On the Sea

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXV, Issue 80, 8 April 1915, Page 5

On the Sea

THE BLOCKADE. A GERMAN ADMSSSSOM. LOSS OF SUBMARINE U 29 WITH ALL HANDS. United Press Association. (Received 10.5 a.m.) Amsterdam, April 7. The German Admiralty admit that the submarine 1*29 was lost with all hands. London. Apri 17. The Grimsby trawler torpedoed was the Acantha. The UlO's guns holed her amidships. The crew was fired on while launching the boats. Christiania, April 7. Experts have proved that the Belridge's damage was due to a German torpedo. MISCELLANEOUS. New York, April (3. The Eitel Freidrieh has been ordered to leave Newport. American warships, with searchlights,' are guarding the harbor, lest a breach of neutrality be committed by the British warships waiting outside. IN THE DARDANELLES, LUNCH BETWEEN SHELLS. HOW THE BOUVET SANK. A officer on board one of the warships in tho Dardanelles, writing home, says:—"We shipped Admiral de Robeek at Gibraltar on January .'ll, and were ordered to join the allied fleet.

"H.M.S. Cormvallis fired the first shot of the bombardment, opening on Kum Kaleh with her 12-inchers at a range of 6 miles. We could not see the target, as she was firing over a hill. Another ship was in position to receive the direct fire of the forts, but they did not start because she was out of range. H.M.S. Triumph was also out of range, and she battered Sed-dul-Bahr.

''Several French ships, bombarding the coastal forts to the sou'ward, did very good target practice. Then we relieved. The Cormvallis fired a few 12in. shells from each turret, and battered poor old ,Kum Kaleh a bit more. "We anchored, and adjourned for lunch, and when we resumed we closed in in order to use our Gin. guns'at 600 yards. We played away merrily, well within range of the enemy's shells, which were falling all round us. The spray badly splashed the admiral and the captain who were in the fore con-jing-ower.

"Although we sustained no direct hit, we had a hole knocked in the cutter, by a shrapnel splinter. There were no casualties. I think we did a good day's work. If we did not actually knock out the forts we must have given the Turks headaches. "Two Frenchmen took a hand, approached close, and made us pity the poor forts. They were simply battering them to pieces. We chipped in occasionally, and were lucky enough to hit one of their big guns, lifting it bodily into the air and throwing it backwards."

The Associated Press Correspondent telegraphed on March 18 from the town of Dardanelles, via Berlin: — "The great attack lasted for seven hours. At about 11.30 a.m. four French and five British battleships appeared, throwing the first shells into the town of Chauak Kelessi. A little later five other British ships entered the bay. "The bombardment was terrific, aud wonderfully spectacular. From the beginning the range of the AngloFrench gunners was excellent. 1 saw a shell land on the corner of Fort Kalesultani. It routed out a party of press correspondents. The area of lire became so extended that the correspondents at times were unable to obtain cover. The smoke was so thick that it completely blotted the horizon, and enveloped the particular fort under fire.

"At 3.15 p.m. tiio Bouvet was observed riding low by the stern. For about two minutes she held that posiion, and then settled by the stern. The bows wove clear of the water and pointing skyward. It was believed ashore that she bad struck a mine. A few minutes later a large Turkish shell struck a British vessel, cutting oft the foremast near the crow's nest, and apparently damaging the machinery. The vessel was seen to be experiencing difficulty in gaining the open sea. This was hardly over when another vessel was struck heavily on the deck. She was obliged to retire •under a galling fire. "The allied fleet's lire ceased at sun-

down. Chanak Kelessi was burning in two places. There was another fire across the water at Fvilid Balir. The Turkish gunners maintained their precision wonderfully even when literally buried with earth and debris. The Anglo-French vessels ventured within range of guns which until the present, had not been fired."