, according to -custom, she took in a good deal of water, depressing her -bows; so that instead of capsizing, she simply sailed straight -to the bottom, her fore-foot being broken off with the force -of the impact, and her topgallant masts remaining above the -surface. There was no time to shorten sail. When she was -raised it was found that only one rope, the mainroyal sheet, -had carried away. -</p> - -<p> -Rear-Admiral Foley, admiral-superintendent of Portsmouth -Dockyard, kindly invited me to be his guest to take -part in the salvage operations arranged for the raising of the -<i>Eurydice</i>. That occasion was, I think, the first upon which the -newly invented wire hawsers were actually tested in practical -work. When they were introduced it was thought that they -would not be flexible enough for their purpose. They were, -however, used with great success in raising the <i>Eurydice</i>. -The hawsers were passed under the hull of the sunken ship -and secured to lighters moored on either side of her. As the -tide went down, the hawsers were hove taut, and water was -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P155"></a>155}</span> -let into the lighters so that they should be brought as low -in the water as possible. The water was then pumped out -of the lighters, thus putting the utmost strain upon the -hawsers. Then, as the rising of the tide exerted a powerful -lift upon lighters and hawsers, the lighters were towed -towards the shore, in order to drag the wreck upon the -beach. As soon as she grounded, the hawsers were -fleeted and the whole process gone through again until at -low tide she was nearly high and dry. -</p> - -<p> -My old ship, the <i>Thunderer</i>, which took a hawser to her -after capstan to tow the <i>Eurydice</i>, had the solid iron spindle -of the capstan pulled right out of her, as a long nail is -bent and dragged out of a piece of timber. I well remember -the intense excitement when the wreck first shifted from -her bed. Eventually we hauled her up the beach. I was -just then taking a bearing for Admiral Foley, and could not -have given a better holloa if I had viewed a fox. -</p> - -<p> -Before the water was pumped out of her, and as she lay -on her side on the beach, I climbed in at a porthole, and sat -there waiting till I could enter. As the water fell, I saw -emerge the sentry's clock on the main-deck. The hands -had stopped at 4.5. The bodies lay in heaps, tangled amid -ropes; some had lost a head and some a limb. Black mud -had filtered in everywhere, even (as Sir Edward Seymour -remarks) into the closed drawers of the chests in the -cabins. -</p> - -<p> -When, as a cadet, I was learning to heave the lead from -the chains of the <i>Eurydice</i>, which, as I have already related, -was then moored off Haslar Creek in Portsmouth Harbour, -I little thought I should one day help to raise her from the -bottom of the sea. -</p> - -<p> -Dr. Boyd Carpenter (late Bishop of Ripon), in his -charming volume of recollections, <i>Some Pages of my Life</i>, -narrates a remarkable story concerning the <i>Eurydice</i>, as it -was told to him. Sir John MacNeill was the Bishop's -cousin and, like other members of his family, had the gift -of second sight. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P156"></a>156}</span> -</p> - -<p> -"Sir John MacNeill," writes the Bishop, "was looking -out of the window in Sir John Cowell's room at Windsor, -when suddenly he exclaimed: 'Good Heavens! Why don't -they close the portholes and reef the topsails!' Sir John -Cowell looked up and asked him what he meant. He said, -in reply, that he hardly knew; but that he had seen a ship -coming up Channel in full sail, with open portholes, while a -heavy squall was descending upon her. At the very time -this conversation was taking place the fatal storm fell upon -the <i>Eurydice</i>, and she foundered as she was coming in sight -of home." -</p> - -<p> -In 1880, while I was still in command of the <i>Osborne</i>, I -lost my seat at Waterford. In the following year, desiring -to hold another independent command before my promotion -to captain, I applied to go to sea again, and was appointed -to command H.M.S. <i>Condor</i>. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap17"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P157"></a>157}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XVII -<br /> -WITH THE PRINCE IN INDIA -</h3> - -<p> -In September, 1875, I was appointed A.D.C. to the -Prince of Wales (our late King) to accompany his -Royal Highness upon his visit to India. The complete -list of the suite was as follows: The Duke of Sutherland, -K.G.; Sir Bartle Frere; Lord Suffield, Head of the Prince's -Household; Major-General Lord Alfred Paget, -Clerk-Marshal to H.M. the Queen; Lord Aylesford; -Major-General Probyn, V.C., Equerry to the Prince, in charge of -the transport and sporting arrangements; Colonel Arthur -Ellis, Grenadier Guards, Equerry to the Prince; Mr. Francis -Knollys (afterwards Lord Knollys), the Prince's private -secretary; Surgeon-General Fayrer, Physician to the Prince; -Captain H. Carr Glyn, Royal Navy, A.D.C. to H.M. the -Queen commanding H.M.S. <i>Serapis</i>; Colonel Owen -Williams; Lieutenant Lord Charles Beresford, Royal -Navy, A.D.C. to the Prince; Lord Carington, A.D.C. to -the Prince; the Rev. Canon Duckworth, Chaplain; -Lieutenant (afterwards Colonel) Augustus FitzGeorge, Rifle -Brigade extra A.D.C. to the Prince; Commander Durrant, -Royal Navy, commanding royal yacht <i>Osborne</i>; Dr. W. H. Russell, -hon. private secretary to the Prince, chronicler of the -voyage; Mr. Albert Grey (afterwards Lord Grey), private -secretary to Sir Bartle Frere; Mr. Sydney Hall, artist. -</p> - -<p> -The Indian officers, who joined the suite at Bombay, -and whose energy and ability were beyond all praise, were -Major-General Sam Browne, V.C., in charge of transport; -Major Williams, in charge of horses and grooms; Major -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P158"></a>158}</span> -Bradford, head of the police and responsible for the safety -of the person of the Prince; Major Sartorius, V.C., in charge -of tents and servants; and Major Henderson, linguist. -</p> - -<p> -The first announcement of the intention of the Prince to -visit the Indian Empire was made by Lord Salisbury to the -Council of India on 16th March, 1875. The matter was -subsequently discussed at length both in Parliament and in -the Press. The condition of affairs in India, where the -mass of the ruling princes and chieftains had still to realise -that the rule of the Honourable East India Company had -given place to a greater governance, rendered the visit of the -future Sovereign of paramount importance; and the Prince's -sagacity was seldom more admirably exemplified than in -his determination to visit India as the Heir-Apparent of -the Crown. That the scheme was entirely and supremely -successful in achieving the object for which it was designed, -was due to the Prince's zeal, ability, tact and indomitable -vigour. He gave his whole mind to the enterprise; thought -of everything in advance; and set aside his personal comfort -and convenience from first to last. Only one regret was -present in the minds of all: the regret for the unavoidable -absence of the Princess. -</p> - -<p> -The whole history of the episode has been so excellently -well told by the late Dr. William Howard Russell, the famous -war correspondent, who was a member of the suite, in his -<i>The Prince of Wales's Tour</i> (London, 1877; Sampson Low) -that any detailed account of it on my part would be -superfluous. -</p> - -<p> -The Prince left England on 11th October, 1875, and -embarked in H.M.S. <i>Serapis</i> at Brindisi on the 16th. In -the Suez Canal we heard of the purchase of Suez Canal -shares by the British Government. The <i>Serapis</i> arrived at -Bombay on 8th November. -</p> - -<p> -Thenceforward the Prince's tour was an unresting progress -of Durbars, receptions, dinners, visits, processions, ceremonies, -speeches, addresses, fireworks, entertainments, investitures, -reviews, varied only by intervals of sport. From Bombay, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P159"></a>159}</span> -the Prince went to Goa, and thence to Ceylon, visiting -Colombo, Kandy, where he viewed the sacred tooth of Gotama -Buddha, and Ruanwalla, where there was an elephant hunt. -Then he went to Tuticorin, Madura, Trichinopoly, Madras, -Calcutta, Bankipoor, Benares, Lucknow, Cawnpore, Delhi, -Lahore, Cashmir, Umritsar, Agra, Gwalior, and Jeypoor. -From Jeypoor he went into camp in the Terai and enjoyed -excellent sport. Then, in Nepal, under the auspices of Sir -Jung Bahadur, there was the great elephant hunt. From -Nepal the Prince went to Allahabad, then to Bombay, -whence he sailed on 11th March, 1876, having been in India -seventeen weeks exactly. "The Prince," wrote Dr. Russell -on that date, "has travelled nearly 7600 miles by land and -2300 by sea, knows more Chiefs than all the Viceroys and -Governors together, and seen more of the country in the time -than any other living man." -</p> - -<p> -On the outward voyage his Royal Highness visited the -King of Greece. When the King and Queen were leaving -the <i>Serapis</i> after dining on board, we showed them -compliment and honour by setting them alight. The blue -lights burning at the main-yard being exactly above the -boat in which their Majesties were going ashore, dropped -flakes of fire upon them. The Prince also visited the -Khedive. On the return voyage, the Prince met at Suez -Lord Lytton, who was on his way to India to succeed -Lord Northbrook as Viceroy; was again entertained by the -Khedive; visited Malta; called at Gibraltar; and visited -the King of Spain and the King of Portugal. The <i>Serapis</i> -was accompanied by the royal yacht <i>Osborne</i>, Commander -Durrant, and H.M.S. <i>Raleigh</i>, Captain Tryon. The Prince -landed in England on 11th May, 1876. -</p> - -<p> -It is worth noting that Lord Lytton went out in the -<i>Orontes</i>, one of the Imperial Service troopships, as they -were called. The troopship service was then at times -conducted by the Royal Navy, a practice since discontinued. -The <i>Orontes</i> was commanded by Captain E. H. Seymour -(afterwards Admiral of the Fleet the Right Hon. Sir Edward -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P160"></a>160}</span> -Seymour, G.C.B., O.M., G.C.V.O., LL.D.) In his very -interesting book, <i>My Naval Career and Travels</i>, Sir Edward -Seymour writes: "At Suez, by arrangement, we met -H.R.H. the Prince of Wales (our late King) on his way -home in the <i>Serapis</i>. At Aden Lord Lytton landed in -state, it being the first point reached of his new -dominions." The point illustrates the working in detail of the great -scheme of Imperial organisation which was conceived by the -master-mind of Disraeli, and which he continued to carry -into execution so long as he was in power. -</p> - -<p> -Upon landing at Bombay, I rode up to Government -House with my brother, Lord William, precisely as I had -ridden up with another brother, Lord Marcus, exactly six -years previously, on the same day of the year. Lord William -was then extra A.D.C. to the Viceroy, Lord Northbrook, -having been appointed to that post as a subaltern in the -9th Lancers. He was subsequently appointed A.D.C. to Lord -Lytton, in which capacity he attended the Viceroy at the -Durbar at which Queen Victoria was proclaimed Empress -of India. He was afterwards military secretary to three -successive viceroys, Lords Ripon, Dufferin and Lansdowne; -altogether he served on the personal staff of five viceroys. -From 1877 to 1879, while nominally in attendance upon the -Viceroy, Lord William fought in the Jowaki expedition of -1877-78, the Afghan war, during which he was present at -the capture of Ali Musjid, and the Zulu war of 1879. "In -the latter," wrote a military correspondent of <i>The Times</i> -(31st December, 1900), "he served as a staff officer during -the reconnaissance across the White Umvolusi River and -at the battle of Ulundi. It was in Zululand, in July, 1879, -that Beresford won the V.C. for halting, when closely -pursued by the enemy, to take a wounded non-commissioned -officer on his horse. When the soldier at first declined to -risk the officer's life by giving the latter's horse a double -burden, Beresford is understood to have hotly declared that -unless the man immediately got up on the saddle he would -himself dismount and 'punch his head.'" -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P161"></a>161}</span> -</p> - -<p> -For his services in the Burmese expedition of 1886, he -received a brevet-colonelcy; and in 1891 he was promoted -full colonel; in 1894 he received the K.C.S.I.; and -thereafter remained on the active list of the Army, but -unemployed. Of his exploits on the turf it is not here the place -to speak; but I may be pardoned if I have placed on record -in this place some account of Lord William's Indian service -which extended over nearly twenty years. Few men have -earned so universal an affection as that which Lord William -inspired, alike in European and native. His ability in -matters of administration was remarkable, and he acquired -an extraordinary influence over the natives of India. The -correspondent of <i>The Times</i>, already quoted, observes that -Lord William might have had a distinguished career in any -profession; that he might have been a great soldier, a great -diplomat, a great political officer, had not his passion for -the turf diverted a part of his energies. It may be so; but -perhaps one may be allowed to say that one liked him for -what he was and not for what he might have been; and -also that he did not do so badly. The warmest affection -existed between my brother and myself; and his death, -which occurred in 1900, was a great grief to me. But that -was in the far future when I landed from the <i>Serapis</i> and we -rode up to Government House together. -</p> - -<p> -Of the other members of the Prince's suite I retain the -most pleasant recollections. Among them I especially -recall Major-General Probyn (afterwards General the Right -Hon. Sir Dighton Macnaghten Probyn, V.C., etc. etc.); -Major-General Sam Browne, V.C. (afterwards General Sir -Samuel James Browne, V.C., K.C.S.I., etc.); Major Bradford -(afterwards Sir Edward Ridley Colborne Bradford, Bart., -K.C.S.I., G.C.V.O.); Surgeon-General Fayrer (afterwards Sir -Joseph Fayrer, Bart.); and Dr. Russell (afterwards Sir -William Howard Russell, C.V.O., LL.D.). -</p> - -<p> -Major-General Probyn, of magnificent presence, black-bearded, -hawk-eyed, a hero of the Mutiny, was universally -respected and beloved by the native population, over -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P162"></a>162}</span> -whom he owned a great influence. He was one of -the finest soldiers and most delightful companions it has -been my fortune to know. In 1876, he already had twenty-five -years' service, including the Trans-Indus frontier affair -of 1852-57, the Mutiny (in which his name was a terror), in -China in 1860, in the Umbeyla campaign of 1863. He was -Colonel of Probyn's Horse, 11th King Edward's Own -Lancers; afterwards Keeper of the Privy Purse, Comptroller -and Treasurer of the Household of the present King -when he was Prince of Wales; and since 1901, extra Equerry -to the King. -</p> - -<p> -Probyn and I assisted at a surgical operation. A mahout -had his hand smashed; and we held him while the surgeon -amputated his finger and thumb. -</p> - -<p> -Major-General Sam Browne, V.C., had served in the -second Sikh war with distinction, and during the Mutiny -led the surprise attack upon the rebels at Sirpura, at dawn -upon 31st August, 1858. Almost single-handed, he charged -the guns, receiving the wound resulting in the loss of his -arm. For this service, he was awarded the V.C. During -the Prince's tour he represented the Indian Army; nor could -a finer or more efficient representative have been selected. -</p> - -<p> -Major Bradford had performed gallant and distinguished -service in the Mutiny. He had lost an arm, under -circumstances which may be worth repetition. Together with a -brother officer, Captain Curtis, and a trooper, Bradford was -tiger-shooting. Seated in a mechan (tree-shelter), he wounded -a tiger, breaking its back; his second barrel missed fire; -and Bradford fell from the mechan on the top of the tiger, -which seized him. Bradford thrust his fist down the beast's -throat; and while Curtis was trying to get another shot, the -tiger mangled Bradford's arm up to the shoulder. Curtis -eventually killed the animal. The party had a long and -painful distance to traverse before they reached help. -Bradford's arm was amputated without chloroform. In 1890, -Bradford was appointed commissioner of police in the -Metropolis, at a time when there was a good deal of -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P163"></a>163}</span> -discontent in the Force, and speedily proved the worth of his -unrivalled experience and ability. -</p> - -<p> -Surgeon-General Fayrer, I remember, had a remarkable -way with snakes. He kept a selection of the most deadly -reptiles in a wheelbarrow, nestled in straw. With his naked -hands he would uncover them, and, deftly catching them by -the neck, force them to exhibit their fangs. -</p> - -<p> -Someone composed a set of irreverent verses dedicated -to the surgeon-general: -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "Little Joe Fayrer<br /> - Sent for his bearer<br /> - And asked for his Christmas pie.<br /> - e put in his thumb,<br /> - And pulled out a plum,<br /> - And found it a K.C.S.I."<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -Dr. W. H. Russell, the famous war correspondent, who -in his letters to <i>The Times</i> during the Crimean war did so -much good service, was a most delightful companion. He -is remembered by all who knew him, both for his talents and -for his sympathetic and affectionate disposition and his -unfailing sense of humour. He was one of my greatest friends. -During the voyage, he occupied the cabin next to mine. -</p> - -<p> -The Prince having requested him to provide himself with -a uniform, Dr. Russell designed a kind of Ambassadorial -dress of great splendour, with so generous a gold stripe to -his kersey breeches, that we told him he had gold trousers -with a white stripe inside. These effulgent garments -unfortunately carried away when the doctor was climbing upon an -elephant, on his way to a Durbar. I executed temporary -repairs upon his person with safety pins; and implored him -not to stoop. But when it came to his turn to bow, bow he -must; the jury rig parted, and a festoon of white linen, of -extraordinary length, waved behind him. Fortunately, the -assembled Indian Princes thought it was part of his uniform. -</p> - -<p> -At Mian Mir, during the ceremony of a great review of -troops, Dr. Russell, who was riding among the suite mounted -on a half-broken Arab, was suddenly heard to shout, "Whoa, -you villainous brute!" At the same moment, several of the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P164"></a>164}</span> -suite were knocked endways. The Arab then got the bit in -his teeth, and tore away past the Prince down the whole line. -Dr. Russell's helmet was jerked to the back of his head, his -puggaree unfurled in a long train floating behind him, he -vanished into the distance and we did not see him again -until dinner-time. He passed so close to the Prince, that -had the doctor another thickness of gold on his gold trousers, -there would have been an accident to his Royal Highness. -</p> - -<p> -The Duke of Sutherland, during the Prince's journeys -overland in India, took an intense delight in driving the -engine, from which it was hard to tear him away. We had -halted at a station where the customary ceremonial had -been arranged, and had changed into uniform, all save the -Duke, who was nowhere to be seen. -</p> - -<p> -"Where can he be?" said the Prince. -</p> - -<p> -I submitted that he might be on the engine, and went to -see. Sure enough, the Duke was sitting on the rail, his red -shirt flung open, his sun-helmet on the back of his head. In -either black fist he grasped a handful of cotton waste, with -which he was mopping up the perspiration of honest toil. -He hurried to his carriage to change into uniform; and -presently appeared, buttoning his tunic with one hand. In -the other he still grasped a skein of cotton waste. The -Prince looked at him. -</p> - -<p> -"Can nothing be done?" said the Prince sadly. -</p> - -<p> -The great elephant hunt in Nepal took place on the -25th February, 1876, under the auspices of Sir Jung Bahadur -(afterwards the Maharaja Sir Jung Bahadur, G.C.B., G.C.S.I.). -A herd of wild elephants, captained by a male of gigantic -size and valour, who had already vanquished Sir Jung's most -formidable righting elephants, had been tracked down in -the forest. Sir Jung determined that, come what would, he -should be captured. Sir Jung led the Prince and several of -his suite, all well mounted on horses, into the forest, to the -rendezvous, to which the wild herd was to be driven. But in -the meantime, the big elephant had given the hunters the slip. -</p> - -<p> -I was of the hunting party, and I had the stiffest run of -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P165"></a>165}</span> -my life, and at the end of it there were left besides myself -only my companion—I think he was Mr. Greenwood—and -six Indian notables. Mounted on swift pad elephants, we -pursued that tremendous beast at top speed from four o'clock -in the morning till six in the evening, bursting through the -jungle, splashing through rivers, climbing the rocky steeps -of hills upon which there appeared to be no foothold except -for monkeys, and down which the elephants slid upon their -bellies. So we rode hour after hour, hanging on the ropes -secured to the <i>guddee</i>, lying flat upon the steed's back to -avoid being scraped off his back by branches, until the -quarry, escaping us ran straight into Sir Jung Bahadur's -party of horsemen. -</p> - -<p> -There, in an open space set with sword-like reeds, stood -the elephant, his flanks heaving, his head and trunk moving -from side to side. He had one huge tusk and the stump of -the other. -</p> - -<p> -It was the business of the horsemen in front to keep him -employed in the open while the champion fighting elephants, -Jung Pershaud and Bijli Pershaud, were being brought up. -Again and again he charged, the riders eluding his rushes, -the Prince among them. A stumble or a fall—and nothing -could have saved the rider. Presently the elephant, -wearying of these profitless tactics, wheeled and took refuge in a -swamp, where the reeds and rushes hid him. But there was -nothing to do but await the arrival of the fighting elephants. -The fugitive employed his respite in cooling himself by -pouring water over his heated person. In the meantime, Jung -Pershaud, the terrible rogue elephant, somewhat fatigued -like his quarry, was drawing near. Jung Pershaud, in order -to give warning of his very dangerous presence, was hung -about the neck with a large bell, like a railway-station bell. -When he was not in action he was secured with ropes. -</p> - -<p> -Presently, from out the jungle, there sounded the uneven, -minatory clangour of the bell. Everyone shouted that Jung -Pershaud was coming. The hunted elephant paused in his -ablutions, turned about, and, pushing the foliage aside with -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P166"></a>166}</span> -his trunk, gazed in the direction of the warning note. Then -emerged into view the vast head of Jung Pershaud, painted -scarlet. He moved steadily and directly upon his quarry, -who lowered his head, presenting his long sharp tusk. The -tusks of Jung Pershaud were four to five feet long and -ringed with brass. -</p> - -<p> -Jung swung his trunk and dealt the hunted elephant a -blow on the head, then charged him in the flank with a -resounding impact, drew back and charged the reeling beast -from behind. The hunted elephant took to flight, pursued -by Jung Pershaud, heading straight for the place where I -was watching the combat among the pads and smaller -fighting elephants. These turned and fled in terror. -</p> - -<p> -The hunted elephant plunged into the wood, ploughing -his way through the undergrowth, leaving Jung Pershaud -behind him. Sir Jung Bahadur, following with the Prince -and the rest of the party, adjured us to keep out of the way -of the fleeing beast while keeping him in sight. The quarry -checked at an opening in the forest and remained in the -shelter of the trees, while the Prince, with Sir Jung Bahadur -and Dr. Russell, rode across a stream into the open space. -Sir Jung Bahadur sat on his horse and cursed the elephant; -who, after hearkening attentively for a few minutes, suddenly -charged the horsemen. -</p> - -<p> -At the same instant, the second fighting elephant, Bijli -Pershaud, burst out of the jungle, and the two animals met -forehead to forehead with a crash. Bijli Pershaud drew off -and charged again, striking the hunted elephant on the -shoulder, and running beside him, charged him heavily -again and again, until the poor driven beast dropped his -trunk and uttered a pitiable cry. He was beaten at last. -</p> - -<p> -As we came up, it was discovered that the elephant was -blind of one eye; everyone commiserated the defeated -gladiator; and Sir Jung Bahadur offered to let him go -free should the Prince so desire. -</p> - -<p> -The Prince having accepted the suggestion, the elephant -was led captive away and was secured with thick ropes to a -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P167"></a>167}</span> -tree. He bent his vast strength to a last effort to escape, so -that the tree creaked and shook under the strain. He cried -aloud in despair, and then stood silent, refusing all food. -</p> - -<p> -They set him free upon the following day, having sawn -off his great tusk; which was presented by Sir Jung Bahadur -to the Prince. -</p> - -<p> -A few days before the great hunt took place in Nepal, -Sir Jung Bahadur's regiment of elephants paraded before -the Prince. They numbered more than 700, and were -drilled to manoeuvre in companies to the sound of the -bugle. After the hunt, the Prince reviewed Sir Jung's -army: a corps which, as the message from the Queen -delivered by the Prince recalled in gracious terms, had -tendered valuable help to the British arms upon an -important occasion. The total strength of the army was -114,000 infantry and 420 guns. The infantry, in addition -to rifle and bayonet, carried the <i>kukri</i>, or curved knife, the -national weapon. We witnessed an exhibition of its use -by the soldiers, who vied with one another in cutting, with -a single action, slices of soft wood from a baulk, the cut -making a diagonal section. More by good luck than by -merit, I succeeded in cutting the widest section; and -perceiving it to be extremely improbable that I could -repeat the performance, I refused the invitation to try -again. Sir Jung Bahadur presented me with the <i>kukri</i> I -had used. I have the weapon now. -</p> - -<p> -With this weapon, I slew a boa-constrictor. Riding an -elephant after tiger, on which occasion shooting at any other -game was forbidden, I saw a boa-constrictor, and dismounted. -The great snake was lying asleep, coiled in a hole in the -ground and half hidden in foliage. Selecting a narrowing -coil, I cut nearly through it. The snake darted at me, and -I finished it with a stick. Although it was dead, its body -continued to writhe until sunset. For a long time I kept -the skin, but unfortunately it decomposed. -</p> - -<p> -My brother Lord William and I were out pig-sticking, -and were riding after a boar. I got first spear, when the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P168"></a>168}</span> -boar knocked both me and my horse clean over. The boar -went on, then turned, and as I was in the act of getting up, -came right at me. Remembering what an old pig-sticker, -Archie Hill, had told me a man should do if he were bowled -over and a boar attacked him, I rolled over on my face, -presenting my least vital aspect to the enemy. But my -brother, cleverly turning his horse, killed the boar within -a few feet of me. The beast's head is preserved at -Curraghmore. -</p> - -<p> -During the whole time of the Prince's stay in India, one -of his suite, the members of which took it in turns to -discharge the duty, remained on guard over his person at night. -I have in my possession the pair of pistols with which the -gentleman on watch was armed. -</p> - -<p> -On 10th January, 1876, the Prince visited the Cawnpore -Memorial. "There was deep silence," writes Dr. Russell, -"as the Prince read in a low voice the touching words, 'To -the memory of a great company of Christian people, -principally women and children, who were cruelly slaughtered -here'—the name of the great criminal and the date of the -massacre are cut round the base of the statue. No two -persons agree as to the expression of Marochetti's Angel -which stands over the Well. Is it -pain?—pity?—resignation?—vengeance?—or triumph?" Perhaps -my aunt, Lady -Waterford, could have enlightened the learned doctor; for -she it was who designed the monument, which was carried -into execution by Marochetti. -</p> - -<p> -A certain officer in high command was extremely -agitated concerning the exact degree of precedence due to -him—or rather, to the Service to which he belonged; a -matter not easy to settle amid the throng of British -dignitaries and Indian potentates. The officer chafed sorely -at the delay; nor was he soothed by the injurious remarks -of a junior member of the suite, who dealt with his dignity -in a spirit of deplorable frivolity. At last, however, the -junior member approached him with the aspect of -sympathetic gravity proper to the occasion. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P169"></a>169}</span> -</p> - -<p> -"I congratulate you, sir. That matter of your order of -precedence has been settled at last." -</p> - -<p> -"I am glad to hear it—very glad to hear it," said the -officer. "The delay has been simply scandalous. What is -to be my position?" -</p> - -<p> -The junior member appeared to reflect. -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, of course," he said, at length. "Now I remember. -Your place, sir, is between the Ram of (something) and the -Jam of (something else)!" -</p> - -<p> -The distinguished officer: "...!!!" -</p> - -<p> -On 30th November, 1875, while the <i>Serapis</i> was on her -way from Bombay to Colombo, the Prince kindly presided -at a dinner given in honour of my promotion to the rank of -commander. In a letter written to me by his Royal -Highness some years afterwards, he recalls that festivity, -with a note of regret that those jolly days were gone. Three -years afterwards, upon the occasion of my marriage, the -suite presented me with a most beautiful silver bowl, which -remains one of my most highly prized possessions. -</p> - -<p> -There were many Babu poems composed to celebrate -the Prince's prowess as a hunter. Among them, I remember -the following:— -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "Beautifully he will shoot<br /> - Many a royal tiger brute;<br /> - Laying on their backs they die,<br /> - Shot in the apple of the eye."<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -Seven years afterwards, I visited India again. It seemed -to me that in the interval the relations between the Indian -and the Englishman had changed for the better; in that the -natives were less afraid of the white man, and that a -better feeling had grown up between East and West. The -principle upon which India is governed is the principle of -establishing justice and humanity. India is governed by -the sword; but the sword is sheathed. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap18"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P170"></a>170}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XVIII -<br /> -THE EGYPTIAN WAR -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -I. THE BEGINNING OF TROUBLE -</p> - -<p class="t3"> -NOTE -</p> - -<p> -The story of the Egyptian war may conveniently -begin with an account of the affair of the 9th -September, 1881, when Tewfik, Khedive of Egypt, -met Arabi Pasha face to face in the Square of Abdin at -Cairo, and failed to take advantage of the greatest -opportunity of his life. Had he acted there and then upon the -counsel of Mr. (afterwards Sir) Auckland Colvin, British -Controller, it is possible that the Egyptian war might have -been avoided. -</p> - -<p> -The beginning of the trouble was the jealousy existing -between the native Egyptian and the Turkish, or Circassian, -elements of the army. Rightly or wrongly, the Egyptian, -or fellah, officers believed themselves to be slighted. The -Turkish, or Circassian, officers, being of the same race as the -ruling family, regarded themselves as the dominant caste. -In the time of Ismail Pasha, the predecessor of Tewfik, the -Minister of War, Osman Pasha Rifki, a Circassian, perceived -that his dignity was compromised by his being obliged to -receive orders from the Khedive through Ali Fehmi, captain -of the Guards at the Palace, a fellah. In the East, such a -situation does not continue. Ali Fehmi mysteriously fell -into disgrace. Naturally, he had a grievance; and he -joined himself to two other officers of his race, who also had -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P171"></a>171}</span> -grievances. These were Abdel-el-Al and Ahmed Arabi, -who was to become better known as Arabi Pasha. They -were called the "Three Colonels," and to them came -Mahmoud Sami Pasha, an exceedingly astute politician. -</p> - -<p> -Arabi's particular injury was that he had been punished -by Ismail for creating a disturbance under the Palace -windows, when he was one of the officers of the guard. -Ismail had bluntly remarked that Arabi was more noisy but -less useful than the big drum. Arabi joined a secret society -of discontented officers, and shortly afterwards again fell into -trouble under a charge of corruption while he was in -command of transports during the war between Egypt and -Abyssinia. Subsequently, Ismail allowed Arabi to join a -regiment, whereupon he became chief of the secret society. -One of its members divulged the secret to the Khedive, who -adopted the Oriental method of buying the allegiance of -the disaffected officers by promoting in one day seventy of -them to be lieutenant-colonels. He also presented one of -his slaves to Arabi to wife. -</p> - -<p> -So much for Ismail Pasha. When, by order of the -Sultan, he was superseded by Tewfik, Arabi made haste to -do obeisance to the new Khedive, who made him a full -colonel. But when Tewfik reduced the army, the Three -Colonels presented a petition to the Khedive, demanding, -among other matters, that an Egyptian should be made -Minister of War in place of Osman Rifki. The Three -Colonels were thereupon arrested. Mahmoud Sami Pasha, -a member of the Cabinet, secretly arranged that when they -were brought before the Court-martial, the soldiers should -rescue them. On the 1st February, 1881, accordingly, the -soldiers burst into the court, turned it inside out, and carried -the Three Colonels to the Palace. The Khedive, confronted -with physical force to which he had nothing to oppose, -consented to supersede his War Minister in favour of the crafty -Mahmoud Sami, to increase the army by 18,000 men, and -to abolish favouritism. -</p> - -<p> -The Khedive very soon discovered that Mahmoud Sami -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P172"></a>172}</span> -was by no means a desirable Minister of War, and also that -the Three Colonels and their friends continued to stir up -trouble. He therefore dismissed Mahmoud Sami and -appointed in his stead the Khedive's brother-in-law, Daoud -Pasha, a Circassian, and ordered the disaffected regiments -to leave Cairo. At the same time it was rumoured that the -Khedive had obtained a secret decree from the Sultan -condemning Arabi and his friends to death. When the order -to remove his regiment from Cairo was received by Arabi, -that leader of revolt informed the Minister of War on 9th -September, 1881, that the troops in Cairo would proceed the -same afternoon to the Palace of Abdin, there to demand of -the Khedive the dismissal of the Ministry, the convocation -of the National Assembly, and the increase of the army. -Then came Tewfik's opportunity, which, as already observed, -he let slip. -</p> - -<p> -When the Khedive entered the Square, accompanied by -Mr. Colvin, British Controller, and a few native and European -officers, he was confronted with some 4000 soldiers and -thirty guns. The following account of the critical moment -is given by the Hon. Charles Royle, in his excellent history -of <i>The Egyptian Campaigns</i> (London, 1900). -</p> - -<p> -"The Khedive advanced firmly towards a little group of -officers and men (some of whom were mounted) in the -centre. Colvin said to him, 'When Arabi presents himself, -tell him to give up his sword and follow you. Then go the -round of the regiments, address each separately, and give -them the "order to disperse."' The soldiers all this time -were standing in easy attitudes, chatting, laughing, rolling -up cigarettes, and eating pistachio nuts, looking, in fact, as -little like desperate mutineers as could well be imagined. -They apparently were there in obedience only to orders, -and, without being either loyal or disloyal, might almost be -regarded as disinterested spectators. -</p> - -<p> -"Arabi approached on horseback: the Khedive called -out to him to dismount. He did so, and came forward on -foot with several others, and a guard with fixed bayonets, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P173"></a>173}</span> -and saluted. As he advanced, Colvin said to the Khedive, -'Now is the moment, give the word.' He replied, 'We are -between four fires. We shall be killed.' Colvin said, 'Have -courage.' Tewfik again wavered, he turned for counsel to -a native officer at his side, and repeated, 'What can I do? -We are between four fires.' He then told Arabi to sheathe -his sword. Arabi did so at once, his hand trembling so with -nervousness that he could scarcely get the weapon back into -its scabbard. The moment was lost. Instead of following -Colvin's advice, and arresting Arabi on the spot, a step -which would have at once put an end to the whole disturbance, -the Khedive walked towards him and commenced to parley." -</p> - -<p> -The Khedive subsequently agreed to dismiss the Ministry -at Arabi's request; and Arabi thus advanced another step -towards obtaining military control of the country. For a -time he prevented Cherif Pasha from forming a Ministry, -and summoned to Cairo the Chamber of Notables. The -members of the Chamber, however, whose office was purely -advisory, supported Cherif Pasha. By means of a skilful -intrigue, Mahmoud Sami contrived to obtain the appointment -of Minister of War. Arabi then effected a temporary retreat -with his regiment to El Ouady, in the Delta, and waited -upon events. It was then October. The Khedive had -convoked an assembly of the Chamber of Notables at the -end of December, and in the meantime the elections were -proceeding. -</p> - -<p> -It should here be observed that Arabi did not merely -represent discontent in the army. He had behind him a -genuine and largely just popular agitation, the result of -many evils suffered by the natives. "Ismail's merciless -exactions, and the pressure of foreign moneylenders, had -given rise to a desire to limit the power of the Khedive, and, -above all, to abolish the Anglo-French control, which was -considered as ruling the country simply for the benefit of -the foreign bondholders. The control was further hated by -the large landholders, because the law of liquidation (with -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P174"></a>174}</span> -which the Controllers in the minds of the people were -associated) had in a measure sacrificed their claims for -compensation in respect of the cancelling of a forced loan -known as the 'Moukabaleh,' and it was still more detested -by the Pashas and native officials, because it interfered with -the reckless squandering of public money, and the many -opportunities for corruption by which they had so long been -benefited. In addition to this, there was a great deal of -irritation at the increasing number of highly paid European -officials which the reformed administration inaugurated in -the latter days of Ismail involved. The people began to -suspect that what was occurring was only part of a plan for -handing the country over to Europeans. The examples -lately set by England with regard to Cyprus, and by France -in Tunis, were, it must be owned, but little calculated to -inspire confidence in the political morality of either of these -two Powers" (Royle, <i>The Egyptian Campaigns</i>). -</p> - -<p> -In these things consisted the reserve strength of Arabi; -and while he was ostensibly in retirement at El Ouady -(probably spending a good deal of time in Cairo with his -fellow-conspirators), the native press continued to excite -irritation against the Europeans; and when the new Chamber -of Notables assembled on 25th December, 1881, they at once -presented demands which brought the whole situation in -Egypt to the notice of Europe. The Chamber demanded -control of the revenues outside those assigned to the Public -Debt, together with other new powers directly infringing -the prerogatives of the Sultan and of the Khedive. It seems -that Mahmoud Sami inspired these manifestations, not with -any hope or desire that the demands of the Chamber would -be granted, but because, as they were inadmissible, the -Ministry of Cherif Pasha would be wrecked, and Mahmoud -Sami thereby advantaged. -</p> - -<p> -The British and French Governments declared that the -demands of the Chamber were unacceptable. At the same -time they learned that the coast fortifications were being -strengthened and that the army was to be increased. On -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P175"></a>175}</span> -behalf of the two Powers, a Joint Note was presented -to the Khedive in Cairo, on 8th January, 1882, stating -that England and France were united in opposing "the -dangers to which the Government of the Khedive might -be exposed." -</p> - -<p> -The presentation of the Joint Note marks the beginning -of that European intervention which might have prevented, -but which did not prevent, the massacre in Alexandria of -the 11th June, 1882, and which eventually resulted in the -bombardment of that city on 11th July, 1882. The jealousy -existing between France and England at that time in respect of -intervention in Egypt, nullified the effective action of either -party. Had M. Gambetta continued in power, he would -probably have forced Lord Granville to adopt a decisive -policy. But M. de Freycinet, who succeeded Gambetta while -the question was still under discussion, was as much afraid -of responsibility as Lord Granville was. Diplomacy thus -returned to its customary routine of addressing Circular -Notes to the European Powers, and generally avoiding -definition as long as possible. Arabi seized his opportunity -and announced that intervention on the part of England -and France was inadmissible. The Chamber of Notables -also saw their chance, and demanded the dismissal of the -Ministry. The Khedive, apparently deserted by England -and France, and much afraid of offending the Sultan, had no -choice but to dismiss Cherif Pasha and to appoint in his -stead Mahmoud Sami, who thus attained his object. -Mahmoud Sami immediately appointed Arabi Pasha -Minister of War. Arabi thus achieved a military dictatorship. -It will be observed that his success was directly due -to the vacillation of the English and French Governments. -Mahmoud Sami at once forced the Khedive to assent to the -demands of the Chamber, and the English and French -Controllers resigned, upon the ground that "the Khedive's -power no longer exists." -</p> - -<p> -The dictators, Mahmoud Sami and Arabi (now Arabi -Pasha), strengthened the coast fortifications, ordered ninety -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P176"></a>176}</span> -guns of Herr Krupp, and rapidly increased the army. -Then the dictators, considering that the hour of their -vengeance had arrived, arrested fifty of the hated Circassian -officers, (it is said) tortured them, and sentenced forty of them -to perpetual exile. The Khedive refused to sign the Decree; -whereupon Mahmoud Sami threatened that his refusal would -be followed by a general massacre of foreigners. A month -later, on 11th June, such a massacre occurred. In the -meantime, the open quarrel between the Khedive on the one side, -and his Ministers, backed by the army, on the other, created -general alarm. Mahmoud Sami convoked the Chamber; -only to discover that the Notables were afraid to support -him. Under these circumstances, Mahmoud Sami and -Arabi Pasha informed the Khedive that, on condition that -he would guarantee the maintenance of public order, they -would resign. The Khedive replied in effect that it was not -he but Arabi that troubled Israel. On the next day, 15th -May, 1882, the English and French Consuls-General warned -Arabi that in the event of disturbance, England, France -and Turkey would deal with him. Arabi retorted that if -a Fleet arrived, he could not be responsible for the safety -of the public. Upon the same day the Consul-General -informed the Khedive that an Anglo-French Fleet was -on its way to Alexandria, whereupon Mahmoud Sami and -the rest of the Ministry made a formal submission to the -Khedive. -</p> - -<p> -Such was the first influence, exerted from afar, of naval -power. But when, upon the 19th and 20th May, the ships -arrived at Alexandria, the effect was considerably lessened; -for the force consisted of no more than one British line-of-battle -ship, H.M.S. <i>Invincible</i>, with two gunboats, and -one French line-of-battle ship, <i>La Gallisonière</i>, with two -gunboats. The object of the Granville-Freycinet diplomacy, -to do something and yet not to do it, had thus been -triumphantly achieved. -</p> - -<p> -The instructions given to the British and French -admirals respectively are worth noting. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P177"></a>177}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The British admiral was told to: -</p> - -<p> -"Communicate with the British Consul-General on -arrival at Alexandria, and in concert with him propose to -co-operate with naval forces of France to support the -Khedive and protect British subjects and Europeans, landing -a force, if required, for latter object, such force not -to leave protection of ships' guns without instructions from -home." -</p> - -<p> -It will be observed that Admiral Sir Frederick Beauchamp -Seymour was not given enough men to form an efficient -landing party; so that the futile clause concerning "the -protection of the ships' guns" is hardly worth considering. -</p> - -<p> -The French instructions were at least logical. The -French admiral was plainly told to do nothing except in -an emergency. -</p> - -<p> -"On arrival at Alexandria communicate with the -Consul-General, who will, if necessary, indicate to you what -you will have to do to give a moral support to the Khedive. -You will abstain, until you have contrary instructions, from -any material act of war, unless you are attacked or have to -protect the safety of Europeans." -</p> - -<p> -Acting on the advice of the Consuls-General, the Khedive -endeavoured to induce Mahmoud Sami and Arabi to -resign. The dictators refused. The Consuls-General -thereupon presented them with an ultimatum, and the Ministry -resigned; but the Khedive was subsequently compelled by -the threats of the army and the prayers of the terrified -notables to reinstate Arabi Pasha. That leader at once -published a proclamation stating that he guaranteed the -public safety, which failed, however, to allay the public -fears. On 29th May the European population of -Alexandria drew up a memorial, which was telegraphed to -the Foreign Office, stating that they were placed in extreme -peril, against which the force at the disposal of the British -admiral was totally inadequate. -</p> - -<p> -Upon the same day, Admiral Seymour reported that -earthworks were being raised on shore, and asked for -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P178"></a>178}</span> -reinforcements. On 30th May another line-of-battle ship -arrived, with two gunboats, and three French warships. -The rest of the British squadron in the Mediterranean were -directed to cruise within touch of the admiral. -</p> - -<p> -On the 7th June an Imperial Commissioner, Dervish -Pasha, dispatched by the Sultan, arrived at Cairo. He was -instructed to play a double part, the object of his mission -being to counteract European influence. It was a -complicated intrigue; but it is not worth unravelling, because -Dervish Pasha presently discovered that the ruler of Egypt -was Arabi Pasha. -</p> - -<p> -Such is a summary of events up to the eve of the riots in -Alexandria. At that moment, Arabi Pasha was military -dictator; backed by the army and supported by popular -sentiment: the Khedive, still nominally ruler, was deprived -of power and went in peril of his life; the Sultan, his -overlord, whose dominant motive was the desire to avoid foreign -intervention in Egypt, wrapped himself in diplomatic -ambiguity; England and France, the only interested foreign -Powers, each afraid of the other and both afraid of incurring -responsibility, were in a state of miserable vacillation, for -which (as usual) many helpless and innocent persons paid -with their lives and property. In these circumstances, the -advantage lay with the man who knew his own mind. -That man was Arabi Pasha. -</p> - -<p> -It seemed that nothing could better serve his ends than -an organised massacre of Europeans by the populace, during -which the police and the army should remain passive; for -nothing could more effectually demonstrate the power of -the dictator, bring the Khedive into contempt, flout the -foreign Powers which had exhibited so contemptible a -weakness, and delight the populace. -</p> - -<p> -Accordingly, on Sunday, 11th June, 1882, a devastating -riot broke out in Alexandria. The natives had been armed -beforehand with <i>naboots</i>, or long sticks; the <i>mustaphazin</i>, -or military police, joined in the attack; the soldiers remained -immobile until Arabi telegraphed his orders from Cairo, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P179"></a>179}</span> -when they at once stopped the disturbance. During the -day, men, women and children, European and native, were -shot, beaten, and murdered, and the town was looted. The -loss of life was estimated at 150 persons. -</p> - -<p> -In the evening the troops restored order, and subsequently -maintained it up to the day of the bombardment. During -that period, large numbers of persons left the city. Refugees -of all nations were embarked in the harbour. -</p> - -<p> -Lord Salisbury, who was then in Opposition, trenchantly -exposed the true character of a policy whose direct result -was that British subjects were "butchered under the very -guns of the Fleet, which had never budged an inch to save -them." The Government had not given the admiral an -adequate force. It was the old story of the naval officer -being forced to subserve the ends of the politicians. -</p> - -<p> -In England, public indignation forced the Government -to take action. The Channel Squadron was dispatched to -Malta, there to remain at Admiral Seymour's disposal. -Two battalions were sent to Cyprus. -</p> - -<p> -Arabi Pasha brought more troops to Alexandria and -continued to fortify the coast defences. In the meantime -the Navy was helping to embark the refugees. -</p> - -<p> -From this point, the general course of events may -conveniently be related in the form of a diary, thus supplementing, -for the purposes of reference, the detailed narrative -of Lord Charles Beresford. -</p> - -<p> -On 11th July the British Fleet bombarded the coast -forts. The warships of other nations took no part in the -action. The British force consisted of fifteen vessels and -5728 men; eight ironclads, five gunboats, a torpedo vessel -and dispatch vessel. The forts were silenced and the -gunners were driven from their batteries. -</p> - -<p> -On 12th July the city was set on fire by the Egyptian -troops. These, accompanied by civilians, looted the city -and so departed. -</p> - -<p> -On 13th July the British admiral landed 800 men. It -will be observed that had Admiral Seymour been permitted -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P180"></a>180}</span> -to land a force upon the preceding day, he could have -disarmed the Egyptian troops and prevented the conflagration. -The Khedive had taken refuge in his Palace at Ramleh, and -the <i>Condor</i>, Commander Lord Charles Beresford, was -sent to lie off the Palace to protect him. Captain John -Fisher, H.M.S. <i>Inflexible</i>, was ordered to take command of -the landing party. Upon occupying the outer lines, Captain -Fisher, finding chaos in the town, in rear of his position, -applied for an officer to exercise the duties of provost-marshal -and chief of police, and suggested that Lord Charles -Beresford should be appointed. -</p> - -<p> -On 14th July the British force was occupying all important -positions. -</p> - -<p> -On 15th July Admiral Dowell, commanding the Channel -Squadron, arrived in the <i>Monarch</i>. Lord Charles Beresford -was appointed provost-marshal and chief of police to -restore order. -</p> - -<p> -Mr. John Ross, the British merchant in Alexandria who -gave unsparing and generous assistance to the British -forces,—services for which he has never received -recognition—writes to me as follows:— -</p> - -<p> -"Lord Charles Beresford saved millions' worth of property, -causing the indemnity paid by the European Government -to be much less than it would otherwise have been. I can -assure you that there was a chance of the whole of Alexandria -being burnt to the ground, had it not been for the wonderfully -prompt, energetic, and scientific arrangements made by -Lord Charles Beresford... I do not think England can -ever be made to know properly and understand and appreciate -enough with regard to what Lord Charles Beresford did -for his country as well as for Egypt in 1882." -</p> - -<p> -On 17th July 1000 Marines and 1700 soldiers arrived. -General Sir Archibald Alison took command of the whole -of the land forces, now numbering in all, 3686. -</p> - -<p> -On the 20th July the British Government decided to -dispatch an expedition to Egypt. -</p> - -<p> -On the 21st July the water supply of Alexandria began -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P181"></a>181}</span> -to fail, Arabi having dammed the flow from the Nile into -the Mahmoudieh Canal, and let salt water into it from Lake -Mareotis. Hitherto the supply had been maintained by the -gallant exertions of Mr. T. E. Cornish, manager of the -waterworks. Sir Archibald Alison began his attacking movements. -</p> - -<p> -On the 22nd July the Khedive dismissed Arabi Pasha -from his post of Minister of War. Arabi Pasha was now at -Kafr Dowar with 5000 to 30,000 men. A battalion of -British troops sailed from Bombay. -</p> - -<p> -On the 24th July Mr. Gladstone informed Parliament -that the country was "not at war." On the same day the -British troops occupied Ramleh, a suburb of Alexandria. -</p> - -<p> -At this time Captain Fisher fitted out the armoured -train. -</p> - -<p> -On the 30th July the Scots Guards sailed for Alexandria. -From the beginning to end of the war, there were dispatched, -or under orders, from Great Britain and Mediterranean -stations, 1290 officers and 32,000 men. Add the Indian -contingent, 170 officers, 7100 men, consisting of 1st -Seaforths, 1st Manchester, 1 Bombay and 2 Bengal battalions -Native Infantry, 3 regiments Bengal Cavalry, 1 field battery, -1 mountain battery, and a section of Madras Sappers and -Miners. Add to these, 3500 followers, 1700 horses, 840 -ponies, 5000 mules. -</p> - -<p> -On the 1st August Lord Charles Beresford, having in -the space of a fortnight saved the town of Alexandria from -destruction and restored complete order, was relieved by -Major Gordon. -</p> - -<p> -On the 2nd August Admiral Sir William Hewett, with -six vessels of war, occupied Suez. -</p> - -<p> -On 3rd August the National Council declared its support -of Arabi Pasha. -</p> - -<p> -On 5th August General Alison attacked and defeated -the enemy on the Mahmoudieh Canal. -</p> - -<p> -On the 7th August the Khedive issued a proclamation -directed against Arabi Pasha and rebellion. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P182"></a>182}</span> -</p> - -<p> -On the 10th August Sir John Adye, chief of staff, with -the Duke of Connaught, arrived at Alexandria. -</p> - -<p> -On the 12th August the Brigade of Guards, the Duke of -Connaught at their head, marched through Alexandria to -Ramleh, greatly impressing the populace. -</p> - -<p> -On the 15th, General Commanding-in-Chief Sir Garnet -Wolseley and Major-General Sir Evelyn Wood arrived at -Alexandria. -</p> - -<p> -On the 18th August the greater part of the troops -embarked for Port Said, the transports being escorted by -five ironclads. -</p> - -<p> -On the night of the 19th-20th August the Navy took -entire possession of the Suez Canal. The <i>Monarch</i> and <i>Iris</i> -took Port Said. The <i>Orion</i>, <i>Northumberland</i>, <i>Carysfort</i> -and <i>Coquette</i> took Ismailia. Admiral Hewett had already -seized Suez. -</p> - -<p> -On the 20th of August the troops and warships from -Alexandria arrived at Port Said, together with Admiral Sir -Beauchamp Seymour in the <i>Helicon</i>. M. Ferdinand de -Lesseps had done his utmost to prevent the seizure of the -Canal, which, he insisted, was neutral. It is said that when -the troops began to disembark at Ismailia, M. de Lesseps, -erect upon the landing-place, announced that "no one -should land except over his dead body"; to which defiance -a bluejacket, gently urging aside the heroic engineer, -replied, "We don't want any dead bodies about here, sir; -all you've got to do is to step back a bit" (Royle, -<i>Egyptian Campaigns</i>). -</p> - -<p> -On the 21st August Sir Garnet Wolseley arrived at -Ismailia in the <i>Salamis</i>, and, by orders of the Khedive, -issued a proclamation announcing that the sole object of -Her Majesty's Government was "to re-establish the authority -of the Khedive." -</p> - -<p> -The advance into the Delta was begun. -</p> - -<p> -On the 24th August Wolseley captured the dam on the -Fresh Water Canal. -</p> - -<p> -On the 25th August the enemy were driven back upon -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P183"></a>183}</span> -Tel-el-Kebir. Mahmoud Fehmi Pasha, one of the original -"Three Colonels," now Arabi's chief of staff, was captured -at Mahsameh railway station. -</p> - -<p> -On the 28th August occurred the action at Kassassin, -in which the Egyptians were defeated. Kassassin was -occupied. During the next few days men and stores were -assembled there. -</p> - -<p> -On the 9th September Arabi attacked Kassassin in force -and was driven back to Tel-el-Kebir. Sir Garnet Wolseley -made Kassassin his headquarters. -</p> - -<p> -On the 12th September the army was concentrated at -Kassassin. On that night the troops advanced towards -Tel-el-Kebir. -</p> - -<p> -On the 13th September an attack at dawn was made in -three places upon the Egyptian entrenchments. The British -carried them under a heavy fire at the point of the bayonet. -The action was decisive. Arabi's power was broken. -Arabi fled to Cairo. -</p> - -<p> -The 6th Bengal Cavalry captured Zag-a-Zig the same -evening; and the Cavalry division occupied Belbeis. -</p> - -<p> -On 14th August the Cavalry Division rode from Belbeis -to Cairo, starting at dawn and arriving at Abbassieh at -4.45 p.m. The same night, Captain Watson, R.E., disarmed -the troops in the Citadel and occupied Cairo. -</p> - -<p> -On the 15th August Sir Garnet Wolseley and the Guards -arrived at Cairo, a day before scheduled time. -</p> - -<p> -During the next week, Kafr Dowar, a place of equal -importance with Tel-el-Kebir, Aboukir, Rosetta and -Damietta, surrendered. -</p> - -<p> -From the bombardment of Alexandria to the capture of -Cairo was sixty-six days, of which the campaign occupied -twenty-five days. -</p> - -<p> -On the 25th September the Khedive returned to Cairo, -where the greater number of the British troops assembled. -Subsequently, Admiral Sir Beauchamp Seymour and Sir -Garnet Wolseley were created Peers of the United -Kingdom. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P184"></a>184}</span> -</p> - -<p> -Arabi Pasha was tried by court-martial on a charge of -rebellion against the Khedive, and was condemned to death, -the sentence being commuted to exile for life. In December, -Arabi and six of his friends who had been sentenced sailed -for Ceylon. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap19"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P185"></a>185}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XIX -<br /> -THE EGYPTIAN WAR (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -II. THE BOMBARDMENT OF ALEXANDRIA -</p> - -<p> -My appointment to H.M.S. <i>Condor</i> was dated 31st -December, 1881. The <i>Condor</i> was a single-screw -composite sloop gun-vessel of 780 tons and -770 h.p., carrying one 4½-ton gun amidships, one -64-pr. forward and one 64-pr. aft, all muzzle-loading guns. In -June, 1882, the <i>Condor</i> formed part of the squadron lying -off Alexandria under the command of Admiral Sir -Beauchamp Seymour. -</p> - -<p> -On Sunday, 11th June, calling upon Captain Blomfield, -the harbour-master, I found him in great distress. He had -heard that there was trouble in the city, into which his wife -had gone, and he was extremely anxious about her safety. -We took a light carriage harnessed to a pair of Arab horses -and drove into the town. Presently a great crowd came -running down the street towards us. They were mostly -Greeks, many of whom were wounded and bleeding. The -next moment we were surrounded by a raging mob, armed -with <i>naboots</i>, or long sticks, with which they attacked us. -The street was blocked from end to end; and to have -attempted to drive through the mob would have been certain -death. I seized the reins, swung the horses round, cleared -the crowd, and drove back to the harbour-master's house. -In the meantime his wife had taken refuge in an hotel, -whence she safely returned later in the day. -</p> - -<p> -The officers and men of the Fleet were ordered back to -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P186"></a>186}</span> -their ships. I went on board the flagship and reported to -the admiral the condition of the town. With the trifling -force at his disposal, it was impossible that he should send -a landing-party ashore. Had he done so, in contravention -of his orders, the handful of British seamen and Marines -would have had no chance against the thousands of Egyptian -soldiers who, under Arabi's instructions, were waiting -in their barracks under arms, ready to turn out at the first -attempt at intervention on the part of the Fleet. -</p> - -<p> -During the ensuing month there poured out of Alexandria -an immense number of refugees of all nations and -every class of society. These were placed on board various -vessels and were dispatched to the ports of their several -countries. I was placed in charge of these operations; -which included the chartering of ships, their preparation for -passengers, and the embarkation of the refugees. In the -course of the work there fell to me a task rarely included -even among the infinite variety of the duties of a naval -officer. My working-party was stowing native refugees in -the hold of a collier, when a coloured lady was taken ill. -She said: "Baby he come, sare, directly, sare, myself, -sare." And so it was. We rigged up a screen, and my coxswain -and I performed the office of midwives thus thrust upon us, -and all went well. -</p> - -<p> -On the 10th July all merchant vessels and all foreign -men-of-war left the harbour, and the British Fleet prepared -for action. Admiral Seymour's squadron consisted of fifteen -vessels: the ironclads <i>Alexandra</i> (flagship), Captain -C. F. Hotham; <i>Superb</i>, Captain T. Le Hunte Ward; <i>Sultan</i>, -Captain W. J. Hunt-Grubbe; <i>Téméraire</i>, Captain H. F. Nicholson; -<i>Inflexible</i>, Captain J. A. Fisher; <i>Monarch</i>, Captain -H. Fairfax, C.B.; <i>Invincible</i>, Captain R. H. M. Molyneux; -<i>Penelope</i>, Captain S. J. C. D'Arcy-Irvine: the torpedo-vessel -<i>Hecla</i>, Captain A. K. Wilson; gunboats <i>Condor</i>, Commander -Lord C. Beresford; <i>Bittern</i>, Commander Hon. T. S. Brand; -<i>Beacon</i>, Commander G. W. Hand; <i>Cygnet</i>, Lieutenant H. C. D. Ryder; -<i>Decoy</i>, Lieutenant A. H. Boldero; and dispatch vessel -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P187"></a>187}</span> -<i>Helicon</i>, Lieutenant W. L. Morrison. The coast fortifications -extended over a front of rather more than nine miles, from -Fort Marabout on the south-west to Fort Silsileh on the -north-east. Midway between the two, projects the forked spit -of land whose northern arm encircles the new Port, and whose -southern arm, extending in a breakwater, encloses the old -Port. The twelve forts or batteries mounted in all 261 guns -and mortars. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-186"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-186.jpg" alt="THE BOMBARDMENT OF ALEXANDRIA, 11TH JULY, 1882. FROM CHART DRAW BY AUTHOR AT THE TIME" /> -<br /> -THE BOMBARDMENT OF ALEXANDRIA, 11TH JULY, 1882. <br /> -FROM CHART DRAW BY AUTHOR AT THE TIME -</p> - -<p> -The bombardment of Alexandria has been so thoroughly -described in standard works that repetition must be unnecessary; -and such interest as the present narrative may contain, -must reside in the record of personal experience. I may say -at once that any notoriety attached to the part borne by the -<i>Condor</i> in the action was due to accidental circumstance. -She happened to fight apart from the rest of the Fleet and -in full view of the foreign warships and merchant vessels; -and, in obedience to the orders of the admiral, she had on -board the correspondent of <i>The Times</i>, the late Mr. Moberly -Bell. The <i>Condor</i> was actually under way when I received -instructions to embark Mr. Bell. Mr. Frederic Villiers, the -artist war-correspondent, by permission of the admiral, had -been my guest on board for several days. -</p> - -<p> -The following account of the action is taken from a -private letter written at the time:— -</p> - -<p> -"The night before the action, I turned up all hands and -made them a speech. I said that the admiral's orders were -to keep out of range until an opportunity occurred. So I -said to the men, 'Now, my lads, if you will rely upon me to -find the opportunity, I will rely upon you to make the most -of it when it occurs.' ... The Marabout Fort was the second -largest fort, but a long way off from the places to be attacked -by the ironclads. So the admiral had decided not to attack -it at all, as he could not spare one heavy ship, and of course -he would not order the small ships down there, as it was -thought that they would be sunk. The orders given to the -small ships were to keep out of fire, and to watch for an -opportunity to occur, after the forts were silenced, to assist. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P188"></a>188}</span> -<i>Helicon</i> and <i>Condor</i> were repeating ships for signals. I took -station just between the two attacking fleets. -</p> - -<p> -"Just as the action began the <i>Téméraire</i> parted her cable -and got ashore. I ran down to her and towed her off -and while doing so, saw Fort Marabout giving pepper to -<i>Monarch</i>, <i>Invincible</i> and <i>Penelope</i>. Not one of these ships -could be spared, as they were getting it hot and could not -spare a gun for Marabout from the forts they were engaging. -Seeing the difficulty, directly I had got the <i>Téméraire</i> afloat -I steamed down at full speed and engaged Fort Marabout, -on the principle that according to orders 'an opportunity' -had occurred.... I thought we should have a real rough -time of it, as I knew of the heavy guns, and I knew that -one shot fairly placed must sink us. But I hoped to be able -to dodge the shoals, of which there were many, and get close -in, when I was quite sure they would fire over us. That is -exactly what occurred. I got in close and manoeuvred the -ship on the angle of the fort, so that the heavy guns could -hardly bear on me, if I was very careful. The smooth-bores -rained on us, but only two shots hit, the rest went short or -over. One heavy shot struck the water about six feet from -the ship, wetting everyone on the upper deck with spray, -and bounded over us in a ricochet. -</p> - -<p> -"I did not fire on the smooth-bores at all until I had -silenced the heavy guns which were annoying <i>Invincible</i>, -<i>Monarch</i>, and <i>Penelope</i>. The men fired splendidly. I put -all down to the lectures I have given them at target practice, -telling them never to throw a shot away, but always to wait -until they got the sights on. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-188"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-188.jpg" alt="ON BOARD H.M.S. "CONDOR," 11TH JULY, 1882. FROM A DRAWING BY FREDERIC VILLIERS" /> -<br /> -ON BOARD H.M.S. "CONDOR," 11TH JULY, 1882. <br /> -FROM A DRAWING BY FREDERIC VILLIERS -</p> - -<p> -"Hedworth Lambton told me afterwards that the admiral -had just sent on the signal for the <i>Monarch</i> to go to Fort -Marabout as soon as she could be spared, when he heard a -cheer from his own men. He asked, 'What's that?' and -they told him they were cheering the <i>Condor</i>. Just then our -three guns were fired, and each shot hit in the middle of the -heavy battery, and the <i>Invincible's</i> men burst into a cheer. -The admiral said, 'Good God, she'll be sunk!' when off -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P189"></a>189}</span> -went our guns again, cheers rang out again from the flagship -and the admiral, instead of making 'Recall <i>Condor</i>; made -'Well done, <i>Condor</i>' ... at the suggestion of Hedworth -Lambton, the flag-lieutenant. -</p> - -<p> -"We then remained there two and a half hours, and had -silenced the fort all except one gun, when the signal was -made to all the other small craft to assist <i>Condor</i>, and down -they came and pegged away. I was not sorry, as the men -were getting a bit beat. We were then recalled to the -flagship, 'Captain repair on board,' and the admiral's ship's -company gave us three cheers, and he himself on the -quarterdeck shook me warmly by the hand, and told me he was -extremely pleased.... I never saw such pluck as the -Egyptians showed. We shelled them and shot them, but still -they kept on till only one gun was left in action. It was -splendid.... Nothing could have been more clever than -the way the admiral placed his ships.... The wounded -are all doing well. One man had his foot shot off, and he -picked it up in his hand and hopped down to the doctor -with it.... The troops hoisted a flag of truce the day after -the action; and while we waited I sent to find out why it -was they were marched away, having set fire to the town in -many places. It has been burning ever since." ... -</p> - -<p> -The day after the bombardment, Captain Wilson (now -Admiral of the Fleet Sir A. K. Wilson, V.C., G.C.B., O.M., -G.C.V.O) hauled down the flag of the Marabout Fort and -presented it to me. It is now in the Museum of the Royal -Naval College, Greenwich. The commandant of Fort Marabout -was so excellent an officer that when I was appointed -provost-marshal and governor of the town by the admiral, -I placed him on my staff to assist me in restoring order. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap20"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P190"></a>190}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XX -<br /> -THE EGYPTIAN WAR (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -III. CHIEF OF POLICE -</p> - -<p> -The bombardment took place on the 11th July. On -the 12th, as I have narrated, the Egyptian soldiery -fired the city, looted it, and evacuated the defences. -On the same day the Khedive was surrounded in his Palace -at Ramleh by some 400 of Arabi's cavalry and infantry, a -force subsequently reduced to about 250 men. That evening -Admiral Seymour was informed that the Khedive was in -danger. The admiral dispatched the <i>Condor</i> to lie off -Ramleh; and there we lay all that night, rolling heavily, with -a spring on the cable to enable the guns to be trained upon -the sandy lane down which the soldiers must advance if they -intended to take the Palace. -</p> - -<p> -It was arranged that, if the Palace were attacked, the -Khedive should hang a white sheet from a window, and I -would at once take measures to secure his safety. The night -went by without alarm; and next day Tewfik, escorted by a -guard of native cavalry, went to the Ras-el-Tin Palace, where -he was received by Admiral Seymour and a guard of -Marines. Commander Hammill (who afterwards performed -excellent service on the Nile), with a landing-party of 250 -bluejackets and 150 Marines, had already taken possession -of the Ras-el-Tin Peninsula. -</p> - -<p> -Upon the same day Captain John Fisher, H.M.S. <i>Inflexible</i> -(afterwards Admiral of the Fleet Lord Fisher of -Kilverstone, O.M.), was ordered to take command of the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P191"></a>191}</span> -landing-party whose business was to secure the outer -defences of the city. Captain Fisher, having occupied the -lines, had a zone of anarchy, incendiarism and chaos, -comprising the whole city, in the rear of his position. He at -once made application for an officer to be appointed -provost-marshal and chief of police, suggesting my name for the -post; and the admiral gave me orders to assume this office. -As a narrative written at the time owns a certain intrinsic -interest, I make no apology for transcribing further passages -from private letters. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p class="noindent"> -"CHIEF OF POLICE OFFICE - HEADQUARTERS, ALEXANDRIA<br /> - THE ARSENAL, 25<i>th July</i>, 1882<br /> -</p> - -<p> -"... I landed on the 14th July, armed myself, got a -horse and a guide and an escort of about thirty Egyptian -cavalry, and started to overhaul the town, and see how I -could best carry out my orders to 'restore law and order as -soon as possible, put out fires, bury the dead, and clear the -streets.' I never saw anything so awful as the town on that -Friday; streets, square, and blocks of buildings all on fire, -roaring and crackling and tumbling about like a hell, let -loose Arabs murdering each other for loot under my nose, -wretches running about with fire-balls and torches to light -up new places, all the main thoroughfares impassable from -burning fallen houses, streets with many corpses in them, -mostly murdered by the Arab soldiers for loot—these -corpses were Arabs murdered by each other—in fact, a -pandemonium of hell and its devils. -</p> - -<p> -"I took a chart with me and arranged the different parts -of the town where I should make depots and police stations. -The admiral could only spare me 60 bluejackets and 70 -Marines from the British Fleet; but he obtained a -proportionate number from the foreign warships. By sunset I -had 620 men in the different depots, mostly foreigners.... -I had only 140 men to patrol the town, to stop the looting, -to stop the 'fresh burning' of houses, to bury the corpses, -and to protect the lives of those who had come on shore. By -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P192"></a>192}</span> -quickly sending the men about in parties in different parts of -the town, and by employing Arabs to inform me when and -where certain houses might be burnt, I often managed to get -a patrol there just in time to stop it, and the people thought -there were 600 police in the town instead of 140. For the -foreign bluejackets were ordered to occupy their respective -Legations and not to take any part in restoring order. This -was of course in the first seventy-two hours, during which time -neither myself nor my men slept one wink, as at 12 o'clock on -two occasions an alarm was sounded that Arabi was attacking -the lines, and all of us had to peg away to the front, where -we had to remain until daylight, expecting attack every -moment. These alarms lost many houses, as the mob set -them alight while we were at the front; however, it was -unavoidable. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-192"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-192.jpg" alt="PROVOST-MARSHAL AND CHIEF OF POLICE. ALEXANDRIA. JULY, 1882. FROM A DRAWING BY FREDERICK VILLIERS" /> -<br /> -PROVOST-MARSHAL AND CHIEF OF POLICE. ALEXANDRIA.<br /> -JULY, 1882. <br /> -FROM A DRAWING BY FREDERICK VILLIERS -</p> - -<p> -"On Monday, 17th July, I was sent 400 more men (bluejackets) -in answer to my urgent appeal to the admiral, as -so many fanatic Arabs were coming into the town, ... but -on Tuesday the 18th the bluejackets were all ordered off to -their ships and 600 picked Marines were sent in their place.... -After I had planned to get the town into order on the -Friday (14th) I went to the Arsenal and wrote a Proclamation.... -</p> - -<p> -"I went off to the admiral on the following (Saturday) -morning, and submitted that I should be allowed to post the -Proclamation throughout the town. Sir A. Colvin and the -Khedive were strongly opposed to the Proclamation; but the -admiral approved of the scheme. Some of the authorities -suggested that if I shot anybody it would be well to shoot -him at night, or in the prisons, and then no one would know, -and there would be no row. This I stoutly refused, -demanding my own way for restoring order, and saying that a fair -honest Proclamation was the proper line to take, as all persons -would then know what would happen to them if they -committed certain specified acts. I carried my point, and the -admiral supported me, and on Saturday night (15th) I had -the whole town proclaimed in Arabic, stating that persons -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P193"></a>193}</span> -caught firing houses would be shot, persons caught looting -twice would be shot; all persons to return to their homes, etc., -with confidence, and anyone wanting to get information or to -lodge complaints to repair instantly to the chief of police. -</p> - -<p> -"By Wednesday (19th) I had perfect order in the town, -and all firing of houses had been stopped, life was comparatively -safe, looting nearly stopped. By Friday the 21st, one -week after taking charge, all the fires were put out, all the -corpses buried, and things were generally ship-shape. I -could not have done this unless the admiral had trusted -entirely to me, and given me absolute power of life and death, -or to flog, or to blow down houses, or to do anything that I -thought fit to restore law and order and to put the fires out. -I only had to shoot five men by drumhead court-martial -sentence, besides flogging a certain number, to effect what I -have told you. -</p> - -<p> -"I had a clear thoroughfare through every street in the -town by Monday (24th), and all <i>débris</i> from fallen houses -piled up each side and all dangerous walls pulled down. -These things were done by organising large working parties -of from 100 to 200 hired Arabs. At first I collected them -at the point of the bayonet and made them work, but I paid -them a good wage every evening, and the bayonets were -unnecessary after the first day, when they found that England -would pay well. -</p> - -<p> -"I also collected all the fire-engines I could find, bought -some, and requisitioned others, got some artificers from the -Fleet and got the engines in order, had a bluejacket -fire-brigade, and also a working party of Arabs on the same -footing as the road brigade. These worked exclusively at -the fires, and not at patrolling unless at urgent necessity. -Besides these I had a sanitary committee, which buried any -bodies we might have missed, burned refuse and remains -of loot about the streets, and reburied any bodies which -might not have been buried deep enough, besides enforcing -cleanliness directly the town began to get a little bit -shipshape. There was a corps of native police to work under -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P194"></a>194}</span> -my patrols, and when I turned all the affairs over, I had -260 of these men. -</p> - -<p> -"I disarmed all Europeans found in the streets with -revolvers, and by so doing saved many a row in the town, -as the class I have mentioned returned in thousands after -the bombardment, and they treated the Arabs as if they, -the Europeans, had silenced the forts and policed the town. -I put many in irons for looting, and for shooting at -inoffensive Arabs. -</p> - -<p> -"The greatest triumph was the formation of an Egyptian -court to try the serious cases I had on hand for life and -death and long terms of imprisonment. Not only did -tret the court formed to try what cases I chose to bring -before it but after sentence of death I insisted on Egyptian -authorities making the Egyptian soldiers (the loyal ones) -themselves shooting the prisoners whom the court sentenced.... -</p> - -<p> -"I had four gallopers and four Marine orderly gallopers, -in default of whom I could not have done things so quickly -in the many different departments, nineteen horses, and a -telephone to each station. I paid all the carts requisitioned -in the town for carrying my men's provisions, loot, etc. etc. -The officer using them signed a chit stating the hour he had -taken a cart and for what service, and then the man came to -my office to be paid, which he was instantly. By this means -good feeling was established between the people and the -military police. Each depot had two interpreters attached -to it to avoid any misunderstanding, and for explanations -when trying prisoners and interrogating witnesses.... -</p> - -<p> -"The Marine officer thoroughly investigated each case, -examined all witnesses, and then placed the evidence on -a regular charge-sheet, stating whether he believed the -prisoner guilty or not guilty, and his reason for that opinion. -If it was a serious case, I again tried it myself and judged -accordingly. There were several cases of blackmailing at -first, but these were soon stopped.... -</p> - -<p> -"Besides the courts held at the Police Depots, courts were -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P195"></a>195}</span> -held at the Tribunal Zaptieh and the Caracol l'A'ban, at -which Egyptian officers acted as judges. In each court were -three shorthand-writers, each placed behind a separate screen, -and under the charge of a sergeant of Marines, to prevent -collusion, who submitted their reports to me, in order that I -should receive three independent accounts of the proceedings, -upon which I could intervene if necessary, in order to -prevent anyone being shot if there were not the clearest -and most uncompromising evidence of his guilt. If there -were any discrepancy in the reports, I had the prisoner -retried. I did this in three cases. Another case, in which the -circumstantial evidence, though very strong, was not -conclusive, I reprieved." -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -The following troops assisted the British forces in -restoring order: 125 Americans, about the American -Consulate; 30 Germans, about the German Consulate and -Hospital; and 140 Greeks about the Greek Consulate and -Hospital. On the 16th July, Captain Briscoe (a son of an -old Waterford man who hunted the Curraghmore hounds -after the death of my uncle, Henry Lord Waterford) of the -P. and O. <i>Tanjore</i> volunteered his services, and with 20 -Italians of his crew, did excellent work. Other volunteers -who assisted me were Mr. Towrest, a member of the Customs, -and Mr. Wallace. Major Hemel, R.M.L.I., and Captain -Creaghi, R.M.L.I., were appointed magistrates. These -Marine officers performed invaluable services. -</p> - -<p> -I had special reason to be grateful to Mr. John Ross, a -British merchant of Alexandria, who gave me every assistance -in his power. He knew every yard of the place. He -gave me invaluable advice with regard to the organisation of -the city, obtained interpreters, and helped to supply the -troops, placing his stores at my disposal. He would have -dispensed with receipts for articles supplied, had I not -insisted upon his taking them. Mr. Ross supplied the whole -Fleet with coal, fresh meat, and all necessaries; his help was -quite inestimable, his energy and patriotism beyond praise; -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P196"></a>196}</span> -but although he must have suffered considerable losses, he -received no recognition of any kind from the Governnment -except the naval medal. -</p> - -<p> -Mr. Ross gave me great assistance also in parcelling out -Mehemet Ali Square among the country purveyors of -produce, each of whom received a permit, written in English -and in Arabic, to occupy a certain space, duly pegged out, -in which to put up their booths. This measure restored -confidence. One old lady, a stout person of Levantine -origin, thought that the permit entitled her to perpetual -freehold; and she subsequently attempted to sue the -Egyptian Government for damages, producing my permit -as evidence. -</p> - -<p> -Upon first going ashore to restore order, I found whole -streets blocked with smouldering ruins. Putting my horse at -one such obstacle, I scrambled over it; and I had scarce -reached the other side when a wall fell bodily behind me, -cutting off my escort, who had to fetch a compass round the -side streets to rejoin me. -</p> - -<p> -Without taking the smallest notice of me or of my escort, -men were shooting at one another, quarrelling over loot, and -staggering along, laden with great bundles, like walking -balloons. The streets were speedily cleared of these rioters -by the use of machine guns. The method adopted was to fire -the gun over their heads, and as they fled, to run the gun -round turnings and head them off again, so that they -received the impression that the town was full of guns. On -no occasion did I fire the gun <i>at</i> them. The principles upon -which order was restored were to punish disobedience, to -enlist labour and to pay for it fairly. -</p> - -<p> -The prisoners taken were organised in separate gangs -set to work, and paid less than the rest of the labourers! -The most critical part of the business of extinguishing fires -and preventing incendiarism occurred at the Tribunal, which -was stored with property worth many thousands of pounds. -A fire-engine was purchased for its protection at a cost of -£160, 18s. 1d. The total expenses of the restoration or -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P197"></a>197}</span> -order were, I think, under £2000. During the fortnight I -was on shore, every station and port was visited at least -once a day and twice a night. -</p> - -<p> -On one such inspection I gave my horse to an Arab lad -to hold. A few minutes afterwards there was the crack of a -pistol. I ran out, and there was the boy lying on the ground -a bullet-wound in his chest. To satisfy his curiosity he had -been fingering the 4-barrel Lancaster pistol in the holster, -and that was the end of <i>him</i>, poor lad. -</p> - -<p> -Upon another occasion, when I was at work in one of -my stations, a sudden tumult arose in the street. I went -put, to perceive a huge Irish Marine Artilleryman engaged -in furious conflict with five or six men of the patrol. They -had got handcuffs on him, and he was fighting with -manacled hands. I asked the sergeant what was the -matter. -</p> - -<p> -"He's drunk, sir. We are going to lock him up." -</p> - -<p> -"Let him go," I said. -</p> - -<p> -The men fell back; and the Irishman, seeing an iron -railing, raised his hands above his head and brought them -down upon the iron, smashing the handcuffs, and turned -upon me like a wild beast at bay. The man was in a frenzy. -Standing directly in front of him, I spoke to him quietly. -</p> - -<p> -"Now, my lad, listen to me. You're an Irishman." He -looked down at me. "You're an Irishman, and you've -had a little too much to drink, like many of us at times. -But you are all right. Think a moment. Irishmen don't -behave like this in the presence of the enemy. Nor will -you. Why, we may be in a tight place to-morrow, and -who's going to back me then? You are. You're worth -fifty of the enemy. You're the man I want." -</p> - -<p> -As I talked to him, the expression of his face changed -from desperation to a look of bewilderment, and from -bewilderment to understanding; and then he suddenly -broke down. He turned his head aside and cried. I told -the sergeant to take him away and give him some tea. -</p> - -<p> -Having heard from the Governor of Alexandria that a -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P198"></a>198}</span> -quantity of arms was concealed in a village lying a few -miles outside the city, I took thither a party of Egyptian -military police and a guard of Marines. On the way we -were joined by some 800 British soldiers, who surrounded -the village, while the police conducted a house-to-house -search. A certain newspaper correspondent accompanied -me. The police knocked at the door of a house, and -received no reply; whereupon the correspondent drew his -revolver and incontinently blew in the lock. I told him -that he had no right to do such a thing; that he might -have killed innocent persons; and that he must not do it -again. -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, but," says he, "you don't understand how to do -these things." -</p> - -<p> -I requested him to understand that I was provost-marshal, -and that unless he obeyed orders, he would be sent -back to Alexandria. -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, but," says he, "you can't do that. You don't -understand——" -</p> - -<p> -"Sergeant!" said I, "a file of Marines." -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, but," protested the correspondent, "you can't——" -</p> - -<p> -"Sergeant, take this gentleman back to Alexandria." -</p> - -<p> -It was a long walk and a hot walk home. -</p> - -<p> -On the 17th July, General Sir Archibald Alison took -command of the land forces. At the request of the general, -the admiral ordered me to remain in command of the police -until 1st August, when I was relieved by Major Gordon. It -was about this time that Captain Fisher devised his armoured -train, which, carrying armed bluejackets, made daily sorties. -A bluejacket sitting on the rail was ordered to come down -by his officer. -</p> - -<p> -"I can't see 'em from down below," he said. The next -moment he was hit by a bullet. "They've found the range, -sir," said he, as he tumbled over. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral Sir Beauchamp Seymour was good enough to -address to me a very gratifying letter of commendation for -my services. Among the many kind congratulations I -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P199"></a>199}</span> -received, I valued especially the letters from the captains -under whom I had served in various ships, and many admirals -with whom I had served. On 11th July I was promoted to -the rank of captain. In the following September the -Admiralty forwarded to Admiral Sir Beauchamp Seymour -(raised in November to a peerage as Baron Alcester) the -expression of their satisfaction at the services of Captain -Fisher and of myself. -</p> - -<p> -I overheard a lady finding great fault with my old chief, -Sir Beauchamp Seymour. I asked her what she had against -Lord Alcester. -</p> - -<p> -"Why," said she, "he is a Goth and a Vandal. Did he -not burn the Alexandrian Library?" -</p> - -<p> -A sequel to the work in Alexandria was my conversation -with Mr. Gladstone on the subject, which took place -upon my return home some weeks later. Mr. Gladstone -sent for me; and after most courteously expressing his -appreciation of my services, he discussed the question of -compensation to the inhabitants of Alexandria who had -suffered loss and damage. The information he required I -had carefully collected in Alexandria by means of an -organised intelligence corps, upon each of whom was -impressed the fact that if he gave false information he would -most certainly be punished. My view was then, and is now, -that the whole of the claims might have been justly settled -for a million sterling, upon these conditions: that the -question should be tackled at once; that all palpably -unwarranted claims should be repudiated from the outset, -because if they were recorded as claims there would -eventually be no way of rebutting them, and it would be found -necessary to pay them ultimately; that doubtful claims -should be held over for consideration; and that the proved -claims should be paid immediately. The important point -was that in order to avoid difficulties in disputes in the -future, the matter should be dealt with at once. -</p> - -<p> -I knew of a case (and of other similar cases) in which a -jeweller who had contrived to remove the whole of his stock -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P200"></a>200}</span> -into safety after the riot, put in a claim for the value of the -whole of the said goods. -</p> - -<p> -These considerations I laid before Mr. Gladstone, -informing him also, in the light of the special information -which had come to my knowledge, that if the matter were -allowed to drift, the sum to be disbursed, instead of being -about a million, would probably amount to some four -millions. -</p> - -<p> -In the event, the International Commission of -Indemnities paid £4,341,011. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap21"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P201"></a>201}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXI -<br /> -THE EGYPTIAN WAR (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -IV. GARRISON WORK -</p> - -<p> -When I was relieved, on 1st August (1882), of the post -of provost-marshal and chief of police, the <i>Condor</i> -was ordered to keep the Mex lines and citadel, -which defended the south-western boundary of Alexandria, -forming a barrier across the long and narrow strip of land -which extends between the sea and Lake Mareotis, and -upon which the city is built. The fortifications of the sea -front were continued, with a brief interval, at right angles -to the sea face, extending no more than some three-quarters -of the distance across the strip of land, so that between -one end of the fortifications and the sea, and between the -other end and the shore of Lake Mareotis, there were -undefended spaces. It was therefore necessary to frame a -plan of defence with the force and materials at command, -sufficient to hold this left flank of the city against the large -bodies of rebel soldiery and Arabs hovering in the vicinity. -Thirty men from the <i>Condor</i> were brought on shore, with -the band, which, consisting of one drum and one fife, was -few and humble but convincing. -</p> - -<p> -The two forts on the earthwork were manned; a -40-pounder smooth-bore taken from one of the Mex Forts -was mounted on the roof of the fort nearest to Lake -Mareotis, whence it was fired at regular intervals at the -enemy occupying the earthworks on the farther shore of the -Lake. After five days they were knocked out of the place. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P202"></a>202}</span> -Charges were made for the gun out of the miscellaneous -ammunition found in the Mex Forts. -</p> - -<p> -The gun used to capsize almost every time it was fired. -It was served by a Maltese gunner, who became so -superstitiously devoted to his commanding officer, that when -I was relieved by Colonel Earle, my Maltese never received -an order without observing that "Lord Charles Beresford -not do that, sare"; until Earle lost patience, as well he -might. -</p> - -<p> -"D—n Lord Charles Beresford!" said he. -</p> - -<p> -Wire entanglements were fixed along the face of the -earthworks. In the two open spaces at the ends of the -line of fortifications, rockets were buried, and a lanyard -was led along from the firing tube to a peg in the ground, so -that anyone passing that way at night would trip over -the lanyard, thus firing the rocket, and causing a beautiful -fountain of fire to spring from the ground, lighting up -the whole locality. The device soon stopped nocturnal -intrusions. -</p> - -<p> -The open space at the Mareotis end was also commanded -by a Gatling gun mounted on the roof of the fort. In the -forts and earthworks were about twenty miscellaneous -guns. These were all kept loaded; the powder being taken -from the vast amount of loose powder stored in the Mex -lines. The guns were connected with trigger lines to the -forts, so that the whole lot could be fired from one place. -The railway lines leading from Mex Harbour through the -fortification, and, on the other side of the strip of land, -from the causeway leading across Lake Mareotis into the -city, were repaired. The railway bridge by Lake Mareotis -was repaired, and a torpedo was placed beneath it in case of -attack. A picquet of Marines occupied a truck placed on the -bridge. The train was set running. The two drawbridges -leading to the forts were repaired. The men garrisoning the -works were housed in tents made out of the sails of the Arab -dhows lying in Mex camber. A tank was obtained from -Alexandria, and fresh water brought into it. On the sea -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P203"></a>203}</span> -side of the position, the <i>Condor</i> commanded the flank of -the approaches. -</p> - -<p> -Having thus secured this flank of the city against attack, -so that it could be held against a large force, it was necessary -to make reconnaissances into the surrounding country. The -little landing-party went ashore every evening at 5.30 -(with the band, few and humble but convincing) and -occupied the lines. Every morning at seven o'clock they -returned to the ship; and during the afternoon went out -upon reconnaissance, accompanied by a boat's gun mounted -in a bullock cart, and a rocket-tube mounted on another -bullock cart. Two horses were harnessed to each cart, -assisted, when required, by bluejackets hauling on drag-ropes. -The men of the <i>Condor</i> were reinforced from the Fleet on -these expeditions, so that the total force of bluejackets and -Marines was 150. The cavalry being represented solely by -the colonel and the major of Marines, and myself, who were -mounted, we had no sufficient force wherewith to pursue -the flying foe. -</p> - -<p> -We used to play hide-and-seek with the soldiery and -Bedouin among the sandhills. When they approached on -one flank, we shelled them with the little gun until they -retired; and then, hauling the gun-cart and rocket-cart -over the roughest ground, we suddenly appeared and shelled -them on the other flank, to their great amazement. All -hands enjoyed these expeditions amazingly. -</p> - -<p> -In the course of these reconnaissances, large quantities -of stores and ammunition were found in the neighbouring -villages. About three miles from the lines, an immense store -of gun-cotton and Abel's detonators was discovered in a -quarry among the low hills, stored in a shed. As no hostile -force appeared during the next two days, I determined -to destroy the gun-cotton. Captain A. K. Wilson of the -<i>Hecla</i> sent 20 bluejackets and six Marines to assist me. -These were embarked and landed within half a mile of the -place. Outposts were set, with orders to signal should the -enemy appear, and the rest of the party set to work. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P204"></a>204}</span> -</p> - -<p> -Although gun-cotton does not, strictly speaking, explode -except by detonation, it is extremely difficult to define -where ignition ends and detonation begins; and there had -been instances of its explosion, supposed to be due to the -internal pressure of a large mass. A tremendous explosion -of gun-cotton had occurred in 1866 at Stowmarket, where -its manufacture was being carried on under the patent of -Sir Frederick Abel, then chemist to the War Office. On -another occasion, when Sir Frederick was conducting an -experiment designed to prove that ignition was harmless, -he had his clothes blown off his body, and narrowly escaped -with his life. Recollecting these things, I thought it -advisable to spread the stuff in a loose mass upon the -hillside sloping to the quarry. The gun-cotton was packed -in boxes. These were unpacked, and the contents were -spread on the ground. Next to the pile, a bucket of loose -powder was poured on the ground and over the fuse, to -make sure of ignition. Into the powder was led one end -of a Bickford's fuse, which was then threaded through the -discs of gun-cotton. The fuse was timed to burn for five -minutes. -</p> - -<p> -The work was highly exhausting to the men, and more -than once I felt inclined to call in the outposts to help; -but I decided that it would not be right to take the risk of -a surprise attack; for we were working in a trap, being -closed in by the quarries on one side and by the low hills on -the other. And sure enough, when the men had been -working for five hours, up went the outpost's signal, and -the corporal of Marines with his three men came running -in to report that large numbers of the enemy were -in sight. -</p> - -<p> -Hastening out, I saw about 50 scouts running up, an -action so unusual that it was evident they were strongly -supported. Presently, about 200 skirmishers appeared, and -behind them a large body of cavalry, probably about 700 -in number. The outposts were at once recalled. The men -were ordered out of the quarry, divided into two companies -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P205"></a>205}</span> -of twelve men each, and retired by companies over the hill -towards the shore, out of sight of the enemy. Mr. Attwood, -the gunner of the <i>Hecla</i>, a bluejacket and myself, remained -to fire the fuse. It was a five-minute fuse. The retreating -men had been told to count as they ran, and at the end of -four minutes, or when they saw us lie down, to halt and lie -down. I gave the order in case there should be an -explosion. When the men were lying down, I fired the fuse. -Then the gunner, the bluejacket and I ran about 300 yards, -and flung ourselves down. -</p> - -<p> -Then there came a noise as though a giant had expelled -a huge breath; the blast of the ignition burned our cheeks; -in the midst of a vast column of yellow smoke, boxes and -pieces of paper were whirling high in air, and a strong wind -sucked back into the vacuum, almost dragging us along -the sand. The enemy were so interested in the spectacle -that they gave us time to get back to the boats. -</p> - -<p> -It is probable that information had been given to the -hostile forces by the inhabitants of the village past which we -went to reach the quarry where was the gun-cotton; for, in -retreating to the boats, when I looked back, instead of the -20 or 30 native women who were usually sitting about -the place, I saw about 200 men eagerly watching us -from the house-tops, evidently in the hope of enjoying the -gratifying spectacle of our destruction. -</p> - -<p> -From the summit of the slope falling to the sea, I -signalled to the flagship, with a handkerchief tied to a pole, -that I was surrounded: one of the many occasions upon -which a knowledge of signalling proved invaluable. There -was a haze upon the water, and I could not clearly discern -the answering signal; but the signalman of the flagship had -seen my figure silhouetted on the sky-line. Instantly -after, Captain John Fisher of the <i>Inflexible</i> manned and -armed boats, came ashore, and the enemy immediately -retreated. -</p> - -<p> -Shortly afterwards, as I was now a captain, I was -relieved of the command of the <i>Condor</i> by Commander -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P206"></a>206}</span> -Jeffreys, and went on half-pay. I should naturally have -much preferred to remain in my little ship; but she was -not a captain's command; and I left her (as I see I wrote -at the time) with a tear in each eye. Commander Jeffreys -discovered the place where she had been hit during the -bombardment, one of her under-water plates having been -started. Until then, it was thought that the only damage -consisted of a hole through her awning and the smashing of -a boat. -</p> - -<p> -At the conclusion of this period of my service, I was -most gratified to receive a gracious message of congratulation -from Her Majesty the Queen. -</p> - -<p> -H.H. the Khedive wrote to me, kindly expressing his -sense of my services, and at the same time offering me an -appointment upon his staff, in which capacity I was to go -to the front. Lord Granville and the Admiralty having -signified their permission that I should accept the post, I -left Alexandria for Ismailia, together with several members -of the Khedival staff. -</p> - -<p> -We went by steamer, which towed a huge iron lighter -carrying horses. A beam ran from stem to stern of the -lighter, and to it the horses were tethered with halters. I -remarked to the captain of the steamer that it would be -advisable, in order to avoid injuring the lighter, to take -every precaution to prevent the steamer from having to go -astern. But in Ismailia Bay, which was crowded with -shipping, a vessel crossed the steamer's bows, the steamer -was forced to go astern, and she cut a hole in the lighter -with her propeller. One of the ship's officers instantly -descended the Jacob's ladder into the lighter with me, and -we cut the halters of the horses, just in time to free them -before the lighter sank, and there we were swimming about -among the wild and frightened stallions. By splashing the -water into their faces, we turned one or two shorewards, -when the rest followed and came safely to land. -</p> - -<p> -Upon discussing the matter of my appointment to the -staff of the Khedive with Sir Garnet Wolseley, to my -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P207"></a>207}</span> -surprise he declined to permit me to accept it. Discipline -is discipline, and there was nothing for it but to acquiesce. -</p> - -<p> -I was about packing up my things, when Mr. Cameron, -the war correspondent of <i>The Standard</i>, informed me that he -was authorised to appoint a correspondent to <i>The New -York Herald</i>, and also that he had permission to send the -said correspondent to the front, where I particularly desired -to go. The notion attracted me. I applied to the military -authorities for permission to accept the offer. Permission -was, however, refused. So there was nothing to do but to go -home. But before starting, I consoled myself by sending -some provisions, privately, to the unfortunate officers at the -front, who, owing to the substitution by the transport people -of tents for food, were short of necessaries. I obtained from -the Orient four large boxes filled with potted lobster, salmon, -sardines, beef, tins of cocoa, and so forth, and sent one box -each to the 1st Life Guards, the Blues, the Guards, and -the Royal Marines. The orders were that no private -supplies were to go up. These I ventured to disregard; got -up bright and early at three o'clock in the morning; and -had the boxes stowed under the hay which was being sent -up in railway trucks, before officialdom was out of bed. -Then I went home. -</p> - -<p> -I consider that Sir Garnet Wolseley's conduct of the -campaign, and his brilliant victory at Tel-el-Kebir, were -military achievements of a high order. The public, perhaps, -incline to estimate the merit of an action with reference to -the loss of life incurred, rather than in relation to the skill -employed in attaining the object in view. The attack at -dawn at Tel-el-Kebir was a daring conception brilliantly -carried into execution. Many persons, both at the time and -subsequently, have explained how it ought to have been done. -But Sir Garnet Wolseley did it. -</p> - -<p> -The public seem to appreciate a big butcher's bill, -although it may be caused by stupidity or by lack of -foresight on the part of the general. But if he retrieves his -mistakes, the public think more of him than of the general -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P208"></a>208}</span> -who, by the exercise of foresight and knowledge, wins an -action with little loss of life. -</p> - -<p> -I carried home with me a 64 lb. shell fired from the -<i>Condor</i> at the Mex magazine, intending to present it to the -Prince of Wales. I found it in the sand. It had passed -right through the walls of the magazine, and it had not -exploded. Having brought it on board the <i>Condor</i>, I caused -the gunner, Mr. Alexander Greening, to sound it with a -copper rod: and he came to the conclusion that it was empty -of gunpowder. I therefore thought that it had never been -filled. I intended to have it cut in two and a lamp for the -Prince made of the pieces, and took it to Nordenfelt's works -for the purpose. The foreman, desirous of taking every -precaution before cutting it, had it again filled with water -and sounded with a copper rod, when it suddenly exploded, -blowing off the foot of the workman who held it, and doing -other serious damage. The explanation seems to be that -the force of the impact when the shell was fired had solidified -the powder into a hard mass. But explanation would have -little availed had the shell burst in the smoking-room at -Sandringham, where a fragment of it remains to this day. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap22"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P209"></a>209}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXII -<br /> -PASSING THROUGH EGYPT -</h3> - -<p> -At the beginning of the year 1883 I was on my way -out to India with Lady Charles in the P. and O. s.s. <i>Malwa</i>. -Proceeding into Ismailia Lake, the <i>Malwa</i> -was rammed by another vessel which tried to cross the <i>Malwa's</i> -bows. I was looking over the side of the <i>Malwa</i> and I saw -a curious thing. I saw the colliding vessel rebound from -the <i>Malwa</i> and strike her again. I ran up to the bridge, -where the captain had already given orders to stop the -engines. The ship was sinking; it was no time to stand -upon ceremony; and I ventured to suggest to the captain -that he should put his engines full steam ahead, when he -might hope to beach the vessel, whereas if she stayed where -she was, she would infallibly go down in deep water. The -captain, like a good seaman, gave the order, and the chief -engineer carried it into execution with admirable promptitude. -I went down into the engine-room and found the -water already rising through the foot-plates. -</p> - -<p> -As the ship steamed towards the shore, settling down as -she went, I stood with Lady Charles on the bridge, telling -her that, if the vessel sank, I should throw her -overboard—although she could not swim—and should jump in after her. -To which she merely replied, "That will be very disagreeable!" -</p> - -<p> -The ship was safely beached, though not before the water -had risen to my cabin. She was afterwards salved by the -help of the Navy. H.M.S. <i>Carysfort</i>, commanded by Captain -H. F. Stephenson, C.B. (now Admiral Sir Henry F. Stephenson, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P210"></a>210}</span> -G.C.V.O., K.C.B., Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod), -sent a carpenter and a working party; and they did excellent -service in the <i>Malwa</i>. -</p> - -<p> -Our party went to Cairo, there to await the next steamer. -</p> - -<p> -Hicks Pasha and his staff dined with us upon the night -before they left Cairo, upon their fatal expedition. Colonel -W. Hicks had been appointed by the Khedive chief of the -staff of the Army of the Soudan. In the following August -he was appointed commander-in-chief. From Cairo he -went to Souakim, thence to Berber, and thence to Khartoum. -On the 28th April, he fought a successful action on the White -Nile, south of Khartoum, in which his Egyptian troops did -well. In September, Hicks left Duem with his staff and -some 10,000 men and marched into the desert, which -swallowed them up. The whole army was exterminated -by the Mahdi's dervishes. Gordon said that the Mahdi built -with the skulls of the slain a pyramid. -</p> - -<p> -I applied for permission to accompany Hicks Pasha, but -my old friend Lord Dufferin was determined that I should -not go upon that hazardous enterprise. I believe he -telegraphed to the Government on the subject. At any rate, he -had his way, and so saved my life. -</p> - -<p> -In October, before the news of the disaster had reached -Cairo, the British Army of Occupation had been reduced -from 6700 men to 3000. Subsequently, the British Government -proceeded with the policy of abandoning the Soudan, -in one phase of which I was to bear my part. -</p> - -<p> -In the meantime, Lady Charles and I joined the Duke -of Portland and his party, among whom were Lord de Grey -and Lord Wenlock; went to India; enjoyed some excellent -sport; and returned home. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap23"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P211"></a>211}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXIII -<br /> -THE SOUDAN WAR OF 1884-5 -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -I. SUMMARY OF EVENTS -</p> - -<p class="t3"> -NOTE -</p> - -<p> -A year before the British forces restored order in -Egypt, trouble was beginning in the Soudan. One -Mahomet Ahmed, who was the son of a boat-builder, -and who had the peculiar conformation of the teeth which -betokened the fore-ordained of the Prophet, announced that -he was the Mahdi. In July, 1881, the holy man dwelt upon -the island of Abba, on the White Nile, above Khartoum. -Thence he caused it to be made known that he was the -chosen instrument for the reformation of Islam, and that all -those who denied him would be abolished. Reouf Pasha, -who was then Governor-General of the Soudan, summoned -the Mahdi to Khartoum, there to give an account of himself. -The Mahdi naturally refused; and when Reouf sent soldiers -to fetch him, the Mahdi slew most of them, and departed -into the hills, he and all his following. The Governor of -Fashoda took an expedition to Gheddeer, and was also slain, -together with most of his men. Then Giegler Pasha, a -German, acting as temporary Governor-General of the -Soudan, succeeded in defeating the forces of the Mahdi. -But Abdel Kader, who, succeeding Reouf, took over the -command from Giegler, was defeated in his turn. On 7th -June, 1882, the Egyptian forces were cut to pieces near -Fashoda. In July, the Mahdi was besieging Obeid and -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P212"></a>212}</span> -Bara. By October, 1882, both places were in danger of -falling, and Abdel Kader was demanding reinforcements -from Egypt. -</p> - -<p> -The Soudan is a country as large as India; at that time -it had no railways, no canals, no roads, and, excepting the -Nile during a part of the year, no navigable rivers. In -November, 1882, the British Government informed the -Khedive that they declined to be responsible for the -condition of the Soudan. Lord Granville's intimation to this -effect was the first step in the policy which progressed from -blunder to blunder to the desertion and death of General -Gordon. -</p> - -<p> -The Egyptian Government, left in the lurch, hastily -enlisted some 10,000 men, the most part being brought in -by force, and dispatched them to Abdel Kader at Berber. -At Abdel Kader's request, Colonel Stewart and two other -British officers were sent to Khartoum to help him to deal -with the raw and mutinous levies. -</p> - -<p> -In December, a number of British officers were appointed -to the Egyptian Army in Egypt, in accordance with the -recommendations of Lord Dufferin, and Sir Evelyn Wood -was appointed Sirdar. The British Army of Occupation had -now been reduced to 12,000 men, under the command of -General Sir Archibald Alison, who, in the following April -(1883) was succeeded by Lieutenant-General F. C. S. Stephenson. -</p> - -<p> -In January, 1883, Colonel W. Hicks, afterwards Hicks -Pasha, was appointed by the Khedive chief of the staff of -the Army of the Soudan. Before he proceeded to the -theatre of war, Abdel Kader had lost and won various -engagements, and had reoccupied the province of Sennar; -while the Mahdi had taken El Obeid and Bara and occupied -the whole of Kordofan. -</p> - -<p> -In February, it was announced in the Queen's Speech -that "the British troops will be withdrawn as promptly as -may be permitted by a prudent examination of the country"; -a declaration provoking intense alarm among the European -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P213"></a>213}</span> -inhabitants of Egypt. Their protests, however, were totally -disregarded. The Egyptians naturally concluded that -England owned no real interest in that reform of -administration which her influence alone could achieve. -</p> - -<p> -On 7th February, 1883, Colonel Hicks left Cairo for -Khartoum, with his staff, consisting of Colonels Colborne -and De Coetlogon, Majors Farquhar and Martin, and -Captains Warner, Massey and Forrestier-Walker. Upon -the night before their departure, Colonel Hicks and his staff -dined with Lord and Lady Charles Beresford in Cairo. -Lord Charles Beresford, who was then on half-pay, had -expressed a wish to accompany Colonel Hicks, but Lord -Dufferin disapproving of his suggestion, Lord Charles -Beresford withdrew it. -</p> - -<p> -Hicks and his men disappeared into the desert, which -presently swallowed them up. -</p> - -<p> -On the 28th April, Hicks defeated a large force of the -Mahdi's army on the White Nile. The Egyptian Government -then decided to reconquer the province of Kordofan, -and dispatched reinforcements to Khartoum. On the 9th -September, Hicks Pasha, at the head of 10,000 men, marched -for Duem. The last dispatch received from him was dated -3rd October, 1883. Upon a day early in November, Hicks -and his whole army were annihilated. -</p> - -<p> -His defeat left Khartoum in great danger. On 9th -November, before the news of the disaster reached England, -the British Government stated that all British troops were -to be withdrawn from Egypt. When the fact was known, -the decision of the Government was modified; but they still -declined to interfere in the Soudan; and advised the -Egyptian Government to evacuate at least a part of that -territory. The Egyptian Government protesting, the -British Government, on 4th January, 1884, sent a peremptory -message insisting that the policy of evacuation should be -carried into execution. The inconsequence of Her Majesty's -Ministers is sufficiently apparent. -</p> - -<p> -In the meantime, during August of the preceding year, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P214"></a>214}</span> -1883, trouble had arisen in the Eastern Soudan, where -Osman Digna, a trader, joined the Mahdi, and brought all -the tribes of that country to his standard. At the beginning -of November, 1883, just at the time when Hicks Pasha and -his army had come to their end, an Egyptian force under -Mahmoud Talma Pasha was defeated by Osman Digna in -the attempt to relieve Tokar, besieged by the rebels, Captain -Moncrieff, Royal Navy, British Consul at Souakim, being -killed in the action. A second expeditionary force under -Suleiman Pasha was cut to pieces on 2nd December at -Tamanieh. -</p> - -<p> -The Egyptian Government then dispatched reinforcements -under the command of General Valentine Baker, -among whose staff were Colonel Sartorius, Lieutenant-Colonel -Harrington, Lieutenant-Colonel Hay, Majors Harvey, -Giles, and Holroyd, Morice Bey and Dr. Leslie. On the -4th February, 1884, Baker was defeated at El-Teb, with the -loss of nearly two-thirds of his force. Morice Bey, Dr. Leslie, -and nine other European officers were killed. Souakim -being threatened, Admiral Hewett, on 10th December, was -given the command of the town, having under him some -3800 troops. Two days later came the news of the taking -of Sinkat by the rebels, and of the massacre of the garrison. -During the period in which these successive disasters occurred, -the British Army of Occupation was kept idle in Cairo by the -orders of the British Government. -</p> - -<p> -The current of events now divides, one leading to Khartoum, -the other still flowing in the Eastern Soudan. The -British Government, hopelessly at fault, turned to General -Charles Gordon, as the one man in the world who could -apparently perform miracles. Ten years previously, "Chinese" -Gordon, as Governor-General of the Soudan, and again in -1877, as Governor-General of the Soudan, Darfur and the -Equatorial Provinces, had freed the country from Turkish -rule, broken the slave trade, established peace, opened trade -routes, and laid the foundations of civilisation. Since 1877 -he had been engaged in setting wrong things right in Egypt -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P215"></a>215}</span> -in the Soudan again, in Abyssinia, in China, in the Mauritius, -at the Cape, in Palestine, and in the Congo. -</p> - -<p> -On 18th January, 1884, Gordon was instructed by the -British Government to report upon the best method of -evacuating the Soudan. When he arrived at Cairo, these -instructions were radically altered by Sir Evelyn Baring -(afterwards Lord Cromer), who, on the 25th January, -informed Gordon that he was required actually to direct the -evacuation of Khartoum and of the whole Soudan, and -afterwards to establish an organised government in that -country. Gordon arrived at Khartoum on the 18th February, -where he was hailed as the father and saviour of the -people. -</p> - -<p> -On the same day, Major-General Sir Gerald Graham left -Suez to join at Souakim the force which had been placed -under his command. That force was chiefly drawn from -the British Army of Occupation in Egypt. The object of -the expedition was the relief of Tokar, or, if that place had -already fallen, the protection of Souakim, an alternative -which involved an attack upon Osman Digna's victorious -army. Tokar was in fact taken by the enemy before the -expedition started. -</p> - -<p> -The British Government, whose original intention had -been to refrain from any action in the Soudan whatsoever; -which had been compelled by force of circumstances, including -the most frightful bloodshed, to change a wholly negative -policy to a definite scheme of evacuation; now perceived, of -course too late, that if the European population was to be -brought away, at least some measure of military force must -be employed. What Her Majesty's Ministers were unable to -see, or what, if they saw, they chose to ignore, was the plain -fact that the same force and the same measures and the -same promptitude would be required for the salvation of -Europeans in face of the enemy, as for the reconquest and -reoccupation of the country. In this delusion, or dereliction, -resides the explanation of an affair which has left an indelible -stain upon British honour. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P216"></a>216}</span> -</p> - -<p> -On 28th February, 1884, Graham defeated the enemy, -inflicting upon them severe losses, at El-Teb, near the spot -upon which Baker's disastrous action had occurred some -three weeks previously. On 13th March, after a hard and -at times a dubious fight, Graham won another victory at -Tamaai, and the power of Osman Digna was broken. -Graham was then ordered to return, and the expedition was -over. -</p> - -<p> -By withdrawing Graham's troops, the Government both -threw away the fruits of his success, and deliberately -abandoned the control of the Souakim-Berber route from -Khartoum, by which alone Gordon could have brought away the -refugees. Berber was the key to the Soudan. Thenceforth, -the Souakim-Berber route was impracticable; and it was for -this reason that Lord Wolseley was obliged to take the much -longer Nile route. -</p> - -<p> -On the very day after Graham's victory at El-Teb, and -before Graham had left Souakim, Gordon had telegraphed -from Khartoum as follows:— -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -"There is not much chance of the situation improving, -and every chance of it getting worse; for we have nothing -to rely on to make it better. You must, therefore, decide -whether you will or will not make an attempt to save the -two-thirds of the population who are well affected before -these two-thirds retreat. Should you wish to intervene, send -200 British troops to Wady Halfa, and adjutants to inspect -Dongola, and then open up Souakim-Berber road by Indian -Moslem troops. This will cause an immediate collapse of -the revolt." -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -On 2nd March he telegraphed again to the same effect; -but Lord Granville declined to accede to General Gordon's -suggestions. A few days later, when the Eastern Soudan and -the Souakim-Berber route had been definitely abandoned, -Sir Evelyn Baring strongly advised the British Government -to obtain command of the Souakim-Berber route. But the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P217"></a>217}</span> -advice was refused by Lord Granville, and the most urgent -appeals continued to be addressed to him in vain. -</p> - -<p> -Deserted by the Government, Gordon tried, and failed, -to raise money privately for the purpose of engaging Turkish -troops. Early in April, Khartoum was closely besieged. -At this time, Lord Wolseley urged upon the Government -the necessity of relieving Gordon. In May, preparations -for war were begun. A part of the British Army of -Occupation in Egypt was sent up the Nile; and Commander -Hammill and other naval officers were employed to report -upon the navigation of the river. These facts did not -prevent Lord Hartington from informing the House of -Commons, early in July, that the Government had no -intention of sending an expedition to relieve General Gordon, -unless it were made clear that by no other means could he -be relieved, and adding that the Government had "received -no information making it desirable that we should depart -from that decision" (Royce, <i>The Egyptian Campaigns</i>). On -24th July, Lord Wolseley made a spirited protest against -the procrastination of the Government. The pressure of -public opinion could no longer be entirely withstood. On -30th July, Gordon sent a message in which he declared his -retreat to be impossible. -</p> - -<p> -On 5th August, Mr. Gladstone asked and obtained a -vote of credit. Then, and not until then, were the preparations -for war begun in England. Having decided, upon the -advice of Lord Wolseley, to follow the Nile route instead of -the Souakim-Berber route, the Government ordered 800 boats. -These were 30 feet long, having six feet six inches beam, -two feet six inches draught, fitted with 12 oars, two masts -and lug sails; each designed to carry two boatmen and 10 -soldiers with provisions, arms and ammunition. Eight steam -pinnaces and two stern-wheel paddle-boats were also fitted -out; the Nile steamers belonging to the Egyptian Government -were taken over; and 380 <i>voyageurs</i> from Canada were -engaged. The total force of troops selected numbered 7000. -Messrs. Thomas Cook & Son contracted to transport the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P218"></a>218}</span> -whole expedition to above the Second Cataract. Lord -Wolseley was appointed commander-in-chief; General -Sir Redvers Buller was chief of staff; General Earle was -given command of a brigade; special service officers were: -Colonels Sir Charles Wilson, Brackenbury, Harrison, -Henderson, Maurice, Lord Anson (Royce, <i>The Egyptian -Campaigns</i>). Lord Charles Beresford was attached to Lord -Wolseley's staff. -</p> - -<p> -Even now, the Government failed to recognise the plain -facts of the case. Their instructions to Lord Wolseley -were that the main object of the expedition was to rescue -General Gordon. Her Majesty's Ministers considered that -it might be practicable to achieve his release without going -to Khartoum, and that in any case it was desirable to avoid -any fighting so far as possible. -</p> - -<p> -When Lord Wolseley started from Cairo on 27th -September, 1884, the advance was already going rapidly -forward. Under the direction of Sir Evelyn Wood and -Commander Hammill, a number of the whaler boats had -been transported to Wady Halfa, which is nearly 900 miles -from Khartoum, the total length of the Nile route being -1650 miles. Along the river, up to Wady Halfa and a -little beyond to Sarras, bases of supply had been established; -an advance guard was already at New Dongola, about 100 -miles above Wady Halfa, under the command of General -Sir Herbert Stewart, he who afterwards led the Desert -Column. -</p> - -<p> -Arriving at Wady Halfa on 5th October, Lord Wolseley -received news that Colonel J. S. Stewart, Mr. Power, British -Consul at Khartoum and correspondent of <i>The Times</i>, -M. Herbin, French Consul, and a party of Greek and -Egyptian refugees, who had left Khartoum in the steamer -Abbas, had all been slain. Stewart had with him Gordon's -papers, which, of course, were taken by the Mahdi's men. -</p> - -<p> -On the 8th October a letter from M. Herbin was received -at Cairo. It was dated from Khartoum, 29th July, 1884, and -stated that there were then provisions for two months in the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P219"></a>219}</span> -place. The time had thus expired—and M. Herbin had -been murdered—ere the letter arrived. -</p> - -<p> -A temporary base was formed at Wady Halfa; and bases -of supplies were established along the river up to New -Dongola. By means of extraordinary exertions, boats and -steamers were hauled up to Dongola through the rapids. -Lord Wolseley formed a Camel Corps of 1500 men, consisting -of four regiments, Heavy Cavalry, Light Cavalry, Guards, -and Mounted Infantry, with a detachment of Royal Marines. -Early in November, a general advance was made from Wady -Halfa. Wolseley arrived at Dongola on 3rd November. -Two days previously, on 1st November, Sir Evelyn Baring -had received a message from Gordon, dated 13th July, saying -that he could hold out for four months. The limit, therefore, -had nearly been reached by the time the expedition was -leaving Wady Halfa, 900 miles from Khartoum. -</p> - -<p> -Lord Wolseley, early in November, considered that it -would take to the end of the year to concentrate his forces -at Ambukol, just above Old Dongola. He returned to -Wady Halfa to expedite progress; and by the middle of -December headquarters were established at Korti, and by -Christmas the greater part of the force was concentrated -there. During the whole of this period, Wolseley's army -must be figured as a river of men flowing along the river Nile, -the infantry struggling up in boats, the mounted men toiling -along the banks; the stream of men banking up at headquarters, -the military front, which is steadily pushed forward -from Wady Halfa to New Dongola, from New Dongola to -Old Dongola 60 to 70 miles farther up, from Old Dongola -to Korti. -</p> - -<p> -On 17th November a letter was received from Gordon -saying that he could hold out for forty days from the date -of the superscription, 4th November, 1884, thus leaving -Wolseley barely four weeks to accomplish a task needing -as many months. On 28th November another letter from -Gordon, dated 9th September, gave the relief expedition -four months, thus leaving Wolseley five weeks from the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P220"></a>220}</span> -date upon which the letter was received. It was now clear -that the expedition could not reach Khartoum in time. -</p> - -<p> -When Lord Wolseley, towards the end of December, had -his forces concentrated at Korti, he decided to divide them -into two columns, the Desert Column and the Nile Column. -The reasons for his scheme can only be clearly apprehended -by a reference to the map. At Korti, the Nile turns -north-east, looping back again, and resuming its southward course -at Metemmeh. A straight line drawn across the Bayuda -Desert from Korti to Metemmeh is the short cut. This was -the route given to the Desert Column. The Nile Column -was to proceed up the loop of the river to Hamdab, there -to avenge the murder of Colonel Stewart and his party, to -proceed higher up to Berti, and thence to secure the bend -of the river and to open up the desert route back to Korosko, -below Wady Halfa, and from Korosko it was intended to -attack Berber, and thence to join forces with the Desert -Column at Metemmeh. -</p> - -<p> -The Nile Column, numbering about 3000 men, under -the command of Major-General Earle, Brigadier-General -Brackenbury being second in command, left Korti on 28th -December, 1884. -</p> - -<p> -The Desert Column was placed under the command of -General Sir Herbert Stewart. With him was Colonel Sir -Charles Wilson, who was instructed to take a body of troops -from Metemmeh to Khartoum. The Column consisted of -sections of the Camel Corps, a company of the Royal -Engineers, a detachment of the 19th Hussars, detachments -of the Commissariat and Medical Corps, and the Naval -Brigade, which was placed under the command of Lord -Charles Beresford. The total force numbered 73 officers, -1032 non-commissioned officers and men, 2099 camels, and -40 horses. The Desert Column left Korti on 30th December, -1884. It was, in fact, a forlorn hope. -</p> - -<p> -(The writer desires to acknowledge the use he has made -of the excellent narrative of events contained in <i>The -Egyptian Campaigns</i>, by the Hon. Charles Royle.) -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap24"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P221"></a>221}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXIV -<br /> -THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -II. HOW WE BROUGHT THE BOATS THROUGH THE GREAT GATE -</p> - -<p> -In January, 1884, General Gordon was entrusted by the -British and Egyptian Governments with the impossible -task of evacuating the Soudan and of organising its -future internal administration, in the face of a vast horde -of armed fanatics. In April, the investment of Khartoum, -in which Gordon was shut up, was complete. In May, -preparations for war were begun in England and in Egypt. -It was not, however, until 8th August that Lord Hartington -informed General Stephenson, commanding the British Army -of Occupation in Egypt, that measures would be taken to -relieve Gordon. During the same month the whale-boats -for the Nile route were ordered. On 26th August General -Stephenson was informed that Lord Wolseley would -command the expedition. -</p> - -<p> -In August, while I was staying with the Duke of -Fife at Mar Lodge, I was appointed to Lord Wolseley's -Staff. -</p> - -<p> -I sailed with Lord Wolseley and the rest of his Staff. -We arrived at Alexandria on 9th September, 1884, and -went on to Cairo, where we lodged in the Palace on the -Shoobra Road. Here were Lord Wolseley, General Sir -Redvers Buller, Colonel Swaine, Major Wardrop and Lord -Edward Fitzgerald, A.D.C. to Buller. Sir Evelyn Wood -and Commander Hammill were already up the Nile -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P222"></a>222}</span> -organising transport and supply. General Sir Herbert Stewart and -General Earle were at Wady Halfa. -</p> - -<p> -It is not my intention to relate the history of the war, -which has been admirably recorded in the various works -dealing with the subject; but rather to narrate my personal -experiences during the campaign. And the reader will also -be left to his own consideration of the contemporary affairs of -the great world: the marrying and giving in marriage, losses -and gains, desires foiled and ambitions achieved, the shifts -and intrigues and gossip of domestic politics, the portentous -manoeuvres upon the clouded stage of international drama: -all of which, to the sailors and soldiers of the forlorn hope -strung along the gigantic reaches of the Nile, toiling and -fighting in the desert, went by as though it had never been. -It is an old story now; very many of my gallant comrades -have passed away; but the record of their courage and -endurance remains, and shall remain. -</p> - -<p> -When we arrived in Cairo there were already 29 naval -officers and 190 men, divided into several sections, at work -along the Nile. These were sent by Admiral Lord John -Hay, commander-in-chief in the Mediterranean. In -addition, the Admiralty had appointed two or three senior -officers, among whom was Captain Boardman (afterwards -Admiral F. R. Boardman, C.B.). At Lord Wolseley's -request, Boardman was placed in command of the whole -naval contingent, which had not hitherto been under either -a naval officer in chief command or the military authority. -My own position with regard to the naval contingent was -simply that of Lord Wolseley's representative. -</p> - -<p> -While we were in Cairo I purchased for £24 my famous -racing camel Bimbashi. Buller also bought a camel, and we -rode together daily. He used to laugh till he nearly fell out -of his saddle, when my camel ran away with me through -and over foot-passengers, donkeys, carriages and dogs. I -might haul Bimbashi's head round till it was under my -knee, and he was looking astern, and still he charged -onwards. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P223"></a>223}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The whale-boats designed to transport the expedition -were then arriving in large numbers. The total number -was 800. They were similar to the man-of-war 30-foot -whaler, but fuller in the body to enable them to carry -more weight. Each boat was 30 feet long, with six feet -six inches beam, and two feet six inches draught, fitted for -12 oars, and two masts with lug sails, and capable of -carrying 10 soldiers, two boatmen (Canadian <i>voyageurs</i>), -1000 rations and ammunition. -</p> - -<p> -There was a story current when the boats were struggling -up the Nile, that one of them, manned by a sergeant and -eight soldiers, but without a <i>voyageur</i> on board, having -run athwart a rock and upset, a soldier observed to the -sergeant that "the cove who sent nine men in a boat with -1000 rations must have been this here journey before!" -</p> - -<p> -There were also to be provided eight steam pinnaces, -two stern-wheel paddle boats, and a number of hired -Egyptian Government steamers. The whale-boats as they -arrived were sent, first, by rail and river to Assiout. Thence -they were towed to Assouan, where is the First Cataract. -Here they were either railed on trucks, or hauled through -the rapids to Shellal, eight miles up. From Shellal to -Wady Halfa, 200 miles farther, was plain sailing. At Wady -Halfa is the Second Cataract and the formidable rapid of -Bab-el-Kebir, or the "Great Gate." -</p> - -<p> -Early in September I was ordered by Lord Wolseley -to go up the Nile, overhauling the arrangements for the -water transport, right up to Wady Halfa, which would be -the temporary military base, I went by train from Cairo -to Assiout, the hottest journey I had ever endured. India -was nothing to it. The desert gathered itself up to destroy -me. Any little spot upon my person which was not deep -in desert was a fly-bazaar. But at Assiout a cold -shower-bath paid for all. Here I investigated the transport -arrangements made by Captain Boardman, and found them -excellent. I may say at once that the whole of Captain -Boardman's work was admirable, and that his management -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P224"></a>224}</span> -throughout the campaign was marked by the greatest good -feeling, tact, and patience. -</p> - -<p> -I left Assiout in one of Messrs. Cook's steamers, the -<i>Fersaat</i>, which had the appearance of a boat and the -manners of a kangaroo. She was loosely concocted of -iron and leaked at every rivet; she squealed and grunted; -her boiler roared like a camel; she bounded as she went. -Her Reis (captain and pilot) was a sorrowful old Mohammedan, -whose only method of finding out if the shoals and -sands were still in the same place was by running upon -them; and his manner of getting off them was to cry -"Allah Kerim!" ("God is great!") and to beat his poor old -forehead on the deck. In the meantime one of his Arabs, -tastefully attired in a long blue night-gown, an enormous -pair of drawers, and decorated elastic-sided boots, stripped -and jumped overboard and pushed the boat, and while he -pushed he chanted a dirge. As the boat began to move, -he made sounds which suggested that he was about to be -violently sick but could not quite manage it satisfactorily, -although encouraged thereto by the loud objurgations of -the two stokers. When he clambered back on deck, he -put on the decorated boots and walked about in them till -he was dry enough to dress; while the Reis gave thanks to -his Maker, and the two stokers, men who knew nothing and -feared nothing, piled wood on the furnaces and drove the -boat along again. -</p> - -<p> -If anyone walked from port to starboard or touched the -helm, the boat rolled over, and until the next roll maintained -a list of ten degrees, so that I was frequently shot off the -locker upon which I was trying to sleep, landing upon -the top of José, my Maltese interpreter, and followed by -field-glasses, filter, sword and boots. The mosquito-curtains -carried away, and the mosquitoes instantly attacked in -force, driving me nearly mad with loss of blood, irritation, -and rage. My only comfort was a pneumatic life-belt, -which had been sent to me by Lady Charles, and which I -used as a pillow. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P225"></a>225}</span> -</p> - -<p> -So we struggled along against the stream for the 330 -miles to Assouan; and the weather was not too hot, and -the nights were cool, and the banks were fringed with -date-palms, and every night the sun sank from the intense blue -of the zenith, laced with long-drawn clouds of rose, to the -lucent green low in the west, and the sand turned to gold -colour and rose, until the sun dropped suddenly out of -sight and all turned grey like ashes. Then a cold little -wind sprang up out of the desert and the night deepened -into the velvet dark flashing with a myriad stars. -</p> - -<p> -On 23rd September I came to Assouan: reorganised -the postal service to bring two mails a week by -steam-launch: made arrangements for the rapid working of the -water transport generally, ready for the time of pressure, -and sent an urgent request for flexible wire hawsers, as I was -sure they would be urgently required. -</p> - -<p> -Leaving Assouan on 24th September, I arrived at Wady -Halfa on the 27th. Here were Sir Evelyn Wood and his -Staff; among whom was my old friend Zohrab Pasha. I -was immediately set to work trying camels, as I had -become acquainted with these singular animals in India. -</p> - -<p> -Upon the day of my arrival I went out with a young -officer in the Mounted Infantry. His camel blundered over -an irrigation ditch, and flung my young friend head over -heels into the mud, where he sat looking sadly up into the -face of his steed, which was complaining, as camels do, -making a peculiar mumbling noise like an old woman kept -waiting for her tea. Having been restored to his seat, this -unfortunate youth immediately rode too close to the river -and incontinently fell into a deep mud hole from which he -had to be dug out. -</p> - -<p> -On 5th October Lord Wolseley arrived at Wady Halfa, -as cheery as usual, and took up his quarters in a <i>dahabieh</i>. -Sir Redvers Buller and Zohrab Pasha were also dwelling in -<i>dahabiehs</i>. I was attached to Sir Evelyn Wood's mess, -Sir Evelyn being in charge of communications. I lived in -a small bell tent close to the river, chiefly furnished with a -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P226"></a>226}</span> -penny whistle, a photograph of Lady Charles, my letters -from home, and a stag beetle big enough to carry me to -hounds, which I generally had to chase from my bed. -</p> - -<p> -Upon Lord Wolseley's arrival we heard the rumour of -the murder of Colonel Stewart at El-Kamar, and of the -slaying of his companions. Ultimately, the news was -confirmed. Stewart, with three steamers, had left Khartoum -on 10th September. After shelling the forts at Berber, -two of the steamers returned; while Stewart, in the Abbas, -which was towing two boats carrying refugees, went on to -Abu Hamid, where the natives opened a heavy fire. The -boats were cast adrift and their passengers captured. -Stewart went on; his steamer was wrecked near the village -of Hebbeh, at which, having been induced to land by -treachery, Stewart, M. Herbin, French Consul at Khartoum, -Mr. Power, <i>Times</i> correspondent, and a number of Greeks -and Egyptians, were slain. It was a pitiful end to all -Colonel Stewart's gallant service with Gordon. -</p> - -<p> -During the first part of my time at Wady Halfa I was -engaged under Lord Wolseley's instructions in the inspection -of the transport up and down the river, often riding more -than forty miles in a day upon a camel. Wady Halfa was -then being formed into the base camp preparatory to the -general advance: and troops and stores were arriving daily. -The railway ran along the east bank of the river to Sarras, -33 miles distant. -</p> - -<p> -One day, when Sir Evelyn Wood and a party of soldiers -were going by train to Sarras, and Commander Hammill -and I were accompanying them, the engine broke down -half-way. The Egyptian engineer and stoker being helpless, -Hammill and I examined the locomotive, Hammill taking -the top part, while I lay on my back underneath, close to -the furnace, where the sensation was like being baked in an -oven. The bearings were overheated, a lubricating tube -having become unscrewed. After two hours' hard work, we -managed to reverse the tube end for end and to refix it. -Sir Evelyn Wood helped to pull me from under the engine, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P227"></a>227}</span> -and laughed till he cried. I was covered with black grease -from top to toe, and my clothes were scorched to tatters. -Hammill was in no better case, his suit being drenched with -oil. The spectacle may have been very amusing to the -general; but neither Hammill nor I had more than two -suits, and here was one of them destroyed entirely. -</p> - -<p> -By the 5th October, when Lord Wolseley arrived at -Wady Halfa, Sir Herbert Stewart had been for several days -at Dongola with 250 Mounted Infantry, who were transported -in <i>nuggars</i> (native boats) from Sarras. The whale-boats -were arriving daily at Wady Halfa, the first boat -having been hauled through the rapids on 25th September, -and by the 5th October there were 103 whalers assembled -at Wady Halfa. At Wady Halfa is the Second Cataract, -at the lower end of which is the gorge of Bab-el-Kebir, -the Great Gate. Between Wady Halfa and Dal are the -cataracts of Samneh, Attireh, Ambigol, Tangour and -Akasha. At intervals of about 33 miles from Sarras to -(New) Dongola, stations were established with commissariat -depots. The transport of troops and stores from the -base camp at Wady Halfa to Dongola consisted of the -steamers, whale-boats, and <i>nuggars</i> along the river, the train -from Wady Halfa to Sarras, from Sarras to Ambigol by -camel, thence by water. The Camel Corps marched along -the east bank to Dongola. It was composed of four -regiments, Heavy, Light, Guards, and Mounted Infantry, -each being composed of detachments from cavalry and -infantry regiments, each detachment consisting of two officers, -two sergeants, two corporals, one bugler, and 38 men; total, -94 officers, 1700 N.C.O.'s and men. -</p> - -<p> -Such, in brief, was the condition of affairs early in -October (1884), when I was stationed at the Second -Cataract at Wady Halfa. Here the Nile divides into two, -flowing on either side of a group of rocks and islands for -about 20 miles, and at the other (or upper) end of the group -of rocks and islands, on the east (or left) bank, is the -sickle-shaped gorge of Bab-el-Kebir. At this time, although the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P228"></a>228}</span> -river was falling, the roar of the torrent pouring through -the Bab was so tremendous, that no voice could be heard, -and we communicated with one another by semaphore. -When I left the Bab, goats were feeding in the bed of the -river. -</p> - -<p> -Lord Wolseley told me that he was informed that it was -impossible to haul the steamers up the Second Cataract, and -asked me if I could do it. -</p> - -<p> -I replied that nothing was impossible until it was proved -to be impossible; and that, in the case under consideration, -I would admit the impossibility when I had smashed two -steamers in trying to get them through; while if I smashed -only one, I might thereby get experience which would -enable me to succeed with the other. -</p> - -<p> -The steamers were hauled through successfully while -the Bab-el-Kebir was still full and roaring, the current being -so powerful that the steamers forging against it trembled -like a whip. -</p> - -<p> -Some 4000 natives were put on the hawser of the first -steamer; and as they hauled her up, she had but a foot's -clearance between her sides and the rocks. The torrent -flung her against them, and if she had not been defended by -timber and mats, she would have been smashed to pieces. -About the middle of the gorge the natives could move her -no farther. Whereupon they cried to Allah to strengthen -them, and to order the rope to pull harder and to slacken -the water. But as their prayers availed not, I eased the -steamer back again, and put about 1500 British soldiers on -the hawser. They did not pray; indeed, their language -was as it were the reverse of prayer; but they dragged the -steamer right through. Theologically speaking, the victory -should have gone to the natives. I put the problem to a -bishop, but he was unable to solve it. -</p> - -<p> -The task of hauling the whalers through the Second -Cataract was at first entrusted to Koko, the native pilot Of -Bab-el-Kebir. His method was to take a line, dive with it -into the rapids, and carry it across the river. The line was -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P229"></a>229}</span> -frequently torn from him by the current, and many of the -boats were stove in against the rocks. -</p> - -<p> -I designed a scheme of haulage, and was eventually -placed by Lord Wolseley in charge of the whole of the -water transport from Wady Halfa to Gemai, a stretch of -about 17 miles. At Gemai was established a dockyard, -where damaged boats were repaired and equipped for the -rest of the voyage. -</p> - -<p> -My scheme for hauling the boats consisted of a stout -standing guess warp rigged as nearly as possible at right -angles to the course of the boat to be hauled, and secured -at either end to rock or tree; one end of a short hawser was -hooked to the guess warp, so that it could move freely up -and down it, and a block was secured to the other end. -Through the block was rove a towing rope proper, one end -secured to the boat, and the working party on land tailing -on to the other. As the course of the river shifted, the -guess warp was moved; the whole passage being accomplished -by a series of these operations. In certain places -two blocks were used, a standing block and a pendant -block, a pendant being rove through the standing block, -one end secured to the pendant block, men hauling on the -other end; and through the pendant block was rove the -hauling line, one end secured to the boat, men hauling on -the other upon the bank opposite to that on which were the -pendant crew. By hauling on the hauling line, then easing -the pendant, and then hauling again on the hauling line, -the boat was brought clear of the Cataract and hauled -round the corner into smooth water. -</p> - -<p> -Each boat was supplied with two poles for punting and -a long line for tracking, besides oars and sails. -</p> - -<p> -The whole equipment of the boats was organised by Sir -Redvers Buller, who utilised his experience of the Red River -expedition, and nothing could have better served its purpose. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>nuggars</i>, or native boats, were bought near Assouan, -and were then brought up to Wady Halfa, whence they were -hauled through the Cataract, then loaded with stores and -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P230"></a>230}</span> -sent on up river. It was of the utmost importance that they -should be dispatched as quickly as possible; for an army -moves on its stomach, and the <i>nuggars</i> carried the wherewithal. -Their sails, being invariably rotten, were blown to -pieces in the Cataracts. They were constantly crashing into -the rocks, which made holes in them, when they were hauled -by main force to the shore, where a dock was excavated in -the sand to receive them. Here they were repaired and -thence dispatched up river. -</p> - -<p> -A <i>nuggar</i> would come sailing along, when there was a -sudden crash, the bluejacket at the helm was pitched headlong -into the bottom of the boat, while the sail split into -ribbons, and the native crew embraced the mast crying that -Allah was great! -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-230"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-230.jpg" alt="THE AUTHOR'S METHOD OF HAULING BOATS THROUGH THE BAB-EL-KEBIR. AA. HAWSER: BB. HAULING LINE; C. GIBGUY; J. AND I. MEN HAULING; H. FIXED POINT; G. PURCHASE FOR SETTING TAUT. AFTER A DRAWING MADE ON THE SPOT BY THE AUTHOR" /> -<br /> -THE AUTHOR'S METHOD OF HAULING BOATS THROUGH THE BAB-EL-KEBIR.<br /> -AA. HAWSER: BB. HAULING LINE; C. GIBGUY; J. AND I. MEN HAULING; <br /> -H. FIXED POINT; G. PURCHASE FOR SETTING TAUT. <br /> -AFTER A DRAWING MADE ON THE SPOT BY THE AUTHOR -</p> - -<p> -When the whale-boats came along, their passage was so -arranged that a regiment, or part of a regiment, was kept -together; the distribution being maintained all up the river, -so that a homogeneous body could be landed at any moment -for attack or defence if necessary. -</p> - -<p> -So furious was the torrent, that whoso fell into it seldom -rose again, unless he were one of the expert Dongola divers. -The men coming up in the boats, who had done and -suffered much before reaching Wady Halfa, had repaired -their trousers with biscuit tins. I overheard the following -dialogue between one of these tin-bottomed weary heroes -and a comrade on the bank: -</p> - -<p> -"Hullo, Bill, 'ow are you getting on?" -</p> - -<p> -"Me? I've been pulling on this here ruddy river for -about two years. 'Ow far is it to Gemai?" -</p> - -<p> -"About fifteen miles, mate." -</p> - -<p> -"O my Gawd! Is there an 'orspital there?" -</p> - -<p> -Late in October, the <i>voyageurs</i> arrived, a fine body of -men, 380 strong. -</p> - -<p> -Being acquainted with rapids and understanding their -navigation, the <i>voyageurs</i> were invaluable in bringing the -boats through the long and difficult reaches of the Nile up -to Wady Halfa, and from Wady Halfa up to Korti. The -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P231"></a>231}</span> -task could never have been accomplished in the time, and -the losses of boats would have been heavier, had it not been -for the <i>voyageurs</i>. -</p> - -<p> -As the boats came through the Bab or across the portage, -the <i>voyageurs</i> took charge of them and sailed them up to -Gemai. Here they were overhauled and fully equipped, the -soldiers were embarked, and away they went up river. -</p> - -<p> -By the 6th November, 60 boats had left Gemai with -the Sussex regiment on board. The river was then falling -so swiftly that a new course for the boats must be found -almost every day. Hitherto the boats had been passed -through the Cataract almost without a scratch or the loss of -a single article of gear. Now the rocks began to show -through the surf in the Bab. -</p> - -<p> -A boat was smashed. We caught her lower down; -and with 200 men portaged her over a rocky hill, across -the neck of land formed by the curve of the Bab, then -laid her keel upwards across two other boats, and so -floated, took her up to Gemai dockyard. I was the more -pleased with this piece of salvage, because everyone said -it was impossible to save the boat. The last nine boats, -after being emptied of all gear, were hauled clean over the -rocks by main force. They came prettily lipping through -the boiling torrent from rock to rock, taking the blows upon -keel and bilge pieces, so that they were scarcely damaged. -</p> - -<p> -Early in October, foreseeing that, as the water fell, the -Bab-el-Kebir would become impracticable, I had designed a -scheme for a portage. The alternative would have been to -entrain the boats from Wady Halfa to Sarras, an expedient -which, as the whole of the train service was required to -carry provisions, would have involved immense delay. -</p> - -<p> -My plan was to haul the boats up to the entrance of the -Bab and then to carry them across the neck of land formed -by the curve of the Bab, a distance of 2488 yards, which -required 400 men, who should be divided into sections of 40 to -each boat. The boat was hauled on shore, her masts, oars, -and poles laid on the ground to serve as bearers; the boat was -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P232"></a>232}</span> -laid on these keel uppermost, and was then lifted and -carried, the masts, oars, and poles resting on the men's -shoulders, and other men supporting the boat by resting -thwarts and gunwale on their shoulders. My scheme was -at first received with incredulity by all except Lord Wolseley. -But I made a trial trip with 30 men, and had the boat -across the portage, including six stoppages for rest, and in -the water with all her gear without a scratch, in an hour and -twenty minutes. The passage of Bab-el-Kebir, low as the -water had become, would have taken at least six hours, with -great risk of disaster. -</p> - -<p> -Now, having hauled the last nine boats through, over -the rocks, the portage scheme came into operation; and -on the 6th November I closed the Bab, and used the portage, -by means of which alone it was made possible to continue -the supply of boats at the same rate. Thenceforward we -were able to put the boats through quicker than they were -supplied. -</p> - -<p> -Many of the boats were poisonous to handle, as their -matting was infested with scorpions. -</p> - -<p> -My dwelling was at first a tent at Wady Halfa, and -afterwards a hut on the bank beside the Bab-el-Kebir. It -stood within six feet of the roaring river, in a grove of -mimosa. The camels lunched daily upon the long sharp -thorns of the mimosa, apparently relishing these spines as a -form of Worcester sauce. -</p> - -<p> -Rising at daylight, every day I covered some thirty miles -up and down the shore of the Cataract, superintending -operations from dawn till dark. I rode one of my camels, -Bimbashi or Ballyhooly or Beelzebub, or my donkey, County -Waterford, so named because the second time I contested -him I lost my seat: a political allegory. Being short of both -officers and men, my presence was required everywhere at -once. By haulage and portage a perpetual procession of -whaleboats and <i>nuggars</i> was kept moving up to the -dockyard at Gemai. -</p> - -<p> -From Wady Halfa to the Bab the Cataract was divided -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P233"></a>233}</span> -into reaches, a post being stationed at each. At the first -reach were Peel of the 2nd Life Guards and 200 Dongola -men; at the Naval Camp, on the second reach, were -Lieutenant Colbourne and 350 Dongola men; at Palm -Tree Camp, in the third reach, were an Egyptian officer and -100 Dongola men; for the portage at Bab-el-Kebir I had -500 men of the 2nd Egyptian battalion under their colonel, -and another of their officers, Shakespeare of the Marines, -who had been with me in the <i>Thunderer</i>. All along the -Cataract were stationed small parties of carpenters and -sailmakers in order that damages should be repaired on the -spot. Living with me was Colonel Grant, who was in -command of all the Dongola men. Later, the Canadian -<i>voyageurs</i> camped beside my hut. -</p> - -<p> -By means of the distribution of work, each section being -placed under a responsible officer, progress speedily became -three times as fast. Officers and men worked magnificently. -I was proud of the old Navy. -</p> - -<p> -The routine for the bluejackets was: Turn out 4.30 a.m., -breakfast; walk seven to ten miles through the desert along -the river, often having to retrace their steps to help a boat -in distress; work all day till sunset, no spell for dinner, -which consisted of biscuit; at sunset, walk seven miles back -to camp, supper and turn in. The officers walked with the -men, giving their camels to the men who suffered from sore -feet. Officers and men were burned as black as the natives. -</p> - -<p> -Until my arrival, the nine naval officers and the doctor -had been living at the Naval Camp nine miles from Wady -Halfa, without a single servant or a cook. They were -allowed neither servants nor the money with which to hire -natives. But nothing could exceed the kindness and good-will -of General Buller, who at once granted all my requests, -and if I found it necessary to order first and report -afterwards, sanctioned my requisitions. -</p> - -<p> -I had with me in my hut for a time F. H. Pollen, who -could dive and swim better than the Dongola men, using -like them a blown-up goatskin. The constant immersion -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P234"></a>234}</span> -brought on an attack of dysentery. I kept him in bed, -taking away his clothes so that he could not get up, and -doctored him till he recovered. -</p> - -<p> -At this time I acted as doctor to the men under me. -Every case of sickness was reported to me at once. If the -patient suffered from diarrhoea I exhibited castor oil. A -petty officer having been thus treated, said he felt easier. I -asked him if he would like another dose, and he said he -would like it. The same night he died. I sent his body on -a camel to the nearest medical officer, who found seventeen -date-stones in his stomach. I had the sorry consolation of -knowing that the poor fellow must have died in any event. -</p> - -<p> -On the 17th November, Lord Wolseley, returning from -Dongola, arrived suddenly at Wady Halfa, where he -remained for twenty-four hours, afterwards returning to -Dongola. All we knew was that he had come to press -matters forward. History relates how that on the 17th -November, Wolseley received a letter from Gordon dated -4th November, in which Gordon wrote: "We can hold out -forty days with ease; after that it will be difficult." In -reply Wolseley telegraphed from Wady Halfa: "Yours of -4th just received 17th; the first I have had from you. I -shall be at Kasr Dongola in four days." Wolseley at the -same time informed Lord Hartington that while the news -would not affect his plans, it seemed to show that Gordon's -relief could not be accomplished without fighting. -</p> - -<p> -Lord Wolseley made no announcement on the subject -at the time, merely telling General Buller and myself that -we were to stay where we were for the present. Our -impression was that Wolseley had abandoned the idea of -making a dash across the desert from Korti to Metemmeh. -</p> - -<p> -At that date, 17th November, we had more than 200 -boats ready to embark troops at Gernai, from which twenty -to thirty boats were being dispatched daily. Nearly 200 -boats had already gone, carrying detachments of the Essex, -Stafford, and Cornwall Regiments, the Engineers, and -Commissariat. About 200 more boats had still to pass the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P235"></a>235}</span> -Cataract. I was very pleased with the work and behaviour -of the 2nd battalion of the Egyptian Army, which was -working the portage. I expressed my satisfaction to them, -and gave every man a quarter of a pound of native tobacco, -whereupon they declared with one voice that, "if God was -willing, they would go to hell with my Excellency." -</p> - -<p> -At about this time I received a private intimation from -Lord Wolseley that, when the general advance began, he -intended to place me in command of a naval brigade. -</p> - -<p> -By 22nd November, 549 boats had been passed through -the Second Cataract, 166 of which had been hauled through -the Bab-el-Kebir, the rest portaged. Of the whole number -of boats, only three were smashed; and very few received -any damage. Accidents were few, although the work was -dangerous. On 21st November a <i>voyageur</i> was drowned. -Three <i>voyageurs</i> went overboard, and two were saved by -catching hold of a rope. The third scorned the rope, relying -upon his ability to swim, and was never seen again. Up -to that date five men altogether had been drowned, two -soldiers, two Canadians, and one native. Later, another -native, and he an Esneh swimmer, was drowned. The -river was extraordinarily fatal. Not one man who went -under upon falling overboard was saved. The natives -always used to do their best to keep on the surface. -</p> - -<p> -Lord Wolseley was so good as warmly to commend the -work done on the Second Cataract; and Sir Redvers Buller, -who at first declared the portage scheme to be impossible -of execution, generously expressed his appreciation of its -success. -</p> - -<p> -Having shot a little alligator, I skinned it myself. The -Arab camel-man in my service, who spoke French, argued -with me in that language for a long time that an alligator -had no tongue, but fed by suction, like a snipe. As I had -cut out the tongue of my little alligator, I knew it had one; -but my Arabian naturalist refused to be persuaded. -</p> - -<p> -At this time and afterwards while I was in Egypt, my -servant, interpreter and cook was the excellent José Salvatro, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P236"></a>236}</span> -a Maltese. If he happened to be absent, I conveyed my -instructions to the natives through my French-speaking -camel-man, in French. Between my French and his French -and his Arabic, I used to wonder how the meaning filtered -through; but I have a note in my diary that "it comes -all right, the natives are cheery fellows and work capitally -with me, and a good smack upon the 'sit-upon' of a lazy -one keeps the whole lot going." -</p> - -<p> -Towards the end of November I was living alone in my -hut on the Bab-el-Kebir, attended only by a bluejacket and -the faithful José, who ceased not from scrubbing and -washing, so that I was never a day without clean things, an -inestimable comfort in that climate. Here I was haunted by -an Arab maniac who dwelt in some indiscoverable antre of -the rocks. At night I heard him howling to himself. In -the daytime, he ran here and there, his only garment being -the dust he cast upon his shaven head, crying upon Allah. -He ate sand and offal, a diet which left him hungry, for he -would come to my tent for food, which I gave him. He -seemed to know me in a vague way. I gave him some -calico to cover his nakedness withal, but he tore the stuff -into fragments and ate them. One day he rushed into my -tent, clawed some mutton-broth out of the cooking-pot with -his horrible hands and crammed it boiling hot into his -mouth. I was obliged forcibly to eject him lest he should -take the whole; but I had no stomach for the rest. My -fear was lest he should burst in at night and I should be -obliged in self-defence to shoot him. Eventually, José -lost patience, seized a huge wood-axe, and chased the -maniac for a mile. The poor wretch ran like a hare and -vanished into his hole in the rocks. -</p> - -<p> -I made a match with Colonel Brocklehurst, head of the -Remount Department, to ride my camel, the bold Bimbashi, -against any one of Brocklehurst's camels, for £25. The course -was six miles long across the desert, from Peel's Camp at -the beginning of the Cataract to Sir Evelyn Wood's flagstaff -at Wady Halfa. Brocklehurst's rider was his interpreter, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P237"></a>237}</span> -a lean rat of an Arab Sheikh, who was absolutely certain he -would win. His camel was the favourite of Wood's mess -and was reputed to be the best in Egypt. The betting -was fifty to one against me. But I had been riding -Bimbashi 30 miles or so a day, and we were both in fine -hard condition. -</p> - -<p> -The Sheikh started at a gallop. First his turban, then -his goatskin saddle-rug, carried away. Both rider and -camel were blowing and perspiring ere they had run three -miles. For the first two and a half miles I waited on the -Sheikh, then came away and won in a canter half a mile -ahead. At the finish the troops lined up and made a -course for us. Thus I won my first camel race, owner -up. No one was better pleased than my old friend Colonel -Brocklehurst. -</p> - -<p> -Bimbashi (according to my journal) covered the six miles -in a little over eighteen minutes. That gallant steed had -already been ridden the nine miles from my camp to the -starting-point; and when I rode him back in the evening, -he was so fresh that he ran away with me, grumbling loudly, -because he was offended at the sight of a dead donkey -lying wrong side up beside the railway. -</p> - -<p> -I invented a saddle for camels, and I believe the pattern -is still in use. The saddle-tree is a triangular wooden -framework, like the gable of a roof. I covered the wood -with oakum and canvas; abolished all buckles, made the -girths and stirrups of raw hide thongs, and put the stirrups -forward, instead of behind. Count Gleichen, in his interesting -book, <i>With the Camel Corps up the Nile</i>, relates how the -saddles and equipment served out to the Camel Corps gave -the men infinite trouble and discomfort. The unseasoned -wood came to pieces, the straps broke, the water-skins and -water-bottles leaked; but one instance of the departmental -mismanagement which caused our men so much unnecessary -suffering. -</p> - -<p> -By the end of November, the river was falling so -swiftly that what was smooth water yesterday was to-day a -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P238"></a>238}</span> -frivolous series of waterfalls with a twist in them. Every -alteration in the river involved a new device for haulage, -and it would alter at three or four places in a mile, and -there were 11 miles of rapids. I was generally able to -judge by the look of the water when and where it would -change its course during the next few hours. In order to -avoid the least delay, new arrangements must be devised -beforehand; and my mind was so absorbed in these -schemes, that I dreamed of them nightly. By that time I -had 1400 men working under me, whose work must be -organised, and stations allocated. The Bab-el-Kebir, that -formidable rapid, was now a grazing ground for goats. -</p> - -<p> -I shifted my quarters from the Bab to Wady Halfa, as -the difficulties were now all at that end of the Cataract. -Peel and Colbourne, in command respectively of the next -two reaches, found no day too long and no work too hard. -</p> - -<p> -In order to supervise the whole length of the operations -as quickly as possible, I kept one camel, Ballyhooly, at the -Bab; the big white donkey County Waterford half-way -there; and Bimbashi the bold and Beelzebub at Wady -Halfa. Bimbashi could trot 16 miles in the hour. A -Bedouin Sheikh offered me £3$ for him. As I had bought -him for £24 I concluded that his vender had stolen him. -I won more than his price in the race with Colonel Brocklehurst's -Sheikh. While at Wady Halfa I rode him six miles -out in the heavy sand against Sir Evelyn Wood and his -A.D.C., who rode horses, and Bimbashi beat the horses -fair and square. -</p> - -<p> -Lord Wolseley sent me a telegram ordering me to -form a naval brigade of 100 men and 10 officers. But as -the bluejackets were of inestimable service in getting the -remainder of the boats through the Cataract, and fitting -them out at Gemai, where the soldiers embarked, he desired -to keep them where they were as long as possible. On 27th -November, we hoped to get all the boats through during the -next five days. Up to that date—the last for which I have a -note—687 boats had been passed through the Cataract, with -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P239"></a>239}</span> -a loss of 4 only; about 27 men of all sorts had been drowned; -and 337 boats had left Gemai with troops and stores. -</p> - -<p> -On 6th December the last boat was passed through. -On the same day, Sir Evelyn Wood and Sir Redvers Buller -received a telegram reporting a block of boats at Ambigol -and Dal Cataract; and I was ordered there at a moment's -notice. -</p> - -<p> -On 27th September I had arrived at Wady Halfa; on -10th October I schemed the portage; and for eight weeks -since that date I had been continuously hard at work passing -the boats through the Second Cataract; which the Arabs -call "the belly of stone." -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap25"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P240"></a>240}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXV -<br /> -THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -III. UP THE CATARACTS AND ACROSS THE DESERT -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "To Assiout, in a cloud of dust<br /> - We came, and it made us smile,<br /> - To see each other's features, till<br /> - We washed them in the Nile.<br /> - From there, by boat, to Assouan<br /> - We came, and every night<br /> - Made fast, for the boatmen wouldn't steam<br /> - Excepting in daylight."<br /> - <i>Songs of the Camel Corps</i> (Sergt. H. EAGLE, R.M.C.C.)<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -On the 6th December, 1884, Peel and Colbourne, my -two gallant comrades who had done so splendid a -work upon the Second Cataract, quitted the Belly of -Stone, embarking in two boats manned by Kroomen. The -names of these big black men were Africa, Ginger Red, -Bottled Beer, Sampson, Two Glasses and Been-Very-Ill-Twice; -and when they were excited, as they nearly always -were, they took to the English tongue, and kept us laughing -for a week. When the wind was fair and we sailed up -against the rapids, the Kroo boys were terribly anxious, -knowing that if the wind failed we should slide all the way -back again. -</p> - -<p> -By this time the whole expedition was moving up river. -The conduct of the soldiers was magnificent, achieving -wonderful results. Of the sailors, accustomed to the work, -and knowing the shortest way of doing things, one expected -much—and got even more. It was hard enough for the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P241"></a>241}</span> -seamen. Although they, the soldiers, knew nothing of boats, -they worked like heroes. And the navigation of the Nile -from Gemai to Dal enforced hard continuous toil from dawn -to dark day after day. The <i>voyageurs</i> did splendid service; -the expedition could not have advanced so rapidly without -them; and although they knew nothing of sails, being acute -adventurous fellows they soon picked up enough knowledge -to carry them through. -</p> - -<p> -An officer of cavalry in charge of a convoy of stores on -the river worked by Dongola men, describing his adventures -with what he called his "peasant crews," pathetically -observed: "You know, I know nothing whatever about a boat, -or what it ought to do, and I am not ashamed to tell you -that the whole time I am sweating with terror. And every -night when I go to bed I dream of whirlpools and boiling -rapids and then I dream that I am drowned." -</p> - -<p> -But his visions of the night affected neither his nerve nor -his indomitable energy. -</p> - -<p> -Our daily routine along the river began at 4.30: all hands -turn out, make up tent (if there were one), breakfast, and -start, sailing or tracking or rowing according to the state -of the river. But whether you sailed or tracked or rowed, -before long the river changed and you must row instead of -track, or sail instead of row. Then you would come to a -difficult place, and you would heave the cargo on shore, and -get the empty boat up a fall or a heavy rush of water, and -portage the cargo on to the boat. So on to midday, when -an hour was allowed for dinner; then at it again, sailing, -tracking, rowing, in and out cargo, till sundown. Then haul -into the bank and eat bully beef without vegetables. After -supper, roll in a blanket and sleep on the soft sand the -profound and delicious slumber of weary men. -</p> - -<p> -Occasionally a boat would strike a rock; or at rare -intervals an accident would happen, and part of a crew would -be lost, and the boat's gear swept away; or a hole would be -knocked in the boat, when she would be emptied of gear and -cargo, hauled up, and patched. Under these circumstances, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P242"></a>242}</span> -the boats often made no more than three or four miles' -advance in a day. Overloaded as were many of the boats, -they served their purpose admirably well. -</p> - -<p> -At the big Cataracts were stationed working parties, -which emptied the boats of gear and cargo, portaged them -overland, and hauled the boats through the rapids. -</p> - -<p> -So we struggled up the broad and rushing river from -Gemai to Dal, sailing and towing and rowing, capsized and -righting again. And one night a sandstorm waltzed out of -the desert and blew away our tent and with it knives, forks, -slippers, lamp, candles, matches and everything. And the -next morning Peel dropped his knife, and in trying to save -it he upset our whole breakfast of sardines and coffee into -Colbourne's boots. And half my kit was stolen, and I was -reduced to one broken pair of boots, and the natives stole -my tooth powder and baked bread with it. And we had -boils all over us like the man in the Bible, because every -little scratch was poisoned by the innumerable flies of Egypt. -But we were so busy that nothing mattered. -</p> - -<p> -Fighting every mile of the great river pouring down from -Khartoum, we on the Cataracts had no news of Gordon. All -we knew was that there was need to hurry, hurry all the way. -At such times as the mail from home arrived upon a dyspeptic -camel, we got scraps of news of home affairs. People who -knew much more than Lord Wolseley, were saying he ought -to have taken the Souakim-Berber route instead of the Nile -route. I said then, as I say now, he had no choice. At this -time of crisis, when the Navy was dangerously inadequate, -one political party was screaming denunciations against -"legislation by panic." Encouraging to sailors and soldiers -sweating on service! But we knew what to expect. I -observe that in a private letter written in December, 1884, -from the banks of the Nile, at the end of a long day's work -with the boats, I said, "Both sides are equally to blame for -the defective state of the Navy. Tell —— and —— not to -be unpatriotic and make the Navy a party question, or -they will not do half the good they might." -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P243"></a>243}</span> -</p> - -<p> -We came to Ambigol to find the boats had been cleared -by Alleyne of the Artillery. I was able to improve the -organisation there, and to give help along the river I was -in time to save three boats. At Dal, I laid lines along the -centre of the two and a half miles rapid, so that in calm -weather the boats could haul themselves through. -</p> - -<p> -In the meantime, the Naval Brigade of which Lord -Wolseley had ordered me to take command, had been -selected, at my request, by Captain Boardman. -</p> - -<p> -On 19th December, my first division came to Dal. Up -they came, all together in line ahead, under all possible sail, -using the boat awnings as spinnakers. They had sailed up -the rapids where the other boats were tracking; and the -soldiers cheered them as they went by. There was not a -scratch on any boat, nor a drop of water in any of them. -Every cargo was complete in detail, including machine guns, -ammunition, oil and stores. Had I not a right to be proud -of the seamen? I put an officer at the helm of each boat, -and told them to follow me through Dal Cataract; and led -them through, so that the same night the boats were reloaded -with the gear and cargo which had been portaged, and were -going on. The passage of Dal Cataract usually occupied -three days. -</p> - -<p> -I sent on the first division, and stayed at Dal to -await the arrival of the second, in order to get all my men -together. As it happened, I did not see it until it reached -Korti. On 21st December it had left Sarras, bringing oil -and stores to be used in the Nile steamers of which I was -to take charge. For by this time I had been informed of -Lord Wolseley's intention to send the Naval Brigade with -the Camel Corps to make a dash across the Bayuda Desert -to Metemmeh. The Naval Brigade was then to attack -Khartoum in Gordon's steamers, while the Camel Corps -attacked it by land. -</p> - -<p> -So I remained yet a little while at Dal, helping the -boats through the Cataract, and camping in the sand. I -found a baby scorpion two and a half inches long in my -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P244"></a>244}</span> -handkerchief. The officer whose tent was next to mine, -shared it with a sand-rat, which used to fill his slippers with -<i>dhura</i> grains every night, and which jumped on and off my -knee when I breakfasted with my friend. Actually there -came two or three days when I had nothing to do; and -when I could take a hot bath in peace, with the luxury of a -cake of carbolic soap, and sit in my little canvas chair, which -was, however, speedily stolen. -</p> - -<p> -My poor servant José was suddenly taken with so sharp -an attack of fever that he was stricken helpless and could -hardly lift a cup to his lips. His pulse was going like a -machine gun. He was too ill to be moved on mule-back to -the hospital, which was eight miles distant; and I had to -doctor him myself. I gave him castor-oil, deprived him of -all food for twenty-four hours, gave him five grains of -quinine every two hours, and plenty of lime-juice to drink; -and he was soon well again. -</p> - -<p> -Lord Avonmore, Lieutenant-Colonel J. Alleyne, Captain -Burnaby and myself subscribed to a Christmas dinner of -extraordinary charm, eaten with the Guards. The menu -was:—soup made of bully beef, onions, rice and boiled -biscuit, fish from the Nile, stewed bully beef and chicken -<i>à la</i> as-if-they-had-been-trained-for-long-distance-races-for-a-year, -<i>entremet</i> of biscuit and jam. Rum to drink. -</p> - -<p> -I should have missed that feast, and should have been -on the way to Korti post-haste several days before Christmas, -had it not been that a telegram sent by Lord Wolseley to -me had been delayed in transmission. On 27th December -I received an urgent telegram from General Buller, asking -where I was and what I was doing. A week previously -Lord Wolseley had telegraphed instructions that I was to -proceed to Korti with all speed to arrive with the first -division of the Naval Brigade. Having received no orders, -I was waiting for the second division so that I might see that -it was complete and satisfactory. (It arrived at Dal the day -after I left that place in obedience to General Buller's -orders.) -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P245"></a>245}</span> -</p> - -<p> -From Dal to Korti, as the crow flies, is some 200 miles -to the southward; following up the river, which, with many -windings, flows north from Korti, the distance is more than -half as much again. I was already (by no fault of mine) a -week behind; my instructions were to proceed by the shortest -possible route by the quickest possible means, camels or -steam pinnace; and immediately I received General Buller's -telegram I dashed off to the Commissariat. Here I obtained -four camels to carry José, myself and my kit to the nearest -point at which I could catch a steam pinnace on the river. -Also, by riding the first stage of the journey, I could avoid -two wide bends of the Nile. The camels were but baggage -animals; they all had sore backs; and I could get no -proper saddle. I strapped my rug on the wooden framework. -We started the same evening at seven o'clock. -</p> - -<p> -The night had fallen when we left behind us the stir of -the armed camp and plunged into the deep stillness of the -desert. The brilliant moonlight sharply illumined the low -rocky hills, and the withered scrub, near and far; the hard -gravelly track stretched plainly before us; and the camels -went noiselessly forward on their great padded feet. So, -hour after hour. It was one o'clock upon the following -morning (21st December) when we rode into a dark and -silent village. Lighting upon an empty hut, we crawled -into it, cooked a little supper, and went to sleep. -</p> - -<p> -Before daylight we were awakened by the noise of voices -crying and quarrelling; and there were two black negresses -upbraiding us, and beyond them was a group of agitated natives. -It appeared that we were desecrating the village mosque. -Having soothed the inhabitants, we started. That day we -rode from 6 a.m. to 7.30 p.m. with a halt of an hour and a -half at midday, travelling 40 miles in twelve hours, good -going for baggage camels with sore backs. By that time I -was getting sore, too. We slept that night at Absarat, -started the next morning (29th December) at 8.30, and rode -to Abu Fatmeh, arriving at 4 p.m. Starting next morning -at nine o'clock, we arrived at Kaibur at 5 p.m. Here, to my -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P246"></a>246}</span> -intense relief, we picked up Colville and his steam pinnace, -in which we instantly embarked for Korti. -</p> - -<p> -During the last three days and a half we had been thirty-two -hours in the saddle (which, strictly speaking, my camel -had not) and a part of my anatomy was quite worn away. I -lay down in the pinnace and hoped to become healed. -</p> - -<p> -We did not know it; but the same evening, General Sir -Herbert Stewart's Desert Column left Korti upon the great -forced march of the forlorn hope. -</p> - -<p> -The pinnace, whose furnaces were burning wood, most of -which was wet and green, pounded slowly up river until we -met the steamer <i>Nassifara</i>, into which I transferred myself. -Blissful was the rest in that steamer after my two months' -tremendous toil getting the boats through the Bab-el-Kebir -and the long ride across the desert. So I lay in the steamer -and lived on the height of diet, fresh meat, milk, butter and -eggs, till my tunic hardly held me. I did not then know -why Lord Wolseley had sent for me in so great a hurry. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap26"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P247"></a>247}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXVI -<br /> -THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -IV. THE FIRST MARCH OF THE DESERT COLUMN -</p> - -<p class="t3"> -NOTE -</p> - -<p> -By the end of December, 1884, the whole of the -expedition was in process of concentrating at Korti. At -Korti the Nile fetches a wide arc north-eastward. The -chord of the arc, running south-eastward, runs from Korti -to Metemmeh, and Shendi, which stands on the farther, or -east, bank. From Korti to Metemmeh is 176 miles across -the desert. Shendi was the rendezvous at which the troops -were to meet Gordon's steamers sent down by him from -Khartoum. Wolseley's object in sending Lord Charles -Beresford with the Naval Brigade was that he should take -command of the steamers, which, filled with troops, were to -proceed up to Khartoum. The first business of the Desert -Column under General Sir Herbert Stewart, was to seize -the wells of Jakdul, which lay 100 miles distant from Korti, -and to hold them, thus securing the main water supply on the -desert route and an intermediate station between Metemmeh -and the base at Korti. Having obtained possession of the -wells, the Guards' Battalion was to be left there, while the -remainder of the Column returned to Korti, there to be -sufficiently reinforced to return to Jakdul, and to complete -the march to Metemmeh. Such was the original idea. The -reason why sufficient troops and transport were not sent in -the first instance, thereby avoiding the necessity of the return -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P248"></a>248}</span> -of the greater part of the Column to Korti, and its second -march with the reinforcements, seems to have been the -scarcity of camels. -</p> - -<p> -When the Desert Column made its first march, Lord -Charles Beresford and the Naval Brigade were still on their -way to Korti. The first division under the command of -Lord Charles marched with the Desert Column on its return. -</p> - -<p> -The first Desert Column numbered 73 officers, 1212 men -and natives, and 2091 camels. It consisted of one squadron -of the 19th Hussars, Guards' Camel Regiment, Mounted -Infantry, Engineers, 1357 camels carrying stores and driven -by natives, Medical Staff Corps, and Bearer Company. -Personal luggage was limited to 40 lb. a man. An account -of the march is given by Count Gleichen, in his pleasant and -interesting book (to which the present writer is much -indebted) <i>With the Camel Corps up the Nile</i> (Chapman & -Hall). Some years previously the route from Korti to -Metemmeh had been surveyed by Ismail Pasha, who had -intended to run a railway along it from Wady Halfa to -Khartoum; and the map then made of the district was in -possession of the Column. The enemy were reported to be -about; but it was expected that they would be found beyond -the Jakdul Wells; as indeed they were. -</p> - -<p> -The Desert Column started from Korti on the afternoon -of Tuesday, 30th December, 1884. The Hussars escorted -a party of native guides and scouted ahead. The Column -marched the whole of that night, in the light of a brilliant -moon, across hard sand or gravel, amid low hills of black -rock, at whose bases grew long yellow savas grass and -mimosa bushes, and in places mimosa trees. -</p> - -<p> -At 8.30 on the morning of the 31st December they -halted until 3 p.m., marched till 8.30 p.m., found the wells -of Abu Hashim nearly dry, marched on, ascending a stony -tableland, and still marching, sang the New Year in at -midnight; came to the wells of El Howeiyat, drank them -dry and bivouacked until 6 a.m. on the morning of the 1st -January, 1885. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P249"></a>249}</span> -</p> - -<p> -All that morning they marched, coming at midday to a -plain covered with scrub and intersected with dry water-courses; -rested for three hours; marched all that night, and -about 7 a.m. on the morning of 2nd January, entered the -defile, floored with large loose stones and closed in with -steep black hills, leading to the wells of Jakdul. These are -deep pools filling clefts in the rock of the hills encompassing -the little valley, three reservoirs rising one above the other. -Count Gleichen, who was the first man to climb to the upper -pools, thus describes the middle pool. -</p> - -<p> -</p> - -<p> -"Eighty feet above my head towered an overhanging -precipice of black rock; behind me rose another of the same -height; at the foot of the one in front lay a beautiful, large -ice-green pool, deepening into black as I looked into its -transparent depths. Scarlet dragon-flies flitted about in the -shade; rocks covered with dark-green weed looked out of -the water; the air was cool almost to coldness. It was like -being dropped into a fairy grotto, at least so it seemed to me -after grilling for days in the sun." -</p> - -<p> -</p> - -<p> -When the Desert Column reached that oasis, they had -been on the march for sixty-four hours, with no more than -four hours' consecutive sleep. The time as recorded by -Count Gleichen was "sixty-four hours, thirty-four hours on -the move and thirty broken up into short halts." The -distance covered was a little under 100 miles; therefore the -camels' rate of marching averaged as nearly as may be two -and three-quarter miles an hour throughout. A camel walks -like clock-work, and if he quickens his speed he keeps the -same length of pace, almost exactly one yard. -</p> - -<p> -The Guards' Battalion, to which were attached the Royal -Marines, with six Hussars and 15 Engineers remained at -the Wells. The rest of the Column left Jakdul at dusk of -the day upon which they had arrived, to return to Korti, -bivouacking that night in the desert. -</p> - -<p> -The detachment at Jakdul made roads, built forts, and -laid out the camp for the returning Column. On 11th -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P250"></a>250}</span> -January, a convoy of 1000 camels carrying stores and -ammunition, under the command of Colonel Stanley Clarke, -arrived at Jakdul. -</p> - -<p> -In the meantime, on 31st December, the day after which -the Desert Column had started for the first time, Lord -Wolseley had received a written message from Gordon, -"Khartoum all right," dated 14th December. Should it -be captured, the message was intended to deceive the captor. -The messenger delivered verbal information of a different -tenure, to the effect that Gordon was hard pressed and that -provisions were becoming very scarce. -</p> - -<p> -At the time of the starting of the Desert Column upon -its second march, when it was accompanied by the first -division of the Naval Brigade under the command of Lord -Charles Beresford, and by other reinforcements, the general -situation was briefly as follows. -</p> - -<p> -The River Column, which was intended to clear the -country along the Nile, to occupy Berber, and thence to join -the Desert Column at Metemmeh, was assembling at Hamdab, -52 miles above Korti. It was commanded by General Earle. -The four steamers sent down the river from Khartoum by -General Gordon in October, were at Nasri Island, below the -Shabloka Cataract, half-way between Khartoum and -Metemmeh, which are 98 miles apart. Korti and Berber, as -a glance at the map will show, occupy respectively the left -and right corners of the base of an inverted pyramid, of -which Metemmeh is the apex, while Khartoum may be figured -as at the end of a line 98 miles long depending from the -apex. The Desert Column traversed one side of the triangle, -from Korti to Metemmeh; the River Column was intended -to traverse the other two sides. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-250"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-250.jpg" alt="THE NILE from Wadi Halfa to Khartoum" /> -<br /> -THE NILE<br /> -from Wadi Halfa to Khartoum -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap27"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P251"></a>251}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXVII -<br /> -THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -V. THE DESERT MARCH OF THE FORLORN HOPE -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "When years ago I 'listed, lads,<br /> - To serve our Gracious Queen,<br /> - The sergeant made me understand<br /> - I was a 'Royal Marine.'<br /> - He said we sometimes served in ships,<br /> - And sometimes on the shore;<br /> - But did not say I should wear spurs,<br /> - Or be in the Camel Corps."<br /> - <i>Songs of the Camel Corps</i> (Sergt. H. EAGLE, R.M.C.C.)<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -Korti was a city of tents arrayed amid groves of -fronded palm overhanging the broad river; beyond, -the illimitable coloured spaces of the desert, barred -with plains of tawny grass set with mimosa, and green fields -of <i>dhura</i>, and merging into the far rose-hued hills. All day -long the strong sun smote upon its yellow avenues, and the -bugles called, and the north wind, steady and cool, blew the -boats up the river, and the men, ragged and cheery and -tanned saddle-colour, came marching in and were absorbed -into the great armed camp. Thence were to spring two -long arms of fighting men, one to encircle the river, the -other to reach across the desert, strike at Khartoum and -save Gordon. -</p> - -<p> -The day after I arrived at Korti, 5th January, 1885, the -desert arm had bent back to obtain reinforcements; because -there were not enough camels to furnish transport for the -first march. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P252"></a>252}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The first division of the Naval Brigade, under Lieutenant -Alfred Pigott, also arrived on the 5th. Officers and -men alike were covered with little black pustules, due to the -poison carried by the flies. Nevertheless, they were fit and -well and all a-taunto. They were brigaded under my -command with Sir Herbert Stewart's Desert Column. The -intention was that Gordon's steamers, then waiting for us -somewhere between Metemmeh and Khartoum, should be -manned with the sailors and a detachment of infantry, and -should take Sir Charles Wilson up to Khartoum. The -second division of the Naval Brigade was still on its way -up. It eventually joined us at Gubat. I may here say, for -the sake of clearness, that Gubat is close to Metemmeh and -that Shendi lies on the farther, or east, bank of the Nile, -so that Gubat, Metemmeh and Shendi were really all within -the area of the rendezvous at which the River Column under -General Earle was intended to join forces with the Desert -Column. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Herbert Stewart arrived at Korti on the 5th and left -that place on the 8th, the intervening days being occupied -in preparations. An essential part of my own arrangements -consisted in obtaining spare boiler-plates, rivets, oakum, -lubricating oil, and engineers' stores generally, as I foresaw -that these would be needed for the steamers, which had -already been knocking about the Nile in a hostile country -for some three months. At first, Sir Redvers Buller refused -to let me have either the stores or the camels upon which to -carry them. He was most good-natured and sympathetic, -but he did not immediately perceive the necessity. -</p> - -<p> -"What do you want boiler-plates for?" he said. "Are -you going to mend the camels with them?" -</p> - -<p> -But he let me have what I wanted. (I did mend the -camels with oakum.) With other stores, I took eight boiler-plates, -and a quantity of rivets. One of those plates, and a -couple of dozen of those rivets, saved the Column. -</p> - -<p> -The Gardner gun of the Naval Brigade was carried in -pieces on four camels. Number one carried the barrels, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P253"></a>253}</span> -number two training and elevating gear and wheels, number -three the trail, number four, four boxes of hoppers. The -limber was abolished for the sake of handiness. The gun -was unloaded, mounted, feed-plate full, and ready to march -in under four minutes. When marching with the gun, the -men hauled it with drag-ropes, muzzle first, the trail being -lifted and carried upon a light pole. Upon going into action -the trail was dropped and the gun was ready, all the -confusion and delay caused by unlimbering in a crowded space -being thus avoided. -</p> - -<p> -At midday the 8th January, the Desert Column paraded -for its second and final march, behind the village of Korti, -and was inspected by Lord Wolseley. The same thought -inspired every officer and man: we are getting to the real -business at last. -</p> - -<p> -The Desert Column, quoting from the figures given in -Sir Charles Wilson's excellent work, <i>From Korti to Khartoum</i>, -was composed as follows: -</p> - -<p> - N.-C. Officers<br /> - Officers and Men<br /> -</p> - -<pre> - N.-C. Officers - Officers and Men - - Staff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 6 - Naval Brigade . . . . . . . . . . . 5 53 - 19th Hussars . . . . . . . . . . . 9 121 - Heavy Camel Regiment . . . . . . . 24 376 - M. I. Camel Regiment . . . . . . . 21 336 - Royal Artillery . . . . . . . . . . 4 39 - Royal Sussex Regiment . . . . . . . 16 401 - Essex Regiment . . . . . . . . . . 3 55 - Commissariat and Transport . . . . 5 72 - Medical Staff . . . . . . . . . . . 3 50 - -- ---- - 98 1509 - == ==== -</pre> - -<p class="noindent"> -And four guns (one Gardner, three 7-pr. screw guns), 304 -natives, 2228 camels, and 155 horses. Already there were -along the route at the wells of Howeiyat (left on the -first march) 33 officers and men of the M. I. Camel -Regiment and 33 camels; and at Jakdul 422 officers and -men of the Guards' Camel Regiment (including Royal -Marines), Royal Engineers, and Medical Staff, and 20 camels. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P254"></a>254}</span> -The Desert Column picked up these detachments as it -went along, leaving others in their places. -</p> - -<p> -The Column rode off at 2 o'clock p.m. amid a chorus -of good wishes from our comrades. I rode my white donkey, -County Waterford, which had been sent up to Korti by boat, -We marched ten miles; halted at sunset and bivouacked, -and started again half an hour after midnight. The moon -rode high, and it was very cold; but the cold was invigorating; -and the hard gravel or sand of the track made good -going. Desert marching with camels demands perpetual -attention; the loads slip on the camels and must be adjusted; -a native driver unships the load and drops it to save himself -trouble; camels stray or break loose. By means of perpetual -driving, the unwieldy herd creeps forward with noiseless -footsteps, at something under three miles an hour. -</p> - -<p> -Although the camels were so numerous, their numbers -had been reduced to the bare requirements of that small -mobile column, which alone could hope to achieve the -enterprise. -</p> - -<p> -At 10 o'clock a.m. on the 9th, we halted for four hours -in a valley of grass and mimosa trees; marched till sunset -and came to another grassy valley and bivouacked. On -the 10th we started before daylight, and reached the wells -of El Howeiyat at noon, very thirsty, and drank muddy -water and breakfasted; marched on until long after dark -over rough ground, the men very thirsty, the camels slipping -and falling all over the place, and at length bivouacked. -Starting again before daylight on the 11th, we came to the -wooded valley set among granite hills, where are the wells -of Abu Halfa, men and animals suffering greatly from thirst. -The wells consisted of a muddy pond and a few small pools -of bitter water. More holes were dug, and the watering -went on all the afternoon and all night. -</p> - -<p> -Next morning, 12th January, we loaded up at daylight, -and marched across the plain lying beneath the range of -yellow hills, broken by black rocks, called Jebel Jelif; entered -a grassy and wide valley, ending in a wall of rock; turned -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P255"></a>255}</span> -the corner of the wall, and came into a narrower valley, full -of large round stones, and closed in at the upper end by -precipices, riven into clefts, within which were the pools of -Jakdul. We beheld roads cleared of stones, and the -sign-boards of a camp, and the forts of the garrison, and stone -walls crowning the hills, one high on the left, two high on -the right hand. In ten days the little detachment of Guards, -Royal Marines and Engineers under Major Dorward, R.E., -had performed an incredible amount of work: road-making, -wall-building, laying-out, canal-digging and reservoir-making. -All was ready for Sir Herbert Stewart's force, which took up -its quarters at once. -</p> - -<p> -That evening the Guards gave an excellent dinner to the -Staff, substituting fresh gazelle and sand-grouse for -bully-beef. All night the men were drawing water from the upper -pool of the wells, in which was the best water, by the light -of lanterns. -</p> - -<p> -The next day, 13th January, all were hard at work -watering the camels and preparing for the advance on the -morrow. The camels were already suffering severely: some -thirty had dropped dead on the way; and owing to the -impossibility of obtaining enough animals to carry the -requisite grain, they were growing thin. It will be observed -that the whole progress of the expedition depended upon -camels as the sole means of transport. -</p> - -<p> -When a camel falls from exhaustion, it rolls over upon -its side, and is unable to rise. But it is not going to die -unless it stretches its head back; and it has still a store of -latent energy; for a beast will seldom of its own accord go -on to the last. It may sound cruel; but in that expedition -it was a case of a man's life or a camel's suffering. When -I came across a fallen camel, I had it hove upright with a -gun-pole, loaded men upon it, and so got them over another -thirty or forty miles. By the exercise of care and -forethought, I succeeded in bringing back from the expedition -more camels, in the proportion of those in my control, than -others, much to the interest of my old friend Sir Redvers -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P256"></a>256}</span> -Buller. He asked me how it was done; and I told him -that I superintended the feeding of the camels myself. If -a camel was exhausted, I treated it as I would treat a tired -hunter, which, after a long day, refuses its food. I gave the -exhausted camels food by handfuls, putting them upon a -piece of cloth or canvas, instead of throwing the whole ration -upon the ground at once. -</p> - -<p> -Major Kitchener (now Lord Kitchener of Khartoum), -who was dwelling in a cave in the hillside, reported that -Khashm-el-Mus Bey, Malik (King) of the Shagiyeh tribe, -was at Shendi with three of Gordon's steamers. (He was -actually at Nasri Island.) Lieutenant E. J. Montagu-Stuart-Wortley, -King's Royal Rifles, joined the column for service -with Sir Charles Wilson in Khartoum. Little did we -anticipate in what his plucky service would consist. Colonel -Burnaby came in with a supply of grain, most of which was -left at Jakdul, as the camels which had brought it were -needed to carry stores for the Column. There were 800 -Commissariat camels, carrying provisions for 1500 men for -a month, the first instalment of the depot it was intended to -form at Metemmeh, as the base camp from which to advance -upon Khartoum. -</p> - -<p> -With Burnaby came Captain Gascoigne, who had special -knowledge of the Eastern Soudan, and who afterwards went -up to Khartoum with Sir Charles Wilson. -</p> - -<p> -The Column left Jakdul at 2 o'clock p.m. on 14th -January, and marched for three hours. It was generally -supposed that we might be attacked between Jakdul and -Metemmeh, a distance of between 70 and 80 miles; although -the only intelligence we had was Major Kitchener's report -that 3000 men under the Mahdi's Emir were at Metemmeh. -We did not know that the occupation of Jakdul by Sir -Herbert Stewart on the 2nd of January, had moved the -Mahdi to determine upon the destruction of the Desert -Column between Jakdul and Metemmeh. The news of the -occupation of Jakdul had travelled with extraordinary -swiftness. It was known on the 4th January, or two -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P257"></a>257}</span> -days after the event, in Berber, nearly 90 miles from Jakdul -as the crow flies; and on that day the Emir of Berber -dispatched his men to reinforce the Emir of Metemmeh. -If the news were known in Berber and Metemmeh -it must have run through the whole surrounding area of -desert. The ten days occupied by the Column in returning -to Korti and returning again to Jakdul, gave the enemy the -time they needed to concentrate in front of us. Moreover, -Omdurman had fallen during the second week in January, -setting free a number of the Mahdi's soldiers. But of these -things we were ignorant when we pushed out of Jakdul. -We picked up a Remington rifle, and saw some horse-tracks, -and that was all. -</p> - -<p> -During the second night out from Jakdul (the 15th-16th) -the camels were knee-lashed and dispositions were made in -case of attack, but nothing happened. It was the last night's -rest we were to have for some time. -</p> - -<p> -On the morning of the 16th we started as usual in the -dark. When the light came, we saw the hills of Abu Klea -in the distance, and after marching nearly to them, halted -for breakfast, In the meantime Lieutenant-Colonel Barrow, -with his squadron of the 19th Hussars, had gone ahead -to occupy the wells of Abu Klea. About 11 a.m. Barrow -returned to report that there was a large force of the enemy -between us and the wells. The column was then lying in -a shallow valley, whence the track led uphill over rough -ground towards a pass cleft in the range of hills, beyond -which were the wells. -</p> - -<p> -The Column fell in and mounted at once. Through -glasses we could clearly distinguish innumerable -white-robed figures of Arabs, relieved upon the black cliffs -dominating the pass, leaping and gesticulating. Here and -there were puffs of smoke, followed after an interval by -a faint report; but the range was too far, and no bullet -arrived. Nearer hand, were swiftly jerking the isolated -flags of the signallers, communicating from the advanced -scouts to the main body. The Naval Brigade with the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P258"></a>258}</span> -Mounted Infantry, which were on the left of the Column, -were ordered to ascend the hill on the left of the line of -advance, to guard the flank of the Column. -</p> - -<p> -We dragged up the Gardner gun, placed it in position, -and built a breastwork of loose stones. By the time we had -finished, it was about 4 o'clock. Beyond and beneath us, -a line of green and white flags was strung across the valley, -fluttering above the scrub, and these, with a large tent, -denoted the headquarters of the enemy. -</p> - -<p> -The rest of the Column were hurriedly building a zeriba -in the valley. As the twilight fell, a party of the enemy -crept to the summit of the hill on the right flank, opposite -to our fort, and dropped bullets at long range into the -Column below, which replied with a couple of screw guns. -As the darkness thickened, there arose that maddening -noise of tom-toms, whose hollow and menacing beat, -endlessly and pitilessly repeated, haunts those who have heard -it to the last day of their lives. Swelling and falling, it -sounds now hard at hand, and again far away. That night, -we lay behind the breastwork, sleepless and very cold; and -the deadly throbbing of the drums filled the air, mingled -with the murmur of many voices and the rustle as of many -feet, and punctuated with the sullen crack of rifles, now -firing singly, now in a volley, and the whine of bullets. At -intervals, thinking the enemy were upon us, we stood to -arms. -</p> - -<p> -When at last the day broke, there were thousands of -white-robed figures clustering nearer upon the hills, and the -bullets thickened, so that, chilled as we were, rather than -attempt to warm ourselves by exercise we were fain to -lie behind the breastwork. The Naval Brigade had no -casualties. -</p> - -<p> -Our detachment was speedily called in, so that we had -no time for breakfast, which was being hastily eaten under -fire by the rest of the Column. All we had was a biscuit -and a drink of water. We took up our position on the right -front. Sir Herbert Stewart waited for a time in case the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P259"></a>259}</span> -enemy should attack. Major Gough, commanding the -Mounted Infantry, was knocked senseless by a bullet graze; -Major Dickson of the Royals was shot through the knee; -Lieutenant Lyall of the Royal Artillery was hit in the back. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Herbert Stewart and Colonel Burnaby were riding -about on high ground, a mark for the enemy. I saw the -general's bugler drop close beside him, and running up, -implored both him and Burnaby to dismount, but they would -not. I had hardly returned to my place when I heard -another bullet strike, and saw Burnaby's horse fall, throwing -its rider. I went to help Burnaby to his feet, and as I picked -him up, he said a curious thing. He said, "I'm not in luck -to-day, Charlie." -</p> - -<p> -When it became evident that the enemy would not -attack, Sir Herbert Stewart decided to take the initiative. -He ordered a square to be formed outside the zeriba, in -which the baggage and the camels were to be left in charge -of a small garrison. -</p> - -<p> -In the centre of the square were to be camels, carrying -water, ammunition, and cacolets (litters) for the wounded. -I do not know how many camels there were. Count -Gleichen says about 30; Colonel Colville, in the official -history, gives the figure as 150. In the front of the square -(looking from the rear of the square forward), left, and -nearly all down the left flank, were Mounted Infantry; on -the right front, and half-way down the right flank, Guards' -Camel Regiment. Beginning on the left flank where -Mounted Infantry ended, and continuing round the rear -face, were the Heavy Camel Regiment. Then, in the centre -of the rear, was the Naval Brigade with Gardner gun. On -the right of rear face, the Heavy Camel Regiment extended -to the angle. Round the corner, lower right flank, were the -Royal Sussex, then came the Royal Marines, continuing to -the Guards' Camel Regiment. Behind the centre of the front -ranks were the three screw guns. In case of attack, I was -directed to use my own judgment as to placing the Gardner -gun. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P260"></a>260}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The square was thus formed under fire. Bear in mind -that the column was upon the floor of a valley commanded -by slopes and hill-tops occupied by the enemy. The route -of the square lay over the lower slopes of the hills on the -right, thus avoiding the hollow way on the left commanded -by the enemy's breastworks. Captain Campbell's company -of Mounted Infantry, and Colonel Barrow with his Hussars, -went ahead to skirmish on the front and on the left flank, -and somewhat checked the fire, while Lieutenant Romilly -and a detachment of Scots Guards skirmished ahead on the -right. -</p> - -<p> -It was about 10 a.m. when the square began to move. -The enemy, increasing their fire, kept pace with it. The -route, studded with rocky knolls, furrowed with watercourses, -and sharply rising and falling, was almost impassable for the -camels. They lagged behind, slipping and falling, and we -of the rear face were all tangled up with a grunting, squealing, -reeking mass of struggling animals. Their drivers, terrified -by the murderous fire coming from the right, were pressing -back towards the left rear angle. By dint of the most -splendid exertions, the sailors kept up, dragging the Gardner -gun. Men were dropping, and halts must be made while -they were hoisted into the cacolets and their camels forced -into the square. Surgeon J. Magill, attending a wounded -skirmisher outside the square, was hit in the leg. During -the halts the enemy's fire was returned, driving off large -numbers on the hills to the right. In about an hour we -covered two miles. -</p> - -<p> -Then we saw, on the left front, about 600 yards away, a -line of green and white flags twinkling on long poles planted -in the grass and scrub. No one knew what these might -portend. As the fire was hottest on the right, we thought -that the main body would attack from that quarter. -Suddenly, as we halted, more and yet more flags flashed -above the green; and the next moment the valley was -alive with black and white figures, and resounding with their -cries. The whole body of them moved swiftly and in -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P261"></a>261}</span> -perfect order across our left front, disappearing behind -rocks and herbage. -</p> - -<p> -The square was instantly moved forward some thirty -yards on the slope, in order to gain a better position. Ere -the movement was completed, the enemy reappeared. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap28"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P262"></a>262}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXVIII -<br /> -THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -VI. THE FIGHT AT ABU KLEA -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "England well may speak with wonder<br /> - Of the small heroic band,<br /> - Fearlessly, though parched and weary,<br /> - Toiling 'cross the desert sand;<br /> - How they met the foeman's onslaught,<br /> - Firm, undaunted, with a cheer,<br /> - Drove ten times or more their number,<br /> - Down the vale of Abu Klea."<br /> - <i>Songs of the Camel Corps</i> (Serg. H. EAGLE, R.M.C.C.)<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -Before the square was completely formed on the -top of the knoll at the foot of which it had been -halted when the thousands of Arabs sprang into view -on the left front, the Arabs reappeared on the left rear, about -500 yards distant. They were formed into three phalanxes -joined together, the points of the three wedges being headed -by emirs or sheikhs, riding with banners. The horsemen -came on at a hand-gallop, the masses of footmen keeping -up with them. Our skirmishers were racing in for their -lives. The last man was overtaken and speared. -</p> - -<p> -At this moment the left rear angle of the square was -still unformed. The camels were still struggling into it. -Several camels, laden with wounded, had lain down at the -foot of the slope and their drivers had fled into the square; -and these animals were being dragged in by soldiers. The -appalling danger of this open corner was instantly evident. -I told the bugler to sound the halt, and having forced -my way through the press to the front of the square, -and reported the case to Sir Herbert Stewart, who said, -"Quite right," I struggled back to the rear. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P263"></a>263}</span> -</p> - -<p> -Then I ordered the crew of the Gardner gun to run it -outside the square to the left flank. At the same time, -Colonel Burnaby wheeled Number 3 Company (4th and 5th -Dragoon Guards) from the rear face to the left flank. -Number 4 Company (Scots Greys and Royals) had already -wheeled from the rear to the left flank, so that they were -just behind me. Five or six paces outside the square we -dropped the trail of the gun. So swiftly did these things -happen that the leading ranks of the enemy were still 400 -yards away. -</p> - -<p> -They were tearing down upon us with a roar like the -roar of the sea, an immense surging wave of white-slashed -black forms brandishing bright spears and long flashing -swords; and all were chanting, as they leaped and ran, -the war-song of their faith, "<i>La ilaha ill' Allah Mohammedu -rasul Allah</i>"; and the terrible rain of bullets poured into -them by the Mounted Infantry and the Guards stayed them -not. They wore the loose white robe of the Mahdi's -uniform, looped over the left shoulder, and the straw -skullcap. These things we heard and saw in a flash, as the -formidable wave swept steadily nearer. -</p> - -<p> -I laid the Gardner gun myself to make sure. As I fired, I -saw the enemy mown down in rows, dropping like ninepins; -but as the men killed were in rear of the front rank, after -firing about forty rounds (eight turns of the lever), I lowered -the elevation. I was putting in most effective work on the -leading ranks and had fired about thirty rounds when the -gun jammed. The extraction had pulled the head from a -discharged cartridge, leaving the empty cylinder in the -barrel. William Rhodes, chief boatswain's mate, and -myself immediately set to work to unscrew the feed-plate -in order to clear the barrel or to take out its lock. The -next moment the enemy were on top of us. The feed-plate -dropped on my head, knocking me under the gun and -across its trail. Simultaneously a spear was thrust right -through poor Rhodes, who was instantly killed at my side. -Walter Miller the armourer was speared beside the gun -at the same time. I was knocked off the trail of the gun -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P264"></a>264}</span> -by a blow with the handle of an axe, the blade of which -missed me. An Arab thrust at me with his spear, and I -caught the blade, cutting my hand, and before he could -recover his weapon a bullet dropped him. Struggling -to my feet, I was carried bodily backwards by the -tremendous impact of the rush, right back upon the front -rank of the men of Number 4 Company, who stood like -rocks. -</p> - -<p> -I can compare the press to nothing but the crush of -a theatre crowd alarmed by a cry of fire. Immediately -facing me was an Arab holding a spear over his head, the -staff of the weapon being jammed against his back by the -pressure behind him. I could draw neither sword nor pistol. -The front ranks of our men could not use rifle or bayonet -for a few moments. But the pressure, forcing our men -backwards up the hill, presently enabled the rear rank, -now occupying a position of a few inches higher than the -enemy, to fire over the heads of the front rank right into -the mass of the Arabs. The bullets whizzed close by my -head; and one passed through my helmet. The Arabs -fell in heaps, whereupon our front rank, the pressure upon -them relaxing, fired, and fought hand to hand with the -bayonet, cursing as the rifles jammed and the shoddy -bayonets twisted like tin. -</p> - -<p> -The enemy wavered and broke away, some retreating, -but the greater number turning to the rear face of the -square, carrying some of the Naval Brigade with them. -The rest of my men manned the gun and opened fire on -the retreating enemy. But by the time the gun was in -action the retreating dervishes had hidden themselves in a -nullah, and the main body of the enemy had burst into the -gap left by the camels in the rear face. My men joined in -the furious hand-to-hand fighting all among the jam of men -and camels. The ranks of the front face of the square -had turned about face and were firing inwards. Poor -Burnaby (who was "not in luck to-day") was thrown from -his horse, and was killed by a sword cut in the neck as he -lay on the ground. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P265"></a>265}</span> -</p> - -<p> -Fighting next to me in the square was "Bloody-minded -Piggot"—Captain C. P. Piggot of the 21st Hussars—using -a shot-gun charged with buck-shot. The Arabs were -crawling and twisting under the camels and in and out -the legs of the men, whom they tried to stab in the back, -and Piggot was loading and firing, and the bluejackets -kept calling to him, "Here's another joker, sir!" I saw -the bald head of an Arab emerging from a pile of bodies, -and as Piggot fired I saw the bald crown riddled like the -rose of a watering-pot. -</p> - -<p> -One mounted sheikh, at least, won right into the square, -where the bodies of himself and his horse were found -afterwards. -</p> - -<p> -Numbers 4 and 5 Company, who had withstood the -first rush until they were pressed back upon the mass of -camels, were still fighting in front when they were attacked -in rear. There, the left wing of the Heavy Camel -Regiment—Scots Greys, Royals, and 5th Dragoon Guards—did -desperate hand-to-hand fighting in the square, while the -right wing and the Royal Sussex by their steady fire kept -off the rest of the enemy. The stress endured only a few -minutes. Every Arab inside the square was slain. The -camels, which had made the weak corner of the square, -afterwards saved it by presenting a solid, irremovable -obstacle to the enemy. -</p> - -<p> -As the enemy retired, Sir Herbert Stewart gave the -word, and our men cheered again and again, and the -retreating Arabs turned and shook their fists at us. -</p> - -<p> -Their desperate courage was marvellous. I saw a boy -of some twelve years of age, who had been shot through the -stomach, walk slowly up through a storm of bullets and -thrust his spear at one of our men. I saw several Arabs -writhe from out a pile of dead and wounded, and charge -some eighty yards under fire towards us, and one of them -ran right up to the bayonets and flung himself upon them -and was killed. I saw an Arab, who was wounded in the -legs, sit up, and hurl his spear at a passing soldier. As -the soldier stopped to load his rifle, the Arab tried to -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P266"></a>266}</span> -reach another spear, and failing, caught up stones and -cast them at his foe; and then, when the soldier -presented his rifle and took a deliberate aim, the Arab sat -perfectly still looking down the barrel, till the bullet -killed him. -</p> - -<p> -Surgeon-General Sir Arthur W. May tells me of an -instance of the spirit of the men. A huge able seaman, -nicknamed Jumbo, who was one of the gun's crew when it -was run outside the square, was thrown upon his face by -the charge; and apparently every Arab who went past or -over him, had a dig at the prostrate seaman. -</p> - -<p> -After the action, with the help of able seaman Laker, -I carried him to the doctor. He was a mass of blood, which -soaked my tunic. I tried to wash it afterwards with sand. -He must have weighed about sixteen stone. Quite recently, -at Stornoway, where he is chief petty officer of the -Coast-guard, I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Laker, and we -recalled the salving of poor Jumbo. -</p> - -<p> -He had seventeen wounds, spear-thrusts, and sword-cuts. -Upon visiting him in the Field Hospital a few days later, -Surgeon May, intending to console the patient, said: -</p> - -<p> -"You will be able to be sent back with the next convoy -of wounded, after all." -</p> - -<p> -"Sent back?" returned Jumbo indignantly. "I haven't -done with the beggars yet!" -</p> - -<p> -He recovered, but not in time to gratify his ardour. -</p> - -<p> -The square was moved some 50 yards from the field -of battle and was formed anew. I went to try to find -any wounded men of my Brigade. Having brought in two, -I was starting for a third time, when someone shouted, -"Look out, Charlie!" and I turned about to see an Arab -charging at me with a spear. I ran to meet him, sword in -hand, parried his spear, then held my sword rigid at arm's -length. He ran right up the blade to the hilt, against which -his body struck with so great force that he fell backward. -</p> - -<p> -I picked up a man who was shot through the back, -and put him upon a camel upon which was a wounded -Arab. Presently I heard my man singing out; and I -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P267"></a>267}</span> -found his thumb was being chewed off by the Arab, -whom I hauled off the camel and of whom I disposed in -another way. -</p> - -<p> -The bodies of most of my men who were killed were -found some 25 yards from the place at which we had worked -the gun. Here were the bodies of my poor comrades, -Lieutenants Alfred Pigott and R. E. de Lisle. Pigott had -been promoted to commander, but he never knew it. -De Lisle had his whole face cut clean off. Captain C. P. Piggot -(not to be confused with the naval officer, Commander -Alfred Pigott), who fought like a Paladin in the square, and -who knew not fear, died some years afterwards in England. -(I took him on my coach to Lord's; he was so weak that -he could not get upon it without the help of a footman, -and he looked dreadfully ill. He told me that the doctor -had given him three weeks to live; but he was dead in -three days.) -</p> - -<p> -Eight of the Naval Brigade were killed and seven were -wounded, out of 40 who went into action. Every man of -the Brigade handling the gun outside the square was killed, -excepting myself. -</p> - -<p> -I observed that the rows of bullets from the Gardner -gun, which was rifle calibre .45-inch, with five barrels, had -cut off heads and tops of heads as though sliced horizontally -with a knife. -</p> - -<p> -The official account gives the loss of the enemy at 1100 -in the vicinity of the square. -</p> - -<p> -Nearly half the British rifles jammed, owing to the use of -leaf cartridges. The Remington rifles used by the Mahdi's -soldiers had solid drawn cartridges which did not jam. -During the action of Abu Klea the officers were almost -entirely employed in clearing jammed rifles passed back to -them by the men. The British bayonets and cutlasses bent -and twisted, the result of a combination of knavery and -laziness on the part of those who were trusted to supply the -soldier with weapons upon which his life depends. The -bayonets were blunt, because no one had thought of -sharpening them. The spears of the Arabs were sharp like -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P268"></a>268}</span> -razors. The cutlasses of the Naval Brigade were specially -sharpened. -</p> - -<p> -I noticed that when a soldier was killed, a bluejacket -always endeavoured to secure his bayonet; and that when a -sailor was killed, a soldier always tried to take his hat, -preferring it to the Army helmet. -</p> - -<p> -The official report of Sir Charles Wilson states the total -number of the enemy to have been from 9000 to 11,000, -consisting of men from Berber, Metemmeh, Kordofan, and -1000 men of the Mahdi's army. Of the total number, it -was estimated that 5000 or 6000 attacked. The British -numbered something over 1200 men; but, these being in -square, the weight of the attack fell upon no more than -about 300 men. There were 342 men of the Royal -Artillery on the front face of the square; 235 men on -the left flank, reinforced when the charge came by -some of the Naval Brigade and a company from the rear -face; 300 men and the Naval Brigade, between 40 and -50 strong, on the rear face; and 307 men on the right -flank. The centre was a solid mass of camels. This thin -framework of men, forced back upon the camels, resisted -the tremendous impact of thousands of frenzied fanatics -who knew not fear, and whom nothing stopped but death. -</p> - -<p> -I cannot better describe the result than by quoting the -words of Colonel the Hon. Reginald Talbot, 1st Life Guards, -who commanded the Heavy Camel Regiment at Abu Klea -(<i>Nineteenth Century</i>, Jan. 1886): -</p> - -<p> -"It was an Inkerman on a small scale—a soldiers' battle; -strength, determination, steadiness, and unflinching courage -alone could have stemmed the onslaught." -</p> - -<p> -It was a soldiers' battle, because the attack was sudden; -it came before the square was formed; and in the stress and -tumult orders were useless. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-269"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-269.jpg" alt="THE AUTHOR, 1912" /> -<br /> -THE AUTHOR, 1912 -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap29"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P269"></a>269}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXIX -<br /> -THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -VII. THE FIGHT TO REACH THE RIVER -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "We had beat the foe at Abu Klea, and now had marched all night,<br /> - Parching with thirst, each longed to see the first faint streak of light,<br /> - For all expected with the dawn to see the river flow.<br /> - 'Twas there all right, but in our path stood thousands of the foe;<br /> - We halted, and a barricade of biscuit boxes made,<br /> - And swift their deadly bullets flew round that frail barricade,<br /> - And many a gallant fellow dropped before the welcome cry,<br /> - 'Form square' was heard, 'we must advance, and reach the Nile or die.'"<br /> - <i>Songs of the Camel Corps</i> (Sergeant H. EAGLE, R.M.C.C.)<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -By the time the wounded were picked up, the dead -counted, and their weapons destroyed, and the square -was ready to start, it was half-past three in the -afternoon. There was no food, and hardly any water. The -soldiers suffered dreadfully from thirst; their tongues were -so swollen as to cause intense pain, their lips black, their -mouths covered with white mucus. Several men fainted. -Luckily I had put a skin of water upon a camel just before -the action, so that the men of the Naval Brigade all had -a drink, and there was a little water over for the wounded. -The sailors persisted in smoking; they said it did them -good; so I let them. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P270"></a>270}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The wells of Abu Klea lay some three miles ahead. -The Cavalry, the horses weak, emaciated, and tormented -by thirst, were sent on to reconnoitre. The square followed -slowly. So short-handed was the Naval Brigade that I had -to clap on to the drag-ropes myself. We hauled the gun -through the sand and across nullahs and over rocks till -about 5.30 p.m., when we came to the wells, which were -small pools in the soil, and which, when they were emptied, -slowly filled again. The water was yellow and of the -consistency of cream; but it was cool, sweet, and delicious. -</p> - -<p> -Three hundred volunteers from the Heavy Camel Regiment, -the Guards' Camel Regiment, and the Mounted Infantry -left the wells soon after sunset to march the six weary -miles back again to fetch the camels and commissariat. -They marched and worked all night; yet their lot was -better than ours; for they got food and could keep warm. -As for ourselves, we lay down where we were, without food -or blankets, and suffered the coldest night in my -remembrance. It is suggested to me by a friend who has seen -much active service in many wars, that, owing probably to -the exhaustion of the nerves, men are far more susceptible -to cold after a battle. He himself recalls the night after -Magersfontein as the coldest he ever experienced. At any -rate, we were cold to the marrow that night of 17th-18th -January; cold and bruised and very hungry, the most of us -having had no food for twenty-four hours. I must here -record my admiration of the medical staff, who worked hard -all night, doing their utmost for the sick and wounded. -</p> - -<p> -I sat on an ammunition box and shivered. The wound -upon my finger, where the Arab's spear had cut it, though -slight, was disproportionately painful. Lieutenant Douglas -Dawson (of the Coldstream Guards) came to me and asked -me if I had any tobacco. I told him that my tobacco, -together with my field-glasses, had departed into the desert -with my steed County Waterford, which had run away. -Dawson had six cigarettes, of which he gave me three. I -would cheerfully have given a year's income for them, as -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P271"></a>271}</span> -I told him. We agreed that it was hard to have to die -without knowing who had won the Derby. -</p> - -<p> -At about seven o'clock next morning (18th January) the -convoy returned with the rest of the camels and the -commissariat. We had our first meal for some thirty-six hours. -Then we went to work to build a fort in which to leave the -wounded, and to prepare for the march to the river, some -25 miles distant. A burying party went back to the field -of Abu Klea and interred our dead. Some prisoners -captured by the convoy on its way back to the camp, -reported that Omdurman had fallen; but the information -was not made generally known. I did not hear it until -we reached Metemmeh. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Herbert Stewart then determined to reach the Nile -before next morning. A small detachment of the Royal -Sussex was left to guard the wounded. The column -marched about 3.30 p.m. It was a desperate venture, for -the men had had no sleep for two nights, had fought a -battle in between, had suffered agonies of thirst and the -exhaustion of hunger. But Sir Herbert Stewart had -learned from the prisoners that the enemy who had fought -at Abu Klea were no more than the advanced guard of the -main body, which would probably come out from Metemmeh -to meet us, and that the fall of Omdurman had released a -number of the Mahdi's army; and the general wished to -reach the river before fighting again. He hoped to be upon -the Nile before daylight. In any event, the enterprise of -the Desert Column was a forlorn hope; and by this time we -all knew it. -</p> - -<p> -Cameron, war correspondent of <i>The Standard</i>, came to -me with a very grave face. He was not alarmed for his -own safety, for he was a most gallant man; but he feared -for the Column. -</p> - -<p> -"Lord Charles," he said, "have you any influence with -General Stewart? If so, for God's sake implore him not to -go on without reinforcements. I know these people and he -does not." -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P272"></a>272}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The next time I saw poor Cameron was upon the following -day, when he was lying with a bullet-hole in his forehead, dead. -</p> - -<p> -The Column was guided by Ali Loda, a friendly desert -freebooter who had been captured during the first march -to Jakdul. He was accompanied by Captain Verner and -Colonel Barrow. Half the force marched on foot, in case -of attack; the mounted men each leading a camel. The -commissariat camels were tied in threes, nose to tail, the -leading camel being ridden by a native driver. Although -both men and camels were tired out, they went bravely -along the track leading across a wide plain, with grass and -scrub in the distance. By the time it was dark, we had -come to the long savas grass, and the tracks, hitherto plain -to see in the brilliant starlight, became obscured. Then -began the confusion. By this time men and camels were -utterly exhausted. There was no moon, but no lights were -allowed, and all orders were to be given in a whisper. The -camels, weary and famished, lagged and tumbled down; -their riders went to sleep and fell off; the leading camels -fell behind; and the rear camels, most of them riderless, -straggled up to the front. The formation was totally -disordered. In the darkness the confusion speedily became -inextricable. When there was a halt to wait for stragglers, -the men lay down and dropped asleep. About this time -the Column blundered into a wood of acacia trees armed -with long sharp thorns. There ought to have been no such -wood; indeed, Count Gleichen avers that no one ever found -it afterwards. -</p> - -<p> -In this state of affairs, the Column lost in the dark in -an unknown country, utterly worn out, and inextricably -tangled upon itself, I made the Naval Brigade unspan and -gave them tea. Then we struggled on, hour after hour. -As for silence, the noise might have been heard and -probably was heard at Metemmeh. An immense multitudinous -murmur went up from the unhappy mob of swearing men -and roaring, squealing, grumbling camels. A longer or -more exhausting nightmare I never suffered. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P273"></a>273}</span> -</p> - -<p> -Daylight came at last. It was about 6 o'clock on the -morning of 19th January. The least we had hoped was to -have come within sight of the Nile. But when the Column -halted there was no Nile; only a long gravel slope rising -before us, set with scattered trees rising from the eternal -savas grass and low scrub. Captain Verner went ahead to -reconnoitre, and the Column toiled on up the ridge. Then, -at last, upon reaching the top at about 7 o'clock, we -beheld the wide valley, and the Nile flowing between broad -belts of green, and on the left, the roofs of a chain of villages, -and the walled town of Metemmeh. Beyond, upon the farther -bank, clustered the huts of the village of Shendi. But we -had not yet come to the river. And moving out from -Metemmeh were crowds of the enemy, moving out to cut us -off from the blessed water. Once more, the whole air was -throbbed with the boding war-drums. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Herbert Stewart determined to give the men breakfast -and then to attack. As usual, a zeriba must first be -constructed and the force put in laager. The Column was -halted upon the top of the rising ground, in a space some -300 yards square, surrounded by a sea of thin scrub, in -which the enemy could find cover. A parapet, square in -plan, and about two feet six inches high, was constructed of -saddles and biscuit boxes and anything else which would -serve the purpose. The camels were pushed inside it, and -knee-lashed, and in the centre was placed the hospital. -During the progress of the work the enemy, concealed in -the scrub, crept nearer and opened fire. -</p> - -<p> -The men breakfasted in a rain of bullets. So wearied -were they, that some fell asleep over their food, bullets -singing all about them. Many of the men got no food at all. -I saw two men shot while they slept. One Dervish in -particular sniped the Naval Brigade all breakfast-time. I -subsequently discovered him in the bush, lying dead, a bullet -through his head, in a litter of about 200 spent cartridges. -One of my men was shot, and a spoke was knocked out of -the wheel of the Gardner gun. A soldier was shot through -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P274"></a>274}</span> -the stomach, and was carried screaming to the doctors, who -gave him laudanum. -</p> - -<p> -The situation was far from encouraging. During the -night—the third without sleep—the men had marched -for 14 hours, covering 19 miles, and losing some -hundred camels. We were still four miles from the river, -and between the river and our exhausted force were -thousands of raging Dervishes. We were caught in a trap. -</p> - -<p> -Seventy yards from our left flank was a little hill. In -order to prevent its capture by the enemy, 30 Guardsmen -were told off to occupy it. Volunteers carried saddles -and boxes across the bullet-swept space and built a small -breastwork with them. Several men were knocked over. -In the meantime a company was extended along the ridge -some 50 yards beyond the zeriba to check the enemy's fire; -but they had nothing at which to aim except the puffs of -smoke rising above the scrub. The Naval Brigade had no -better luck with the Gardner gun, placed outside the zeriba -near the left angle of the front. -</p> - -<p> -At some time between 9 and 10 o'clock Sir Herbert -Stewart was hit in the groin and severely wounded. The -knowledge of this disaster was concealed from the men as -long as possible. Then followed a terrible interval, which -lasted for hours. Under that pitiless fire, exposed to an -invisible enemy, men and camels were being hit every -minute. All this time the heat was intense. There we lay -in the blazing sun, helpless, the rattle of rifles all around us, -the thin high note of the bullets singing overheard, or ending -with a thud close at hand; men crying out suddenly, or -groaning; camels lying motionless and silent, blood trickling -from their wounds; and no one seemed to know what we -were going to do. Of all things, the most trying to a soldier -is to lie still under fire without being able to reply. It is -true that there was volley firing in reply to the enemy, but -they were invisible. -</p> - -<p> -The command had naturally devolved upon Colonel Sir -Charles Wilson, R.E., head of the Intelligence Department. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P275"></a>275}</span> -It was clear to me that unless we marched against the enemy -at once, we were done. I dispatched a written message to -Sir Charles Wilson. The messenger was killed. I sent a -second message by Sub-Lieutenant E. L. Munro, R.N., -who was struck by a bullet which wounded him in seven -places. -</p> - -<p> -Shortly afterwards I received a message from Sir Charles -Wilson informing me that he was about to march against -the enemy. I was ordered to remain in command of the -zeriba, with Colonel Barrow. -</p> - -<p> -Before forming square, Sir Charles Wilson ordered the -breastwork surrounding the hospital and that defending the -little knoll occupied by the Guards in our rear, to be -strengthened into redoubts, in case of attack. The ammunition -boxes must be shifted from the inside of the main zeriba, -and carried across and among the baggage and the packed -and helpless camels, a slow, laborious and dangerous -business performed under fire. Men and officers worked -with a will; yet it was 2 o'clock in the afternoon before -they had done. Just then St. Leger Herbert, private secretary -to Sir Herbert Stewart and correspondent of <i>The Morning -Post</i>, was shot through the head. -</p> - -<p> -The square was composed of half the Heavy Camel -Regiment, Guards, Mounted Infantry, Royal Sussex, Royal -Engineers, and some dismounted Hussars. Sir Charles Wilson -placed it under the executive command of Lieutenant-Colonel -the Hon. E. E. Boscawen. The square was formed -up in rear of the zeriba at 2.30 and marched at 3 o'clock. -The men were cool, alert, and perfectly determined. The -British soldier had shut his mouth. He was going to get -to the river, enemy or no enemy, or die. By this time the -enemy were plainly visible in full force in front, horse and -foot gathering behind a line of green and white banners. -The moment the square moved beyond the redoubt, it received -a heavy fire. Several men were hit, and were carried back -to the zeriba by our men, while the square moved forward at -quick march. It made a zig-zag course in order to take -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P276"></a>276}</span> -advantage of the clear patches of ground among the scrub; -lying down and firing, and again advancing. -</p> - -<p> -The Naval Brigade mounted the Gardner gun in the -angle of the redoubt, and, together with the Royal Artillery -and two of their screw-guns under Captain Norton, maintained -a steady fire at the three distinct masses of the enemy. -Two of these were hovering in front of the advancing square, -upon the landward slope of the hill rising between us and -the river; the third threatened the zeriba. In all of these -we dropped shells, paying particular attention to the body -menacing the zeriba. When the shells burst in their midst, -the dervishes scattered like a flock of starlings. -</p> - -<p> -In the zeriba were the most of the Hussars, whose horses -were worn out, the Royal Artillery, half the Heavy Camel -Regiment, half the Royal Engineers, what was left of the -Naval Brigade, and the wounded in the hospital. Some -2000 camels were knee-lashed outside and all round the -larger zeriba, forming a valuable breastwork. -</p> - -<p> -All we could do was to work our guns. As the square -went on, the enemy, moving in large masses, shifted their -position, and as they moved, we dropped shells among -them. We judged their numbers to be greater than at Abu -Klea. Would the square of only 900 men ever get through? -If ever a little British army looked like walking to certain -death, it was that thin square of infantry. -</p> - -<p> -Presently it disappeared from view. Soon afterwards -we heard the steady roll of volley firing, and we knew that -the enemy were charging the square. Then, silence. -Whether the enemy had been driven back, or the square -annihilated, we did not know. What we did know was that -if the square had been defeated, the zeriba would very soon -be attacked in overwhelming force. But as the moments -passed the strain of suspense slackened; for, as the fire of -the enemy directed upon the zeriba diminished and soon -ceased altogether, the presumption was that the square had -been victorious and had got through to the river. -</p> - -<p> -What had happened was that the Arabs, charging downhill -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P277"></a>277}</span> -at the left front angle of the square, had been met by -concentrated rifle fire, our men aiming low at a range of -400 yards, steady as on parade. Once more the British -soldier proved that no troops in the world can face his -musketry. The front ranks of the charging thousands were -lying dead in heaps; the rear ranks fled over the hills; and -the square went on, unmolested, very slowly, because the -men were tired out, and so came to the river. -</p> - -<p> -Count Gleichen, who marched with the square, recounting -his experiences (in his <i>With the Camel Corps up the -Nile</i>), writes: "Soon in the growing dusk a silver streak -was visible here and there in amongst the green belt, but it -was still a couple of miles off.... Our pace could not -exceed a slow march. The sun went down, and the twilight -became almost darkness; ... a two-days-old crescent was -shining in the sky, and its feeble light guided us through -the gravel hills right to the brink of the Nile. The men -were as wild with joy as their exhausted condition would -allow. The wounded were held up for one look at the -gleaming river, and then hurried to the banks. Still, perfect -discipline was observed. Not a man left his place in the -ranks until his company was marched up to take its fill.... -A chain of sentries was established on the slopes overlooking -the square, and in two minutes the force was fast -asleep." Sir Charles Wilson (<i>From Korti to Khartoum</i>) -adds: "The men were so exhausted that when they came -up from their drink at the river they fell down like -logs...." -</p> - -<p> -They had been marching and fighting for four days and -three nights without sleep, and with very little food and -water, and had lost a tenth of their number. That night -we in the zeriba also slept. I remember very little about it, -except that Lieutenant Charles Crutchley, Adjutant of the -Guards' Camel Regiment, woke me twice and asked me for -water. He made no complaint of any kind, and I did not -know that he had been hit early in the day and that he had -a bullet in his leg. General Crutchley, who was so kind as to -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P278"></a>278}</span> -write to me in reply to my request that he would tell me -what he remembers of the affair, says: "I remember lying -on a stretcher that night, and people knocking against my -leg, and that my revolver was stolen, I believe by one of the -camel boys." Crutchley was carried down to the river by -my bluejackets next day, and was taken into hospital. As -I remember the occasion, he left the decision as to whether -or not his leg should be amputated, to me. At any rate, -the surgeon had no doubt as to the necessity of the -operation, at which I was present. With his finger he flicked -out of the wound pieces of bone like splinters of bamboo. -The leg was buried, and was afterwards exhumed in order -to extract the bullet from it. I think I remember that -Crutchley, seeing it being carried across to the hospital, -asked whose leg it was. He was carried upon a litter back -to Korti, and the shaking of that terrible march made -necessary a second operation, which was successful. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Charles Wilson's force, having bivouacked that night -beside the Nile, were up at daybreak; took possession of -the empty village of mud huts, called Abu Kru, but always -known as Gubat, which stood on the gravel ridge sloping -to the Nile, 780 yards from the river; and placed the -wounded in Gubat under a guard. The force then returned -to our zeriba. -</p> - -<p> -When we saw that gallant little array come marching -over the distant hill-top, and through the scrub towards us, -we cheered again and again. Hearty were our greetings. -Our comrades, who had marched without breakfast, were -speedily provided with a plentiful meal of bully-beef and -tea. -</p> - -<p> -Then we all set to work to dismantle the zeriba, to -collect the stores of which it was constructed and to sort -them out, to mend the broken saddles, and load up the -wretched camels, who had been knee-lashed and unable to -move for twenty-four hours. About a hundred camels were -dead, having been shot as they lay. As there were not -enough camels to carry all the stores, a part of these were -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P279"></a>279}</span> -left under an increased garrison inside the redoubt upon the -knoll in rear of the zeriba, Major T. Davison in command. -</p> - -<p> -At midday we buried the dead, over whom I read the -service, Sir Charles Wilson being present as chief mourner. -</p> - -<p> -The last of the wounded to be moved was Sir Herbert -Stewart, so that he should be spared as much discomfort as -possible. He was doing fairly well, and we then hoped that -he would recover. -</p> - -<p> -Before sunset we were all safely lodged in Gubat. The -Desert Column had reached the river at last. It was the -20th January; we had left Korti on the 8th. In the course -of that 176 miles we had gone through perhaps as sharp a -trial as British troops have endured. -</p> - -<p> -At the fight of Abu Klea, nine officers and 65 non-commissioned -officers and men were killed, and nine officers -and 85 non-commissioned officers and men were wounded. -On the 19th January, between the wells of Abu Klea and -the river, one officer and 22 non-commissioned officers and -men were killed, and eight officers and 90 non-commissioned -officers and men were wounded. The general, Sir Herbert -Stewart, had received a wound which was to prove mortal. -All the officers of the Naval Brigade, except Mr. James Webber, -boatswain, and Sub-Lieutenant Munro, who was wounded, -and myself, had been killed. The losses were roughly -one-tenth of the total number of the Column. The camels which -survived had been on one-third rations and without water for -a week. They were hardly able to walk; ulcerating sores -pitted their bodies; their ribs actually came through their skin. -Count Gleichen says that his camel drank from the Nile -for 14 minutes without stopping; and that subsequently the -poor beast's ribs took a fine polish from the rubbing of the -saddle. The horses of the Hussars had been 58 hours, -and many of them 72 hours, without water. I cannot -mention the Hussars without paying a tribute to the -admirable scouting work they did under Lieutenant-Colonel -Barrow during the whole march, up to the time the last zeriba -was formed, when the gallant little horses were dead beat. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P280"></a>280}</span> -The present field-marshal, Sir John French, did splendid -service with the Hussars throughout the campaign. -</p> - -<p> -When we came into Gubat I was painfully, though not -seriously, ill. The galling of the makeshift saddle during -my three days' ride across the desert from Dal to Abu -Fatmeh on my way to Korti, had developed into a horrid -carbuncle; and I was unable to walk without help. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap30"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P281"></a>281}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXX -<br /> -THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -VIII. DISASTER -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "Comrades, who with us side by side,<br /> - Did in the brunt of battle stand,<br /> - Are absent now, their manly forms<br /> - Lie mouldering in the desert sand."<br /> - <i>Songs of the Camel Corps</i> (Sergeant H. EAGLE, R.M.C.C.)<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -On 21st January, the day after the main body of the -Desert Column had come to Gubat, an attack was -made upon Metemmeh, which resolved itself into a -reconnaissance in force. Lord Wolseley's instructions to -Sir Herbert Stewart were "to advance on Metemmeh, which -you will attack and occupy." These instructions Sir -Charles Wilson, upon whom the command had devolved, -determined to carry into execution, although there was a -doubt whether under the circumstances the attempt would -be justified. Metemmeh was a walled town of considerable -strength, lying two miles down the river from the encampment. -Between the encampment and the town rose low -ridges, in whose folds clustered the huts of deserted villages. -</p> - -<p> -The Naval Brigade joined in the attack; and as I was -out of action, Mr. Webber, boatswain, was in command, and -did admirably well. -</p> - -<p> -While Sir Charles Wilson's force was firing upon the -town, whence the enemy briskly replied, Gordon's four -steamers arrived. His black troops instantly landed with -guns, and joyfully bombarded the mud walls; while Sir -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P282"></a>282}</span> -Charles Wilson conferred with Khashm-el-Mus Bey, Malik -(King) of the Shagiyeh tribe, and Abd-el-Hamid Bey, a -young Arab greatly trusted by Gordon, who were in -command of the steamers. Abd el Hamid subsequently -deserted, and was, I think, shot by the Mahdi. Khashm-el-Mus -having reported that a large force was on its way down -from Khartoum under Feki Mustapha, Sir Charles Wilson -decided that he ought not to incur the further loss of men -involved in the capture of Metemmeh. He therefore withdrew -from Metemmeh, and returned to Gubat, destroying the -three intervening villages on the way. -</p> - -<p> -During the reconnaissance of Metemmeh, Major William -H. Poe, of the Royal Marines, was severely wounded in -the leg. He insisted upon wearing a red coat, saying that -his other coat was not fit to be seen; and he made a -conspicuous target. His leg was amputated, and he eventually -recovered; and he rides to hounds to this day. -</p> - -<p> -In view of the approach of the enemy, the wounded were -brought from the fort on the ridge to an entrenched camp -on the river; and opposite to it, upon Gubat Island, a -breastwork was constructed, and was occupied by some of -Gordon's Soudanese who had come in the steamers. Major -T. Davison's outlying detachment, with the remaining stores, -was brought in. -</p> - -<p> -It was now necessary very carefully to consider the -situation. Sir Charles Wilson read the letters dispatched -by Gordon and brought in one of the steamers, the <i>Bordein</i>, -which had left Khartoum on 14th December. Sir Charles -gave me these letters to read. In a letter addressed to the -Officer Commanding H.M. Troops, Gordon requested that "all -Egyptian officers and soldiers" be taken out of the steamer. -"I make you a present of these <i>hens</i>," he wrote, "and I -request you will not let one come back here to me." In -another letter, addressed to Major Watson (colonel in the -Egyptian Army), dated 14th December, Gordon wrote that -he expected a crisis to arrive about Christmas; and implied -that he had abandoned hope of relief. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P283"></a>283}</span> -</p> - -<p> -It was now nearly a month after Christmas, and -Khartoum was still holding out. But it was no longer -possible to carry into execution Lord Wolseley's original -intention: that Sir Herbert Stewart should capture and -occupy Metemmeh; that I should man Gordon's four -steamers with the Naval Brigade and should take Sir -Charles Wilson with a detachment of infantry up to -Khartoum. Now, Sir Herbert Stewart was incapacitated -by his wound; it was not considered practicable to take -Metemmeh; all the officers of the Naval Brigade were killed -or wounded except Mr. Webber; and I myself was so ill -as to be unable to get about without help. Moreover, the -weakened Desert Column, including more than a hundred -wounded, would in all likelihood shortly be attacked by a -greatly superior force. -</p> - -<p> -Two main provisions of the original plan, however, had -been fulfilled. The Column had reached the river; and -Gordon's steamers had joined the Column. And it was -then supposed that Wolseley was marching across the -Bayuda Desert with reinforcements. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Charles Wilson determined to go to Khartoum (a -decision in which I strongly supported him), provided that -he could make reasonably sure that the force to be left behind -was not in immediate danger of attack. He reckoned that the -news of the defeat of the Mahdi's forces at Abu Klea would -have served both to inspirit the garrison at Khartoum, and, -owing to the dispatch of a number of the enemy to meet us, -to relieve them in some measure. And after examining the -commanders of the steamers on the point, he was satisfied -that the delay of two days spent in reconnoitring, would not -be material; a conclusion which was not shared by Khashm-el-Mus, -who was eager to go to Khartoum. -</p> - -<p> -Accordingly, on 22nd January, Sir Charles Wilson -took three steamers down stream to reconnoitre. The -four boats sent down by Gordon were: the <i>Bordein</i>, under -Abd-el-Hamid; <i>Talahawiyeh</i>, under Nusri Pasha; <i>Safieh</i>, -under Mahmoud Bey; and <i>Tewfikiyeh</i>, under Khashm-el-Mus. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P284"></a>284}</span> -Sir Herbert Stewart was moved on board the <i>Tewfikiyeh</i>, -a small boat, which was employed as a ferry between -Gubat Island and the mainland. I went with Sir Charles -Wilson in the <i>Talahawiyeh</i>. I was not of much use, as I -had to be helped on board, and was obliged to lie down -in the cabin. In the same steamer were Major Phipps and -two companies of Mounted Infantry. Old Khashm-el-Mus -was made commandant of the boat instead of Nusri Pasha. -In the <i>Bordein</i> were Captain Verner, Abd-el-Hamid, and -native soldiers. The <i>Safieh</i> had her own crew and -captain. -</p> - -<p> -These vessels, about the size and build of the old penny -steamboats on the Thames, had been ingeniously -protected and armed by poor Colonel Stewart, he who was -treacherously murdered on 18th September, 1884, after -the wreck of his steamer <i>Abbas</i> at Hebbeh. (It will be -remembered that Colonel Stewart was sent by Gordon, -with a party of refugees, to communicate in person with -the authorities in Egypt.) In the bows was a small turret -constructed of baulks of timber, and containing a 9-pr. brass -howitzer (<i>canon rayé</i>) to fire ahead; amidships, between the -paddle-boxes, was the central turret, also built of timber, -and mounting a gun to fire over the paddle-boxes. Astern, -on the roof of the deckhouse, was an enclosure of boiler-plate, -protecting the wheel and giving shelter to riflemen. -The sides and bulwarks were covered with boiler-plate, -above which was fixed a rail of thick timber, leaving a -space through which to fire. The boiler, which projected -above the deck, was jacketed with logs of wood. The -improvised armour of wood and iron would stop a bullet, but -was pervious by shell. -</p> - -<p> -The ships' companies were an interesting example of -river piracy. The steamers had been cruising up and down -the Nile since October, a period of four months, during -which the crews lived on the country, raiding and fighting. -Everything was filthy and neglected except the engines. -The forehold was crammed with ammunition, <i>dhura</i> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P285"></a>285}</span> -grain, wool, fuel, and miscellaneous loot. The main-hold -was inhabited by women, babies, stowaways, wounded men, -goats, amid a confusion of ammunition, sacks of grain, -wood fuel, bedding and loot. The after-hold held the -possessions, including loot, of the commandant. Below the -forward turret slave-girls ceased not from cooking -<i>dhura</i>-cakes. Rats swarmed everywhere; the whole ship exhaled -a most appalling stench; and the ship's company shouted -and screamed all day long. -</p> - -<p> -First there was the commandant, who was theoretically -in chief command of the ship, and who commanded the -soldiers on shore; then there was the officer commanding -the regular soldiers, Soudanese. He was black, and so -were his men, who were freed slaves. The officer -commanding the Artillery was an Egyptian. The Bashi-Bazouk -contingent was composed of Shagiyehs—who were -of the tribe ruled by Khashm-el-Mus—of black slaves, and of -half-castes. Their officers were Turks, Kurds, and -Circassians. The captain of the ship was a Dongolese, and -his sailors were blacks. Under the captain were numerous -petty officers, such as the chief of the sailors, the chief of -the carpenters, and so forth. The chief engineer and his -staff were Egyptians. The Reis (pilot) and his assistants -were Dongolese. -</p> - -<p> -Into this wild medley, in the <i>Talahawiyeh</i>, Sir Charles -Wilson brought a company of Mounted Infantry; and thus -reinforced, we steamed down river; while I lay in the -cabin, in a good deal of pain, and chatted to Khashm-el-Mus, -who became a great friend of mine. He was a short, -grey-bearded, dignified man of middle age, owning great power -over his own people. He remained loyal to Gordon under -very trying conditions, and he stuck by us to the last. -</p> - -<p> -Near Shendi, one of Khashm-el-Mus's men came on -board and reported that the force advancing from Berber -had met the fugitives from Abu Klea and had come no -farther. Another Shagiyeh gave the same information. -The people of Shendi fired on the steamers, which replied -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P286"></a>286}</span> -with ten rounds of shell from each gun. We then went -about and returned to Gubat. At my request, Sir Charles -Wilson conferred upon Mr. Ingram, of <i>The Illustrated -London News</i>, the rank of acting-lieutenant in the Royal -Navy. Ingram had been of the greatest service. He had -brought his own launch up from Korti, volunteered to the -Desert Column, and fought gallantly at Abu Klea and at the -reconnaissance of Metemmeh. As all the naval officers had -been killed or wounded, and I was comparatively helpless, -I was delighted to secure Mr. Ingram, who was exceedingly -useful. -</p> - -<p> -His subsequent history was remarkable. He was killed -while hunting big game in Africa, and was buried upon an -island which was afterwards washed away. The story -goes that the manner of his death and the bearing away by -a flood of his remains, were the fulfilment of a curse, which -fell upon him when, in spite of warnings, he purchased a -certain Egyptian mummy. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Charles Wilson, being assured that no attack was -intended from the direction of Berber, began immediately -to prepare for his expedition to Khartoum. Most -unfortunately, I was compelled to retire into hospital; but I -was able to issue instructions which I hope were of use. At -Sir Charles Wilson's request, I advised him to take the -two larger and better protected steamers, <i>Bordein</i> and -<i>Talahawiyeh</i>. -</p> - -<p> -The work of preparing them began next morning, -23rd January. The first thing to be done was to sort out -from their crews the Egyptians, Turks, Kurds, Circassians, -the "hens" whom Gordon had refused to have again in -Khartoum, and to man the two vessels with Soudanese -sailors and soldiers. Captain Gascoigne and Lieutenant -Stuart-Wortley toiled at this tiresome job nearly all day. -</p> - -<p> -At my suggestion, the people removed from the -steamers were placed in a camp by themselves up stream, -on the Khartoum side of Gubat; so that in the event of a -force advancing from Khartoum, and the consequent revolt -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P287"></a>287}</span> -of the "hens," we should not be placed between two fires. -The military objection was that they would foul the water; -which was obviated by my building wooden piers projecting -into the stream. -</p> - -<p> -An engine-room artificer from the Naval Brigade was sent -on board each steamer, in which they went to work to repair -defects. Wood for the steamers was obtained by cutting up -the <i>sakiehs</i>, or water-wheels, up and down the river, a slow -process as performed by natives receiving orders through -interpreters. Khashm-el-Mus was placed in command of -the <i>Bordein</i>, and Abd-el-Hamid of the <i>Talakawiyeh</i>. Sir -Charles Wilson was to go in the <i>Bordein</i>, together with -Captain Gascoigne, 10 non-commissioned officers and men -of the Royal Sussex, one petty officer and one artificer -Naval Brigade, and no Soudanese soldiers. In the -<i>Talahawiyeh</i> were Captain L. J. Trafford, in command of -10 non-commissioned officers and men of the Royal Sussex, -one of whom was a signaller, one engine-room artificer -Naval Brigade, and some 80 Soudanese soldiers. The -<i>Talahawiyeh</i> towed a <i>nuggar</i> carrying about 50 Soudanese -soldiers and a cargo of grain for Khartoum. According to -Gordon's express desire, the British troops were clad in -red tunics, which, being borrowed from the Guards and the -Heavy Camel Regiment, were far from being a regimental fit. -</p> - -<p> -By the time the preparations were complete, it was too -late to start that night, and the Royal Sussex, folded in -their red tunics, bivouacked on the bank. -</p> - -<p> -During the day, the entrenchments upon the hillside -and by the river were strengthened; and the same evening -a convoy and an escort under the command of Colonel Talbot -started for Jakdul to fetch stores. Captain C. B. Piggot, the -man who knew not fear, carrying dispatches to Korti, -accompanied them. -</p> - -<p> -It should be borne in mind that the chief object of the -expedition to Khartoum, apart from the necessity of -communicating with Gordon himself, was to produce a moral -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P288"></a>288}</span> -effect upon the Mahdists; Gordon's idea being that the -presence of a small force of British soldiers would inevitably -convince the native that powerful reinforcements might be -expected immediately. In the journal of Sir Charles -Wilson (<i>From Korti to Khartoum</i>) he makes the following -comment: -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -"The original plan was for Beresford to man two of the -steamers with the Naval Brigade, mount his Gardner gun -on one of them, and after overhauling them, take me to -Khartoum with about fifty men of the Sussex Regiment. -This was now impossible: all the naval officers were killed -or wounded except Beresford, who was himself unable to -walk, and many of the best petty officers and seamen were -also gone. Beresford offered to accompany me; but he -had done himself no good by going down the river the -day before, and there was every prospect of his getting -worse before he was better. Besides, I felt I could not -deprive the force of its only naval officer, when it was quite -possible the steamers left behind might have to take part in -a fight." -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -That possibility was fulfilled. In the event, if I may say -so, it was lucky that I was there. -</p> - -<p> -At eight o'clock on the morning of the 24th January, the -two steamers started, flying the Egyptian flag, the -slave-girls frying <i>dhura</i>-cake under the fore turret, old -Khashm-el-Mus smoking and drinking coffee on the cabin sofa, both -vessels crammed with yelling and joyous savages, among -whom were a bare score of British soldiers. They must -pass powerful batteries, a single shot from which would sink -them, and dangerous cataracts sown with rocks, and finally -the guns of Omdurman, which was now in possession of the -enemy. And having survived these perils, they might be -unable to return, for the river was rapidly falling. Slowly -they steamed away against the strong stream, and vanished; -and for seven days we waited for news of that desperate -enterprise. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P289"></a>289}</span> -</p> - -<p> -In Sir Charles Wilson's absence, the military command -devolved upon Colonel Boscawen, and after a few days, -Colonel Boscawen being ill with fever, upon Colonel Mildmay -Willson of the Scots Guards. The actual senior officer was -myself. I issued a proclamation to the natives. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> -(<i>Translation</i>) -</p> - -<p> -"To the people of the river districts. -</p> - -<p> -"This is to make it known to you that we are the -advanced portion of the two great English armies which are -now marching on Khartoum to punish the rebels. -</p> - -<p> -"We do not wish to do you any harm if you will come -to see us. You will receive no hurt; and we will pay you -for your cattle and crops. -</p> - -<p> -"If, however, you do not tender your submission, we will -punish you severely. Your cattle will be taken, your villages -and <i>sakiehs</i> burnt, and you yourselves will be killed, even -as those unfortunates who ventured to oppose us at Abu -Klea and Metemmeh. -</p> - -<p> -"Any person desirous of speaking with the English -general should carry a white flag, and come by the river -bank alone. He will not be detained, and he will be guarded -from all danger. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> - "The SIRDAR<br /> - "Advanced Guard, English Army"<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -I was in hospital for only two days. The surgeon's -knife relieved my pain, and I was speedily healed. On the -26th January, and the following day, I took the <i>Safieh</i> down -to Metemmeh and shelled that place, covering the advance -of a foraging party. There were daily expeditions both by -the river in the steamer, and by land, to get goats and -cattle, vegetables for the sick, and green-stuff for the camels, -which had already eaten up all the vegetation about the -camp. We weighed anchor daily at 6 a.m., taking a party -of twenty picked shots from one of the regiments. Small -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P290"></a>290}</span> -parties of riflemen used to fire at us from the left bank, but -we had no casualties. -</p> - -<p> -All the villages in the neighbourhood were deserted; -but there was nothing to be taken from them except a few -beans and lentils, and the native wooden bedsteads. A -good deal of long-range sniping went on, but no one was -the worse for it. -</p> - -<p> -The British sailors and soldiers had trouble with the -native bulls, which, docile enough with natives, resisted -capture by white men. Nusri Pasha, the Egyptian, who -had come down in command of the <i>Talahawiyeh</i>, was -standing on the deck of the <i>Safieh</i>, watching my men trying -to compel a recalcitrant bull down the bank. -</p> - -<p> -"Let me try," said Nusri Pasha. "He'll obey me. -You see." -</p> - -<p> -And he crossed the plank to the shore, and went up to -the angry bull. No sooner did the Pasha lay hand on the -rope, than the bull charged, caught the unhappy Egyptian -between his horns, carried him headlong down the slope -and into the water, and fetched up against the steamer -with his horns fixed in the sponson, while Nusri disappeared -into the river, the beholders yelling with laughter. The -Pasha was fished out, chastened but not much the worse -for his extraordinary escape. Had he been impaled upon -the horns, there would have been no more Nusri, tamer of -bulls. -</p> - -<p> -Every night the tom-toms beat in Metemmeh; and on -the 28th, there was a great noise of firing, which we supposed -to be the celebration of a religious festival. Alas, it was -something else. -</p> - -<p> -On 31st January, Colonel Talbot returned from Jakdul -with a large convoy of supplies. He was accompanied by -the second division of the Naval Brigade, which, it may be -remembered, had not arrived at Korti when the Desert -Column left that place. With the Naval Brigade came -Lieutenant E. B. van Koughnet, in command, Sub-Lieutenant -Colin R. Keppel (son of my old friend Sir Harry -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P291"></a>291}</span> -Keppel), Surgeon Arthur William May (now Surgeon-General -Sir A. W. May, C.B.), and Chief Engineer Henry -Benbow (now Sir Henry Benbow, K.C.B., D.S.O.). Never -was reinforcement more timely; and it was with inexpressible -pleasure that I greeted my shipmates. Once more I -had officers; in the meantime, I had put the <i>Safieh</i> into -fighting trim; and now we were ready for emergency. It -came. -</p> - -<p> -Every night I used to haul off the <i>Safieh</i> into the stream; -and I slept on deck. Very early in the morning of the -1st February, I was awakened by a voice hailing the -<i>Safieh</i>. I ran to the rail, and there, in the first light of -the dawn, was a boat, and Stuart-Wortley's face was lifted -to mine. He climbed aboard. -</p> - -<p> -"Gordon is killed and Khartoum has fallen," he said. -Then Stuart-Wortley told me how Sir Charles Wilson's -two steamers were wrecked, how his force was isolated up -the river, and how the Mahdi might be marching down with -his whole triumphant horde armed with all the guns and -rifles of the fallen city. -</p> - -<p> -"Then the soldiers had better run up more wire entanglements -and earthworks as quick as they can. And I wish to -God I had those two steamers!" I said. -</p> - -<p> -I told Stuart-Wortley I would at once proceed to the -rescue of Sir Charles Wilson's party, and sent him on shore -to tell the news to Colonel Boscawen. -</p> - -<p> -How the tidings came to the camp, is related by -Lieutenant Douglas Dawson, who recorded in his diary how -one "drew his curtains in the dead of night and told him" -... (The diary was published in <i>The Nineteenth Century</i> -for November, 1885. I quote from the copy kindly lent to -me by the author): -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -"<i>February 1st</i>. No member of our small force as long as -he lives will ever forget this morning. Just at dawn I was -woke by someone outside our hut calling for Boscawen. I -jumped up and went out to see who it was, and then made -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P292"></a>292}</span> -out to my surprise Stuart-Wortley, whom we all thought at -Khartoum. -</p> - -<p> -"I looked towards the river, expecting in the faint light -to see the steamers, then seeing nothing, and observing by -his face that there was something wrong, I said, 'Why, good -heavens! where are the steamers, what is the news?' He -said, 'The very worst.'" -</p> - -<p> -The full story of a very gallant exploit, Sir Charles -Wilson's daring voyage to Khartoum, has been modestly -and clearly told in his book, <i>From Korti to Khartoum</i>. The -<i>Bordein</i> and the <i>Talahawiyeh</i> towing the <i>nuggar</i>, came to the -Shabloka Cataract upon the day (25th January) after they -had started. Here the <i>Bordein</i> stuck; and having been got off -after many hours' work, she ran aground again off Hassan -Island next day, during which the expedition advanced only -three miles. On the afternoon of the 27th, a man appearing -on the left bank cried that Khartoum had fallen and Gordon -was slain. No one believed him, because the air was full of -false rumours. The next day, 28th, in the morning, a man -on the right bank cried that Khartoum had fallen and that -Gordon had been killed, two days before. No one believed -him. But it was true. It was on that night that we in -Gubat heard the guns firing in Metemmeh. -</p> - -<p> -By this time, those in the steamers could catch a far -glimpse of the roofs and minarets of Khartoum pencilled -upon the blue above the trees of Tuti Island; and at the -same time, a heavy fire was opened from the battery of -Fighiaiha on their right hand. Then they came to Halfiyeh, -where a battery of four guns fired upon them, on their left -hand. The naked black men in the steamers served their -guns with a furious zeal, while the British infantry fired -steadily, and so through the smoke the red flags went on, -safely past the point of the long island that ends opposite -to Halfiyeh, the Soudanese ecstatically shrieking defiance -and brandishing their rifles. At Halfiyeh were boats lying, -and Khashm-el-Mus said to Sir Charles Wilson, "Gordon's -troops must be there, as the Mahdi has no boats." -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P293"></a>293}</span> -</p> - -<p> -Then, from the <i>Bordein</i>, which was leading, they could see -Government House in Khartoum plain above the trees, but -there was no flag flying from its roof. As they passed between -the island on their left hand and the mainland on the right, -two more guns opened, and there began a heavy rifle-fire -from both sides which continued for the rest of the way. -Tuti Island, the upper end of which faces Khartoum, and -about which on either side the Blue Nile stretches an arm to -join the White Nile, was lined with riflemen firing over a -dyke. At first Sir Charles thought them to be Gordon's -men, and took the steamer nearer in, when the fire increased. -So, writes Sir Charles, "we went on, old Khashm protesting -it was all up, and predicting terrible disaster to ourselves. -No sooner did we start upwards than we got into such a fire -as I hope never to pass through again in a 'penny -steamer.' Two or more guns opened upon us from Omdurman fort, -and three or four from Khartoum or the upper end of Tuti; -the roll of musketry from each side was continuous; and -high above that could be heard the grunting of a Nordenfelt -or a mitrailleuse, and the loud rushing noise of the Krupp -shells..." -</p> - -<p> -They rounded the curve of the island, and there beyond -the space of rushing water torn with shot, and the flash and -smoke of bursting shells, Khartoum rose into full sight; -and there, ranged on the sandy shore beneath the walls, the -Mahdi's banners fluttered above the massed ranks of the -dervishes. -</p> - -<p> -All was done. Sir Charles Wilson had fought his way -to the end, determined to go on till he was certain of the fate -of the city. Then he knew; then, and not until then, did he -give the order to go about. -</p> - -<p> -At the word, as he relates, the Soudanese, who had lost -all they had in the world, were stricken mute and impotent. -Poor old Khashm-el-Mus wrapped his mantle about his head, -crouching in a corner. They ran down stream through the -fire, the Soudanese bravely returning it, the British infantry -steady as ever, and won clear. During four hours they had -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P294"></a>294}</span> -been under fire. They ran down some 30 miles, and moored -for the night. -</p> - -<p> -The next day, 29th January, the <i>Talahawiyeh</i> struck on -a rock in the Shabloka Cataract, and must be abandoned. -The British were transhipped to the <i>Bordein</i>, the natives -bivouacked on an island. Next day the natives were sent -on ahead in the <i>nuggar</i>, hitherto towed by the <i>Talahawiyeh</i>, -and the <i>Bordein</i> followed. The day after, 31st January, -during the afternoon, the <i>Bordein</i> struck a rock, began to -fill, and was run on shore upon a small island close to the -large Mernat Island. When the accident occurred, Sir -Charles Wilson was just preparing to run at full speed past -the fort and battery of Wad Habeshi, which lay on the left -hand some three and a half miles lower down. Mernat -Island lies about 35 miles above Gubat by land, and nearly -40 by river. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Charles Wilson landed guns, ammunition and stores. -At first he intended to make a night march down on the -right bank; but he changed his plan and decided to remain -where he was for the night. -</p> - -<p> -Lieutenant Stuart-Wortley was dispatched to carry the -news to Gubat in one of the two small boats, a felucca. He -left at 6.45 p.m., taking a crew of four English soldiers and -eight natives. They were fired at and missed by the Wad -Habeshi fort; and working splendidly, traversed the 40 -miles in a little over eight hours, arriving at Gubat, as already -related, at 3 a.m. on the morning of 1st February. Stuart-Wortley -and his men faced death every mile of the way; -and their voyage deserves to be remembered as a bold, -determined and gallant achievement. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap31"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P295"></a>295}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXXI -<br /> -THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -IX. THE RESCUE -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "And while lying near Metemmeh<br /> - He went—many a time you know—<br /> - Up the river in his steamer,<br /> - Dealing havoc on the foe;<br /> - And each gallant tar and Jollie<br /> - That was with him, fighting there,<br /> - Now would follow without question,<br /> - Let him lead them, anywhere."<br /> - <i>Songs of the Camel Corps</i> (Sergeant H. EAGLE, R.M.C.C.)<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -[The men used to sing 'Our Navy on the Nile,' -of which the above is an -excerpt; but the rest is so complimentary -to the author, that he is obliged to -omit it.] -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -At two o'clock in the afternoon of the 1st February -the <i>Safieh</i> left Gubat to proceed to the rescue of Sir -Charles Wilson's force. From the time the news -arrived until we started, we were occupied in getting wood -and stores. With me were Lieutenant E. B. van Koughnet, -Sub-Lieutenant Colin R. Keppel, Surgeon Arthur William -May, Chief Engineer Henry Benbow, Acting-Lieutenant -Walter Ingram, Mr. Webber, boatswain, all of the Royal -Navy, Lieutenant R. L. Bower, King's Royal Rifle Corps, -and Lieutenant Stuart-Wortley, who had brought the news -of the disaster. The vessel was manned by picked men from -both divisions of the Naval Brigade, and carried twenty -non-commissioned officers and men, picked shots, of the -Mounted Infantry, under the command of Lieutenant -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P296"></a>296}</span> -R. L. Bower. The engine-room staff consisted of Chief Engineer -Benbow; two engine-room artificers, Royal Navy, -J. T. Garland and G. Woodman; and one chief stoker, Royal -Navy; an Arab or Egyptian engineer, and six Soudanese -stokers. We mounted the two Gardner guns in echelon on -the platform made of railway sleepers and boiler-plate -amidships, and one of the two brass 4-pr. mountain guns -was placed in the turret forward, the other in the turret aft, -both turrets being built of railway sleepers and boiler-plate, -with which defences the ship had been cased above water. -The Reis (native pilot) was stationed inside the barricade -protecting the wheel, to guide the helmsman, who was a -bluejacket. The native boats always carry two Reises, one to -look out, the other to steer. Our Reis was mounted upon a -box so that he could see over the barricade. In order to -guard against the kind of accident which had befallen Sir -Charles Wilson's steamers, I informed him that if he took -us safely up and down he would be rewarded, but that upon -any indication of treachery he would be shot at once. He -was then handcuffed to a stanchion, and Quartermaster -Olden, with a loaded revolver, was placed at his side. -Surgeon-General A. W. May, who very kindly sent me his -recollections of the trip, writes: "A quartermaster with -the nickname of 'Punch' was told off to look after him, and -he stood as grim as death at his side, revolver in hand, quite -ready at the slightest sign of treachery to carry out his -orders ... I always attribute our getting up and down -when the river was low and dangerous to your wise warning -of the pilot." -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Safieh</i> was simply a penny steamer in a packing-case. -Where the packing-case was deficient, bullets went -through her as through paper, and a shell would pierce her -wooden jacket. The pinch would come when we sighted -the fort at Wad Habeshi, which lay on our right hand, -between us and Mernat Island, where was Sir Charles Wilson's -party, and which was some 36 miles up stream from Gubat. -</p> - -<p> -On 1st February we shoved along at the rate of 2.5 -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P297"></a>297}</span> -miles an hour, the most the <i>Safieh</i> could do against the -current, stopped to get wood, and anchored in the stream -during the night. It was impossible to navigate in the dark. -The next day was almost entirely occupied in collecting -wood, which was laboriously obtained by dismantling and -cutting up the <i>sakiehs</i>, native water-wheels. That evening -we arrived within three or four miles of Wad Habeshi, and -again anchored for the night. After weighing next morning, -I assembled the ship's company and briefly addressed them. -I told them that we were in a tight place, but that we would -get out of it; that if we failed to rescue Sir Charles Wilson, -the Mahdi's men would get them and would then come -down upon Gubat; but that we would save Wilson's party. -The men were as cheery and steady as possible. -</p> - -<p> -At 7 a.m. we sighted Wad Habeshi on the starboard -hand; and we saw, far up the river, the trees of Mernat Island, -and the tilted hull and funnel of the stranded <i>Bordein</i>. -</p> - -<p> -By 7.30 a.m. we were within 1200 yards of the fort, and I -opened fire with the bow gun. Wad Habeshi was a strong -earthwork, with four embrasures, mounting four guns, and -manned, according to Stuart-Wortley's report, by 5000 -riflemen. The only practicable channel ran within 80 yards -of the fort. We could only crawl past the battery, and as -we were defenceless against gun-fire, our only chance was -to maintain so overwhelming a fire upon the embrasures as -to demoralise the guns' crews. It was an extreme instance -of the principle that the best defence resides in gun-fire -rather than in armour; for we had no effective armour. -</p> - -<p> -Accordingly, the starboard Gardner and the two brass -guns, the 20 soldiers and 14 bluejackets, poured a steady -and an accurate fire into the fort, disregarding the parties of -riflemen who were shooting at us from the bank. There -were some 600 or 800 of these, and one gun opened fire -from the side embrasure of the fort. Poor von Koughnet -was shot in the leg, and second-class petty officer Edwin -Curnow, number two of the crew of the starboard Gardner, -fell mortally wounded, and died that evening. But so -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P298"></a>298}</span> -deadly was the fire we poured into the embrasures of the -fort, that the enemy could not fire the two guns bearing -upon the <i>Safieh</i> while she was bore abeam of them. We -passed the fort, and by the time we had left it about 200 -yards astern, our fire necessarily slackened, as our guns no -longer bore upon the battery. -</p> - -<p> -Suddenly a great cloud of steam or smoke rose from the -after hatchway. Instantly the fire of the enemy increased. -Chief Engineer Benbow, who was standing with-me on the -quarter-deck, ran to the engine-room. A Maltese carpenter -rushed up to me crying, "All is lost, sare, myself and my -brother, sare! The ship he sink, sare!" and was promptly -kicked out of the way. -</p> - -<p> -I saw the black stokers rushing up from the stoke-hold -hatchway. At the moment it was uncertain whether the -ship was on fire or the boiler injured; but as she still had -way upon her I ordered her to be headed towards the bank, -away from the fort, and so gained another few yards. The -carpenter's mate reported that there were three feet of water -in the well, and that the vessel was sinking. -</p> - -<p> -Then she stopped. In the meantime our fire upon the -side embrasure of the fort was continued by the riflemen; -and it went on without pause, lest the enemy should get -another shot in. I dropped anchor, and addressed the -men. I told them that the vessel was all right, as she -had only a foot of water under her bottom; that the -stores and ammunition must be got up on deck in case -she settled down; that no relief was possible; but that -not a single dervish would come on board while one -of us was alive. -</p> - -<p> -The men were quite cool and jovial. -</p> - -<p> -"It's all right, sir," said one cheerfully. "We'll make it -'ot for the beggars!" -</p> - -<p> -Mr. Benbow, chief engineer, came to me and reported -that the water must have come from the boiler, because it -was hot; and that, as the shot which had pierced the boiler -had entered above the water-line, the vessel was safe. I then -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P299"></a>299}</span> -countermanded the order to bring up the ammunition and -stores. -</p> - -<p> -In the meantime the two engine-room artificers, Garland -and Woodman, had been carried up from the engine-room, -so terribly scalded that the flesh of their hands, forearms -and faces was hanging in strips, like the flesh of a boiled -chicken. They had been stationed by Mr. Benbow between -the boiler and the ship's side, with orders to insert shot-plugs -if the side was pierced; and in that position were farther from -the exit than the Soudanese stokers, and therefore were more -severely injured. The stokers were badly scalded, two -days afterwards, an odour as of the grave pervading the -upper deck, a search discovered a black stoker under the -fortified superstructure. He was hauled out with a boat-hook, -and was then still alive, although his flesh was peeling -from his bones. He had resigned himself to die, as Asiatics -will; and he died. -</p> - -<p> -Considering the situation, I thought that upon the <i>Safieh</i> -probably depended not only the fate of Sir Charles Wilson's -party, who were isolated in a hostile country between the -strong force at Wad Habeshi and the Mahdi's host marching -down from Khartoum, and who could not even rely upon the -native soldiers with them, but the fate of the whole Desert -Column; because if we failed to bring away Wilson, and his -party were captured or slain, the enemy would be encouraged -to descend upon the Desert Column at Gubat. I was, of -course, at that moment ignorant of the movements of the -Mahdi's army; and could only conjecture that they were -even then marching upon us. As a matter of fact, they -were; but the exact sequence of events did not become -known for a long time afterwards. -</p> - -<p> -I asked Mr. Benbow if he could repair the boiler. -</p> - -<p> -He replied, "I think I can do it." -</p> - -<p> -He added that it was still too hot to examine. The time -was then between nine and ten a.m. Mr. Benbow, assisted by -the leading stoker R.N., who had been stationed on deck as -stretcher-bearer, drew the fires and pumped out the boiler, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P300"></a>300}</span> -when he found a hole some three inches in diameter, round -which the plate had bulged inwards, its edges being torn -and jagged. -</p> - -<p> -By the time the examination was completed, it was about -eleven o'clock. Mr. Benbow then set to work to make a -new plate with his own hands. He had brought with him -from the depot at Wady Halfa some engineer's stores: -a piece of sheet-iron, and some bolts and nuts; part of the -equipment I had brought from Korti, when General Buller -asked me if I was going to mend camels with them. I -remembered his chaff in that hour. -</p> - -<p> -Mr. Benbow, with no other assistance than that of the -leading stoker, had to cut a plate, 16 inches by 14, drill the -holes in it to receive the bolts, drill holes in the injured -boiler plate corresponding to the first to a fraction, and cut -the threads of the screws upon bolts and nuts. The new -plate being too thin to take the pressure, he also had to -bolt an iron bar across it, drilling the holes through the bar, -through the new plate, and through the injured boiler plate. -</p> - -<p> -During the whole time he was below in the stifling hot -engine-room at work upon a task demanding at once great -exertion and the utmost nicety, the fire from the fort never -ceased. Bullets pattered continually upon the hull, some of -them piercing it, and striking the wounded men who lay -below. At any moment another shell might burst into the -engine-room. But Mr. Benbow went on with his work. -</p> - -<p> -On deck, we continued to maintain a steady fire, hour -after hour, upon the fort. It was our only chance. The -slightest cessation, and they would bring their gun to bear -on us. The range was between 200 and 300 yards. As we -hung at anchor, the fort bore almost directly astern. It was -therefore necessary to alter the position of our guns. A -rough platform was built aft, upon which one of the Gardners -was mounted, and where it was admirably served all day by -Acting-Lieutenant Walter Ingram. Lieutenant Colin Keppel, -in order to have room inside the narrow wood-protected -casemate astern to train his brass howitzer, sawed off its -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P301"></a>301}</span> -trail. The result was that after each discharge the gun -leaped into the air and fell upon its back. After laying the -gun, and before firing, Keppel removed the sight to prevent -its being injured, and put it in his pocket. Keppel and -Mr. James Webber served the gun all day, firing 150 rounds. -The casemate itself was strengthened to take the shock of the -gun by buttressing it with a stout strut of timber. At every -discharge the whole crazy vessel shook and trembled; her -plates started; and her bows opened. The fire from the -Gardner and the rifle-fire, directed upon the side embrasure -of the fort, were so accurate and incessant that the gunners of -the enemy never had a chance, either to get their gun to -bear or to remove it to another position. The few shots -they fired travelled about 100 yards to the right of the -steamer. -</p> - -<p> -Meantime, Mr. Benbow, down below, went on with his work. -</p> - -<p> -The noise of the engagement was so deafening and -continuous that we did not hear the three shots fired upon -Mernat Island, the signal arranged by Sir Charles Wilson -with Stuart-Wortley to show that the party was safe; and -we were so busy that we did not see the flags hoisted upon -the wreck of the <i>Bordein</i> with the same object. At that -time Sir Charles Wilson's party were themselves engaged -with the enemy, who were firing upon them from the bank. -Sir Charles Wilson was able to make out that the <i>Safieh</i> -was at anchor and was heavily engaged. He then thought -that we had the two steamers, the <i>Tewfikiyeh</i> as well as the -<i>Safieh</i>, that one had been injured, and that the <i>Safieh</i> was -covering her from the fire of the fort. He immediately -broke up his zeriba, embarked the wounded, some of the -natives, the guns, ammunition and stores, and a small guard -of the Royal Sussex, in the <i>nuggar</i>, and sent it down stream -under the command of Captain Gascoigne. The embarkation -was carried into execution under fire. Sir Charles then -landed the rest of his force on the right bank (Wad Habeshi -and the enemy were on the left bank) in his remaining small -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P302"></a>302}</span> -boat, a felucca. The whole party then marched down the -right bank to a point opposite to the <i>Safieh</i>, Captain -Gascoigne taking down the <i>nuggar</i> and the felucca. "As -we got nearer," writes Sir Charles, "we could make out the -white ensign flying bravely in the breeze, a pleasant sight for -hard-pressed Britishers." -</p> - -<p> -Upon the arrival of his force, it immediately opened fire -upon the fort. I signalled to Sir Charles, informing him of -the condition of affairs, and suggesting that he should move -to a place lower down, where I would pick him up on the -morrow. The <i>Safieh</i> lying some 500 yards from the bank, -and Sir Charles having a difficulty in replying to my signals, -Captain Gascoigne volunteered to go aboard. He took a -native crew in the felucca and pulled across under a hot fire -from the fort, which did not discompose him in the least. -There was never a cooler man under fire than Gascoigne. -He brought with him the two engine-room artificers of the -Naval Brigade who had accompanied Sir Charles Wilson, -and who at once went below to help Mr. Benbow to repair -the boiler. -</p> - -<p> -Captain Gascoigne returned with a message from myself -to Sir Charles Wilson suggesting that, in order to divert the -attention of the enemy from the <i>Safieh</i>, he should continue -to maintain a fire upon the fort with a part of his force, -while the rest proceeded farther down to form a zeriba at a -spot suitable for embarkation; and that the women, sick and -wounded should proceed in the <i>nuggar</i> during the night to -the same place, to which I would bring the steamer on the -following morning. Captain Gascoigne rejoined Sir Charles -Wilson without casualty. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Charles then sent Captain Trafford forward with the -Royal Sussex, Khashm-el-Mus and most of the Soudanese, -while Sir Charles himself remained with 30 men and one -gun. They maintained a steady and a useful fire until -sunset, when they marched after the rest of the party. -</p> - -<p> -Meantime, Mr. Benbow, down below, went on with his -work. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P303"></a>303}</span> -</p> - -<p> -It was about two o'clock when the artificers joined him, -so that he had already been toiling single-handed, except -for the leading stoker, for three hours. After another three -hours, at five o'clock, the plate and bar were made, the holes -drilled in them and in the boiler, and the threads cut -upon the bolts and nuts. But the boiler was still so hot, that -it was impossible for a man to be in it, and the plate could not -be fixed, because it was necessary to pass the bolts through -the plates from inside the boiler. Mr. Benbow pumped cold -water into the boiler and out again once or twice; but by -6 o'clock the heat was still too great for a white man to -endure. We smeared a negro boy with tallow, and I -promised him a reward if he would go into the boiler. He -was delighted. He was lowered down, to climb out again -faster than he went in. After a short pause, he had another -try. This time, in a frying heat that only a black skin -could bear, he stayed inside, passing the bolts through, -while Mr. Benbow caulked plates and bolts and screwed -them home. The boy was none the worse in body and -richer in possessions than ever in his life. By seven o'clock -the job was done. -</p> - -<p> -You can see what it was for yourself; for the plate is -now in the Museum of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich. -Rear-Admiral Sir Colin Keppel (sub-lieutenant in -1885), writing to me on the subject, says, "When in -command of the gunboats under Lord Kitchener in 1898, on -our way to Fashoda, about 300 miles above Khartoum on -the White Nile, I again came upon our old <i>Safieh</i>, then -again in the hands of the dervishes, with whom we had a short -action. The first thing I did afterwards was to go down -below (I knew where to look!) and found the patch which -old Benbow had put on more than 13 years before." -</p> - -<p> -Lord Kitchener afterwards had the plate cut out, and -he very kindly sent it to me. -</p> - -<p> -By ten o'clock that night, the boiler was repaired and -the fires were laid. In the meantime, as soon as the -twilight fell that evening, the fire from the fort slackened. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P304"></a>304}</span> -It was my object to delude the enemy into the belief that -we had abandoned the steamer; for, if they thought she was -empty, they would not fire upon her, lest they should damage -an invaluable prize. Moreover, did the enemy suppose that -we were staying by the ship, they would during the night -shift a gun from the fort, dragging it along the bank to a -point abreast of the steamer; whence they could see the -vessel looming on the water, whereas we in the steamer could -not see them; whence the range was no more than about -80 yards; and whence a single hit would disable us. -</p> - -<p> -But all depended upon our running the gauntlet in the -morning. Therefore, in the hope of deceiving the enemy, -as the darkness gathered, the four boats brought down to -embark Wilson's party were ostentatiously hauled alongside, -as if to take off the ship's company. Then all firing -stopped; and after that thirteen hours' furious fusillade, the -immense and crystal silence of the desert submerged us like -the sea. Talking above a whisper was forbidden; every -aperture was closed below, where the lamps were burning -to light Mr. Benbow at his work, and no spark of light was -allowed on deck. The men lit their pipes at a slow match -burning in a bucket, and smoked under cover. -</p> - -<p> -After leaving the <i>Safieh</i> in the afternoon, Captain -Gascoigne had more adventures with his <i>nuggar</i>, of which -by this time he must have been weary. It went ashore -opposite to the fort, which of course shot at it, and Gascoigne -must embark all except the badly wounded, under fire as -usual. Luckily, the enemy failed to get the range. By -sunset, the united exertions of Sir Charles Wilson's firing -party had refloated the <i>nuggar</i>. -</p> - -<p> -Late that night, we saw her drift past us in the darkness. -</p> - -<p> -The fort fired upon her, but apparently without result, -for she drifted on and disappeared. Then the enemy opened -fire again upon the steamer. They had run the guns -outside the fort in the interval, and fired a few rounds at -us, accompanied by a heavy rifle fire. But the <i>Safieh</i> -remained dumb and motionless. The firing ceased, the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P305"></a>305}</span> -enemy evidently believing that we had abandoned the -vessel. -</p> - -<p> -I slept in snatches on deck, waking every now and then -to look round. The officers were sound asleep, lying in a -neat row on the deck. It occurred to me that, taking into -consideration the position in which they lay relative to the -gun on the bank, a single shot might kill them all. So -I roused them up very quietly, and bade them dispose -themselves in various places. I remember how they waked -with a sleepy grin, each looking for a separate corner, -dropping into it and falling asleep again. -</p> - -<p> -So far, our ruse had succeeded. At five o'clock the -next morning (4th February) Mr. Benbow lit the fires, using -the utmost caution, keeping the ash-pit draught plates -almost shut, in order to prevent sparks, which would -instantly betray us, from flying up the funnel. On deck, -we were in suspense, all staring at the shot-riddled funnel. -It kept its secret for fifty minutes; then suddenly it belched -a fountain of hot ashes. It was then within ten minutes -of daylight. Almost at the same moment a great shouting -broke out in the fort, and a convulsive beating of tom-toms. -Then the guns and rifles began to speak again. -</p> - -<p> -What had happened was that when the pressure-gauge -indicated 10 lb. of steam, the Arab captain of the stokers -suddenly appeared at the engine-room hatch, and spoke -swiftly in Arabic to his men, who, before Mr. Benbow could -interfere, flung open the draught plates. -</p> - -<p> -It was a close-run business. In the next ten minutes -the steam had run up to 20 lb. pressure. Instantly -we weighed anchor. The moment the steamer began to -move, such a yell of rage went up from the Dervishes in -the fort, as I never heard before or since. Leaping and -screaming on the bank, they took up handfuls of sand and -flung them towards us. They had thought us fled, and the -steamer theirs. And there we were, and there was the -steamer moving away up river towards Khartoum; and -the men of Wad Habeshi were naturally disappointed. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P306"></a>306}</span> -</p> - -<p> -I took the <i>Safieh</i> about a quarter of a mile up stream, -both to confuse the enemy and to enable me to turn outside -the narrow channel, and at a comparatively safe distance. -Then we went about, and ran down at full speed, again -concentrating our fire upon the embrasures of the fort. Once -more, as we came abreast of Wad Habeshi, we turned both -Gardners and both howitzers upon the embrasures, in one -of which we burst a shell; while the 20 soldiers and the -14 bluejackets maintained their steady rifle fire. -</p> - -<p> -We were running now with the stream instead of against -it, and our speed was the greater, and we stormed past the -fort without a single casualty; and then, just as we thought -we were clear, lo! there was Gascoigne's hapless <i>nuggar</i>, -stuck and helpless some 400 yards below Wad Habeshi, -and in full bearing of its side embrasure. As all depended -upon the safe passage of the <i>Safieh</i>, I ran on until we were -a mile from the fort and out of its range, and then dropped -anchor. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-306"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-306.jpg" alt=""RUNNING THE GAUNTLET." THE ACTION OF THE "SAFIEH" AT WAD HABESHI, 14TH FEBRUARY, 1885" /> -<br /> -"RUNNING THE GAUNTLET."<br /> -THE ACTION OF THE "SAFIEH" AT WAD HABESHI, 14TH FEBRUARY, 1885 -</p> - -<p> -I dispatched Keppel with six bluejackets in a small -boat to the assistance of the <i>nuggar</i>. Rear-Admiral Sir -Colin Keppel very kindly sent to me his account of the -affair, based upon the notes made in his diary at the time. -"The riflemen, having got rid of the steamer, concentrated -their fire on the <i>nuggar</i>. However, the range was long -and their fire was not very accurate. After we had anchored -you dispatched me in a small boat with six bluejackets -to the assistance of the <i>nuggar</i>. After attempting to pull -up to her, we found that the stream was too strong, and so -I decided, having obtained your approval by semaphore, -to land on the right bank, track the boat up until well -upstream of the <i>nuggar</i>, and thus reach her. I found the only -thing to do was to lighten her; and while Gascoigne and -I were throwing overboard sacks of <i>dhura</i> and other things, -I was struck in the groin by a bullet which went through -my breeches but did not penetrate the skin. It only raised -a bruise which made me limp for a few days. There was -a considerable number of wounded in the <i>nuggar</i>. When -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P307"></a>307}</span> -she was afloat again we drifted down. You got under way -in the steamer and picked us up." -</p> - -<p> -Such is Keppel's modest account of what was a very -gallant piece of service on his part and on the part of -Captain Gascoigne, who with their men were working in -the <i>nuggar</i> under fire for three hours. Had they failed -where they so brilliantly succeeded, the whole Column, -as we learned afterwards, would have been jeopardised; -for the steamer, returning to their assistance, would again -have come within range of the fort. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>nuggar</i> was taken in tow, and Captain Gascoigne's -heroic struggles with that unlucky craft were thus ended -for the time. A mile below us, Sir Charles Wilson was -waiting for us with his whole detachment. They were all -embarked, and by 5.45 p.m. we had safely arrived at Gubat. -</p> - -<p> -That night I slept so profoundly that I do not know -when I should have awakened, had not first one rat, and -then another, walked over my face. -</p> - -<p> -Mr. Benbow's skilled and intrepid service had saved the -Column with a piece of boiler plate and a handful of bolts. -He received the special compliments of Lord Wolseley, -who presented him with his own silver cigarette case; and -was promoted to the rank of chief inspector of machinery. -He ought to have received the Victoria Cross; but owing -to the fact that I did not then know that the decoration -could be granted for a service of that nature, I did not, to -my great regret, recommend him for the honour. Mr. James -Webber was promoted to be chief boatswain; and in 1887, -his services being once more exceptionally recommended, -he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant. -</p> - -<p> -Surgeon Arthur May's services were inestimable. Always -cheery, indefatigable and zealous, when he was not attending -to the wounded under fire, he was on deck, rifle in hand, -among the marksmen. It was a great pleasure to me to -report in the highest terms of the conduct of the officers -and men under my command, and specially to recommend -Lieutenant E. B. van Koughnet, Sub-Lieutenant -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P308"></a>308}</span> -C. R. Keppel, Acting-Lieutenant Walter Ingram, Chief Engineer -Benbow, Surgeon Arthur William May and Mr. James -Webber, boatswain, and Lieutenant Bower, commanding -the Mounted Infantry. -</p> - -<p> -During the engagement with the fort at Wad Habeshi -5400 rounds were fired from the Gardner guns, and 2150 -from the rifles. The figure for the brass howitzers is -uncertain, the official report giving 126, but Sub-Lieutenant -Keppel, who served one of the guns, mentioned 150 as the -number fired from one gun in one day. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap32"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P309"></a>309}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXXII -<br /> -THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -X. THE EFFECT OF THE ACTION OF WAD HABESHI -</p> - -<p> -The proximate result of the fight of the <i>Safieh</i> -was of course the fulfilment of its immediate object, -the rescue of Sir Charles Wilson's gallant detachment. -But, years afterwards, it was made known that the -full effect actually extended so far as to include the -salvation of the whole Desert Column. In <i>The Royal Navy: A -History</i>, vol. vii., Sir William Laird Clowes briefly mentions -the fact, referring to Sir F. R. Wingate's letter to Lord -Wolseley of 18th March, 1893. The passages in that letter -to which he refers are as follows: -</p> - -<p> -"... It is therefore on these grounds only that I have -ventured to collate evidence on an episode which may be -considered to have been finally dealt with.... Moreover, -with the light which this evidence throws on the situation, -the results of Beresford's action cannot but be enhanced -... that he was the means of saving Sir C. Wilson and his party -is an admitted fact; but when it is realised that added to -this, his action really saved the Column, it is, I consider, my -duty to bring before you this evidence which, had it been -known at the time, might have secured for Beresford and -Benbow the greatest reward soldiers and sailors can hope -to obtain. But late as it is, it may not be too late for the -question to be reopened.... -</p> - -<p> -"In order to arrive at the actual details of the Dervish -movements subsequent to the fall of Khartoum, a meeting -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P310"></a>310}</span> -was held at the Intelligence Department, Egyptian Army, -Cairo, on the 23rd February, 1893, at which the following -were present, namely, Father Orhwalder, Kasha el Mus -Pasha, Major Hassan Agha Mohammed (Kassala), Hassan -Eff. Riban (late Maowin Berber District) and present at Berber -at that time; the Emir Sheikh Medawi (one of the principal -Dervish Emirs present in the attack on Khartoum).... -</p> - -<p> -"In the unanimous opinion of the above Committee, the -credit of having delayed the Dervish advance and thus -enabling the British Column to be retired safely is due to -the action of Lord Charles Beresford at Wad Habeshi...." -</p> - -<p> -The following short extracts may be cited from the -evidence which led the Committee to their conclusion. The -first is taken from the statement of Esh Sheikh Murabek -Wad el Tilb, a Kordofan merchant who arrived in Cairo on -30th May, 1888, from Omdurman: -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -"... There were 3000 Dervishes there (at Wad Habeshi) -under the Emir Ahmed Wad Faid and Sheikh Mustafa el -Amin. These Dervishes thought they could easily capture -the steamer in which there were only about 30 men, but the -English stood up and fought like men for many hours, they -inflicted great loss on the Dervishes, and forced them to -draw off and disperse. Their Chief Emir was killed as well -as their Artillery Officer. -</p> - -<p> -"The effect of this defeat on the Dervishes was immense, -and it also affected the whole situation. The survivors fled -in many directions, spreading the news of the English victory -far and wide.... -</p> - -<p> -"If the Dervishes at Wad Habeshi had succeeded in -capturing the steamer, there is no doubt Nejumi would have -hastened his march and would have intercepted the English -before they could have got away from Gubat, but instead -of that he halted when he heard of Wad Faid's death, and -delayed some days in consequence at Wad Bishara and at -Gereishab. He had a very large force with him ... -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -"(Signed) MURABEK WAD EL TILB" -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P311"></a>311}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The second extract is translated from the German of -Father Orhwalder, long a prisoner of the Mahdi: -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -"... It is an undoubted fact that Lord Charles Beresford's -gallant action at Wad Habeshi was the means of -saving the lives of Sir Charles Wilson and his party, who -would have suffered a like fate to that of Colonel Stewart -and his companions, and it is an equally undoubted fact -that the Mahdi's success at Khartoum shook the fidelity of -the Shagiyeh, but Lord Charles Beresford's victory at Wad -Habeshi had the effect of making Nejumi dread meeting the -English on the river, and decided him to attack them on -the desert. -</p> - -<p> -"Lord Charles Beresford deserves the credit of having -effected this and was thus the means of saving the entire -British force. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> - "(Signed) DON GUISEPPE ORHWALDER<br /> -"(23<i>rd February</i>, 1893)" -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -It is obvious that the estimation of the conduct of the -officers and men who fought at Wad Habeshi remains -unaffected by the results of the action, which were neither -definitely contemplated nor clearly foreseen. And the -evidence I have quoted being irrelevant, strictly speaking, -to any criticism of the action itself, is here cited, not in order -to enhance the credit of the officers and men concerned but, -for the sake both of its intrinsic interest, and for the purpose -of illustrating, incidentally, the methods occasionally adopted -under the system controlling the Royal Navy. -</p> - -<p> -The effect of the action at Wad Habeshi exemplifies -the extraordinary potency of the element of chance in war. -Under what conceivable theory of tactics could it have been -maintained that a penny steamer had the smallest chance -of rescuing a detachment isolated in a hostile country, upon -condition of twice engaging a powerful battery at short -range, and twice defeating its garrison of sixty or a hundred -to one? Or what self-respecting tactician would have -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P312"></a>312}</span> -predicted that in the extremely improbable event of success, -its effect would have been to check, even momentarily, the -advance by land of the main force of the enemy? -</p> - -<p> -But the unexpected happened; and as it did happen, it -would have been in accordance with a courteous precedent -on the part of the authorities to have recognised the fact. -I make no complaint of their action as regards myself; and -only recall it here in the hope that no repetition of it will be -permitted in respect of others perhaps less fortunate than -I. The Admiralty refused to allow me to count my -service in the Soudan either as time spent in command of -a ship of war, or, as part of a period of command spent both -in peace and war. Their Lordships' refusal might have -involved my retirement before I had completed the time -required to qualify for flag rank. The Queen's Regulations -ordained: that a captain must have completed six years' -service, of which the first three years must be in command -of a ship of war at sea; or that he must have completed four -years during war; or five years, of war and peace combined. -</p> - -<p> -After having been for over two years in command of -H.M.S. <i>Undaunted</i>, I applied (in May, 1892) for permission -to count the 315 days in the Soudan during which I was -borne on the books of H.M.S. <i>Alexandra</i>, which were allowed -as sea-time by the Admiralty, in the required five years of -war and peace combined. The application was refused, on the -ground that war service could not be reckoned by a captain -unless he was in command of a ship of war actually employed -in active service at sea. -</p> - -<p> -Having completed my three years' service in command -at sea, I applied (in April, 1893) for permission to count the -315 days sea-time, although they preceded the three years -in command at sea, as part of the required six years' service. -The application was refused, upon the ground that its -acceptance was not necessary in order to save me from -retirement. -</p> - -<p> -A year and a half afterwards (in January, 1895) I -repeated my application, pointing out that in three cases -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P313"></a>313}</span> -the Admiralty had, by order in council, conceded similar -claims of admittedly much less force than my own, and -that the only naval officers engaged in the Soudan war who -were not allowed to count their time towards promotion -were Captain Boardman and myself. Their Lordships then -merely referred me to their previous answers. I may -mention that my application was warmly and emphatically -supported by Lord Wolseley. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap33"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P314"></a>314}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXXIII -<br /> -THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -XI. THE RETREAT -</p> - -<p> -Upon the day after the rescue of Sir Charles Wilson's -party, a court of inquiry, under my presidency, was -held to investigate the conduct of the captains of the -two wrecked steamers, and one of the Reises. The captains -were acquitted. The Reis was found guilty of treachery, -but his punishment was remitted in consideration of the -fact that he had brought Lieutenant Stuart-Wortley safely -down the river after the wreck of the <i>Bordein</i>. -</p> - -<p> -The little <i>Safieh</i> was riddled with bullet-holes; she -leaked like a sieve, so that even before the action of Wad -Habeshi, the pumps must be kept going continually; and -her bows, under the incessant concussion of the guns, had -opened out like a flower. The sides came away from the -stem, and in order to stop the water coming in, the natives -had stuffed rags and mud into the openings, which of course -widened them. Upon our return to Gubat, I caused a dry -dock to be excavated in the bank; ran the bows of the -steamer into it; closed it against the water with mud; and -kept two black men baling out the water as hard as they -could go for eight hours on end, while we cut and fitted a -new stem and bolted the sides to it; a very difficult job, -because the sides of the steamer were rotten. The other -repairs having been effected, I took the <i>Safieh</i> (which was -so decayed that the pumps must still be kept going) out -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P315"></a>315}</span> -daily for foraging expeditions, to get cattle, sheep and -vegetables, and also to show there was fight in us yet. -There were no fowls, because the Mahdi had declared them -to be unclean. -</p> - -<p> -Captain Gascoigne and Khashm-el-Mus used to accompany -me upon these expeditions, Gascoigne taking command -of the raiding parties on shore: Lieutenant Robert -A. J. Montgomerie (afterwards Rear-Admiral Montgomerie, C.B., -C.M.G.) was of the greatest service. Montgomerie was of -extraordinary physical strength and prowess. He joined -me on 11th February, with Lieutenant G. W. Tyler, at -Gubat. While helping to work the boats up the river, -Montgomerie saved a gun which sank when the boat in -which it was capsized. The weight of muzzle or breach -(whichever it was) was well over 200 lb., and the water was -shoulder-deep. Montgomerie picked up the gun, hove it -upon his shoulder and waded ashore with it. -</p> - -<p> -His exploits at Ismailia are still remembered. He was -sitting in a saloon, where three French natives determined -to provoke the English officer. They chose the wrong man. -One of the trio upset Montgomerie's glass of beer, and -although he did not apologise, Montgomerie, supposing him -to have done it by accident, took no notice. A second -man did the same, with the same result. Then the third -hero deliberately threw down Montgomerie's glass with his -hand. Montgomerie then acted instantly and with great -rapidity. He knocked one man senseless, picked up another -and threw him on the top of his friend, took the third and -flung him up on the roof of the balcony. -</p> - -<p> -Surgeon-General A. W. May reminds me that he and -Montgomerie discovered, at some distance from the river, a -garden wherein grew onions and limes. Montgomerie -pulled the onions, while May collected the limes for the -sick in hospital. But a lime-tree is armed with long and -sharp thorns; and May, desiring to preserve his one and -only uniform, stripped and climbed the tree in his birthday -suit. Suddenly Arabs appeared; and May had but the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P316"></a>316}</span> -time to descend, pick up his clothes and fly with -Montgomerie back to the steamer. -</p> - -<p> -Surgeon-General May also reminds me that upon -another foraging trip, we landed a party of Gordon's -Soudanese troops to capture a flock of sheep. Before the -blacks had time to get away with the sheep, the Arabs came -down, and began to fire at them and also at the steamer. -I sent a black sergeant-major and a bugler to hasten the -retreat of the Soudanese. Two of them, each of whom -was carrying a sheep, lagged somewhat; whereupon the -sergeant-major lay down, took careful aim, and fired at them. -Neither he nor they seemed to consider the method unusual. -It was on one of these foraging parties that Quartermaster -Olden saved the entire raiding party. Captain -Gascoigne, in command of a wild lot of Bashi-Bazouks and -the most of the men from the <i>Safieh</i>, had gone some little -distance inland to a village. I was left in the <i>Safieh</i> with -six men to serve the Gardner gun. The steamer was lying -alongside the bank, but not close in; for it was necessary -to keep a certain depth of water under her keel in a falling -river, and to be able to shove off quickly. I had poles -ready rigged for this purpose. The Bashi-Bazouks, who -began firing from the hip at random with loud cries so soon -as they came on shore, had vanished into the distance with -the rest of the party; when I perceived afar off a crowd of -Dervishes gathering at a place at right angles to the line -upon which the raiding party must return, and nearer to -the <i>Safieh</i> than the village where was the raiding party. -The Dervishes, therefore, evidently intended to cut off the -British force. -</p> - -<p> -I sent for Olden, gave him his instructions, and sent him -on shore with two riflemen. The three ran like hares -through the scrub towards the enemy. They ran at full -speed for about 600 yards to get within range. Then they -scattered, concealed themselves and fired; moved again -swiftly, and fired again; and kept on repeating the -manoeuvre, until the Dervishes, believing that the scrub was -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P317"></a>317}</span> -swarming with English riflemen, drew off; and the raiding -party returned in safety. For this service, Olden was -recommended by me for the conspicuous gallantry medal. -</p> - -<p> -The black soldiers, going barefoot, used to come in with -their feet transfixed by long thorns; these I cut out with a -horse-lancet fitted to my knife; and the operation was like -cutting leather. I had gained experience in performing it -while getting the boats through at Wady Halfa. At Ismailia -a more delicate operation fell to me. While fishing, my -hook caught in a man's eyelid. The French surgeon who -was summoned went to work with a lancet, and tried to pull -the barb through the wound, causing the patient acute -agony. I sent the doctor aside, and using one of a pair of -breeches' bow-ties (for tying bows at the knees) drew the hook -through to the shank, and severed it, much to the surgeon's -indignation. -</p> - -<p> -The expeditions up and down the river in the <i>Safieh</i> -were amusing enough; but we were only making the best -of the interval before the next move. Sir Charles Wilson -had left Gubat on 6th February for Korti, where he arrived -on the 9th bearing the news of the fall of Khartoum, and a -full account of the condition of the Desert Column. Lord -Wolseley telegraphed the information to Lord Hartington -(Secretary of State for War), who telegraphed in reply: -"Express warm recognition of Government of brilliant -services of Sir C. Wilson and satisfaction at gallant rescue -of his party." -</p> - -<p> -Lord Wolseley, upon receipt of Sir C. Wilson's dispatch -containing the account of the action at Abu Kru, fought on -the 19th January, when Sir Herbert Stewart was wounded, -had appointed Major-General Sir Redvers Buller to take -command of the Desert Column, Sir Evelyn Wood being -appointed chief of staff in his place. Buller had left Korti -on 29th January, and had arrived at Jakdul on the 2nd -February. Lord Wolseley had also dispatched the Royal -Irish Regiment to reinforce the Desert Column. The -Royal Irish marched on foot the whole way across the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P318"></a>318}</span> -Bayuda Desert, each man carrying 70 rounds of ammunition, -filled water bottles and rolled greatcoats. The first -detachment left Korti on the 28th January, the second on the 30th; -both arriving at Jakdul on the 4th February. They left -Jakdul on the 7th. Buller left on the following day; and -upon arriving at Abu Klea, he left there two companies of -the Royal Irish, the rest of which accompanied him to Gubat, -for which place he started on the 10th. I saw the Royal -Irish march in; a splendid body of fighting men, trained -down to the last ounce, lean as hounds, and spoiling for a -fight. -</p> - -<p> -It will be observed that Buller was at Jakdul, half-way -across the Desert, on the 4th February, on which date Lord -Wolseley learned from Sir Charles Wilson of the fall of -Khartoum. Lord Wolseley dispatched three sets of orders -to Sir Redvers Buller in quick succession, the last reaching -him at Abu Klea on the 10th, before he had resumed his -march to Gubat. -</p> - -<p> -Lord Wolseley's dispatch instructed Sir Redvers Buller -to make every preparation for the evacuation of Gubat and -the withdrawal of the Column. At the same time, its tenor -left a certain discretion to Buller; who, replying to it in a -private letter carried by the returning messenger to Lord -Wolseley, "spoke," says Colonel Colville, in his official -<i>History of the Sudan Campaign</i>, "hopefully of the situation." I -think the presence of the Royal Irish, in magnificent -condition, suggested to Buller that he could fight anybody -anywhere. -</p> - -<p> -In fact, when Sir Redvers came in to Gubat on 11th -February, he wanted to remain and fight. At his request, -I stated to him my view of the situation; which was, briefly, -that unless we departed swiftly, we should be eaten up by -the enemy, who were known to be advancing in immense -force. I also reported officially that until the Nile rose, the -two steamers remaining to us were practically useless: a -consideration which proved conclusive. Sir Redvers Buller's -dispatch, dated at Gubat 12th February, and addressed to -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P319"></a>319}</span> -the chief of staff, describes the conclusions to which he -came after having carefully reviewed the situation (<i>History -of the Sudan Campaign</i>—Part II. p. 56). The camels were -greatly reduced in number and were nearly worn out; but -if the Column were to attempt any further enterprise, the -camels must be sent to Jakdul and back to bring supplies, -a journey which would take at least ten days. This -circumstance was virtually conclusive. Sir Redvers adds: "I -regret to have to express now an opinion different to that -which I expressed to Lord Wolseley in a letter dated the -night of the 10th instant; but when I then wrote, I was not -aware of the condition of the steamers and of the fact that -the big one could not pass a sandbank 25 miles below this. -Lord C. Beresford considers it doubtful if the other one can -either.... Since writing this I am confirmed in my opinion -by the news that Mohammed Ahmed (the Mahdi) left -Khartoum <i>en route</i> here on the 9th instant." -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-318"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-318.jpg" alt="FIELD-MARSHAL THE RT. HON. VISCOUNT WOLSELEY, K.P., P.C., G.C.B., G.C.M.G., D.C.L., LL.D., O.M. 1833-1913" /> -<br /> -FIELD-MARSHAL THE RT. HON. VISCOUNT WOLSELEY, K.P., P.C., <br /> -G.C.B., G.C.M.G., D.C.L., LL.D., O.M. <br /> -1833-1913 -</p> - -<p> -In the meantime, Lord Wolseley had ordered the River -Column to halt on its way. On the 10th, General Earle, in -command of the River Column, had been killed at the action -of Kirbekan. Lord Wolseley, until he received Sir Redvers -Buller's account of the desperate condition of the River -Column—deprived of transport, encumbered with wounded, -short of stores (owing to bad packing), and without -boots—retained his intention of effecting a junction of the two -columns at Berber. At the end of the third week in -February that scheme was necessarily abandoned. The -River Column was recalled; and Buller, then on his way -back with the Desert Column, was instructed to return -direct to Korti. -</p> - -<p> -On the morning of 13th February the sick and wounded -were dispatched with a convoy under the command of -Colonel Talbot. Eight or nine miles out, the convoy was -attacked, surrounded on three sides, and exposed to fire -from the enemy concealed in the bush. Among the -wounded were the scalded engine-room artificers; one of -whom, recalling the incident in conversation with me -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P320"></a>320}</span> -recently, said: "That was the first time my heart sank—when -the bearers put down my litter, and the firing began." -</p> - -<p> -After about two hours' engagement, when the convoy -had lost eight killed and wounded, the Light Camel -Regiment, under the command of Colonel Clarke, marching from -Jakdul, opportunely appeared, and the enemy drew off. -</p> - -<p> -Colonel Talbot (my cousin) very kindly sent me a copy -of his diary, kept at the time. His account of the affair -gives little indication of what was in fact a passage of very -considerable danger. He was encumbered with a large -number of sick and wounded; his force was small; the -force of the enemy, though it was impossible to estimate -the exact numbers, was formidable; and in spite of Talbot's -skilful and prompt dispositions of defence, the issue must -have been very doubtful had not the Light Camel Regiment -arrived. -</p> - -<p> -Colonel Talbot's account runs as follows: "<i>February</i> -13<i>th</i>.—Received orders from Sir R. Buller to march for -Jakdul at dawn with 75 sick and wounded, Sir H. Stewart -and the worst cases carried in litters borne by Egyptian -soldiers from Khartoum. Escort of 300 men joined from -the 3 Camel Regiments and about 200 Gordon's Egyptians -from Khartoum. -</p> - -<p> -"<i>February</i> 14.—Marched at dawn 8 miles, and halted for -breakfast. Outposts, just as we were about to resume -march, sent in report of approach of large force of -Arabs—mounted men, riflemen, and spearmen. The Column was -formed up, the wounded in the centre surrounded by camels -lying down, and outside them the Egyptian soldiers. The -Camel Corps troops were formed in two squares, one of the -Heavy and Guards' Camel Regiments in front of the Column, -and the other of the Mounted Infantry in rear. Skirmishers -were sent into the bush to feel for the enemy. The enemy -opened fire and worked all round our force, apparently -trying to ascertain our weakest point. It was impossible to -estimate the strength of the enemy owing to the thick bush, -but a considerable number of riflemen, supported by a large -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P321"></a>321}</span> -force of spearmen, were seen, and about 30 horsemen were -counted. After the affair had lasted about two hours, and -we had lost 8 men killed and wounded, the Light Camel -Regiment on the march to Gubat appeared unexpectedly, -and narrowly escaped becoming engaged with us, owing to -both forces being unaware of the proximity of the other, and -through the bush it was difficult to distinguish the Arabs -from ourselves. No doubt the arrival of the Light Camel -Regiment accounted for the sudden disappearance of the -enemy." -</p> - -<p> -It was Colonel Brabazon (now Major-General Sir -J. P. Brabazon, C.B., C.V.O.), second in command of the -Light Camel Corps, who, when the Column had marched -nearly half-way from Abu Klea to Metemmeh, went to his -commanding officer, Colonel Stanley Clarke, and suggested -that the Column should be immediately diverted to the -scene of action. Colonel Brabazon led the Column in the -direction of the firing, and his two or three hundred camels -made so great a dust that the Arabs thought a whole army -was advancing upon their flank, and instantly fled away. -The result was that, hidden in the bush, the Light Camel -Corps occupied the ground vacated by the enemy, unknown -to the convoy, which continued to fire at the place they -supposed the Arabs to be. General Brabazon's account -of the affair, which he very kindly sent to me, is as follows: -</p> - -<p> -"I halted the Column, and the bush being very thick, the -trees stopped most of the bullets; nevertheless, they were -knocking up the dust at the feet of our camels, and a bullet -struck my mess-tin. I ordered our regimental call to be -sounded, 'The Camels (Campbells) are coming,' 'Lights -Out,' and finally 'Dinners.' But it was not until two or -three of us pushed our way through the bush into the open, -whence I saw the convoy preparing to give us another -volley, that they realised we were friends and not foes, and -precious glad they were to see us. They had only a small -escort and were of course hampered with the sick and -wounded, and I think everyone who was there will agree -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P322"></a>322}</span> -that they were in a bad way.... I dined at the Guards' mess -afterwards, and Douglas Dawson said that he had just given -his men the range preparatory to their firing another volley, -when he put up his glasses and made out the helmets and -red morocco coverings of the camel saddles, and shouted, -'Come down! They are our fellows.' Then, Dawson said, -his soldier servant, who was standing behind him, remarked: -'Why, I could have told you they were our fellows ten -minutes before!' I suppose he had recognised the 'Dinners' -call." -</p> - -<p> -So ended a comedy which had come very near to being -a tragedy. Gordon's Egyptian soldiers, who were carrying -the wounded, put the litters down when the firing began. -Among the wounded were poor Sir Herbert Stewart, -devotedly nursed by Major Frank Rhodes, Major Poe, -Royal Marines, Sub-Lieutenant E. L. Munro and Lieutenant -Charles Crutchley. Poe and Crutchley each had a -leg amputated. All the wounded were lying helpless on -the sand, listening to the firing, and moment by moment -expecting the terrible Dervish rush. A violent death was -very close to them, when Brabazon and his men came in the -nick of time. The convoy had one of the narrowest escapes -in the history of the British Army. It remains to add that -Colonel Brabazon received no recognition of his action of -any kind from the authorities. -</p> - -<p> -Colonel Talbot had been continuously employed upon -the difficult and arduous convoy duty since the arrival of the -Desert Column at Gubat on the 21st. Two days later -Talbot started to return to Jakdul to fetch supplies. Not -he nor his men nor his camels had a day's rest from the 8th -January, when the Desert Column left Korti, till the 27th, -when the convoy was back again at Jakdul. The convoy -reached Gubat on the 31st January; next day came the -news of the fall of Khartoum; and the same evening the -convoy marched again for Jakdul with sick and wounded. -From Jakdul it returned with Sir Redvers Buller; arrived at -Gubat on the 11th February; and started again on the 13th, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P323"></a>323}</span> -as already related, with another party of sick and wounded. -On the way back to Korti, Colonel Talbot, without engineers -or commissariat, constructed a camp and built forts at -Megaga Wells, where the main body, including the Naval -Brigade, joined his convoy on 2nd March. -</p> - -<p> -After Colonel Talbot's convoy had left Gubat on 13th -February, I disposed of the poor old <i>Safieh</i> and the -<i>Tewfikiyeh</i>, lest upon our departure they should be taken -by the enemy. The six brass guns were spiked and -thrown overboard, the ammunition was destroyed, the -eccentric straps were removed from the machinery, and -finally the valves were opened and the vessels sunk. -</p> - -<p> -Then came the sad destruction of the stores for which -we had no transport. The number of camels would only -suffice to carry rations for three days, by the end of which -the Column would have arrived at Abu Klea, where were -more stores. When Colonel Talbot's convoy of supplies -reached Gubat two days previously, the garrison had -for ten days been living on short rations: nevertheless, -more than half of what he brought must be destroyed. -Count Gleichen (<i>With the Camel Corps up the Nile</i>) says -that "19,000 lbs. of flour, 3000 lbs. of biscuit, 21,220 lbs. of -beef, 900 lbs. of bacon, 1100 lbs. of tea, oatmeal, preserved -vegetables, coffee, and all sorts of stores were pierced and -thrown into the river"—an example of waste in war resulting -from deficient transport. -</p> - -<p> -Some of the medical comforts, small bottles of champagne -and port, were distributed. One among us—I think his -name was Snow—took a bottle of wine and swore he would -keep it till he drank it in Khartoum. <i>And he did</i>. He -went into Khartoum with Kitchener thirteen years -afterwards, and drank his libation in the conquered city. -</p> - -<p> -That incident reminds me that, when I went with the -party of members of the House of Commons to Russia in -1912, a Russian farmer sent a note to the British admiral, -of whom he said he had heard, together with a bottle -containing mustard which he had grown, and which he sent -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P324"></a>324}</span> -as a token that the aforesaid British admiral would give -his enemies mustard when he met them; for, said the -farmer, the enemies of England would certainly be the -enemies of Russia. I have that bottle of mustard. -</p> - -<p> -What went to my heart when the stores were destroyed, -was the dreadful waste of my drums of precious lubricating -oil, carried so far with so great labour. My tears mingled -with the oil as it was poured out upon the sand. -</p> - -<p> -On the 14th February, at 5.30 a.m., the Desert Column -quitted Gubat and started on the long return march to -Korti, officers and men alike on foot, excepting the Hussars. -There was hardly a pair of boots in the whole column. -Some of the men cut up old rifle-buckets and tied the pieces -with string to the soles of their feet. As for my sailors, -they marched barefoot, every man carrying his rifle, cutlass, -and 70 cartridges, and many of them towing reluctant -camels. One camel to every four men was allotted to carry -saddle-bags and blankets; and the camels kept dropping -and dying all the way. By the time he had been three -days out, Count Gleichen, in charge of the baggage, had -lost 92 camels. At first the weather was cool with a -northerly breeze, and all started well. On the march, in -default of water, I used to spread my clothes in the sun -while I rubbed myself all over with sand; a dry bath that -was highly cleansing and refreshing. On the 15th February -we came to Abu Klea, somewhat weary. -</p> - -<p> -We were of course in constant expectation of attack. -On the next day (16th) the Naval Brigade occupied a sand -redoubt, on which the two Gardner guns were mounted. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Redvers Buller, finding that the water supply was -insufficient and that there was not enough food for the -camels, sent on the Soudanese troops, baggage, stores and -camp-followers under escort to Jakdul, while he halted at -Abu Klea to keep the enemy in check, until the unloaded -camels returned from Jakdul, and until further instructions -arrived from headquarters. The remainder of the Column, -entrenched at Abu Klea, thus became the rearguard, in the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P325"></a>325}</span> -air, as the phrase is; isolated for the time being and -deprived of transport and reserve stores; a dangerous -position forced upon the general by the lack of camels. -</p> - -<p> -In the evening began the customary desert performance, -opened by the Dervishes firing at long range from a -hill-top commanding the camp, and continued during the long, -cold, sleepless night with intermittent sniping to a tom-tom -accompaniment. But our men were seasoned by this time; -and although one among them was hit now and again, the -situation no longer set a strain upon their nerves, but was -accepted as part of the routine. That night two men were -killed and thirteen wounded. It is true that the faithful -José Salvatro, my Maltese servant, who had done and -suffered so much, lost patience on this occasion. He was -heating cocoa over the fire, when a bullet struck the tin and -splashed the hot cocoa all over him. -</p> - -<p> -"Why they fire <i>me</i>, sare?" said José. "Always firing <i>me</i>. -<i>I</i> never did them any harm." -</p> - -<p> -In the morning (the 17th) the enemy opened fire with a -gun; which, after three or four rounds, was knocked out by -the Naval Brigade with a Gardner. -</p> - -<p> -I had walked a little way from the redoubt, when I was -knocked over by a stunning blow striking me at the base of -the spine, and lay helpless. I thought I was done; and I -thought what an unlucky dog I was to have come through -so much, to die on the way back from a wound in a place -so undignified. But it was only a ricochet; my men carried -me in; and I speedily recovered. -</p> - -<p> -During the day Major F. M. Wardrop, D.A.A.G., and -Lieutenant R. J. Tudway of the Mounted Infantry, with -three men, employed the tactics I had used outside Alexandria -two years previously. Riding swiftly from one point -to another, and concealing themselves in the intervals, they -impressed the Dervishes with the delusion that a large force -threatened them in rear, and so caused them to retreat. In -the afternoon, Lieutenant-Colonel H. McCalmont arrived -with the news of the action of the River Column at Kirbekan -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P326"></a>326}</span> -on the 10th, and of the death of General Earle. The mail -from Korti contained a kind message of congratulation -addressed by the Khedive to myself, referring to the -engagement at Wad Habeshi, as well as congratulations -from home. The total number of killed and wounded -during the 16th and 17th was three men killed, and four -officers and 23 men wounded. We heard on the 21st of the -death of our beloved General, Sir Herbert Stewart, who, -in spite of all our hopes, had succumbed to his wound on the -17th, during the march of Colonel Talbot's convoy, seven -miles north of Geb-el-Nus. He was buried with full -military honours on the following day near the wells of -Jakdul. -</p> - -<p> -On the 22nd February a convoy under Colonel Brabazon -arrived with 782 camels. These were only just sufficient to -move the stores and supplies. -</p> - -<p> -It may here be noted that it was only a day or two -previously that Lord Wolseley had received at Korti Sir -Redvers Buller's letters describing the complete collapse of -the transport of the Desert Column; and it was this -information, together with a minute from Sir Evelyn Wood, who -was at Jakdul, that finally decided Lord Wolseley to -abandon his intention of combining the Desert and River -Columns to hold posts along the Nile preparatory to an -autumn campaign. At the same time, great anxiety with -regard to the Desert Column prevailed at home. -</p> - -<p> -Upon the morning of the next day (the 23rd) our -picquets reported that the enemy had received a -reinforcement of some 8000 men and six guns. Perhaps the -Column had never been in more imminent danger than it -was at that moment. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Redvers Buller discussed the situation with me. I -expressed the opinion that the large force of the enemy -would cut off our advance, rush us, and then move upon -Jakdul and so on to Korti itself; and remarked that the -Column was short of transport and of provisions, and would -be short of water. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P327"></a>327}</span> -</p> - -<p> -"What would you do if you were in command?" said -Buller. -</p> - -<p> -I told him that in the evening I would light a larger -number of camp-fires than usual, and, leaving them burning -in order to deceive the enemy, I would then depart in silence -and with speed. -</p> - -<p> -"For a sailor ashore," said Buller, "you've a good head. -I'll do it." -</p> - -<p> -And he did. -</p> - -<p> -At two o'clock the same afternoon, Sir Redvers Buller -sent on his sick and wounded—32 of all ranks—with a -convoy of 300 men commanded by Colonel Stanley Clarke; -and that night, at 7.30, the rest of the Column stole forth -into the desert, leaving a ring of camp-fires flaming in the -dark behind us. We halted after four hours' march and -bivouacked in peace. Next day (the 24th) we were sniped -by a few wandering scouts: and save for these, saw no -enemy. Then began the three days' hard marching, on -short rations, and very little water, in great heat, to Jakdul. -Many of the men fell out: but not one man of the Naval -Brigade. -</p> - -<p> -We arrived at Jakdul on the 26th February. I did not -keep a diary: but Lieutenant Colin Keppel's journal defines -the situation in three eloquent words: "Water, mails, -cigarettes!" -</p> - -<p> -Next day I found time to write home, the first -opportunity for so doing during the past six weeks. -</p> - -<p> -"Even now (I wrote), I am writing in a storm of sand -and wind, my paper blowing one way and my helmet -another, among my camels, who smell most poisonous. -Poor things, they were eight days without water, and had -only what food they could get when foraging in the desert. -And they have so many and so large holes in their backs, -that I am obliged to put shot-plugs in, to keep the water in -when they drink...." -</p> - -<p> -It was true that I put shot-plugs in the camels. My -official report (and what can be truer than an official report?) -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P328"></a>328}</span> -contains under date 27th February the sole entry: -"Employed repairing camels' sides by plugging them with -oakum!" Lord Wolseley laughed when he read it. But -although the surgery may appear empirical, it was -wonderfully successful. The admixture of tar acted as an -antiseptic. -</p> - -<p> -On the following day (28th February) we resumed the -march to Korti; on 2nd March the Naval Brigade joined -Colonel Talbot's convoy at Megaga Wells, with the Heavy -Camel Regiment and Royal Artillery. The Guards' Camel -Regiment had gone on to Abu Halfa. The remainder of -the Column under Sir Evelyn Wood left Jakdul on 3rd -March. -</p> - -<p> -At Megaga Wells Colonel Talbot took command and we -left for Korti, officers and men continuing to march on foot, -very few having soles to their boots. There was one camel -allocated to carry the kits of five men; 30 camels carried -water; and 10 carried the sick. The thermometer registered -112° in the shade, and a hot wind blew. And so we came to -Korti on the 8th March, two months after we had left it. -</p> - -<p> -Lord Wolseley inspected the Naval Brigade on parade; -and expressed his extreme satisfaction at the work they had -done, and the manner in which it had been performed. The -next day the Brigade was broken up, and told off to different -stations, under the command of Captain Boardman. I was -ordered to rejoin the staff of Lord Wolseley. -</p> - -<p> -Colonel Talbot notes that the Heavy Camel Regiment, -of which he was in command, had marched about 850 miles; -that the strength of the regiment upon leaving Korti was -23 officers and 373 men; and that its strength upon its -return was 15 officers and 256 men. -</p> - -<p> -Only four of his men arrived on camels. Not one of my -sailors fell out during the whole way from Gubat to Korti. -</p> - -<p> -Here, perhaps, it is not inopportune to place on record -how delighted I was to work with the Army. We are really -only one Service, for the protection of one Empire. -</p> - -<p> -Nor, perhaps, to relate how that Her Majesty Queen -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P329"></a>329}</span> -Victoria, when she pinned the C.B. to my coat, said low, -"I am very glad to give you this, Lord Charles. I am very -pleased with you." -</p> - -<p> -Her Majesty's words were my reward; for I will own -that decorations as such have never attracted me. -</p> - -<p> -I desire to record the excellent service of Captain -F. R. Boardman (afterwards Admiral Frederick Ross Boardman, -C.B.), who invariably did his utmost at the base to keep the -Naval Brigade supplied. It was not Captain Boardman's -fortune to be in the first fighting line, where is all the fun -and where is often all the renown; yet the success of the -fighting line depends entirely upon the energy, forethought -and unselfish loyalty of those at the base of supply. -</p> - -<p> -I happened to be discussing this point with a certain -highly distinguished personage. -</p> - -<p> -"We got all the credit," I said, "but not half enough -was given to those at the base who sent forward the bullets -and the grub." -</p> - -<p> -"Grub? What is grub?" inquired the highly distinguished -personage. -</p> - -<p> -"I beg your pardon, sir. It is a slang term for food and -provisions." -</p> - -<p> -"So grub is food, is it? How very interesting!" said the -highly distinguished personage. -</p> - -<p> -The sequel to our expedition was of course Lord -Kitchener's masterly campaign. After the capture of -Omdurman, and the blowing up of the Mahdi's tomb, it -was publicly stated that a certain officer was bringing home -the skull of the holy man, intending to make it into an -inkpot. The House of Commons (of which I was then a -member) having nothing better to do, discussed the matter -on 5th June, 1899. Lord Kitchener sat in the Distinguished -Strangers' Gallery. Mr. John Morley (now Lord Morley) -protested against the desecration of the tomb of the Mahdi. -I replied to Mr. Morley, protesting against his assumption of -authority in the matter. I said: -</p> - -<p> -"Now I wish to take, most respectfully, issue with the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P330"></a>330}</span> -right honourable the Member for Montrose upon this point. -I say this with great respect and with great earnestness -that so far as I can judge from the right honourable -gentleman's writings and by his teachings, he is no judge -of religious fanaticism whatever. I say this with respect -because, as I understand what he has written, he does not -regard religious fanaticism as anything that can ever be -powerful, because he says himself that he does not understand -the question at all. That being so, I cannot accept -the right honourable gentleman as a guide as to what -should be done to check religious fanaticism.... The -right honourable the Member for Montrose does not -believe in the power of religious fanaticism...." -</p> - -<p> -Mr. Morley: "The Noble Lord cannot have read my -writings, or else he would have seen that fanaticism was one -of the things I have written most about" (Hansard 5th -June, 1899). -</p> - -<p> -A member said to me in the lobby afterwards: "You -really ought not to say these things. Why do you make -these assertions?" -</p> - -<p> -"Because," I said, "I have read Mr. Morley's works." -</p> - -<p> -"You know very well," said my friend, "that you have -never read any of his books." -</p> - -<p> -"I beg your pardon," I replied. "I never go to sleep -without reading one of Mr. Morley's books, and I never -read one of Mr. Morley's books without going to sleep." -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap34"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P331"></a>331}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXXIV -<br /> -THE SOUDAN WAR (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -XII. SEQUEL AND CONCLUSION -</p> - -<p> -For the first few weeks after the return of the Desert -Column to Korti, we all believed that there would -be an autumn campaign, and we looked forward to -the taking of Khartoum. Lord Wolseley distributed his -troops among various stations along the Nile from the -Hannek Cataract to Abu Dom, there to remain in summer -quarters. In his dispatch of 6th March, 1885 (Colville's -<i>History of the Soudan Campaign</i>, Part II.), Lord Wolseley -indicated the force he would require, and requested that -the railway might be continued from Halfa to Ferkeh, a -distance of 47 miles. The railway was begun and was -eventually completed. By 1st April the troops were -occupying their allotted stations. One distinguished officer -was so certain of remaining in his quarters, that he sowed -vegetables in his garden. But upon 13th April Lord -Wolseley was ordered to consider the measures requisite -to effect a total withdrawal; and British faith was once -more broken by a British Government. -</p> - -<p> -By that time Lord Wolseley, to whose personal staff I -was once more attached, had been to Dongola and had -come to Cairo. -</p> - -<p> -The news from home consisted chiefly of rumours of -war with Russia; and I was gratified to learn that largely -in consequence of my representations 50 machine guns -had been sent to India. Machine guns were then upon -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P332"></a>332}</span> -their trial; and I had been consulted by the authorities as -to their precise utility. We also heard of the hearty -cordiality and enthusiasm with which the Prince and -Princess of Wales were being greeted in Ireland upon the -occasion of their visit to my country. There had been -some misgivings upon the subject; and I had had the honour -to suggest to the Prince that if, as well as visiting towns -and cities in state, he went into the country among my -people and shot with them and hunted with them like the -sportsman he was, he would find no more loyal or -delightful people in the Queen's dominions. -</p> - -<p> -As a matter of fact, neither in the towns nor anywhere -else in Ireland, did the Prince and Princess receive aught -but a most hearty welcome. Nor did the Nationalist party -even attempt to arouse a formal demonstration directed -against their visitors. They might have suggested, but -did not, that some such conventional protest was due to -the doctrine representing Ireland as a conquered country. -</p> - -<p> -At the end of April Lord Wolseley and his staff -including myself, embarked in the s.s. <i>Queen</i> for Souakim. -</p> - -<p> -The Souakim expedition under the command of General -Sir G. Graham was then in full progress. On the 20th -February he had been directed to destroy the power of -Osman Digna, and to guard the construction of the -Souakim-Berber railway. On the 20th March, Graham fought the -successful action of Hashin. On the 22nd was fought the -bloody engagement of McNeill's zeriba. The British were -surprised while at work upon the construction of the -zeriba; the first shot was fired at 2.50 p.m., and the cease -fire was sounded at 3.10. During that twenty minutes of -confused and desperate fighting, some 1500 Arabs out of an -attacking force of 5000 were killed. Desultory firing -continued for an hour, when the enemy retreated. According -to the official history, the British losses were 150 killed, -148 missing, 174 wounded, and 501 camels killed and -missing. -</p> - -<p> -The field of battle lay some six miles from Souakim; I -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P333"></a>333}</span> -rode out with Lord Wolseley to see it. Before we had -ridden three miles in the dust and the glare of sunlight, -the hot air carried a dreadful waft of corruption. The -stench thickened as we drew near. A dusky cloud of kites -and vultures hovered sluggishly and unafraid among a -wilderness of discoloured mounds. The sand was heaped -so scantily upon the dead, that lipless skulls, and mutilated -shanks, and clenched hands, were dreadfully displayed. -The bodies of the camels were mingled in a pile of -corruption, clustered upon by the birds of prey. -</p> - -<p> -And wandering about that charnel-ground, raking in it -with a hooked stick, was a strange man whom I had met -years ago in Japan, where he used to photograph the cruel -executions of that country. He spoke no known tongue, -but chattered in a jumble of languages; and here he was, -equipped with a camera, and placidly exploring horrors with -a hooked stick. Whence he came, and whither he went, -we stayed not to inquire. -</p> - -<p> -Day after day, for many days, the convoys of the expedition -must pass and repass this place, which lay in their -direct route, at the slow march of laden camels, and walking -warily, lest they stepped ankle-deep into a festering corpse. -</p> - -<p> -General Graham, having occupied Tamai, Handub, and -Tambuk, dispersed the force of Mohammed Sardun on the -6th May; an operation which left him practically master of -the district. But on the 11th May, Lord Wolseley, acting -upon the instructions of the Government, ordered the general -withdrawal of all troops from the Soudan. On the 19th, we -left Souakim for Cairo. On the 27th June, Lord Wolseley -turned over the command of the forces in Egypt to General -Sir F. Stephenson, and with his staff left Cairo for -Alexandria, there to embark for England. -</p> - -<p> -Seven days previously (on 20th June), though we knew -not of it, the Mahdi, who had given us so much trouble, had -died in Khartoum. There he lay, listening perhaps for the -footsteps of the returning English; for he knew that, although -the English are ruled by people having the appearance of -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P334"></a>334}</span> -men but the ways of a weathercock, they may go, but they -always come back. Thirteen years the false prophet slept -in peace: and then the man who had sojourned in a cave at -the wells of Abu Klea secretly collecting information, what -time the Desert Column followed a forlorn hope, rode into -the Dervish city, and destiny was fulfilled. Lord Kitchener -of Khartoum fulfilled it, as strong men have a way of doing. -A poet once said that the soul of Gladstone is now probably -perching on the telegraph wires that bridge the desert where -we fought to save Gordon, too late. I know nothing about -that; but I know what the betrayal cost. -</p> - -<p> -We learned afterwards that ere the Mahdi died, he had -begun to concentrate his armies upon Dongola, a movement -that was continued after his death, until the Dervishes were -finally defeated by General Stephenson, at Ginnis, on 30th -December, 1885. -</p> - -<p> -General Dormer had a way of his own with the Mahdi's -disciples. Addressing a prisoner, he said: -</p> - -<p> -"I suppose you believe in the Mahdi because he can -work miracles. Can your prophet pluck out his eye and -put it back again? Well, I am no prophet, but I can." -</p> - -<p> -And with that, Dormer took his glass eye from its socket, -tossed it in the air, caught it, and replaced it. The Arab -was dumbfounded. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap35"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P335"></a>335}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXXV -<br /> -ORGANISATION FOR WAR -</h3> - -<p> -There is nothing quite so dead as dead politics; -therefore I do not intend to dwell upon my political -experiences, except in so far as they relate to the -purpose for which I entered Parliament. That purpose was -to serve the interests of the Royal Navy. Politics, as such, -have never greatly interested me; the Party system always -appeared to me to involve a sacrifice of principle; and if -I am associated with the party with which I am naturally -most in sympathy, at least I may claim to have attacked -them quite as often as I have attacked their political -opponents. In return, they have often declined to support me in -my proposals; which, however, have always been supported -by the public, and which as a rule have ultimately been -adopted by the authorities. -</p> - -<p> -In 1885, the Parliamentary tradition which I had known -ten years previously, remained unchanged. During the -succeeding generation it became gradually transformed. -Old members, like myself, will understand what I mean. -New members can have little notion of the House of -Commons their fathers knew. In one respect, at least, the -alteration is even startling. The public interest in politics -and in Parliament, once so general and so sincere, has now -almost ceased to exist. What that contemptuous indifference -may portend, is another question. -</p> - -<p> -In June, 1885, the Liberal Government, having passed -their Franchise and Redistribution Bills, and having aroused -general and deep indignation concerning their conduct of -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P336"></a>336}</span> -the Soudan campaign, chose to resign upon an amendment -to Mr. Childers's Budget. Lord Salisbury accepted office, -and wound up the session. The general election took place -during the autumn. I stood for East Marylebone, my -opponents being the Rev. J. R. Diggle and Mr. D. Grant. -Mr. Diggle apparently withdrew; for I find that my majority -of 944 votes was over Mr. Grant's poll. The main topic of -my speeches was the necessity of increasing the Fleet, and -of maintaining the Union. For rumours that Mr. Gladstone -intended to bring forward a Home Rule policy were in -the air. -</p> - -<p> -The result of the election was: Liberals 334, Conservatives -250, Irish Nationalists 86; placing the Conservatives -at the mercy of the Irish. Lord Salisbury's Government -were defeated upon an amendment to the Address, brought -forward by Mr. Jesse Collings, in January, 1886. Lord -Salisbury resigned, and Mr. Gladstone returned to office. -Then came his conversion to Home Rule, and the secession -of the Liberal Unionists. On 7th July, 1886, the -Government were defeated on the Home Rule Bill. At the -general election which followed, the Radicals and Home -Rulers were returned in a minority of 118. I was again -returned for East Marylebone, my opponent being Professor -Beesly, with an increased majority. In the new Parliament, -Lord Salisbury was Prime Minister and Secretary of State -for Foreign Affairs; Lord Randolph Churchill, Chancellor -of the Exchequer; Mr. W. H. Smith, Leader of the House -of Commons; and Lord George Hamilton, First Lord of -the Admiralty. -</p> - -<p> -It was during one of the Marylebone elections that I was -visited by a deputation of clergymen of various denominations, -who solemnly assured me that, if I persisted in -supporting the proposal to open museums and -picture-galleries on Sundays, they would not vote for me. -</p> - -<p> -"Gentlemen, has it ever occurred to you that I have not -asked you to vote for me?" said I. "Or that I have never -in my life asked a man for a vote?" -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P337"></a>337}</span> -</p> - -<p> -They looked at one another. In the ensuing silence, I -told them that if they did not approve of me, they ought, -as honest men, to vote for my opponent. They sadly and -silently departed, and I saw them no more: nor do I know -for whom were cast the votes of those men of God; but I -was returned to Parliament. -</p> - -<p> -Lord Folkestone was standing for Enfield; and when I -went down to speak for him, I found bread upon the waters -which returned to me after many days, in the shape and -size of a Royal Marine. While I was speaking, there arose -a tumult at the back of the hall. So far as I could make -out from the platform, a man was insisting on being heard. -I called to him to come up to the platform, where, if he had -anything to say, he could say it. Whereupon a large, -resolute and aggressive person came swiftly up to me. I -thought he wanted to fight, and was ready for him. But he -seized my hands in his, shook them warmly, then turned to -the audience and told them the whole story of how I had -saved his life off the Falkland Islands, years before, when I -was a lieutenant in the <i>Galatea</i>. The ship was lying at -anchor; it was a dark night; when the Marine somehow -fell overboard I had just come on board from a shooting -expedition, and my pockets were full of cartridges. I dived -after the man and seized him. Catching the end of a coil -of rope I went down and down, wondering if the other end -of the rope I held was fast, until at last I felt myself and the -Marine being pulled upwards. As we came to the surface -the ship's corporal, who had jumped overboard, got hold of -us, and we were hauled in-board by the quartermaster. -</p> - -<p> -The story was received with great enthusiasm, and I -cannot but suppose it contributed to win the election for my -friend, none the less because there was no real connection -whatever between its subject and politics. -</p> - -<p> -Upon my return from Egypt in 1885, I was convinced of -the superiority in guns and armour and general excellence -of the French ships of war over our own, because I had -utilised many opportunities of comparing the vessels of -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P338"></a>338}</span> -the two navies. Observation and reasoning had also -taught me that in many most essential respects the British -Navy was deficient. And above all, it was deficient in -organisation for war. In these opinions I was confirmed by -a large number of my brother officers, among whom I may -mention Lord Alcester, Admiral of the Fleet Sir Henry -Keppel, Admiral Sir Thomas M. C. Symonds, Admiral Sir -Geoffrey T. Phipps Hornby, Captain E. R. Fremantle, -Admiral Sir Charles G. J. B. Elliot, Vice-Admiral Sir William -Montagu Dowell, Vice-Admiral Sir R. Vesey Hamilton. -</p> - -<p> -Accordingly, I enforced the necessity of reform in these -matters in my public speeches, which were numerous. At -that time, in the summer of 1885, I find that I was demanding -a loan of twenty millions to be expended upon a shipbuilding -programme. -</p> - -<p> -During the previous year, 1884, there had appeared in -the <i>Pall Mall Gazette</i>, then edited by the late Mr. W. T. Stead, -the famous series of articles over the signature of -"One who knows the Facts," dealing with the state of the -Navy, which did more than any other Press representations -before or since to awaken public opinion to the true -condition of our defences. It was those articles, together -with articles in <i>The Times</i> and other newspapers, and the -excellent letters of naval officers—notably those of Admiral -of the Fleet Sir T. Symonds—which prepared the way for me. -</p> - -<p> -International relations with both France and Russia -were uneasy; and war was always a possibility. I knew -that we were unprepared for war. I knew that so long as -there was no department charged with the duty of -representing what was required, why it was required, and how -much it would cost, that we should continue to be unprepared -for war. I believed it to be my duty to awaken public -opinion to the danger in which the country undoubtedly -stood. -</p> - -<p> -Nor was I alone in this respect. Not only a number of -brother officers, but many students of the subject, did -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P339"></a>339}</span> -their best to enlighten the nation. We were of course told -that we were creating a scare; but a study of the Press of -those days shows that nearly every great newspaper, -irrespective of its politics, demanded the strengthening and -reorganisation of our defences. Personally, I received great -support from the Press. Writers on the subject of national -defence were at least sure that I had, personally, nothing to -gain by publishing the truth. -</p> - -<p> -Indeed, I had thus early in my career, when I was a -junior captain, to choose between the stormy enterprise of -the reformer, and the safer course of official acquiescence -and party obedience, leading to promotion and to office. -In making the choice, I had to consider that as a naval -officer advocating this and that in spite of the authorities, I -laid myself open to the charge that such matters were none -of my business, which was to obey orders. The argument -is quite legitimate. On the other hand, knowing the facts -of the case, clearly perceiving the danger, and (as I believed) -knowing also how to remedy what was wrong, I might (and -did) justly contend that my duty to Sovereign and country -came before all. I admit that these things were not -necessarily my business; not, at least, until I made them my -business. But I may also remark that the deplorable -condition of the national defences in 1885 was the result of -the united negligence of the people whose business it was to -maintain them, and who had no department which could -supply them with the necessary information; and that, in -consequence, someone had to do something. The history -of England was made by persons who did what it was not -their business to do, until they made it their business. -</p> - -<p> -My difficulties were then, and have always been, inherent in -the nature of the case. It is part of the character of the English -people to trust in authority, as such; and they are quite -right in principle; whose observance, however, induces them -to be slow to act when authority has proved untrustworthy. -Again, in order that my case should be proved beyond cavil, -the supreme demonstration of war was required. It is not -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P340"></a>340}</span> -enough that because my recommendations were carried into -execution, war was prevented; for only the few who know -the facts and who are acquainted with the complex shifts of -international policy, understand the value of potential armed -force in the exercise of diplomacy. I may claim, indeed, I -do claim, that sooner or later my recommendations have -been adopted by the authorities, who thereby proved the -justice of my case. Nor do I complain because they have -gained the credit accruing to their action; for it must always -be the man who does the thing who earns the laurel. And -he who insists upon assuming the office of reformer, must -make up his mind at the beginning to renounce without -bitterness whatever delight he might discover in reward or -fame or renown. Moreover, the credit belongs to no one -man, but to the many fearless officers who urged reform, -and not less to the great body of those officers of the Service -who silently and loyally kept the routine going, and without -whom no reforms could avail. -</p> - -<p> -The whole position is of course quite illogical; as illogical -as that venerable anomaly, the British Constitution, which -exists entirely in the brains of the learned. A certain set -of persons are selected to govern the nation by a majority of -votes, those votes being allocated upon an accidental system -which gives to a small number exactly the same representation -as an immensely larger number. Out of that set a few are -selected to form a governing committee called the Cabinet, -which is virtually omnipotent so long as it continues to act -more or less in accordance with the wishes of the majority -which elected it. The Cabinet is, therefore, in practice, -constrained to act in accordance with the known opinions of its -supporters; a course of action which is a totally different thing -from the course which it is theoretically supposed to follow. -Theoretically, the Cabinet shapes its policy to ensure the -welfare of the whole nation. Theoretically, the business of -the Government is to govern. Theoretically, its members -are the men in the country best fitted for the work. -Sometimes they are; and in proportion as they are, they will -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P341"></a>341}</span> -approximate to the conventional theory and will depart from -the common practice, and will do what is right instead -of what is expedient. Thus every Government oscillates -between pure opportunism and honest patriotism. And in -the result, the only method of obtaining reform in any -direction is so to persuade the public of its necessity, that -the party in power will perceive that it is more to their own -profit to grant than to withhold it. And in justice to the -politicians, it should be added that under the existing system, -many concessions must be made by the most austere statesman, -if the Duke of Wellington's ultimate principle is to be -observed; the principle that the King's Government must -be carried on. -</p> - -<p> -In July, 1884, Lord Northbrook, the First Lord of the -Admiralty in Mr. Gladstone's administration, publicly -declared that if he had £3,000,000 to spend upon the -Navy, that force was so sufficient and so efficient that he -would not know on what to spend the money. Before the -end of the year he was compelled to find out how to spend -£5,500,000, and to spend them. From a Liberal Government -the Salisbury Government of 1886 inherited the -completing of the Northbrook shipbuilding programme; -whose provisions were based, not upon any intelligible scheme -of preparation for war but, upon the Russian war-scare. -Those who were acquainted with the real posture of affairs -were not deluded by the mere haphazard expenditure of a -few millions, voted in order to soothe public opinion. -</p> - -<p> -Nor did ministers themselves deny the total inadequacy -of their measures. In March, 1886, when the Liberal -administration was still in power, I brought forward in the -House of Commons an amendment empowering the Government -to expend an additional sum of over £5,000,000 upon -the construction of 35 cruisers, three armoured cruisers, and -21 torpedo craft; pointing out at the same time that the -expenditure would provide employment for a large number -of unemployed workmen, both skilled and unskilled. Of -course the amendment was defeated; but it is significant that -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P342"></a>342}</span> -the necessity of such an increase was virtually admitted by -the Government spokesmen. I also urged the abolition of -69 useless vessels of war, which I specified, and the -expenditure of the money saved in their maintenance, upon new -vessels. -</p> - -<p> -At that time, it was nearly impossible to obtain accurate -official information with regard to naval affairs. I asked for -a return of the relative strength of the Fleets of this and other -countries; which was granted; and which aroused considerable -comment in the Press. The return has since been -issued every year; first in my name, then in the name of Sir -Charles Dilke, and at present in the name of Mr. Dickenson. -</p> - -<p> -But the first half of the year 1886 was consumed with the -Home Rule Bill. Turn to the files of the time, and you -shall see precisely the same arguments, declarations, -denunciations, intrigues and rumours of intrigues, charges and -counter-charges which were repeated in 1893, and which are -being reiterated all over again as if they had just been -discovered, in this year of grace 1913. We who stood to our -guns in 1886 know them by heart. We have been denounced -as traitors and rebels because we stand by Ulster, for so -long, that we are beginning to think we shall escape hanging -at the latter end of it. -</p> - -<p> -I know my countrymen, both of north and south, for I -am of both; and they know me. Isaac Butt once asked me -to lead the Home Rule party; because, he said, my brother -Waterford was widely respected and popular, and was -thoroughly acquainted with the Irish question, of which I -also had a sufficient knowledge. I might have accepted the -invitation, had I believed that Home Rule was what my -countrymen needed. But it was not. The settlement of the -land question was and is the only cure for Irish ills. -Mr. Wyndham with his Land Act did more for Ireland than any -Government that ever was; and I say it, who have lost a -great part of my income under the operation of the Act. -</p> - -<p> -Not that the Irish would have obtained the Wyndham -Act, had they not been incorrigibly intractable. By -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P343"></a>343}</span> -demanding a great deal more than they wanted, which they -called Home Rule, they got what they did want, which was -the land. Their avidity for the land never diminished; -whereas the cry for Home Rule died down; until, by one of -the inconsistencies of Irish politics which so bewilder the -Englishman, it was revived by John Finton Lalor and -Michael Davitt, who welded the two aspirations together. In -order to rid themselves of the Home Rule spectre, the -English Government conceded the land. And then, owing -to another unexpected twist, they found the spectre wasn't -laid after all. For the English had not learned that so long -as they permit Ireland to be so superbly over-represented, so -long will they have trouble. Sure, they'll learn the lesson -some day, if God will; for there's no lack of teaching, the -way it is. In the meantime, it is hard for the English people -to argue against what appears to be the demand of the -majority of the Irish people. -</p> - -<p> -But so far was the Government in power in 1912 from -understanding or attempting to understand Irishmen, that -the defence of the Home Rule Bill was constantly relegated -to two eminent descendants of an interesting Asiatic race; -who, however distinguished in their own walk of life, could -never in any circumstances know or care anything whatsoever -about Ireland. The Ulstermen, at least, resented the -proceeding. -</p> - -<p> -One of the Nationalists attacked me with great ferocity -in the House. He accused my family for generations past -of having committed atrocious crimes, and asserted that I -myself had entered Parliament for the sole purpose of -escaping active service in case of war with a foreign Power. -</p> - -<p> -"Why did you say all those things?" said I to him in the -lobby afterwards. -</p> - -<p> -"Sure, Lord Char-less," says he, "ye're an Irishman, and -ye'll understand I didn't mean a word of it." -</p> - -<p> -Mr. Gladstone's Home Rule Bill having been rejected -in 1886, Lord Salisbury returned to power with a majority -that defied Mr. Parnell and his friends, and so there was no -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P344"></a>344}</span> -more Home Rule for a while. 'Tis the pure morality of the -Home Rule demand that moves the political conscience; -and that the morality always acts upon that sensitive organ -when there is a controlling Irish vote, and not at any other -time, is of course a mere coincidence. -</p> - -<p> -In August, 1886, I was appointed junior lord at the -Admiralty, succeeding Captain James E. Erskine. -</p> - -<p> -"No doubt you'll try to do a number of things, but -you'll run up against a dead wall. Your sole business will -be to sign papers," said Captain Erskine, and so departed. -</p> - -<p> -I speedily discovered that there was at the Admiralty -no such thing as organisation for war. It was not in the -distribution of business. Lest I should seem to exaggerate, -I quote the testimony of the late Sir John Briggs, Reader to -the Lords and Chief Clerk of the Admiralty. Referring to -the period with which I am dealing, Sir John Briggs writes -as follows (<i>Naval Administrations, 1827 to 1892</i>. Sampson -Low. 1897): -</p> - -<p> -"During my Admiralty experience of forty-four years, -I may safely affirm that no measures were devised, nor no -practical arrangements thought out, to meet the numerous -duties which devolve upon the Admiralty, and which at -once present themselves at the very beginning of a war with -a first-class naval Power; on the contrary, there had been -unqualified apprehension on the mere rumour of war, -especially among the naval members, arising from their -consciousness of the inadequacy of the Fleet to meet the -various duties it would be required to discharge in such an -eventuality." -</p> - -<p> -The fact was that after Trafalgar this country had -attained to so supreme a dominance upon all seas, with -so high a degree of sea-training acquired in independent -commands, that organisation for war was taken for granted. -We were living on the Nelson tradition. The change came -with the advent of steam, which altered certain essential -conditions of sea warfare. The use of steam involved a new -organisation. Other nations recognised its necessity. We -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P345"></a>345}</span> -did not. Nor was it that the distinguished naval officers -composing successive Boards of Admiralty neglected their -duty, for organisation for war did not form part of their -duty, as they conceived it. Moreover, they were wholly -occupied with the vast labour of routine business, which -developed upon them when the old Navy Board was -abolished. The Navy Board, in the old wars, was charged -with the provision of all matters of supply, leaving the -Lords Commissioners free to conduct war. -</p> - -<p> -That there existed no department charged with the duty -of constantly representing what was required in ships, men, -stores, docks, under peace conditions, or what would be -required under war conditions, was obvious enough. But -in the course of the execution of my duties as junior lord, -it immediately became equally clear that the Navy was -deficient in those very matters and things concerning which -it would have been the business of such a department to -report. Among them was coal, which was in my charge. -Not only was there an immense deficiency in the war -reserve of coal, but there was no plan for supplying it. -</p> - -<p> -What my friends used to call my "craze," which they -regarded as an amiable form of lunacy, for organisation for -war, showed me that without it, all naval force, though it -were twice as powerful, would be practically wasted in the -event of emergency. -</p> - -<p> -I went to the First Lord and asked him if it would be -in order for me to draw up a memorandum on any subject -to be laid before the Board. Lord George Hamilton, with -his invariable courtesy, replied that any such paper would be -gladly considered. -</p> - -<p> -Within six weeks of my appointment to the Admiralty, -I had drawn my Memorandum on War Organisation calling -attention to the necessity of creating a Naval Intelligence -Department at the Admiralty. -</p> - -<p> -In that document, it was represented: -</p> - -<p> -1. That although recent events had revealed approximately -our deficiencies in the event of war with a -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P346"></a>346}</span> -second-rate maritime Power, no measures had been taken to -prepare a plan showing how the requirements were to be met. -</p> - -<p> -2. That other countries possessed departments charged -with the duty of preparing plans of campaign and of -organising their every detail so that they could be instantly -carried into execution. -</p> - -<p> -3. That the deficiencies in the numbers of the personnel -known to be required, were such and such. -</p> - -<p> -4. That the Medical stores were deficient in such and -such respects. (They were kept in bulk, so that in the event -of war, the medical stores would have had to be selected and -distributed: a system I was able to alter.) -</p> - -<p> -5. That there existed no organisation of any kind with -regard to the use of merchant shipping in war for the transport -of coal, ammunition, and stores, and for hospital ships. -</p> - -<p> -6. That there existed no organisation for rapidly -mobilising the reserves. -</p> - -<p> -7. That in order rightly to fulfil these requirements, -there must be designed plans of campaign to meet all -probable contingencies. -</p> - -<p> -8. That in order to obtain such plans of campaign, -there should be created a new department charged with the -duty of drawing them up. -</p> - -<p> -There followed a detailed scheme for a new Intelligence -Department, at an increased expense of no more than -£2251. -</p> - -<p> -The Memorandum concluded as follows: -</p> - -<p> -"1. Can it be denied that the gravest and most certain -danger exists to the country if the facts stated in this paper -are true? -</p> - -<p> -"2. Can it be denied that these facts are true? -</p> - -<p> -"3. If not, should not immediate steps be taken to -minimise the danger?" -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -The Memorandum was laid before the Board. My -colleagues came to the unanimous conclusion that my statements -were exaggerated; and also that, as a junior, I was -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P347"></a>347}</span> -meddling with high matters which were not my business; as -indeed I was. Having been thus defeated, I asked the -permission of Lord George Hamilton to show the Memorandum -to Lord Salisbury, and received it. -</p> - -<p> -Lord Salisbury very kindly read the document then and -there from beginning to end. He pointed out to me that, -on the face of it, I lacked the experience required to give -force to my representations, and that I had not even -commanded a ship of war in a Fleet. -</p> - -<p> -"You must have more experience, on the face of it," he -repeated. -</p> - -<p> -And he observed that, practically, what I was asking -him to do, was to set my opinion above the opinion of -my senior officers at the Admiralty, and their predecessors. -</p> - -<p> -I replied that, since he put the matter in that way, -although it might sound egotistical, I did ask him to do -that very thing; but I begged him, before deciding that -I was in the wrong, to consult with three admirals, whom -I named. -</p> - -<p> -A week later, I saw Lord Salisbury again. He told -me that in my main contentions, I was right; that he was -sure I should be glad to hear that the three admirals had -agreed with them; and that the Board of Admiralty had -decided to form a new department upon the lines I had -suggested. -</p> - -<p> -The new Naval Intelligence Department was then formed. -</p> - -<p> -The Director was Captain William H. Hall. His -assistants were Captain R. N. Custance (now Admiral Sir -Reginald N. Custance, K.C.B., K.C.M.G.) and Captain -S. M. Eardley-Wilmot (now Rear-Admiral Sir -S. M. Eardley-Wilmot). -</p> - -<p> -There was already in existence a Foreign Intelligence -Committee, whose business it was to collect information -concerning the activities of foreign naval Powers. In my -scheme the new department was an extension of the Foreign -Intelligence Committee, which was to form Section 1, while -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P348"></a>348}</span> -the duties of Section 2 were "To organise war preparations, -including naval mobilisation and the making out of plans -for naval campaigns to meet all the contingencies -considered probable in a war with different countries, corrected -frequently and periodically." The whole of the department -was to be placed under an officer of flag rank; a -part of my recommendations which was not carried into -effect until 1912, when the War Staff was instituted at the -Admiralty. -</p> - -<p> -It will be observed that, although I designated the -new department the Intelligence Department, it was in -fact planned to combine Intelligence duties proper with the -duties of a War Staff. What I desired was a department -which reported "frequently and periodically" upon requirements. -But as it was impossible to know what those requirements -would be without plans of campaign which -specified them, the same department was charged with the -duty of designing such plans. -</p> - -<p> -In the result, that particular and inestimably important -office was gradually dropped. The department became an -Intelligence Department alone. The First Sea Lord was -charged with the duty of preparation and organisation for -war. After various changes in the distribution of business, it -was again discovered that there was no organisation for war; -that the First Sea Lord, though (as I said in 1886) he had a -head as big as a battleship, could not accomplish the work -by himself; and a War Staff, affiliated to the Intelligence -Department, was constituted in 1912. -</p> - -<p> -In other words, twenty-six years elapsed before my -scheme was carried into full execution. -</p> - -<p> -On the 13th October, 1886, the substance of my -confidential Memorandum on Organisation for War was published -in the <i>Pall Mall Gazette</i>. It was stolen from the Admiralty -by an Admiralty messenger, who was employed by both -the First Sea Lord and myself. The contents of several -other confidential documents having been published, -suspicion fell upon the messenger, and a snare was laid for -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P349"></a>349}</span> -him. An electric contact was made with a certain drawer -in the desk of the First Sea Lord, communicating with an -alarm in another quarter of the building. Upon leaving -his room, the First Sea Lord told the messenger to admit -no one during his absence, as he had left unlocked a drawer -containing confidential documents. A little after, the alarm -rang, and the messenger was discovered seated at the desk, -making a copy of the documents in question. He was -arrested, brought to trial, and sentenced. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap36"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P350"></a>350}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXXVI -<br /> -THE TWENTY-ONE MILLION -</h3> - -<p> -In January, 1887, my routine work at the Admiralty -was varied by a trip in the new submarine <i>Nautilus</i> to -the bottom of Tilbury Dock, which was very nearly the -last voyage of the party in this world. The owners of the -boat, Mr. Edward Wolseley and Mr. C. E. Lyon, had -invited several guests, among whom was Mr. William -White (afterwards Sir William Henry White, K.C.B., -F.R.S., etc.), together with some officials of the Admiralty. -The theory was that by pushing air cylinders to project -from each side of the boat, her buoyancy would be so -increased that she would rise to the surface. We sank -gently to the bottom and stayed there. The cylinders were -pushed out, and still we remained there. I was looking -through the glass scuttle, and, although in a submarine the -motion or rising or sinking is not felt by those within, I -knew that we had not moved, because I could see that the -muddy particles suspended in the water remained stationary. -The Thames mud had us fast. In this emergency, I -suggested rolling her by moving the people quickly from -side to side. The expedient succeeded, none too soon; -for by the time she came to the surface, the air was very -foul. -</p> - -<p> -During the same month, Mr. William White, Chief -Constructor to the Admiralty, read a paper at the Mansion -House dealing with the design of modern men-of-war, which -marked an era in shipbuilding. Sir William White restored -to the ship of war that symmetry and beauty of design which -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P351"></a>351}</span> -had been lost during the transition from sails to steam. The -transition vessels were nightmares. Sir William White -designed ships. A man of genius, of a refined and beautiful -nature, a loyal servant of the Admiralty, to which he devoted -talents which, applied outside the Service, would have gained -him wealth, his recent death was a great loss to his country. -The later Victorian Navy is his splendid monument: and it -may yet be that history will designate those noble ships as -the finest type of steam vessels of war. -</p> - -<p> -About the same time, I brought forward another motion in -the House of Commons, to abolish obsolete vessels, of which I -specified fifty-nine, and to utilise the money saved in their -maintenance, in new construction. The scheme was carried -into execution by degrees. -</p> - -<p> -In June of 1887, I invited a large party of members of -the House of Commons to visit Portsmouth, where they were -shown something of the Navy. -</p> - -<p> -In December of the same year, speaking in public, I -affirmed the following principles: that in time of war our -frontiers were the ports of the enemy; that our main fleets -could be required to watch those ports; and that the strength -of the Fleet required should be calculated upon the basis of -the work it would be required to perform. I also urged that -the line of communications should be instituted, by means -of establishing a system of signalling between the ships of -the Navy and the ships of the mercantile marine, and -between all ships and the shore. At that time there was -no such system. -</p> - -<p> -The Press and the public received the exposition of these -elementary principles of organisation for war as a complete -novelty; by many they were welcomed like a revelation; -circumstances which exemplify the general ignorance -prevailing at the time. -</p> - -<p> -Of even more significance were the official declarations -on the subject. The First Lord of the Admiralty, Lord -George Hamilton, had publicly stated in November, 1886, -that this country had more ships in commission than the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P352"></a>352}</span> -three other European Naval Powers next in order of strength. -The statement was correct; but among the ships in commission -were included many vessels of no fighting value, such -as the <i>Indus</i>, <i>Asia </i>and <i>Duke of Wellington</i>. As an estimate -of comparative fighting strength, the statement, like many -another official statement before and since, required qualification; -as I remarked in the House of Commons in the course -of my reply to Lord George Hamilton. -</p> - -<p> -In December, 1886, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, -Lord Randolph Churchill, suddenly resigned. He afterwards -explained that his resignation was a protest against -extravagance and waste in the administration of the Services. -There were extravagance and waste; but, in my view, which -I represented to Lord Randolph, it would take several years -to reform the administration, and it was far more important -to set right our defences, even if their administration cost -more in the meantime. -</p> - -<p> -I recall these things because they serve to illustrate the -trend of events. On the one side were the Government and -their official advisers at the Admiralty, convinced that all -was very well as it was. On the other side, were the rapid -development of the fighting ship in all countries, which -owing to Mr. W. H. White, was particularly marked in this -country; the greatly increased public interest in naval -affairs; and the constant representations of a number of -naval officers, myself among them, to the effect that great -reforms were urgently required. -</p> - -<p> -We believed that there existed at the Board of Admiralty -no system of direct responsibility; that Parliament and the -nation had no means either of ascertaining upon what -principle the money was expended upon our defences or -of affixing responsibility whether it were expended ill -or well; that there existed no plan of campaign at the -Admiralty; that the Navy and the Army had no arrangement -for working together in the event of war; and that, -in point of fact, the Navy was dangerously inadequate. -And in attempting to achieve reform, we were confronted -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P353"></a>353}</span> -by a solid breastwork, as though built of bales of wool, of -official immovability. Had it been a hard obstacle, we -might have smashed it. -</p> - -<p> -Towards the end of 1887, the Admiralty did a very -foolish thing. They decided to cut down the salaries of the -officers of the new Intelligence Department by £950. In -my view, this proceeding both involved a breach of faith -with the officers concerned, and would be highly injurious -to the efficiency of the department for whose success I felt -peculiarly responsible. My protests were, however, disregarded; -the First Lord asserted his supreme authority; and -the thing was done. -</p> - -<p> -The efficiency of the whole Service was, in my view, -bound up with the efficiency of the Intelligence Department; -because that department was created for the express purpose -of estimating and reporting what was required to enable the -Navy to fulfil its duties. It was in view of the main question -of the necessity of strengthening the Fleet, that I decided to -resign my position upon the Board of Admiralty, and to -declare publicly my reasons for so doing. On the 9th January, -1888, I sent my resignation to Lord Salisbury; who, -courteously expressing his regret, accepted it on 18th -January. -</p> - -<p> -In making my decision to take this extreme action, I -was influenced by the conviction that nothing short of the -resignation of a member of the Board of Admiralty would -induce the authorities to reorganise and strengthen our -defences. Whether or not I was right in that belief, I do -not know to this day; but, as the strengthening of the Fleet -was shortly afterwards carried into execution in precise -accordance with my recommendations, there is some evidence -in my favour. My constituents in East Marylebone were -strongly adverse to my course of action. Many of my -friends begged me not to resign. General Buller, in -particular, pointed out to me that no good was ever done by an -officer resigning his post, because the officer who resigned -ceased by his own act to occupy the position which entitled -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P354"></a>354}</span> -him to a hearing. I daresay he was right. At any rate, I -was well aware that I was jeopardising my whole career. -For an officer to resign his seat upon the Board of Admiralty -in order to direct public attention to abuses, is to commit, -officially speaking, the unpardonable sin. When, three or -four years later, Sir Frederick Richards, the First Sea Lord, -threatened to resign if the Government would not accept his -shipbuilding programme, although I am certain he would -have pursued exactly the same course had he stood alone, -he had the support of the rest of the Board. I had the rest -of the Sea Lords against me. That is a different affair. A -united Board of Admiralty can generally in the last resort -prevail against the Government. A single member of that -Board who attempts the same feat, knows, at least, that never -again will he be employed at the Admiralty. But when Sir -Frederick Richards and his colleagues threatened resignation, -they were in fact risking the loss of employment and -incurring the possibility of spending the rest of their lives -in comparative penury. A later Liberal administration has -dismissed one Naval Lord after another, without a scruple. -</p> - -<p> -In my case, I had the advantage of possessing a private -income, so that I was independent of the Service as a means -of livelihood. It is necessary to speak plainly upon this -matter of resignation. It is most unfair to expect naval -officers to resign in the hope of bringing about reform, when -by so doing their income is greatly reduced. If the British -public desire it to be understood that a Sea Lord is expected -to resign should the Government in power fail to make what -he believes to be the necessary provision for the national -security, then the public must insist that the Sea Lords be -granted an ample retiring allowance. -</p> - -<p> -In the following February (1888) Lord George Hamilton -made a speech at Ealing, in which he dealt with my -protests in the most courteous manner. He stated that I had -resigned because I objected to the exercise of the supreme -authority of the First Lord over the Board of Admiralty. I -had certainly objected to its exercise in a particular instance. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P355"></a>355}</span> -And at that time I was constantly urging that Parliament -and the country had a right to know who was responsible -for the actions of the Admiralty. My theory was that there -should be some means by which Parliament and the public -should be assured that any given course of action was -founded upon professional advice. That no such means -existed was notorious. It was within the legal right of a -First Lord to announce a policy contravening or modifying -the views of the rest of the Board. -</p> - -<p> -My view was, and is, the view tersely stated by Admiral -Phipps Hornby, who said that it was the right of the Cabinet -to formulate a policy, and that it was the duty of the Sea -Lords to provide what was required in order to carry that -policy into execution; but that the Cabinet had no right -whatever to dictate to the Sea Lords in what the provision -should consist, for that was a matter of which the Sea -Lords alone were competent to judge. -</p> - -<p> -But if the Board of Admiralty be placed under the -supreme jurisdiction of the First Lord, a civilian and a -politician, the country has no means of knowing whether -or no the recommendations of the Sea Lords are being -carried into execution. I said at the time that some such -means should be instituted; afterwards, perceiving that no -such demand would be granted, I urged that the Cabinet -at least ought to be precisely informed what were the -requirements stated by the Sea Lords to be necessary in -order to carry into execution the policy of the Government. -</p> - -<p> -In claiming supreme authority as First Lord over the -Board of Admiralty, Lord George Hamilton was legally and -constitutionally in the right. The Royal Commission on -the administration of the Navy and Army, over which Lord -Hartington presided, reported in 1890 (when I was at sea) -that the Admiralty had long ceased to be administered in -accordance with the terms of its original Patent, and that -"the present system of administration in the Admiralty -is the result of Parliamentary action upon what was once -in fact as well as name an executive and administrative -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P356"></a>356}</span> -Board. The responsibility, and consequently the power of -the First Lord has continually increased, and he is at present -practically the Minister of Marine." In other words, by -slow degrees the politician had transferred the powers of the -Board to himself, where they remain; the other members of -the Board becoming merely his advisers. The result is that -there is nothing, except the personal influence of the Naval -Lords upon the First Lord, to prevent the Navy from being -governed in accordance with party politics, without reference -to national and Imperial requirements; a system which -produces intermittent insecurity and periodical panics -involving extravagant expense. -</p> - -<p> -The Commissioners also found that there was a difference -of opinion among the Naval Lords themselves concerning -their responsibility with regard to the strength and efficiency -of the Fleet. It was, in a word, nobody's business to state -what were the requirements of the Fleet. The First Lord -might ask for advice, if he chose, in which case he would get -it. If he did not so choose, there was no one whose duty it -was to make representations on the subject. Admiral Sir -Arthur Hood stated that never in the whole course of his -experience had he known a scheme comprehending the naval -requirements of the Empire to be laid before the Board. He -also stated that the method of preparing the Navy Estimates -was that the First Lord stated what sum the Cabinet felt -disposed to grant for the Navy, and that the Naval Lords then -proceeded to get as much value for their money as they -could. -</p> - -<p> -No wonder the Sea Lords were expected to sign the -Estimates without looking at them. When I was junior -lord, responsible for the provision of coal and stores among -other trifles, a clerk came into my room with a sheaf of -papers in one hand and a wet quill pen in the other. -</p> - -<p> -"Will you sign the Estimates?" says he. -</p> - -<p> -"What?" said I. -</p> - -<p> -"Will you sign the Estimates for the year?" he repeated. -</p> - -<p> -"My good man," I said, "I haven't seen them." -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P357"></a>357}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The clerk looked mildly perturbed. He said: -</p> - -<p> -"The other Lords have signed them, sir. It will be very -inconvenient if you do not." -</p> - -<p> -"I am very sorry," said I. "I am afraid I am inconvenient -in this office already. But I certainly shall not sign -the Estimates." -</p> - -<p> -The clerk's countenance betrayed consternation. -</p> - -<p> -"I must tell the First Lord, sir," said he, as one who -presents an ultimatum. -</p> - -<p> -"I don't care a fig whom you tell," said I. "I can't sign -the Estimates, because I have not read them." -</p> - -<p> -Nor did I sign them. They were brought before the -House of Commons without my signature. The First Lord -said it did not really matter. My point was that I would -not take responsibility for a document I had not seen. The -fact was, that the custom of obtaining the signatures of the -Board is a survival of the time when the Sea Lords wielded -the power and responsibility conferred upon them by the -original Patent. -</p> - -<p> -The Commissioners also reported that the lack of -"sufficient provision for the consideration by either Service -of the wants of the other" ... was an "unsatisfactory and -dangerous condition of affairs." -</p> - -<p> -Here, then, were all the points for which my brother -officers and myself were contending, and in order to -illuminate which I had resigned, explicitly admitted. But -the proofs did not appear until a year after my resignation -took effect, when the Select Committee on the Navy Estimates -began to take evidence; nor were they published for -another year. -</p> - -<p> -In the meantime, the naval reformers fought as best they -might. Freed from the restraint necessarily imposed upon -me by my official position at the Admiralty, I was able to -devote my whole energies to making known the real state -of affairs. -</p> - -<p> -Upon the introduction of the Navy Estimates of 1888-9 -I challenged the votes for shipbuilding, the Secretary's -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P358"></a>358}</span> -Department, the Intelligence Department, the Reserve of -merchant cruisers, the Royal Naval Reserve and naval -armaments, in order to call attention to requirements. -</p> - -<p> -In the course of the debates, the official formula was: -"At no time was the Navy more ready or better organised -for any work which it might be called upon to do than -to-day." My reply was that these words "have rung in -our ears as often as the tune '<i>Britannia</i> rules the waves,' -and have been invariably falsified when war appeared -imminent." And who would have to do the work? The -officials who said that all was ready, or the admirals who -said that all was unready? -</p> - -<p> -In May, a meeting to consider the needs of national -defence was held in the City, at which I delivered an -address. Speaking at the Lord Mayor's banquet in -November, the First Lord admitted that there might be room -for improvement in the Navy. It was a dangerous, if a -candid, admission. For if the Navy were not strong -enough, <i>how weak was it</i>? -</p> - -<p> -Exactly how weak it was in June, 1888, in the opinion -of the First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir Arthur Hood, was -explained by him before the Select Committee on Navy -Estimates (13th June, 1888). "I should have preferred by -the end of 1890 to have had six more fast cruisers. I do not -consider it a point of vital importance," said Admiral Hood. -But as, upon his own showing, within his recollection no -one at the Admiralty had ever produced a scheme -comprehending the naval requirements of the Empire, his view -was hardly conclusive. I had the audacity to consider that -if no one had ever attempted, or thought of attempting, to -estimate the requirements of the naval defence of the -Queen's dominions, it was time that some one did attempt -to do so, even if that some one were myself. Accordingly, -I made a careful calculation of the work the Fleet might -under probable contingencies be required to perform, and -upon that calculation based an estimate of the classes and -numbers of ships which would be needed. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P359"></a>359}</span> -</p> - -<p> -I showed my estimate to Admiral Hornby, who said -that, although the ships were absolutely necessary, I was -asking too much and I should in consequence get nothing. -He also pointed out that I had made no provision for the -increase of personnel required to man the proposed new -ships. I replied that if the ships were laid down, the -authorities would be obliged to find the men for them. -The sequel showed that I was wrong and that Admiral -Hornby was right. He knew his responsible authority -better than I did. Six years later, when what should have -been the increased personnel would have been trained and -available, the Fleet was short of 20,000 men. -</p> - -<p> -My cousin, General Sir Reginald Talbot, reminds me of -a conversation which befell between Mr. Goschen, then -Chancellor of the Exchequer, and myself, in November of -the same year, 1888, when we were staying at Wilton, the -house of my cousin, Lady Pembroke. Mr. Goschen began -to talk about the Navy, and he was so good as to express -high disapproval of my course of action. He said I was -doing a great deal of harm, that I was presuming to set -my rash opinion above the considered judgment of old and -distinguished officers who had commanded ships before I -was born, and so forth. -</p> - -<p> -"Do you know what I am shortly going to propose to -Parliament?" said I. "No? I'll tell you. I am going to -ask for seventy ships to cost twenty million sterling." -</p> - -<p> -Mr. Goschen became really angry. He said the notion -was preposterous. -</p> - -<p> -"You won't get them," he said. "You wouldn't get even -three ships, if you asked for them. And for a very simple -reason. They are not wanted." -</p> - -<p> -"Mr. Goschen," said I, "I shall bring in that programme, -and it will cost twenty million; and you will all -object to it and oppose it; and yet I'll venture to make a -prophecy. Before very long you will order seventy ships at -the cost of twenty million. And for a very simple reason. -Because you must." -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P360"></a>360}</span> -</p> - -<p> -On the 13th December, 1888, speaking on Vote 8 -(ship-building, repairs and maintenance), I expounded my -ship-building programme to the House of Commons. I based -it upon the following principles: -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -"The existence of the Empire depends upon the strength -of the Fleet, the strength of the Fleet depends upon the -Shipbuilding Vote.... I maintain the Shipbuilding Vote -is based on no policy, no theory, no business-like or definite -idea whatever, to enable it to meet the requirements of the -country, the primary object of its expenditure.... I hold -that the Government, which is and must be solely responsible, -should first lay down a definite standard for the -Fleet, which standard should be a force capable of defending -our shores and commerce, together with the punctual and -certain delivery of our food supply, against the Fleets of -two Powers combined, one of which should be France; and -that the experts should then be called together and say what -is necessary to get that standard, and give the reasons for -their statement...." -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -The programme included four first-class ironclads, 10 -second-class ironclads, 40 cruisers of various classes, and -torpedo craft: 70 vessels in all, to be built at a cost of -£20,100,000. -</p> - -<p> -I also affirmed the proposition made by Admiral Sir -Anthony Hoskins, the Secretary of the Admiralty, and the -Civil Lord, to the effect that "the British Fleet should be -more than a match for the combined fleets of any two -European Powers that were likely to be our foes, one of -which must necessarily be France." Here, so far as I am -aware, was the first definite demand for the Two-Power -Standard; which was maintained until it was abandoned by -the Government which came into power in 1906. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-360"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-360.jpg" alt="THE AUTHOR SPEAKING IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS ON HIS TWENTY-ONE MILLION SHIPBUILDING PROGRAMME, 13TH DECEMBER 1888. FROM THE DRAWING, BY J. WALTER WILSON, IN THE POSSESSION OF THE AUTHOR" /> -<br /> -THE AUTHOR SPEAKING IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS ON HIS TWENTY-ONE <br /> -MILLION SHIPBUILDING PROGRAMME, 13TH DECEMBER 1888. <br /> -FROM THE DRAWING, BY J. WALTER WILSON, IN THE POSSESSION OF THE AUTHOR -</p> - -<p> -Lord George Hamilton received my proposals with -caution. He was "far from saying it (the Fleet) was strong -enough." And he told the House that next year he hoped -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P361"></a>361}</span> -to lay before the House a larger and more comprehensive -programme than was provided by the current estimates, -"desiring that when they moved their movement should be -genuine and prolonged." -</p> - -<p> -Twelve weeks later, Lord George Hamilton brought in a -shipbuilding programme consisting of 70 vessels, to be built -at a cost of £21,500,000. -</p> - -<p> -Yet nothing had happened since the previous June, when -Sir Arthur Hood declared that he would have preferred six -more cruisers, but that they were not of vital importance? -</p> - -<p> -Nothing, that is to say, with regard to the international -situation, and the increase of foreign navies, and the -requirements of Imperial defence. But several things had happened -at home. Of the most important of these, I knew nothing -until many years afterwards. It was that Captain W. H. Hall, -Director of the new Intelligence Department, whose -institution I had recommended for this very purpose, had -worked out the problem of naval requirements independently, -and, with all the sources of information available in the -Admiralty at his command, had arrived at precisely the -same result (except for an increase of cost) as that to which -I had arrived, without the information possessed by Captain -Hall. I may mention here that Captain Hall was a most -distinguished and patriotic officer, with whom no considerations -of personal interest ever weighed for an instant -against what he conceived to be his duty to his Sovereign -and to his country. What happened at the Admiralty when -his report was laid before the Board, I do not know, as I never -had any communication with Captain Hall on the subject. -All I know is that his scheme, which was identical with -the scheme which I had presented to the House, was -accepted by the First Lord. -</p> - -<p> -Another circumstance which may have influenced the -Government was the very remarkable evidence, which I -have already summarised, given before the Select Committee -on the Navy Estimates. And another factor, of enduring -import, was the famous Report of the Three Admirals: -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P362"></a>362}</span> -Admiral Sir William Dowell, K.C.B., Admiral Sir R. Vesey -Hamilton, K.C.B., and Vice-Admiral Sir Frederick Richards, -K.C.B., on the Naval Manoeuvres of 1888, presented to both -Houses of Parliament in February, 1889. Sir Frederick -Richards was mainly responsible for drawing up that -masterly document, which, extending beyond its terms of -reference, formulated the principles of British sea-power; -and definitely affirmed the absolute necessity for establishing -and maintaining the Two-Power Standard. -</p> - -<p> -With reference to the condition of the Navy at the time, -the Three Admirals reported that the Navy was "altogether -inadequate to take the offensive in a war with only one -Great Power"; and that "supposing a combination of even -two Powers to be allied as her enemies, the balance of -maritime strength would be against England." -</p> - -<p> -How swiftly is the false coin of "official assurances" -consumed by the acid of professional knowledge! The -whole episode of the Twenty-One Million is so typical of -the methods of British governance, that I have thought -it worth while to relate it somewhat at length. Those -methods, in a word, consist in the politicians very nearly -losing the Empire, and the Navy saving it just in time. -The same thing happened all over again in 1892. It -occurred again 1909, with a difference. Both in 1892 and in -1909 I drew up shipbuilding proposals. In 1892, the -Government eventually adopted the Spencer programme, which was -actually larger than mine. In 1909, the opportunity of -restoration was lost; and the failure cost, and will cost, the -country many millions. -</p> - -<p> -One of these days we shall be hit, and hit hard, at the -moment when the politicians have been found out, and before -the Navy has had time to recover. -</p> - -<p> -Something to this effect was said to me by Bismarck, -when I visited him, in February, 1889. In truth, I had a -little wearied of the polite and stubborn opposition of my -own people, and I went to Berlin to see what was happening -abroad. Prince Bismarck invited me to lunch. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P363"></a>363}</span> -</p> - -<p> -Bismarck said that he could not understand why my -own people did not listen to me (nor could I!); for (said he) -the British Fleet was the greatest factor for peace in Europe. -We had a most interesting conversation upon matters of -defence and preparation for war; and his tone was most -friendly towards the English. He very kindly presented -me with his signed photograph. I stayed with him for two -hours; and we drank much beer; and all the time his -gigantic boar-hound, lying beside him, stared fixedly at -me with a red and lurid eye. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap37"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P364"></a>364}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXXVII -<br /> -H.M.S. <i>UNDAUNTED</i> -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -I. WITH THE MEDITERRANEAN FLEET -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "Undaunteds be ready,<br /> - Undaunteds be steady,<br /> - Undaunteds stand by for a job!"<br /> - Bugle call of H.M.S. <i>Undaunted</i><br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -It was invented by the first lieutenant, William Stokes -Rees (now Vice-Admiral W. S. Rees, C.B.), who was -one of the best gunnery officers I have known. I was -appointed to the command of the <i>Undaunted</i> in November, -1889. The commander was Robert S. Lowry (now -Vice-Admiral Sir Robert S. Lowry, K.C.B.). It was the -<i>Undaunted's</i> first commission. She was a twin-screw, -first-class armoured cruiser of 5600 tons displacement and -8500 h.p., ordered to join the Mediterranean Fleet, under -the command of Vice-Admiral Sir Anthony H. Hoskins, -K.C.B. He was succeeded in September, 1891, by my old -friend, Admiral Sir George Tryon, K.C.B., whose tragic -death was so great a loss to the Service and to the country. -</p> - -<p> -The first essential of good discipline is to make officers -and men as happy and as comfortable as the exigencies of -the Service permit. I believe that the <i>Undaunted</i> was a -happy ship; I know that the loyalty, enthusiasm and hard -work of the officers and men under my command earned -her a good record. -</p> - -<p> -In every vessel there are improvements to be made -which, perhaps trifling in themselves, greatly add to the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P365"></a>365}</span> -welfare of the officers and ship's company. At that time, -for instance, the arrangements for the stokers were so bad, -that there was only one bath available for twenty men. My -recommendation was that tubs of galvanised iron should be -supplied, fitting one into another in nests, so that the extra -baths occupied less space than the one regulation bath. I also -had lockers of lattice-work supplied for the stokers' dirty -clothing, instead of closed and insanitary lockers. It is -true that at first the men objected to the open-work, because -their pipes dropped through it. Again, the hatchway -ladders were made with sharp nosings, against which the -men injured their legs; and I suggested that these should -be formed with rounded nosings instead. A ship of war -is naturally uncomfortable; but why make it unnecessarily -disagreeable? At that time, too, the rate of second-class -petty officer did not exist among the stokers. The result -was that if a leading stoker was disrated he was reduced -to stoker. For this reason, I urged the institution of the -rate of second-class petty officer stoker, a reform which -was eventually instituted. Some years afterwards, the rate -of second-class officer was abolished altogether, a retrograde -measure which I believe to be injurious. -</p> - -<p> -When a petty officer loses his rate in consequence of -a mistake or a lapse, he should be enabled to recover it -by good behaviour. -</p> - -<p> -One of my countrymen on board, whom we will call -Patrick, an able seaman of long service, perpetually failed -to attain to the rating of petty officer owing to his weakness -for strong waters. In other respects he was admirably -qualified to rise. I sent for him, told him I would give him -a chance, and made him a second-class petty officer. I -believe that he succumbed once or twice, and that the -commander let him off. But one fine day Patrick returned on -board from leave ashore, fully attired—cap, coat, boots and -socks—with the single exception of his trousers. The case -having been officially reported to me, I had up the delinquent -before the assembled petty officers. I made it a rule -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P366"></a>366}</span> -not to disrate a petty officer in the presence of the ship's -company. -</p> - -<p> -The charge having been duly read, I asked Patrick what -he had to say on the subject. -</p> - -<p> -"Do you moind now, sir," says Pat, "that I was drunk -the same day last year?" -</p> - -<p> -I told him I did not remember anything of the sort. -</p> - -<p> -"Well, sir," continued Patrick, unabashed, "to tell you -the truth, 'tis my mother's birthday, and I had a drop of -drink taken." -</p> - -<p> -I told him that it was impossible to allow petty officers -to disgrace the ship by coming on board without their -trousers; that I should take away his petty officer's rate, but -that I would leave him his badges. -</p> - -<p> -He had three badges. Had he lost them, he would have -lost his badge pay during a period of six months for each -badge, so that it would take him eighteen months of "very -good" conduct to regain them. In addition, he would have -lost the good conduct medal, a part of his pension and a -part of his gratuity on leaving the Service. The severity of -the punishment in comparison with what is not perhaps a -serious offence, is not always recognised by authority. -</p> - -<p> -"May I say a word to you, sir?" asked Patrick, having -received his sentence. -</p> - -<p> -"You can say what you like," said I, "but I am afraid it -won't save your rate." -</p> - -<p> -"Well, sir," says he, "'tis this way, sir. If you'll think over -it the way it is, I was fourteen years getting th' rate, -and you'll be takin' it away from me in one moment." -</p> - -<p> -Pat used to delight his audiences at the ship's concerts. -He sang among other beautiful legends, the Irish ditty, -"Brannagan's Pup." He led upon the stage my bull-dog, -who came very sulkily. It never could be (as Pat would -have said) that the concertina accompaniment began when -he began. When the concertina started ahead of him, Pat -shifted the bull-dog's leash to his other hand, put his hand -to the side of his mouth, and staring straight upon the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P367"></a>367}</span> -audience, uttered the following stage direction in a furious -whisper which was heard all over the ship. -</p> - -<p> -"Don't you shtart that ruddy pump till I hould up me -hand!" -</p> - -<p> -Some years after I had left the <i>Undaunted</i>, arriving in a -P. and O. steamer off a Chinese port, I semaphored to -a man-of-war asking the captain to send me a boat, as I -wished to have the pleasure of calling upon him. The -coxswain of the captain's boat was no other than my old -friend. -</p> - -<p> -"I'm very glad to see you've kept the rate," said I. "I -suppose you run straight now and keep clear of liquor?" -</p> - -<p> -"Well, sir," says Paddy, "to tell you the truth, I've -taken an odd toss or two since I saw you, but I've got it -back again!" -</p> - -<p> -He meant that he had been disrated again once or twice -but had won back his rate again; indeed, he had won it -back while under my command. I always told my men -that if they were tried by court-martial—as the men now -desire to be tried—it would go harder with them. Had -Patrick been tried by court-martial, it is very unlikely that -he would have got back his rate; and his deprivation, being -endorsed upon his certificate, would have affected his chance -of gaining employment in civil life upon leaving the Service. -</p> - -<p> -I had a case of a man who, because he put his helm over -the wrong way, ran into another boat, with the result that a -man was drowned. The culprit was disrated; but I gave him -his rate again before I left the ship. It is the personal -knowledge of a man possessed by his captain which alone enables -his captain to make distinctions. A court-martial must -judge of the offence without personal knowledge of the -character of the offender. -</p> - -<p> -I had a sergeant of Marines, a man with an excellent -record, a strict disciplinarian, popular among his men, who, -within nine months of the expiration of his time, came -aboard blind drunk and disorderly. The penalty was to be -reduced to the ranks. But it is often forgotten what under -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P368"></a>368}</span> -such circumstances that penalty involves. The -non-commissioned officer loses his N.C.O.'s time and pension, his -badge pay for six months, and the gratuity of his rank. It -is a tremendous penalty to pay, when, except for the one -mistake, he has a clean sheet all through. I had the man -up before the petty officers and non-commissioned officers, -explained that there were only two courses of action: either -to reduce him or to let him off altogether; and told them -that I intended to count his long and excellent service and -exemplary character as outweighing a single failure. -</p> - -<p> -Here was an exceptional case; and because it was -exceptional, it was wise to depart from the rule, and to give -reasons for disciplinary action. Had no explanation been -given, the next man disrated or reduced might have -considered that he had been unfairly treated; but he could -have no such grievance, when the circumstances in which -the non-commissioned officer had his punishment remitted -had been made known at the time. -</p> - -<p> -Ships, like men, have their weaknesses; and the weakness -of our fine new steam navy consisted in the unprotected -ends of our armoured vessels, in which respect they were -inferior to the French ships. The section of a wooden -man-of-war was, roughly speaking, V-shaped below the water-line; -and when she was pierced in action, the water entering -through the shot-holes ran down to the bottom of the -vessel, where the extra weight, although it might sink her -lower in the water, acted as additional ballast, resisting any -tendency to capsize. But the section of a steel man-of-war -is roughly a square, with the lower edges rounded. The -protective steel deck, covering the engines, extends the -whole length and width of the ship. Above the water-line -there are the immense weights of armour and guns. If the -ship is pierced in her unprotected ends above the steel deck, -the water, entering through the holes, is held high up in the -section, giving her a list, and dragging her over, so that a -badly wounded ship must capsize. Such was my theory, -which I set forth at length in a letter sent to the -commander-in-chief, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P369"></a>369}</span> -Sir Anthony Hoskins. He considered the point -of importance, but held that it was a matter rather for the -constructor than the seaman, a view with which I did not -agree. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Anthony Hoskins, who was about to haul down his -flag, turned the letter over to Sir George Tryon, who sent -it to the Admiralty. The Admiralty, I believe, considered -that, under certain conditions, the theory was correct. -</p> - -<p> -Those conditions occurred on 22nd June, 1893, when the -<i>Victoria</i> was rammed by the <i>Camperdown</i> off Beyrout. -The <i>Camperdown</i> struck the flagship on the starboard bow, -and in ten minutes she had capsized and sunk. As the -<i>Victoria</i> was carrying her scuttles open, and received an -injury equivalent to the damage which would be inflicted -by a large shell, the conditions of an action, in which the -hull would be pierced with many small holes and further -wounded by heavy projectiles, were produced, with the -result whose probability, if not certainty, I had indicated. -</p> - -<p> -In dealing with this subject, I also represented that the -French ships of the period, having a powerful fore and aft -fire, might choose in time of war to fight a retreating action, in -which case they could so damage the unarmoured ends of our -vessels, that our vessels could not be steered, and, being forced -to ease speed, would be placed at a serious disadvantage. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Hecla</i>, torpedo school ship in the Mediterranean, was -commanded by my old friend, Captain John Durnford (now -Admiral Sir John Durnford, K.C.B., D.S.O.). Together -with the officers under my command, I attended the torpedo -classes on board. -</p> - -<p> -Captain Durnford accompanied me in the <i>Undaunted</i> -when we conducted experiments in the dropping of mines. -The mines were the clever invention of Lieutenant Ottley -(now Rear-Admiral Sir Charles C. Ottley, K.C.M.G., C.B., -M.V.O.). By means of an ingenious mechanical contrivance, -they sank themselves to the required depth. We designed -and constructed the dropping gear, rigging it abaft the -propellers. The mines were dropped by hand, the ship -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P370"></a>370}</span> -steaming at 18 knots. A certain area was fixed within -which the mines were to be sown. We steamed across it at -night, in thick darkness, along a narrow channel. Unable -to take bearings, as the position of the scattered lights on -shore was unknown, we sent out two boats carrying lights. -We touched the ground once, the shock throwing Captain -Durnford and myself against the rail. In four minutes all -the mines were dropped without a single mistake. The -experiment was also carried into execution in daylight. In -those days there were no mine-laying vessels, and the -<i>Undaunted</i> was somewhat of a pioneer in the science of -mining waters at full speed. -</p> - -<p> -My experience while in office at the Admiralty had -led me profoundly to suspect (among other things) the -adequacy of the provision for reserve ammunition. And upon -making inquiries at Malta, I found that if the <i>Undaunted</i> in -the event of war had expended the whole of her ammunition, -the renewal of the supply for her main armament of 6-inch -guns would (excluding practice ammunition) exhaust the -whole reserve supply. There were no spare guns in reserve -at all. My representations on the subject were by no means -gratefully received by the Admiralty, which considered that -the supply of reserve ammunition and guns was not the -business of a captain. I suggested that the ammunition -papers should go to every captain; an arrangement which -was afterwards carried into execution. At this time I also -represented (but in other quarters) the urgent necessity of -building a new mole at Gibraltar, which was then not a -naval but a military base, although in time of war it would -be required to serve as one of the most important naval -bases in the world, either for the blue water route or the -narrow sea route. My representations were made with the -object of inducing the Government to transform Gibraltar -from a merely military fortress to a properly equipped naval -base. I took soundings and drew out a scheme. The plan -eventually adopted was an improvement upon mine. -</p> - -<p> -It is not of course implied that I was alone in urging -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P371"></a>371}</span> -these reforms and such as these; there were many patriotic -men, both in the Service and outside it, who were engaged -in the same endeavour. What I did must be taken to -represent the unrequited labours of others as well. Sir -George Tryon, my commander-in-chief, that splendid -seaman and admirable officer, was always most sympathetic -and showed to me the greatest kindness. I am proud to -say that I never served under a commander-in-chief with -whom I was not upon the best of terms. -</p> - -<p> -Sir George Tryon having received letters from H.H. the -Khedive and from the British Minister Plenipotentiary -in Egypt, instructed me to proceed to Alexandria with -a small squadron. H.H. the Khedive welcomed me with -great cordiality, being so kind as to say that I had saved -his father's life during the troubles of 1882, when the -<i>Condor</i> kept guard over the Ramleh Palace. I remained at -Alexandria for some time, being senior officer there. -</p> - -<p> -In order to relieve the monotony of sea-routine, the men -were landed by companies in the Mex lines, a place with -which I had many interesting associations dating from 1882, -for rifle practice, sleeping under canvas. The water on shore -being undrinkable, the men were ordered to use the distilled -water supplied daily from the ship. -</p> - -<p> -Visiting the hospital tent, I thought one of the patients -had cholera. -</p> - -<p> -"It looks very like it," said the staff-surgeon. -</p> - -<p> -"Have you been drinking the shore water?" I asked the -patient. -</p> - -<p> -He confessed that he had. I asked him why he had done so. -</p> - -<p> -"Please, sir," said he, "the distilled water had no taste -in it." -</p> - -<p> -Having arranged with my old friend, Sir William Butler, -commanding the garrison at Alexandria, to combine with -the soldiers in field exercise, I took a landing-party ashore -at Ras-el-Tin. We started early in the morning, embarking -the field-guns. The seamen waded ashore with them, and -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P372"></a>372}</span> -attacked a position held by the soldiers on the top of the -hill. It looked impregnable, the ground being a steep, sandy -slope covered with scrub. But the bluejackets dragged the -guns up through the sand and bushes. We battled all the -morning with great enjoyment; returned on board, and -shifted into dry clothes in time for dinner. The benefit of -such exercises is that all learn something. -</p> - -<p> -In July, 1891, was held at Alexandria the great regatta, -in which 26 boats of all classes were entered, including a -cutter from the Portuguese sloop <i>Fieja</i> and Arab boats. It -was on this occasion that the galley of the <i>Undaunted</i> ran -upon the breakwater, was knocked into smithereens, and -sank. By an extraordinary coincidence, she was an old -boat which the Admiralty had persistently refused to -replace. -</p> - -<p> -Upon leaving Alexandria, the <i>Undaunted</i> touched a rock. -We had been helping the contractor to blow up the rocks in -the Borghiz Channel (a proceeding for which I was -subsequently reproved) and left the harbour steering by stern -marks. The staff-commander knew exactly where he was -going, but by a slip of the tongue he gave the order "port" -instead of "starboard," adding that he wanted to close -certain buoys marking the passage. The injury to the ship -was very slight, but peculiar. Her bottom was pierced, and -a little fish swam into the ship. I have the fish with a small -piece broken off the keel by the impact, in a bottle. -</p> - -<p> -In December, 1891, the second annual regatta of the -Mediterranean Fleet was held in Marmorice Bay. In the -officers' race, I pulled stroke in the galley of the <i>Undaunted</i>, -in spite of Sir George Tryon's kindly warning that my heart -would give way. We beat the <i>Australia's</i> boat by about -two seconds. In the next race, held the following year, the -<i>Australia</i> beat us. -</p> - -<p> -There were seventeen ships on the station, and 9000 men. -The <i>Undaunted</i> won 22 prizes (12 of them, I think, first -prizes) out of 29. All her ratings were regularly practised -in all her boats, each boat racing against the other. In -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P373"></a>373}</span> -order to equalise chances, the boats started in rotation, the -time allowance being given at the start, instead of being -calculated at the end as in yacht racing, so that the boat -first across the line at the end of the course won the race. The -launch, being the heaviest boat, started last, manned with -four men to the midship oars, three men to the after oars, and -two men to the foremost oars. The boats would often all -come in together. The enthusiasm of the men was immense. -At that time the island of Crete was in a state of chronic -agitation, which culminated in the troubles of 1897, and their -suppression by the Council of Admirals, of which Admiral -Sir Robert H. Harris, who represented Great Britain with -so great ability and resource, gives an excellent account in -his book, <i>From Naval Cadet to Admiral</i>. In the meantime, -Christians and Mohammedans were joyfully shooting -one another, while the Turkish garrison endeavoured to -keep order by shooting both parties impartially. Riding up -from Suda Bay to call upon a certain distinguished Turkish -Pasha, an old friend, I passed several corpses, both of -Christians and Mohammedans, lying on the roadside. -</p> - -<p> -"Cannot you stop these murders?" I said to the Pasha. -"It is really very distressing to see so many dead bodies." -</p> - -<p> -"Yes, Lord," said the Pasha (he always called me Lord). -"Very sad, Lord. I am sure you must feel it very much, -Lord. It must make you think you are back in your own -country." -</p> - -<p> -The retort was apposite enough, for moonlighting was -then the joy of Ireland. -</p> - -<p> -Not that the Turkish soldiers neglected musketry practice. -Riding up to Canea, I was met by bullets whistling past my -head. I pulled off the road, and was joined by an old Turk, -who was riding a donkey and carrying a large white umbrella. -Presently we perceived a pot placed in the middle of the -highway, and then we came upon a party of Turkish soldiers -lying in a row and firing at it; whereupon the aged Turk -climbed from his donkey, rolled up his umbrella, and -belaboured the soldiers with it. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P374"></a>374}</span> -</p> - -<p> -I once asked my friend the Pasha why he had not ere -then been promoted. -</p> - -<p> -"I do not know, Lord. The Government does not know. -God Almighty does not know. Even his Imperial Majesty -the Sultan does not know!" quoth the Pasha. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Undaunted</i> visited Sorrento in 1891, when Lord -Dufferin was staying there. None who had the privilege of -his acquaintance will need to be reminded of the singular -charm of a talented, witty and urbane personality. Lord -Dufferin had the unconscious art of impressing upon those -whom he met that he had been waiting all his life for that -moment. The small sailing yacht, <i>Lady Hermione</i>, which -he kept at Sorrento, was a marvel of ingenious contrivance. -She was a decked boat, with a well into which the ropes and -gear were led and were attached to all sorts of levers, tackles -and winches, to enable her to be sailed single-handed. Lord -Dufferin, accompanied by Lady Dufferin, frequently sailed her -in the Bay of Naples. On one such voyage, wishing to tauten -up the peak halliards, he told Lady Dufferin to heave upon -a certain lever. She seized the wrong handle, and away -went the anchor with 130 fathoms of chain, which ran out to -the clinch. Then the rest of the equipment became really -useful, Lord Dufferin rigging up purchase on purchase with -it, and so heaving up the anchor. After four hours' incessant -toil he succeeded in getting it berthed, and returned in a -state of exhaustion. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Lady Hermione</i> persuaded Lord Dufferin to learn -Morse and semaphore. She was moored at the foot of the -cliff, beneath Lord Dufferin's hotel, from whose balcony he -used to shout his orders for the day to the boy who was in -charge of her, and who often misunderstood his instructions. -I suggested that he should learn to communicate with his -ship's company by signal, and drew up both the Morse and -semaphore codes for his benefit. In six weeks he sent -letters to me written in both codes; an instance of determined -application. During that time he insisted on practising -for so many hours every day with his wife and daughter, so -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P375"></a>375}</span> -that at the end of it the whole family were proficient in -signals. -</p> - -<p> -An interesting example of the manoeuvres of those days -occurred at Volo, when Captain Wilson, V.C., disguised his -ship, the <i>Sanspareil</i>, in olive trees. The <i>Undaunted</i> was told -off to make a torpedo attack at night in the narrow -channel where lay the <i>Sanspareil</i>. Captain Wilson (now -Admiral of the Fleet Sir A. K. Wilson, V.C., G.C.B., O.M., -G.C.V.O.) had constructed a dummy ship on the side of the -channel opposite to which lay the <i>Sanspareil</i>, completely -clothed in olive trees. I sent a midshipman to cut the cable -of the searchlight playing upon the entrance to the channel. -The <i>Undaunted</i> steamed into the channel, discovered first the -wrong ship, and then the right one, at which I discharged -two torpedoes, which were found next morning under the -bottom of the <i>Sanspareil</i>. -</p> - -<p> -At the conclusion of all manoeuvres, Sir George Tryon -invariably gave a critical lecture upon them to his officers; -a method which I adopted in later years. No practice can -be more useful; for, while the events are fresh in mind, it -demonstrates what was wrong, and why. Often what looks -wrong at first, turns out to have been a good idea. But for -years all reports of manoeuvres remained locked in the -Admiralty. Many of the manoeuvres were useless; but for -lack of information admirals afloat continued to repeat them. -</p> - -<p> -During my time in the <i>Undaunted</i>, my knowledge of -signalling saved Captain Harry Rawson (afterwards -Vice-Admiral Sir H. H. Rawson, K.C.B.) and myself a deal of -trouble on one occasion. We had been out shooting all -day, had missed the way, and as darkness fell, found -ourselves on the wrong side of the bay in which the Fleet lay -at anchor, with the prospect of a further tramp of twelve -or fourteen miles. Rawson used to chaff me for doing -what he called "boatswain's work." -</p> - -<p> -"You always want," he used to say, "to go down to the -store-room and cut off 30 fathoms of rope yourself." -</p> - -<p> -To which I used to reply that I wanted to do nothing of -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P376"></a>376}</span> -the sort; but what I did want to do was to see that a piece -of 30 fathoms of rope <i>was</i> cut off. On the same principle, -Rawson used to deride my acquaintance with signals. -Now that we either had to attract the attention of the Fleet -or walk for another three or four hours, I told Rawson that -if I could find a shepherd's hut I would get a boat over. -He did not believe me. -</p> - -<p> -But we found a hut, and in the hut, an oil lamp and a -bucket, out of which I constructed a signalling apparatus. -I had hardly made the <i>Undaunted</i> pennant, when it was -answered from the ship, and inside a quarter of an hour the -boat waiting for us on the other side of the bay had been -recalled, and another boat was rapidly approaching us. -Rawson left off chaffing me after that. -</p> - -<p> -It was at this time that my old friend, Captain Gerard -Noel (now Admiral of the Fleet Sir G. H. U. Noel, G.C.B., -K.C.M.G.), one of the smartest seamen in the Service, -performed a brilliant feat of seamanship. Captain Noel -commanded the twin-screw, rigged ironclad <i>Téméraire</i>, of -8540 tons displacement, one of the types in which -sail-power was employed as well as steam. She was -brig-rigged, and I think her main-yard measured 104 feet, or -about four feet longer than the main-yards of the sailing -line-of-battleships of, say, 1850-60. On the 3rd October, -1890, Captain Noel beat her under sail alone against a -head wind up Suda Bay, a long narrow arm of the sea, -with shoal water in places, which added to the difficulty of -handling the ship. If I am not mistaken, that occasion -was the first and last time an ironclad beat her way under -sail into an anchorage. The <i>Téméraire</i> made thirteen tacks -and anchored within two cables (400 yards) of her appointed -berth with the Fleet. By that time the wind had failed -and it was useless to attempt to tack again. -</p> - -<p> -It was early in the commission of the <i>Undaunted</i> that I -read Captain (now Admiral) A. T. Mahan's admirable book, -<i>The Influence of Sea Power upon History</i>; of which it is not -too much to say that it has changed the whole trend of -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P377"></a>377}</span> -modern thought in respect of the relation of sea warfare to -land warfare. Preparation for war now turns upon a new -pivot. The result has been that extraordinary increase of -foreign navies which necessarily imposes upon us a proportionate -increase of our own Navy. I was so greatly impressed -with the work of Captain Mahan, that I wrote to him to -express my admiration for it. I received in reply the -interesting letter which follows, and which Admiral Mahan -has kindly permitted me to quote: -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p class="noindent"> -"75, EAST 54TH STREET, NEW YORK<br /> - 7<i>th February</i>, 1891<br /> -</p> - -<p> -"DEAR LORD CHARLES BERESFORD,—I thank you very -much for your letter, which was received a few days since. -The reception my book has had on your side of the water -has been very grateful to me. Commendation is pleasant, -but there has been a degree of thoughtful appreciation in -England, both by the Press and naval officers which has -exceeded my expectations and, I fear, the deserts of the -work. That it will produce any effect upon our people is -unlikely; too many causes concur to prevent a recognition -of the truth that even the most extensive countries need to -make themselves outside. After our own, nothing will give -me greater pleasure than that it should contribute in your -country to a sense of your vital interest in this matter. -Your naval officers have an inducement to study those great -questions which is almost wanting in ours; for if your Fleet -is not all that you could wish, you still have some instruments -to work with, a force superior to any other if not adequate to -all your needs, and the inadequacy can be greatly remedied -by judicious and careful planning and preparation. -</p> - -<p> -"... The number and dissemination of your external -interests throws England largely on the defensive, necessarily -so. It was so in the great days of Pitt and Nelson, though -the fact is obscured by the great naval preponderance you -then had. You have now greater and more extensive -interests to defend....—Believe me to be, very truly yours, -"A. T. MAHAN" -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap38"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P378"></a>378}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXXVIII -<br /> -H.M.S. UNDAUNTED (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -II. THE SALVING OF THE SEIGNELAY -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Undaunted</i>, lying at Alexandria in 1891, was -being rigged up for a ball; when a telegram arrived -ordering her to go to the rescue of the French -cruiser <i>Seignelay</i>, which had gone ashore near Jaffa, on -26th April. The telegram arrived at one o'clock in the -morning of the 28th April. Before daylight, the ball-room -was unrigged, the decorations were taken down, 300 guests -were put off by telegram, and we were steaming at full speed -to the <i>Seignelay</i>, distant 270 miles. In a private letter printed -in <i>The Times</i> of 20th October, 1894, describing the affair, -the anonymous writer says: "It was a good sample of the -vicissitudes of naval life, and I think we all rather enjoyed -it." (I do not know who wrote the letter, but it must have -been one of my officers; who, without my knowledge, -published it, or sanctioned its publication, more than a -year after the <i>Undaunted</i> had paid off. The proprietors of -<i>The Times</i> have kindly given me permission to quote from -the document, which was written at the time of the -occurrence of the events which it describes, and which -contains details I had forgotten.) -</p> - -<p> -At daylight on 29th April, we found the <i>Seignelay</i> -driven high up on a sandy beach, embedded in five and a half -feet of sand in shallow water. She had parted her cable in -a gale of wind, had driven on shore, and had scooped out -a dock for herself. Had she been built with a round stern -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P379"></a>379}</span> -each succeeding wave of the sea would have lifted and then -dropped her, bumping her to pieces. But as she had a sharp -stern, the breakers lifted her bodily and floated her farther -on. The <i>Seignelay</i> was a single-screw wooden cruiser, of -1900 tons displacement and 18 feet 4 inches draught. -When his ship struck, the captain telegraphed to his -admiral saying that he feared she was hopelessly lost. -The French admiral dispatched a squadron of three ships -to take off the men and stores; but by the time they -arrived the <i>Seignelay</i> was afloat again and lying at her -anchor almost undamaged; and the senior French captain -amiably remarked: "You English do not know the word -impossible." -</p> - -<p> -The British sloop <i>Melita</i>, Commander George F. King-Hall -(now Admiral Sir G. F. King-Hall, K.C.B, C.V.O.), -was already endeavouring to help the <i>Seignelay</i> when the -<i>Undaunted</i> arrived; but the water was so shallow that the -<i>Melita</i> could not approach nearer than 300 yards, and the -<i>Undaunted</i> 850 yards, to the <i>Seignelay</i>. -</p> - -<p> -I went on board the <i>Seignelay</i>, and found her captain -seated in his cabin, profoundly dejected at the disaster. I -cheered him as well as I could, telling him that of course -I understood that he had only been waiting for more men -to lighten his ship, and that I would send him 130 men -with an officer who understood French to act as interpreter. -</p> - -<p> -There was a heavy sea running; and the anchor I had -brought in the launch was laid out astern of the <i>Seignelay</i> -with considerable difficulty, and the end of the cable was -brought on board the <i>Seignelay</i>. -</p> - -<p> -Besides the <i>Melita</i>, the Austrian steamer <i>Diana</i>, the -French steamer <i>Poitou</i> and the Russian steamer <i>Odessa</i> -had all been endeavouring to rescue the <i>Seignelay</i>, but they -had neither the men nor the gear required for the task. -What was done subsequently was narrated in <i>The Times</i>, -more than three years afterwards, by the anonymous writer -aforesaid. -</p> - -<p> -"Our First Lieutenant (Lieutenant Stokes Rees) went as -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P380"></a>380}</span> -interpreter, and all our Captain wanted done was suggested -by him to the French. He gave the orders to junior -officers over our men, and I believe worked the French -crew also by his suggestions, a fine old sailor who was one of -their chief petty officers giving what orders were necessary. -He hardly left the deck for three days and nights, and did -his work splendidly. -</p> - -<p> -"The ship was embedded 5½ feet in the sand, and so -had to be lightened that much before we could hope to -move her. This we spent all Wednesday afternoon in -doing. -</p> - -<p> -"On Thursday morning the <i>Melita</i> with a light draught -Turkish steamer (the <i>Arcadia</i>) tried to pull her off but failed, -while the <i>Melita</i> was very nearly wrecked herself. Nothing -but very smart seamanship in making sail and casting off -hawsers with cool judgment on the part of —— ... saved -her from being dashed in a good sea upon a jagged reef of -rocks close to leeward. Her screw got fouled, and the willing -but awkward Turk towed her head round towards the reef -and she only just managed to get sail on her and shave it by -50 yards. She could not anchor or she would have swung -on top of it. We were looking on powerless from our deep -draught of water, though we hurried out hawsers, but it was -one of the nearest shaves I have seen, and with the large -number of men they had away in working parties, a thing to -be very proud of and thankful for...." -</p> - -<p> -What happened was that the <i>Melita</i> fouled her screw -with a hawser. I had warned her commander both orally -and by signal to beware above all of fouling his screw. But -circumstances defeated his efforts. When a man is doing -his best in difficulties, there is no use in adding to his -embarrassments by a reprimand. I signalled to Commander -King-Hall to cheer up and to clear his screw as soon as he -could; and I have reason to know that he deeply appreciated -my motive in so doing. -</p> - -<p> -To continue the narrative, which I have interrupted to -quote an instance of disciplinary action in an emergency: -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P381"></a>381}</span> -</p> - -<p> -"All Thursday we worked on at lightening her, getting -out 300 tons of coal, all her shot, shell, small guns, provisions -and cables on board our ship, until every part of the ship -was piled up with them, and all our nicely painted boats -reduced to ragged cargo boats, besides being a good deal -damaged owing to the exposed anchorage and seaway. We -got out one strong, and two light, wire hawsers and with -them the two ships tried to tow, but we parted the light -hawsers at once. -</p> - -<p> -"Then the Captain let me try a plan I had all along -been urging but which he ... and the French called a -physical impossibility." -</p> - -<p> -(The fact was, that the lighters and native boats were so -unseaworthy that, until the weather moderated, the scheme, -with all deference to the writer, was impracticable.) -</p> - -<p> -"We hired native boats and large lighters, got out strong -chain cables into them, and laid out 450 yards of chain cable -between the <i>Melita</i> and ourselves, floated on these lighters. -Thanks to the skill of our boatswain and a big quantity of -men in the lighters this was done most successfully, though -three lighters were sunk or destroyed in doing it. -</p> - -<p> -"That afternoon, Friday the 1st, having got 450 tons out -of the ship in forty-four hours, we got a fair pull at her with -all three ships, the little Turk tugging manfully at his rotten -hawser at one quarter and giving her a side pull occasionally. -We gradually worked our mighty engines up to full speed, -the chain cable tautened out as I have never seen chain do -before and off she came. -</p> - -<p> -"We manned the rigging and gave her cheer on cheer, -the band playing the <i>Marseillaise</i> as the <i>Melita</i> towed her -past our stern, while the Frenchmen hugged and kissed our -men on their checks. It was a scene to be long remembered. -The crowds of spectators lining the beach and walls, and our -own men, 'spent but victorious' after their long forty-four -hours of almost unceasing work, hardly anyone lying down -for more than three or four hours either night.... -</p> - -<p> -"By noon on Saturday we had replaced all their -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P382"></a>382}</span> -gear on board, picked up their anchors and cables, etc., -so that when their squadron came in that evening they -found nothing left to do. They were really grateful and -showed much good feeling, coming to call on us and -being most friendly. -</p> - -<p> -"On Monday night, when we left, the whole squadron -cheered us manfully...." -</p> - -<p> -The British admiral was afterwards asked by the French -Government to allow the <i>Undaunted</i> to proceed to the Gulf -of Lions where the French Fleet was lying, in order that the -officers and men of the <i>Undaunted</i> might attend a reception -in her honour. The <i>Undaunted</i> steamed down between the -French lines, playing the <i>Marseillaise</i>, the French manning -ship and cheering. Officers and men were most hospitably -entertained with every mark of friendship and goodwill. -The French Government most courteously presented me -with a beautiful Sèvres vase, which is one of my most valued -possessions. -</p> - -<p> -When the time came for the <i>Undaunted</i> to go home, the -commander-in-chief paid her a high compliment. The -whole Fleet steamed out of Malta Harbour in line ahead, -the <i>Undaunted</i> being the rear ship of the line. When we -were to part company, every vessel, except the <i>Undaunted</i>, -turned 16 points to port in succession (the line thus curving -back upon itself) and steamed past the stern of the -<i>Undaunted</i>. The commander-in-chief gave orders to cheer -ship as each vessel passed the <i>Undaunted</i>: a stately farewell -to the homeward bound. -</p> - -<p> -On the passage home, in order to test the actual working -of communication by signal between the Navy and the -mercantile marine, a system whose reform had -constantly urged, I signalled, between Malta and Plymouth, to -33 merchantmen. Of the whole number, only three -answered my signal, and of the three, only one answered it -correctly, although several vessels passed within 600 yards -of the <i>Undaunted</i>. The signals I made were short, such -as "Where are you bound?" "Where are you from?" -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P383"></a>383}</span> -"Have you seen any men-of-war?" "What weather -have you had?" and some of them required only one hoist -in reply. -</p> - -<p> -The Royal Navy, a great part of whose duty in time of -war would be the protection of commerce, was in fact at that -time practically unable to communicate with the Merchant -navy, either for the purpose of giving or receiving information, -except by means of sending a boat to the vessel in question, -a proceeding which must often be impossible, and which -would always involve a delay which might bring serious -consequences. No condition of affairs could more -powerfully exemplify the national neglect of preparation for -war. For in war, the maintenance of the lines of -communication from ship to ship and ship to shore, is of the -first importance. -</p> - -<p> -The difficulty discovered by merchant vessels in signalling -or replying to a signal consisted in their ignorance of -signalling. They were seldom required to signal; the use -of the commercial code involved a tedious process, impossible -to accomplish quickly without constant practice; they -were equipped with neither Morse nor semaphore apparatus, -nor had officers or men learned how to use it. When a -man-of-war signalled to a merchantman, the merchant -skipper or mate must first try to decipher the flags of the -hoist, an exercise to which he was totally unaccustomed. -When he had decided that the flags were, say, blue with a -white stripe, and red with a yellow stripe, he had to turn -them up in the signal-book to discover what they meant. -All this time the distance between the two ships was -rapidly increasing. Having made out the signal, the -merchant sailor must refer to his signal-book to find what flags -made his reply; and having found them, he had to pick out -the flag itself from a bundle. By the time he had finished -these operations, if he ever finished them, the ships were -nearly out of sight of each other. -</p> - -<p> -The reform was eventually achieved largely by the personal -enterprise and energy of the mercantile marine officers -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P384"></a>384}</span> -themselves, who learned signalling, and who often paid for -the necessary apparatus out of their own pockets. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Undaunted</i> paid off early in 1893. Upon the evening -of the day upon which I arrived in London, I went to -the House of Commons to listen to the debate upon the -Navy Estimates. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap39"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P385"></a>385}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXXIX -<br /> -THE SECOND SHIPBUILDING PROGRAMME -</h3> - -<p> -It is easier to take the helm than to be on the con. I -have always been on the con. To drop the metaphor, -I have looked ahead in matters of naval defence and -have pointed out what (in my view) ought to be done. In -1889, I resigned my post at the Board of Admiralty in -order to fasten public attention upon the instant necessity -of strengthening the Fleet by the addition of 70 vessels at a -cost of £20,000,000. In the same year, the Naval Defence -Act provided those vessels at a cost a little in excess of -my estimate. That was my first shipbuilding programme. -Many other forces were of course exerted to the same end: -the representations of distinguished brother officers; the -many excellent articles in the Press; and the steadily -increasing pressure of public opinion, then much less warped by -party politics than it has since become. Apart from these -influences, which were fortified by the irresistible logic of the -truth, my own efforts must have availed little. But above -all (to resume my metaphor), it was the helmsman at the -Admiralty who put the wheel over. Captain W. H. Hall, -Director of the Intelligence Department, worked out the -requirements of the case, unknown to me, and arrived at -the same conclusions as those at which I had arrived, and -the Board of Admiralty adopted his scheme. By the irony -of circumstance, the Intelligence Department had been -instituted, in consequence of my representations, before I left -the Admiralty, for the precise purpose of reporting upon the -requirements of defence; and the first report of its fearless -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P386"></a>386}</span> -and enlightened chief completely upset the comfortable -theories both of the Board and of the Government. -</p> - -<p> -I have briefly recalled these matters, fully related in a -previous chapter, because they present a curious parallel with -the events of 1893-4. -</p> - -<p> -In July, 1893, while still on half-pay, I addressed the -London Chamber of Commerce on the subject of "The -Protection of the mercantile marine in War." Since I had -left the <i>Undaunted</i>, early in the year, I had been occupied -once more in drawing up a scheme of naval requirements, -specifying what was required, why it was required, and how -much it would cost, and giving a detailed list of the -necessary vessels. The protection of the mercantile marine was -the first part of it; the whole was not completed until just -before I was appointed captain of the Steam Reserve at -Chatham; and it would have been improper for me to have -published the paper while on active service. It was intended -that I should read it before the London Chamber of Commerce, -following upon and amplifying my address dealing with the -protection of the mercantile marine in war. But as there -was no time available for the purpose before I went on -active service, I gave the scheme to Mr. John Jackson, for -the London Chamber of Commerce. I may take this opportunity -of paying a tribute to the disinterested and untiring -patriotic zeal of the late Mr. Jackson, between whom and -myself a warm friendship existed. -</p> - -<p> -In my address upon the protection of the mercantile -marine in war, the abrogation of the Declaration of Paris -of 1856 was urged as a primary condition of British naval -supremacy: a condition unequivocally laid down in the -Report of the Three Admirals in 1889. Subsequent events -have shown that successive British Governments, far from -recognising the essential elements of sea power, continued -to yield point after point, until at the Naval Conferences of -1907 and 1909, whose recommendations were embodied in -the Declaration of London, British Ministers virtually -conceded nearly every right gained by centuries of hard fighting -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P387"></a>387}</span> -in the past. Fortunately, public indignation has hitherto -prevented the ratification of that fatal instrument. -</p> - -<p> -It was also shown in my address that, at the time, -the naval protection for the mercantile marine was in the -ratio of one small cruiser to 71 sailing vessels and one small -cruiser to 41 steamers; that there were dangerous deficiencies -in the supplies of reserve coal and ammunition; that a -reserve force of at least 20 battleships was required; and -that there was urgent need for the immediate construction -of the mole and other works at Gibraltar. -</p> - -<p> -The shipbuilding programme was designed to show how -these and other requirements were to be met. Mr. John -Jackson caused it to be published on his own responsibility. -The execution of the requirements therein specified involved -an expenditure of 25 millions spread over three and a half -years. Their necessity was supported by Vice-Admiral -P. H. Colomb, writing in <i>The United Service Magazine</i>; by -many letters in the Press written by my brother officers; -by further excellent articles in <i>The Times</i> and other papers; -and by Lord George Hamilton, ex-First Lord of the -Admiralty. -</p> - -<p> -In November, Lord Salisbury publicly stated that "men -of different schools with respect to maritime and military -defences, men of very different services and experiences and -ability," were united in urging that steps should be at once -taken to re-establish the maritime supremacy of this country. -</p> - -<p> -The fact was, of course, that the provision made by the -Naval Defence Act of 1889 was running out, and that in -the revolution of the party political machine, the periodic -neglect of the Navy had occurred as usual. As one party -attains a lease of power, it is forced to increase the strength -of the Fleet; the effort expends itself; then the other party -comes in, and either reduces the Fleet, or neglects it, or both, -until public opinion is once more aroused by infinite shoutings -and untiring labour, and the Government are coerced into -doing their plain duty. -</p> - -<p> -Such was the situation in 1888-9; such was it in 1893-4. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P388"></a>388}</span> -In 1888-9, a Conservative administration was in power; in -1893-4, Mr. Gladstone was Prime Minister. The difficulty -of the situation in 1893-4 was therefore more obstinate, -inasmuch as Mr. Gladstone's Ministry held that the -reduction of expenditure upon defence was an act of moral -virtue; whereas Lord Salisbury's Government merely waited -to be convinced of the necessity of increase, before doing -their duty. -</p> - -<p> -Nevertheless, what happened? The Navy Estimates of -March, 1894, provided for an expenditure of no less than -30¼ millions upon new construction spread over five years; -as compared with my proposal of 25 millions spread over -three and a half years. The Government actually provided -more than was contained in my programme. -</p> - -<p> -The Spencer programme, as it is called, was a much -bigger scheme than the programme of 1888-9. It not only -provided the ships required, but included a scheme for -manning them. It included a comprehensive programme -of naval works in which, for the first time in history, the -defence of the Empire was treated as a whole. Provision -was made for deepening and improving the harbours of -Portsmouth, Chatham, Devonport, Haulbowline, for the -Keyham extension, for naval barracks at Chatham and -Walmer, for the new works at Gibraltar, for the construction -of harbours at Portland, Dover, and Simon's Bay, and -for large extensions of the dockyards at Malta, Hong Kong -and Simon's Bay. The cost of the works was to be met by -monies raised under a Naval Loan Act. That Act is still -in force, but a later Government declined to utilise it; with -the inevitable result that the neglected and dismantled -condition of the coaling stations and naval bases abroad, -constitute a present danger to the Empire, and will in the -future require a vast expenditure, which need never have -been incurred, to be devoted to their restoration. -</p> - -<p> -To what extraordinary influence, then, was the conversion -of Mr. Gladstone and his colleagues to be attributed? -There was, in fact, no conversion. It was a case of coercion; -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P389"></a>389}</span> -or, as Mr. Gladstone entertained a strong dislike to the -word, let us call it moral suasion. The explanation is simple -and sufficient. In August, 1893, which was the time when -the representations concerning naval deficiencies were -becoming insistent, Admiral Sir Frederick Richards was -appointed First Sea Lord. Sir Frederick Richards, it will -be remembered, was one of the Three Admirals who drew -up the historic "Report on The Naval Manoeuvres of 1888," -and it was chiefly due to his genius and patriotism that from -a technical disquisition the Report became a masterly -exposition of the true principles of British sea power. -Incidentally, it endorsed the whole of my representations -set forth in my shipbuilding programme, which were -embodied in the Naval Defence Act of 1889. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Frederick Richards, too, had been a member of the -Hartington Commission on Naval and Military Administration, -which reported in 1890; and which, although its -recommendations were for many years neglected by successive -Governments, at least taught its members what was the -real condition of affairs, and what were the requirements of -organisation for war. Sir Frederick, therefore, came to his -high office furnished not only with the sea experience of a -flag officer afloat, but equipped with a detailed knowledge of -administration and organisation; and endowed, in addition, -with so remarkable a genius, that he was one of the -greatest naval administrators known to the history of the -Royal Navy. -</p> - -<p> -His devotion to duty was the master motive of his life; -nor was there a man living who could turn him by the -breadth of a hair from what he believed to be right. Having -planned, as the proper adviser of Lord Spencer, the First -Lord, the great shipbuilding and naval works scheme of -1894-5, he was confronted by the strong opposition of -Mr. Gladstone and his Cabinet. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Frederick Richards and the whole of his naval -colleagues on the Board immediately informed the Government -that, unless their proposals for strengthening the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P390"></a>390}</span> -Fleet and for providing for the naval defence of the Empire, -were accepted, they would resign. It was enough. The -Government yielded. -</p> - -<p> -The Naval Lords were: Admiral Sir Frederick Richards, -K.C.B.; Rear-Admiral the Lord Walter Talbot Kerr; -Rear-Admiral Sir John Arbuthnot Fisher, K.C.B.; and -Captain Gerard Henry Uctred Noel. -</p> - -<p> -It was in commemoration of the action of Sir Frederick -Richards that the Navy caused his portrait to be painted, -and presented it to the nation. Inscribed with the legend -"From the Navy to the Nation," it hangs in the Painted -Hall at Greenwich, where it was placed during the lifetime -of the admiral, an unique distinction. -</p> - -<p> -As in 1889, when many of my brother officers and myself -were conning the ship, it was the helmsman at the Admiralty -who put the wheel over, and again I was wholly ignorant of -his intentions. But this time the helmsman was none other -than the First Sea Lord, and with him were his naval -colleagues. With him, too, was the great body of public -opinion in the country; and as in 1888, those of us who had -been toiling to educate it, may at least claim to have set in -motion a force lacking which it is almost impossible, under -a pseudo-democratic government, to accomplish any great -reform whatever. -</p> - -<p> -It is not too much to say that to the shipbuilding -and naval works programme initiated and planned -by Sir Frederick Richards in 1894-5, and carried by -his courage and resolution, the Empire owes its -subsequent immunity from external attack, notably at the -time of the Fashoda incident and during the South -African war. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Frederick Richards was so great a man, that he could -even nullify the injurious effect of the legal supremacy of the -civilian First Lord over the Board, which technically deprives -it of collective administrative authority. He served, however, -with two high-minded gentlemen, Lord Spencer, and -Mr. Goschen who succeeded Lord Spencer. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P391"></a>391}</span> -</p> - -<p> -I have had to do with three great shipbuilding -programmes. The first was carried after the resignation -of one member of the Board, myself; the second, -by the threatened resignation of all the Naval Lords! -Of the third anon. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap40"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P392"></a>392}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XL -<br /> -STEAM RESERVE -</h3> - -<p> -In the days of the sailing Navy, when an accident -occurred, the captain knew every method by which it -could be repaired, and gave directions exactly how the -work was to be done. He was not necessarily able to do -the work with his own hands (although I know at least one -captain who could); but (what was more important) he -knew how it ought to be done. Should a topsail-yard -carry away, for instance, the captain would know whether to -have it sawn in half longitudinally and the halves reversed; -or to cut out the damaged piece and replace it with a new -piece woolded on and wedged; or to fish the yard. -</p> - -<p> -There was once a captain on the China station who -asked the Admiralty for a baulk of timber, because his -main-yard had carried away; whereupon the Admiralty -officially desired to be officially informed who had carried -it away, where to, and why. -</p> - -<p> -In the steam Navy, it is equally necessary that a captain -should be acquainted with the various methods of handling -material and machinery, in order that he may be able to -direct the trained artificer. One case among many which -fell under my own observation illustrates the point. A -cylinder having cracked, the engineer officer proposed to -drill the holes for the bolts securing strengthening pieces in -a row; when it was shown to him that the result would be -to make the cylinder, like a sheet of postage-stamps, liable -to tear; but that if he set his holes in an in-and-out pattern -he would avoid that weakness. As the captain, so the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P393"></a>393}</span> -admiral. Every admiral in command of a fleet should be -competent to direct the execution of even the smallest -repairs; for upon what seems a trifling detail may depend -the safety of the ship. -</p> - -<p> -Such, at least, were the considerations that induced me -to apply for a dockyard appointment. And upon the 15th -July, 1893, I was appointed captain of the Steam Reserve at -Chatham Dockyard, under the command of Rear-Admiral -George D. Morant, flying his flag in the <i>Algiers</i>, guardship -of Reserve. Rear-Admiral Morant (now Admiral Sir -G. D. Morant, K.C.B.) was a first-rate officer, of indefatigable -energy, an excellent administrator, and a most charming -chief. -</p> - -<p> -All vessels under construction and repair were under the -admiral-superintendent; I was his executive officer; and -the object of appointing a sea-going officer was that details -of construction should be tested in accordance with the use -to which they would be put at sea. Let us say, for instance, -that two ships were under construction, one which was 43 -feet in the beam, and the other 65 feet. Awning stanchions -of the same size were fitted to both ships; and when the -awning was rigged in the larger vessel, the stanchions came -home. Another advantage of sea-going knowledge was -impressed upon me while I was in the <i>Thunderer</i>. She -had some forty or fifty deck-plates, covering valves and -ventilating shafts. The deck-plates and shafts were of -various sizes, involving the use of a large number of spanners -to fit them. These took up space and added an unnecessary -weight. A seaman would have made a standard pattern -with one or two spanners to fit the whole number. -</p> - -<p> -It was my duty to take command in all steam trials of -vessels, and tests of appliances and machinery, and to -compare all work with its specification. -</p> - -<p> -During 1893-4, the <i>Magnificent</i> was being built by -Chatham in rivalry of Portsmouth, which was building her -sister battleship the <i>Majestic</i>. It was becoming a close -thing, when the <i>Magnificent</i> received from the manufacturers -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P394"></a>394}</span> -a lot of armour plates, which might have gone to the -<i>Majestic</i>, and which enabled us to gain a lead. The -<i>Magnificent</i> was launched by the Countess Spencer, in -December, 1894. The ship was built in thirteen months -from the date of laying the keel-plate; an achievement for -which high credit was due to the chief constructor, -Mr. J. A. Yates, and to the constructors, Mr. H. Cock and -Mr. W. H. Card. -</p> - -<p> -When I took the <i>Magnificent</i> upon her trials, Lord -Wolseley, Colonel Brabazon, and Mr. Baird, American -Ambassador, accompanied me as guests. We returned -from the Nore in a torpedo-boat, at full speed, in the dark. -In those days there were no lights in the Medway; and we -jumped the spit. Lord Wolseley inquired if "we always -took short cuts across the land." -</p> - -<p> -When a new ship was completed by the Royal Dockyards, -the task of cleaning her and completing arrangements -in detail was performed by working parties, which usually -consisted of pensioners. The principle was that when she -was taken over from the Dockyard authorities to be -commissioned, she should be ready for sea. In the case of the -<i>Magnificent</i>, for instance, when Lord Walter Kerr hoisted -his flag in her, in December, 1895, she was absolutely -complete in every detail: decks spotless, store-rooms -labelled, hammock-hooks numbered: there was nothing for -officers and men to do but to find their quarters. -</p> - -<p> -An instance of the necessity of testing appliances according -to sea requirements occurred when I was testing capstans. -The ships were taken into deep water, so that the whole -length of the cable was run out by the time the anchor -touched bottom; and it was then discovered that the -capstan was too weak to lift the amount of vertical chain -specified. -</p> - -<p> -When I was trying a torpedo-boat at full speed, the helm -suddenly jammed, and the boat instantly went out of control -in the neighbourhood of a number of trawlers. Luckily, -she went round and round in a circle until she was stopped. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P395"></a>395}</span> -She did not hit a trawler; but it was a very lively minute -or two. -</p> - -<p> -A party of us went to a ball at Sheerness, going thither -in a tug; and intending to return the same night, we left -the house at about one o'clock. There was a thick fog, and -the captain of the tug declined to start. As I made it a rule -to sleep in my own quarters at Chatham if I possibly could, -I said I would take the tug back. As there were no lights, -I found the channel by the simple method of hitting its -banks; and cannoning off and on all the way, we made the -passage. -</p> - -<p> -In November, 1892, the <i>Howe</i> battleship had struck -upon an uncharted rock in Ferrol harbour; and -Rear-Admiral Edward Seymour (now Admiral of the Fleet Sir -E. H. Seymour, G.C.B., O.M., G.C.V.O.) was appointed to -inspect the salvage operations. These occupied nearly five -months. Sir Edward gives a brief but interesting account -of the work in his book, <i>My Naval Career</i>. After the <i>Howe</i> -had been floated, she was dry-docked at Ferrol, where she -remained for nearly two months, while temporary repairs -were being effected. When she struck the rock, her port -side forward was stove in for nearly half her length, and her -after part remained resting on a "rocky shoal of hard -granite." Sir Edward Seymour says "that after the ship -was got into dock at Ferrol, I could stand on a temporary -flooring where the bottom of the ship used to be, and holding -one hand over my head could not touch where the ship's -bottom plates had been driven up to." He adds that "the -mud, slime and dirt covering everything as the water was -cleared from below, and the bad smell were almost beyond -belief." -</p> - -<p> -We at Chatham could confirm the observation; for it -was to Chatham that the <i>Howe</i> returned to be repaired. -When she arrived, she was still coated with stinking mud, -and we did our best to clean her. But notwithstanding our -utmost diligence, a minute quantity of this virulent slime -was afterwards found under the rolling-plate of the turrets. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P396"></a>396}</span> -The men who slung their hammocks near the turrets fell -sick of fever; and its origin was traced to the mud. -</p> - -<p> -The salving of a vessel so badly injured was a fine -achievement. Sir Edward Seymour brought her to Sheerness -under her own steam at eight knots. We dealt with her for -a few months, until she was all a-taunto again, when she -was re-commissioned and went to the Mediterranean. -</p> - -<p> -It is the duty of a captain of the Dockyard Reserve to -make representations, through the admiral-superintendent, -to the Admiralty, with regard to improvements in -construction and material. My suggestions concerning -water-tight doors in ships were subsequently embodied in a -paper read before the Institution of Naval Architects. -In the design of the first ironclads, the vessels were -actually divided into water-tight compartments by bulkheads -without doors or apertures. In later designs, numerous -doors were cut in the bulkheads for the sake of -convenience of access, which, together with the many -ventilating shafts and valves, in effect nullified the system of -dividing a vessel into water-tight sections. The doors -themselves were hung on hinges and closed with hanks and -wedges; an inefficient method. My suggestions, which -were afterwards adopted, were that the number of doors -should be greatly reduced; and that they should be vertical, -and made to screw up and down; and that the ventilating -shafts fitted with an automatic closing apparatus which did -not work should be abolished. -</p> - -<p> -Among other proposals were the substitution of ships' -names, plainly lettered, for figure-heads and scroll-work, and -the abolition of the ram. At that time, our men-of-war -were built with unarmoured ends, only the protective steel -deck extending the whole length and breadth of the ship. -It followed that if the side of a hostile vessel were pierced by -the long projecting ram of a British ship, the force of her -impact would strip her bows of the light construction above -the protective deck, and she would remain toggled in the -enemy and helpless. Far more effective, if ramming is to -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P397"></a>397}</span> -be done, would be the direct blow of a vertical bow. At the -same time, I continued to represent the radical weakness of -unarmoured ends. -</p> - -<p> -In 1894, five years after the passing of the Naval -Defence Act, and the elate at which the great Spencer -shipbuilding programme, involving a large increase of -officers and men, was begun, the serious deficiency in the -personnel became manifest. The fact was, that the Naval -Defence Act of 1889 had not included proper provision for -manning the new ships as they came into commission; and -just when the boys who ought to have been entered in 1889 -would have become available as able seamen, it was discovered -that they did not exist. But by that time, of course, the -Government responsible for the deficiency was out of office, -and, as usual, there was no one to be called to account. -</p> - -<p> -In September, 1894, Mr. Spenser Wilkinson, who has -performed so much invaluable service in educating the -public to logical ideas upon organisation for war and -problems of national defence, began to publish his excellent -articles dealing with "The Command of the Sea," in which -the demand for the institution of a Naval War Staff was -formulated. It was for the purpose of enforcing this necessity -that the Navy League was founded by "four average Englishmen" -in December, 1894. Among its original supporters -were Earl Roberts, V.C., Lord George Hamilton, Sir Charles -Dilke, Sir John Puleston, the Master of Trinity House, Sir -Charles Lawson, Mr. Joseph Cowen, Mr. Arnold-Forster, -and myself. -</p> - -<p> -It will be observed that the original aim of the Navy -League was to ensure the fulfilment of the idea upon which -the Intelligence Department was founded upon my -representations in 1888. The Navy League subsequently added -to itself other objects, which perhaps obscured its first -purpose. The War Staff at the Admiralty was constituted -in 1912, in accordance with the recommendations of the -Beresford Inquiry of 1909. -</p> - -<p> -In 1893, the year before the Navy League was founded, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P398"></a>398}</span> -and just previous to my appointment to Chatham, I publicly -advocated the institution of a Council of Defence, under the -presidency of a Minister, composed of the best admirals and -generals. The project was afterwards carried into execution -by Mr. Balfour; but its utility was vitiated by being framed -to suit the ends of party politics. -</p> - -<p> -In May, 1894, the U.S. cruiser <i>Chicago</i> anchored off -Gravesend; and at a banquet given to the American admiral -and officers, I had the pleasure of renewing my old -acquaintance with the American Navy, begun in 1882 at the -bombardment of Alexandria. Admiral Erben flew his flag -in the <i>Chicago</i>, and Captain Mahan was flag-captain. -</p> - -<p> -It was a great pleasure to meet Captain Mahan (now -Admiral Mahan), whose classic work on <i>The Influence of Sea -Power upon History</i> came to me while I was in command of -the <i>Undaunted</i>, and concerning which, as before related, -some correspondence had passed between us. -</p> - -<p> -Captain Mahan and myself contributed articles to <i>The -North American Review</i> of November, 1894, on "The -Possibilities of an Anglo-American Reunion." Captain -Mahan, preferring to postpone the advocacy of a formal -alliance between the two nations, looked forward to the -development of such relations as would make it feasible; -while I urged the conclusion of a defensive alliance for the -protection of those common interests upon which depends -the prosperity of the two countries. That the English-speaking -nations should combine to preserve the peace of -the world, has always seemed to me a reasonable aspiration, -and I have said so in both countries when opportunity -served. -</p> - -<p> -In December, 1894, desiring to represent the interests of -the Service in Parliament as soon as might be, I applied -once more to the Admiralty to be permitted, according to -precedent, to count my service in the Soudan campaign as -time spent in the command of a ship of war; but the -application was again refused. From many constituencies -invitations to stand were sent to me; among them were -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P399"></a>399}</span> -Stockport, North Kensington, Birkenhead, Liverpool, East -Toxteth, Armagh, Dublin, Cardiff, Chatham, Devonport, -Pembroke and Portsmouth. -</p> - -<p> -In those days Mr. W. L. Wyllie (now R.A.) used to -haunt the Medway and the Nore, boat-sailing and painting. -He can handle a boat as well as he handles his brush; that -is, to perfection. Mr. Wyllie gave me a boat which he had -built with his own hands, I think out of biscuit boxes. I -tried it in a basin at Chatham, accompanied by a warrant -officer of the <i>Pembroke</i>. We were becalmed; a sudden puff -came; and over we went. In memory of the disaster, I gave -the warrant officer a pipe, the bowl of which was appropriately -carved to represent a death's-head. -</p> - -<p> -While I was at Chatham, my home was Park Gate House, -Ham Common. Here I had a model farm, producing milk, -eggs and poultry, which were readily sold in Richmond, whose -streets and thoroughfares were greatly enlivened by the daily -procession of my large and shining brass milk-cans. I was not -in the sad case of Captain Edward Pellew (afterwards Lord -Exmouth), who upon quitting the sea and taking a farm, in -1791, complained that the crops grew so slowly that they -made his eyes ache. -</p> - -<p> -During my absence a burglar entered the house. The -butler, hearing a noise, rose from his bed, took a revolver, -and sought for the intruder, who fled before him to the roof, -whence he fell headlong through a skylight. He must have -been a good deal cut, for he bled all over the place. The -butler, following, also fell through the skylight; but, -presumably falling through the same hole, was little damaged. -Continuing the chase, he was brought up short by a wire -entanglement previously set by the burglar for the butler's -confusion. So he sat where he was, and continued to fire -steadily in the direction he supposed the burglar to have -gone, until his ammunition was all expended. -</p> - -<p> -It may be interesting to recall that in September, 1893, -Sir Augustus Harris was appointed manager of Drury Lane -Opera House by the committee which was then organising -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P400"></a>400}</span> -the opera in this country. I urged his selection on account -of his great administrative ability; and prevailed over the -objection that he was only skilled in pantomime. -</p> - -<p> -The committee had been formed to improve the opera, -which was then performed at three different theatres: Covent -Garden, Drury Lane, and Her Majesty's; so that the available -talent was scattered. Sir Augustus Harris combined -the three into one at Drury Lane. -</p> - -<p> -In October, 1895, occurred the death of my brother, Lord -Waterford, at the age of fifty-one. He had been for long -completely disabled by a bad accident in the hunting field; -and although his sufferings were constant and acute, he -continued staunchly to discharge his many duties to the end. -He was succeeded in the marquisate by his son. -</p> - -<p> -My appointment at Chatham terminated in March, 1896; -and a few days later I delivered at Birmingham an address -dealing with the requirements of naval defence. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap41"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P401"></a>401}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XLI -<br /> -VIEWS AND REVIEWS -</h3> - -<p> -The three years succeeding the termination of my -appointment at Chatham were mainly occupied with -questions of naval reform. The task was of my own -choosing; and if, in comparison with the life I led, the -existence of the early martyrs was leisured, dignified and -luxurious, it is not for me to draw the parallel. The chief -difficulty encountered by any reformer is not an evil but a -good. It is the native virtue of the English people, which -leads them to place implicit confidence in constituted -authority. The advocacy of a change implies that constituted -authority is failing to fulfil its duty. You cannot at the -same time both trust and distrust the men in charge of -affairs. Again, reform often involves expenditure; and the -dislike to spend money upon an idea is natural to man. And -it is the custom of constituted authority to tell the people that -all is well, in fact never so well. They have all the weight -of their high office behind them; and people will believe -what they are told by authority in despite of the evidence of -their senses. -</p> - -<p> -Moreover, there are endless difficulties and disappointments -inherent in the very nature of the task of the naval or -military reformer. The problems of defence are highly -intricate; and although the principles governing them -remain unaltered, the application of those principles is -constantly changing. The most skilled officers may differ -one from another; and a man who is devoting his whole -time and energy to benefit the Service to which he belongs, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P402"></a>402}</span> -will often be disheartened by the opposition of his brother -officers. -</p> - -<p> -The influence of society, again, is often baneful. Society -is apt to admonish a public man, especially if he be popular, -perpetually telling him that he must not do this, and he -must not say that, or he will injure his reputation, ruin his -career, and alienate his friends; until, perhaps, he becomes -so habitually terrified at what may happen, that he ends by -doing nothing, and spoiling his career at the latter end after -all. Public life to-day is permeated through and through -with a selfish solicitude for personal immunity. But it -remains the fact that he who intends to achieve a certain -object, must first put aside all personal considerations. -Upon going into action, a fighting man is occupied, not -with speculations as to whether or not he will be hit, and if -so where, but in trying to find out where and how soon and -how hard he can hit the enemy. Even so, he may be -beaten; but at least he will have nothing to regret; he will -be able to say that if it were all to do again, he would do -the same; for he will know that on any other terms his -defeat would be assured. -</p> - -<p> -If, then, these pages record in brief the continual -endeavours of those who made it their business to represent -to the nation the requirements of Imperial defence, it is for -the purpose of once more exemplifying the defects in our -system which periodically expose the country and the -Empire to dangers from without and panics from within, and -involve them in a series of false economies alternating with -spasms of wasteful expenditure. The remedy advocated -was the constitution of a body whose duty it should be to -represent requirements. Such a body was not created until -1912. In the meantime, more money was spent than would -purchase security, which was not always obtained. Nor have -we yet produced what is the first essential of national security, -the feeling of the officers and men of the fighting services -that they are being justly treated by the nation in the matter -of pay and pension and proper administrative treatment. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P403"></a>403}</span> -</p> - -<p> -In 1896, the most pressing need of the Navy was for -more officers and men. As already explained, the failure -to enter the number required to man the ships of the -Naval Defence Act of 1889, had now become manifest. -Battleships are a showy asset; the absence of men is -not noticed by the public; therefore the politician builds -the ships and omits the men. In an address delivered -before the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce in July, 1896, -I stated that the deficiency in the personnel was 27,562 -men, including a deficiency of 5000 in engine-room ratings. -A resolution urging the necessity of an immediate -increase in the personnel was passed by the Liverpool -Chamber of Commerce, and was sent to the First Lord, -Mr. Goschen. -</p> - -<p> -The First Lord replied to the resolution, stating that -the increase in the personnel since 1889 had been 31,360. -These figures, however, included the whole of the numbers -borne, without distinction of the numbers available for sea -service, and represented the numbers voted, irrespective of -deaths or retirements. The true increase was estimated by -me, upon the evidence of the Navy Estimates, at 17,262; and -the total number required at 105,000. -</p> - -<p> -A good deal of public interest having been aroused on -the subject, Mr. Goschen stated in the House that it would -be his duty next year "to propose such a number of men for -the Navy and Reserves as we judge to be rendered necessary -by the extension of the Fleet." -</p> - -<p> -The increase of personnel was provided accordingly. -Here is one instance among many, of a responsible statesman -declaring in all good faith that matters were perfectly -satisfactory as they were; being obliged by the insistence -of outside representations to examine requirements; and then -discovering that these were in fact what had been represented. -Mr. Goschen was necessarily dependent upon the advice of the -Sea Lords; but the Sea Lords themselves were immersed in -the mass of routine work involved in keeping the machine -going. The business of supply and the business of -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P404"></a>404}</span> -organisation for war were confused together; with the inevitable -result that organisation for war was neglected. -</p> - -<p> -The personnel was increased in 1897-8 by 6300 -(numbers voted). In the following year, 1898-9, my -estimate of 105,000 men was passed, the numbers voted -being 106,390; and, excepting intervals of false economy, -continued to rise until they now (1913) stand at 146,000. -</p> - -<p> -The proposals with regard to the personnel were -supported by (among others) Admiral Sir R. Vesey -Hamilton, who, in a letter to <i>The Times</i> of 2nd April, -1897, stated that "an ex-Controller of the Navy said to me -when I was at the Admiralty, 'Your building programme -is ahead of the manning.' And he was right, more -particularly in officers." Sir R. Vesey Hamilton was a Lord -Commissioner of the Admiralty from January, 1889, the -year of the Naval Defence Act, to September, 1891. His -testimony is therefore authoritative. It was, of course, no -fault of Sir Vesey Hamilton that the personnel was -deficient. -</p> - -<p> -It is not too much to say that owing to the omission -from that Act of the requisite increase in the personnel, -the Navy has been short of men ever since. -</p> - -<p> -In December, 1896, I suggested in a letter to the Press -that promotion to flag-rank should take place at an earlier -age in order that officers might gain the necessary experience -while still in the vigour of youth. Officers who remain too -long in a subordinate position are liable to have the faculty of -initiative taken out of them, and to fall into the habit of -thinking that things will last their time. The services of old -and experienced officers are of course invaluable; but officers -should acquire the knowledge of the duties of an admiral -(upon whom in modern warfare all depends) as early in life -as possible. Progressive pay for all ranks from lieutenants -upwards, was also advocated. -</p> - -<p> -The requirements of the time were set forth by me in -an article contributed to <i>The Nineteenth Century</i> of February, -1897. Briefly, these were as follows: -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P405"></a>405}</span> -</p> - -<p> -1. The necessity of obtaining the requisite number of -personnel for active service, long service ratings, such -number to be definitely specified by the Board of Admiralty -as being necessary to fulfil stated requirements. -</p> - -<p> -2. A thorough reorganisation of the Royal Naval -Reserve. A scheme of reorganisation, founded on the -proposals of Captain Joseph Honner, Royal Navy, Captain -Crutchley, R.N.R., and others, was explained by me to the -Liverpool Chamber of Commerce. In order to meet the -emergency, it was suggested that 5000 men should be -annually joined for five years, after which they should pass -into the first-class Reserve; at the same time, 5000 men -should be annually joined for two months' training, after -which they should pass into the second-class Reserve. -</p> - -<p> -Such emergencies periodically occur, because the -authorities neglect to look ahead. -</p> - -<p> -3. Seventeen old but useful ironclads to be re-armed -with modern guns. -</p> - -<p> -A list of these was drawn up; the proposed alterations -in each vessel were specified in detail, together with their -cost; a task which took me some three months to -accomplish. -</p> - -<p> -The principle of the suggestion was that the invention -of the quick-firing gun was actually a far more important -revolution than the change from muzzle-loading to breech-loading -guns. It was calculated that the older vessels were -strong enough to withstand the increased strain. The -proposal was not made in order to avoid the necessity of -building new vessels, but as an expedient to make up a -deficiency in ships. Building new vessels was the preferable -course of action, which the Admiralty rightly decided to adopt. -</p> - -<p> -4. The advisability of eliminating altogether from the -number of ships in commission or in reserve those vessels -which could neither fight nor run away, and of replacing -them by modern vessels. -</p> - -<p> -The scheme was carried into effect by degrees. Such -an elimination should take place periodically, upon the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P406"></a>406}</span> -industrial principle of replacing obsolete plant with new -machines. In later years, the elimination of old vessels -which was carried into effect by the Admiralty, was effected -without replacing them by new ships, a course of action which -contravened the very principle upon which it was ostensibly -based. -</p> - -<p> -5. The advisability of holding annual manoeuvres in -combination with the Army at all naval bases of operation. -</p> - -<p> -6. The designing of a definite plan of Imperial defence, -or plan of campaign; and the provision and equipment of -such naval bases and stations abroad as should enable such -plan to be put into effective operation. -</p> - -<p> -It will be observed that all the aforesaid recommendations -of my brother officers and myself were directed to the -fulfilment of Sir Frederick Richards' great scheme of 1894-5, -as already described. In the result, the Naval Works -Bill, March 1897, showed that work was in progress at -Gibraltar, Portland, Dover, Keyham, Portsmouth, Hong -Kong, Colombo, Pembroke, Haulbowline; on barracks at -Chatham, Sheerness, Portsmouth, Keyham, Walmer, the -new college for engineers at Keyham and new magazines, -the money voted being just under a million. -</p> - -<p> -Writing from Cairo, in March, 1897, to the secretary of -the Guildhall Club (the letter being published at the time) -I said that Mr. Brodrick's speech showed that the -Government had a definite plan of campaign, which was "proved -by the proposal to fortify important strategic bases at -present absolutely undefended; ... without such fortified -bases it is palpable that no clear plan of campaign existed -at headquarters; and a happy-go-lucky method must have -prevailed in the event of war. The Government appear to -me to have really begun to put our defences into business-like -trim and to have looked into and endeavoured to make -complete all those auxiliaries, any one of which being -imperfect would jeopardise the defences of the Empire as -a whole.... It is always very hard for authorities to make -proposals involving large sums of money unless the public -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P407"></a>407}</span> -and the Press combine to show that they wish such -expenditure." -</p> - -<p> -There remained, and still remains, an essential reform to -be accomplished. I have never ceased to advocate as a -matter of elementary justice such an increase of the pay of -officers and men as should bear some proportion to the -responsibilities with which they are charged and the duties -which they fulfil. In 1897, the increase of the officers' pay, -the rate of which had hardly been altered since the time of -Nelson, was an urgent necessity. As a result of the steady -refusal of the Government to grant anything except the -most meagre concessions, officers are now leaving the -Service almost daily, and among those who remain there -is considerable discontent. At that time, the pay of the -men was, if not generous, still adequate. Owing to a variety -of causes, it has since become totally inadequate; the -concessions wrung from the Government in response to -perfectly reasonable demands are ridiculously insufficient; -and numbers of trained men are leaving the Service as soon -as they can. -</p> - -<p> -In view of the obstinacy of the Government upon this -matter, it is worth recalling that, speaking at Newbury in -May, 1897, I put the whole case for the officers as plainly -as possible. It was pointed out that every condition of life -had improved during the Queen's reign, except the pay and -prospects of the officers and men of the Royal Navy, -although their responsibilities had increased a hundred-fold. -The lieutenant's pay was £15 a month; after eight years he -could get £3 a month extra; and after twelve years another -£3 extra. Except for specialist duty, such as gunnery, -torpedo and navigation, he could not get another shilling. -There were over 200 lieutenants then on the list of over -twelve years' service, who were only getting £21 a month. -They could get no more, although some among them had -twenty-one years' service. Half-pay, often compulsory, was -a shameful scandal to the country. It was not even half-pay, -but very often barely a third. Rear-admirals of forty -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P408"></a>408}</span> -years' service were sent on shore with £450 a year to live -upon. Captains were even worse off, often getting four -years on compulsory half-pay at £200 a year. -</p> - -<p> -That was sixteen years ago. The Government have -done nothing worth consideration in the interval. -</p> - -<p> -The case was again publicly represented by me in 1912. -By that time, owing to the increase in price of the necessities -of life and other causes, the pay of the men had become -grossly inadequate. In order that it should be commensurate -with the pay obtained by an equivalent class of men -in civil employment, it ought to have been doubled. All -that the Government did was to grant a trifling increase to -men of a certain term of service. How long will the nation -allow the Navy to continue a sweated industry? -</p> - -<p> -Another measure of reform which is still far from -accomplishment, is the manning of British ships by British seamen. -The principle, as I stated in May, 1897, is that in dealing -with the innumerable emergencies inseparable from the life -of the sea, it is better to depend upon British seamen than -upon foreigners. In May, 1897, it was estimated that of the -total number of men employed in the mercantile marine, the -proportion of British seamen was no more than three-fourths. -</p> - -<p> -In the same year, 1897, the question of the contribution -of the Colonies to Imperial Naval Defence, which, for -practical purposes, was first raised at the Imperial -Conference of 1887, was the subject of one of those discussions -which have occupied the public mind at intervals ever since; -and which have eventually resulted in the decision of -Australia and New Zealand to establish navies of their own. -</p> - -<p> -In a letter written in reply to a correspondent and -published in the Press in June, 1897, I expressed the opinion -that: -</p> - -<p> -"It certainly would help in Imperial defence if the -Colonies did subscribe some portion of the money necessary -to secure adequate Imperial defence, but I think that all -such proposals should emanate from the Colonies in the -first instance." -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P409"></a>409}</span> -</p> - -<p> -In another communication I observed that: "We can -only be prepared for war thoroughly when the Colonies offer -to join us in a definite scheme of Imperial defence, and the -Colonies and their trade are inseparable portions of the -question of Imperial defence. We must, however, offer them an -inducing quid pro quo. We cannot expect that they will -bear a share of the costs unless we are prepared to give them -a voice in the administration of Imperial affairs. Imperial -consolidation must be real, not one-sided, and we must -devise a scheme for admitting the Colonies to Parliamentary -representation on all questions affecting Imperial policy." -</p> - -<p> -And in a letter to the Secretary of the Toronto Branch -of the Navy League, I said: "The great necessity of the -times is to have thoroughly equipped and efficient naval -bases in all the Colonies, so that no matter where a British -man-of-war meets the enemy, she will practically be fighting -in home waters with a good base within easy reach for -repairs, stores, coal, etc." -</p> - -<p> -I still think that this was a practical suggestion. Some -years afterwards, Canada took over certain naval bases; but -the result has not been a success. But she took them over -at a time when the British Government were engaged in -dismantling and abandoning naval bases all over the world. -These have still to be restored. But as the danger is out of -sight, the public do not perceive that the demolition of naval -bases abroad may very likely, in the event of war, result in -disaster to the British Navy. -</p> - -<p> -In June, 1897, was celebrated the Diamond Jubilee of -Her Majesty Queen Victoria. Some observations contained -in an article contributed by me to <i>The Navy League Guide</i> -to the great naval review held at Spithead, may perhaps be -historically interesting. It was shown that the two great -naval reviews, that of the Jubilee in 1887 and the Diamond -Jubilee of 1897, mark important epochs in the history of the -British Navy. The Fleet of 1887 was in no way adequate to -our needs at that time, and many of the ships assembled for -review could not have taken their places in the fighting line. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P410"></a>410}</span> -(So it was represented at the time; luckily, the supreme test -of war was escaped; the proof that the need existed, therefore, -resides in its ultimate recognition by the authorities.) -In 1897, on the contrary, there was assembled a fleet of -warships representing a large proportion of the Navy we -then possessed, which was rapidly becoming equal to our -necessities both in numbers and efficiency. In 1887, the -battleship fleet was represented by only four vessels of less -than ten years of age, <i>Collingwood</i>, <i>Edinburgh</i>, <i>Conqueror</i> -and <i>Ajax</i>. Two out of the four were armed with muzzle-loading -guns, although all foreign navies had mounted -nothing but breech-loaders for several years previously. The -contrast afforded by the 1897 review was remarkable. Nothing -could better have displayed the giant strides we had made -both in construction and fighting efficiency, than the eleven -splendid first-class battleships assembled on 26th June, 1897. -</p> - -<p> -A suggestion was added which was not adopted; nor -has the proposal yet been carried into execution upon a -large scale, probably because the authorities are afraid of -accidents. "To make the review a success and to test the -capabilities of the captains, it would be well if the Fleet could -be got under way and ordered to pass the royal yacht -which should be anchored as the saluting base. Possibly a -few accidents would occur, but it would be a capital display -of seamanship and the art of handling ships; and no Fleet -in the world could execute so imposing a manoeuvre so well -as our own." -</p> - -<p> -Indeed, I have always held that a naval review should -be conducted like a military review. The Sovereign should -first proceed between the lines; then the ships should get -under way and should steam past the saluting base. -</p> - -<p> -The Dean of Saint Paul's unexpectedly provided a -diversion in naval affairs. In order to make room in the -Cathedral for the monument to be erected to the memory -of the late Lord Leighton, <i>P</i>.R.A., the Dean proposed to -remove the monument to Captain Richard Rundle Burges, -R.N., from the south aisle to the crypt; a proceeding to -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P411"></a>411}</span> -which I expressed strong objection on behalf of the Service -to which I had the honour to belong. The controversy was -conducted in the columns of <i>The Times</i>. -</p> - -<p> -The Dean, writing on 7th July, 1897, protested that the -"monument is unsightly. Captain Burges making love to -Victory over a gun is not a very suitable monument for a -church, and during the twenty-eight years I have been -connected with the Cathedral I have been most anxious to see -this monument in a less conspicuous place." -</p> - -<p> -In my reply, I said that, in the first place, I was not -prepared to accept his description of the sculptor's work; -and secondly, that it was rather late in the day to criticise -it. And I submitted to the Dean and Chapter, that as the -Cathedral did not appear to have suffered by the retention -of that monument for the last hundred years, no harm -could possibly result from allowing it to remain. And I -submitted with great respect that the twenty-eight years' -repugnance of the present Dean had curiously enough only -found vent in action at the time when it was found necessary -to select a spot for the site of a monument to the late -distinguished President of the Academy. I added that "Lord -Leighton was a personal friend of my own, but I have yet -to learn that he was the sort of man who would have wished -to usurp the place of any one, or that he would have even -admitted that an artist, however distinguished, takes -precedence in the nation's history of those heroes to whom the -existence of our Empire is due. I rather think from what -I knew of Lord Leighton's character that had such a -hypothesis been presented to him in his lifetime his answer would -have been like that of her gracious Majesty the Queen, who, -it is reported, when it was suggested to her that Queen -Anne's statue should be moved to make room for one of -herself, replied, 'Certainly not; why, you would be proposing -to move myself next.'" -</p> - -<p> -Then, on 12th July, 1897, Mr. Balfour stated in the House -of Commons that "the Dean and Chapter, after reviewing all -the circumstances of the case, had decided not to carry out -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P412"></a>412}</span> -their intention of relegating the Burges Memorial to the -crypt." <i>The Times</i> remarked that "The public will be -interested to know that among the circumstances which -have brought about this welcome change of purpose an -important place must be assigned to an appeal by the Prince -of Wales. His Royal Highness holds very strongly the -opinion that if memorials are to be liable to removal in this -summary manner whenever the taste of a later generation -pronounces them unsightly, the door will be opened to grave -abuses. He accordingly expressed to the Dean and Chapter -his hope that they would see their way to retain the Burges -Memorial in its present position, and it is largely in deference -to his wishes that the monument remains where it was -erected at the expense of the nation." -</p> - -<p> -So the good Dean was fated still to be scandalised by the -"unsuitable" spectacle of the gallant captain "making love -to Victory over a gun"; although, personally, I doubt if -Captain Burges's statue is really doing anything of the kind. -In January, 1897, I had the honour of being appointed -A.D.C. to the Queen. In July, 1897, when the intention of -the Duke and Duchess of York to visit Ireland was announced -I seized the opportunity to advocate a project which I had -long desired to see adopted, and for whose adoption, in fact, -I am still hoping. That project is the building of a Royal -residence in Ireland. It has hitherto been foiled by timid -Ministers. Writing to <i>The Times</i> (24th July, 1897), I pointed -out that the total sojourn of the Royal Family in Ireland -during the past sixty years had been fifty-nine days in all. -The letter continues: "In my humble opinion it is impossible -to overrate the harm that this apparent neglect has -done to the cause of loyalty in Ireland. I am convinced -that many misfortunes and misunderstandings would never -have taken place if the Royal Family had been permitted -by Governments and courtiers to make more frequent visits -to Ireland, and to render such visits possible by the establishment -of a Royal residence in that country. I know for a fact -that Her Majesty has on one occasion, and I believe more, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P413"></a>413}</span> -made strenuous efforts to obtain a Royal residence in Ireland. -Her Majesty's generous wish was never fulfilled, owing to -opposition on the part of her advisers, who have invariably -entertained an ungenerous and unworthy doubt of the Irish -character.... Vice-regal rule from the Castle at Dublin is -hated with all the passion of resentment of a generous-minded -but impulsive people, who possibly regard it as placing them -on the same footing as the conquered and coloured races -under British domination. It must not be inferred that I in -any way intend to say a word against the present or -preceding Viceroys of Ireland. I only wonder that men could -ever have been found with patriotism enough to fill the -office; but in common with patriotic Irishmen of all parties, -I object to the sham court of the rule of men who, so far -from really representing the Sovereign, represent merely the -political party which has the upper hand in England at the -time of their holding office—unlike the Viceroy of India, -who holds office for a term of years independent of the -political party that appointed him.... I believe Irishmen -would like to have Royalty permanently among them, and -to see Ireland put on an equal footing with the rest of the -United Kingdom in these matters." -</p> - -<p> -The project was received with the general approval of -the public, in so far as their opinion was represented by the -Press. The truth was, the Queen often wished to go to -Ireland; but her Ministers prevented her from visiting my -country; and their action was keenly resented by Irishmen. -Personally, I protested against it; affirming what I believe to -be the fact, that the Irish are the most chivalrous people in -the world. In her sentiment towards my country, and in all -her dealings with the Irish, Her Majesty was invariably most -charming. It is very much to be regretted that the -anomaly of Castle government was not ended long ago: -that it must be ended, is certain. -</p> - -<p> -The Duke and Duchess of York, visiting Ireland in -August, 1897, were received with the greatest possible -enthusiasm. The township of Kingstown presented an -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P414"></a>414}</span> -address in which the hope was expressed that their visit -might lead to the establishment of a Royal residence in -Ireland; and thirteen other addresses presented on the same -day expressed a like aspiration. -</p> - -<p> -In the same month (August, 1897) I was promoted to -rear-admiral. -</p> - -<p> -Among other occupations, I had been collaborating -with Mr. H. W. Wilson in the preparation of a Life of -Nelson. The work was published under the title of -<i>Nelson and his Times</i>, by Messrs. Harmsworth, in October, -1897. -</p> - -<p> -In the meantime the Government had been making -tentative efforts towards the constitution of a Council of -Defence, upon which both Services should be represented, -and which should form a kind of advisory body. The -President of the new body was the Duke of Devonshire, -who, universally esteemed and respected for the high-minded, -conscientious statesman that he was, had neither the training -nor the aptitude required to fulfil such an office. At the -same time, the Duke was not only occupied with the affairs -of his great estates, and in the discharge of many social -duties, but he was also head of the Education Department. -While expressing the utmost respect for the Duke, I did not -hesitate publicly to express my opinion, in the course of -an address delivered at the Cutlers' Feast at Sheffield in -November, 1897, that under the circumstances it was -impossible to take the new Council seriously. Nor is it -probable that anyone did take it seriously, least of all Her -Majesty's Ministers. -</p> - -<p> -It was in 1897 that I first saw Mr. Marconi's invention -for wireless telegraphy. Mr. Marconi, to whom I recently -wrote asking him for particulars of the occasion, very kindly -replied as follows: -</p> - -<p> -"In July, 1897, you first saw my original apparatus -working at 28 Mark Lane in the City of London, the -corresponding instrument being placed in another office in the -City. Among others who witnessed the tests was the late -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P415"></a>415}</span> -Mr. Ritchie, then, I believe, President of the Board of -Trade." -</p> - -<p> -But the time was shortly to arrive when I was once -more to take part in doing what I could to represent the -interests of the Navy in Parliament. Since 1890, I had -been approached by forty constituencies as to whether I -would become a candidate. One invitation came upon me -unawares. It was in the garden of my house at Ham -Common. I was seated at my sailmaker's bench, clad in my -old canvas jumper and trousers, employed in fitting a -dipping lug I used to have in the <i>Undaunted</i>, for the roof -of a summer-house; when to me entered a party of gentlemen, -immaculately clad in frock coats and silk hats. I had -not the least idea who they were; but they conversed with -me very affably, fell to criticising my work, and presently -inquired if I had seen Lord Charles, as they had been told -that he was on the lawn. At that, I suddenly recollected -that I had promised to receive a deputation. -</p> - -<p> -During 1897, I had accepted the invitation to stand for -a division of Birmingham; but in consequence of a -misunderstanding, the intention was abandoned. Then, in -December, owing to the death of my old friend Sir Frank -Lockwood, the seat of York became vacant. My opponent -was Sir Christopher Furness (afterwards Lord Furness). -First in my election address was placed the necessity for -improving the efficiency both of the Navy and Army by -connecting the two Services in a plan of combined defence. -The advisability of altering the Constitution of the House of -Lords was also urged, together with the necessity of -constituting a strong Second Chamber. -</p> - -<p> -The election campaign was lively enough. Sir Christopher's -main supporter was no other than Mr. Sam Story, -who afterwards became an enthusiastic Tariff Reformer. He -and I interchanged ideas in a debate conducted for the -edification of an audience of 12,000 people, turn and turn -about for twenty minutes each. -</p> - -<p> -My brothers Lord William and Lord Marcus were -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P416"></a>416}</span> -helping me. Lord Marcus accompanied me to a meeting, -and I told him that he must make a speech. -</p> - -<p> -"I can't," he said. "I don't know what to say." -</p> - -<p> -I told him to begin, because he was sure to be interrupted, -and then, being an Irishman, he would certainly -find something to say. Lord Marcus thereupon rose to -his feet; and a voice immediately shouted: -</p> - -<p> -"Who are ye?" -</p> - -<p> -It was enough. The fire kindled. -</p> - -<p> -"Who are we?" cried Lord Marcus. "I'll tell you who -we are. We are three brothers, and our names are Shadrach, -Meshach, and Abednego. And we have come here to put -out the burning fiery Furness!" -</p> - -<p> -There was a good deal of excitement during the election, -and sometimes stones would be flying. A cousin of mine, a -lady, was driving along the street, when a stone lodged in -her bonnet. Lord William caused it to be mounted in -silver, upon which was inscribed the legend: "This proves -that our opponents left no stone unturned to win the York -election"; and presented it to the lady to use as a -paper-weight. -</p> - -<p> -It was a close contest indeed. On the night of the poll, -the Mayor most unfortunately succumbed to the strain and -died suddenly. -</p> - -<p> -In the result I won the seat by a majority of 11 (after -two counts), on a poll of over 11,000 votes. -</p> - -<p> -When I had taken my seat in the House, a political -opponent whose opinions were as changeable as the wind, -who had held high office, and who was distinguished by a -handsome and majestic presence, said to me in the smoking-room: -</p> - -<p> -"Well, my dear Charlie, you have not much of the -appearance of a statesman." -</p> - -<p> -"My dear old friend," I said, "you must not judge by -appearances. You have not the appearance of a -weather-cock—but you are one." -</p> - -<p> -At Christmas, 1908, Mr. Henniker Heaton's indomitable -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P417"></a>417}</span> -perseverance had resulted in the establishment of Imperial -penny postage in every part of the British Empire except -Australia and New Zealand. Lord Randolph Churchill -and myself were hearty supporters of Mr. Henniker Heaton, -who gave to each of us a golden penny in commemoration -of the event. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap42"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P418"></a>418}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XLII -<br /> -COVETED CHINA -</h3> - -<p class="t3"> -NOTE -</p> - -<p> -As the significance of Lord Charles Beresford's doings -in China cannot be appreciated save in the light of -the knowledge of the international situation in 1898, -a brief analysis of it may here serve the convenience of the -reader. -</p> - -<p> -The governing factor of the problem was the fear of -Russian ambition and of Russian aggrandisement. Both -Russia and Great Britain are great Oriental Powers. The -Asiatic possessions or dependencies of Russia consisted of -over six million square miles, containing a population of -about thirteen millions. The Asiatic possessions or dependencies -of Great Britain consisted of something over one and -a half million square miles, containing a population of some -three hundred millions. A comparison between the two -demonstrates this remarkable disparity: that whereas -Russia had four times as much Asiatic territory as England, -England ruled over thirteen times as many Asiatic people. -The Russian pressure towards the seaboards, wealthy lands -and vast populations of the East, extended along a line -measuring 7600 miles, and verging all the way upon India, -Turkey, Persia and China. In 1898, Russia was steadily -advancing towards India, throwing forward railways through -Central Asia, and at the same time inexorably thrusting the -Trans-Siberian Railway towards Manchuria and the Amur -regions. That line, which to-day bands the entire continent -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P419"></a>419}</span> -from St. Petersburg to Vladivostock on the Sea of Japan, in -1898 had not reached within 500 miles of Irkutsk on Lake -Baikal, which marks roughly two-thirds of the whole -distance of 4000 miles from St. Petersburg to Vladivostock -as the crow flies. -</p> - -<p> -The vast, inscrutable, dreaded giant Russia, lying -right across the top of Europe and Asia, was ever -pushing downwards to the south upon Turkey, Persia, -Afghanistan and China, and reaching an arm sideways to -the east and the sea across the upper corner of China. The -shoulders of the British Empire were taking some of the -weight; and lest China should crack under it and fly -asunder, many people were urging that England should prop -up that passive and unwieldy bulk, Lord Salisbury -standing back to back with the Son of Heaven. -</p> - -<p> -The common interest was of course commercial. Great -Britain had 64 per cent. of China's total foreign trade, with -some £32,000,000 a year; had invested some hundreds of -millions in the Far East; and was amiably and openly -desirous to invest a great deal more in what was largely an -unexplored and an immense field of profit. But she wanted -security, first. -</p> - -<p> -It was Lord Charles Beresford's business to discover -what were the existing commercial conditions, how they -might be improved and extended, and what was the security -required for so much improvement and extension. This -enterprise was known as the policy of the "Open Door"; -for the British principle was that all nations should enjoy -equal opportunities. The alternative policy was known as -"Spheres of Influence," which virtually meant the partition -of the Chinese Empire among the nations of Europe. Such -was the Russian policy, in which she was supported, or was -believed to have been supported, by both France and Germany. -Russian diplomacy was active at Pekin; Russian agents -were numerous in the trading centres of China; and it was -constantly alleged at the time by students of the subject, -that the Chinese Government regarded Russia as a more -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P420"></a>420}</span> -powerful friend than England. In the light of subsequent -experience, it would perhaps be more accurate to say that -whereas China hated and distrusted all foreigners, she hated -and distrusted the English less than the Russians, but that -the vacillations and inconsistencies of British policy had -inspired her rulers with a deep suspicion. -</p> - -<p> -A good deal of nonsense, inspired by a large and generous -ignorance of Chinese conditions and affairs, was talked -and written in 1898. China was represented as an eccentric -barbarian of great size, of uncertain temper, but on the whole -amenable to good advice, who was merely waiting pathetically -for the English to teach him what to do and how to -do it. -</p> - -<p> -In truth, China, in 1898, that is, political China, while -haunted by a dread of foreign aggression, was intensely -occupied with her own affairs. These were indeed exigent -enough. In the summer of 1898, occurred the Hundred -Days of Reform, followed by the <i>coup d'état</i>, and the -imprisonment of the Emperor. The visit of Lord Charles -Beresford to China coincided with the triumph of the -reactionary Conservative party at Court and the restoration -to absolute power of the Empress Dowager, Tsu Hsi. The -history of the affair is related in detail by Messrs. J. O. P. Bland -and E. Backhouse, in their work, <i>China under the -Empress Dowager</i> (Heinemann, 1910); but its intricacies -were not divulged at the time. A study of the correspondence -contained in the Blue Books of the period reveals the -singular innocence of the British diplomatic methods -employed at this critical moment. -</p> - -<p> -The Emperor, Kuang-Hsu, who had always been at -variance with his astute and powerful aunt, the Empress -Dowager, the real ruler of China for fifty years, had -espoused the cause of the Reform, or Chinese, party of -the South, as distinguished from the Manchu, or -Conservative, party of the North. -</p> - -<p> -The enmity of the South towards the North, the latent -inbred hostility of the Chinese to the Manchu, had been -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P421"></a>421}</span> -roused to violence by the defeat of China by Japan in the -war of 1894-5. It was very well known that the Empress -Dowager had spent the money allocated to the Navy and -other departments of State upon the rebuilding of the -Summer Palace at Pekin and other æsthetic diversions. -But the Empress Dowager, with her habitual skill, contrived -to shift the responsibility for the disaster upon the -puppet Emperor, who in fact was guiltless of it. The -injustice so exasperated the young man, that he joined the -Reform Party, and issued Decree after Decree, all of which -were tinctured with Western ideas, and all of which were -expressly repugnant to the Empress Dowager. Tzu Hsi, -however, approved the Decrees without remark, biding her -time. It came. The Emperor was induced to assent to a -plot to seize the person of the Empress Dowager, and -afterwards to sequester his terrible aunt for the rest of her -life. -</p> - -<p> -Now came the intromission of Yuan Shih Kai, who had -been Imperial Resident in Corea. In 1898, he was Judicial -Commissioner of Chihli, and exerted considerable influence -at Court. Yuan Shih Kai, professing great interest in -reform, won the confidence of the Emperor; who, believing -that in Yuan he had gained an adherent at Court, informed -him of the details of the conspiracy. That design included -the assassination of Yung Lu. Now Yung Lu was Governor-General -of Chihli, commander-in-chief of the foreign-drilled -army, which was one of the efficient armies in China, an old -friend and a loyal servant of the Empress Dowager, and -altogether a most formidable person. The Emperor's plan -was to slay Yung Lu swiftly, to put himself at the head of -Yung Lu's ten thousand soldiers, and then to march with -them upon Pekin and seize the Empress Dowager. All -might have gone well, had not Yuan Shih Kai (according to -Messrs. Bland and Backhouse) been blood-brother to Yung -Lu, and also, presumably, loyal to the Empress Dowager. -In any case, Yuan went straightway to Yung Lu and -divulged the plot. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P422"></a>422}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The next day, it was the Emperor Kuang Hsu, and not -his aunt, who was ceremoniously escorted to prison. -</p> - -<p> -Six of the conspirators were subsequently executed. -Another, Kang Yu Wei, escaped under British protection -in October, 1898. Dr. Sun Yat-sen was another fugitive. -It was in October, 1898, that Lord Charles Beresford arrived -at Pekin. -</p> - -<p> -The Empress Dowager resumed the Regency and therewith -the formal investiture of that supreme power which -she had exercised since, as a girl of twenty-two, a lady in -waiting at Court in the time of the Emperor Hsien-Feng, -she had unofficially assumed the conduct of affairs, and -which she continued to wield until the end. Yung Lu was -appointed to be member of the Grand Council, and Minister -of War. When he was in Pekin, Lord Charles Beresford -had an interesting conversation with Yung Lu. -</p> - -<p> -The Emperor Kuang Hsu remained imprisoned in his -palace in the Ocean Terrace at Pekin; and it was rumoured -throughout the South that he would presently die. Whether -or not the Empress Dowager desired his death, she -considered it politic, having regard to the anger which his -dethronement inspired in the South, to keep him alive. -Moreover, the British Minister, referring to the reports that -"the Empress Dowager was about to proceed to extreme -steps in regard to the Emperor," solemnly suggested that -any such course of action would be highly repugnant to the -susceptibilities of Foreign Powers. -</p> - -<p> -Such, briefly indicated, was the posture of affairs in 1898, -when the British Government was being urged to initiate a -definite policy in China, and when Lord Charles Beresford -went to investigate commercial conditions in that puzzling -Empire. But the British Government had the rest of the -world to consider, as well. -</p> - -<p> -In the preceding year, 1897, it was announced that -Russia would winter at Port Arthur; whereupon Lord -Charles Beresford remarked in the House of Commons that -the winter would probably be of long duration. Germany -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P423"></a>423}</span> -was in occupation of Kiao Chao, originally demanded as -compensation for the murder of a German missionary—a -most profitable martyrdom. There were troubles on the -Indian frontier; there was fighting in Crete, and -consequently there was danger of a war breaking out between -Greece and Turkey. It is sufficiently obvious that, under -such conditions—at a time when the European nations -were each waiting to take of China what it could get; when -Russia was more or less in agreement with France and -Germany; and when England stood alone;—any very definite -move on her part might have led to bigger difficulties than -she cared to encounter. At any rate, peace was maintained; -the policy of the "Open Door" prevailed; and the influence -exerted by Lord Charles Beresford upon international affairs, -although perhaps not to be defined, was considerable. For -further information concerning this epoch, the student may -be referred to <i>China under the Empress Dowager</i>, by -Messrs. J. O. P. Bland and E. Backhouse (Heinemann, 1910); <i>China -in Transformation,</i> by A. R. Colquhoun (Harper, 1898); and -the Blue-book <i>China. No. 1 (1899) C.—9131</i>. -</p> - -<p> -While one British admiral, Rear-Admiral Noel, stopped -the trouble in Crete, which had defeated the united intellect -of Europe for generations; another, Rear-Admiral Lord -Charles Beresford, was employed in conducting a swifter, -more thorough and more practical investigation into the -commercial military and social conditions of China than -had ever before been accomplished; so that its results, set -forth at the time in the admiral's many speeches and -afterwards in his book <i>The Break-up of China</i>, struck the two -great English-speaking peoples of the world, the British and -the American nations, with something of the force of a -revelation. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap43"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P424"></a>424}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XLIII -<br /> -THE INTROMISSION OF THE ADMIRALS -</h3> - -<p> -In August, 1898, I received from the Associated Chambers -of Commerce of Great Britain, whose President was Sir -Stafford Northcote, an invitation to proceed on their -behalf to China, "to obtain accurate information as to how -security is to be ensured to commercial men who may be -disposed to embark their capital in trade enterprise in -China." Sir Stafford Northcote added that he desired to obtain a -report on these matters from a "non-official source," and -that, further, it should be supplied by an officer of naval or -military experience, by reason of the importance of the -question of adequate protection for British commercial -ventures. -</p> - -<p> -Accompanied by Mr. Robin Grey, who acted as an -additional secretary, and by my secretary, Mr. Macdonald, -I sailed for China towards the end of August. My -commission, to report on the future prospects of British trade -and commerce in China and especially to what extent the -Chinese Government would guarantee the safe employment -of British capital, was sufficiently wide in its scope. -</p> - -<p> -At that time, there was much public discussion concerning -the rivalry manifesting itself among the European nations -interested in China, particularly with regard to railway -concessions and like privileges. The public in general were of -opinion that the British Government was very slow to assert -British rights. In July, 1898, Sir Claude Macdonald, British -Plenipotentiary at the Court of Pekin, was "authorised to -inform the Chinese Government that Her Majesty's Government -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P425"></a>425}</span> -will support them in resisting any Power which commits -an act of aggression on China or on account of China having -granted permission to make or support any railway or public -work to a British subject." -</p> - -<p> -This was something, but it was not much; for China, -comparing British assurances with Russian actions, entertained -her own opinion concerning their comparative value. -Nevertheless, the British policy was quite definitely the -policy of the "Open Door"; which Mr. Balfour defined -(10th August, 1898) as "the right of importing goods at the -same rate that every nation imports goods, the same right of -using railways that other nations possess. In other words, -equal trade opportunities." The alternative policy of -"Spheres of Influence," Mr. Balfour oracularly described as -"a wholly different set of questions connected with -concessions, and they cannot be treated in the same simple -and obvious manner." But in what the treatment should -consist, the public were not told. -</p> - -<p> -It was not, perhaps, understood by the public at the time, -how delicate was the international situation, nor how serious -might be the consequences, not only of hasty action but, of -any decisive action; and although it did not necessarily follow -that nothing should be done, the difficulties and complications, -many of which were known only to the Government, -should be taken into consideration. -</p> - -<p> -Russia was establishing herself in Manchuria, and was -arming Port Arthur and Talienwan. Germany had declined -to pledge herself not to levy preferential duties at Kiao -Chao, and claimed exclusive rights over railway construction -through the Shantung Province. France was claiming -preferential rights with regard to her leasehold in Southern -China. France and Russia were interesting themselves in -the sanctioned trunk line from Pekin to Hankow and -from Hankow to the south. -</p> - -<p> -Nothing was settled with regard to the important question -of the rights over the Yangtse basin. -</p> - -<p> -Lord Salisbury had stated that he did not consider it to -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P426"></a>426}</span> -be the duty of Her Majesty's Government to make railways -in China, or to find the money to make them; and both -Lord Salisbury and Mr. Curzon (afterwards Viscount Curzon -of Kedleston) affirmed that the failure of British syndicates -to apply for concessions in China was due to their lack of -initiative. -</p> - -<p> -On the other hand, it was argued in the Press that the -lack of initiative on the part of British enterprise was due to -the lack of support and to the absence of a definite policy on -the part of the Government, a criticism which, among others, -was formulated by Sir Edward Grey, who was then of course -in Opposition. -</p> - -<p> -At the same time, underlying these controversies, there -was the consciousness that detailed practical information -concerning the real posture of affairs in China was lacking. -Under these conditions, considerable responsibility attached -to the task upon which I had entered. Its rapid and successful -fulfilment clearly depended upon the method of its -organisation. Before starting, a letter was addressed by me -to every Chamber of Commerce in China, requesting it to -prepare a report giving details of: -</p> - -<p> -1. The State of British trade now. -</p> - -<p> -2. The state of British trade ten years ago. -</p> - -<p> -3. The state of foreign trade. -</p> - -<p> -4. Increase and decrease of trade. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -By this means, the reports were ready for me upon my -arrival; and I was immediately placed in possession of the -material which served to guide my inquiries and upon -which I could base my observations. As these are set forth -in detail, in my book <i>The Break-up of China</i>, published by -Messrs. Harper and Brothers in 1899, and as the conditions -have since changed, I do not propose to repeat them at -length in these pages. I have here to acknowledge the -courtesy of Messrs. Harper and Brothers in granting me -permission to quote from <i>The Break-up of China</i>. -</p> - -<p> -I wrote that work in thirty-one days; a feat of which I was -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P427"></a>427}</span> -not unjustly proud; for it was a long book, crammed with -facts and statistics, extracted from a pile of memoranda -and documents three feet high. I used to ride before -breakfast in Richmond Park; after breakfast, I worked all -day until 7.30; and when I had finished the book, I said I -would never write another. -</p> - -<p> -While I was on my way to China—while all the -Chambers of Commerce in China were hard at it compiling -reports for me—a brother officer, Rear-Admiral Noel, was -engaged in settling, in his own supreme way, a difficulty -which had long exercised the Chancelleries of Europe in -vain, and which might at any moment have given rise to -what are called European complications. -</p> - -<p> -In January, 1897, broke out the insurrection of the -Christians in Crete; which, put shortly, was the result of -two centuries of oppression under Moslem rule. During -the previous year (to go no farther back) the Sultan of -Turkey, at the request of the Powers of Europe, had -promised to introduce certain reforms. As these were -not carried into execution, the Cretan Christians, encouraged -thereto by Greece and aided by Greek soldiery, rose in -rebellion. Roughly speaking, the Christians held the -country districts, and the Turkish garrison, reinforced by -an irregular and undisciplined horde of Bashi-Bazouks, -occupied the towns. No doubt but Turkey could have put -down the revolt by extensive bloodshed; but the Powers -of Europe had forbidden the Sultan either to reinforce his -garrison in Crete, or (at first) to make war upon the -insurgents. The Powers were therefore morally bound to -restore order themselves. Recognising this obligation, they -dispatched men-of-war to Crete. Italy, France, Russia, -Austria, Great Britain and Germany were represented. -Vice-Admiral Count N. Canevaro, the Italian, being senior -officer, was president of the Council of Admirals. Great -Britain was represented by Rear-Admiral Sir Robert Harris. -The admirals arrived off Canea in February, 1897; intercepted -and sent away a Greek squadron of reinforcements; -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P428"></a>428}</span> -established a blockade; and proceeded, as best they might, -to enforce order. They succeeded for the time being; but -it was not within their province to attempt a radical remedy. -So long as the Turks remained in Crete, so long would the -trouble continue. The Christians dared not resume their -occupations, for fear of a further outbreak of Moslem -aggression, when they could not rely upon the Turkish -garrison for protection; the Moslems, dreading Christian -reprisals, clung to the Turkish troops as their only salvation. -</p> - -<p> -In the face of this dilemma, Germany and Austria -withdrew from the concert, and the island remained in -charge of Great Britain, France, Russia and Italy, each -Power being assigned a district. Great Britain retained -Candia, where the British garrison was reduced to one -regiment, the Highland Light Infantry. The discontent, -temporarily quelled, soon became acute. -</p> - -<p> -The decision of the Council of Admirals to collect a -proportion of the export duties aroused intense indignation. -When, on 6th September, 1898, the British came to take -over the Custom House at Candia, the mob rose, attacked -the tiny force of British seamen and soldiers and the British -camp and hospital, and massacred some 500 Christians in -the town. The British fought like heroes and lost heavily; -but for the moment they were helpless; the only man-of-war -off Candia being the gunboat <i>Hazard</i>. -</p> - -<p> -Then, on 11th September, Rear-Admiral Gerard Noel -(now Admiral of the Fleet Sir Gerard H. U. Noel, G.C.B., -K.C.M.G.), who had relieved Sir Robert Harris early in -the year, arrived at Candia in H.M.S. <i>Revenge</i>. The next -day, he landed, inspected the scenes of the recent fighting -and ordered the Turkish governor, Edhem Pasha, to repair -on board the <i>Revenge</i>. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral Noel required the governor to demolish all -houses from which the insurgents had fired upon the British -camp and hospital; to give up to British troops certain forts -and positions; and to surrender the principal persons -concerned in the rioting and attack. The admiral also -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P429"></a>429}</span> -informed the governor that the Moslem population would be -disarmed. -</p> - -<p> -The governor broke into a cold perspiration and accepted -the admiral's demands. He was then suffering under the -delusion that he could evade them. He never made a -bigger mistake. When he tried to avoid the demolition -of the houses, he was suddenly confronted with the spectacle -of two hundred British seamen coming ashore to do the -work, and hurriedly gave in. When he endeavoured to -postpone the delivery of the prisoners, he was informed that -if they were not delivered by the hour appointed, they -would be taken. His every excuse and pretext were met -by the same composed and invincible determination. At -the last moment, when the scaffold awaiting the malefactors -stood stark upon the highest point of the bastions, Edhem -Pasha's frantic plea for delay was received by a terse -intimation that if he did not hang the prisoners, he, Edhem -Pasha, would himself be hanged. -</p> - -<p> -The disturbers of peace were hanged at the precise time -appointed; and swung in a row until sundown, in sight -of all the city. Twice again the bodies of murderers -darkened above the ramparts, to the abiding terror of -evil-doers. -</p> - -<p> -The Powers ordered the evacuation of the island by the -Turks within a month, which expired on 5th December. On -the evening of the 4th, some 600 troops had still to leave, -together with their women, horses and baggage. Admiral -Noel ordered the baggage to be embarked on board the -British transport <i>Ocampo</i> and a small Turkish transport -that night. Next day, the governor, Shefket Bey (who -had succeeded Edhem Pasha), informed the admiral that -he had received orders from the Governor of Crete to keep -the remaining troops and to disembark the baggage. What -followed is described in an account of the affair contributed -by "A Naval Officer" to <i>The United Service Magazine</i>, -February, 1899. -</p> - -<p> -"An armed boat was sent to prevent interference with -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P430"></a>430}</span> -the Turkish transport. The admiral signalled to the Fleet: -'Prepare to man and arm boats. I intend to compel the -Turkish troops to embark by force after noon'; and to -the commandant of British troops, 'All Turkish troops -remaining in the town after noon are to be made prisoners -and compelled to embark at the quay.'" -</p> - -<p> -It was a bold decision, worthy of the Royal Navy. For -all the admiral knew, the Turks might have fought, in -which case they would have been reinforced by some -thousands of Bashi-Bazouks. But they gave in, and were -marched on board. Their "furniture, beds, pianos, carpets -and general loot and rubbish, making a pile as big as a -frigate," says the eye-witness aforesaid, "which, together -with nearly three hundred horses, was bundled into boats -and lighters by the seamen of the <i>Revenge</i> and <i>Empress of -India</i>, and stowed away on board the transports, the work -taking all night." -</p> - -<p> -Thus did Rear-Admiral Gerard Noel cut the knot which -all the diplomatists in Europe had failed to unloose. The -Marquess of Salisbury publicly complimented the admirals -upon their diplomatic ability, saying that he wished the -Cabinets of Europe could work together with equal unanimity -and rapidity. -</p> - -<p> -In December, 1908, H.R.H. Prince George of Greece took -over the government of Crete from the admirals. -</p> - -<p> -The settlement of the Cretan difficulty undoubtedly -exercised an appreciable effect upon the international -situation, with which my own enterprise in China was necessarily -connected. For Admiral Noel had removed what had been -a chronic danger to the peace of Europe; and in so doing -had demonstrated that combined action on the part of the -Great Powers (if entrusted to naval officers) could be both -cordially conducted and successfully accomplished. I have -recalled the affair, not only because it gives me pleasure to -record the ability, courage and resolution of my old friend -and brother officer, but because no account of the time, -lacking the Cretan episode, can be wholly intelligible. For, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P431"></a>431}</span> -although it is consistently neglected by political historians, -whose views are usually distorted by party, it remains, and -will remain, a classic example of the consummate exercise -of British sea-power for the inspiration and instruction of -honest men. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap44"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P432"></a>432}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XLIV -<br /> -TRAFFICS AND DISCOVERIES -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -I. CHINA -</p> - -<p class="t3"> -THE MISFORTUNES OF KANG YU WEI -</p> - -<p> -On my way up to Pekin, I visited Hong Kong, -arriving there on 30th September. The island of -Hong Kong, being British territory, is a city of -refuge; to which sanctuary, just before my arrival, had fled -Kang Yu Wei, the leader of the Reform Party. To the -influence of Kang Yu Wei may be ascribed the conversion -of the young Emperor, Kuang Hsu, to Reform; and the issue -by the Son of Heaven of the series of Decrees, during the -Hundred Days of Reform of the preceding summer. The -movement culminated in the plot to seize the person of the -Empress Dowager, which was frustrated by the <i>coup d'état</i>. -But before that decisive event occurred, Kang Yu Wei -receiving a broad hint from the Emperor that his arrest had -been ordered by the Empress Dowager, took the next train -from Pekin to Tongku, and embarked on board the -coasting steamer <i>Chungking</i> bound for Shanghai. -</p> - -<p> -The Taotai at Shanghai informed Acting-Consul-General -Brenan that he had received orders to arrest Kang Yu Wei -upon his arrival, and that a reward of 2000 dollars was -offered for his capture, and requested Mr. Brenan to search -for the fugitive in all British ships arriving at Shanghai. -By this time the Chinese detectives and policemen were -wildly excited by the prospect of securing 2000 dollars -that Mr. Brenan feared they would attempt forcibly to -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P433"></a>433}</span> -board British ships before they entered the harbour. He -therefore determined to intercept the <i>Chungking</i> before the -Chinese officials could reach her; but desiring to avoid the -open implication of the Consulate in the matter, he accepted -the services volunteered by Mr. J. O. P. Bland (joint author -of <i>China under the Empress Dowager</i>). Mr. Bland, who spoke -Chinese, took a steam-launch, met the <i>Chungking</i> some miles -out at sea, transhipped Kang Yu Wei, and put him on board -the P. and O. steamer <i>Ballaarat</i>, then lying outside Woosung. -Captain Field, commanding the <i>Ballaarat</i>, placed an armed -sentry upon Kang Yu Wei's cabin. The people in the -<i>Chungking</i>, knowing that H.M.S. <i>Esk</i> was at Woosung, told -the Chinese officials at Shanghai that Kang Yu Wei had -been put on board her. This information diverted attention -from the <i>Ballaarat</i> for the moment. -</p> - -<p> -The Chinese officials, however, eventually determined to -follow the <i>Ballaarat</i> in a gunboat, when, two days later -(29th September), the <i>Ballaarat</i> sailed for Hong Kong. The -British authorities, learning also that two more Chinese -gunboats were ordered to lie in wait for the P. and O. boat, -arranged that she should be escorted to Hong Kong by -H.M. cruiser <i>Bonaventure</i>, commanded by my old friend and -brother-in-arms in the Soudan campaign, Captain -R. A. J. Montgomerie. Being pursued by the Chinese gunboat, -Montgomerie cleared for action; luckily for them, the -Chinese declined to risk an affair with one of the finest -fighting officers in Her Majesty's service; and Kang Yu Wei -was landed in safety at Hong Kong. Here, Major-General -Black placed him under police protection. The procedure -followed by Captain Montgomerie in accordance with the -orders of Vice-Admiral Sir Edward Seymour, then -commander-in-chief on the China station, not only saved the -life of the patriot Kang Yu Wei, but prevented the -occurrence of the difficulties which would have arisen had the -Chinese attempted to board the <i>Ballaarat</i>. -</p> - -<p> -With the object of ascertaining the views of the Reform -Party concerning the future of China and its relation to the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P434"></a>434}</span> -extension of trade and commerce, I invited Kang Yu Wei -to visit me. He arrived surrounded by a bodyguard of -policemen, for a price was set on his head. Apparently the -poor man felt it already loose, for, as he talked, he kept -turning it over his shoulder; and little wonder; for it was -only three or four days since his brother and five of his -colleagues had been executed in Pekin. -</p> - -<p> -"Reforms in the East," said Kang Yu Wei, "invariably -demanded martyrs; and, if China did not go to pieces in the -meantime, posterity would honour the six dead gentlemen." In -reply to my question as to the present position of the -Reform Party, he said it was "completely crushed, but not -killed," and would ere long revive; a prophecy which has -been fulfilled. -</p> - -<p> -Kang Yu Wei affirmed that, contrary to the general -opinion abroad, all educated Chinamen believed that Reform -alone could prevent the dissolution of an Empire 4000 -years old; that by degrees the mass of the people were -accepting the new doctrines; that the Reformers relied upon -Great Britain to help them to carry their schemes into -execution; and that, were they to attain power, they would -certainly open China to the trade and commerce of the -world, because such a policy would increase the strength and -riches of the Empire. -</p> - -<p> -The impression left upon my mind by Kang Yu Wei -was that he was loyal, patriotic, and unselfishly devoted to -his country, and undoubtedly he was in earnest. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-434"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-434.jpg" alt="FROM AN ORIGINAL DRAWING BY PHIL MAY IN THE POSSESSION OF THE AUTHOR" /> -<br /> -FROM AN ORIGINAL DRAWING BY PHIL MAY IN THE POSSESSION OF THE AUTHOR -</p> - -<p> -In the course of many conversations held with the -compradors (managers) of the great mercantile houses in -China, I ascertained that, while several of them were frankly -in favour of Reform, all of them agreed that the Reformers -had acted in haste, neglecting to prepare their way by means -of careful organisation. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> -THE CHINESE NEW MODEL -</p> - -<p> -Arriving at Pekin on 16th October, 1898, I was kindly -invited by Sir Claude Macdonald, British Minister -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P435"></a>435}</span> -Plenipotentiary, to stay at the Legation. To all Foreign Ministers -accredited to Pekin I paid my respects and presented my -credentials, which were given to me by the President of the -Associated Chambers of Commerce of Great Britain, Sir -Stafford Northcote, and which showed that I had been asked -to make a report on British trade and commerce, its future -development, and what security existed throughout the -Chinese Empire for such trade and commerce. -</p> - -<p> -On 20th October, I visited the Tsung-li Yamen; a body -created, in 1861, for the purpose of conducting diplomatic -negotiations with the representatives of Foreign Powers, and -consisting of eight members, of whom three are Manchus -and five are Chinese. I was presented to Prince Ching, the -President, and was requested to address the members. In -my speech, I dwelt upon the anxiety as to the future on the -part of British traders on account of the want of security for -capital, and the ignoring of treaties by the Chinese; -suggested that, unless China organised her military and police -forces in order to give security for trade and commerce, -foreign countries would adopt the policy embodied in the -expression "Spheres of Influence"; affirmed that the British -desired no addition to be made to the British Empire, either -in the nature of dominion, sphere of influence, or protectorate; -explained that what the commercial communities -desired was free and uninterrupted opportunities for trade, -with equal rights and privileges for all the nations of the -world, a policy expressed by the words "Open Door"; and -stated that in order to establish such a policy, it was essential -that China should maintain her integrity. -</p> - -<p> -Prince Ching asked me how I thought trade and commerce -could be better protected that it was at present. -</p> - -<p> -I replied that the only effective method would be -thoroughly to reorganise the Chinese army, abolishing the -system of maintaining provincial armies; that, as Great -Britain had 64 per cent. of the whole foreign trade of China, -she was naturally anxious as to its adequate security; and -that it was possible that the British Government would allow -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P436"></a>436}</span> -a British officer to assist the Chinese in putting their army -in order; adding that I had no official authority whatever to -make the statement, but merely put it forward as a suggestion. -I also suggested that should the Chinese Government -consider the proposal, it might be well for them to invite -other nations which had large trading interests with China, -to lend a few officers and non-commissioned officers to work -with the British in the reorganisation of the army. -</p> - -<p> -Prince Ching observed that they already had German -officers to drill some of their troops; and that Captain Lang, -the British naval officer, was in the Chinese service to help -them to organise their Fleet. He did not mention, however, -what I afterwards discovered, that Captain Lang had found -the admiral sitting on the quarter-deck playing fan-tan -with his own sentry. Captain Lang subsequently resigned -his appointment. -</p> - -<p> -When Prince Ching and some members of the Tsung-li -Yamen returned my visit, Prince Ching informed me that -the Emperor and the Empress Dowager approved of my -suggestions; and that his Excellency Chung Chi Tung, -Viceroy of Hunan and Hupeh, had been ordered to have -2000 of his troops ready to be placed under a British officer -for drill and organisation, as an experiment, which might -possibly lead to the reorganisation of the army as a whole. -I replied that as I was in no way authorised to take any -responsibility with regard to this matter, any action taken -on the part of the Tsung-ii Yamen must go through the -British Minister to the British Government. Prince Ching -said that it was the intention of the Tsung-li Yamen formally -to inform Sir Claude Macdonald of the wishes of the -Chinese Government. -</p> - -<p> -My interpreter on these occasions was Mr. Fulford of -the British Legation, and all that passed between myself -and the high Chinese officials in Pekin was made known by -Mr. Fulford to the British Minister. -</p> - -<p> -The question of providing adequate security for British -subjects and for British trade and commerce, was thus -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P437"></a>437}</span> -frankly raised at the beginning. Indeed, all hinged upon -its solution. The safety of life and property always depends -ultimately upon disciplined force. The force at the disposal -of the Chinese Government was scattered, ill-organised and -largely inefficient. But, with the men, money and resources -actually available, it would have been perfectly feasible to -have formed an army of a million men. Such was my view -at the time, and I have seen no reason to change it since. -</p> - -<p> -At the request of the Tsung-li Yamen, I drew up the -entire scheme complete in every detail for the organisation -of the Chinese army; and on several occasions it was -discussed with me by the Chinese Ministers at great length. -</p> - -<p> -Briefly described, my scheme was based upon the principle -upon which the Imperial Maritime Customs had been formed. -The Imperial Maritime Customs was charged with the duty -of collecting Custom House dues, which were hypothecated -to secure the external indebtedness of China. All nations -were represented upon it, and, because Great Britain possessed -by far the larger share of Chinese trade, a British officer was -placed at its head. The business was impartially managed -under the Chinese Government for the common welfare of -China and of other nations; and in the result the arrangement -worked admirably. -</p> - -<p> -The proposal was, then, to organise the army upon the -same basis; appointing officers of those nations who owned -interests in China; and, as Great Britain possessed the -largest interests, placing a British officer in command under -the Chinese Government. Under these conditions, the army -would be enabled to secure China both against foreign -aggression and internal disturbance. In a word, it would -ensure stable government. Under existing conditions, stable -government was impossible; for the methods of the Empress -Dowager consisted in playing off one party against another, -and one viceroy against another. Tsu Hsi succeeded in -maintaining her personal ascendancy; but at the cost of so -weakening the State, that it was liable to fall a prey to foreign -ambition and foreign cupidity. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P438"></a>438}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The Chinese high officials argued the whole subject with -great acumen. They objected that the commander-in-chief -might embark upon a career of personal aggrandisement. I -replied that as he would be under the Chinese Government, -and that as he would be further restricted by his dependence -upon an international body of officers, there could be no -such danger. And I asked the Chinese whether they had -any reason to be dissatisfied with Sir Robert Hart's -administration of the Customs. They answered at once that his -services were invaluable to China, and said that he worked -so hard in Chinese interests that "he might have been a -Chinaman." -</p> - -<p> -I then pointed out that a British officer at the head of -the army would occupy the same position with regard to -the army as Sir Robert Hart occupied with regard to the -Customs; offered to select for them the best general I -could find for the executive command; and informed them -that I was myself prepared to undertake the administrative -command. -</p> - -<p> -The objection that the creation of such an army might -offend foreign susceptibilities, was also met by the argument -that foreign officers would command it. -</p> - -<p> -In reply to a courteous question, I stated that my object -in proposing the scheme was to benefit China; and that the -reason why I desired to benefit China was that an improvement -in Chinese administration must necessarily profit -British interests. -</p> - -<p> -I also discussed the subject with his Excellency Yung -Lu, he who had executed the <i>coup d'état</i> which resulted in -the defeat of the Reformers and the imprisonment of the -Emperor Kuang Hsu. Yung Lu, who commanded one of -the foreign-drilled armies, stated that the reorganisation -of the Chinese army under British and foreign officers -would be carried into execution; and asked me whether, -supposing that China put the whole of her armies under -British officers, Great Britain would assist her in any quarrel -that might arise between her and any other Power. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P439"></a>439}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The direct question was highly significant. -</p> - -<p> -My reply, of course, was that I was unable to discuss -political questions; but that Great Britain had no desire to -involve herself in quarrels which might arise among other -countries. -</p> - -<p> -Yung Lu courteously invited me to visit the military -forces then quartered round Pekin; a privilege of which -I afterwards availed myself. -</p> - -<p> -Having formulated my scheme for the reorganisation of -the Chinese army, founded upon a general knowledge of the -requirements of the situation, I proceeded to fulfil in detail -that part of my instructions received from the President of -the Associated Chambers of Commerce directing me to -report "whether the organisation of the Chinese civil and -military administration is sufficiently complete to ensure -adequate protection to commercial ventures." Accordingly, -I visited all the forts and arsenals forming the coast and -river defences of the Chinese Empire, and utilised the -opportunities, most courteously extended to me by the -various viceroys, of inspecting the Imperial military forces. -</p> - -<p> -For the sake of simplicity, the results of my investigations -into military and naval conditions are here grouped -together; although these investigations were necessarily -conducted side by side with my inquiries into commercial -affairs, the two elements being often present in the same -locality. -</p> - -<p> -China's military forces were then sharply divided -between Manchu and Chinese, or North and South. The -Manchu, or Northern, forces were manned and officered -entirely by Manchus, and enjoyed privileges which were -denied to the Chinese army. Nearly every Southern army -was commanded by two generals, a Manchu and a Chinese, -the Manchu being the real head. -</p> - -<p> -The provincial armies are maintained at the expense of -the viceroys. In the Province of Chihli, General Yuan -Shih Kai's army, and the Imperial armies at and around -Pekin, are maintained by the Board of Revenue out of -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P440"></a>440}</span> -Imperial taxes; so that the Imperial armies permanently -quartered round Pekin are State-paid. The generals in -command of the Provinces administer their armies entirely -according to their own discretion. As these officers are -responsible for the payment and maintenance of the forces -under their command, much of the money which should go -to the army is apt to stick with its general. -</p> - -<p> -When I mentioned these circumstances to the members -of the Tsung-li Yamen, one of them blandly asked me if I -included his army in my description. -</p> - -<p> -I replied that his Excellency could not but be aware -that he received supplies of pay, clothes and rice for an -establishment of 10,000, although the actual number was -one half or less; and that when his army was inspected, he -filled the ranks by hiring coolies for the occasion. My -response evoked an irreverent outburst of applause from the -interested audience of coolies. "The English Mandarin," -they cried, "knows all about our old mandarins! That is -just what happens." -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> -YUAN SHIH KAI -</p> - -<p> -In October, 1898, I went to Hsiao Chao to visit Yuan -Shih Kai, the high official who informed Yung Lu of the -plot of the Reformers to seize the Empress Dowager, and so -brought about the <i>coup d'état</i>. I remained two days and a -night with the general; witnessed the parade of all his -troops, and their manoeuvres, and examined their equipment -and victualling. I was permitted to examine the pay-sheets, -and obtained every detail connected with the establishment -and maintenance of the force. -</p> - -<p> -General Yuan Shih Kai is a Chinaman, and his army -was composed of Chinese. It numbered 7400 men. They -appeared to be smart, of fine physique, well fed, and their -uniforms were well kept. Their parade and manoeuvres -were smartly executed, their discipline was excellent. All -their equipment was serviceable and efficient, with the -exception of their artillery. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P441"></a>441}</span> -</p> - -<p> -It was on this occasion that I had a conversation with -Yuan Shih Kai, which, in the light of subsequent events in -China, it may be not uninteresting to recall. -</p> - -<p> -Yuan Shih Kai expressed his anxiety concerning the -future of his country; which, he said, was in a lamentable -state of weakness, and which the States of Europe were -desirous of dividing among themselves; and in this -connection he was inclined favourably to regard the proposal to -combine the various Chinese armies into one great Imperial -force. -</p> - -<p> -Upon that, I asked Yuan if he were acquainted with the -history of China. Being one of the governing class, and -therefore a scholar of the ancient meticulous pedantic class, -he probably knew the whole of it by heart; and he replied -in the affirmative. -</p> - -<p> -"Then," I said, "have you not observed that every -Chinese dynasty has been founded by a successful general?" -</p> - -<p> -The man who is now (1913) President of the Chinese -Republic looked at me impassive as a statue, and held his -peace. -</p> - -<p> -Yuan Shih Kai was well aware of the fact that throughout -the East the ruler is always "He," never "They"; and -for this reason he subsequently endeavoured, after the death -of the Empress Dowager, to preserve the authority of the -Emperor. -</p> - -<p> -Years afterwards, before leaving England for China, -Dr. Sun Yat-sen, who was accompanied by General Homer Lea -of the United States, lunched with me. General Homer -Lea was, I think, to conduct the reorganisation of the -Chinese army. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> -ARMS AND MEN -</p> - -<p> -The armies which I had the privilege of inspecting, or -concerning which I obtained information, were: the army -of General Sung, distributed along the coast about Kinchow, -which apparently consisted of 10,000 men out of a paper -strength of 20,000; the army of General Soon Ching at -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P442"></a>442}</span> -Lutai, which was also at half strength, consisting of 7000 men -out of 15,000, distributed among 30 camps, and having some -Russian officers; and the army of General Tung Fu Chan, -near Pekin, which was a disorderly and an undisciplined -rabble; the army of General Nieh, which consisted of about -13,000 men, distributed among 30 camps between Hsiao -Chao and Tientsin, with five Russian instructors; the Pekin -Field Force, which was commanded from the Palace, and -which consisted of 10,000 picked men, well armed but badly -drilled; the cavalry camp at Kaiping, theoretically consisting -of 1500 men, and having three Russian officers; and the -army of General Yi Ke Tong, consisting of from 8000 to -15,000 men scattered about in Manchuria. I also saw the -armies, or some part of them, of the Viceroys Chung Chai -Tung, Liu Kwen Yi, Hsu Ying Kwei, Tau Chung Liu, and -Kwei. Besides these, I was informed that there were in -Mongolia 100,000 cavalry. -</p> - -<p> -Among the various armies were distributed 14 different -patterns of rifles, varying from the Mauser to the gingal. -Some contingents were armed with bows and arrows; others -carried bird-cages and fans, being distinguishable as soldiers -only by their badge. The armies exhibited as many degrees -of efficiency among themselves as their weapons. -</p> - -<p> -Nevertheless, I came to the conclusion that here was all -the material from which to evolve an excellent army. The -Chinese have all the qualities of a good soldier: they are -sober, obedient, quick to learn and courageous. The requirements -were proper food, pay, clothing, drill and competent -officers. -</p> - -<p> -While I was at Newchwang I obtained what information -was available with regard to the numbers and location of -the Russian troops in Eastern Siberia and in Manchuria -The total number was then about 12,000 men. -</p> - -<p> -In the course of my inspection, at the Viceroy's invitation, -of the powerful forts on the Yangtse River, I observed -that one fort, which was intended to fire up the river, was so -constructed that only one gun out of six could be trained in -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P443"></a>443}</span> -the required direction, so that if the other guns were brought -to bear, the guns' crews would be killed. The face of the -fort, instead of being at right angles to the course of the -river, was parallel to it. At my suggestion, a dummy figure -was placed in position; a gun was fired in the required -direction; and sure enough the shot blew the effigy to pieces -and went wandering among the junks crowding the river. -The Chinese said that the English Mandarin was the cleverest -mandarin they had ever seen; and explained that the -fort had not been built in the right position because the -ground was swampy. -</p> - -<p> -Among my observations of forts elsewhere, I noted a -battery of 60-ton muzzle-loading guns, which were loaded -by depressing their muzzles into the magazine. I ventured -to suggest that any carelessness in sponging out the guns -might result in the explosion of the magazine. The general -said that the English Mandarin was extraordinarily clever; -and explained that a year previously a magazine had been -blown up for the very reason I had indicated, had killed -forty-two men, and had then been rebuilt upon the same plan. -</p> - -<p> -At another fort I noted that the powder used for the -heavy guns was unsuitable, and ventured to suggest that it -might burst the gun. -</p> - -<p> -"Yes, it does," said the general simply. "We have -lately blown the breech off two 12-inch 50-ton Krupp guns, -killing and wounding thirty men." And he congratulated -the English Mandarin upon his extraordinary powers of -divination. After the general's explanation I understood -how it was that in another fort two 12-inch Krupp guns -were fitted with Armstrong breech mechanism. The Krupp -breech having been blown off, the Shanghai arsenal had -neatly fitted them with Armstrong breeches. -</p> - -<p> -Observing that a powder-mill at Canton had open gratings -for windows, and stood in the midst of a sandy plain, -I ventured to suggest that the sand might blow in, and that -a spark from it might cause an explosion. -</p> - -<p> -"Yes, it does," said the mandarin. "It blew up two -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P444"></a>444}</span> -years ago and killed and wounded twenty men." He added -that although it had been rebuilt upon the same plan, it was -not intended to use it again; and expressed his admiration -for my remarkable penetration. -</p> - -<p> -At one of the arsenals, the workman boring a 6-pounder -gun had his speed too fast and his feed too thick, so that his -machine was taking out chips of metal and jumping under -the strain. My guide observed placidly that the man didn't -seem to know how to do it. The European instructor, he -explained, had left. I offered to replace him for the -occasion; took off my coat; and being an old hand at the lathe -managed to set the machine right in about an hour's work. -Then there suddenly arose a great crying and calling among -the coolies outside. I thought a riot was beginning; but -the tumult was only the coolies in their innocent way -screaming their delight that "the English Mandarin could -do what their own old mandarins couldn't." -</p> - -<p> -I drew up a report with regard to the forts and arsenals -in China. The general conclusion was that enormous sums -of money were being expended on war material which, in -most cases, was totally useless, although the establishments -were often capable, under European instructors, of turning -out work which would compare with the best in Europe. -Two or three of these arsenals, rightly managed, would -serve to equip a million men for less money than was already -being expended. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> -H.I.M. NAVY -</p> - -<p> -I also visited the Chinese Navy, which was divided into -two squadrons, the Peyang squadron in the North and the -Nanyang squadron in the South. The Peyang squadron -consisted of three cruisers, one torpedo cruiser, and one -torpedo gunboat. The Nanyang squadron was composed -of seven cruisers, four old gunboats, and four torpedo boats. -The Fleet as a whole was undermanned, but there were -many men who had been well trained by English instructors. -The only dockyard is at Foochow. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P445"></a>445}</span> -</p> - -<p> -Many Chinese authorities having asked my advice as to -the fleet, I recommended them to put their ships in order -for police purposes, and to utilise them for the purpose of -checking piracy; advised them not to spend any more -money on their navy, because their army was of greater -importance; and pointed out the waste involved in keeping -about the coasts and in the river hundreds of man-of-war -junks. -</p> - -<p> -Throughout China, I found among the high officials at -least an ostensible agreement with my views concerning the -necessity of reorganising the army: agreement which was -no doubt largely dictated by the very present fear of Russian -aggression. -</p> - -<p> -His Excellency Li Hung Chang, whom I visited, was -an exception to the rule; for the great Minister, one of the -Six Grand Secretaries, was growing old and infirm; and -having offended the Reform Party, it was not improbable -that he was looking to Russia to protect him in case the -Empress Dowager's support failed him. His case was -typical of the Chinese attitude, in which the regard for -personal wealth and safety, threatened so subtly and from -so many dark quarters, is naturally apt to override -patriotism. -</p> - -<p> -At the same time, China is one of the most democratic -countries in the world. I have seen the great Li Hung -Chang stepping into the Yamen over the bodies of the -coolies, who refused to move and who chaffed him as he -passed. I have seen a whole Council huddle up their fans -and disperse like startled poultry, because a coolie put his -head in at the door and exhorted the old gentlemen to be -quick, because it was going to rain, and the coolies were -going home. -</p> - -<p> -It is the rule of the road in China that all passengers -must give way to carriers of burdens, and it was enforced -without respect of persons. Being carried in a sedan, with four -bearers and four coolies running alongside, I was horrified -to perceive the head coolie incontinently knock down an -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P446"></a>446}</span> -old mandarin who was in the way. The poor old gentleman -rolled over and over, Red Button and all; and when he -arose, his gorgeous silks all befouled with mud, the coolie -spat in his face. China is full of the unexpected. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> -HIGHLY COMMERCIAL -</p> - -<p> -As already explained, the two aspects of my investigations, -the military conditions and the commercial conditions, -are here treated separately for the sake of simplicity, -although at the time they were necessarily conducted -together. The following brief account of the results of my -inquiries into the state of trade and commerce contains -those particulars which may still retain their interest. -</p> - -<p> -From Pekin I went to Tientsin, where I attended a -meeting of the Chamber of Commerce, which vehemently -protested against the "Sphere of Influence" policy, declaring -that the future trade of Tientsin would be entirely dependent -on preserving the integrity of China, and upon the existence -of a guarantee of the policy of the "Open Door." The -British section of the Chamber of Commerce presented to -me a memorandum, which they desired me to transmit to -the Associated Chambers of Commerce in England, protesting -against the absence of any definite policy, and stating -that considerable anxiety existed with regard to the safety -of capital already invested in China. The fear of Russian -aggression had virtually paralysed the movement of capital -in the northern part of China. The general opinion was -that if the "Open Door" policy were established and secured, -these apprehensions would disappear. -</p> - -<p> -I was most courteously received by the Chinese -authorities at Tientsin, who expressed great friendliness -towards Great Britain; and who, as usual, affirmed that -China was helpless and that all the European countries were -taking advantage of her weakness. In the case of Russia, -they stated that concessions were being demanded throughout -the whole country which China was unable to refuse. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P447"></a>447}</span> -</p> - -<p> -From Tientsin I went to Tongshan, travelling upon the -Shanhaikwan railway, which had been built by Scotch -engineers under the direction of Mr. Kinder, a British -subject of great talent and energy, who had married a -Japanese lady. Of the two people whom I met who -seemed to me really to possess an intimate knowledge of -China and the Chinese, Mr. Kinder was one. The other -was Dr. Morrison, <i>The Times</i> correspondent. -</p> - -<p> -With Mr. Kinder's assistance, I collected the whole of -the statistics regarding the working of the Tongshan -railway workshops, of the Shanhaikwan railway, and of the -coal mine, in which Chinese miners were employed under -European foremen. -</p> - -<p> -Upon my arrival at Newchang, I was received by the -British residents. The British merchants here, like the -others elsewhere, wished me to represent to the Associated -Chambers of Commerce of Great Britain that trade in the -North of China must be secured against foreign aggression, -and transmitted to me a number of resolutions to this -effect. -</p> - -<p> -The Russians had settled at Newchang, taking the -land without permission, and paying the native occupiers -nominal prices. Since 1897 the Russians had been pouring -troops into Manchuria, and their number was steadily -increasing. I prepared a detailed report upon the trade of -Newchang. -</p> - -<p> -Chefoo I visited twice, first on 13th October and again -on 9th November. The British merchants here complained -of the extension of German interest, which began with -the opening of Kiao Chao. I thought, however, that their -alarm was not justified. Kiao Chao had been declared by -Germany to be an open port. -</p> - -<p> -Upon visiting Wei-hai-wei, I observed that with a -comparatively small expenditure of money it could be -made into a most efficient and powerful naval base. -Already, in the few months which had elapsed since the -British flag was hoisted on 24th May, 1898, Commander -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P448"></a>448}</span> -E. F. A. Gaunt (now Commodore Gaunt, C.M.G.), in -command of a party of bluejackets and Marines, had -accomplished a most admirable piece of administrative -work, in cleaning up the place and in enforcing law and -order so tactfully and skilfully that the only punishments -inflicted had consisted in docking the pigtails of two -offenders. There were no guns mounted at Wei-hai-wei; -but at Port Arthur, 80 miles distant northwards across -Korea Bay, the Russians had already mounted seventy guns. -</p> - -<p> -I also observed that the island of Wei-hai-wei, which -is two-thirds the size of Gibraltar, was the best place on the -China Station for the establishment of a sanatorium for -the Fleet. -</p> - -<p> -My visit to Kiao Chao was made in response to a -cordial invitation sent to me by Rear-Admiral H.R.H. Prince -Henry of Prussia. The harbour is a difficult place -for vessels to make, particularly in foggy weather. The -Germans were as busy as bees, clearing the ground, building -barracks, making parade grounds and preparing emplacements -for guns. Prince Henry was most kind to me, and showed -to me everything. His administration and organisation were -admirable; and afforded another example of the achievements -of naval officers. -</p> - -<p> -But the place was still under military rule, which -discourages commerce. On my voyage out, three Germans had -come on board at Singapore. They told me that, although -they had been very happy under British rule, they preferred -their own colony, and intended to start a hotel at Kiao Chao. -Some time afterwards I met those three patriotic Germans -again. They were on their way back to Singapore; because, -so they said, they could not make a living at Kiao Chao! -They told me that they were obliged to pay a tax of five -per cent. upon their investment, with the prospect of paying -another five per cent. when, after a period of years, their -property should again be surveyed. -</p> - -<p> -At Shanghai, which, being situated at the entrance Of -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P449"></a>449}</span> -the Yangtse Valley, is the most important Treaty Port in -the Far East, I framed an elaborate report upon its trade. -The China Association presented to me a memorandum -containing the usual protest against the insecurity of -British interests in China. -</p> - -<p> -While I was at Shanghai I had three interviews with -the Marquess Ito, lately Prime Minister of Japan. The -Marquess, I believe, was unofficially employed in endeavouring -to extend Japanese interests in China. He expressed -the greatest friendliness towards Great Britain. During -the political disturbances in Japan, the Marquess Ito had -fled to England as a sailor before the mast in a British -vessel. He told me that, landing at Gravesend very -hungry, he went into a shop and bought a loaf, putting -down half a sovereign. The shopman, presumably taking -advantage of the fact that he was a Japanese, refused to -give him the change. The Marquess told me that he was -sadly shocked; for, until that moment, he had believed the -English to be the most honest people in the world. -</p> - -<p> -In Shanghai, I learned that one of the leaders of the -Reform Party, Huang Chin, a victim of the <i>coup d'état</i>, had -been arrested and was about to be sent to Nanking for -execution. I urged his Excellency Kwei Chun, Viceroy of -Szechuan, to use his influence to save Huang's life, pointing -out to him that these political executions were exceedingly -distasteful to the British people. I am glad to say that my -intervention was effectual, in that Huang Chin, instead of -being executed, was banished. -</p> - -<p> -His Excellency Liu-Kwen-Yi having most courteously -placed H.I.M.S. <i>Nanshin</i> at my disposal, I took passage in -her to Nanking. -</p> - -<p> -I was much interested in the arrangement and armament -of the Chinese man-of-war; but as she was warmed by -means of charcoal stoves, my investigations were conducted -in a condition of partial suffocation from the fumes. -</p> - -<p> -Upon arriving at Nanking in the Nanshin, I received a -salute of fifteen guns; and proceeded to the Yamen of his -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P450"></a>450}</span> -Excellency the Viceroy Liu-Kwen-Yi between the lines of -troops and banner-bearers, numbering some thousands, who -were ranged along the whole route of four and a half miles in -my honour. Liu-Kwen-Yi, who received me with the greatest -courtesy and kindness, said that he was anxious to show his -friendship for Great Britain in every way. In the course of -two long and interesting conversations with the Viceroy, -who expressed his fear of the present unstable posture of -affairs, I suggested that there were two contingencies to -fear: a rebellion against the Government and an insurrection -against foreigners; either of which would be fatal -to commercial security. His Excellency, however, assured -me that there was no danger of disturbances inspired by -dislike of the foreigner. Herein he was mistaken; for -within two years occurred the Boxer outbreak, which had -the approval, secret or overt, of the Empress Dowager. At -the Viceroy's request, I drew up a memorandum containing -my scheme for the reorganisation of the army on the principle -of the Imperial Maritime Customs, which I had proposed -at Pekin. A translation of this document was sent by the -Viceroy to Pekin. -</p> - -<p> -On my return journey, I inspected the army, the fleet, -the arsenal and the Imperial naval college. -</p> - -<p> -I arrived at Hong Kong for the second time on Christmas -Day, 1898. The views of the China Association and of the -British merchants here were of the same tenor as those, -already described, expressed by the British communities at -all the trading centres visited by me. -</p> - -<p> -To complete my itinerary in brief, other places visited by -me were Wuhu, Kinkiang, Chinkiang, Kiangzin, Hankow, -Foochow, Swatow, Amoy, Canton, and Wuchow. At each -place I drew up a report describing the local conditions and -embodying the representations of the British communities. -</p> - -<p> -Their common complaint was that British trade was -declining. But an examination of the detailed reports which -in response to the letters sent by me beforehand, were ready -for my inspection, showed that on the contrary the branches -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P451"></a>451}</span> -of trade already possessed by the British had increased; and -that it was in new branches started by foreign nations that -the British were not succeeding. Their comparative failure -in this respect I held to be partly due to the fact that foreign -nations supplied what the people wanted, while the British -insisted on trying to sell to them what the British thought -they ought to want. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> -CONCLUSION -</p> - -<p> -The following reports were framed by me: report on the -railways and waterways; report upon the British Consulate; -a general comprehensive report upon Trade, Treaties and -Tariffs; and a highly elaborate report upon the complicated -question of Finance and Currency. All these are set forth -in my book, <i>The Break-up of China</i>, which also includes a -summary of the reforms which appeared to me to be most -requisite. These were:— -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -1. An Imperial coinage. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -2. Reform in the method of collecting the land-tax. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -3. Removal of restrictions on the export of grain. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -4. Modification of the laws governing the salt monopoly. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -5. The right of foreigners to reside in the interior for -purposes of trade. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -6. The registration and protection of trade marks and -copyright. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -7. The removal of the remaining restrictions on inland -water navigation. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -8. The abolition of the likin, or a change of -administration which would ensure that likin should be -collected once only. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -9. Greater facilities to be given to respectable foreign -syndicates to work minerals. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -10. The establishment of reformed departments for the -regulation of finance, railways, waterways, roads, -posts and telegraphs, and a bureau to deal with all -questions connected with trade. The existing -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P452"></a>452}</span> -telegraph service was so bad, that a letter sent -from Tientsin to Shanghai has been known to -arrive before a telegram sent at the same time. -<i>The Times</i> correspondent at Pekin told me that -his telegrams very often cost as much to send -from Pekin to Shanghai as from Shanghai to -London. -</p> - -<p> -11. One other bureau was urgently needed, a Trade -Intelligence Department, to deal with scientific -and practical questions relating to the natural -products available in China for commercial -purposes. What is an insignificant export to-day -may become a valuable article of commerce -to-morrow. There should be a scientific classification -of the products of China on the same lines -as the classification of products in India. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -I may here quote what, in relation to the whole matter, -I wrote at the time: -</p> - -<p> -"If it be said that my policy for the reorganisation of -the Chinese army and police is a warlike policy, I reply -that it is the only plan yet suggested which gives any -guarantee of peace. Great Britain's strongest guarantee -of peace has been the reorganisation of her Fleet. -Without peace commerce must perish. To keep the peace, -authority must be properly equipped. Our choice with -regard to the Chinese Empire is simple: we may choose to -wreck or we may choose to restore." -</p> - -<p> -The resolutions passed by the British mercantile -communities and the many letters I received from -them subsequently, testify to their approval of my -recommendations. The following documents express the -sentiments of the Chinese themselves, and of the foreign -merchants: -</p> - -<p> -"At a meeting of Chinese merchants and traders, and -other Chinese gentlemen resident in Hong Kong, held at the -Chinese Chamber of Commerce on 22nd January, 1899, on -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P453"></a>453}</span> -the motion of Mr. Ho Tung, seconded by Mr. Leung Shiu -Kwong, it was resolved: -</p> - -<p> -"'1. Having closely followed with great and attentive -interest, and carefully considered what Lord Charles -Beresford has said and done in China in connection with his -recent mission on behalf of the Associated Chambers of -Commerce, we, the Chinese community of Hong Kong here -assembled, are in accord with and heartily support the -policy the noble lord proposes in regard to the "Open -Door" as regards commerce, and also with regard to the -reorganisation of the Chinese army. -</p> - -<p> -"'2. That we recognise the combined proposals, if -carried out, will benefit China quite as much as, if not more, -than England, and other nations, in her trading interest, and -we therefore hope that Lord Charles will be intrusted by the -British Government with the carrying out of the views he has -so closely enunciated, as we, the Chinese people of Hong -Kong, observe that his efforts are directed to the benefit of -both his country and our country, and to the benefit of the -trade of China and the trade of England. -</p> - -<p> -"'3. That we recognise and make our cordial acknowledgments -for the sympathetic manner with which he has -approached our country; and -</p> - -<p> -"'4. That we desire emphatically to express our full -confidence in Lord Charles Beresford, whose ability, integrity -and zeal we are sure peculiarly fit him successfully to carry -out the proposals he has made for the furtherance of trade -and the preservation of the Chinese Empire.' -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -"(Signed) Lo CHI TIU, Chairman<br /> - H. O. FOOK, Secretary"<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -The General Foreign Commercial Community of Shanghai, -on 8th January, 1899, passed the following resolution: -</p> - -<p> -"That our cordial thanks be tendered to Lord Charles -Beresford for the service he has rendered to the foreign -communities in China by personal investigation into the -conditions of the various interests we represent." -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P454"></a>454}</span> -</p> - -<p> -Upon my return, I represented what I believed to be the -real posture of affairs in China, when the subject was -discussed in the House of Commons. In November, 1899, -I read a paper upon "Engineering in China" before the -Institute of Mechanical Engineers. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap45"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P455"></a>455}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XLV -<br /> -TRAFFICS AND DISCOVERIES (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -II. JAPAN -</p> - -<p> -Having received invitations to visit Japan from the -Chambers of Commerce and from prominent persons -interested in the China trade, I stayed for a short -time in that country on my way home. Thirty years -previously, accompanying H.R.H. the Duke of Edinburgh -in the <i>Galatea</i>, I had seen the Old Japan. I was now to see, -super-imposed upon the Old, the New Japan. That which -China was groping after, Japan had seized and made her -own. What we call Western civilisation: the civilisation of -commerce, of science, of mechanical invention: Japan had -put on like a garment. -</p> - -<p> -Both the army and the navy, whose supreme commander -is the Emperor, were organised, efficient, and in process of -augmentation. China feared Russia; but Japan was even -then preparing to fight Russia. -</p> - -<p> -As in arms, so in manufactures, Japan already rivalled -the West. The foreigner, who, a generation previously, -walked in peril of his life, was now welcomed, imitated, and -loaded with civilities. -</p> - -<p> -During my brief sojourn, the swift and shining manifestations -of the new spirit (which was the old spirit seeking -a new avatar) surrounded me. At Osaka, quick-firing field -artillery and magazine rifles were being made to Japanese -patents, excellent in design and construction; and the -humming factories were turning out sugar, cotton, matches, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P456"></a>456}</span> -iron and steel; and, at a meeting of the Chamber of Commerce, -the Mayor declared that it was imperative in the interests -of Japanese trade that the policy of the "Open Door" -should prevail in China. The Chamber of Commerce said -the same at Kioto. A generation since, the two-sworded -samurai were guarding the door of Japan, lest it should be -opened. -</p> - -<p> -At Kioto, electricity, generated by water power, lighted -the streets and houses, worked the trams, pumped the water; -the use of electric power was then more common, I believe -in Japan than in any other country; and there were telegraphs -and telephones in nearly every town. -</p> - -<p> -In Tokio, I had the honour of meeting several members -of the Ministry, who, stating that they regarded the "Spheres -of Influence" policy to be fatal to Japanese interests, -expressed their desire to work together with other nations in -favour of the policy of the "Open Door." Having been -invited by the Chamber of Commerce to address a public -meeting, I spoke on the subject of the future development -of trade with China. The meeting was attended by Ministers, -military and naval officers, the President and many -members of both Houses, and representatives of the -mercantile community. The Japanese interpreter sat beside me -and equipped with inkpot, paper and brush, he painted -down my words in the Japanese character. When I sat -down, the interpreter rose and repeated my speech in -Japanese, his delivery occupying the same time as mine. -Every now and then he was interrupted by applause, the -audience tapping with their fans. The British Minister told -me that it was aroused by the mention of the identity of -Japanese and British interests, and especially by the -comparison drawn between Japan and Great Britain. -</p> - -<p> -The authorities kindly conducted me over the various -schools of military training, in which the system was perfect; -the arsenal, employing 6000 men, and turning out work -second to none; and the barracks, a model of efficiency. -The Minister for War, General Viscount Katsura, courteously -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P457"></a>457}</span> -held a parade of troops for my benefit. All arms were -admirable alike in organisation, appearance, and discipline. -</p> - -<p> -Before leaving Tokio, I had the opportunity of paying my -respects to his Majesty the Emperor; who was so good as to -say he remembered the visit of the Duke of Edinburgh of -whose suite I had been a member, and invited me to an afternoon's -sport in his private pleasaunce. Every foot of the garden -was wrought like a gem. Diversified with miniature mountains, -tiny grottoes, and brilliant foliage, it was intersected by -narrow rivers which were haunted by wild duck. Two or -three days before the sport took place, the garden was left -solitary, so that the ducks should come into it. The method -was to catch the duck in a hand-net as it rose from the water. -</p> - -<p> -His Majesty said that the development of trade with -China must strengthen the friendship between the peoples of -Great Britain and Japan, the interests of both countries -being the same; and expressed the hope that the endeavours -of the Associated Chambers of Commerce of Great Britain -might be the beginning of a great extension of trade, in -which Japan would take a prominent part. -</p> - -<p> -At Yokohama, Admiral Yamamoto, Minister of Marine, -courteously invited me to visit the dockyard and fleet at -Yokohama, placing H.I.M. cruiser <i>Takasago</i> at my disposal. -The vessel was throughout in as good condition as a -man-of-war could be; and her ship's company were smart, well -dressed and well disciplined. -</p> - -<p> -At Yokosha is a large torpedo depot, at which everything -connected with torpedo warfare is organised under its own -administration; a system preferable to the British method, in -which the torpedo departments are auxiliary to the dockyards. -</p> - -<p> -The impression disengaged by my sojourn of a fortnight -in Japan was that both the political and commercial classes -were determined to enforce the "Open Door" in China, -where their commercial interests were extensive. I observed -that the nation was arming itself steadily and effectively; -and that a spirit of patriotism was universal. Four years -later, the Russo-Japanese war broke out. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap46"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P458"></a>458}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XLVI -<br /> -TRAFFICS AND DISCOVERIES (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -III. THE UNITED STATES -</p> - -<p> -The many invitations sent to me while I was in China -from the United States determined me to visit that -country on the way home; in order to explain to the -American nation the situation in China; to encourage if it -might be, the growth of amity between the English and the -American peoples; and incidentally to mark the contrast -between the most ancient and static Empire of the East and -the restless dynamic forces of the latest experiment in Western -civilisation. I had arrived at Nagasaki on the 11th January, -1899; traversed Japan as a half-way house, in which West -and East had married, and in which their offspring were -presently to astonish the world; and came to San Francisco -on the 10th of February. -</p> - -<p> -Immediately the wheels of life began to revolve with an -extraordinary velocity. I was caught up in the sumptuous -hospitality of that generous people—deluged with invitations; -and haunted by interviewers. In looking back, great cities -rise one upon another, like cities in a dream; I seem always -to be speaking to a field of keen, upturned countenances; the -only respite comes in the days and nights, all run into one -to the long roll of the cars, as the train eats up the miles of -that land of vast spaces; and everywhere there are welcome -and cordiality and friendship. -</p> - -<p> -And everywhere there were Irishmen, rushing to shake -hands with a countryman; rushing any distance, often -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P459"></a>459}</span> -hundreds of miles, just to exchange greetings at the latter -end. Irishmen are so, the world over. -</p> - -<p> -One among my countrymen had travelled a thousand -miles to see me, when he called at my hotel. I told him -that I had twenty minutes before starting for Chicago, and -that I must retire to my room to bathe, shave and prepare -a speech in that time. -</p> - -<p> -"I'll come wid ye," said he, cheerfully; and while I -made my dispositions, he sat in the adjoining room and -talked of the old country with that pride and affection which -all Irishmen feel for their native land. -</p> - -<p> -San Francisco, Denver, Chicago, Buffalo, Washington, -New York: these were the great towns strung among the -lesser. At San Francisco, I addressed the Chamber of -Commerce. At Chicago, I was entertained by -Mr. McCormick, President of the Associated Chambers and of -the Committee of the Commercial Club. -</p> - -<p> -All unknown to me, it had been arranged that I should -address a large meeting at eleven o'clock on the morning of -my arrival. When the train came in at ten o'clock, I was -informed of the arrangement; went to the hotel, dictated -notes to my secretary while I made my toilette, arrived at -the meeting punctually, and spoke for half an hour. -</p> - -<p> -Here, and throughout America, I kept strictly to my -terms of reference: dwelling upon the opportunities for -extending trade in China; the necessity for pursuing the -policy of the "Open Door"; and the community of interest -existing between America and Great Britain. -</p> - -<p> -The Board of Trade, which is the Stock Exchange of -Chicago, invited me to visit them; and when I was introduced -as the representative of the Associated Chambers of -Commerce of Great Britain, the whole business of the great -market was stopped in order that I might address the -members; an event which, I was informed, was without -precedent. The Commercial Club having kindly invited me -to be the guest of their periodical banquet, the Committee -most courteously altered the date in order to suit my -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P460"></a>460}</span> -convenience. In this case, there was a precedent; for the -date of the occasion had been altered when General Grant -had been a guest of the Club. -</p> - -<p> -At Washington, I was most hospitably entertained by -Mr. Hay, Secretary of State and late Ambassador in Great -Britain. I had the privilege of paying my respects to -President McKinley, and of meeting many distinguished -Americans, Senators and others, all of whom expressed -great interest in the enterprise of the British Associated -Chambers of Commerce. At this time I first met Colonel -Robert M. Thompson, who became a great friend of mine; -and Admiral Brownson, whose skill in handling a fleet I -subsequently admired. -</p> - -<p> -Upon my arrival at New York, I fulfilled an engagement -to address the American Asiatic Association. Mr. Whitelaw -Reid, afterwards Ambassador in Great Britain, in an eloquent -speech, declared that the policy of the "Open Door" was -that which was best suited for the development of American -trade, and that the American Government intended to -institute it in the Philippine Islands. -</p> - -<p> -Addressing the New York Chamber of Commerce, I -found the members to express the same sympathy and -interest with which my representations had been received -throughout the United States. The American attitude was, -in fact, that while they were desirous of strengthening their -friendship with England, and approved the policy of the -"Open Door," they did not feel justified in going beyond a -moral support of it. -</p> - -<p> -Upon visiting New York a second time, I was introduced -into the Stock Exchange by Mr. Rudolph Kepler, the -President, who took me up the floor to the rostrum. The -proceedings were stopped; and at the President's request, I -addressed the members for two or three minutes. Some one -said that my speech was at the rate of 100,000 dollars a -second. I hope he was exaggerating. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap47"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P461"></a>461}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XLVII -<br /> -H.M.S. <i>RAMILLIES</i> -</h3> - -<p> -When the men who had gone out to South Africa -to take part in the Jameson Raid were passing -through the Suez Canal on their way back again, -I saw and heard the people in the British ships cheering -them as they went by; a popular effusion which (in my view) -boded trouble in the future. Soon after my return from the -United States in 1899, an instalment of the trouble arrived. -The burghers of the Transvaal and of the Orange Free State -crossed the British frontiers on the 12th October. -</p> - -<p> -This country began as usual by underrating the strength -of the enemy. Many of us remember the talk about rolling -them up, and all the rest of it; all very bright in its way; -but not the way to begin a war, much less to end it. Those -of us who understood war, were by no means so confident; -and I expressed their opinion, when, as I may perhaps here -venture to recall, speaking at the Cutlers' Feast at Sheffield -on the 2nd November, and again at Sunderland on the 6th -November, 1899, I most emphatically advocated the dispatch -of a much larger force than the Government had allocated -for the purpose; on the principle that "in the fire brigade, if -an officer thought a fire needed four engines to put it out, he -would send eight." -</p> - -<p> -Matters have changed so little since the South African -war that, although our Army and Navy are relatively inferior -to what they were in 1899, the politicians are still alternately -boasting of what will be done in an emergency, and declaring -that war is no longer possible. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P462"></a>462}</span> -</p> - -<p> -In December, 1899, I was appointed second in command -of the Mediterranean Fleet under the command of Vice-Admiral -Sir J. A. Fisher, K.C.B. (now Admiral of the Fleet -Lord Fisher of Kilverstone, G.C.B., O.M., G.C.V.O.), flying -his flag in H.M.S. <i>Renown</i>, and thereupon resigned my seat -at York. The London Chamber of Commerce were so good -as to invite me to a banquet prior to my departure. Speaking -upon that occasion, I pointed out that under our existing -system of administration, while the Cabinet must always -bear the ultimate responsibility, there was not yet in existence -a department whose duty it was to represent what were the -requirements, present and future, of Imperial defence. So -far as the Navy was concerned, the duty was charged upon -the First Sea Lord; but it involved a task so vast and -complex, that no one man could possibly fulfil it; nor had the -Intelligence Department been developed, according to its -original purpose, into a War Staff. -</p> - -<p> -In the event of a disaster in war, resulting from lack of -organisation and preparation, the Government, being rightly -held responsible, are perhaps turned out of office; when the -nation may derive what consolation may accrue from -losing both its Government and the Empire upon the same day. -</p> - -<p> -My first command as rear-admiral coincided with the -final disappearance from the Navy of the old masts and sails -training which was the delight and pride of the sailors of my -generation. Before the decision of the Admiralty had been -finally made, I suggested (in <i>The Times</i>, 9th December, 1899) -that, as there were then only four training ships, so that no -more than a proportion of boys could be passed through -them, either the system should be abolished, or two -squadrons of six ships should be provided, and all boys -trained in them. The Admiralty, however, considered that -it would be inadvisable to send away so many young seamen; -and they were right. -</p> - -<p> -I hoisted my flag in H.M.S. <i>Ramillies</i> on 12th January -1900. She was a first-class battleship of the <i>Royal Sovereign</i> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P463"></a>463}</span> -class, of 14,150 tons. At that time she was six or seven -years old; at the time of writing, although she is no more -than twenty, she has been sold for old iron; and when they -took her away to break her up, she got adrift in a seaway -off the Isle of Wight. -</p> - -<p> -I saw the last of my old flagship as I was passing -through the gut of Gibraltar, on board the R.M.S. <i>Orvieto</i>, on -25th November, 1913. She was being towed by a small tug -to her last home, the yard of an Italian ship-knacker. I -thought of the old happy days on board her, and all the -sport, when she held the record in the Fleet for most of the -drills and all the boat-racing. -</p> - -<p> -The flag-captain was Robert S. Lowry (now Vice-Admiral -Sir R. S. Lowry, K.C.B.), who had been with me in the -<i>Undaunted</i> as commander. The commander was the -Hon. Horace L. A. Hood (now Rear-Admiral Hood, C.B., M.V.O., -D.S.O.). The flag-lieutenant was Maurice J. G. Cay, and -the secretary, Paymaster John A. Keys (now Fleet -Paymaster J. A. Keys), who was with me afterwards in my -flagships. -</p> - -<p> -At that time, apart from being charged with the duty of -carrying into execution the orders of the commander-in-chief, -an officer second in command had no individual -responsibility. In other words, he had little opportunity of -acquiring from his superior officer that knowledge which, in -the event of war, he would require in an emergency. -</p> - -<p> -Upon the adequacy of the Mediterranean Fleet depends -the safety of the Empire in time of war; but although war -was then waging in South Africa, although the other -European Powers regarded Great Britain with open or covert -hostility, and although a combination of France and Russia -against this country was by no means improbable, the -Mediterranean Fleet was barely sufficient to meet the French -Fleet alone with any reasonable certainty of success. In -other words, so far as numbers and composition were -concerned, the Mediterranean Fleet was incapable of carrying -into execution the duties with which it must be charged in -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P464"></a>464}</span> -the event of war. Under the command of Sir John Fisher, -its efficiency was admirable. -</p> - -<p> -The bare statement of the requirements sufficiently -indicates their necessity. An increase of the supply of reserve -coal, then dangerously deficient; the provision of fleet -colliers, fully equipped, of distilling ships, of telegraph ships, -and of hospital ships, of which until quite recently there was -only one in the Navy, and that one a present from the -United States; of store ships, reserve ammunition ships -and parent ships for torpedo craft: thirty-four vessels in all, -representing those auxiliaries without which no Fleet is -adequately fitted to fulfil its duties in war. These -deficiencies fall to be recorded, because, although some of them -have since been supplied, it is still the habit of the authorities -to neglect the provision of fleet auxiliaries, and the public -are taught to believe that a squadron of battleships is -self-sufficient. -</p> - -<p> -The construction of submarines, which had long been the -subject of experiment in France, having been begun by the -United States, induced me to write to Lord Goschen, First -Lord, observing that whether or not the new arm might -prove valuable in war, at least it ought to be tested, and -suggesting that two experimental boats should be ordered. -The Admiralty shortly afterwards purchased five submarines -of the Holland Torpedo Boat Company, U.S.A., of a similar -design to the six Hollands of the <i>Adder</i> class ordered by the -United States in June, 1900. The Hollands were followed -by the construction in this country of the "A" class; and -as everyone knows, the type was rapidly developed until -Great Britain now possesses a large fleet of these vessels. -</p> - -<p> -Having investigated when I was in the <i>Undaunted</i> the -French system of nucleus crews, under which the older men -and pensioners were employed to form skeleton crews for -the ships in Reserve, upon the understanding that they were -not to go to sea in full commission except in the event of -war, I sent home a report upon the subject, indicating the -advantage enjoyed by the French naval seaman, who, under -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P465"></a>465}</span> -the nucleus crew system, could look forward with certainty -to spending the end of his career comfortably in a home port, -and suggesting that a modification of the system might be -introduced into our own Service. Under the British system, -the ships in the Steam Reserve were then kept in order by -working parties composed of men temporarily under training -in the depots attached to the dockyards, an arrangement -which had the disadvantage that the men who formed the -crews in the event of war, would not be the men who were -familiar with the ships. -</p> - -<p> -Some years later, the Admiralty introduced the nucleus -crew system, which differed entirely from the principle upon -which was based the French method, in that a proportion of -active service ratings were placed on board the ships of the -Reserve, and that these crews were being constantly shifted -from ship to ship. After a series of experiments, it was -officially decided to man a number of ships in active -commission with nucleus crews, which are officially stated to be -as efficient as full crews; a state of things which is as -dangerous to the national security as it is unfair to officers -and men. -</p> - -<p> -The accident occurring on board the French man-of-war -<i>Admiral Duperré</i>, leading to the conclusion that if cordite -were exposed to heat above a certain temperature its ignition -would cause an enormously increased pressure upon the gun, -induced me officially to represent the necessity of keeping -ammunition at an even temperature. Several years afterwards, -a large quantity of cordite distributed among the -Fleet was found to be in so dangerous a condition that it -was destroyed, and the ammunition chambers were equipped -with cooling apparatus. -</p> - -<p> -My interest in signalling inspired me to invent a new -drill for the signalmen, in which the men themselves -represented ships. Linked together with a tack-line, in order to -keep them in station, the men executed the evolutions of -a fleet in obedience to signals. I also advocated that all -captains and commanders should pass the signal school as -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P466"></a>466}</span> -a qualification for flag-command. Every admiral ought to -be familiar with manoeuvre signals at least; for in default -of that knowledge, he does not know that a wrong signal -has been hoisted in his flagship until he sees the ships -making a wrong manoeuvre. An admiral who understands -signals will seldom, if ever, be observed hoisting a negative. -</p> - -<p> -It was in the year 1900 that H.M.S. <i>Terrible</i>, -commanded by Captain Percy M. Scott (now Admiral Sir -P. M. Scott, K.C.B., K.C.V.O.) on the China station, distinguished -herself by making a gunnery record of a percentage of -76.92 hits, as compared with the mean percentage of all -ships in commission, of which the highest was 46.91 (10-inch -gun), and the lowest was 28.2 (16.25 inch and 13.5 inch). -Comparing the <i>Renown</i>, flagship of the Mediterranean, with -the <i>Terrible</i>, both really smart ships, it was clear that there -must be something radically wrong with our gunnery training, -when the <i>Terrible</i> made more than twice the number of -hits with her 6-inch guns in the same number of rounds. -</p> - -<p> -I wrote home, suggesting that, as Captain Percy Scott -had solved the difficulties with which we were all struggling -it would be advisable to send him to the various Fleets and -Squadrons to teach us the right methods. I also wrote to -Captain Percy Scott, expressing my interest in his achievement, -and received from him a courteous reply, enclosing -much useful information: which enabled me to represent to -the commander-in-chief that consideration should be given -to the new arrangements for shooting instituted on the China -station, owing to the inventions and the industry of Captain -Percy Scott. It was also urged that a gunnery training -ship should be attached to each Fleet. -</p> - -<p> -Among the excellent practices introduced by the -commander-in-chief, was the writing of essays by officers upon -a given subject—the interchange of ideas being of much -educational value; and perhaps of hardly less utility, was -the exercise in composition. Many naval officers evince -marked literary ability; but there is always a proportion -who find accurate expression a difficulty. Few, however, so -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P467"></a>467}</span> -dismally succumb to it as the author of the following signal, -made in response to a request from an admiral for the -explanation of a mistake in manoeuvring. The reply was: -</p> - -<p> -"When signal A2 pendant was made —— reduced to 30 -revolutions and as she gradually dropped astern to get astern -of —— observed her bearing she suddenly seemed to stop -and turn towards us and we stopped and went astern on -seeing flagship passing ahead of —— altogether we had turned -6 points by that time. My object was to get under her -stern by dropping and watching her thinking that she was -dropping gradually to get astern." -</p> - -<p> -At this time, the Board of Admiralty effected many -improvements. The coal supply for the Mediterranean was -increased, the Mediterranean Fleet was strengthened, and -provided with colliers and with a hospital ship; better ships -were allocated for gunnery training at the home ports; the -old coastguard ships were replaced with modern vessels; -submarines were added to the Fleet; the signalling was -improved; the regulations for training gunnery and torpedo -ratings were revised; obsolete ships were removed from the -effective list; a naval tactical school was established; and -combined manoeuvres of the Channel and Mediterranean -Fleets were instituted. -</p> - -<p> -While Vice-Admiral Sir John Fisher was commander-in-chief -of the Mediterranean Fleet, he greatly improved its -fighting efficiency. As the result of his representations, the -stocks of coal at Malta and Gibraltar were increased, the -torpedo flotillas were strengthened, and the new breakwaters -at Malta were begun. Some of Sir John Fisher's reforms -are confidential; but among his achievements which became -common knowledge, the following are notable: From a -12-knot Fleet with breakdowns, he made a 15-knot Fleet -without breakdowns; introduced long range target practice, -and instituted the Challenge Cup for heavy gun shooting; -instituted various war practices for officers and men; invited, -with excellent results, officers to formulate their opinions -upon cruising and battle formation; drew up complete -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P468"></a>468}</span> -instructions for torpedo flotillas; exercised cruisers in towing -destroyers and battleships in towing one another, thereby -proving the utility of the device for saving coal in an -emergency; and generally carried into execution Fleet -exercises based, not on tradition but, on the probabilities -of war. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Ramillies</i> competing in rifle-shooting, hockey, pistol -shooting and the squadron athletic sports, took the -Mediterranean Jewel and £1; was first in the sweepstakes; tied -first for the Pembroke Plate; won the tug-of-war twice, and -the greasy pig race twice; altogether, the ship took six -firsts, nine seconds, and five thirds, out of 19 events. -</p> - -<p> -In the early days of motor-cars, a motor-car race -between Captain George Neville and myself was arranged, -the course being from the bottom to the top of the Rock of -Gibraltar. My car broke down, and Neville won the race. -Another breakdown in the same car occurred 20 miles -distant from Vigo. That night I was giving a dinner in -Vigo to the Municipality and all the notabilities. I had -not recovered from a bad fall I had had with the Pytchley -a few weeks previously, when I broke my pelvis. I was -riding a first-class hireling hunter; a bullfinch had been cut, -and the hedging was in the field towards us; my horse took -off at the end of the hedging in the field, and (as they say -in Ireland) threw a magnificent lep, but failed to clear the -top of the wattles, and came over on top of me. -</p> - -<p> -So, when the car broke down, I could not walk. There -was no help near. The two friends who accompanied me, -Hedworth Lambton and Hwfa Williams, volunteered to -get assistance. Finding none, they had to walk twenty-one -miles into Vigo. Hwfa Williams was wearing pumps. -For several days previously, distrusting the car, he had -equipped himself with stout boots in case of accident; now, -of course, he had left them in the ship. When he had first -arrived on board, he had declared that he was so ill that -he could not be long for this world; but the walk into -Vigo cheered him up wonderfully. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P469"></a>469}</span> -</p> - -<p> -I was eventually towed in the car into Vigo, arriving -about two o'clock in the morning. In the meantime, the -Staff had entertained my guests. -</p> - -<p> -When I had been some six months in the Mediterranean, -I was approached as to whether I would accept the -command of the Australian squadron. Considering that -the appointment would not afford the opportunities I -desired of learning how to handle a fleet, I intimated my -preference for remaining in the Mediterranean; where I -remained for my full time accordingly. -</p> - -<p> -On 5th February, 1902, a few days before I completed -my fifty-sixth year, I hauled down my flag; and, in pursuance -of a stately old custom often practised on such an occasion, -I was rowed ashore by twelve officers in the cutter. Landing -at Naples, I went home, arriving in London just in time -to attend the debate upon the Navy Estimates in the House -of Commons. -</p> - -<p> -In the following June, Admiral Sir John Fisher -succeeded Vice-Admiral Sir A. L. Douglas upon the -Board of Admiralty as Second Sea Lord. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap48"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P470"></a>470}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XLVIII -<br /> -HER MAJESTY'S MIDSHIPMEN -</h3> - -<p> -Having adopted the practice of asking the officers -in the Fleet under my command to write essays -upon subjects connected with the Service, I once -received a disquisition in which the author (a midshipman) -dwelt sorrowfully upon the unaccountable indifference -manifested by senior officers towards the opinions of -midshipmen, who, said the writer, having young and vigorous -minds, were naturally better fitted to grapple with problems -which baffled the older and slower intellect. -</p> - -<p> -This particular young gentleman must I think have -applied his vigorous mind to the problem of how to obtain -a generous allowance of leave. I trust I did him no -injustice; but whenever the Fleet lay off the coasts of -Scotland, he was afflicted with a grievous toothache, -requiring an immediate visit to the dentist. When he -had gone ashore to have a tooth out in every port in -Scotland, I sent for him. -</p> - -<p> -"Tell me," I said, "how many teeth you have left? For -I make out that you have had forty-six teeth extracted in -Scotland alone." -</p> - -<p> -Many a delightful day have I had with the midshipmen -of the ships and fleets in which I have served. We fished -together, rode, shot, hunted and raced together. Memory -does not always supply episodes in their chronological -order; and I set these down as they occur to me. -</p> - -<p> -When I was lieutenant in the <i>Bellerophon</i>, stationed at -Bermuda, I used to take the midshipmen out fishing. In -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P471"></a>471}</span> -those seas, the water is so clear that one can watch the fish -taking the bait. Once, deep down, I saw the head of a -conger eel protruding from the cleft of the rocks in which he -lay. I dropped the bait in front of his nose, and watched -his head move back and forth, until he took the bait. Then -I shifted the midshipmen to the farther side of the boat to -counterweigh the strain and to get a purchase on the line, -and hauled out the great eel, piece by piece, and we dragged -him into the boat. -</p> - -<p> -About that time, the midshipmen saved me from a -highly disagreeable death. We were out fishing in my -boat, and one of the midshipmen threw my housewife for -snooded hooks at another, and missing him, it went -overboard. Now my fishing housewife was a most valuable -possession; I had made it myself; and when I saw it -sinking slowly down through the clear water, I dived for it -and caught it. By the time I rose to the surface, the boat -had drifted away from me. Hailing the crew, I swam after -the boat; and as I reached her, I was suddenly hoisted -bodily inboard by the slack of my breeches. Almost at the -same moment, the fin of a shark shot up beside the gunwale. -The midshipmen, my saviours, observed that "it was a sell -for the shark." -</p> - -<p> -We sailed one day to North Rock, which lies about -twenty-two miles from Bermuda, and there we fished. -Towards evening, it came on to blow. The ship was -invisible from North Rock, and it was impossible to return. -We tried to secure the boat to the rocks, but failed. There -was nothing to be done but to lay to and bale. As the dark -fell, I found we had no light. By this time the midshipmen -were utterly exhausted, and were lying helpless. I made -a lantern out of the mustard-pot, using oil from a sardine -tin, and fabricating a wick from a cotton fishing line, and -slung it on the beam. It burned all night. And all night, -one of the worst nights in my recollection, we tacked to and -fro close-reefed. At dawn, we started on the return trip; -and, so whimsical a thing is destiny, no sooner had we -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P472"></a>472}</span> -sighted the Fleet, than a puff of wind carried away the -mast which had stood so stoutly all the night of storm. -</p> - -<p> -My boat was what was called a "Mugian" boat, built in -Bermuda. Her crew consisted of one man. His name was -Esau, and he was a liberated slave of an incomparable -obstinacy, a fault of which I cured him in one moment. -When we took the boat for her first trip, I was persuaded -that I could steer her among the reefs as well as Esau. But -Esau was of another opinion. When argument failed, he -tried to wrest the tiller from me, whereupon, unshipping it, -I brought it down on Esau's head. I was a powerful youth, -and I struck hard; yet it was not the head of Esau which -was broken, but the tiller, though it was of oak. In trying -to steer with a short piece of the tiller, we were nearly -wrecked; but Esau ventured no further remonstrance, -neither then nor afterwards. -</p> - -<p> -There is a right way and there is a wrong way of dealing -with midshipmen; and a little imagination may reveal the -right way. When I was in command of the <i>Undaunted</i>, -stationed at Malta, I noticed that the midshipmen, returning -on board after taking violent exercise on shore, were often -overheated, with the result that they caught a chill, and -the chill brought on Malta fever, the curse of that island -in those days. I issued an order that overcoats were to -be taken ashore and worn while coming off to the ship; -and I caused a room in the Custom House to be fitted -with pegs, upon which the coats might be left until they -were required. -</p> - -<p> -The next thing was that a boy who came on board -without his overcoat, had his leave stopped by the -commander. There was a boxing match on shore, which I wished -all the midshipmen to see. I intended that he should see -the match; and it was also necessary that, without severity -on the one hand or indulgence on the other, the occasion -should be stamped upon his memory. So when the rest of -the midshipmen had gone, I sent for the solitary youth, and -bade him explain his case. When he had finished, I told -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P473"></a>473}</span> -him that I intended to inflict upon him an additional -punishment. He regarded me with a face of alarm. -</p> - -<p> -"You will go ashore," I said, "and you will write for me -a full and an exact account of the boxing match." -</p> - -<p> -He saw the match; and after the pains of literary -composition, he would not so easily forget his overcoat. -</p> - -<p> -In the <i>Undaunted</i>, the midshipmen were taught to make -their own canvas jumpers and trousers. -</p> - -<p> -I used to keep two or three extra guns for the use of -the midshipmen, whom I took out shooting whenever an -opportunity occurred. Some of the boys had never handled -a gun before. A midshipman once shot a hare when the -animal was right at my feet. -</p> - -<p> -"Wasn't that a good shot, sir!" said he joyously. -</p> - -<p> -It did not occur to his innocence that he might have -brought me down instead of the hare. -</p> - -<p> -On Saturdays, I took out shooting the torpedo classes -of midshipmen, which were conducted by my old friend, -Captain Durnford (now Admiral Sir John Durnford, K.C.B., -D.S.O.). We advanced in very open order, placing the -midshipmen some 200 yards apart from one another, for fear -of accidents, and we fired at everything that came along, in -every direction. Upon one such occasion, I took out the -warrant officers, among whom was the carpenter, who had -never shot anything in his life. We were after snipe—I think -at Platea—a bird whose flight, as all sportsmen know, is -peculiar. A snipe in mid-flight will dive suddenly, dropping -to earth out of sight. The old carpenter raised his gun -very slowly, and aimed with immense deliberation, the -muzzle of his gun cautiously tracing the flight of the bird, -thus expending cartridge after cartridge. Suddenly his -bird dropped. He shouted with delight and, holding his -gun high over his head, ran as hard as he could pelt towards -the spot upon which, as he believed, the bird had fallen dead. -We saw it rise behind him; but nothing would persuade -him that he had not slain his quarry. He searched and -searched, in vain. Going back in the boat, I noticed that -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P474"></a>474}</span> -he was sunk in a profound melancholy, and bade him -cheer up. -</p> - -<p> -"It do seem 'ard, sir," he said sadly, "that the only bird -I ever shot in my life, I shouldn't be able to find it." And -sad he remained. -</p> - -<p> -After one of these excursions, a midshipman brought to -me the gun I had lent to him, with the barrels bent. -</p> - -<p> -"I am very sorry, sir," he said. "The fact is, I slipped -on the rocks, and fell with the barrels under me. But," he -added eagerly, "it shoots just as well as it did before, -sir." -</p> - -<p> -I turned to another midshipman who had been of the -party. -</p> - -<p> -"Did you see him shoot before the accident?" -</p> - -<p> -"Yes, sir." -</p> - -<p> -"Did he hit anything?" -</p> - -<p> -"No, sir." -</p> - -<p> -"Did you see him shoot <i>after</i> the accident?" -</p> - -<p> -"Yes, sir." -</p> - -<p> -"Did he hit anything?" -</p> - -<p> -"No, sir." -</p> - -<p> -"Then," I said to the first midshipman, "your statement -is correct. Will you please take the gun to the armourer -to be repaired?" -</p> - -<p> -I landed at Gibraltar very early in the morning, about -four o'clock, with the intention of cub-hunting. At the -stables I found a midshipman, dressed in plain clothes, whom -I did not know. I asked him what he was doing. He said -that he wanted to go cub-hunting, but that he hadn't a horse. -I gave him a mount and told him to stick to me. He did -as he was told, literally. He was in my pocket all day; -he jumped upon the top of me; I couldn't get rid of him. -When I remonstrated, he said: -</p> - -<p> -"You told me to stick to you, sir. And I say, sir, <i>isn't -it fun</i>!" -</p> - -<p> -He reminds me of the first time Fred Archer, the -famous jockey, went out hunting. He stuck as close -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P475"></a>475}</span> -behind his host as my midshipman did to me; but his reply -to all remonstrance was: -</p> - -<p> -"What are you grumbling at? I'm giving you half a -length!" -</p> - -<p> -Part of my scheme of training midshipmen in the -Mediterranean was to send them away, under the charge of -a lieutenant, for two days at a time, to fend for themselves -upon one of the islands. I sent them away in the pinnace, -and they took guns and provided their own food, and -enjoyed themselves to the full. -</p> - -<p> -At Alexandria, the midshipmen of a United States -warship challenged the midshipmen in the Fleet to a pulling -race. At that time I had a private galley, the <i>Hippocampe</i>, -which had never been beaten; while the Americans had a -boat of special construction, much lighter than our Service -boats. As the <i>Hippocampe</i> was not a regulation Service -boat, I asked the American captain whether he had any -objection to her. He said he had none. I trained a crew -selected from the midshipmen of the Fleet. The American -midshipmen were of course older and heavier than our -boys, as they enter the Navy at a later age. At one point -in the race they were ten lengths ahead; but at the end -they were astern. -</p> - -<p> -While I was in command of the <i>Undaunted</i>, two of the -midshipmen of the Fleet performed the feat of climbing -the Great Pyramid on the wrong side, where the stone is -rotten. It was a most perilous proceeding; and as I was -responsible for the party, when the boys, having nearly -reached the top, crawled round to the safe side, I was -greatly relieved, and so was the Sheikh, who was imploring -me on his knees to stop them. The fact was that the -midshipmen had refused to take the Arab guides, and had -started before I knew what was happening. -</p> - -<p> -I used to take the midshipmen out for paperchases at -Malta. The flag-lieutenant and myself, being mounted, were -the hares. Crowds used to watch us, and we finished up -with a big tea. Races on horseback for the midshipmen -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P476"></a>476}</span> -were held at St. Paul's Bay, myself being the winning-post, -at which they arrived hot and panting. There were -only two accidents on record, a broken arm and a broken -leg. -</p> - -<p> -We ascended Vesuvius together, taking a heliograph, -with which we signalled to the flagship, lying below -in the Bay of Naples. Upon the very day the last great -eruption began, we looked down the crater and saw the lava -heaving and bubbling like boiling coffee in a glass receiver, -and smoke bursting from it. The guides hurried us away -and down; and no sooner had we arrived at the station, -than there sounded the first explosion, which blew up the -spot upon which we had been standing. -</p> - -<p> -Seldom have I been more anxious than upon the day I -stood on the roof of the Palace at Malta, and watched a -crew of midshipmen struggling to make the harbour in a -whole gale of wind. I had sent them in the launch to Gozo, -and they had taken my bull-dog with them to give him -some exercise. While they were on shore, the gale blew -up; and rather than break their leave, the boys set sail. To -my intense relief, I saw them make the harbour; and then -as they hauled the sheet aft to round-to, over went the boat, -and they were all swimming about in the harbour; but -happily they all came safely to land, including my bull-dog. -</p> - -<p> -There was once a midshipman (an Irishman) who, -perceiving treacle exposed for sale upon the cart of an -itinerant vender of miscellaneous commodities, was suddenly -inspired (I do not know why) with a desire to buy that -condiment. -</p> - -<p> -"What should the like of you be wanting with treacle?" -said the man, who was a surly fellow. -</p> - -<p> -"Why shouldn't I buy treacle?" said the boy. -</p> - -<p> -"How much do you want?" -</p> - -<p> -"As much as you've got." -</p> - -<p> -"I've got nothing to put it in," grumbled the man. -</p> - -<p> -"Put it in my hat," insisted the midshipman, proffering -that receptacle. It was a tall hat, for he was in mufti. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P477"></a>477}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The vender of treacle reluctantly filled the hat with -treacle. -</p> - -<p> -"What are you going to do with it?" he asked again. -</p> - -<p> -"I'll show you," returned the midshipman; and he swiftly -clapped the hat over the other's head, and jammed it down. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap49"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P478"></a>478}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XLIX -<br /> -THE PARLIAMENTARY ANVIL -</h3> - -<p> -Shortly after the expiration of my appointment as -second in command in the Mediterranean, I was back -again in the House of Commons, this time as member -for Woolwich, having been returned unopposed. Many -improvements in the Navy had been accomplished under -Lord Salisbury's administration; but the central defect in -the system remained; and the name of it was the want of a -War Staff. There was no one in existence whose duty it -was to discover and to represent what were the present and -the future requirements of Imperial defence. The purpose -with which the Intelligence Department had been constituted -at the Admiralty, that it should be developed into a -War Staff, had not been fulfilled. The First Sea Lord was -indeed charged with the duties of organisation for war and -the preparation of plans of campaign; but no one man could -by any possibility accomplish so vast and so complex a -task. How, then, was it done? The answer is that it was -not done. The extraordinary achievement of the late Sir -Frederick Richards may of course be cited to exemplify -what one man can do; but Sir Frederick was the man of a -century, alike in knowledge, ability and character; and that -he was enabled, as First Sea Lord, temporarily to conquer -the difficulties inherent in the system, merely proves that -the system was so bad that a man of genius was required -to overcome its defects, and (in a word) to achieve his -purpose in spite of it. The supply of such men is extremely -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P479"></a>479}</span> -limited. When such an one appears, which (with luck) is -once or twice in a generation, the system may be disregarded, -for he will make his own system. -</p> - -<p> -But the need of a War Staff is sufficiently proved by the -fact that, ever since it was established in 1912, its members -have been working day and night. Two flag officers, four -captains, five commanders, one lieutenant; three majors, -Royal Marines, six captains, Royal Marines; one engineer-commander, -three paymasters, and a staff of clerks: 25 officers -and 19 civilians; now (1913) constitute the three divisions of -the Admiralty War Staff; more than double the number -composing the Intelligence Department when in 1912 it became -one of the Divisions of the War Staff. The balance of -officers and clerks was added to the Admiralty to discharge -new duties. Who performed these duties before the addition -was made? No one. What was the result? The Government -were ignorant of all save obvious requirements, and -often of those; and in the result, occurred periodical revelations -of deficiencies (sometimes called panics), involving that -excessive expenditure which is the price of neglect. -</p> - -<p> -I have wrought hard to reform the system all my life. -My successive sojourns in Parliament have been chiefly -dedicated to that enterprise. So in 1902 I began again to -hammer on the Parliamentary anvil. In March, I addressed -the London Chamber of Commerce upon the lack of -administrative efficiency in national organisation for defence. -In June, I moved the reduction of the First Lord's salary -in order to call attention to defects in Admiralty administration. -It was pointed out that the time of commanders-in-chief -upon most naval stations was habitually expended in -representing to the Admiralty deficiencies which would never -have occurred were there a Department at the Admiralty -charged with the duty of providing against them; and that, -in the lack of such a War Staff, the Budget for naval -purposes was based upon financial and political considerations, -leaving naval requirements out of the reckoning. -</p> - -<p> -Mr. H. O. Arnold-Forster, Parliamentary Secretary to -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P480"></a>480}</span> -the Admiralty, admitted that "there was need for reinforcement -in the intellectual equipment which directed or ought -to direct the enormous forces of the Empire." That was -one way of putting it; he was perfectly right in affirming -that (in similar language) a thinking department was -required in which the best sailors and soldiers should -combine to formulate the requirements of Imperial defence -for the information of the Cabinet. -</p> - -<p> -The Government would then (at least) know what the -requirements were. In default of that knowledge, Ministers -were open to the reproach expressed bluntly enough by <i>The -Saturday Review</i> at the time (28th June, 1902): -</p> - -<p> -"That the one essential qualification for commanding a -great service such as our Navy should be an utter and entire -ignorance of it and of everything belonging to it, so that -this commander may approach the consideration of all -questions relating to its well-being with absolute impartiality -and perfect freedom from prejudice, is surely one of the -most monstrous propositions ever put before men who were -not candidates for Government departments at Yarmouth" -(lunatic asylum). -</p> - -<p> -In the following month (July) I asked Mr. Balfour (who -succeeded Lord Salisbury as Prime Minister) in Parliament -a question based upon Mr. Arnold-Forster's statement -aforesaid, as it was the considered admission of a member of -Government. The question was: "Whether the attention of -the Government had been given to the need for some -reinforcement of the intellectual equipment for directing the -forces of the Empire and for better preparation in advance -with regard to the defence of the Empire." -</p> - -<p> -Mr. Balfour replied that he would be delighted to -increase in any way the intellectual equipment in connection -with this or any other subject. Upon being further asked -what steps he proposed to take, Mr. Balfour merely added -that he would be glad to avail himself of such talent as may -be available. -</p> - -<p> -The Press thereupon accused the Prime Minister of -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P481"></a>481}</span> -frivolity. In December (1902), however, Mr. Balfour, in -reply to another question asked by me in the House, said -that the "whole subject is at this moment engaging the -very earnest attention of the Government." There was -already in existence a Committee of Defence constituted by -Lord Salisbury, as described in a previous chapter, but -apparently it had only met on one occasion, nor could -anyone discover that it had ever done anything. In 1902, -nearly twelve years had elapsed since the Hartington -Commission had recommended the "formation of a Naval -and Military Council, which should probably be presided over -by the Prime Minister, and consist of the Parliamentary -Heads of the two Services, and their principal professional -advisers.... It would be essential to the usefulness of such -a Council and to the interests of the country that the -proceedings and decisions should be duly recorded, instances -having occurred in which Cabinet decisions have been -differently understood by the two departments and have -become practically a dead letter." -</p> - -<p> -It may be hoped, indeed, that records are kept of the -meetings of the Committee of Imperial Defence. They -should contain some singularly interesting information when -the time comes for their publication, which will be when the -nation insists, as it does insist now and then, upon finding a -scapegoat. -</p> - -<p> -To Mr. Balfour belongs the credit of having constituted -the Committee of Imperial Defence. After the experiences -of the South African war it could scarcely be argued that -some such body was not needed. Here, then, was a ripe -opportunity, not only for co-ordinating the administration -of the two Services, not only for rightly estimating -the requirements of Imperial defence, but for lifting the -Services above party politics. That opportunity was lost. -The Committee of Imperial Defence immediately became, -what it has remained, a sub-committee of the Cabinet, -wholly in subjection to party politics. -</p> - -<p> -But in 1903, another and a highly important step was -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P482"></a>482}</span> -taken towards organisation for war, in the formation of the -Commercial Branch of the Intelligence Department at -the Admiralty, charged with the duty of dealing with the -relations of the Navy and the mercantile marine in time of -war and with the protection of commerce and food supply. -</p> - -<p> -A few years later, the Department was abolished during -a period of confusion; but it was restored as part of the -War Staff soon after the constitution of that body. -</p> - -<p> -It will be observed that the utility of the Committee of -Imperial Defence depended primarily upon the work of a -War Staff; for its naval and military members could only -be placed in possession of the information with regard to -requirements which it was (theoretically) their duty to impart -to the political members, by means of a War Staff. But for -several years after the formation of the committee, there was -no War Staff in existence at the Admiralty. -</p> - -<p> -In December, 1902, occurred an opportunity for introducing -physical and military instruction into the elementary -schools. The Education Bill was then before Parliament; -in the elementary school system, the machinery required -to provide physical and military training already existed -and in my view, it should be utilised, "in order that our -manhood should have had some previous training if called -upon to fight in defence of the Empire." With regard to -physical education, its necessity was exemplified in the large -number of recruits rejected for disabilities during the South -African war; and as to military instruction, the proposal -was based upon the necessity of teaching discipline and -the rudiments of manly accomplishments to the young, by -means of education in marching, giving orders, swimming, -and shooting with a small-bore rifle. These considerations -were placed by me before the Duke of Devonshire, who had -charge of the Education Bill in the House of Lords, at the -same time asking him to exert his influence to obtain the -insertion of a clause embodying the proposals. -</p> - -<p> -The Duke replied that Lord Londonderry, who was then -Minister of Education, was considering how far it was -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P483"></a>483}</span> -possible for the Board of Education to effect the objects -desired. But he added the surprising information that "a -considerable portion" of my suggestions "referred to matters -which can only be dealt with by the War Office." -</p> - -<p> -In the House of Commons, I moved that "physical and -military instruction shall be compulsory in all schools -supported by public funds." Then it was stated that the -question of physical education could not be debated with -reference to the Bill, but that there would be no objection -to such a clause being inserted in the Education Code. -</p> - -<p> -When I proposed accordingly that such a clause should -be inserted in the Code of Education, Lord Londonderry -said that he agreed with the Duke of Devonshire that such -suggestions could only be dealt with by the War Office. I -had no idea then, nor have I any conception now, what that -cryptic statement meant. I pointed out at the time that it -was wholly incomprehensible, the War Office having nothing -whatever to do with elementary schools, but to no avail. -The proposal was largely supported in the Press, but without -effect upon the Government. The War Office phantom, -which was about as relevant to the discussion as the ghost -of Cæsar, proved irresistible. Nothing was done; except -that the Government laid another brick in their favourite -pathway of lost opportunities. -</p> - -<p> -The use of oil fuel in battleships began in February, 1903; -when the <i>Mars</i> and <i>Hannibal</i> went to sea, each fitted to -burn oil in two boilers out of eight. One ship emitted white -smoke, the other yellow; and both gave forth a smell so -dreadful that, when I was in command of the Fleet, I told -the captains of those vessels that I should place them to -windward of the enemy as the two most formidable ships -available. Nothing is better than oil fuel, on one -condition—that you have got it. -</p> - -<p> -The necessity of promoting officers to flag rank earlier, -in order that they might gain the requisite experience while -still young, was again urged by me, and to this end I -advocated an increase of the rear-admirals' list. An -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P484"></a>484}</span> -improvement has since been made in this respect. In 1902 -there were 39 rear-admirals; in 1913, the number had been -increased to 55. -</p> - -<p> -Early in 1903, I visited America (for the third time), -being most hospitably entertained by my old friend, Colonel -Robert M. Thompson. During my stay with Colonel -Thompson, who has been connected with the United States -Navy, I saw much of the American Fleet, and had the -pleasure of becoming acquainted with many American naval -officers. Admiral Brownson I knew already; I had met -Admiral Bob Evans in the Mediterranean when he was a -commander; and I had enjoyed a conversation with Captain -(now Admiral) Mahan upon his visit to England some years -previously. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral Evans was kind enough to place a torpedo-boat -at my disposal, the <i>Worden</i>, in which I went from Pensacola -to Pontagoorda. I astonished the signalman by reading a -semaphore signal made to me by the flagship, before he did. -The hospitality extended to me by the officers of the United -States Navy was almost embarrassing in its profusion; and -I shall always retain the pleasantest memories of that -Service. -</p> - -<p> -At a dinner of the Pilgrims' Society held at the Waldorf -Hotel, New York, on 4th February, in the course of my -address I observed that "battleships are cheaper than -battles"; accidentally inventing a maxim of five words -which does in fact contain the essence of naval policy, and -which, touching the practical American imagination, ran -throughout the United States. -</p> - -<p> -In October, 1902, I was promoted to the rank of vice-admiral. -</p> - -<p> -In February, 1903, having been offered the command -the Channel Fleet, I resigned my seat at Woolwich; where -I was succeeded by Mr. Will Crooks, who was elected on -11th March by a majority of 3229. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap50"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P485"></a>485}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER L -<br /> -THE CHANNEL FLEET -</h3> - -<p> -H.M.S. <i>Majestic</i>, first-class battleship, completed in -1895, sister ship to the <i>Magnificent</i> (which was built -at Chatham during my time at that port as captain -of the Steam Reserve), was one of nine ships of the same -class; the rest being <i>Magnificent</i>, <i>Hannibal</i>, <i>Prince George</i>, -<i>Victorious</i>, <i>Jupiter</i>, <i>Mars</i>, <i>Cæsar</i> and <i>Illustrious</i>. These -represented an improvement on the preceding Royal Sovereign -class, the <i>Renown</i>, a beautiful, somewhat smaller vessel, -being a class by herself. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Majestic</i> is of 14,900 tons displacement, carries four -12-inch and twelve 6-inch guns, was of 17.5 knots designed -speed, and had a complement of 772. My flag was hoisted -in the <i>Majestic</i> on 17th April, 1903. The Channel Fleet, of -which I was now in command, consisted of the <i>Majestic</i> (flag -of vice-admiral), <i>Magnificent</i> (flag of Rear-Admiral the -Hon. A. G. Curzon-Howe, and afterwards of Rear-Admiral -the Hon. Hedworth Lambton), <i>Jupiter</i>, <i>Hannibal</i>, <i>Mars</i>, -and <i>Prince George</i>, battleships; <i>Hogue</i> and <i>Sutlej</i>, armoured -cruisers; and <i>Doris</i>, <i>Pactolus</i> and <i>Prometheus</i>, small cruisers. -</p> - -<p> -Vice-Admiral Sir A. K. Wilson (now Admiral of the -Fleet Sir A. K. Wilson, V.C., G.C.B., O.M., G.C.V.O.), whom -I relieved, was a consummate master of the art of handling -a Fleet, a great tactician, a man inexorably devoted to the -Service, to which he gave unsparing labour. -</p> - -<p> -The Staff in the <i>Majestic</i> consisted of the flag-captain, -Hugh Evan-Thomas; the flag-commander, Michael Culme-Seymour; -the flag-lieutenant, Charles D. Roper; and the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P486"></a>486}</span> -secretary, John A. Keys. The commander was Henry -B. Pelly (now Captain Pelly, M.V.O.). -</p> - -<p> -As the efficiency of the Fleet depends upon its admiral, -so the admiral depends upon the officers of his staff and -upon the captains under his command; because it is theirs -to execute his policy. I have always said that they were -the officers who did the work and who were entitled to the -credit of it. In the conduct of a Fleet, it is first of all -necessary that the admiral and the officers of the Fleet should -work together in a common understanding. For this reason, -the captains should have access to the admiral at all times -of the day or night, and in all matters affecting the -organisation and fighting efficiency of the Fleet they should be in -full possession of his views, and the admiral of their views. -</p> - -<p> -Efficiency consists in the maintenance of the most rigid -discipline, together with cheerfulness, contentment and smartness. -To this end, definite and strict orders must be issued; -no mistake or failure, however small, must be allowed to pass, -and, conversely, merit should be commended; and as much -leave should be given as the exigencies of the Service permit. -The admiral is responsible for the whole administration, -smartness and efficiency of the Fleet. The captains are -responsible for the administration, smartness and discipline of -the individual ships of the Fleet. The officers and men -of the Royal Navy are loyal to the core; and when a -mistake occurs, it is usually due, not to a deficiency on their -part but, to the failure of the senior officer of the Fleet to -give his orders clearly and to show beforehand what is to be -done and how it is to be done. -</p> - -<p> -But for the adequate treatment of the subject of Fleet -Administration, a volume would be needed; the principles -only can be indicated in these pages, together with such -instances of its practice as may serve a useful purpose or -may possess intrinsic interest. -</p> - -<p> -The question of giving leave, for example, is of essential -importance, because the comfort and contentment of officers -and men so largely depend upon the system employed. In -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P487"></a>487}</span> -the Channel Fleet, the system was to give week-end leave, -from after dinner on Saturday, every week, the liberty -men being due on board at seven o'clock on the following -Monday morning, so that, if the Fleet were at Portland, -they had only one night at home. Many of the men were -therefore obliged to spend Sunday night in travelling; often, -if they were not to break their leave, arriving at the port -hours before they could get a boat off to their ship, and -spending the interval shelterless and miserable. In the -result the number of leave-breakers was usually very large. -</p> - -<p> -By means of altering the system, the number was at once -reduced to a fraction, such, for instance, as eight men, all of -whom were accounted for. Under the new arrangement weekend -leave was allowed once a month, when the liberty men of -one watch left their ships on Friday after dinner instead of upon -Saturday, and returned on board at noon on Monday, instead -of at seven o'clock in the morning. Thus they had three nights -at home once a month, instead of one night at home twice -a month; and had to pay only one fare for three nights, -instead of two fares for two nights. In these matters the -question of expense should always be considered. Another -advantage was that whereas heretofore one watch was -always absent on Sundays, under the new arrangement all -officers and men were on board upon two Sundays in every -month. -</p> - -<p> -The Navy, unlike the Army, is always on active service, -and is perpetually practising in peace what it will be required -to do in war. In the Navy, the only difference between peace -and war is that in war the target fires back. Hence it is -that the record of a command afloat consists almost entirely -of incessant routine work; such as the evolutions of: <i>clear -ship for action, boats pull round Fleet, collision and grounding -stations, fire stations, out fire engine, moor ship, unmoor ship, -out nets, in nets, taking in tow, casting off tow, let go sheet -anchor, let go stern, kedge, bower anchors, weigh and cat sheet -anchor by hand, in boom boats, let go and pick up both lifebuoys -at sea, coaling, flag-signalling, man and arm boats, running -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P488"></a>488}</span> -torpedoes, field-gun and company landing, rifle practice</i>, etc. -These are matters of course. The Fleet is constantly -exercised in manoeuvres and in tactics; there is gunnery practice; -and there are the periodical combined manoeuvres. -</p> - -<p> -In the Fleet under my command, the drills and exercises -were particularly onerous; for it was a rule never to go to -sea or to steam from port to port without practising some -exercise or tactical problem. For every pound's worth of -coal burnt, a pound's worth of training. Officers and men -delighted in these exercises; and all (including the -commander-in-chief) learned something from them. -</p> - -<p> -In July, 1903, the Channel Fleet assembled at Spithead -to welcome the United States Squadron, consisting of the -<i>Kearsage</i>, flag of Admiral Cotton, <i>Chicago</i>, <i>San Francisco</i> -and <i>Machias</i>. The American officers were entertained to -lunch by the Pilgrims' Society, and it fell to me to propose the -United States Navy, Admiral Cotton responding. H.R.H. the -Prince of Wales accepted an invitation to breakfast on -board the American flagship. -</p> - -<p> -In August took place the combined manoeuvres of the -Channel, Home and Mediterranean Fleets; at their conclusion, -the Fleets met in Lagos Bay for tactical exercises; -25 battleships, 42 cruisers, and gunboats and destroyers -under the supreme command of Admiral Sir Compton -E. Domville, G.C.V.O., K.C.B. -</p> - -<p> -Colonel Robert M. Thompson was a welcome guest of -mine at this time, and subsequently in all the ships in which -I flew my flag. Colonel Thompson afterwards published -some observations upon the manoeuvres in the <i>Evening Post</i>, -U.S.A., from the point of view of an American officer who -began his career in the United States Navy. -</p> - -<p> -"When the three Fleets participating in those manceuvres -were combined, there were 72 battleships and cruisers, with -nearly 40,000 men, all under the command of one admiral; -probably the strongest Fleet ever brought together in the -history of the world. This enormous assemblage of vessels -was handled without a single break. When the entire 72 -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P489"></a>489}</span> -ran to anchor in eight lines, had there been a straight-edge -placed in front of them it would not have shown a ship, it -seems to me, a foot out of position. They made a 'flying -moor,' and when you consider that in point of time, at the -speed the ships were going, they were only one minute apart, -every seaman will appreciate how wonderfully they must -have been handled." -</p> - -<p> -Colonel Thompson very kindly presented a challenge -shield for the best gun in the flagship of the Channel Fleet -(afterwards Atlantic Fleet), to be inscribed with the names -of the crew of the best gun at the annual gunlayers' -competition; and at the same time generously placed in trust a -sum of money the interest of which, amounting to £10 a year, -was to be presented to the winning gun's crew. The record -for the <i>Cæsar</i> while my flag was flown in that vessel was -18 hits out of 21 rounds in two minutes. -</p> - -<p> -In September, 1903, the Fleet visited Scarborough; in -pursuance of the principle that to afford the public -opportunities for seeing the Fleet and for making acquaintance -with the ships, arouses and maintains a healthy interest in -the Service. Upon this occasion, I invited my old constituents -at York to visit the Fleet. They came in thousands; but -sad to say, the weather was so bad that they could not leave -the shore. -</p> - -<p> -When the Fleet was visiting Ireland, a certain worthy -character, very well known in Kingstown, Dublin, whose -chosen occupation is—or was—selling newspapers, came to -me, as his countryman, on board the <i>Majestic</i>, to his intense -excitement. -</p> - -<p> -"Glory to God, Lord Char-less," he screamed, "is that -yourself in the gold hat!" And he shrieked like a macaw, -so that the men began to crowd on deck to see what was -the matter. I had to tell him to pipe down, or they would -turn the fire-engine on him. -</p> - -<p> -The story of the accident to the <i>Prince George</i> and its -repair serves to illustrate the emergencies of sea life. The -Channel Fleet was engaged in manoeuvres without lights off -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P490"></a>490}</span> -Cape Finisterre, on the night of 17th October, 1903. Two -midshipmen of the <i>Prince George</i> were relaxing their minds -after the strain of the day's work with a hand at cards, when -the game was interrupted by the entrance into the gun-room -of the stem of the <i>Hannibal</i>, before which apparition the -young gentlemen incontinently fled. -</p> - -<p> -The signal instantly made by the <i>Hannibal</i>, "Have -collided with the <i>Prince George</i>," was received on board the -flagship at 9.41 p.m. During the next half-hour the masthead -flashing lamps winked their messages back and forth; -and at 10.10 the <i>Prince George</i> signalled that there was a -large hole in her gun-room, and that the submerged flat, -cockpit and steering compartment were full of water. -</p> - -<p> -The actual extent of the injury, as afterwards ascertained, -caused by the impact upon the port quarter of a 15,000 ton -battleship travelling at about nine knots, was an indentation -in the form of an inverted pyramid, the apex at the level -of the protective steel deck, the base level with the upper -deck, measuring 24 feet 8 inches in height, and 6 feet 6 inches -across at the upper deck, and diminishing to a crack at the -apex, where the ship's side had been driven in to a depth of -1 foot 4 inches, by the impact of the <i>Hannibal</i>. In the -centre of the indentation was a triangular rift, starting from -the crack at the bottom, measuring 3 feet 4 inches in height -and 1 foot 6 inches in breadth at the top. -</p> - -<p> -At 11 o'clock p.m. I went on board the <i>Prince George</i>; -examined into the damage; made a general signal to the -Fleet ordering all hand-pumps and 14 foot planks and -plenty of wedges to be sent on board the <i>Prince George</i>. -Under Captain F. L. Campbell, perfect discipline had been -maintained; the collision mat had been placed over the -injury; and the men were working cheerily with -hand-pumps and baling out with buckets the water from the -gun-room. The rudder was out of action, the steam-pipes -being full of water. The engineer-commander had wisely -shut off steam when the helm was amidships, thus avoiding -the jamming of the rudder. Had the rudder jammed to -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P491"></a>491}</span> -starboard or to port, the difficulty of steering by the screws -would have been greatly increased. The bulkheads closing -in the compartments which were full of water, and all -horizontal water-tight doors, were shored up with baulks -of timber. But the water was still coming in, because, owing -to the indentation in the side of the ship, the collision mat -did not fit tightly to it. -</p> - -<p> -The Fleet was ordered to proceed to Ferrol. -</p> - -<p> -I sent on a boat to buoy the sunken rocks; a proceeding -which aroused the suspicions of the Spanish authorities; -who, however, upon learning the circumstances, were most -courteous and obliging. The boat, however, was only able -to get down one buoy. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Howe</i> had gone aground in the passage into Ferrol -in 1892, and three vessels had gone aground subsequently. -</p> - -<p> -Captain Campbell took the <i>Prince George</i> into Ferrol -harbour, up the tortuous channel, which, owing to unbuoyed -sunken rocks, is difficult and dangerous. Under my -directions Captain Campbell steered by the screws, both screws -going slow, or going astern slow with one propeller, and -stopping the other, according to which way it was necessary -to turn her head, and thus reducing her way if she were -nearing a rock, and by this method keeping her under -perfect control. At this time the ship was heavily down -by the stern, drawing 25 feet 2 inches forward and 34 feet -6 inches aft. Her stern walk was flush with the water. -</p> - -<p> -Immediately upon the arrival of the <i>Prince George</i> in -Ferrol harbour (on Sunday, 18th October) divers and -working parties were sent to her from all the other ships, and -the Spanish Government courteously placed the resources of -the dockyard at my disposal. The working parties worked -day and night in three watches. On Monday, the <i>Hogue</i>, -armoured cruiser, Captain John L. Marx, M.V.O., was placed -alongside the <i>Prince George</i> and employed her salvage -pumps. -</p> - -<p> -The first thing to do was to prevent more water from -coming in and to get rid of the water already in the ship. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P492"></a>492}</span> -Mats were made of canvas, thrummed with blankets, and -these, with collision mats cut up, and shot mats, were thrust -horizontally through the holes in the ship's side and wedged -up so that the ends of the mats projected inside and out; -and the moisture, causing them to swell, closed up the -holes. At the same time the water was being pumped out -and coffer-dams were being constructed on the inside of -the ship. -</p> - -<p> -The coffer-dam was a stout wooden partition built round -the injury in the ship side, thoroughly buttressed from within -the ship with stout baulks of timber. It thus formed a -chamber, which was filled up with all sorts of absorbent -and other material, such as seamen's beds, blankets, rope, -hammocks, pieces of collision mats, gymnasium mattresses, -cushions, biscuit tins, etc. Thus the coffer-dam formed a -block, part absorbent and part solid, wedged and shored over -the site of the injury. In addition, the splintered wood -sheathing was cut away and trimmed up, and the mouth of -the submerged torpedo tube was stopped up with blankets -and wedges, and sealed up with 3/16-inch steel plate bolted -to the ship's side. -</p> - -<p> -The extent of the injury may be exemplified by the -amount of stuff used for filling up the coffer-dams and for -stopping the leaks, which was: 10 shot hole stopper mats; -two collision mats 15 feet by 15 feet; 350 seamen's hammocks, -nine boats' covers, 14 coat-shoot covers, eight steaming covers, -11 coaling screens, 1500 yards of deckcloth, 23 shot-hole -stopper mats cut into pieces, 57 blankets, one cwt. of oakum -and cotton waste, and about 1000 wooden wedges, etc. etc. -Over 145 tons of ammunition and stores were shifted in -order to trim the ship. -</p> - -<p> -The divers and carpenters of the Fleet worked continually -in three watches from 3 p.m. on Sunday, 18th of -October, till 6 a.m. on Friday, 23rd of October. There -were employed: 24 engine-room artificers, 24 stokers, 88 -carpenter ratings, 43 divers and attendants. The majority -of the divers and carpenters were working in three watches -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P493"></a>493}</span> -for the whole time; that is, from 30 to 40 working hours -each. From the time stated, a period of in hours, 178 -men were employed for various periods. The total -"men-hours" amounted to 3898, of which 3219 were done -by 27 divers and 60 carpenters. Two engineer sub-lieutenants -from other vessels of the Fleet assisted the -engineer staff of the ship. -</p> - -<p> -At the completion of the repairs the <i>Prince George</i>, -leaving Ferrol on 24th October, proceeded to Portsmouth -escorted by the <i>Sutlej</i>. Although the weather was rough, -the total amount of water shipped by the Prince George -during the voyage was one gallon; a proof of the excellent -work done by the artificers. -</p> - -<p> -The repairs were carried out in six days altogether; -the carpenters of the Fleet being under Mr. Lavers, chief -carpenter of <i>Majestic</i>, and the divers of the Fleet under -Mr. Manners, gunner of <i>Majestic</i>. The total cost of the -stores purchased at Ferrol was £116, 2s. 4d. The whole -incident is an example, but one of many, of the ability of -the Fleet to execute its own repairs. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -In the following year, the officers and men of the <i>Majestic</i> -turned over to the <i>Cæsar</i>, in which ship my flag was hoisted -on 2nd February, 1904, and in which it was flown during the -remainder of the commission. -</p> - -<p> -His Majesty the Emperor of Germany visited Gibraltar -in March, in the s.s. <i>König Albert</i>, escorted by H.I.M. cruiser -<i>Friedrich Karl</i>. His Majesty hoisted his flag as Honorary -Admiral in the Royal Navy in the <i>Cæsar</i>. On the 20th, -his Majesty honouring me with his presence at dinner in -the <i>Cæsar</i>, the boats of the Fleet were lined on either side -of the passage between the <i>König Albert</i> and the <i>Cæsar</i>; -and when the Emperor proceeded between the lines, every -boat burned a blue light, all oars were tossed, blades fore -and aft, in perfect silence, the midshipmen conveying their -orders by signs. After dinner, when it fell to me to propose -his Majesty's health, and I stood up, glass in hand, as I -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P494"></a>494}</span> -said the words "Emperor of Germany," a rocket went up -from the deck above, and at the signal every ship in the -Fleet fired a Royal Salute. -</p> - -<p> -As the Emperor was leaving that night, the German flag -and the Union Jack were hoisted on the Rock, half the search-lights -of the Fleet being turned on the one flag, and half on -the other. Precisely as the <i>König Albert</i> passed between the -ends of the breakwaters, two stands of a thousand rockets, -each stand placed upon the end of a breakwater, were ignited -and rushing upwards, met in a triumphal arch of fire high -over the mast-heads of the Emperor's ship. -</p> - -<p> -In the following October (1904) occurred one of those -sudden and unforeseen emergencies which test alike the -readiness of the Fleet and the temper of the nation. The -Fleet was ready, and the nation lost its temper. -</p> - -<p> -The Russo-Japanese war was then waging. The -Channel Fleet, which had been coaling, left Portland at -midday on 17th October for Gibraltar. On the 21st, the -Fleet left Lagos. On the same day, just before midnight, -the Russian Baltic Fleet, commanded by Admiral Rojdesvenski, -who believed that his Fleet was about to be attacked -by Japanese torpedo-boats, fired upon the British Gamecock -Trawling Fleet in the vicinity of the Dogger Bank, in the -North Sea. The steam trawler <i>Crane</i> was sunk, her captain -and third hand were killed, and the Russian Fleet proceeded -upon its course. Of these things we in the Channel Fleet -were of course ignorant. The next day, the Channel Fleet -was exercised in running torpedoes, and a torpedo attack -for exercise upon Gibraltar was arranged for the night of -the 23rd-24th. -</p> - -<p> -In the meantime, the news of the North Sea incident -had run about the world; democracy in England wanted war; -and the occurrence of highly strained relations between -Great Britain and Russia coinciding with the arrival of the -Channel Fleet at Gibraltar, upon which the torpedo-boats -were innocently making a night attack, might have resulted -in their being mistaken for a real enemy. Fortunately -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P495"></a>495}</span> -no such catastrophe occurred. At seven o'clock upon -the morning of the 24th, the Fleet was anchored in the -harbour of Gibraltar; I learned the news; received my -instructions by telegram, and made my dispositions. -</p> - -<p> -On that day, peace and war hung in the balance. The -Home, Channel and Mediterranean Fleets were instructed -to act in concert, a detachment of the Mediterranean Fleet -being ordered to reinforce the Channel Fleet at Gibraltar. -The Russian Baltic Fleet was then proceeding to Vigo, a -detachment of it being already at Tangier. On the following -day (25th October) King Edward received a message from -the Czar expressing the profound regret of his Imperial -Majesty. It is a matter of history how the negotiations -proceeded until an amicable settlement was arranged. The -uncertainty, however, lasted until the 7th November. -</p> - -<p> -It is a subject for thankfulness that there was no -engagement. The Russian ships were so loaded with coal and -stores that their upper-deck guns could not have been -worked, and a fight would have been murder. Nor would -war have been justified. The popular indignation was due -to a misunderstanding, and the misunderstanding arose -because the Russian admiral did not proceed to the nearest -British port and explain the circumstances. If he believed -that the Fleet was about to be attacked by torpedo craft, he -was right to fire upon what he thought was the enemy, nor -could he risk the time required to exchange recognition -signals. -</p> - -<p> -The result of the Russian admiral's mistake was to -kindle a sudden resentment in this country which as nearly -as possible forced a war between the two nations. It is -one of the dangers inherent in the nature of democracy in -all countries, that while democracy dislikes and hinders -organisation and preparation for war, the moment that its -vanity or self-respect is injured, democracy wants to fight. -It is the impulse of the mob. The North Sea incident was -one example of this disastrous tendency; the -Spanish-American war was another. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P496"></a>496}</span> -</p> - -<p> -But had war been most unfortunately declared by Great -Britain in October, 1904, the Navy would have been quite -ready. All it had to do was to proceed to the scene of -operations. In this respect, it owns an advantage over the -Army, because the Navy is always on active service, and -does nothing in war which it is not doing every day in -peace; if it is not fighting an enemy, it is fighting the -elements; and whether in peace or in war, it goes to dinner -at the same time. The Army, on the other hand, must do -in war what it cannot do in peace; it changes from one -condition to quite another; and the transition stage involves -immense organisation, expense and discomfort. -</p> - -<p> -In December, 1904, owing to the redistribution of the -Fleet, the Channel Fleet became the Atlantic Fleet, which -was under my command until the 5th March, 1905, when -I hauled down my flag. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap51"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P497"></a>497}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER LI -<br /> -BOAT RACING -</h3> - -<p> -The enthusiasm which I have always felt for the -noble sport of rowing induced me, while in -command of the <i>Undaunted</i>, to publish some notes on the -subject of men-of-war pulling races, and how to win them, -the substance of which is here reproduced, in the hope that -they may still prove of use in the Service. -</p> - -<p> -One of the results of steam and machinery having -succeeded masts, yards and canvas in a man-of-war was the -creation of greater interest in pulling races. The regattas -held in different fleets and squadrons had become yearly -events keenly looked forward to by both officers and men. -This was very desirable, not only for the sake of the exercise -which it encouraged (physical exercise of an arduous character -being in a measure lost to the Service since the necessity -for masts and yards had been so diminished) but, for the -well-being and good feeling which healthful exercise -invariably produces. Committees were formed, rules and -regulations were laid down in a clear and business-like manner, -and sums of money were given in prizes; which sums -amounted on the Mediterranean Station to about £200—£50 -or £60 being given by the Malta Canteen, and the -remainder being raised by subscription among the officers -of the fleet. -</p> - -<p> -Man-of-war boats, being built for fighting and weight -carrying are different from boats built for racing purposes -on fresh water; but the prize will generally be gained by the -crew of the man-of-war boat which has carefully and -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P498"></a>498}</span> -consistently followed the fundamental principles upon which -races pulled in racing boats on fresh water are won. -</p> - -<p> -From the time the boat's crew is selected, until her stem -has passed the winning-post, no detail which may add to -the chance of a boat winning should be omitted, no matter -how small it may appear. -</p> - -<p> -In selecting a boat's crew, endeavour should be made to -have the men near about the same height, in order to enable -them all to take the same length of stroke with ease to -themselves and to make their effort at the same moment. There -should be no great disparity in their weights. The men all -round should be a fairly level lot, which will make it easier for -them to train as a whole. A crew resembles a chain, in that -a crew is no stronger than its weakest man, just as a chain is -no stronger than its weakest link. If a weak or an untrained -man be placed in a boat, he will, soon after the start, throw -extra work on the others. An indifferent crew of twelve men -trained alike as to condition, length of stroke, and pulling -accurately together, provided the boats are equal, will surely -win a long race against a crew composed of ten vastly -superior and two indifferently trained men. Similarly, a -heavy boat with an indifferently sized crew, well trained, -will undoubtedly beat a magnificent crew in a good boat, -untrained. -</p> - -<p> -A rule should be strictly enforced that individual -members of one crew are not to be trained or to pull with -another crew. It is very much the habit at men-of-war -regattas to encourage the best oars in a ship to pull in two -or three (sometimes in four or five) races. This practice is -much to be deprecated, not only in the interest of the man -himself, but in the interest of boat racing. If a man who -pulls in several boats be laid up, he probably jeopardises -the chances of winning several races. -</p> - -<p> -The selection of a coxswain is a most important element -in getting a crew together. He should be a man of a -certain seniority, who commands attention, perfectly cool -and collected, of good nerve and determination. Coxswains -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P499"></a>499}</span> -defective in these qualities have lost many races, and -coxswains possessing them have just pulled off many races. -The training of the crew must as a rule depend entirely on -the coxswain. For a 12-oared boat he should always, in -order to provide for contingencies, train at least two more -men than the number required in the race. -</p> - -<p> -For smaller boats he should always arrange to train more -men than the actual crew; many races have been lost owing -to this detail having been neglected, and one of the crew -having broken down in his training just before the race. -</p> - -<p> -After the crew is selected, the coxswain with their -help and assistance should draw up certain rules in -order to ensure constant and regular practice, as well as -to avoid those hindrances to training to be found after -frequent visits to the canteen. One or two men taking a -glass of beer too much during training has indirectly been -the cause of many a race being lost, owing to the loss of -practice to the crew as a whole, and to the disturbance of -that harmony which must exist if a boat's crew is to be -thoroughly trained. -</p> - -<p> -Whether it is from his early training, or from the heavy -and clumsy nature of his oars, or from the weight of the -boats he has to pull, the British bluejacket, as a rule, pulls -the worst oar possible to enable him to stay and pull -through to the end a well-contested long race. If he be -left to himself, he sits bolt upright on his thwart, beginning -his stroke from that position, and apparently under the -impression that the expression "Bend your back" indicates -that he should bend his back forward instead of bending it -aft; and totally unconscious that when he falls back towards -the bow he only pulls his weight, but that when he bends -forward towards the stern he pulls his strength and his -weight; and he usually holds the loom of his oar with bent -arms, frequently giving one or two jerks during the stroke, -the last one of which may bring his oar out of the water and -feather it considerably above his shoulder. He sometimes -adds to these movements a rocking motion from side to -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P500"></a>500}</span> -side, beginning by leaning towards the middle of the boat -and then throwing himself towards the boat's side. He -almost invariably has his head turned on his shoulder to -see what his oar is doing, and he often wears a tight belt -round his stomach. All these practices are entirely wrong -and are totally opposed to a common-sense method of -urging a boat at speed through the water. -</p> - -<p> -When the boat's crew has been selected, the first duty of -the coxswain is to show them how to pull and to ensure their -motions being as one. Starting from their laying on their -oars, he should make them stretch aft towards him as far -as they can, with straight arms, sitting with their chests -square to their oars, with their hands, not too far from and -not too close to each other, firmly grasping the looms of -the oars, with their arms at about right angles to the body -and themselves looking the coxswain straight in the face (in -river-pulling parlance "eyes in the boat"). It is impossible -for a man to sit square to his oar if he is looking over his -shoulder. The coxswain should begin practising his crew in -the above position, without allowing them to catch the water -until they are perfect. -</p> - -<p> -The oars should catch the water with a firm and vigorous -grip, absolutely simultaneously, the great effort of the man -being made as the oar catches the water and not as it leaves -it. The oar should b pulled through with a strong, steady, -powerful stroke, no jerks whatever being given. A jerk bends -or breaks an oar, but it does not send the boat ahead; and -a man who pulls a steady stroke will stay three miles to the -two miles of the man who jerks. The oar should never be -feathered higher than is necessary. The oars should be -feathered as level as possible with each other in order to -ensure, as far as may be, that the blades of the oars catch -the water absolutely together. -</p> - -<p> -The coxswain should see that the crew wear no belts -and that the waistbands of their trousers are loose about -the waist. If a man's trousers are tight, they become -irksome when he stretches aft as far as he can over his toes. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P501"></a>501}</span> -Each one of these details requires the earnest and constant -attention of the coxswain, and he should see that each -movement is carried out slowly, deliberately, quietly and -perfectly, before he begins to get his crew into hard training. -Spurts should always be avoided until a crew is fit to -pull a race. When the coxswain wishes to spurt he should -warn the crew for a spurt, state loudly the number of strokes -he wishes to spurt, and then count them distinctly as they -are pulled. The crew will then all put forth their greatest -effort together. A spurt of three strokes may win a race, -in the event of one of the opposing boat's crew catching a -crab, or their stroke becoming unequal, or one or more of -them being for the moment jaded. -</p> - -<p> -The usual method for training adopted by coxswains is, -however, of a different character. They order the men to -pull hard from the moment they form their crew; they pay -not the slightest regard to the important details which must -be attended to in order that any crew may have a chance of -winning a strongly contested race; they appear to think that -a boat's crew cannot be trained unless the coxswain oscillates -his body with an excitement which apparently borders on -insanity; and they accompany these oscillations with weird -and nervous cries such as "Hup with her!" "Lift her!" -"Hang on her!" "Back on her!" "Squeeze her!" "Heave -on her!" and similar noises. It is well to cheer up a crew -with vocal accompaniments to their strokes, but that is by -no means the most important factor in enabling them to win. -</p> - -<p> -As a crew proceeds in its training and becomes slowly -and quietly fit, dumb-bells and running will be found useful -auxiliaries to pulling, particularly if the regular practice is -stopped while the ship is at sea, but on no account should a -coxswain allow one of his boat's crew to be over-trained. -He should inquire after the health of the crew every -morning, and should be most careful that they do not get a -chill or a cold after practice. Some men require more work -than others to get them in hard condition; a good coxswain -will attend to this point, and will be careful that all his -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P502"></a>502}</span> -boat's crew reach the starting-point in the pink of condition. -He will also see that the thwarts are smooth and comfortable, -the looms of the oars smooth and capable of being easily -grasped, that the stretchers are secured so that they can -neither slip nor carry away, and that every small detail -(whose failure at the critical moment might jeopardise the -chances of a race) is attended to. The coxswain must also -attend to the incidentals of training, such as chafed sterns -and blistered hands, which if not treated may incapacitate a -man from pulling in a race. Chafing on the stern is best -treated by fomenting with hot water and the application of -zinc powder afterwards. Blisters on hands are best treated -by pricking them with a needle in the live flesh just outside -the blister, pressing the water out of it, and wearing a rag -over the injury until the two skins have set together again. -A coxswain should also attend to the feeding of his crew -during training, as no man can ever be produced fit at the -starting-post who is too much addicted to pudding. -</p> - -<p> -There are two illustrations which exemplify the necessity -for a man to lean well aft with straight arms when -commencing his stroke: (1) If a man were holding on to -a ridge-rope or other rope for his life, he would never -hold on with his arms bent, but would keep them quite -straight for the simple reason that he could hold on longer -and stronger. (2) If a man, in a sitting position, wished to -raise a weight, the pulley used being rove through a block -at his feet, he would never dream of sitting upright prising -with his feet and leaning back from the upright position, -but he would bend forward well on his toes and pull with -his strength <i>and</i> his weight. Tackles and weights were -rigged in the <i>Undaunted</i> in order that the men might -learn these truths by practice. -</p> - -<p> -Another important matter for a coxswain is to see that -the conditions on all points are clearly made out in writing -before the race, and are signed by himself and the coxswain -of the competing boat. The date, the time, the boats, the -composition of the crew, the stakes, which should always -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P503"></a>503}</span> -be low (high stakes invariably lead to bad feeling) and which -in no case should exceed 5s. per man and 10s. per coxswain; -the precise course, <i>i.e.</i> the distance, and on which side, all -marks, etc., are to be left, and also whether the oars are to -be Service or private: all these things should be clearly -defined. There has been more bad feeling bred between -vessels owing to the want of such details having been clearly -defined than to any other contingency that arises in boat -racing. This is notably the case as to oars. Wherever -it is possible a straight course should be selected, but if the -length of the race does not admit of a straight course each -boat should have its own separate buoy to round. -</p> - -<p> -Coxswains should use every endeavour to get permission -to have their boats hoisted for three or four days (with the -exception of the time necessary for practice) before any -forthcoming race in order to get the boat properly dry. -They should get any ragged splinters planed off the keel, -have all surplus paint scraped off and get the bottom -of the boat as smooth as possible. They should also see -the oars trimmed and exactly suited both by length and -balance of weight to the small or great beam of the boat -according to the thwart on which they are pulled. -</p> - -<p> -Boat pulling is a healthy and a manly recreation, and -if properly practised with friendly rivalry, can there be a -doubt that it generates that activity of mind which is -generally associated with activity of body? It also -produces that courage, endurance, nerve and muscle which -have so long been the distinctive features of the British race. -It provokes a spirit of manliness, a generosity of mind and -a love of fair play. -</p> - -<p> -If all conditions are made out clearly and fairly, a beaten -crew invariably accepts the verdict in a gallant and a -chivalrous manner. After a race, no such remarks should be -heard from the beaten crew as an offer to double or treble -the stakes and pull again or words of similar character, -showing either that the beaten crew cannot accept their -defeat in a spirit worthy of the name of British man-of-war -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P504"></a>504}</span> -men, or that owing to the conditions of the race not having -been clearly defined, some misunderstanding has arisen which -has naturally engendered a bitter feeling in the minds of -those who have just suffered the poignancy of defeat. -</p> - -<p> -The training and practice which are necessary to put the -boats' crews of men-of-war into that state of condition in which -they may reasonably expect to win a race, must to a large -extent cultivate those habits of discipline which are so -essential for the comfort and efficiency of our great Service. -</p> - -<p> -Admiral Sir George Tryon, while he was commander-in-chief -in the Mediterranean, and while I was in command -of the <i>Undaunted</i>, caused a boat to be specially built to race -my boat. We had six races, all of which the <i>Undaunted</i> -won. The <i>Undaunted's</i> racing boat was built flatter in the -floor than the ordinary pattern of Service boats. One of the -races with Sir George Tryon's boat was rowed in a whole -gale of wind, over a course of four miles. The <i>Undaunted's</i> -boat was half-full of water, and three of the knees of the -thwarts were broken, when she crossed the line. This kind -of racing is extremely heavy work, for the Service boats are -massively built in order to carry weight, such as guns, stores -ammunition. The oars are so heavy that there is nearly as -much labour involved in lifting the oar from the water and -coming forward as in pulling it through the water. -</p> - -<p> -The admiral-superintendent's boat at Malta was never -beaten. She was a beautiful boat, built by Maltese, and -manned by a splendid Maltese crew. I raced her with my -crew twice, once when I was captain of the <i>Undaunted</i>, and -again when I was second in command in the Mediterranean -(with flag in <i>Ramillies</i>), and lost the race on both occasions. -In the second race, the Maltese, having the inside place -resorted to the well-known manoeuvre of steering us off all -the way up to the buoy and then turning sharply to -round it. -</p> - -<p> -While stationed at Alexandria during the time of my -command of the <i>Undaunted</i>, we used to have a regatta open -to all comers, any boat and any rig, every Friday. The -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P505"></a>505}</span> -Arab boats used to enter. Their great sail area and flat -bottoms gave them a great advantage in running, or on the -wind; but they could not tack. They were obliged to wear -in a beat to windward, because their sail dipped before all. -I beat them twice with a copy of Captain (now Admiral) -Fitzgerald's racing rig, in the launch. A Service launch is -of course built for heavy work and for carrying loads, such -as supplies and ammunition. The Service rig has one mast, -with mainsail and staysail, called the De Horsey rig. Captain -Fitzgerald stepped the single mast aft, and fitted a bigger -spar forward, equipped it with a big dipping lug, abolished -the staysail, and used ballast. The object of the De Horsey -rig was to give a sail equipment with as little gear as -possible. Captain Fitzgerald's object was to race; and I -may take this opportunity of saying that I consider Admiral -Fitzgerald to have been the finest boat-sailer whom I have -met in the Service. -</p> - -<p> -When he was commander of the <i>Agincourt</i> in the -Channel Squadron, he won the first Admiral's cup -presented in the Navy, in 1872. In that year, Admiral Sir -Geoffrey Hornby gave a cup to be sailed for by the boats of -the Channel Squadron, being the first admiral to present a -cup. The conditions, as described by Admiral Fitzgerald in -his <i>Memories of the Sea</i>, were: "Any sails, any rig, any -shaped false keel, but no sinking ballast; that is to say, the -boat must float when full of water; and there is generally a -handicap for size." -</p> - -<p> -While I was commander of the <i>Thunderer</i>, I fitted the -steam pinnace as a racing boat, taking out the engines and -boilers and equipping her with a big cutter rig. The boat had -a yacht section, but was without a heavy keel, so that I had -to ballast her heavily. She went very fast in a light breeze, -but when a puff came she would heel over and take in water. -In case of accident, I ballasted her with a length of chain -cable, shackled to ringbolts on her bottom, the other end -made fast to a rope and a buoy. Rear-Admiral William -Dowell, who was then second in command of the Channel -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P506"></a>506}</span> -Squadron (afterwards Admiral Sir William Montague -Dowell, G.C.B.), challenged me to a race in Portland -Harbour. Admiral Dowell sailed in his six-oared galley, -which carried a private rig of two dipping lugs. I was -confident of beating him, but the admiral knew better. He -knew I should have to ease my sheets when the breeze -freshened. At first I went away from him, but when I was just -inside the breakwater, a puff came, over went the boat, and -it went down under me. Dowell, seeing that I was swimming -safely and that the boats of the Fleet were coming to -pick me up, went on and won the race. -</p> - -<p> -When I went to dine with him that night, he greeted me -with: -</p> - -<p> -"Last time I saw you, you were swimming about in the -harbour." -</p> - -<p> -In the meantime, owing to the device of ballasting my -boat with chain cable and buoying the end of it, we were -able to pick her up. The <i>Thunderer</i> came over the place -where she was sunk, hauled the cable up to the hawse pipe, -and hove the boat to the surface. -</p> - -<p> -My old friend, Admiral Sir William Montague Dowell -G.C.B., was a most distinguished officer. He served in the -China war, 1840-1, served as gunnery lieutenant of the <i>Albion</i> -in the Black Sea, and was promoted for services with the -Naval Brigade at Sevastopol; served again in China, in 1857, -being present at the capture of Canton; commanded the -<i>Barrosa</i> in the straits of Simonoseki, 1864, being specially -mentioned; received the C.B. for services in Japan. He was -A.D.C. to the Queen; commanded the West Coast of Africa -and Cape of Good Hope Station, 1867-71; after having -been second in command of the Channel Squadron, senior -officer on the Coast of Ireland, and vice-admiral in command -of the Channel Squadron, he was temporarily attached to -the Mediterranean Fleet and served in the Egyptian war of -1882, receiving the K.C.B., and the thanks of the House of -Commons. He was afterwards commander-in-chief in -China, and subsequently commander-in-chief of Devonport. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P507"></a>507}</span> -He was one of the Three Admirals who framed the -Report upon the Naval Manoeuvres of 1888, in which were -formulated the principles of British naval supremacy. -</p> - -<p> -I won many races in a <i>Una</i> boat, the <i>Weasel</i>, built at -Cowes, during the time of my command of the royal yacht -<i>Osborne</i>. The Prince of Wales built a similar boat. Prince -Louis of Battenberg, steering the Prince's boat, beat me in a -most exciting race, in which the betting was long odds on -my boat. The fact was, that trying to be very clever, I put -too much ballast in the boat, and so lost the race. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap52"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P508"></a>508}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER LII -<br /> -THE MEDITERRANEAN STATION -</h3> - -<p> -Forty-four years had elapsed since I was a -midshipman in H.M.S. <i>Marlborough</i>, flagship in the -Mediterranean, when I hoisted my flag in H.M.S. <i>Bulwark</i> -as commander-in-chief upon that station, in June -1905. Those changeful years had seen the Old Navy out -and the New Navy in; their revolutions had transformed -the whole material aspect of the Navy; and the essential -spirit of the Navy, adapting itself to new conditions -remained unaltered. One result, perhaps inevitable, of the -swift progress of scientific invention, was that the public -attention was concentrated upon purely material matters -regarding the Navy as a fighting machine automatically -operated; and conceiving of officers and men as workers in -a factory, who had nothing to do but to press buttons and -to manipulate levers. This unfortunate delusion was -fostered by the politicians, who were quick to use it for their -own ends. -</p> - -<p> -The Mediterranean Fleet consisted of <i>Bulwark</i> (flag), -<i>Formidable</i>, <i>Implacable</i>, <i>Irresistible</i>, <i>London</i>, <i>Prince of Wales</i>, -<i>Queen</i>, <i>Venerable</i> (flag of second in command, Vice-Admiral -Sir Harry T. Grenfell, K.C.B., C.M.G., and afterwards of -Rear-Admiral Francis C. B. Bridgeman, M.V.O.); three -attached cruisers, three special service vessels; the Third -Cruiser Squadron, <i>Leviathan</i>, (flag of Rear-Admiral the -Hon. Hedworth Lambton, C.V.O., C.B.), <i>Carnarvon</i>, <i>Lancaster</i>, -<i>Suffolk</i>, two attached ships, and 22 destroyers. -</p> - -<p> -The Staff consisted of: chief of staff, Captain Frederick -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P509"></a>509}</span> -C. D. Sturdee, C.M.G, M.V.O.; flag-commander, Fawcet -Wray; flag-lieutenant, Charles D. Roper (signal officer); -flag-lieutenant, Herbert T. C. Gibbs; secretary, Fleet -Paymaster John A. Keys; engineer-captain, Edwin Little; -intelligence officer, Major John M. Rose, R.M.A. The -flag-captain was Osmond de B. Brock; the commander -Hugh P. E. T. Williams. -</p> - -<p> -The Mediterranean is the finest training station in the -world; and it is the more to be regretted that the Mediterranean -Fleet is always so deficient in numbers, that Fleet -training must be conducted at a disadvantage. Eight battleships -represent the smallest practicable unit for tactical purposes, -nor does that number allow sufficient margin for the necessary -deductions due to the absence of ships under repair or -refitting. Upon one occasion, six out of the eight were absent -under repair at one time, and in all cases the absence was -unavoidable. -</p> - -<p> -The eight battleships required twenty attached cruisers, -as compared with the three allocated. Although improvements -had been effected, the Fleet in 1905 was still deficient -in auxiliaries, such as fleet colliers, repair ships, depot -ships. -</p> - -<p> -The popular and political delusion that under modern -conditions the duties of the naval officer have become -mechanical is so far from the reality, that, in truth, they -have never been more complex and onerous; nor is it -possible that they should be rightly performed in war, in -default of the most assiduous practice in peace. It is thus -the business of an admiral constantly to exercise the Fleet -both collectively and individually; and as the discharge of -that duty tasks his energies to the utmost, there is little to -record during a sea command except the cruises, exercises -and manoeuvres which constantly occupy a Fleet. -</p> - -<p> -In June, 1905, for instance, the Mediterranean Fleet left -Malta and proceeded upon a cruise; met the Atlantic Fleet -at the end of July; exercised combined manoeuvres with -the Atlantic Fleet; proceeded upon another cruise, and so -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P510"></a>510}</span> -on; never going to sea without practising some exercise or -manoeuvre. All exercises and manoeuvres of importance -were treated in a memorandum, in which was explained the -lessons to be learned from them, and which was circulated -to the officers of the Fleet. -</p> - -<p> -Every morning when the Fleet was at sea, except on -Sundays and in very bad weather, small tactical and turning -movements were executed from 7.30 to 8 a.m., the movements -of each individual ship being carried out by the officer -of the watch, all lieutenants taking it in turn to relieve the -deck, and being put in charge of the ship for this period of -time. The captains did not interfere in the handling of the -ship, unless the officer of the watch placed the ship, or a -consort, in a position of danger. The lieutenants themselves -made out the commander-in-chief's signals and their purport -without the assistance of the captain or of the yeoman of -signals. Officers of the watch were informed that they need -not be afraid of making a mistake; for, everyone was liable -to make a mistake; and the rest of the Fleet learned more -when an error occurred than when all went smoothly and -correctly. -</p> - -<p> -During the forenoons, there was usually practised some -short manoeuvre in which an admiral or a captain took -charge of the Fleet, and manoeuvred it as he pleased, the -commander-in-chief reserving to himself the right to -negative any signal which he might consider dangerous or -useless. After the admirals and captains had manoeuvred -the Fleet as a whole, it was divided into opposing Fleets, -officers, selected by the commander-in-chief, taking charge -of these Fleets. Each squadron endeavoured to gain the -initial position or advantage. Once that position was -obtained, the Fleets were ordered to separate, and two other -officers respectively took charge of the opposing squadrons. -</p> - -<p> -Great care was observed that orders relative to speed, -and to the distance within which opposing fleets were not to -trespass, were rigidly observed. Officers were informed that -all peace manoeuvres must be regarded as a game, and that -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P511"></a>511}</span> -no game should be played unless the rules were implicitly -obeyed. The principle was that no manoeuvre should last -very long, being much more instructive if it were short, and -were frequently practised. -</p> - -<p> -The practice of taking the soldiers for short voyages was -instituted. About twenty men of the Royal Garrison -Artillery at Malta, with an officer, a sergeant and a corporal, -were embarked in each vessel, the non-commissioned officers -and men messing and working with the Royal Marines. -</p> - -<p> -The periodical delivery of lectures by officers of all -branches upon Service subjects was instituted, the lectures -taking place under the presidency of the commander-in-chief -at the Royal Naval Canteen, Malta. Discussions were -encouraged, and a great deal of interest and enthusiasm was -aroused. -</p> - -<p> -My old friend and distinguished countryman, Sir George -White, who was then Governor of Gibraltar, asked me to -deliver a lecture to the soldiers of the garrison upon the -advantages of temperance. In dealing with this subject, I -always tell men to box, run, ride, row, and by all means to -get physically fit, when they would be in a condition they -would not forfeit for the sake of indulgence. On this -occasion, I said that, although I was over sixty years of age, -I could outlast a youngster in endurance, adding that "I -never took any liquor now." The address must have been -reported in the English papers; for I received a letter from -a dear old lady (quite unknown to me) telling me how -thankful she was that I, as a public man, had given up the -dreadful vice of intoxication. -</p> - -<p> -After I had consulted the head of every department in -every ship collectively, two detailed plans of war organisation -were drawn up: one, a plan of preparation for war; two, a plan -for immediate action. The first contained the procedure to -be followed if war was expected; the second, the procedure -to be followed on the eve of an engagement. Both covered -every detail of the internal organisation of every ship in the -Fleet, and specified the duties of every officer, man and -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P512"></a>512}</span> -boy. These plans were circulated to the officers of the -Fleet. -</p> - -<p> -Another important element of preparation for war is the -rapid and efficient repair of defects. Under the old system, -a defect which could not be repaired by the ship's artificers—as -for instance, a piece of work involving a heavy casting or -forging—was left until the ship visited the dockyard, when -the dockyard officials came on board, took measurements, -executed the work and fitted it to the ship. The result was -that there were many complaints of defective fitting. -</p> - -<p> -Under the new system, introduced in the Mediterranean -Fleet, all repairs which could not be effected in the ship, -were specified by the ship's artificers, who also made -measured drawings of the new work required. The specifications -and drawings were forwarded by the senior officer to -the dockyard, with directions that the work should be -executed as soon as possible, so that upon the arrival of the -ship at the dockyard, the required fitting would be at once -supplied to the ship. It would then be fixed by the ship's -artificers who had furnished the working drawings to the -dockyard, and who, provided that the work was rightly -executed, would thus be responsible both for accuracy of -manufacture and of fitting. By this means, delay was -avoided and the work was efficiently and promptly executed. -</p> - -<p> -Before I left England to take up my appointment, I -resolved to do my best to eradicate that curse of the Service, -Malta fever. The authorities were naturally sceptical of my -success; for, although many attempts had been made to -solve the problem, no one had hitherto succeeded in abating -the scourge. -</p> - -<p> -Certain obvious precautions were at once enforced. -Junior officers were not allowed to remain on shore after -sunset, without overcoats; all milk received on board was -boiled; the Fleet was kept away from Malta as much as -possible during the dangerous months of June, July, August -and September; and the officers and men of those ships -which were at Malta during the summer, were sent upon long -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P513"></a>513}</span> -route marches and were afforded plenty of exercise to keep -them fit. These measures reduced the number of cases of -Malta fever from 197 of the previous year (1905) to 137. -</p> - -<p> -But the main evil remained. A large number of cases -contracted fever in the Royal Naval Hospital, to which they -had been sent to be treated for other maladies, often requiring -surgical treatment only. Great credit is due to -Deputy-Inspector-General Robert Bentham for the improvements -effected by his care and foresight. In order to prevent -infection, every cot was furnished with mosquito curtains; -the traps of all drains were kept clean and disinfected; and -all milk supplied to the hospital was boiled. The patients -disliked boiled milk; and as infected milk was smuggled in, -the use of milk was forbidden altogether. An isolation ward -for fever cases was provided. All openings were fitted with -wire gauze and double doors. -</p> - -<p> -The result was that in May, June and July, 1906, there -were no cases of fever contracted in the hospital. -</p> - -<p> -Finding that fever patients recovered so soon as they -were to the westward of Gibraltar, the practice of sending -all such cases away in the <i>Maine</i> hospital ship was instituted -with excellent results. For example, of sixty-two cases sent -away, all but fourteen had recovered by the time the ship -reached England. -</p> - -<p> -Deputy-Inspector-General Bentham was recommended -by me for his services to the Admiralty; but his services -did not meet with the recognition they deserved. -</p> - -<p> -Shortly afterwards, the Malta Fever Commission completed -the work, by discovering the bacillus of the disease, -and by abolishing the goats, whose milk was the chief source -of infection. -</p> - -<p> -In October, 1905, the Prince and Princess of Wales, on -their way to India in the <i>Renown</i>, were met at the Straits of -Messina by the Mediterranean Fleet. -</p> - -<p> -The centenary of the battle of Trafalgar, 21st October, -1905, was celebrated by the Mediterranean Fleet at Malta. -A naval review was held on shore in the forenoon, three -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P514"></a>514}</span> -thousand officers and men taking part in it. Those captains -of guns, including the Royal Marines, who had made five -hits or more in the gunlayers' competition, 117 in number, -were formed into a company on the right of the line and -marched past first. At four o'clock in the afternoon, flags -were half-masted. At half-past four o'clock, guards and -bands being paraded facing aft, officers and men fallen in on -the quarter-deck facing aft and uncovered, the colours of His -Majesty's ships were dipped slowly and reverently; the -bands played the Dead March, and at its conclusion the -colours were slowly rehoisted. -</p> - -<p> -His Majesty King Edward VII honoured the flagship -with a visit on 14th April, 1906. About an hour -before the King came on board, the awning over the -quarter-deck caught fire, owing to a short circuit of the -electric light. Lieutenant Gibbs, with great pluck and -presence of mind, instantly climbed upon the awning and -extinguished the flames with his hands, which were severely -burned. -</p> - -<p> -In March, 1906, the historic International Conference -summoned to deal with Moroccan affairs, was assembled at -Algeçiras. Conversing with some of the delegates, it seemed -to me that an informal and a convivial meeting might cheer -them up and perhaps help to cement a friendly understanding; -and I invited them all to dine on board the flagship. In order -to avoid the bristling difficulties connected with arrangements -of precedence, the delegates were all embarked at the -same time in the s.s. <i>Margherita</i>, lent to me for the occasion; -and were all disembarked at the same time upon a platform -erected at the level of the upper deck, being received by the -full guard and saluted. For the same reason, no national -anthems were performed. The President of the Conference -the Duke of Almodovar, was given the place of honour at -the dinner, the rest of the delegates sitting in the order of -their seniority. The single toast of the evening was to "all -Sovereignties and Republics," which needed no reply. After -dinner, during which the massed bands of the Fleet played -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P515"></a>515}</span> -on the upper deck, the company adjourned to the quarterdeck. -I was informed by one of the distinguished guests -that the meeting had done much good, as the delegates had -not hitherto had an opportunity of meeting informally -together. -</p> - -<p> -Upon the return of the delegates, magnesium lights -arranged upon the ends of the breakwater were lighted as -the <i>Margherita</i> passed between them, and a searchlight -display of 140 lights was given by the Fleet. -</p> - -<p> -Vice-Admiral Sir Harry Grenfell, second in command, -was a most distinguished officer, a great sportsman, an -accomplished athlete, and a charming friend. His premature -death was a sad loss to the Service. Grenfell was so -powerful a man that he could take a small pony under one -arm and walk about with it. I saw him perform this feat -at a luncheon party given by the Governor of Algeria, to -whom the pony belonged. -</p> - -<p> -Grenfell told me the story of his extraordinary -adventure in Albania. The country is infested with wild and -savage dogs, which are apt to attack the traveller. The -Albanians do not resent the dogs being killed, if they are -slain with a knife in self-defence; but to shoot them the -Albanians consider a mortal offence. Being aware of -their sentiments, I used to take with me a couple of -Marines armed with boarding pikes when I went shooting -in Albania. -</p> - -<p> -But when Grenfell went, he was accompanied by another -naval officer, named Selby, who, upon being attacked by a -native dog, shot it. A party of Albanians thereupon closed -in upon Grenfell and Selby and attacked them. There -was a fierce struggle, in the course of which one of the -guns went off, the charge killing an Albanian. The -accident so infuriated the rest that they beat Selby, as they -thought, to death. They smashed in his skull, so that the -brains protruded, and left him for dead. Then they took -Grenfell, lashed his hands behind his back, set him on a -three-legged stool, put the bight of a rope round his neck, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P516"></a>516}</span> -and secured the other end to the branch of a tree, hauling it -taut. There they left him, in the hope that the stool would -slip and that he would be strangled. He remained in that -position for three hours. -</p> - -<p> -In the meantime the interpreter who had come with -Grenfell had run to fetch an official of the country. The -official arriving, released Grenfell. Selby, dreadfully -wounded as he was, actually walked back to the ship, and -lived until the next day. -</p> - -<p> -But strong as Grenfell was, his terrible experience left -him with an extraordinary optical affliction. He was -constantly haunted by the illusion of an enormous ape, -which he plainly saw both by day and by night. He used -to behold the phantom enter the room and sit on a chair; -and if a visitor came to see him, he would ask the visitor -to take the chair upon which the ape was sitting; whereupon -the spectre would move to another place. I am glad to -say that he was eventually cured of this distressing affection. -</p> - -<p> -An Irish lieutenant of a regiment at Malta told me the -following pathetic story in a broad Irish brogue, his natural -way of speaking: -</p> - -<p> -"Me little brother and meself were very fond of rhabitting. -The loikely place was the family cemetery. There -were lashings of holes within it. One day by-and-by the -ferret himself laid up, and with that we dug him (bad cess -to the work). We out wid a shkull. Me little brother he -says, 'That's profanation; it will be the shkull of an ancestor,' -says he. 'Niver moind that,' says I, 'we'll have a joke wid -it.' I ensconced it in me pockut. On getting within, I -passed through the kitcher and dhropped me ancestor's -shkull (God forgive me!) into the stock-pot. All went very -well till dinner and we through wid it, when the cook burst in -in great qualms, and sheloodering at haste to me poor -mother, says she, -</p> - -<p> -"'Glory be to God and save us, Milady, we are all -desthroyed intirely, for there's a man in the soup,' she -says." -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P517"></a>517}</span> -</p> - -<p> -The same lieutenant went out shooting quail at Malta -with a revolver, and hit a Maltese in the wrong place, for -which error he was heavily fined. -</p> - -<p> -When children's picnic parties were given on board the -<i>Bulwark</i>, a quantity of sand was heaped in a well upon -the quarter-deck; spades and buckets were provided; -and the children dug in the sand to find presents. When -that entertainment failed, the bluejackets, ensconced in -barrels, performed Aunt Sally, bobbing up their heads, at -which the children threw light sticks, and which they -invariably missed. I noticed a small boy of about seven -years old, a Spaniard, who stood a little way off, -contemplating this performance with his large dark eyes, his hands -behind his back. Presently, with air of abstraction, he -strolled quietly to the back of a barrel, where the deck was -littered with thrown sticks. Suddenly he picked up a stick, -dodged swiftly to the front of the barrel, and as the seaman's -head shot up, hit the poor fellow right on the nose, making -it bleed. Then the little wretch roared with laughter and -capered in his joy. -</p> - -<p> -On the 19th January, 1907, I took leave of the Fleet with -very great regret, and left Malta in the <i>Bulwark</i>, homeward -bound. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap53"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P518"></a>518}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER LIII -<br /> -SPORTING MEMORIES -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -I. RIDING AND DRIVING -</p> - -<p> -I rode my first race in Corfu, as a midshipman. An -old colonel of artillery, who knew my father, said to me: -</p> - -<p> -"You are a Beresford, an Irishman, and a sailor, and -if you can't ride, who can? You shall ride my horse in the -next race. He is a hard puller, and if only you stick on he -will win." -</p> - -<p> -He <i>was</i> a hard puller, and he did win. I rode in my -midshipman's uniform, and lost my cap, and won the race. -But the horse ran three times round the course before I -could pull him up. -</p> - -<p> -I have always said that you can do anything with horses -if you understand them. It was at a dinner party in my -house in Eaton Square that I offered to put that statement -to the proof. The table at which my guests were sitting -was designed with a large tank in the centre, which was -filled with running water, in which grew ferns and aquatic -plants. Gold fish swam in the water, and little new-born -ducklings oared upon the surface. This miniature lake was -diversified with spirals and fountains fashioned of brass -which I had turned myself. -</p> - -<p> -Among the company was an old friend, Harry Chaplin, -than whom there is no finer sportsman in England and -who was perhaps the best heavy-weight rider to hounds in -England. -</p> - -<p> -I told my guests that I would bring in one of my horses -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P519"></a>519}</span> -(a bad-tempered thoroughbred), that I would lead him from -the street, up the steps into the hall, round the dining-table -and so back to the street without accident. Straw was laid -on the steps and passages; and I led in the horse. He -lashed out at the fire with one leg, just to show his contempt -for everything and everybody; but there was no casualty. -</p> - -<p> -The next day, I was driving the same horse in a buggy, -when something annoyed the animal, and he kicked the buggy -to pieces, upset us in the road, and broke my old coachman's leg. -</p> - -<p> -My uncle, Henry Lord Waterford, once made a bet that -he would ride one of his hunters over the dining-room table -in his house at Melton, and won his bet, the horse actually -leaping the table towards the fire. -</p> - -<p> -Horses are like Irishmen: they are easily managed if -you know how to handle them. -</p> - -<p> -The famous horse-fair of Cahirmee is no more. But -it was at Cahirmee, according to tradition, that Irishmen -acquired their habit of breaking one another's heads. At -Cahirmee Fair, the boys slept in tents, their heads outwards; -and it was the custom of the wilder spirits to go round the -tents at night, and playfully to rap the heads of the sleepers -with shillelaghs. One of the sleepers was most unfortunately -killed by a blow, and his slayer was brought before the -magistrate, who condemned him. Hereupon the policeman -who had arrested the prisoner addressed the magistrate: -</p> - -<p> -"Your Honour," says he, "sure it is very well known that -the deceased had a terrible thin skull upon him, and I would -be wanting in my duty not to be telling your Honour the -way the poor man's skull was dangerous to him." -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis the truth," broke in the prisoner eagerly. "Sure -your Honour's honour will be letting me off, for everyone -knows that no man having a thin skull does be having anny -business to be at Cahirmee Fair." -</p> - -<p> -During the paper-chases which we got up at Valparaiso, I -met with a nasty accident. My horse rose at some posts and -rails, and crashed through the top bar; after which I knew -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P520"></a>520}</span> -no more except a shower of stars and darkness. When I -recovered consciousness, I found myself being borne home -on horseback, lying face down on the Chilian saddle, which -is made of thick rugs. The horse was being led by a Chilian -farmer, who was, I thought, taking me to the mortuary. -But he was really a good Samaritan. He had bathed my -wounded face with <i>aquadente</i>, and placed me on his horse. -The scent and sting of the <i>aquadente</i> revived the moribund, -and by the evening I was all right again. -</p> - -<p> -In the <i>Research</i>, in 1867, we had a quartette of hunting -men, Cæsar Hawkins, Lascelles, Forbes and myself. We -used constantly to hunt together. Lascelles was one of the -best riders I have ever known. He could take a horse -through or over anything. The <i>Research</i> was stationed at -Holyhead at that time, because it was believed that the -Fenians had planned to destroy the steamers running from -Holyhead to Ireland and back. I used to go across to -Ireland from the <i>Research</i> to hunt with the Ward Union -near the Curragh, and return the same night. A long way -to cover. -</p> - -<p> -"The Three Brothers'" race is still remembered in Ireland -It was ridden by Lord William, Lord Marcus, and myself. -Each of us had his backers, but the crowd was at first firmly -convinced that the result of the race had been arranged -between us. I believe I had the best horse, but he was -unfortunately taken with an attack of influenza while he -was coming over from England in the boat. Lord William -won by a short head from Lord Marcus, and I was a length -behind. Lord Marcus reminds me that each of us, while -secretly fancying himself intensely, enthusiastically eulogised -the other. -</p> - -<p> -I quote the enthusiastic account of the race written by -an eye-witness, which appeared in <i>The Waterford News</i> at -the time. (<i>The Waterford News</i>, 4th January, 1901. -Account by Mr. Harry Sargant, from his <i>Thoughts upon -Sport</i>, and description in <i>The Waterford News</i>, The Three -Brothers' Race, 30th April, 1874.) -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P521"></a>521}</span> -</p> - -<p> -"Lords Charles, William, and Marcus Beresford had a -sweepstake of 100 sovs. each, p.p., three miles, over the -Williamstown Course, twelve stone each, owners up. Lord -Charles rode Nightwalker, a black thoroughbred horse, and -bred by Billy Power, the sporting tenant of the course; Lord -William rode Woodlark, a grey mare; and Lord Marcus -was on a bay gelding called The Weasel. They each wore the -Beresford blue, Lord Charles with the ancestral black cap, while -the others had white and blue caps as distinguishing emblems. -</p> - -<p> -"No racecourse in Ireland, except Punchestown and -Fairyhouse, ever had more people on it than Williamstown -had on that, the most memorable day in its annals. Old -men and women who had never before seen a race came -50 miles to see 'the Brothers' race.'" (Many persons slept -on the ground on the preceding night.) "Not a person, -except the too aged and incapacitated, was in a farmhouse -within 10 miles of the course, while the city was as deserted -as if plague-stricken—all, all, flocked to Williamstown. -Excitement rose to boiling pitch as the three brothers filed -out of the enclosure and did the preliminary. I fancy now -I see them jogging side by side to the starting-post, where -poor Tom Waters awaited them, ready with ensign in hand -to send them on their journey. The only delay was while -he delivered a short but sporting speech to these three lads, -when away they went, boot to boot. The pace was a -cracker from the start, but none made the running more -than another, for all three were girth to girth most of the -journey, and at no time did two lengths divide the first and -last till just before the finish. Yes, every post they made a -winning-post; and ding-dong did they go at each other, -though, of course, riding like sportsmen. Fence after fence -was charged and cleared by them locked together, and it -was not until Nightwalker was beaten, just before the last -fence, they separated. A determined struggle between -Woodlark and The Weasel then ensued; and, after a -desperate finish, old Judge Hunter gave the verdict to the -former 'by a short head.' -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P522"></a>522}</span> -</p> - -<p> -"Never was seen a better race of its class, nor was any -ever ridden more determinedly for victory. The scene of -excitement on Williamstown Course before and after it -beggars description. Not a mouth was shut or a voice -lower than its highest pitch." -</p> - -<p> -Two Irishmen who came from Australia, used to ride -with our hounds, the Curraghmore, in County Waterford. -They were both very hard riders and both so short-sighted -as to be nearly blind. For these reasons they used closely -to follow my brother and myself; and we used to do our -best to get out of their way, as they were always on the top -of us, but in vain. For whenever they saw us sheering off -they used to shout out, -</p> - -<p> -"Go on, Lord Charles,"—or Lord William, or Lord -Marcus, as the case might be—"go on, I can't see but I can -ride." -</p> - -<p> -My brother Bill and I got a real good start one day with -the Curraghmore hounds. We led the field till we came to -the river Clodagh. The hounds swam the river, and we -followed them, with the water over our horses' girths. In -jumping out, Bill got on the hard bank, but in the place -where I went, the water had undermined it. I was on a -little horse called Eden, which was not 15 hands, but -which had won the jumping prize at the Horse Show in -Dublin. He was "a great lepped harse," as the Irish say. -He did his best, but the bank gave under him, and he came -right back on me in the water. When I got up, both my -stirrup leathers had slipped, and I saw the irons showing at -the bottom of the river. I had to go down under water -to recover them. I got out and rode to a public-house, the -landlord of which was a tenant of my brother Waterford. -</p> - -<p> -"For the love of God, Lord Char-less, how did ye get -that way at all at all?" says he. -</p> - -<p> -I told him, and, -</p> - -<p> -"Can you give me a suit of clothes, as they will draw -Ballydurn in the afternoon, and I must be there?" said I. -</p> - -<p> -"Divil a suit have I got," says he. "But there, his -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P523"></a>523}</span> -Riverence is just afther changing his clothes within, and I'm -sure he'll be glad and proud if you esconced yourself in his -clothes, and he big enough to cover two of yez." -</p> - -<p> -I went upstairs, and there I found his Reverence's -clericals on the bed, and with that I stripped and put on his -vest, shirt, trousers and clerical coat. His great boots were -elastic-sided, and I had to put two copies of the <i>Cork -Examiner</i> newspaper in each to make them fit me. He was -a big man, over six feet high and weighing about twenty -stone; and his trousers were so long that when I turned -them up half-way to the knee, they still could go into the -top of the boots, in which I stowed them, tying string round -the boots to keep the trousers in. The trousers were so -wide round the waist, that I had to button the top button -round on the opposite side brace button behind. The coat -was so long that it reached down half-way between my -knees and ankles. -</p> - -<p> -Thus ecclesiastically garbed, I rode to the cover, and -waited under a bank for nearly an hour, hoping to hear the -hounds. My teeth were chattering with cold, and all I -had on of my own was my hat. At last I heard the horn, -and at once a fine old fox broke. I waited till he got afield -and then knocked a bawl out of myself that would terrify a -neighbourhood. Out came the hounds and me on top of -them, with two fields' start, as I was wrong side of the cover -down wind concealed under a big bank. Then came over -twenty minutes as hard as legs could lay on to ground, and -all the field wondering who his Reverence could be that was -leading the field, and where in God's name did he come -from—all except Bill. He knew that I had fallen in the -river, he knew Eden, and he laughed so that he could -hardly sit his horse. When the field came up, fox to -ground, they nearly fell off their horses with laughing. One -farmer said to me: -</p> - -<p> -"Begob, your Riverence, you will never be so near -heaven again as on the top of that terror of a high bank -ye lepped!" -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P524"></a>524}</span> -</p> - -<p> -There was a lady, a very hard and jealous rider, who -often hunted with our hounds, and who was told one day -that she must hold her own with the Curraghmores, as some -ladies from the neighbouring packs were out. -</p> - -<p> -"Show me a Tipperary or a Kilkenny woman till I lep -on the shmall of her back," quoth she. -</p> - -<p> -Every sportsman knows the delight of getting a good -start and of keeping it. I was riding with the Tipperaries, -when Eden jumped a tremendous big mearing (boundary); -the others who faced it either fell or refused; and thus we -got three fields ahead of the rest of the field, and ran the fox -straight to ground in thirty-five minutes, Eden keeping -right on the tail of the hounds the whole way. Two or -three times I have got such a start and kept it, another -occasion being in Leicestershire, when I was riding a horse -belonging to my sister-in-law. -</p> - -<p> -Once with the Meath I got a long start by seeing which -way the wind was; and cutting a corner, I observed a man -with a green collar doing the same, and we both kept our -lead. A fortnight later, stag-hunting upon Exmoor, I got -well away, when I saw a man ahead of me on my left. At -the end of the run, I observed that he had a green collar, -and found it was the same man. A curious coincidence. -</p> - -<p> -Riding another of my Irish horses, Sea Queen, we were -going down a by-road, the hounds being on the right, when -we came to an iron gate, nearly 6 feet high. I was bending -down to pull back the bolt, when the mare suddenly -jumped. She got her fore-part over, and it took me half an -hour to clear her. I was obliged to break the gudgeon of -the gate. -</p> - -<p> -Hunting at home at Curraghmore, I used to tell my -brothers, all of whom were cavalry officers, that I would -engage to pick a hundred seamen from the Fleet, who had -never been on a horse, and to make them in six weeks as -fine a troop of cavalry as any in the kingdom. Naturally -they did not believe me, and chaffed the life out of me. -But when my brother Lord William went to South Africa, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P525"></a>525}</span> -to the Zulu war of 1879, he commanded three troops of -irregular cavalry, the men of which had been recruited -straight from the merchant service. His troop -sergeant-major had been a mate. When my brother returned, he -acknowledged that my boast was justified. The fact was -that in the old sailing days, the sailor was so agile, athletic -and resourceful a creature, so clever with his hands, and so -accustomed to keeping his balance in every situation, that he -could speedily acquire the seat and the skill which other -men must as a rule learn in childhood or not at all. -Anyhow, the seamen could stick on. -</p> - -<p> -Many men never become easy on horseback. My experience -in the hunting field taught me that a man who is -always fussily shouting, "Where the devil are the hounds, -sir?" and so forth, is always nervous. I have sometimes -answered, "Keep calm, sir, keep calm. It's not a general -action." -</p> - -<p> -For a short time I was acting-Master of the Buckhounds, -in place of my brother Waterford, when he was laid up with -an accident in the hunting field, from which, poor fellow, he -never recovered. As he was galloping through an open -swinging gate, the gate closed on his horse as the horse was -level with it. The jerk injured the base of the spine. -</p> - -<p> -One day with the Buckhounds we were hunting a very -twisting, slow stag, when, observing a charming country-woman -of mine, I asked her if she had another horse out. -As she said she had not, I advised her to go to a certain -spot, where the deer-cart held another stag, wait there for -me, and we would have a good run, and with luck we -could get back to the station and catch a train. Sure -enough, we had a splendid run, half an hour as hard as we -could go; the stag ran into the lost property office in Slough -railway station, and a train bound for London came in at -the same moment: a prophecy fulfilled. -</p> - -<p> -I was one of the original number that first played polo -at Lillie Bridge, in the early days of polo in England. We -played on little 13-hand ponies, with a bamboo root rounded -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P526"></a>526}</span> -off as a ball. I do not think that there are many of the -original number now (1913) alive; but among them is Lord -Valentia, who very kindly sent me the following account of -the introduction of polo into England: -</p> - -<p> -"The first polo match ever played in Europe was -between the 9th Lancers and 10th Hussars at Hounslow, -July, 1871, but the 10th had played polo for years then. -The first game ever played was at Aldershot, on Cove -Common, in 1870; where Colonel Liddell says in his -<i>Memoirs of the 10th Royal Hussars</i>: 'The game was -introduced into England by the officers of the 10th, from a -description of the game as played by the Manipuri tribe -in India which appeared in <i>The Field</i> newspaper. Lord -Valentia, Mr. Hartopp, and Mr. George Cheape of the 11th -attached to the 10th, were the originators.' I believe the -Lillie Bridge Club was formed in 1872. I well remember -a day at Lillie Bridge when I think you, Bill, and Marcus -were playing, and your mother was looking on. Bill Was -knocked out by a crack on the head, and carried into the -dressing room, where he lay unconscious for a short time. -Your mother was in the room with him, and heard Tom -Fitzwilliam in the next room shouting out so that everyone -in both rooms could hear, 'Oh, it's only Bill knocked out. -No matter, you can't kill a Beresford!'" -</p> - -<p> -I had entered to ride my horse Nightwalker in the -steeple-chase at Totnes, which is the most difficult course in -England, up hill and down dale, and along a narrow path -beside and across the river. Just before the race, I was -warned that a plan had been formed for the jockeys to ride -me out at a post on the river at the bottom of the hill. -Had I been ridden out, I could never have recovered the -ground. I kept a vigilant look-out accordingly. Riding -along the tow-path, a jockey began to hustle me. I told -him to pull back, warning him that unless he kept clear I -would have him in the river. He returned no answer, but -continued to hustle me: whereupon I pulled my horse on to -him, cannoned into him, and over he went, horse and all, -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P527"></a>527}</span> -into the water. Falling on a rock, he broke his thigh. I -won the race. Then I went to look after the injured jockey. -Nightwalker was one of the best horses I ever owned. -I sold him to Lord Zetland, who told me that "the horse -was one of the best he had ever had, and no price would -buy him." -</p> - -<p> -In 1882, while I was in command of the <i>Condor</i>, a -gymkhana was arranged which had the unfortunate and -wholly unforeseen result of bringing me into serious -disfavour with an agitated husband. We rode upon side-saddles, -dressed in ladies' attire: habits, chignons, and tall -hats complete. I had a capital pony, and had won the race, -my chignon and hat blowing off on the way, when up comes -an indignant gentleman, to accuse me of insulting his wife. -I had, he said, dressed up to imitate the lady, on purpose to -bring ridicule upon her. -</p> - -<p> -Naturally, I assured him that he was mistaken, and that -nothing would have induced me to commit so discourteous -an action. But my gentlemen waxed hotter than before, -and violently demanded an apology. He declined to accept -my assurance; his language was highly irritating; and I -became angry in my turn. -</p> - -<p> -"You don't appear to understand the situation," I told -him. "How dare you come to me and tell me that I looked -like your wife? Either you apologise to me at once for -that most improper suggestion, or..." -</p> - -<p> -He saw reason. He apologised. The biter was bit. -</p> - -<p> -While I was commanding the <i>Condor</i> in 1882, a famous -Italian long-distance runner came to Malta, and issued a -challenge, of which the conditions were that he would run on -foot any mounted man over a twenty-mile course, himself to -go any pace he chose, but the horse to trot, canter, or gallop, -not to stop or to walk. I accepted the challenge, and went -into hard training. -</p> - -<p> -I trained on ponies, confiding the pony which I was to -ride in the race to a midshipman of light weight, and reduced -my weight to 10 st. 8 lb. The greater proportion of the -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P528"></a>528}</span> -Maltese, whose dislike of the English was still strong in -those days, were in favour of the Italian. They assembled -in vast crowds on the Marsa upon the day of the race. We -ran and rode round and round the great open space—afterwards -the parade-ground—and although my adversary tried -every trick of his trade, such as suddenly stopping, or lying -down, I succeeded in winning the race. -</p> - -<p> -I had a famous horse called Sudden Death, which I -bought from Lord Norris; and the first time I drove him -tandem in the lead was on Portsmouth Hard, where he cut -across the first cab on the cab rank, whereupon all the cabs -backed out on the top of one another with kickings, cursings -and squealings. I sold Sudden Death for £15, a case of -infamous sherry, and a life insurance ticket. -</p> - -<p> -The greatest devil of a horse I ever owned I called The -Fiend. He would carry me brilliantly for a day or two, and -then, for no earthly reason, he would turn it up in a run, -kick, back, rear and bite at my foot; and if he could not get -me off, he would rub my leg against a wall or rush at a gate. -Once, after carrying me beautifully in two runs on one day, -he flew into one of his tantrums. We were crossing the -bridge over the Clodagh River at Curraghmore, and he -actually jumped upon the parapet of the bridge, balanced -himself upon it for a moment, and then (thank God!) jumped -into the road again. -</p> - -<p> -We had a pad groom in the Curraghmore stables, Paddy -Quin, called The Whisperer, because he could control any -dangerous horse by whispering to him. I told Quin to sell -The Fiend without bringing my name into the transaction. -He sold the horse accordingly; and when the business was -completed, he told me that he had represented to the -purchaser that The Fiend "belonged to a lone widdy living -by the say-side." -</p> - -<p> -I believe that I am the only man who has ever ridden -a pig down Park Lane. As I was returning home from -a dance in the calm of a summer morning, accompanied -by a friend, a herd of swine came by, and among them a -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P529"></a>529}</span> -huge animal trotted pre-eminent. I wagered £5 that I -would ride that great pig into Piccadilly; dashed into the -herd, took a flying leap upon the pig's back, and galloped -all down Park Lane, pursued with shouts by the swineherd. -As I turned into Piccadilly, the swineherd caught me a clout -on the head, knocking me off my steed. But not before I -won my wager. -</p> - -<p> -I was once prettily sold by a sportsman named Doddy -Johnson. We were of a party at Maidenhead, and we laid -£5 on the winner of a swimming race across the Thames, -both to swim in our frock coats and tall hats. -</p> - -<p> -My antagonist and I were to start from a line on the -lawn at Skindle's, and the first to get ashore on the opposite -bank was to be the winner. I raced down the lawn and -plunged in. About half-way across the river, I looked back, -and there was Doddy standing on the bank. He had his -jest; presumably it was worth a fiver. -</p> - -<p> -One year, three out of four horses in my coach being -hunters, I was obliged to start with the leaders, for if I -started in the proper way with the wheelers, the off wheeler -invariably jumped into her collar and kicked. Being taken -to task in the Park one day by a famous four-in-hand -driver, who told me I did not know how to start a team, I -said to him that as he was an authority on the subject, I -should be very grateful if he would be so good as to start -my coach for me, and thus to show me how it ought to be -done; adding that if the coach were damaged or the horses -were injured, he must hold himself responsible. -</p> - -<p> -Gladly accepting these conditions, my friend mounted to -the box and settled himself with great nicety and pulled off -the leaders. Then he touched the off wheeler with his whip. -The next moment she had kicked in the boot, and the -leaders started kicking, and both fell—a regular tie-up. The -mare capped her hocks and was laid up at a vet's for a week. -</p> - -<p> -I was driving a coach up from Sandown Races along a -crowded road, when a most unfortunate accident suddenly -exposed me to the fury of the populace. Swinging the whip -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P530"></a>530}</span> -out in order to catch it up properly, the thong caught under -a lady's chignon, and the whip was nearly pulled out of my -hand. Chignon and hat came away together and remained -dangling. The poor lady must have been sadly hurt. -Instantly, of course, I tried to pull up in order to apologise, -when the mob rushed to the very unjust conclusion that I -had insulted the lady on purpose; there was a deal of -shouting, and stones began to fly; the horses were hit and -bolted, so that I never had the opportunity of making my -apology. The Duke of Portland, Lord Londonderry and -Lord Inniskillen were on the coach. We used each of us -to horse one coach in stages for the race meetings near -London. -</p> - -<p> -Upon another occasion, when I was driving the Prince -of Wales on my coach to a meet of the Four-in-Hand Club -at the Magazine, Hyde Park, a man who was quite unknown -to me shouted, -</p> - -<p> -"'Ullo, Chawley, 'ow are yer? I see you've got 'Wiles' -up alongside yer." -</p> - -<p> -"Some of your friends seem very familiar," said the -Prince, who took the remark with perfect good-humour. -</p> - -<p> -I once laid a wager that I would drive round Rotten -row, an exercise forbidden by the regulations. A party -assembled to watch the event; and while they were looking -out for me, a man driving the Park water-cart came by and -turned the water on them. Then the company, looking -closer at the driver, perceived that I had won my bet. -</p> - -<p> -The first racehorse owned by the Prince of Wales was a -horse named Stonehenge, which I bought for him. We -were partners in the horse. Stonehenge had won one or -two races, when I went away on leave for a few days. On -my return I found that my groom, against orders, had been -galloping him, and that one of his legs had filled. Having -heard that my uncle, Lord Waterford, once trained a horse -which filled his leg, by swimming him in the sea after a boat -tried the experiment with Stonehenge. The admiral's -coxswain, two hands, and myself swam Stonehenge every -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P531"></a>531}</span> -day about Plymouth Harbour. The horse got fit to run for -his life, and I rode him in a hurdle race at Plymouth. He -was winning easily, but, alas! he broke down at the last -hurdle, and was just beaten. -</p> - -<p> -In 1883-4, the Duke of Portland and myself, as partners, -bought Rosy Morn, as a yearling. He won several races as -a two-year-old, and we fancied him for the Derby. He was -a better colt as a two-year-old than Lord Hastings' Melton, -which won the Derby. Both horses were trained in the -same stable, at Matt Dawson's, Heath House, Newmarket. -</p> - -<p> -Matt Dawson declared that we had got a Derby horse. -I was getting the boats through the Bab-el-Kebir in the -Egyptian war, when I heard that Rosy Morn had gone a -roarer; and I thought it a bad omen for the expedition. -</p> - -<p> -Lord Marcus and I organised a donkey race to enliven -a South Coast race-meeting. We hired two donkeys apiece, -and each bestrode two steeds, standing on their backs, and -rode them over the wooden groynes that descend the beach -at regular intervals. -</p> - -<p> -The curse of race-meetings is the crowd of dubious characters -which infests them. Lord Marcus, travelling by rail -to Newmarket, defeated three of such persons single-handed. -</p> - -<p> -A trio of three-card-trick men tried to bully him into -venturing on the game; whereupon he set about them. -Two he knocked out, and the third piped down. They left -that carriage of carnage at the next station, protesting amid -blood and tears that it was occupied by the most furious -devil allowed on earth. He was maligned: there never was -a kinder-hearted man. -</p> - -<p> -Lord Marcus, who is singularly ready with his tongue, -upon being asked whether he thought False Tooth a good -name for a horse, said: -</p> - -<p> -"The best, because you can't stop him." -</p> - -<p> -The same relative committed a worse crime at the Club, -where a very deaf member appealed to him to be told what -another member was saying to him. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P532"></a>532}</span> -</p> - -<p> -"He's wishing you a Happy New 'Ear—and God knows -you want one!" shouted Markie. -</p> - -<p> -One of the most unexpected events in which I ever took -part occurred at Scarborough, where I was staying for the -races with Mr. Robert Vyner. In the same hotel were -staying two well-known members of the racing world, -Mr. Dudley Milner and Mr. Johnny Shafto. Vyner and I -happened to enter the large and long room, used for assemblies; -when we perceived Dudley Milner and Johnny Shafto standing -at the other end, and observed that they were arguing -together, somewhat heatedly, in broad Yorkshire. They -were disputing, as racing men do at such times, about -weights in an impending handicap. -</p> - -<p> -There was nothing at all in the great room, so far as I -remember, except a sideboard and a dish filled with pats of -butter which stood on the sideboard. I picked up a pat of -butter on the end of the ash-plant I was carrying, and told -Vyner that if he would come outside, I would throw the pat -of butter to a surprising distance. -</p> - -<p> -"Why go outside?" said he. "Why not take a shot at -those two fellows who are arguing so busily over there?" -</p> - -<p> -"And so I will," said I. -</p> - -<p> -The pat of butter described a beautiful yellow parabola -at high speed and lighted upon the eye of one of the -disputants. The impact doubled him up, and he thought that -the other man had hit him. Drawing his right fist back very -slowly and carefully, he struck his friend full on the point of -the nose. The next moment they were both rolling on the -floor, fighting like cats. My companion and I were laughing -so much that we couldn't separate them; and they finally -had to go to bed for a week to recover themselves of their -wounds. -</p> - -<p> -Butter produces various effects, according to its -application. I was one of the guests among a large party at a -luncheon, given by an old gentleman who had a fancy for -breeding pugs, which were then the fashionable breed of -dog. On the table opposite to me was a glass bowl -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P533"></a>533}</span> -containing a quantity of pats of butter; and as each of the -many pugs in the room came to me, I gave him a pat of -butter on the end of a fork. He gently snuggled it down. -After about ten minutes first one pug and then another -began to be audibly unwell. The old gentleman was so -terrified at these alarming symptoms, that he incontinently -dispatched a carriage at speed to fetch the nearest vet -That expert, after a careful diagnosis, reported that -"someone must have been feeding the pugs on butter." -</p> - -<p> -My brother Marcus, travelling by rail with some friends, -Mr. Dudley Milner being of the party, Markie very kindly -relieved the tedium of the journey. Dudley Milner had -fallen asleep. Marcus took the ticket from Milner's pocket. -He then woke up Milner, telling him that the tickets were -about to be collected. Milner, after feverishly searching for -his ticket, was forced to the conclusion that he had lost it, -and, finding that he had very little money, begged that -someone would lend him the requisite sum. One and all, -with profuse apologies, declared themselves to be almost -penniless; and Milner was nearing despair, when my brother -sympathetically suggested that, as the train approached the -station Milner should hide under the seat, and all would be -well. Thereupon Milner, assisted by several pairs of feet, -struggled under the seat, and his friends screened him with -their legs. -</p> - -<p> -The collector appeared, and Marcus gave him all the -tickets. -</p> - -<p> -"Here's six tickets for five gentlemen," said the collector. -</p> - -<p> -"Quite correct," said Marcus. "The other gentleman is -under the seat. He prefers travelling like that." -</p> - -<p> -An old friend of mine, Lord Suffield, has recently -published his memoirs. He was an indomitable rider, with -a beautiful seat, and one of the hardest men to hounds in -his day. I well remember riding home with him across -country after the hunt with His Majesty's Buckhounds, -when, taking a turn to the right, while I took a turn to the -left, he suddenly disappeared altogether from view. As -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P534"></a>534}</span> -suddenly he appeared again on his horse's neck. He -speedily got back into the saddle and went away as if -nothing had happened, looking neither to the right nor left. -I turned to find out the cause of his disappearance, and -found that he had come across a deep V-shaped ditch, -at the bottom of which was a very high post and rails. -How any man or horse could have got over it, it is -impossible to say. When I spoke to him about his exploit -in the evening, he treated it as a matter of course, and -only said it was "a rather nasty place." -</p> - -<p> -When we were in India together, in the suite of the -Prince of Wales, he always preferred riding to going on an -elephant. He was a great yachtsman in his day, and knew -as much about handling yachts as any seaman I have ever -met. He was a very good shot, and one of the greatest -friends I have ever had. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap54"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P535"></a>535}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER LIV -<br /> -SPORTING MEMORIES (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -II. SHOOTING -</p> - -<p> -There are few kinds of beasts which I have not shot; -and among those few are lions and giraffes. -</p> - -<p> -When I was at Vancouver as a midshipman, I went -out after deer upon a pouring wet day. I fired at a deer; -the gun, a muzzle-loader, missed fire; I set the stock on -the ground in order to ram home the charge; and the gun -went off. The bullet cut the button off the top of my cap: -a narrow escape. -</p> - -<p> -I shall never forget the excitement of three of us midshipmen -of the <i>Clio</i>, when, being out after tree grouse in the -bush, we put up a big spotted deer. It was close to us, -and we killed it; we cut it up, and tramped the miles back -to the ship, laden with the haunches, shoulders and head. -Arriving on board with our clothes soaked with blood, we -were hailed as splendid sportsmen, and for days thereafter -the gun-room feasted upon venison. -</p> - -<p> -When the <i>Clio</i> was off Juan Fernandez in February, 1865, -we sent a party of seamen across to the island to beat up -the wild goats towards the shore. The cliffs are steep-to, -and along the face of them winds a narrow path worn by -the goats themselves. The pathway itself is inclined at -a steep angle. I took the cutter and hung off and on, -waiting for the goats. Presently they came down, about -thirty of them, in single file, slipping a good deal, but -recovering their footing with marvellous agility. We fired -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P536"></a>536}</span> -at the line and knocked over three. They fell on the rocks -below. There was so much seaway that we were unable -to get the boat in. I therefore took a line and swam to -shore, collected the goats, toggled their legs together, secured -them with the line, and they were pulled off to the boat. -But when I tried to swim off, the sea was so rough that the -breakers beat me back. I was hurled against the rocks; -all the wind was knocked out of me, and I was much -bruised and cut. A bluejacket swam off with a line, and -although he did not toggle my legs, he and I were hauled -off to the boats, like the goats. We brought all three goats -safely on board. One of them was a billy-goat, the other -two nanny-goats, in which there was no sign of any bullet, -so that they must have been carried down with the billy-goat. -</p> - -<p> -While I was serving in the <i>Sutlej</i> as sub-lieutenant, the -chief engineer, James Roffey, who was a splendid shot, and -myself, went upon hunting expeditions in Vancouver. We -took two horses and a couple of dogs. At night we slept on -waterproof sheets under a lean-to shelter made of branches. -We shot many partridge—as these birds are called. Having -treed them, we shot the lower birds first, and so on to the -top. The report of the guns did not disturb them, but if -a bird fell from the upper branches, the rest would take -flight. I have shot these birds in the same way, during -recent visits to Canada. -</p> - -<p> -During the visit of the Duke of Edinburgh to India -in 1870, I accompanied his Royal Highness upon the great -elephant hunt in Ceylon. For months beforehand the wild -elephants had been gradually driven towards the kraal by -an army of native beaters. The kraal is constructed of -huge trunks of trees, lashed together and buttressed, -making a strong stockade. In plan, covering about eight acres, -it is shaped like a square bottle, the neck representing a -narrow entrance, from which the stockade on either side -runs at a wide angle, like jaws. The elephants are driven -down the narrowing jaws and through the entrance, which -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P537"></a>537}</span> -is closed behind them with a gate made of logs. Once -inside the kraal, the wild animals are tackled by the tame -elephants ridden by mahouts, and are secured with hide -ropes to the trees of the stockade, which is formed of stout -timber for the purpose. -</p> - -<p> -Upon the occasion of the Duke's visit, I was in the -arena, mounted upon a tame elephant amid a wild heaving -mob of animals. One huge beast defeated the tame -elephants, throwing the whole lot into confusion. He -suddenly charged, knocking over the tame elephant next -to me, the mahout breaking his leg in the fall. Things were -looking very ugly, when someone—against orders—fired -and killed the rebel elephant, the bullet entering his temple. -</p> - -<p> -If the day of the great elephant hunt in India, arranged -in honour of the Prince of Wales, was the hardest run of -my life, hanging on to the back of a swift pad elephant -which went through the jungle for fourteen hours like a -runaway locomotive, the hardest day I ever had on foot -was in Ceylon, during the visit of the Duke of Edinburgh -to that superb country, in 1870. I have found Irishmen -in most places under the sun; and I found one in Ceylon. -His name was Varian, and he was a famous hunter of -elephants. Rogue elephants were his favourite game; he -stalked them on foot; walked up to his quarry and shot it. -He was I think, eventually killed by a rogue elephant. -His gun, which had belonged to Sir Samuel Baker, was a -curiosity among hand-cannon. This formidable engine was -so heavy that it was as much as a powerful man could do -to heave it up to his shoulder. The recoil—but I will relate -what kind of recoil it exercised. The gun was a single-bore -muzzle-loader, having two grooves cut within the -barrel, into which was fitted a spherical belted bullet. -</p> - -<p> -We started at three o'clock in the morning, taking with us -two native bearers to carry the guns. The bearers were -little men, fragile to all appearance as pipe-stems, and save -for a loin-cloth, naked as they were born. For seven hours -we travelled ere we found fresh spoor, following the elephant -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P538"></a>538}</span> -trails, paths which the huge animals had cloven through -the dense jungle. The heat was intense, the walking an -extraordinary exertion; for at every few yards the soft -ground was trodden by the elephants into pools of water -three or four feet deep, through which we must plunge. -</p> - -<p> -It was blazing noon when we struck fresh tracks; and -Varian halted to load the heavy rifle. I contemplated the -operation with amazement. He poured the powder into -his hand, and tilted three or four handfuls down the muzzle. -Then he wrapped a piece of waste round the projectile, and -hammered the ramrod home with a hammer. It occurred -to me that if ever a gun ought to burst in this world, that -gun ought to burst. -</p> - -<p> -We tracked the elephant out of the jungle; and there -he was in the open <i>maidan</i>, placidly pulling up great tufts -of grass with his trunk, and swishing himself with them. -</p> - -<p> -"We must bend down," says Varian in a whisper, "and -he may take us for pigs." -</p> - -<p> -He held me by the arm; and bending down, we advanced -directly upon the elephant, Varian's bearer loaded to -the earth with the great gun. -</p> - -<p> -"If he puts his ears forward and drops his trunk—fire! -For he'll either charge or run away," whispered -Varian. -</p> - -<p> -And with the graceful courtesy of his race, he handed me -the miniature cannon. -</p> - -<p> -We were within twelve yards or so of the huge beast -when his ears jutted forward, and with his trunk he flicked -the ground, producing a hollow sound. I braced a leg -backwards, and with a strong effort, hove the gun to my -shoulder, aimed at the wrinkles just above the trunk, and -fired. The elephant and I toppled over at the same -moment. I thought my shoulder was broken to pieces; but -as I staggered to my feet, I saw the elephant lying over -on its side, its legs feebly waving. Varian ran up to it and -fired several more shots into its head, and it lay motionless. -</p> - -<p> -In 1874, I was appointed to the <i>Bellerophon</i>, temporarily. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P539"></a>539}</span> -She had sunk a steamer which had crossed her bows, and -her senior officers had been ordered home to attend the -inquiry into the matter. When I joined her, my old -mess-mate in the <i>Marlborough</i>, Swinton C. Holland (now admiral), -was in sole command; although he was only second lieutenant -of the ship; a curious illustration of the incidents of naval life. -</p> - -<p> -Another example of the anomalies of those days was my -own position: I was on full pay and on active service, and I -was also a member of Parliament. The dual capacity was -not in itself conducive to discipline, because it gave naval -officers on full pay the opportunity of criticising, as members -of Parliament, their superior officers. I do not think it was -abused; in my own case, I think the solitary advantage I -took was to obtain a pump, which was a sanitary necessity, -for the <i>Thunderer</i>, when I was her commander: a threat -of publicity moving the Admiralty to action which previous -applications had failed to produce. In the old days, the -Sea Lords used to serve in the dual capacity of members of -the Board of Admiralty and of Parliament. -</p> - -<p> -As no one had any precise idea where the <i>Bellerophon</i> -was, I took passage to Halifax and stayed in the receiving -hulk <i>Pyramus</i>, fifth-rate, stationed at Halifax, in the hope -that the <i>Bellerophon</i> would come north. In the meantime, -I went for a shooting expedition with a trapper. We went -up into the forests of Nova Scotia, camping out, and living -upon what we could secure with our guns. We shot bear -and deer and prairie chicken. In the depth of the forest I -found an Irishman dwelling in a clearing with his wife and -family. He was a bitter Orangeman, who (so he told me) -had been expatriated for shooting at a priest. -</p> - -<p> -"I had a gun," said he, "but it was a rotten gun. I drew -a bead on the priest, and, God forgive me, the gun missed -fire!" -</p> - -<p> -I remember saying to him: -</p> - -<p> -"Why the devil can't you leave another man's religious -convictions alone? He has as much right to his convictions -as you have to yours. If there were no religious wrangles -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P540"></a>540}</span> -in our country, it would be the happiest country in the -world." -</p> - -<p> -His nearest neighbour, dwelling 20 miles away, was a -Roman Catholic; and although my friend cursed him for -a Papist, their relations with each other were quite friendly. -The Irishman told me how he had once fought to save the -life of his child from a bear. He was working in the -clearing; near by, his little girl was sitting on the trunk of -a felled tree; when a bear suddenly emerged from the forest, -and made towards her. The man had for his only weapon -a huge handspike, as big as a paviour's rammer. He showed -me the thing; it was so heavy that I could scarcely realise -that he could have used it as he did use it. But with this -formidable club he fought the bear for an hour. Several -times he beat the animal to the earth; but the beast -returned to the attack; and the man thought his strength -must surely fail him. At last, both man and beast were so -exhausted that they stood and looked at each other with -their tongues hanging out. Then, with a growl, the bear -turned tail and rolled back into the forest. The Irishman -never saw it again; and he cherished the belief that the -brute died of its wounds. -</p> - -<p> -Shooting black buck in the plains of Central India, with -the Duke of Portland's party, in 1883, I had been out in a -bullock-cart for hours. The method is to describe a wide -circle round the black buck, and slowly driving round and -round, gradually to diminish the circle. The sun was very -hot; I was very tired of the business; and I determined to -risk a shot. As I emerged from the cart into the open, a herd -of black buck galloped past in the distance in single file, -passing behind two tufts of high grass. Sighting between the -tufts, I fired right and left, and heard the bullets strike. The -<i>shikari</i> would not believe that I had hit anything at that -range. But there were the bodies of two black buck; the -distance from where I had fired to one of them was 220 -yards, and to the other, 240 yards. The heads are in my -collection of sporting trophies. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P541"></a>541}</span> -</p> - -<p> -I had been twice round the world before I ever saw a -really wild man. At last I met one when I was shooting -grouse on my own property in Cavan. His voice was a -squeaky, husky whisper, like the creaking of an old wooden -frigate in a gale of wind. If I hit a bird hard and it passed -on, the wild man would say: -</p> - -<p> -"Well, that fellow got a terrible rap anyway!" -</p> - -<p> -If I killed the bird, he would say, "Well well, he has the -fatal stroke, with the help of God!" -</p> - -<p> -And if I missed a bird, he would say, "Never moind, -Lord Char-less! Ye made him quit that, annyhow." -</p> - -<p> -The incident of the Glenquoich stag occurred many -years ago, when I was staying at Glenquoich with the Duke -of Marlborough. We had had a hard day, without sighting -a warrantable stag, when the stalker spied, far on the -skyline of the opposite hill, the grandest head he had ever -seen. We stalked up to him until we came to the edge of -a valley. There was the noble head scarce fifty yards -away. We could see the stag's ears moving. But he did -not rise. We lay on that hill-top for an hour and a half; -the midges were eating me in platoons; and still the stag -did not get up. I could stand it no longer; and I said -to the stalker: -</p> - -<p> -"Either you must get him up or I must shoot him through -the heather." -</p> - -<p> -The stalker begged me not to shoot; he whistled; then -turned upon me a face of utter bewilderment, for the stag -lay where he was, moving his ears to keep off the midges. -The stalker whistled again. Still the stag lay quiet; and -the man looked at me with a countenance of such amazement -that I can see it before me as I write. It must have -struck him that here was the supernatural; for never in his -life had he seen a live stag which would stay to hearken to -his whistling. -</p> - -<p> -Then the stalker shouted; then he stood upright and -shouted again; and still the stag lay where he was; and the -man stared at me in silence with consternation in his eyes. -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P542"></a>542}</span> -I delayed no longer. I shot the stag through the heather, -and he leaped up, and fell dead. -</p> - -<p> -We found that the poor beast had a hind fetlock cut -nearly through by a bullet. The wound must have been -inflicted some considerable time previously, for it had -mortified and the haunch had withered. Thus wounded, he must -have strayed from another forest, for he was a German stag, -marked with slits on both his ears; and there were no such -stags in Glenquoich forest. -</p> - -<p> -The late Kiamil Pasha, Governor of Salonika, was an -old friend of mine. I first knew him when I was in command -of the <i>Undaunted</i>, in which ship he lunched with me several -times. He was a grand specimen of a fine old Turkish -gentleman, one of the best among Turkish statesmen, intensely -interested in the welfare of his country. I often went out -snipe-shooting with the Turkish commander-in-chief round -about Salonika. On these occasions, the Pasha invariably -wore full uniform; and when we arrived at the shooting -ground, we were always met by a squadron of cavalry. I -imagined that the guard was furnished as a compliment to -myself; and eventually I said to the Pasha that while it -was very good of him to pay me the courtesy of a guard, -I should be quite as happy if we went out shooting without it. -</p> - -<p> -He replied that the guard was not intended as a compliment, -but was ordered for my safety. -</p> - -<p> -"What is the danger?" -</p> - -<p> -"Brigands," said the Pasha. -</p> - -<p> -"But there are no brigands here now." -</p> - -<p> -"Are there not?" said the Pasha. "I killed fourteen -yesterday." -</p> - -<p> -And afterwards he showed me where he had rounded -them up. -</p> - -<p> -I have seen two whales killed. I saw a whale killed in -the Pacific by an old sailing whaler. She sent four boats -out and they hunted the whale, after it was harpooned, for -eight hours before they killed it. A boat rowed close to -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P543"></a>543}</span> -the whale, the harpooner flung his harpoon, the whale -sounded, his tail swung up like a flail and struck the water -with a report like the report of a gun, and out flew the line -from the boat. The man who eventually killed the whale -was armed with a long flexible knife, which he plunged into -the whale behind the fin. The vast carcase was towed -alongside the ship, than which it was longer; men wearing -spiked boots and using sharp spades went upon the whale; -and as they sliced into the blubber, making cuts across the -carcase, the piece called the "blanket piece" was hoisted -inboard by means of a tackle, the whale thus turning -gradually over until its whole circumference was stripped. -</p> - -<p> -Many years afterwards, I saw a whale killed off Norway -by a modern steam whaler. She steamed slowly after a -school of whales, and fired a gun whose projectile was a -shell attached to a harpoon. The shell burst inside the -whale, killing it. The carcase was then towed alongside the -steamer by boats, the operation taking about an hour and a -half, and was then towed by the steamer to the whaleries. -The whaling master told me that 850 whales had been killed -off Norway during that year; and that among them was -a whale with an American harpoon in it; wherefore he -supposed that the whale must have voyaged round the -Horn, or else north about beneath the ice. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap55"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P544"></a>544}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER LV -<br /> -SPORTING MEMORIES (<i>Continued</i>) -</h3> - -<p class="t3b"> -III. FISHING -</p> - -<p> -When, as a youngster, I was sea-fishing at Ascension, -my boat made fast to a buoy, I had used all my -bait without getting a fish, when a booby gull kindly -came and sat on the buoy. I knocked him over with an -oar, used his remains for bait, and caught lots of fish. -</p> - -<p> -In nearly every ship in which I have served, I had a -trammel, a trawl and a trot. As a midshipman, I used them -myself; when I became a senior officer, I lent them to the -midshipmen. -</p> - -<p> -Upon visiting the island of Juan Fernandez, while I was -a midshipman in the <i>Clio</i>, we found three men living in the -home of Robinson Crusoe. They subsisted chiefly upon -crayfish. We used to fish for these Crustacea, using for bait -a piece of a Marine's scarlet tunic. The fish used to take -the crayfish while we were hauling them up. In a few hours -we caught enough to feed the whole ship's company. -</p> - -<p> -Off the Horn, and in the South Pacific, I have killed -many albatross in calm weather, or when the ship was -proceeding very slowly under sail. I made a hook out of -several hooks like a paternoster. If the bird touched the -bait, he was always caught. The upper mandible of the -albatross has a curve like the beak of a parrot, and that -curve is all there is to hold the hook. When the bird is -being hauled on board, the lower mandible catches the water -and drives him underneath. When he comes on board he is -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P545"></a>545}</span> -full of water, and is immediately very sick. Both the first -and second pinion bones make beautiful pipe stems about -fourteen inches long. I brought many home for my friends. -The feet, dried, cleaned and manufactured into bags, make -excellent tobacco pouches. -</p> - -<p> -Many a shark have I caught in the old days. I have -had two sharks on my hook at once. One had taken the -hook, which, barb and all, had pierced right through his -jaw; and another shark went for it and got the end of the -hook into his mouth. They were both on the hook for some -little time, and eventually I killed the first one hooked. I -made a walking-stick out of his backbone. -</p> - -<p> -The biggest shark I ever killed measured 12 feet 2 inches -long. -</p> - -<p> -I bought my shark hook from a man in an American -whaling; schooner at the Sandwich Islands. I filed a little -notch on the shaft of my hook whenever I killed a shark. -To my great annoyance, someone stole my hook in after -years. -</p> - -<p> -I was once towing a cod-line astern for dolphin, when a -shark took the bait. I took the line round a cleat and -played him, or he would have carried it away; got him close -enough to get a bowline over his tail, and hauled him on -board. This method is generally used for getting a shark -on board. Until his tail is cut off with an axe, a shark -plays ballyhooly with all around him. A shark's heart is -so muscular, and expands and contracts so violently after -death that it is impossible to hold it in the hand. Sharks -are bad eating, but in those salt-horse days we relished -them. -</p> - -<p> -My record in salmon fishing was made in Norway, when -together with Lord Wolseley, Mr. Bayard, and Mr. Abram -Hewett, I was a guest on board the yacht of my friend, -Mr. Fred Wynn. In one night's fly-fishing, I killed forty-one -fish. I gave eight of them to the fishermen who worked the -canoe for me, and brought thirty-three back to the yacht. -</p> - -<p> -Tarpon fishing is the acme of sea-fishing. Whereas a -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P546"></a>546}</span> -salmon is killed by a rod and delicate handling, a tarpon is -killed by the line and herculean strength. The rod used is -short and thick. The line is made of cotton, thinner and -lighter than a salmon line, but extraordinarily strong. It is -from 300 to 400 yards long, with four brakes, two on the -reel, and two of thick leather placed on the thumbs. When -the tarpon is struck, he invariably jumps into the air from -six to ten feet, and shakes his head to shake the hook out, an -effort in which he often succeeds. He has no teeth, but the -upper part of his mouth is as hard as a cow's hoof, and it -takes a tremendous strike to get a hook into it past the barb. -The biggest tarpon I killed was 186 lb. I think Lord -Desborough holds the record with a tarpon of 240 lb., 7 feet -6 inches long, 42 inches girth. Lord Desborough killed 100 -tarpon in ten days. -</p> - -<p> -Some years ago, I was most kindly invited by my old -friend, Colonel Robert M. Thompson, to stay with him in -his houseboat <i>Everglades</i> on the coast of Florida. The -houseboat was driven by a motor and drew one foot of water. -When it came on to blow, Colonel Thompson used to run -her up on the beach. -</p> - -<p> -But upon one occasion, we went upon an adventurous -voyage, right out into the Atlantic, making a point from -Florida to the north; the wind freshened; and the houseboat -had all the weather she cared for. Colonel Thompson tells -me that while securing loose gear and generally battening -down, I remarked that probably no British admiral had ever -before found himself in a houseboat drawing one foot of water -50 miles out on the Atlantic in a seaway. -</p> - -<p> -I never had such wonderful sport as I had with Colonel -Thompson in the <i>Everglades</i>. We killed tons of fish all -with the rod. One night, with a small tarpon rod I killed -seven sergeant fish, average 28 lb. This fish takes two long -runs, and then turns up on his back, dead. Upon another -night I had on an enormous tarpon; the boatman declared -it to be the biggest he had ever seen (it always is when one -fails to land it). I had just got into the shore after over an -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P547"></a>547}</span> -hour's work at the tarpon, when it went off again slowly, with -the appearance of a fish, but the methods of a steam roller. -</p> - -<p> -The boatman said: -</p> - -<p> -"Try to check it from going into that current; it is full -of sharks." -</p> - -<p> -But the tarpon steadily proceeded. On getting into the -current, it suddenly took a run and jumped into the air. -When it was half out of the water, a shark's head appeared -and bit it in two. I hauled only the head and shoulders -home. The shark was so large that we tried to catch him -next day, and hooked either him or another. He was so -heavy that we could make nothing of him. He took us -where he liked, but never left the current. So we bent a -line on to the one by which we held him, took it to the -capstan of a yacht lying near by, hove him up to the side, -and shot him with a rifle. He was then triced up by the -tail by a tackle from the mast. He was a hammer-headed -shark over 18 feet long. -</p> - -<p> -He disgorged soap, bottles, sardine-tins, Armour meat-tins, -a number of large crab shells, some small turtle shells, -pieces of fish, and the midship section of a large tarpon, -which was supposed to have been the piece bitten out of my -failure of the previous night. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap56"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P548"></a>548}</span></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER LVI -<br /> -HOME WATERS: THE LAST COMMAND -</h3> - -<p> -Before taking over the command of the Channel -Fleet, to which I was appointed on 4th March, 1907, -on my return from the Mediterranean, I proceeded on -leave, family affairs calling me to Mexico. -</p> - -<p> -My younger brother, Lord Delaval, had been killed in a -railway accident in the United States, on 26th December -of the preceding year (1906), while I was in the Mediterranean. -He left a large property in Mexico, whither I went to settle -his affairs as his executor. -</p> - -<p> -Lord Delaval had gone to Mexico as a young man, -intending to make his fortune, and so to fulfil the terms -imposed by the parents of the lady to whom he was attached, -as the condition upon which they would grant their sanction -to his marriage with their daughter. At the time of his -death, having bought out his partner, he possessed two -magnificent ranches in Mexico: Ojitos Ranch, 120,000 acres, -and Upper Chug Ranch, 76,000 acres; and a third ranch at -Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada. I stayed for some time at -Ojitos Ranch; where I found that my brother was known -as a dare-devil rider and an excellent rancher; managing -his ranches himself, and taking his part in rounding up his -stock and branding his cattle. -</p> - -<p> -Upon Ojitos there were about 6000 head of cattle and -1500 head of horses, donkeys and mules. Ojitos means -"little springs"; the house stood beside the springs; and -brother, who was something of an engineer, had constructed -three large reservoirs and nine miles of irrigation -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P549"></a>549}</span> -canals, intersecting the whole estate. These little canals, fed -by the reservoirs, were two feet broad and three inches deep, -so that they could be kept clear with the plough. As the -water was perpetually running along them, the stock could -drink anywhere, an invaluable advantage in the calving -season. Upon some ranches, where the water is scarce, cows -and calves often perish for lack of ready access to it. The -vast grassy plain is surrounded by mountains, and the estate -itself is enclosed in a ring fence of barbed wire, 110 miles in -circumference. My brother's staff consisted of five Mexican -cowboys and three negroes. He left the two Mexican ranches -to my brother Marcus and myself. -</p> - -<p> -I got rid of all off-colour stock; put on a lot of new -Durham bulls; poisoned the prairie dogs which ate the -grass, leaving the ground bare as a high road; effected -various other improvements, and organised the whole upon -a business plan, down to the last detail. The drought of -1909 killed off many of the stock, for although the water -supply was maintained, the grass perished. Nevertheless, -the Ojitos Ranch paid its way, and in 1912 it was sold for -a good price. The other ranch, Upper Chug, is still unsold -at the time of writing (1913), owing to the breaking out of -the rebellion, the supersession of President Diaz, and the -consequent unsettled state of the country. -</p> - -<p> -It was not remarkable for peace during my sojourn at -Ojitos. El Paso, the frontier town, was full of what are -called "the Bad Men of the United States," who were wanted -by the police; and who, if they were in danger of capture, -slipped over the border. The revolver is commonly used in -disputes, particularly at Casas Grandes, a Mexican town -about 120 miles from El Paso. During my brief visit to -that place, three men were shot: one in a gambling hell, -one in a Chinese restaurant, and one in a lodging-house; -their assailants escaping with impunity. -</p> - -<p> -Riding on the ranch, I saw a man about two miles away -galloping for dear life. The cowboy who was with me -explained that the rider "had holed a man somewhere and -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P550"></a>550}</span> -was off up country." The fugitive headed away from us, -and coming to the wire fence, he nipped the wire, and so -rode away to the hills. -</p> - -<p> -The retainers of Ojitos Ranch, with whom I sat down -to dinner every day, were each armed with a revolver, -sometimes two revolvers, and a knife. I was the only -unarmed man present. -</p> - -<p> -I had already made the acquaintance of President Diaz -some time previously, when I had been tarpon-fishing at -Tampico. On that occasion I was accompanied by my -friend, Mr. Benjamin Guinness, who had been sub-lieutenant -in the <i>Undaunted</i> when I commanded that ship. His brother -had been midshipman in the <i>Undaunted</i> at the same time. -The two brothers left the Service to engage in business, and -both have been highly successful. -</p> - -<p> -Upon my departure from Ojitos, I went to see President -Diaz. He was most kind and helpful; both he and other -prominent Mexicans informed me that they desired to -increase the number of British properties in Mexico; and -the President expressed the hope that I would retain possession -of the ranches. At the same time, he gave me all the -assistance in his power with regard to the settlement of the -affairs of the estates; nor could they have been settled -satisfactorily without his help. -</p> - -<p> -President Diaz impressed me as a quiet, strong and -determined ruler, who knew exactly how to govern -Mexico, and did it. Under his rule, revolutions were -summarily checked, and Mexico flourished as never -before. -</p> - -<p> -Upon my return to England, I took over the command of -the Channel Fleet, hoisting my flag in the <i>King Edward VII</i>, -at Portland, on 16th April, 1907. The second in command -was Vice-Admiral Sir Reginald Custance (now Admiral Sir -R. N. Custance, G.C.B., K.C.M.G., C.V.O.), a most -distinguished strategist and tactician, one of the most learned -officers in his profession. I have never been able to -understand why Sir Reginald Custance, instead of being placed -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P551"></a>551}</span> -upon half-pay until his retirement, was not appointed a -Lord Commissioner of the Admiralty. -</p> - -<p class="capcenter"> -<a id="img-550"></a> -<img class="imgcenter" src="images/img-550.jpg" alt="H.M.S. "KING EDWARD VII" ENGAGED IN BATTLE PRACTICE, 1907" /> -<br /> -H.M.S. "KING EDWARD VII" ENGAGED IN BATTLE PRACTICE, 1907 -</p> - -<p> -The members of the Staff were: chief of staff, Captain -Frederick C. D. Sturdee, succeeded by Captain Montague -E. Browning; flag-commander, Fawcet Wray; intelligence -officer at the Admiralty, Commander Godfrey Tuke, -succeeded by Captain Arthur R. Hulbert; signal officer, -Lieutenant Charles D. Roper; flag-lieutenant, Herbert -T. G. Gibbs; engineer-captain, Edwin Little: secretary, -Fleet Paymaster John A. Keys; flag-captain, Henry -B. Pelly, M.V.O.; commander, G. H. Baird. The navigating -officer, Commander E. L. Booty, who had been with me in -the <i>Majestic</i>, was the best navigator I have known. -</p> - -<p> -Of the two successive chiefs of staff, Captain (now -Vice-Admiral) Sturdee, and Captain (now Rear-Admiral) -Browning, to whom I owe so much, I desire to express -my appreciation. Their powers of organisation and their -knowledge of what is required for organisation for war are -of a very high degree. Among other officers, all of whom -did service so excellent, I may mention Lieutenant (now -Commander) Roper, who was one of the best signal officers -in the service; Lieutenant Gibbs, a most charming and -loyal companion, who met his death by falling overboard -in the Portland race, and the loss of whose affectionate -friendship I still mourn; and Fleet-Paymaster Keys, who -was with me for more than six years, and to whose brilliant -services I owe so much. -</p> - -<p> -The composition of the Channel Fleet, in April, 1907, was -14 battleships (eight <i>King Edward VII</i>, two <i>Swiftsure</i>, two -<i>Ocean</i>, two <i>Majestic</i>), four armoured cruisers, two -second-class cruisers, and one third-class cruiser attached. -</p> - -<p> -During this period, an extraordinary confusion prevailed -at the Admiralty. Its character may be briefly indicated by -a summary of the various changes in the organisation and -distribution of the Fleet, beginning in the previous year -(1906). -</p> - -<p> -In October, the sea-going Fleets were reduced in strength -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P552"></a>552}</span> -by about one-quarter, and a new Home Fleet was formed of -nucleus crew ships. The Channel Fleet was reduced from -sixty-two fighting vessels to twenty-one fighting vessels, the -balance being transferred to the Home Fleet. An order was -issued under which ships taken from the Channel, Atlantic -and Mediterranean Fleets for purposes of refitting, were to be -replaced during their absence by ships from the Home Fleet. -</p> - -<p> -In December, the Nore Division of the Home Fleet was -given full crews instead of nucleus crews. -</p> - -<p> -In April, 1907, an order was issued that no more than -two battleships in each Fleet were to be refitted at one time. -</p> - -<p> -In September, the Channel Fleet was increased from -twenty-one vessels to sixty vessels. -</p> - -<p> -In August, 1908, the orders substituting Home Fleet -ships for ships from sea-going fleets under repair, and -ordaining that no more than two battleships should be -absent at one time, were cancelled; with the result that the -Channel Fleet went to sea in the following December short -of eight battleships, two armoured cruisers, one unarmoured -cruiser, one scout, and 20 destroyers, 32 vessels in all. -</p> - -<p> -When the Home Fleet was finally constituted, in March, -1907, there were no less than three commanders-in-chief in -Home Waters; one commanding the Home Fleet, one the -Nore Division, and one (myself) the Channel Fleet. In time -of war the supreme command was to be exercised by me, -over the whole number of fighting vessels, 244 in all. But -in time of peace they could not be trained or exercised -together, nor had any one of the commanders-in-chief -accurate information at any given moment of the state or -disposition of the forces of any other commander-in-chief. -</p> - -<p> -Such, briefly presented, was the situation with which I -was confronted in this my last command. It was fraught -with difficulties so complex, and potential dangers to the -security of the country so palpable, that many of my friends -urged me to resign my command in the public interest. I -decided, however, that I should best serve His Majesty the -King, the Navy and the country by remaining at my post. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P553"></a>553}</span> -</p> - -<p> -In the summer of 1907, the Channel Fleet proceeded -upon a United Kingdom cruise, touching at various places -round the coasts of these islands. When the Fleet was at -sea, individual ships were sent away upon short cruises, in -order to give the captains opportunities of exercising -independent command. When the Fleet was at anchor, the -ships were open to the public from half-past one to half-past -six daily, in order to increase their knowledge and encourage -their interest in the Royal Navy. -</p> - -<p> -It was during one of these cruises that the Irishmen in -the Fleet displayed one of their national characteristics. -</p> - -<p> -The anniversary of Saint Patrick's Day was drawing near -when the Fleet lay in Bantry Bay. On Saint Patrick's Day -itself the Fleet was to proceed to sea. Hitherto, as a rule, -if the Irishmen in the Fleet happened to be on leave on Saint -Patrick's Day, many of them broke their leave. When I -made a signal, giving the Irishmen four days' leave, and -ordering them to return on board on Saint Patrick's Day, I -added that the commander-in-chief, himself an Irishman, -expected every Irishman to be back to his leave. There -were 766 Irish liberty-men went on shore for four days; and -766 were on board again ere the Fleet sailed on the night -of Saint Patrick's Day. It might be that the Saint could -mention the thing in conversation with Saint Peter at the -Gate, for future reference. For there were some 2000 Irishmen -in the Fleet, who, when the Fleet lay at Portland, could -not, like the Englishmen, visit their homes once a month. -And when it is considered how hospitable and convivial they -become on the anniversary of their patron Saint, I shall be -understood when I say that the behaviour on this occasion -of the Irishmen in the Fleet affords a remarkable instance -of the Irish sense of honour. There are no other people so -easily handled, if the right way be taken with them. -</p> - -<p> -The Fleet assembled at Spithead in November, 1907, to -receive his Majesty the Emperor of Germany; and in the -following May, the Fleet assembled at Dover to receive -President Fallières. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P554"></a>554}</span> -</p> - -<p> -In the summer of 1908, the Fleet proceeded upon a cruise -in Norwegian waters. Their Majesties the King and Queen -of Norway, with the little Crown Prince Olaf, honoured the -flagship with a visit when the Fleet lay at Esbjerg. At -Skagen, on the evening of 7th July, when the Fleet was -lying at anchor, the <i>Hohenzollern</i>, flying the flag of his -Majesty the Emperor of Germany, was suddenly sighted, -together with the escorting cruiser <i>Stettin</i> and the destroyer -<i>Sleipner</i>. By the time his Imperial Majesty had reached -the lines, the ships were manned and dressed over all. A -salute of twenty-one guns was fired; and the <i>Hohenzollern</i> -was cheered as she steamed down the lines. -</p> - -<p> -During my absence in Norwegian waters, I was the -subject of a violent attack in the Press and elsewhere, due -to a misapprehension. I recall the circumstance, because I -am proud to remember that it was an Irishman, and he a -political opponent, who, alone among all the members of -the House of Commons, stood up and protested against an -attack being made upon a brother Irishman when he was -absent and unable to reply. -</p> - -<p> -Their Majesties King Edward and Queen Alexandra -visited the Channel Fleet on 7th August, 1908, in the -<i>Victoria and Albert</i>, accompanied by the Prince of Wales -in the <i>Alexandra</i>. His Majesty honoured the <i>King Edward -VII</i> and the <i>Hibernia</i>, second flag, with a visit. The -flag-officers of the Fleet had the honour of lunching with their -Majesties on board the <i>Victoria and Albert</i>. -</p> - -<p> -Upon one of the Fleet cruises in the north, the flagship -was passing under the Forth Bridge, when a spar caught on -a girder of the bridge and carried away. Ere it could fall, -Flag-Lieutenant Gibbs, with his customary presence of mind -and pluck, threw me upon the deck, and himself on the top -of me, to save me from the falling spar. Luckily, it touched -neither of us. -</p> - -<p> -There being no provision against mines dropped in time -of war, it was suggested by me that the North Sea trawlers -should be enlisted to sweep for mines; because they were -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P555"></a>555}</span> -accustomed to the difficult work of towing and handling a -trawl. The proposal was afterwards adopted. -</p> - -<p> -In March, 1909, the Admiralty, in addition to other -changes, having suddenly reduced the length of ships' -commissions from three years to two years, I was ordered to haul -down my flag and come on shore. -</p> - -<p> -Accordingly, my flag was hauled down at Portsmouth on -Wednesday, 24th March, 1909, after fifty years' service. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -I cannot close this chronicle without expressing my -profound appreciation of the loyalty and affection shown -to me by my brother officers and by the men of the Royal -Navy. Few events in my life have touched me more deeply -than the presence of so many of my old shipmates among -the crowds which assembled upon Portsmouth Hard when -I came on shore after hauling down my flag, and which filled -Waterloo Station and its approaches when I arrived in -London. Nor can I omit to record my sense of the kind -and generous reception given to me by my brother officers, -who attended, in numbers that constituted a record, the -dinner, over which I presided, given by the Royal Navy -Club of 1765 and 1785, on the anniversary of the battle of -Trafalgar next ensuing after my coming on shore. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -It was a satisfaction to me when I came on shore, and -it is a satisfaction to me now, to think that I pulled my -pound in the Navy. -</p> - -<p> -Doubtless, like other men of action, I have made mistakes. -But I may justly claim that I have always held one purpose -with a single mind: to do my best for the good of the Service -and for the welfare of the officers and men of the Royal -Navy; and in following that purpose, I have tried to -disregard consequences which might affect my own fortunes, -and which, in fact, have often proved injurious to them. -And to the purpose which I have followed since I was a -boy, I shall devote the rest of my life. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap57"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P556"></a>556}</span></p> - -<h3> -POSTSCRIPT -<br /> -THE MAKING OF AN ADMIRAL -</h3> - -<p> -One of our greatest naval administrators, the late -Admiral of the Fleet Sir Frederick Richards, was -constantly preoccupied with a problem, of which -he used often to speak. "How are we to make great -admirals?" he would say. It is a question of the highest -moment. A great admiral may be born, but he must also -be made. The making of an admiral has been the study of -the best minds in the Navy for generations. And for this -reason: <i>In time of war, all must depend on one man, and -that man the admiral in command</i>. Upon his knowledge, -ability and resolution will rest the fate of the country and of -the Empire. That simple fact is not generally realised by -the public. They do not understand that in time of war the -statesman, the diplomatist, the politician must all give place -to one man, the admiral in command at sea. -</p> - -<p> -Every decade of naval officers has added something to -the knowledge of what must go to the making of a great -sea-officer. The establishment of the War College, the -institution of the War Staff at the Admiralty, the private -studies of individual naval officers, the practice of holding -manoeuvres: all these things are valuable endeavours -toward the same end. It remains, however (I believe), the -fact that there exists no treatise on the ordinary -administrative duties to be fulfilled by an admiral. -</p> - -<p> -During many years I had the habit of making notes -concerning all matters connected with the administration of -a Fleet. These notes I hope to arrange and to publish. In -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P557"></a>557}</span> -the meantime, I have ventured to think that the contribution -of some observations dealing with the administrative duties -of an admiral in command, embodying the results of many -years' experience at sea, might be of use. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -There is no position in the world requiring more tact -than that of a commander-in-chief of a large Fleet. It is -only by the exercise of consummate tact that a Fleet can be -maintained in the most rigid state of discipline and, at the -same time, cheery, happy and smart. Therefore it is that a -knowledge of human nature is essential to the admiral. -</p> - -<p> -Two admirals may do the same thing or may give the -same order; one is perfectly successful, the other is not. -One knows HOW to give an order, the other does not. -</p> - -<p> -Success depends not only on <i>what</i> is done, but on <i>the -way in which</i> it is done. Cheerful obedience to an order -depends, not on the order but, on the way the order is -given. In handling men, much depends on what is said, but -much more depends upon the way in which it is said. -</p> - -<p> -The art of successful administration of men consists in -the prevention of accident, misdemeanour, or regrettable -incidents. It does not consist in putting things right <i>after</i> -the unpleasant event has occurred. Nearly all slackness and -untoward incidents are preventable by the exercise of -forethought, common sense and good organisation. Most of the -matters that go wrong, causing irritation and fault-finding -on the part of the admiral, are often due to the failure to -look ahead of the admiral himself. -</p> - -<p> -When a Fleet proceeds to sea, the cruisers are often to -be observed sobbing and sighing at full speed, trying to get -into the position ordered, after the Fleet has left the harbour, -when, by the use of a little judgment, they might have been -sent out previously, and so have got on the correct line of -bearing at slow speed, without any trouble. -</p> - -<p> -The usual method in life is to let a mistake occur, and -then to put it right afterwards. It is upon this point that -the world forms most unfair opinions. The man who <i>keeps</i> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P558"></a>558}</span> -things right seldom gets any credit. It is the man who puts -things right who gets it. The history of war affords many -examples of this tendency. -</p> - -<p> -A commander-in-chief who, by his organisation and by -his appreciation of facts and positions, wins an action with -small loss, often gets little credit. On the other hand, an -officer who makes some blunder by which he loses a number -of officers and men, but who eventually wins his action, is -made a popular hero. In other words, the man with the -blind pluck of a bulldog gets more credit than the man who, -by his strategy and tactical ability, wins a more or less -bloodless victory. -</p> - -<p> -An admiral should remember that in peace or war he -can satisfactorily administer his Fleet only through the -loyalty and zeal of his captains. Frequent personal -interviews promote confidence; and such confidence must be of -benefit to the admiral. He need not take his captains' -views, but he will gain a great deal of useful information -from officers who are just as keen to make the Fleet as -perfect as possible as he is himself. -</p> - -<p> -Admirals should not publicly identify themselves with -their own flagships in the same way as a captain may -identify himself with his ship. To the admiral ALL ships -should be the same, and private ships should feel that the -admiral takes quite as much interest in their well-being and -their whole life as he does in his own flagship. The admiral -should therefore avoid, even in private conversation, speaking -of "my commander," "our launch," etc. etc. A flagship, -her officers and men, have many advantages. In return -for these privileges, a flagship should make every effort to be -a pattern of smartness and efficiency; and the admiral must -be constantly on the alert lest he show partiality or favour to -his flagship. Nothing makes more jealousy in a Fleet than -a belief that the flagship is favoured at the expense of the rest -of the Fleet, either in routine duty or in any other respect. -</p> - -<p> -Flagships must have many privileges, but they should not -be increased. For instance, her boats should take precedence -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P559"></a>559}</span> -in drawing beef or stores; but in all matters -connected with competitive drills, carrying out station -orders, etc. etc., all ships must be equal in the admiral's -eye and mind. -</p> - -<p> -An admiral should continually go on board the ships of -the Fleet, talk to the captains, and obtain their ideas and -recommendations on various subjects. -</p> - -<p> -The best plan is to notify a ship a day or two -beforehand that the commander-in-chief is coming on board on -Sunday at the time most convenient to the captain; and to -follow the captain's usual routine for Sunday inspection. -This method gives the captain an opportunity of bringing to -the admiral's notice any officer or man who has in any way -distinguished himself. It strengthens the captain's hands, -and has a good effect upon the Fleet. It lets the men see -their admiral; while the admiral can remark the state of the -ship and run all his Fleet up to the smartest ship. -</p> - -<p> -It is wiser to administer a Fleet by <i>commendation</i> than -by <i>condemnation</i>. If commendation is given for good and -smart actions, condemnation for bad, slackness becomes far -more severely condemned, and no sympathy for it is aroused. -</p> - -<p> -Any smart action performed by an officer or man should -be appreciated publicly by signal. This is complimentary -to the officer or man and to the ship in which he is serving -at the time. Every one is grateful for appreciation. -</p> - -<p> -The old style in the Navy was never to commend anything -that was well done; to do well was considered to be -no more than a man's duty. On the other hand, anything -that was badly done led to severe reprimands. -</p> - -<p> -When a good officer or man knows that the admiral -appreciates his work, it cheers the Fleet and raises its whole -tone. It is right to be severe on those who do their work -lazily or badly; but it is quite as necessary to appreciate -those who do their work well. -</p> - -<p> -An admiral should continually inspect some of the -various departments of the ships under his command. By -personal observation he is certain to find out something -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P560"></a>560}</span> -which would not come to his notice in any other way, and he -may therefore prevent things from going wrong in their -initial stages. -</p> - -<p> -The admiral should invariably inspect anything that may -have gone wrong in any of the ships under his command, -owing to accident, carelessness, or misadventure: such as a -derrick, cable, or capstan carrying away, or any defect in the -engine or boiler rooms. He should then talk over the -method of repair with the captain and the departmental -officers. This procedure often saves time and trouble, as the -admiral gives directions for the accident to be repaired in -the way he desires from the first, thereby obviating the -necessity of altering the plans afterwards. It also encourages -those who are going to execute the work. -</p> - -<p> -The admiral should let the captains know that they can -come on board the flagship and consult him at any time -they like, day or night, and that he will always be glad to -see them. -</p> - -<p> -Captains should always come to see, or write to, the -admiral on any matter which they wish to be settled, no -matter how trivial it may appear. They should not go to -the secretary; for, if they do, it puts the secretary in -a false position, and may cause mistakes and wrong -conceptions. -</p> - -<p> -Captains may go to the chief of the staff upon minor -questions; but it is, as a rule, better for them to go straight -to the admiral. -</p> - -<p> -The consideration of captains, expressed by the words, -"I don't think I will bother the admiral about this question," -is understood, but should be regarded as mistaken. <i>It is the -admiral's business to be bothered</i>. -</p> - -<p> -The admiral should be considerate and courteous to all -those under his command, remembering that there are two -sides to every question. -</p> - -<p> -When the admiral personally inquires into any case, -with the object of fixing responsibility upon an individual, -he should be suave in his manner, even if condemnation is -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P561"></a>561}</span> -given. He should endeavour to send a man away wearing a -smile rather than a scowl. -</p> - -<p> -The admiral should remember this maxim particularly -when he feels irritated at seeing something done which -appears careless, or opposed to the orders laid down. He -should always maintain an unruffled demeanour, and be -perfectly calm and collected under all circumstances. To -fail in this respect is to confuse both himself and those -under his command: a condition which cannot add to that -smartness and coolness so necessary when a difficulty or an -accident occurs in the Fleet. -</p> - -<p> -The management of a ship or a Fleet is full of irritation -and worries. These can only be decreased by officers -remaining calm and collected. -</p> - -<p> -All men are liable to make mistakes. The best men -often make the most glaring mistakes. A smart man acting -under a mistake will move his ship to starboard or to port -quicker than a slow man, and his mistake will therefore -appear the greater. -</p> - -<p> -An admiral should never make a signal to one of the -captains (unless he happens to have a very bad and slack -captain), implying that the captain could have done much -better than he did. Captains, as a rule, wish to obey loyally -and thoroughly. Mistakes are not intentional. -</p> - -<p> -If a signal is executed in a manner contrary to the -intention of the admiral, either it is an ambiguous signal, or -it has been misunderstood. Unforeseen contingencies of -this kind are certain to happen in war. Practices in peace -illustrate what such contingencies may be, and develop the -necessary measures to prevent them. -</p> - -<p> -A very common method of pointing out mistakes is to -signal what was <i>ordered</i> and what should have <i>happened</i>, -omitting to state what was actually <i>done</i>. But <i>all</i> these -points should be inserted in the signal. -</p> - -<p> -Officers or men should never be allowed to state what -<i>might</i>, <i>could</i>, or <i>should</i> have been done. The point at issue -is what WAS or what IS. Much valuable time is lost in -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P562"></a>562}</span> -explaining the circumstances on the theory of what might, -could, or should have been done. -</p> - -<p> -Before finding fault by signal, the admiral should ask the -captain in question how a mistake occurred. By so doing -it can be seen whether it is necessary to find fault or not. -If the explanation is satisfactory the captain should be so -informed. -</p> - -<p> -Much unnecessary irritation and bad feeling caused by -sudden and drastic signals may thus be avoided. -</p> - -<p> -The admiral will often find that the mistake was a -natural mistake, which he himself might have made had he -been in the captain's place. When captains know that the -admiral is scrupulously fair, they become devoted to him. -</p> - -<p> -An admiral should always be most careful that he is -right himself before finding fault with those under him. If -he should afterwards find that his contention was wrong, -or that there was a misunderstanding, the admiral should -invariably acknowledge his mistake. This action commands -respect and is only chivalrous and seamanlike. -</p> - -<p> -When an admiral has satisfied himself that anything, no -matter how small, is not carried out according to orders, he -should call attention to it by signal (as a rule, by a general -signal), and by thus pointing out the mistake to the Fleet, he -prevents the same error from occurring again. -</p> - -<p> -In such matters as clothes not properly stopped on, boats -and booms not square, etc., an admiral should inquire who -is responsible. If men are not standing to attention when -the colours are hoisted, he should ask for the name of the -officer of the watch. If a boat is improperly handled under -sail or oars, he should ask for the name of the officer or -coxswain of the boat. -</p> - -<p> -The admiral's staff should always inform him of such -matters as boats pulling badly, or not being run up to the -davit head, men not standing properly to attention, or not -doubling to obey all orders of the pipe, etc. The effect of a -signal calling attention to these matters is lost if it is made -some time after the event. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P563"></a>563}</span> -</p> - -<p> -There should always be an officer responsible for every -duty on board a man-of-war, and the admiral should always -make on these occasions the signal, "Indicate name of -officer responsible." -</p> - -<p> -The admiral should always make sure, when finding -fault with a ship, that his flagship is absolutely correct as -regards the particular detail in question. If this is not the -case he should call his flagship's attention to it at the same -time. -</p> - -<p> -Admirals and captains are often heard saying, "Look -at the way they are doing so and so," referring to boat -pulling or to the way a rope is handled, or a boat hoisted, -quite forgetting that it is the fault of the admiral or captain -that the duties are done badly or are not carried out according -to their satisfaction. The admiral is responsible for the -whole administration, smartness and efficiency of his Fleet; -the captains are responsible for the whole administration, -smartness and efficiency of their ships. In the Royal Navy, -officers and men are loyal to the core, and everything that is -done badly is due to the senior officer of the Fleet or of the -ship not giving his orders clearly, and not showing -beforehand what he wants done, and how it is to be done. -</p> - -<p> -The admiral should never give an order relative to -routine or administration without seeing that it is obeyed. -Many orders given in a memorandum or circular are -forgotten after the first few weeks or months, and so they -lapse. -</p> - -<p> -An officer should be told off to summarise and report -that such orders have been carried out during the preceding -week. -</p> - -<p> -It is of no use for the admiral to give orders and -directions unless he sees that they are actually carried out -in the manner he intended. -</p> - -<p> -If the admiral is not careful that all orders of his own -and of the Admiralty are punctually obeyed, he will find -that some captains accurately carry out the order and some -do not. This irregularity causes discontent in some ships -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P564"></a>564}</span> -and slackness in others, disturbing that harmony which -should prevail in a fleet. A "happy-go-lucky" method -breeds irritation. -</p> - -<p> -If papers are ordered to be sent in, or drills are ordered -to be carried out, or if any matter connected with the Fleet -is ordered to be undertaken at some future date, the admiral -should always make a signal or reminder some days before the -date. The argument that a man "<i>ought</i> to know and <i>ought</i> -not to forget" does not prevent irritation if he <i>does</i> forget. -</p> - -<p> -If an officer or man is slack, he should always be found -fault with; it distresses the good officers and men to see that -a slack individual gets along as well as those that are smart. -</p> - -<p> -If the admiral observes anything incorrect relative to -individuals in a ship's company, such as dress, etc., he -should inquire whether the irregularity is common to the -ship, and have this irregularity corrected right through the -ship. Failing this method, he may be often finding fault on -the same point, instead of having the whole matter put right -by one signal or memorandum. -</p> - -<p> -The admiral should often look over his own station -orders to remind himself of the orders he has issued. -</p> - -<p> -An admiral should, if possible, always send written -messages to officers, in order to avoid constantly sending for -officers. He should always date the messages. This maxim -applies to the admiral's flagship as well as to other ships. -</p> - -<p> -Sending messages verbally may cause great irritation, -and may be prejudicial to discipline, for two distinct -reasons:— -</p> - -<p> -(i) The messenger may give the message in terms -which are very irritating. Every one on the bridge -hears the message delivered. -</p> - -<p> -(ii) Human nature being what it is, the admiral, -like other people, may be in a state of irritation, -more particularly if he wants a thing done quickly -or if he thinks that things are not being done well. -He is not so likely to blurt out some rough and -irritating expression if he writes the message or order. -</p> - -<p> -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P565"></a>565}</span> -</p> - -<p> -In addition, it is neither good for discipline nor congenial -to that respect which is shown to officers, if the signalman -or others hear a rough message delivered to the chief of -the staff, captain, or other officers. -</p> - -<p> -The admiral should always let the Fleet under his -command know beforehand the time which he intends to -carry out practices, or to anchor or to weigh the Fleet. This -rule particularly applies to the hours set apart for meals. -Disturbance in the middle of meals causes needless irritation, -and work never goes well in a man-of-war or anywhere else -under irritation. -</p> - -<p> -Admirals should as far as is possible let the officers and -men of the Fleet know the dates of arrivals and departures -from ports, so that all should be in a position to -communicate with their friends and to arrange their private -affairs conveniently. -</p> - -<p> -If the admiral intends to be afloat with his flag flying -very near the dinner-hour, or at any time that station orders -annul guards and bands, he should signal "Annul Guards -and Bands." Without such signal some ships are certain -to turn them up while others will not do so, causing -confusion. -</p> - -<p> -<i>When the admiral is inspecting a division of men, all -ratings should take off their caps</i>. The admiral should -first inspect the chief petty officers and petty officers, and -when he has done these ratings should be ordered to put -on their caps. By so doing, the fact is emphasised that -the petty officer's position in the ship is superior, and that -the admiral recognises it to be so. -</p> - -<p> -The admiral should see the sick in hospital constantly. -His visit cheers the men, and shows them that the admiral -knows that they are sick, and that he sympathises with them. -There have been many cases where the interest shown by the -admiral in a man who is dangerously ill has so cheered the -patient that he has taken a turn for the better and has -ultimately recovered. -</p> - -<p> -If a serious accident occurs on board any ship, either at -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P566"></a>566}</span> -drill or in the execution of other duty whereby officers or -men are killed or wounded, the admiral should inform the -whole Fleet with regret, giving the names of officers and men. -This procedure is respectful to those under his command who -are killed or wounded in the execution of their duty. They -have suffered or died for their country just as much as though -killed or wounded in action with the enemy. The admiral -should personally go and see the wounded daily, if possible. -</p> - -<p> -An admiral should let his officers know that he expects -everything on board the ships to be shipshape, that is to say, -kept in such condition and order as befits one of His -Majesty's ships of war. -</p> - -<p> -The admiral should always give as much leave as possible, -having regard to the exigencies of the service and of duty. -A free gangway for special leave men should be kept at all -possible places, so that one watch can always go ashore daily -if they are so minded. -</p> - -<p> -Trouble with regard to breaking leave and drunkenness is -generally brought about by want of discretion on the part of -the commanding officer in giving leave. Keeping men on -board for long periods, and then letting them go ashore with -a great deal of money, involves the temptation to some to -break leave, and to others to drink more than is good for -them. -</p> - -<p> -A free gangway is thoroughly appreciated by the men. -The fact that they can go ashore if they like often conduces -to their health and comfort, and does not provoke that -irritation caused by the knowledge that leave cannot be given. -</p> - -<p> -A man who breaks his leave, and so allows other -men to do his work, should be placed in a "Break Leave -Party," and given any extra jobs of work that may require -execution, in order to make up for the time he has lost. -Men in the "Break Leave Party" should be mustered every -two hours from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the discretion of the -captain, according to the number of hours they have allowed -other men to do their work. -</p> - -<p> -This mustering should continue on a scale of two days for -<span class="pagenum">{<a id="P567"></a>567}</span> -every hour of absence, but a total of fourteen days should not -be exceeded. -</p> - -<p> -The foregoing arrangement should not be considered as -punishment, but as making up the time lost to the State by -the men's absence from their duties, which left other men -to do their work, and should therefore not be entered in the -daily record. -</p> - -<p> -A general leave man who persistently breaks his leave -should be put in the limited leave list, and the time and place -at which he should be allowed ashore should be entirely -at the discretion of the captain, and if possible he should not -be allowed ashore when the rest of the ship's company are -on leave. -</p> - -<p> -When a notorious leave-breaker goes on leave, it is well -to send ashore a description, upon which are noted the hour -and the date upon which he should again be aboard his ship. -By this means he is often recovered before he has broken -his leave for any length of time. -</p> - -<p> -First-class petty officers should always be given leave -when chief petty officers get leave. The former are generally -far older men, and have had longer experience in the Service -than most chief petty officers. -</p> - -<p> -Badge-men and "men who have never broken their -leave in the ship" should be given leave whenever possible. -Plenty of liberty reduces break-leave to a minimum, and also -reduces inebriety to a marked extent. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -Attention to the points of administration enumerated -above will go far to create in the Fleet, not only comfort -and happiness but, that constant readiness for emergency -which is the result of a high state of discipline. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap58"></a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum">{<a id="P569"></a>569}</span></p> - -<h3> -INDEX -</h3> - -<pre class="index"> - Abd-el-Al, <a href="#P171">171</a> - Abd-el-Hamid, <a href="#P282">282</a>, <a href="#P287">287</a> - Abu Klea, battle of, <a href="#P257">257-68</a> - A.D.C. to Prince of Wales, appointed, <a href="#P157">157</a> - to Queen Victoria, appointed, <a href="#P412">412</a> - Adeane, Commander, <a href="#P77">77</a> - Admiral, the making of, <a href="#P556">556-67</a> - Admiralty affronted, <a href="#P142">142</a> - confusion at, <a href="#P550">550</a> - documents stolen, <a href="#P348">348</a> - and Lord Charles' Soudan service, <a href="#P312">312</a> - Lord Charles appointed Junior Lord of, <a href="#P344">344</a> - reprimanded by, <a href="#P150">150</a> - resignation of Lord Charles, <a href="#P353">353</a> - Afterguard, <a href="#P13">13</a> - Aground, <i>Tribune</i>, <a href="#P61">61</a> - Ahmed Arabi, <a href="#P171">171</a>. See Arabi Pasha Mahomet, <a href="#P211">211</a> - Albania, strange adventure in, <a href="#P515">515</a> - Alexandria, action at, <a href="#P187">187</a> - attack on Lord Charles at, <a href="#P185">185</a> - fortifications at, <a href="#P187">187</a> - issue of proclamation, <a href="#P193">193</a> - operations outside, <a href="#P201">201-6</a> - police work at, <a href="#P191">191-5</a> - refugees from, <a href="#P186">186</a> - riot in, <a href="#P178">178</a> - squadron at, <a href="#P186">186</a> - troops assisting at, <a href="#P195">195</a> - visit to, <a href="#P371">371</a> - water supply failing, <a href="#P181">181</a> - Algeçiras Conference, <a href="#P514">514</a> - Ali Fehmi, <a href="#P170">170</a> - Alison, General Sir A., <a href="#P198">198</a> - American flag incident, <a href="#P58">58</a> - Ammunition, discoveries of, outside Alexandria, <a href="#P203">203</a> - Reserve, inadequacy of, <a href="#P370">370</a> - Animals on board ship, <a href="#P66">66</a> - Arab courage, <a href="#P265">265</a> - lad shot, <a href="#P197">197</a> - Arabi Pasha, <a href="#P171">171</a> - dismissed, <a href="#P181">181</a> - condemned, <a href="#P184">184</a> - Armament, secondary, essential, <a href="#P147">147</a> - Arms, defective, <a href="#P267">267</a> - Army, inclined to join, <a href="#P8">8</a> - <i>Arrow</i>, the affair of the lorcha, <a href="#P3">3</a> - Assouan, Lord Charles at, <a href="#P225">225</a> - Atlantic Fleet created, <a href="#P496">496</a> - Australia, voyage to, in <i>Galatea</i>, <a href="#P75">75</a> - Australian Squadron, suggested command of, <a href="#P469">469</a> - - - Bab-el-Kebir, <a href="#P223">223</a>, <a href="#P228">228</a> - Bahadur, Sir Jung, <a href="#P164">164</a> - Balfour, Mr., and need for War Staff, <a href="#P480">480</a> - Bare feet, <a href="#P16">16</a> - Baring, Sir Evelyn, <a href="#P215">215</a>, <a href="#P216">216</a> - Bayford School, <a href="#P5">5</a> - Bear, fight with a, <a href="#P540">540</a> - Bell, Mr. Moberly, <a href="#P187">187</a> - Benbow, Mr., <a href="#P300">300</a>, <a href="#P303">303</a> - commended, <a href="#P307">307</a> - Benicia, <a href="#P69">69</a> - Bentham, Deputy-Inspector-General, <a href="#P513">513</a> - Beresford, Admiral Sir John Poo, xxv - Commissioner John, xviii - Lord William, <a href="#P160">160</a> - Lord Marcus and the sharpers, <a href="#P531">531</a> - Marshal, xix - Bimbashi (camel), <a href="#P222">222</a>, <a href="#P236">236</a>, <a href="#P238">238</a> - Bismarck, a talk with, <a href="#P362">362</a> - <i>Black Prince</i>, <a href="#P42">42</a> - Blasphemy, <a href="#P18">18</a> - Boa constrictor killed, <a href="#P167">167</a> - Boar, encounter with, <a href="#P79">79</a>, <a href="#P168">168</a> - Boardman, Captain, commands naval contingent in Soudan, <a href="#P222">222</a> - appreciation of work of, <a href="#P223">223</a>, <a href="#P329">329</a> - Boat-pulling. See also <i>Gazelle</i>; <a href="#P7">7</a>, <a href="#P207">207</a>, <a href="#P497">497-507</a> - Boat-race, women's, <a href="#P29">29</a> - Boat-races, <a href="#P28">28</a>, <a href="#P152">152</a>, <a href="#P207">207</a>, <a href="#P497">497-507</a> - Boat-sailing, <a href="#P504">504</a> - Boiler of <i>Safieh</i> repaired, <a href="#P300">300</a>, <a href="#P303">303</a> - Boiler plates, <a href="#P252">252</a> - <i>Bombay</i>, burning of, <a href="#P146">146</a> - <i>Bordein</i>, s., <a href="#P283">283</a>, <a href="#P292">292</a>, <a href="#P293">293</a>, <a href="#P294">294</a> - <i>Bounty</i> Mutiny, <a href="#P86">86</a> - Bowles, Admiral William, <a href="#P6">6</a> - Boxers, famous, <a href="#P69">69</a> - Boyd-Carpenter's (Dr.) remarkable story, <a href="#P154">154</a> - Brabazon's, Colonel, account of attack on convoy, <a href="#P321">321</a> - Bradford, Major, <a href="#P162">162</a> - Brandreth, Commander Thomas, <a href="#P12">12</a> - "Break-up of China," <a href="#P426">426</a> - Bright-work discouraged, <a href="#P120">120</a> - <i>Britannia</i> training ship, <a href="#P6">6</a>, <a href="#P9">9</a> - officers of, <a href="#P7">7</a> - Brothers, Lord Charles Beresford's, vii - Browne, Major-General Sam, <a href="#P162">162</a> - Bull, incident of, <a href="#P290">290</a> - Bulldog, Lord Charles, <a href="#P146">146</a> - Buller, Sir Redvers, <a href="#P221">221</a>, <a href="#P222">222</a>, <a href="#P225">225</a>, <a href="#P229">229</a>, <a href="#P252">252</a>, <a href="#P317">317</a>, <a href="#P318">318</a> - <i>Bulwark</i>, flag hoisted in, <a href="#P508">508</a> - Burnaby, Colonel, <a href="#P256">256</a>, <a href="#P259">259</a> - death of, <a href="#P264">264</a> - Butt, Isaac, <a href="#P131">131</a>, <a href="#P342">342</a> - - - Cable, hemp and chain, <a href="#P12">12</a> - Cadet, Naval, appointed, <a href="#P11">11</a> - Cadets, training of, <a href="#P6">6</a> - <i>Cæsar</i>, flag hoisted in, <a href="#P493">493</a> - Calcutta, visit to, <a href="#P103">103</a> - Camel Corps equipment, <a href="#P237">237</a> - incident, <a href="#P225">225</a> - race, <a href="#P236">236</a> - Camels. See Bimbashi - invented saddle for, <a href="#P237">237</a> - repairing with oakum, <a href="#P328">328</a> - shortage of, <a href="#P278">278</a> - sufferings of, <a href="#P255">255</a> - Cameron, Mr., <a href="#P207">207</a>, <a href="#P270">270</a> - Cannibal, talk with, <a href="#P80">80</a> - Canton, bombardment of, <a href="#P4">4</a> - Cape Town, visit to, <a href="#P186">186</a> - <i>Captain</i>, disaster to, <a href="#P49">49</a> - <i>Carysfort</i>, <a href="#P209">209</a> - Casualties of Desert Column, <a href="#P279">279</a> - Cawnpore Memorial, Prince's visit to, <a href="#P168">168</a> - Certificate, signing of, <a href="#P5">5</a> - Ceylon, climate of, <a href="#P104">104</a> - Changes in Channel, Nore, and Home Fleets, <a href="#P552">552</a> - in shipbuilding, <a href="#P48">48</a> - proposed, <a href="#P396">396</a> - Channel Fleet, in command of, <a href="#P485">485</a>, <a href="#P550">550</a> - reductions and changes, <a href="#P551">551</a> - Royal visit to, <a href="#P554">554</a> - Channel Squadron (1863), <a href="#P42">42</a> - Chaplain, influence of, <a href="#P19">19</a> - Chatham Dockyard, appointment at, <a href="#P393">393</a> - terminates, <a href="#P400">400</a> - Chefoo, <a href="#P447">447</a> - <i>Chicago</i>, <a href="#P398">398</a> - Chicago, Lord Charles at, <a href="#P459">459</a> - China, inspection of armies in, <a href="#P440">440-44</a> - Lord Charles sails for, <a href="#P424">424</a> - summary of reforms advocated, <a href="#P451">451</a> - Chinese Army, scheme of reorganisation, <a href="#P437">437</a> - commercial integrity, <a href="#P102">102</a> - Ching, Prince, <a href="#P435">435</a> - Cholera at Calcutta, <a href="#P103">103</a> - Churchill, Lord Randolph, resignation of, <a href="#P352">352</a> - Clifton, Captain, <a href="#P116">116</a> - <i>Clio</i>, <a href="#P48">48</a>, <a href="#P51">51</a> - Clippers, famous opium, <a href="#P117">117</a> - Coal in Vancouver, discovery of, <a href="#P60">60</a> - Cockfighting at Manila, <a href="#P102">102</a> - Cockroaches, racing, <a href="#P52">52</a> - Coffer-dam, <a href="#P492">492</a> - Coincidence, <a href="#P103">103</a>, <a href="#P160">160</a> - Columns. See Desert, and Nile - Colvin, Mr. Auckland, <a href="#P172">172</a> - Command, first independent, <a href="#P120">120</a> - Commendations, special, <a href="#P70">70</a>, <a href="#P198">198</a>, <a href="#P206">206</a>, <a href="#P235">235</a> - Compensation to Alexandrians, <a href="#P199">199</a> - <i>Condor</i>, action of, at Alexandria, <a href="#P187">187</a> - appointed to, <a href="#P156">156</a>, <a href="#P186">186</a> - gives up command of, <a href="#P206">206</a> - signal to, <a href="#P189">189</a> - Constituencies, invitations from, <a href="#P398">398</a>, <a href="#P415">415</a> - Convicts at Perth, <a href="#P75">75</a> - Convoy, attack on, <a href="#P320">320</a> - Coode, Captain Trevenen P., <a href="#P65">65</a> - Cordite, danger of heat, <a href="#P465">465</a> - Corfu, <a href="#P32">32</a> - Correspondent, newspaper, troublesome, <a href="#P198">198</a> - desire to act as, <a href="#P207">207</a> - shot, <a href="#P275">275</a> - Council of Defence, <a href="#P398">398</a>, <a href="#P414">414</a> - Courage of Arabs, <a href="#P265">265</a> - Court-martial, trial by, <a href="#P367">367</a> - Crete, insurrection in, <a href="#P427">427-31</a> - Cruisers, deficiency of, <a href="#P144">144</a> - Crutchley, General, <a href="#P278">278</a> - Curraghmore, description of, viii-xii - Custance, Admiral Sir R. N., <a href="#P550">550</a> - - - Dacres, Rear-Admiral Sydney C., <a href="#P12">12</a> - Dal Cataract, Lord Charles at, <a href="#P243">243</a> - Dawson, Lieutenant Douglas, <a href="#P291">291</a> - Daymen, <a href="#P14">14</a> - Decapitation in Japan, <a href="#P101">101</a> - <i>Defence</i>, <a href="#P41">41</a> - Defence, Council of. See Council - Delaval, Lord, death of, <a href="#P548">548</a> - Delavals, the, xvi - Democracy and war, <a href="#P494">494</a>, <a href="#P495">495</a> - Denman, Rear-Admiral the Hon. J., <a href="#P65">65</a> - Desert Column, <a href="#P220">220</a>, <a href="#P246">246</a>, <a href="#P247">247</a>, <a href="#P248">248</a> - casualties, <a href="#P279">279</a> - composition of, <a href="#P253">253</a> - in disorder, <a href="#P272">272</a> - march back to Korti, <a href="#P324">324</a> - Sir R. Buller's dispatch <i>re</i>, <a href="#P319">319</a> - zeriba, <a href="#P275">275</a> - Desertions at San Francisco, <a href="#P69">69</a> - Diaz, visit to President, <a href="#P550">550</a> - Discipline, <a href="#P14">14</a>, <a href="#P142">142</a> - reform of, <a href="#P17">17</a> - Discomforts of the Old Navy, <a href="#P19">19</a> - of Nile steamer, <a href="#P224">224</a> - of the Nile, <a href="#P242">242</a> - Disgrace, in, <a href="#P26">26</a> - Disraeli, memories of, <a href="#P139">139</a> - on the party system, <a href="#P139">139</a> - Dockyard appointment, <a href="#P393">393</a> - Dowell, Rear-Admiral Wm., <a href="#P505">505</a>, <a href="#P506">506</a> - Doyle, Sir Hastings, <a href="#P153">153</a> - Dress, the sailor's, <a href="#P19">19</a> - Drunkenness, <a href="#P17">17</a>, <a href="#P31">31</a> - Dufferin, Lord, <a href="#P374">374</a> - Dunsmuir, Mr., <a href="#P60">60</a> - Duties, various, of a ship's crew, <a href="#P13">13</a> - - - Earle, General, killed, <a href="#P319">319</a> - East Marylebone, elected for, <a href="#P336">336</a> - Eden, Captain Charles, <a href="#P5">5</a>, <a href="#P34">34</a> - Edinburgh, Duke of, attempt to assassinate, <a href="#P73">73</a> - visit to Japan of, <a href="#P100">100</a> - Edward, King. See King - Egyptian War, beginning of trouble, <a href="#P170">170</a> - Election incidents, <a href="#P336">336</a>, <a href="#P337">337</a> - Elephant hunting, <a href="#P164">164</a>, <a href="#P536">536-8</a> - in <i>Galatea</i>, <a href="#P109">109</a> - Elephants, regiment of, <a href="#P167">167</a> - El-Teb, <a href="#P216">216</a> - Emma, Queen, <a href="#P57">57</a> - Empress Dowager, <a href="#P420">420</a> - Engine, repairing, <a href="#P226">226</a> - Essays by officers, <a href="#P466">466</a>, <a href="#P468">468</a> - Estimate of naval needs, <a href="#P358">358</a> - Estimates, signing the, <a href="#P356">356</a>. See Navy - Etiquette, naval, <a href="#P1">1</a> - <i>Eurydice</i> training frigate, <a href="#P6">6</a> - capsizing of, <a href="#P154">154</a> - remarkable story <i>re</i>, <a href="#P155">155</a> - Examination for Navy, <a href="#P6">6</a> - <i>Excellent</i>, <a href="#P71">71</a> - Execution of murderer, <a href="#P54">54</a> - Experience in routine work, etc., necessity of, <a href="#P146">146</a> - Explosion of gun-cotton, <a href="#P204">204</a> - of shell from <i>Condor</i>, <a href="#P208">208</a> - on <i>Thunderer</i>, <a href="#P148">148</a> - - - Falkland Islands, <a href="#P53">53</a> - Family history. See History - home. See Curraghmore memorials, ix - Farm, model, <a href="#P399">399</a> - Fayrer, Surgeon-General, <a href="#P163">163</a> - <i>Fersaat</i>, <a href="#P224">224</a> - Fight at Malta, <a href="#P31">31</a> - over boat-race, <a href="#P29">29</a> - Fisher, Captain John, <a href="#P190">190</a> - Sir John, improvements in Mediterranean fleet, <a href="#P467">467</a> - Fishing incidents, <a href="#P544">544-7</a> - Fit, keeping, <a href="#P107">107</a> - Fitzgerald, Admiral Penrose, <a href="#P49">49</a>, <a href="#P54">54</a>, <a href="#P505">505</a> - Flag rank, earlier promotion to, advocated, <a href="#P404">404</a>, <a href="#P483">483</a> - Flogging abolished, <a href="#P17">17</a> - question of, <a href="#P144">144</a> - Forecastlemen, <a href="#P13">13</a> - Foretopmen, <a href="#P13">13</a> - Forging of cheques, <a href="#P75">75</a>, <a href="#P83">83</a> - Freemason, made a, <a href="#P108">108</a> - French, Sir John, <a href="#P280">280</a> - - - <i>Galatea</i>, <a href="#P73">73</a> - diversion, <a href="#P108">108</a> - in Japan, <a href="#P100">100</a> - Gardner gun, <a href="#P252">252</a>, <a href="#P276">276</a>, <a href="#P300">300</a>, <a href="#P308">308</a> - jamming of, <a href="#P263">263</a> - Gardner, Miss, engagement to, <a href="#P154">154</a> - Gascoigne, Captain, <a href="#P302">302</a>, <a href="#P304">304</a>, <a href="#P306">306</a> - <i>Gazelle</i>, <a href="#P7">7</a> - Gemai, <a href="#P229">229</a> - Germany's, Emperor of, visit to Gibraltar, <a href="#P493">493</a> - visit to Skagen, <a href="#P554">554</a> - Gibbs, Flag-Lieutenant, <a href="#P551">551</a>, <a href="#P554">554</a> - Gibraltar, <a href="#P370">370</a> - Emperor of Germany visits, <a href="#P493">493</a> - Gillford, Captain, <a href="#P60">60</a> - Gladstone, Mr. W. E., <a href="#P33">33</a> - and compensation to Alexandrians, <a href="#P199">199</a> - Glanville, John, <a href="#P11">11</a>, <a href="#P28">28</a> - Gleichen, Count, <a href="#P237">237</a>, <a href="#P248">248</a>, <a href="#P277">277</a> - Gordon, General, <a href="#P214">214</a>, <a href="#P215">215</a> - urgent messages from, <a href="#P216">216</a>, <a href="#P217">217</a>, <a href="#P219">219</a>, <a href="#P234">234</a>, <a href="#P250">250</a> - letters from, <a href="#P282">282</a> - steamers sent by, <a href="#P283">283</a> - death of, <a href="#P291">291</a> - Goschen, Mr., conversation with, <a href="#P359">359</a> - <i>Goshawk</i>, <a href="#P120">120</a> - Graham, Major-General Sir G., <a href="#P215">215</a>, <a href="#P216">216</a>, <a href="#P332">332</a> - Sir James, <a href="#P9">9</a> - Grenfell, Vice-Admiral Sir H., <a href="#P515">515</a> - Gubat, Desert Column at, <a href="#P278">278</a> - Gun-cotton, explosion of, <a href="#P204">204</a> - Gun explosion on <i>Thunderer</i>, <a href="#P148">148</a> - Gunners, <a href="#P13">13</a> - Gunnery, British and American, <a href="#P67">67</a> - in the <i>Marlborough</i>, <a href="#P20">20</a> - on China station, <a href="#P466">466</a> - Gun Reserve, inadequacy of, <a href="#P370">370</a> - - - Hall's, Captain W. H., recommendations, <a href="#P361">361</a> - Hamilton, Lord George, on Lord Charles' resignation, <a href="#P354">354</a> - Sir R. Vesey, <a href="#P404">404</a> - Hammill, Commander, <a href="#P221">221</a>, <a href="#P226">226</a> - <i>Hannibal</i> rams <i>Prince George</i>, <a href="#P400">400</a> - Hara-kiri, <a href="#P91">91</a> - Harris, Captain Robert, <a href="#P6">6</a>, <a href="#P7">7</a>, <a href="#P10">10</a> - Sir Augustus, <a href="#P399">399</a> - Hartington, Lord, telegram from, <a href="#P317">317</a> - Haulage of boats on Nile. See Whaleboats, and Steamers - Hawsers, wire, first used, <a href="#P154">154</a> - Heaton, Mr. Henniker, <a href="#P417">417</a> - Lieutenant W. H., <a href="#P8">8</a> - <i>Hecla</i>, torpedo school, <a href="#P369">369</a> - <i>Hercules</i>, <a href="#P49">49</a> - <i>Hibernia</i>, <a href="#P33">33</a> - Hicks Pasha and staff, <a href="#P213">213</a> - Hildyard, General Sir H., <a href="#P8">8</a> - History of family, xii-xxii - <i>Hohenzollern</i>, <a href="#P545">545</a> - Home Fleet, <a href="#P552">552</a> - of family. See Curraghmore - Hornby's, Admiral Phipps, views on, Cabinet and Sea Lords, <a href="#P355">355</a> - Horse-racing and riding, <a href="#P518">518-34</a> - Horses, runaway, <a href="#P76">76</a> - saving, <a href="#P206">206</a> - Hot springs in New Zealand, <a href="#P79">79</a> - <i>Howe</i>, salving of, <a href="#P395">395</a> - Humour, Irish, <a href="#P72">72</a> - Hunting, <a href="#P71">71</a>, <a href="#P520">520</a>, <a href="#P522">522-5</a> - Hurricane (Pampero) at Buenos Aires, <a href="#P70">70</a> - at Port Mercy, <a href="#P56">56</a> - at Vancouver, <a href="#P68">68</a> - - - Idlers, <a href="#P14">14</a> - Illumination of <i>Marlborough</i>, <a href="#P33">33</a> - <i>Illustrious</i> training ship, <a href="#P6">6</a>, <a href="#P9">9</a> - Imperial Defence, committee of, <a href="#P481">481</a> - Naval Defence, <a href="#P408">408</a> - Improvements, value of minor, <a href="#P365">365</a> - Incidents, amusing, <a href="#P5">5</a>, <a href="#P28">28</a>, <a href="#P47">47</a>, <a href="#P104">104</a>, <a href="#P108">108</a>, - <a href="#P113">113</a>, <a href="#P114">114</a>, <a href="#P115">115</a>, <a href="#P116">116</a>, <a href="#P117">117</a>, <a href="#P118">118</a>, - <a href="#P119">119</a>, <a href="#P133">133</a>, <a href="#P135">135</a>, <a href="#P136">136</a>, <a href="#P151">151</a>, <a href="#P153">153</a>, - <a href="#P163">163</a>, <a href="#P164">164</a>, <a href="#P169">169</a>, <a href="#P196">196</a>, <a href="#P198">198</a>, <a href="#P199">199</a>, - <a href="#P202">202</a>, <a href="#P223">223</a>, <a href="#P224">224</a>, <a href="#P225">225</a>, <a href="#P227">227</a>, <a href="#P230">230</a>, - <a href="#P290">290</a>, <a href="#P316">316</a>, <a href="#P329">329</a>, <a href="#P334">334</a>, <a href="#P336">336</a>, <a href="#P343">343</a>, - <a href="#P366">366</a>, <a href="#P371">371</a>, <a href="#P373">373</a>, <a href="#P392">392</a>, <a href="#P394">394</a>, <a href="#P415">415</a>, - <a href="#P416">416</a>, <a href="#P445">445</a>, <a href="#P470">470-7</a>, <a href="#P489">489</a>, <a href="#P511">511</a>, <a href="#P516">516</a>, - <a href="#P517">517</a>, <a href="#P519">519</a>, <a href="#P522">522</a>, <a href="#P523">523</a>, <a href="#P527">527</a>, <a href="#P528">528</a>, - <a href="#P529">529</a>, <a href="#P530">530</a>, <a href="#P532">532</a>, <a href="#P533">533</a> - India, visit of Prince to, <a href="#P157">157</a> - Ingram, Mr., <a href="#P286">286</a> - Instructions to Admirals in Egypt, <a href="#P177">177</a> - Intelligence Department. See Naval - Intervention, European, in Egypt, <a href="#P175">175</a> - Ionian Islands, <a href="#P32">32</a> - Ireland, rent question in, <a href="#P128">128</a> - royal residence in, advocated, <a href="#P412">412</a> - visit of Duke and Duchess of York, <a href="#P413">413</a> - Irish characteristics, <a href="#P136">136</a> - Irishman, a frenzied, <a href="#P197">197</a> - Irishmen in United States, <a href="#P458">458</a> - Irishmen's honour, <a href="#P553">553</a> - Irish politics (1872), <a href="#P129">129</a>, <a href="#P342">342</a> - Ismailia, journey to, <a href="#P200">200</a> - Ito, Marquess, interviews with, <a href="#P449">449</a> - - - Jackson, Mr. John, <a href="#P386">386</a> - Jakdul, <a href="#P249">249</a> - arrival of Desert Column, <a href="#P255">255</a> - Japan, in, <a href="#P100">100</a>, <a href="#P455">455</a> - Old, <a href="#P90">90</a> - Jokes, practical, <a href="#P28">28</a>, <a href="#P30">30</a>, <a href="#P56">56</a>, <a href="#P71">71</a>, <a href="#P113">113</a>, <a href="#P115">115</a> - Jones, "Ninepin," <a href="#P23">23</a> - José Salvatro, <a href="#P236">236</a>, <a href="#P244">244</a> - - - Kang Yu Wei, flight of, <a href="#P432">432</a> - Kanwah Island, <a href="#P77">77</a> - Keppel, Hon. Sir Henry, <a href="#P111">111</a> - Lieutenant Colin, <a href="#P300">300</a>, <a href="#P303">303</a>, <a href="#P306">306</a> - Kerry election (1872), <a href="#P128">128</a> - Khartoum, fall of, <a href="#P291">291</a> - in danger, <a href="#P213">213</a>, <a href="#P217">217</a>, <a href="#P221">221</a> - steamers start for, <a href="#P287">287</a> - Sir Charles Wilson's voyage to, <a href="#P292">292</a> - Khashm-el-Mus, <a href="#P285">285</a> - Khedive, appointment to staff of, <a href="#P206">206</a> - message of congratulation from, <a href="#P326">326</a> - in danger, <a href="#P190">190</a> - of Egypt. See Tewfik - Kiao-Chao, <a href="#P423">423</a>, <a href="#P447">447</a>, <a href="#P448">448</a> - Kinder, Mr., <a href="#P447">447</a> - Kingcome, Admiral, <a href="#P64">64</a> - King Edward visits <i>Bulwark</i>, <a href="#P514">514</a> - <i>King Edward</i>, H.M.S., hoists flag in, <a href="#P550">550</a> - Kitchener, Major, <a href="#P256">256</a>, <a href="#P334">334</a> - Korti, <a href="#P219">219</a> - Lord Charles' journey to, <a href="#P245">245</a> - Naval Brigade arrives at, <a href="#P252">252</a> - Kuang Hsu, Emperor, <a href="#P420">420</a>, <a href="#P422">422</a> - Kukri, <a href="#P167">167</a> - - - Land question in Ireland, <a href="#P130">130</a> - Leave, question of, <a href="#P486">486</a>, <a href="#P566">566</a> - Lesseps, M. de, protest of, <a href="#P102">102</a> - Lewis, Mr. George, <a href="#P22">22</a> - Li Hung Chang, <a href="#P445">445</a> - Line, crossing the, <a href="#P53">53</a> - Loan, demand for, <a href="#P338">338</a> - Twenty-one million, <a href="#P360">360</a> - London Chamber of Commerce, address before, <a href="#P386">386</a> - banquet to Lord Charles, <a href="#P462">462</a> - Lytton, Lord, <a href="#P159">159</a> - - - Machine guns, <a href="#P331">331</a> - M'Neill's zeriba engagement, <a href="#P332">332</a> - Magellan, Straits of, first ironclads to pass through, <a href="#P66">66</a> - <i>Magnificent</i>, building of, <a href="#P393">393</a> - Mahan, Admiral, <a href="#P376">376</a>, <a href="#P398">398</a> - Mahdi, death of, <a href="#P333">333</a> - Mahdi's skull, <a href="#P329">329</a> - Mahmoud Sami Pasha, <a href="#P171">171</a> - Maintopmen, <a href="#P13">13</a> - <i>Majestic</i>, <a href="#P485">485</a> - Malta, precautions against, <a href="#P512">512</a> - incidents at, <a href="#P30">30</a> - <i>Malwa</i> rammed, <a href="#P208">208</a> - Maniac, troubled by, <a href="#P236">236</a> - Manila, visit to, <a href="#P102">102</a> - Manning of ships, <a href="#P12">12</a> - Manoeuvres, lectures on, <a href="#P375">375</a> - Maoris, <a href="#P80">80</a> - Marabout Fort, <a href="#P187">187</a>, <a href="#P188">188</a>, <a href="#P189">189</a> - Marconi wireless telegraphy, <a href="#P414">414</a> - <i>Marlborough</i>, <a href="#P11">11</a> - outbreak of fire, <a href="#P14">14</a> - Marriage, <a href="#P151">151</a> - Martin, Sir Wm. Fanshawe, <a href="#P12">12</a> - and reform of discipline, <a href="#P17">17</a> - Massacre of foreigners in Egypt, <a href="#P176">176</a> - Masts out of proportion, <a href="#P32">32</a> - Mate, rank of, abolished, <a href="#P32">32</a> - Mauritius, arrival at, <a href="#P104">104</a> - May, Surgeon-General A. W., <a href="#P296">296</a>, <a href="#P307">307</a> - Medals received, <a href="#P44">44</a> - Mediterranean, appointed second in command, <a href="#P462">462</a> - appointed to command, <a href="#P508">508</a> - Fleet, improvements in, <a href="#P467">467</a> - Fleet deficiencies, <a href="#P463">463</a>, <a href="#P509">509</a> - haul down flag, <a href="#P469">469</a> - <i>Melita</i>, <a href="#P380">380</a> - Memorandum on Organisation for War, <a href="#P346">346</a> - Memorials, family, ix - <i>Memories of the Sea</i>, <a href="#P49">49</a>, <a href="#P54">54</a> - Merchant ships and signalling, <a href="#P382">382</a> - Mercy, Port, <a href="#P56">56</a> - Mernat, <a href="#P294">294</a>, <a href="#P296">296</a> - Metemmeh, attack on, <a href="#P281">281</a> - Mexico, visit to, <a href="#P548">548</a> - Mex lines, keeping the, <a href="#P201">201</a> - Middleton, Captain R. W., <a href="#P21">21</a> - Midwife, acting as, <a href="#P186">186</a> - Mikado, visit to, <a href="#P100">100</a> - Military instruction in schools, <a href="#P482">482</a> - Mine-dropping experiments, <a href="#P369">369</a> - Mines, trawlers to sweep for, <a href="#P554">554</a> - Mizentopmen, <a href="#P13">13</a> - Montagu's, the Hon. V., Reminiscences of Sir H. Keppel, <a href="#P111">111</a> - Montgomerie, Lieutenant R. A. J., <a href="#P315">315</a> - Morant, Rear-Admiral, <a href="#P393">393</a> - Morley, Lord, and the Mahdi's skull incident, <a href="#P329">329</a> - Motor-car race, <a href="#P468">468</a> - Mullet, a huge red, <a href="#P153">153</a> - Mustard, a bottle of, <a href="#P323">323</a> - - - Nanking, Lord Charles' visit to, <a href="#P450">450</a> - Nares, Lieutenant George S., <a href="#P7">7</a> - <i>Nautilus</i> submarine, <a href="#P350">350</a> - Naval Brigade in Soudan, <a href="#P220">220</a> - casualties, <a href="#P267">267</a> - endurance of, <a href="#P328">328</a> - under Lord Charles, <a href="#P243">243</a>, <a href="#P252">252</a> - Naval Defence Act, <a href="#P385">385</a>, <a href="#P389">389</a>, <a href="#P397">397</a> - Intelligence Department (Commercial Branch), <a href="#P482">482</a> - formed, <a href="#P347">347</a> - need for, <a href="#P345">345</a> - salaries reduced, <a href="#P353">353</a> - Works Bill, <a href="#P406">406</a> - Navigation in <i>Marlborough</i>, <a href="#P21">21</a> - Navy Estimates, signing the, <a href="#P357">357</a> - of 1888 challenged, <a href="#P357">357</a> - Navy, 1859, numbers and description, <a href="#P2">2</a> - League founded, <a href="#P397">397</a> - Lord Charles enters the, <a href="#P2">2</a> - the New, <a href="#P48">48</a> - the Old, <a href="#P34">34</a> - <i>Nelson and his Times</i>, <a href="#P414">414</a> - Nepal, Prince in, <a href="#P164">164</a> - Newchang, <a href="#P447">447</a> - Newspaper correspondent. See Correspondent - New York, Lord Charles at, <a href="#P460">460</a> - Nile Column, <a href="#P220">220</a>, <a href="#P250">250</a>, <a href="#P319">319</a> - <i>Nineteenth Century</i>, article in, <a href="#P404">404</a> - Noel, Commander Gerard (Memorandum on Training), <a href="#P143">143</a> - Noel's, Captain, feat of seamanship, <a href="#P376">376</a> - Admiral, action in Crete, <a href="#P427">427</a> - Northbrook's, Lord, declaration <i>re</i> Navy, <a href="#P341">341</a> - North Sea incident, <a href="#P494">494</a> - Norwegian waters, cruise in, <a href="#P554">554</a> - Nucleus crew system, <a href="#P465">465</a> - Nuggar, wreck of Captain Gascoigne's, <a href="#P306">306</a> - Nuggars (native boats on Nile), <a href="#P227">227</a>, <a href="#P228">228</a> - - - Officers' pay inadequate, <a href="#P407">407</a> - Oil fuel, <a href="#P483">483</a> - Olden, Quartermaster, saves raiding party, <a href="#P316">316</a> - Omdurman, report of fall of, <a href="#P271">271</a> - "Open Door" policy, <a href="#P425">425</a> - Operations, delicate, <a href="#P317">317</a> - Organisation for War, <a href="#P344">344</a> - plans in Mediterranean Fleet, <a href="#P511">511</a> - Orhwalder, Father, letter of, <a href="#P311">311</a> - <i>Orontes</i>, <a href="#P159">159</a> - <i>Osborne</i>, <a href="#P159">159</a> - Royal Yacht, appointed to, <a href="#P151">151</a> - boat-racing, <a href="#P152">152</a> - Osman Digna, <a href="#P214">214</a> - Ottley's, Lieutenant, invention of mines, <a href="#P369">369</a> - - - Pampero, <a href="#P70">70</a> - Parkes, Sir Harry, attack on, <a href="#P97">97</a> - Parliament (1874), <a href="#P140">140</a> - Parnell, Mr., <a href="#P141">141</a> - Party system, views on, <a href="#P138">138</a>, <a href="#P139">139</a> - Pay of officers inadequate, <a href="#P407">407</a> - Pekin, arrival at, <a href="#P434">434</a> - Personnel, deficiency in, <a href="#P397">397</a>, <a href="#P403">403</a> - Petty officer rating, <a href="#P366">366</a> - Phillimore, Captain Augustus, <a href="#P41">41</a> - Physique, Lord Charles', viii - Pieter Both mountain, <a href="#P104">104</a> - ascent of, <a href="#P105">105</a> - Pig, riding a, <a href="#P528">528</a> - Piggott, Captain C. R., <a href="#P265">265</a>, <a href="#P267">267</a> - Police, appointed Chief of, <a href="#P191">191</a> - Political events (1873-80), <a href="#P122">122</a> - Politics in Ireland (1872), <a href="#P128">128</a> - Polo-playing, first, in England, <a href="#P525">525</a> - Portage of boats. See Whaleboats - Portraits, family, x - <i>Prince George</i>, accident to, <a href="#P490">490</a> - Prisons, Inspector of, <a href="#P76">76</a> - Probyn, Major-General, <a href="#P161">161</a> - Proclamation, issue of, <a href="#P193">193</a>, <a href="#P289">289</a> - Promoted, <a href="#P27">27</a>, <a href="#P64">64</a>, <a href="#P73">73</a>, <a href="#P110">110</a>, <a href="#P146">146</a>, <a href="#P169">169</a>, <a href="#P414">414</a> - Promotion dinner, <a href="#P169">169</a> - of officers, question of, <a href="#P144">144</a> - to flag rank earlier advocated, <a href="#P40">40</a>, <a href="#P404">404</a>, <a href="#P483">483</a> - Provisions, sending, to officers at front, <a href="#P207">207</a> - Prussia, Prince Henry of, <a href="#P448">448</a> - Punishments, <a href="#P17">17</a> - - - <i>Raleigh</i>, <a href="#P159">159</a> - wreck of, <a href="#P112">112</a> - "Ram," proposal to abolish the, <a href="#P396">396</a> - <i>Ramillies</i>, hoists flag in, <a href="#P462">462</a> - Ranches in Mexico, <a href="#P549">549</a> - Rating, alteration in, <a href="#P365">365</a> - Rations, meagre, <a href="#P18">18</a>, <a href="#P52">52</a> - Rent question in Ireland, <a href="#P129">129</a> - Reed, Sir Edward, <a href="#P50">50</a> - Rees, First Lieutenant W. S., <a href="#P364">364</a> - Reform of discipline, <a href="#P17">17</a> - of prison rules, <a href="#P76">76</a> - party in China, views of, <a href="#P434">434</a> - Reforms advocated in House of Commons, <a href="#P143">143</a> - in China advocated, summary of, <a href="#P451">451</a> - Reis threatened, <a href="#P296">296</a> - Repairs, ability to execute, <a href="#P392">392</a>, <a href="#P493">493</a> - new system in Mediterranean, <a href="#P512">512</a> - Requirements of the time, <a href="#P405">405</a> - <i>Research</i>, <a href="#P71">71</a> - Resignation from Board of Admiralty, <a href="#P353">353</a> - Review of 1897, <a href="#P409">409</a> - Richards, Sir Frederick, <a href="#P389">389</a>, <a href="#P478">478</a> - Riot in Alexandria, <a href="#P178">178</a> - River Column. See Nile - Roberts, Lieutenant, <a href="#P2">2</a> - Rojdesvenski, Admiral, <a href="#P494">494</a> - Ross, Mr. John, great assistance given by, <a href="#P195">195</a> - appreciation of Lord Charles Beresford, <a href="#P180">180</a> - Routine of work on the Nile, <a href="#P233">233</a>, <a href="#P241">241</a> - Royal Commission on Administration of the Navy and Army, <a href="#P355">355</a> - Family's interest in Navy, <a href="#P153">153</a> - Irish Regiment's fine march, <a href="#P317">317</a> - Marines, <a href="#P13">13</a> - heroism of, <a href="#P147">147</a> - Royle, Hon. Charles, <a href="#P172">172</a> - Russell, Dr. Wm. Howard, <a href="#P158">158</a>, <a href="#P163">163</a> - Russian Baltic fleet incident, <a href="#P494">494</a> - - - <i>Safieh</i>, s., <a href="#P283">283</a>, <a href="#P290">290</a>, <a href="#P291">291</a>, <a href="#P295">295</a>, <a href="#P314">314</a> - boiler injured, <a href="#P298">298</a>, <a href="#P303">303</a> - raiding expeditions in, <a href="#P314">314</a>, <a href="#P316">316</a> - Sail-drill in <i>Marlborough</i>, <a href="#P21">21</a> - Sailing feats, <a href="#P62">62</a> - Sail-making, <a href="#P62">62</a>, <a href="#P71">71</a> - Saint Paul's Cathedral, Dean of, and Leighton Memorial, <a href="#P410">410</a> - Salisbury, Lord, on policy in Egypt, <a href="#P179">179</a> - and Lord Charles' Memorandum, <a href="#P347">347</a> - Sandwich Islands, <a href="#P57">57</a> - San Francisco, <a href="#P69">69</a>, <a href="#P458">458</a> - <i>Sanspareil</i>, <a href="#P375">375</a> - Saving life, <a href="#P43">43</a>, <a href="#P44">44</a> - Scarborough, Channel Fleet visits, <a href="#P489">489</a> - School, Bayford, <a href="#P5">5</a> - Schoolfellows, <a href="#P5">5</a> - Schooner in distress, <a href="#P57">57</a> - Scott, Captain Percy, <a href="#P466">466</a> - Scrapes, getting into, <a href="#P26">26</a>, <a href="#P27">27</a>, <a href="#P28">28</a>, <a href="#P43">43</a>, <a href="#P45">45</a>, <a href="#P47">47</a>, <a href="#P59">59</a>, <a href="#P64">64</a> - Scurvy, <a href="#P55">55</a>, <a href="#P68">68</a> - Seamanship, <a href="#P7">7</a> - feat of, <a href="#P42">42</a>, <a href="#P376">376</a> - in the <i>Tribune</i>, <a href="#P62">62</a> - <i>Seignelay</i>, salving of, <a href="#P378">378</a> - <i>Serapis</i>, <a href="#P158">158</a> - Servants, two faithful, <a href="#P82">82</a> - Service in Soudan not credited to Lord Charles, <a href="#P312">312</a> - Seymour's, Admiral Sir E. H., book, <a href="#P149">149</a>, <a href="#P159">159</a>, <a href="#P395">395</a> - Shanghai, Lord Charles at, <a href="#P449">449</a> - Sharks, <a href="#P546">546</a> - Shendi, <a href="#P247">247</a>, <a href="#P285">285</a> - Shipbuilding programme required, <a href="#P338">338</a>, <a href="#P387">387</a> - transition from wood to iron, <a href="#P48">48</a> - Ship's personality, <a href="#P51">51</a> - Ships, weakness of, <a href="#P368">368</a> - Shooting incidents, <a href="#P535">535-43</a> - Shouting on deck, <a href="#P16">16</a> - Signalling incident at Alexandria, <a href="#P205">205</a> - value of knowledge of, <a href="#P374">374</a> - with merchant ships, <a href="#P382">382</a> - Signalmen, new drill for, <a href="#P466">466</a> - Smart, Rear-Admiral R., <a href="#P41">41</a> - Souakim-Berber route, <a href="#P216">216</a> - Expedition, <a href="#P332">332</a> - Soudan War of 1884, summary of, <a href="#P211">211</a> - preparations, <a href="#P217">217</a> - withdrawal of troops from, <a href="#P333">333</a> - Southwell, Lord, <a href="#P117">117</a> - Spearing fish, <a href="#P70">70</a> - Spencer programme, <a href="#P388">388</a> - Sport in India, <a href="#P103">103</a> - in Japan, <a href="#P101">101</a> - Sporting incident, <a href="#P77">77</a>, <a href="#P79">79</a> - Springs, hot, in New Zealand, <a href="#P79">79</a> - Squadron at Alexandria, details of, <a href="#P186">186</a> - Stealing stores, <a href="#P43">43</a> - Steam, prejudice against, <a href="#P20">20</a>, <a href="#P49">49</a> - Steam Reserve, appointed Captain of, <a href="#P393">393</a> - Steamers on Nile, haulage of, <a href="#P228">228</a> - sent by General Gordon, <a href="#P283">283</a>, <a href="#P284">284</a> - Stephenson, Admiral Sir H. F., <a href="#P209">209</a> - Stewart, Captain W. H., <a href="#P12">12</a> - Colonel, murder of, <a href="#P226">226</a> - Sir H., arrives at Korti, <a href="#P252">252</a> - wounded, <a href="#P275">275</a> - death of, <a href="#P326">326</a> - "Still" bugle-call, introduction of, <a href="#P16">16</a> - Sting-ray, a huge, <a href="#P153">153</a> - Stores, destruction of, <a href="#P323">323</a> - Stuart-Wortley, Lieutenant, <a href="#P256">256</a> - brings news of disaster, <a href="#P291">291</a> - voyage of, <a href="#P294">294</a> - Submarine, an early, <a href="#P68">68</a> - <i>Nautilus</i>, <a href="#P350">350</a> - Submarines purchased, <a href="#P464">464</a> - Suez Canal, purchase of shares, <a href="#P158">158</a> - Suffield, Lord, <a href="#P533">533</a> - Suite of Prince of Wales, <a href="#P157">157</a>, <a href="#P161">161</a> - Surf-playing, <a href="#P88">88</a> - Surgical operation, <a href="#P162">162</a> - Sutherland, Duke of, <a href="#P164">164</a> - <i>Sutlej</i>, <a href="#P64">64</a>, <a href="#P74">74</a> - - - Tahiti, <a href="#P87">87</a> - <i>Talakawiyeh</i>, s., <a href="#P283">283</a>, <a href="#P285">285</a> <a href="#P292">292</a>, <a href="#P294">294</a> - Talbot, Colonel the Hon. R., <a href="#P268">268</a> - march with wounded, <a href="#P320">320</a> - Tamaai, <a href="#P216">216</a> - Tarpon fishing, <a href="#P545">545</a> - Tattooing, <a href="#P101">101</a> - Telegram, delayed, <a href="#P244">244</a> - Tel-el-Kebir, victory of, <a href="#P183">183</a>, <a href="#P207">207</a> - Telephone, early working model of, <a href="#P150">150</a> - <i>Téméraire</i>, ashore at Alexandria, <a href="#P188">188</a> - feat of seamanship, <a href="#P376">376</a> - Temperance, an address on, <a href="#P511">511</a> - Teneriffe, flags at, <a href="#P47">47</a> - <i>Terrible</i>, <a href="#P466">466</a> - <i>Tewfikiyeh</i>, s., <a href="#P283">283</a> - Tewfik Pasha, <a href="#P170">170</a>, <a href="#P171">171</a> - Thompson, Colonel R. M., <a href="#P460">460</a>, <a href="#P488">488</a> - Three Admirals, the report of, <a href="#P362">362</a> - "Three Brothers'" race, <a href="#P520">520</a> - <i>Thunderer</i>, appointed to, <a href="#P146">146</a> - Tientsin, Lord Charles at, <a href="#P446">446</a> - Treaty of. See Treaty - Tokio, Lord Charles at, <a href="#P456">456</a> - Tombs, family, ix - Torpedo, the Whitehead, <a href="#P141">141</a> - Trafalgar Centenary celebration at Malta, <a href="#P513">513</a> - Training, new system advocated, <a href="#P143">143</a> - of Cadets, <a href="#P6">6</a>, <a href="#P7">7</a> - (Sir James Graham), <a href="#P9">9</a> - Training ship <i>Britannia</i>, <a href="#P6">6</a> - <i>Illustrious</i>, <a href="#P6">6</a> - Treaty of Tientsin, <a href="#P4">4</a> - <i>Tribune</i>, <a href="#P61">61</a> - Trincomalee, visit to, <a href="#P104">104</a> - Troopship service, <a href="#P159">159</a> - Tryon, Captain, <a href="#P159">159</a> - Sir George, <a href="#P371">371</a> - Tsung-li Yamen, visit to, <a href="#P435">435</a> - Turkish battleships, purchase of, <a href="#P145">145</a> - Turnpike incident, <a href="#P113">113</a> - <i>Turtle</i>, accident to, <a href="#P53">53</a> - Two-Power standard, <a href="#P360">360</a> - - - <i>Undaunted</i>, appointed to command, <a href="#P364">364</a> - as prize-winner, <a href="#P372">372</a> - high compliments paid to, <a href="#P382">382</a> - <i>Undaunted</i>, salves <i>Seignelay</i>, <a href="#P378">378</a> - touches a rock, <a href="#P372">372</a> - Uniform, lack of rules regarding, <a href="#P8">8</a> - United States, third visit to, <a href="#P484">484</a> - Squadron, visit of, <a href="#P488">488</a> - Unpreparedness for war, <a href="#P338">338</a> - - - Valparaiso, <a href="#P56">56</a> - bombardment of, <a href="#P66">66</a> - Vancouver, <a href="#P59">59</a> - Vesuvius, ascent of, <a href="#P476">476</a> - Victoria, Queen, and change of officers, <a href="#P152">152</a> - commended by, <a href="#P329">329</a> - congratulated by, <a href="#P206">206</a> - <i>Victoria and Albert</i>, Royal yacht, boat-racing, <a href="#P152">152</a> - Villiers, Mr. Frederic, <a href="#P187">187</a> - Voting in Parliament, independent, <a href="#P138">138</a> - Voyageurs, <a href="#P230">230</a>, <a href="#P241">241</a> - accidents to, <a href="#P235">235</a> - - - Wad Habeshi, <a href="#P296">296</a> - effect of fight at, <a href="#P309">309</a> - Wadi Halfa, <a href="#P219">219</a>, <a href="#P223">223</a>, <a href="#P225">225</a> - Wales, Prince of, appointed A.D.C. to, <a href="#P157">157</a> - at dinner to Lord Charles, <a href="#P169">169</a> - visit to Portsmouth Dockyard, <a href="#P152">152</a> - visit to India, <a href="#P157">157</a> - War plans in Mediterranean Fleet, <a href="#P511">511</a> - Warrant-officers, <a href="#P13">13</a> - <i>Warrior</i>, <a href="#P42">42</a> - War Staff, constituted, <a href="#P397">397</a> - need of, <a href="#P478">478</a> - Washington, Lord Charles at, <a href="#P460">460</a> - Watch, keeping, <a href="#P52">52</a> - Watch-bills, <a href="#P12">12</a> - Waterfall, shooting the, <a href="#P88">88</a> - Waterford, elected for, <a href="#P130">130</a> - lose seat, <a href="#P156">156</a> - members of Parliament, <a href="#P141">141</a> - Waterford, Lord, death of, <a href="#P2">2</a>, <a href="#P400">400</a> - Watertight compartments, <a href="#P396">396</a> - Wauchope, Major-General A. G., <a href="#P8">8</a> - Weakness in new steel ships, <a href="#P368">368</a> - Wei-hai-Wei, <a href="#P447">447</a> - Whaleboats on the Nile, <a href="#P221">221</a>, <a href="#P223">223</a>, <a href="#P227">227</a>, - <a href="#P229">229</a>, <a href="#P230">230</a>, <a href="#P231">231</a>, <a href="#P233">233</a>, <a href="#P235">235</a>, <a href="#P241">241</a> - portage, <a href="#P231">231</a> - White, Sir William, <a href="#P351">351</a> - Whitehead torpedo, <a href="#P141">141</a> - Wilkinson's, Mr. Spenser, "Command of the Sea" articles, <a href="#P397">397</a> - Wilson, Captain, <a href="#P375">375</a> - John Crawford, <a href="#P146">146</a> - Wilson, Vice-Admiral Sir A. K., <a href="#P485">485</a> - Wilson's, Sir Charles, book, <a href="#P253">253</a> - report of Abu Idea fight, <a href="#P268">268</a> - voyage lo Khartoum, <a href="#P292">292</a> - Wingate's, Sir F. R., letter to Lord Wolseley, <a href="#P309">309</a> - Wolseley, Sir Garnet, appreciation of - his campaign in Egypt, <a href="#P207">207</a> - appointed Commander-in-Chief, Soudan, <a href="#P218">218</a> - appointed to staff of, <a href="#P221">221</a> - arrival at Ismailia, <a href="#P182">182</a> - and staff at Cairo, <a href="#P221">221</a> - Wolseley, Sir G., at Wadi Halfa, <a href="#P234">234</a> - Woolwich, M.P. for, <a href="#P478">478</a> - Wyllie, Mr. W. L., <a href="#P399">399</a> - Wyndham's Land Act, <a href="#P342">342</a> - - - Yokohama, arrival at, <a href="#P100">100</a> - York election, <a href="#P415">415</a> - resigns seat at, <a href="#P462">462</a> - Yuan Shih Kai, <a href="#P421">421</a>, <a href="#P440">440</a> - Yung Lu, a talk with, <a href="#P438">438</a> - - - Zeriba of Desert Column, <a href="#P275">275</a> - Zohrab Pasha, <a href="#P225">225</a> -</pre> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="t4"> - <i>Printed by</i><br /> - MORRISON & GIBB LIMITED<br /> - <i>Edinburgh</i><br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /><br /></p> - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Memoirs of Admiral Lord Beresford, by -Lord Charles Beresford - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MEMOIRS OF ADMIRAL LORD BERESFORD *** - -***** This file should be named 50508-h.htm or 50508-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/0/5/0/50508/ - -Produced by Al Haines -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm -concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, -and may not be used if you charge for the eBooks, unless you receive -specific permission. If you do not charge anything for copies of this -eBook, complying with the rules is very easy. You may use this eBook -for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports, -performances and research. They may be modified and printed and given -away--you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks -not protected by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the -trademark license, especially commercial redistribution. - -START: FULL LICENSE - -THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE -PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK - -To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free -distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work -(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full -Project Gutenberg-tm License available with this file or online at -www.gutenberg.org/license. - -Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works - -1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to -and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property -(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all -the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or -destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your -possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a -Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound -by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the -person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph -1.E.8. - -1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be -used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who -agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few -things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works -even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See -paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this -agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below. - -1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the -Foundation" or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection -of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual -works in the collection are in the public domain in the United -States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the -United States and you are located in the United States, we do not -claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing, -displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as -all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope -that you will support the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting -free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm -works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the -Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with the work. You can easily -comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the -same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg-tm License when -you share it without charge with others. - -1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern -what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are -in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, -check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this -agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, -distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any -other Project Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no -representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any -country outside the United States. - -1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: - -1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other -immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear -prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work -on which the phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the -phrase "Project Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, -performed, viewed, copied or distributed: - - This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and - most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no - restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it - under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this - eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the - United States, you'll have to check the laws of the country where you - are located before using this ebook. - -1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is -derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not -contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the -copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in -the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are -redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply -either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or -obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg-tm -trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted -with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution -must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any -additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms -will be linked to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works -posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the -beginning of this work. - -1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm -License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this -work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. - -1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this -electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without -prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with -active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project -Gutenberg-tm License. - -1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, -compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including -any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access -to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format -other than "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official -version posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site -(www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense -to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means -of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original "Plain -Vanilla ASCII" or other form. Any alternate format must include the -full Project Gutenberg-tm License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. - -1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, -performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works -unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing -access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works -provided that - -* You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from - the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method - you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed - to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he has - agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid - within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are - legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty - payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in - Section 4, "Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg - Literary Archive Foundation." - -* You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies - you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he - does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm - License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all - copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue - all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg-tm - works. - -* You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of - any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the - electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of - receipt of the work. - -* You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free - distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. - -1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work or group of works on different terms than -are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing -from both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and The -Project Gutenberg Trademark LLC, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm -trademark. Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. - -1.F. - -1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable -effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread -works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project -Gutenberg-tm collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may -contain "Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate -or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other -intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or -other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or -cannot be read by your equipment. - -1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right -of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project -Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all -liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal -fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT -LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE -PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE -TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE -LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR -INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH -DAMAGE. - -1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a -defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can -receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a -written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you -received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium -with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you -with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in -lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person -or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second -opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If -the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing -without further opportunities to fix the problem. - -1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth -in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO -OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT -LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. - -1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied -warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of -damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement -violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the -agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or -limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or -unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the -remaining provisions. - -1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the -trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone -providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in -accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the -production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, -including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of -the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this -or any Project Gutenberg-tm work, (b) alteration, modification, or -additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any -Defect you cause. - -Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm - -Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of -electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of -computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It -exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations -from people in all walks of life. - -Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the -assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's -goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will -remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure -and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future -generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see -Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at -www.gutenberg.org - - - -Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation - -The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit -501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the -state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal -Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification -number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by -U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. - -The Foundation's principal office is in Fairbanks, Alaska, with the -mailing address: PO Box 750175, Fairbanks, AK 99775, but its -volunteers and employees are scattered throughout numerous -locations. Its business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, Salt -Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up to -date contact information can be found at the Foundation's web site and -official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact - -For additional contact information: - - Dr. Gregory B. Newby - Chief Executive and Director - gbnewby@pglaf.org - -Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg -Literary Archive Foundation - -Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide -spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of -increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be -freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest -array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations -($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt -status with the IRS. - -The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating -charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United -States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a -considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up -with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations -where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND -DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular -state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate - -While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we -have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition -against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who -approach us with offers to donate. - -International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make -any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from -outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. - -Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation -methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other -ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To -donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate - -Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. - -Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project -Gutenberg-tm concept of a library of electronic works that could be -freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and -distributed Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of -volunteer support. - -Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed -editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in -the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not -necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper -edition. - -Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search -facility: www.gutenberg.org - -This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, -including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to -subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. - - - -</pre> - -</body> - -</html> - diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-006.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-006.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index a2f6b36..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-006.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-012.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-012.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 4a960d3..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-012.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-064.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-064.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 3f5ffeb..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-064.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-074.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-074.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index e93a2b2..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-074.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-104.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-104.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 1b80206..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-104.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-114.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-114.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index f36d558..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-114.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-130.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-130.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 50e33a1..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-130.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-150.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-150.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 019e306..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-150.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-186.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-186.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 4a5b463..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-186.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-188.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-188.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 8a15194..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-188.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-192.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-192.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 8cee2f5..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-192.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-230.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-230.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index d893ff1..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-230.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-250.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-250.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index f25c8af..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-250.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-269.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-269.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 1e43ab6..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-269.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-306.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-306.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index eb88355..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-306.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-318.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-318.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 3545fd0..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-318.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-360.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-360.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 402652f..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-360.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-434.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-434.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index c34c498..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-434.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-550.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-550.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index b0d7d47..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-550.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-cover.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-cover.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index ea2630a..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-cover.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-front.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-front.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index a90efff..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-front.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-viii.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-viii.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 2446051..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-viii.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/50508-h/images/img-xxii.jpg b/old/50508-h/images/img-xxii.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 9b6048e..0000000 --- a/old/50508-h/images/img-xxii.jpg +++ /dev/null |
