IN A GERMAN SUBMARINE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVIII, Issue 288, 14 May 1915, Page 6

IN A GERMAN SUBMARINE.

>.AVAL OFFICER'S DKSCIiU'TiO.Y. The article was written by a l-i-rmau oliieer to popularise the subj. i : : i■ii: < • i!! (Ir-riiwny in view of the ■ !:h ri-.'.d ■" of Croat Britain. It lifts upi tared in fflwriil (.Yrinan newspapers: "l! '7 will take in provisions and ;'".r ','il fc.t. Kxlrome economical A 1k.4 ll.'iilciwiil, with acting rank of commander, takes the order in the gray dawn of a February day. The !n.!:c of an old corvette with the Iron ti'i-'S of IS7O i.:i her stubby foremast is his ijuarbrx in port, and on the corvette's deck lie is prcseutiy saluted by his jh'-'-t engineer and the oOicer of the watch. On the pier the crew of U-47 await Iniii. At their feet the narrow gray submarine lies a'ongslde, strainiug a little at her cables.

''Well, we've our orders at last," begins th.e commander addressing his crew of thirty, and the crew grin. For this is U-47's first experience of active service. She has done, nothii:;; save trial trips hitherto, and has just been overhauled for her first lighting eruise. tier commander snaps out a number of order.-;. Provisions are to be taken in "up to the neck," fresh water is to bo put aboard, and engine-room supplies to be HUoidrineiited. A mere pi,ink is the gangway to the little vess:!. As the commander, followed by his ol'iTjits, comes aboard, a sailor h.:i'i;ls to each a ball of cotton w:ute, the sir;:i and symbol of a sui>niariuL! ooiiar, which never leaves his hand. For the stojl walls of his craft, the door.-, and the companion-ladder all

ssw.at til, at every touch the Icimls roiwt bs wiped dry. The d«i»nv.i.v« mv d holis. Through one of Utn hblM nl't (ho c:>m;mim!>-r tV-su-h-l-i by ii breakneck iron ladder 1:11:j the Mad; ltolc lit by electric glow Unr,!*. The air is heavy v.'iih ihe t-1::;■ II of oi', and to (1>« unaccustomed. longshoreman it is almost choking, though (he halarc cii'. The submarine nr-i-i liroatlwii tbis air iu it v.w tlw purest ozone. iiero, too, are slung some hammocks . am! in them one watch tries, and, what j is more, .succeeds in sii rpin.e, the men moving about blimp them i v.'iih head ami elbow at every turn, j and the low and narrow vault is full of the hum and purr of machinery, in length the vault i.-i about ten feet, butj if a man of normal stature stands in the middle and raises his arms to about half shoulder height his hands will j touch the cold, moist Kteei walls on j either skb. Ane twork of wires runs overhead, and there is a jujsgferd outfit of handles, levers, and instruments. The commander inspects every thin# minutely, then creeps through a hole into the, central control station,, where the chief enginei r is at his post. Willi just about enough assistance to nm a fairly simple machine ashore the chief engineer of a submarine is expected io control, correct, and, if necessary, repair at .sea tin; infinitely complex jjhchinery which must not break down for ail instant if thirty men are to return ' alive to the hulk.

The commander pays a vi-it of inspection to the. torpedo-chamber ai:d strokes (lie smooth steel of the deadly "silver ii&h." His second in-command, who in in charge of the armament, joins him here and receives Ihir.l instructions regarding the torpedoes and the stowing of explosives. For thtorpedo is not only an extremely complicated weapon, but also a fine work of art, and it demands a very thorough apprenticeship. Forward is another narrow steed vault serving at once as engine-room and crew's quarters. 'Next to it is a place like a cupboard, where the cook lias just room to stand in front of his doll's house galley stove, it is electrically healed that the already oppressive air may not be further vitiated by smoke or funics. A (ierinan submarine in any case smells perpetually of coH'ce and cabbage. Two little cabins oi" the sir.e of a decent clothes chest take the deck and engine-room officers, four of them. Another boxcabin is reserved for the commander—when he has time to occupy it.

At, daybreak the commander com"; 011 deck in coat and trousers or black leather' lined with wool, a protection against oil, cold, and sea water. Th" crew at their station:! await the command to cast oil. ".Machines clear!' calls a voice from (lie control-station, "Clear Kliip.' snaps tlie order from (lie bridge. Then "Cast-off!'' The cables slap on to the landing .stage, the engines begin to purr, and U-17 slides away into open water. A few cable- lengths away another submarine appear.; ' homeward bound She is the U-20 returning from a long cruise in which she sncceded in shaking a ship bound with a cargo of frozen mutton for England. "Coed luck, o'il sheep butcher," sings the commander of U-17 as the sister-ship passes within hail. '

The seas are heavy mnv, and the U-i" lolls Unpleasantly as she makes the light-ship ar.d answers the last salute from u friendly hand. The I wo officer* on the bridge turn once to look at the lightship already astern, then their eyes look seaward. It is rough stormy weather. If the egg-shell goes ahead two or three days without a stop, the. officers in charge will get no sleep for just that long. If it. gets any rougher they will be tied to the bridge-rail to avoid being swept overboard. If they are hungry, plates of soup will be brought to them on the bridge, and the North Sea will attend to its salting for them. Just, as the commander is trying io balance a plate with one hand and use a spoon with the other, the watch calls '"Smoke 011 the horizon off the port bow." The commander drops his plate, shouts a short, crisp command and an electric alarm whirrs inside the eggshell. The ship buzzes like a hive. Then water begins to gurg'e into the ballast tanks, and U-47 sinks until only her periscope shows. "The steamship is a Dutchmen, sir." calls the watch officer. The commander

inspects Isur with the aid of a periscope. She has no wireless and is bound for the Oontini rit. f-'ii lie e.ui come up, and is jrhul, iKr.nnso moving under llie water rcmxnim* electricity, and the usefulness of ii submarine is measured by her electric power. After fifty-four hours of yaking ucrvo-tensioii, slryp becomes ,a necessity. (So the ballast-tanks are. tilled and the nut shell sinks to the sandy bottom. This is the time for sleep aboard a submarine, /.'cause a sha-piny man consumes less oxygen than one awake and busy. Ho a shomariiic man has three lessons to learn—to keep every f:!cu!ly at tension when lie is awake, to keep stern silence when he is ashore (there is a vrarim:;' against talkativeness in all the (ierinan railway carriages now), and to sleep instantly when hi' gets a legitimate opportunity. His sleep and the economy of oxygen may save the ship. However, the commander allows half an hour's "race for nio'-ie. There is a graiuaphone, of course, ami (he "ship's band' 1 performs on all manner of instruments. At worst, a comb, with a piece of tissue paper is pressed into service. If a ship is sunk, three men only in the submarine will watch her «o* A submarine might hitherto serve all his time like a blind man as far as the outside world is concerned. Just befojv the war one of a submarine's crew, about to be sen? ashore to join the r; serve, was asked by his commander if (here was anything he would specially like to celebrate his last trip. "Yes, sir," he said, "f should like just, once to have a glimpse with the periscope." The story went the. round mill now, during the war, the crew are occasionally summoned, one by to the periscope. Vi'luni opportunity offers they are also giv"n a chance lo see a merchant ship sunk. It is considered