New Britain Herald Newspaper, December 27, 1918, Page 7

L ADMIRAL LS RODMAN TELLS OF | * LONG WAIT FOR HUN FLEET| Commander of Sixth Battle Squadron Gives Vivid A count of North Sea Experiences and Tells of ew York Ceing Rammed by U-Boat 27.—Rear Admiral vho commanded the n Battle Squadron of the Grand Fleet, talked tor publica- tion for the first time in thirteen months yesterday afternoon. His talk related entirely to the Grand Fleet, of which the great squadron under his 4°mmand was one of the “fast Wings”; of Sir David Beatty, the com- mander-in-chief of the great allied armada, and of the Germans, whose ships, he said, ‘now lie at anchor in long symmetrical lines—helpless, in- occuous, and harmless.” The Grand Jleet, Admiral Rodman was “the very backbone of the structure which has made a victorious peace a certainty.” Many interesting and hitherto un- published facts concerning the war in the North Sea were disclosed by Ad- miral Rodman. For instance, he lot it be known that only a few months ago the Anglo-American battle squad- ns ame close to whatws then ha German High Scas Fleet that it was within a few miles of cutting the fleet of¢ from its base. On another oceasion a German submarine came within a hair's br of sending the flagship New York to the bottom, and on another occasion U-boats got so close to the New York _that they were able to fire three to pedoes at the great superdreac noug! Admiral New York, Dec Hugh Rodman, Sixth or Americ Rodaman was in his cabin on board the flagship New York when he told in sailor fashion the story of the events in which he and the officers and men under his com- wand played so important a part. Above his desk as he talled were the nutographed photographs of Admiral Heatty, Secretary Daniel King George, King Albert of Belglum and the Queen of Belgium. On a mahog- any stand nearby stood a glant silver loving cup the inseription on which reads: “To Hugh Rodman, from hi brother Admirals 6f the Grand Fleet Beneath the inseription are the names of all these brother flag officers, among them David Beatty Charles BMadd Montague Brownins, Ham J. Fergusson, de Robeck, an Napier and Ar- thur Lev Sea “I guess it is ighters Were Ready. but natural,” said Admiral Rodman_“that my thoughts | at this time are of the operations and “Activities of the hattleship force un- der my command, which, as vou, of course, know, constituted an integral part of the Grand Fleet in the North Sea. I want to say right at the be- cinning {hat when this country en- tored the war the United States Navy, under the administration of Mr. Dan- fels,was ready at once to enter upon its war duties and did so, and from the very beginning mitil the war was brought to a successful end it has ful- filled every single demand made upon it promptly and in the most complete and satisfactory mann You know, af course, that as 80N A8 We were {n the war our destroyers got under way and ‘headed- straight for the subma- rine nests to take part in the hunt for those posts. - Later we added patrol boats and then alreraft for the same purpose,’ afid M the ‘end they too, camé through with fiying co the i adopted their signals and ! within a adth, so to speak, | { Battle v duties they wére calldd upon to per- | ltably accomplished has heen service, form ost cre Likewise, the the overseas transport which Janded our army in France and kept that army supplied; the mining “#orce that laid the t mine bar- yage. In the North Sea, and of fthe splendid battery of naval suns co-operated with our army in I And 1 should also mention our na forces in the Adriatie, which bo eonspicuous part in the naval ope tlons in those waters. And now 1 come to the {Floet, of which the New Yorl Wyoming, Arkans Florida, which formed the Sixth Bat- tle Squadron, was a part. I should mention in this connection that a few months fter our entry into the war it became necessary to strength- n th Fleet of Great Britain; \d, accordingly, a divison of teships, under my command, sent to co-ope e with it This was just one year ago, and that have heen constantly on active service in the North & as a squadron of the Grand Flect. There were good and ufficlent reasons why this tion should hav been kept secret Juring the war, but now that it has snded be no objection to public operations efore giving morc of the de- o all-imsortant fact should be that all of these activi- re more or less independent, and 11l strive to accomplish the same end, and lead to the same goal, which is to .ommand the sea; to make it safe and tree for our own and our Allies’ ships, but to deny it to the enemy during the “ime of war. This is the ultimate ob- jeet of sea power, and it was accom- »lished so far as surface ships are con- erned to an absolute degree of per- story nce s, Nevada, and ince there can its ind tection. It is needless, in fact ¢ me to reiterate that spown and recognized throughout the {vilized world, namely, that it was he Grand fleet which has been the pery backbone of the structure whic pas made a victorious peace a cer- ainty. Without it there is no ques- jon that the war would long ago have #50en disastrously concluded with just he reversé e¢onditions obtaining from hose which now exist. Warm Praise for Admiral Beatty. X6 mention can be made of the firand fleet without my thoughts turn- Ing to its commander-in-chief. Ad- <miral Sir David Beatty, a man of rare fccomplishments, a natural-born, Iried, trusted and gallant leader. Un- tor him our combined forces operated, fust as later all informa- | by prompt told of | | propelier that. | | pedoes in | maneuvering | voy of were placed under the direction or command of Marshal Foch. ‘Now as to our operations with the Grand fleet. It need be only sufficient for me to say that when we joined we | our home and were at once, thanks to trainins, able to co-ordinate operate with the British fleet; order to work homogencously we methods of policies, took co- their tactic: communication, maneuvers and plans, that we that, in | The Substance or the Shadow? HESE tablets are both white. But only one contains genuino Aspirin. Handreds of medicinal products are sold in th, T aad piain white tablets are sometimes oficred when Avmirh For your additional protection —every package and Bayer-Tablets of Aspirin is marked with The Bayer Crous. ‘When you want Aspirin, make certalis X of Aspiria. Buy the substance. not the shadow, - 7 Cr TAPlets or Capsules They are cxactly the same size. lain white tablets, » asked for. very tablet of genuine Tha trade-mark “‘Aspiciv’* (Reg. U. S. Pat. OfL.) is a rantee that nosceticacks- ester of salicylicack in. those tablts and capsuies 1o of the relable Baver mamhas, our share of the work. patrol, search | and of protecting the convoys, mining and other forces; that sometimes we were commanded by British admirals, sometimes they served under my com- mand; that there was never the slightest friction, misunderstanding or petty jealousies, In fact, our mutual ssociation in this war's work has drawn us so close together that in the ' { Grand fleet it w instrumental in ripening friendship with brotherhood. “It is most gratifyving to state that very short time after joining and after our first operations with the Grand fleet we were assigned to one of the two places of honor and im- portance in the battle line. We were known and designated as the Sixth squadron, and, two so-called fast wings, statfon at the head or rear whole attleship force, upon certain conditions, to mention, when goin a matter of fact, when, of the dependent unnecessary into action. on one oc- casion we came within a few miles of cutting off from its base and engaging the German fleet, the disposition was such that the American Battleship d vision avould have been in the van and have led into action had the enemy not avolded action and taken refuge ehind his defenses, as usual, before wo could catch him. Hun Declines to Fight. “It was our policy to go after him every time he showed his nose outside of his ports; no matter when nor where, whether In single ships, by di- | visions, or his whole fleet, out we went, wil- | John | day or night, rain or shine (and there s mighty little daylight and much less shine in the winter months), blow high or blow low, and chase him back in his hole, So persistent was this per- formance on our part, so sure were we to get after him, that, toward the end, he rarely ventured more than a few miles from his base: and imme- diately we would start after him, back he would go in his hole, and haul his hole in after him. “BEvery Inducement was offered him to come out. Inferior forces were sent down into the Helizoland Bight to in- duce him to attack; valuable couvoys were dispatched apparently without protection, and other devices to terpt him out: but he would not come. Tt is needless to add that such expedi- tions. on every occasion, were well iarded. and we were ready to pounce on him with unseen forces had he at- tempted to take advantage of the eming small force or unprotected vessels. Rammed By U-Boat. “In our operations in the North sea we were frequently attacked by submarines, and omr battleships had numerous narrow escapes, often only and skillful handling. Oa one occasion a submarine rammed the flagship New York, dented the bot- tom, and demolished the starboard propeller. But there is every reason to believe that the blows from the sank the submarine. FEa route to dry dock to make repairs and install a new propeller, three tor- rapld succession were fired by hostile submarines. But > avoided them by clever and escaped. Once guarding or supporting a con- 30 or 40 vessels, on the coast in mid-winter, a bunch of at her again when of Norway ! hostile subs fired six torpedoes at us. bat- | was | we | Again only our vigilance and instan- taneous maneuvering saved us, but by a very narrow margin. There were still othc acks by submarines which necessitated quick action to avoid them “It would be superfluous to go into the details of our operatioas in the North sea; or to mention the rigor- ous climate, when the latitude is north of Sitka in Alaska, or about equal to that of Petrograd in Russia; or the terrific weather, the cold, sleet, snow, ice and heavy seas: the arduous and dangerous navigation; the con- tinuous crulsing in clase formation at high speeds, without lights, where the winter nights lasted 1 hours. Or the dangers of mine flelds, our owa some- times, as well as those of the enem: or the repeated attacks of hostile submarines on our battleships and the never-ending readiness and vigilaace of the whole flect to put ta sea on all but instant notice. Always Ready For Battle, “Let it be sufficient to say that dur- ing our absence of a Year there was no other condition than that of con- stant and continuous readiness for ac- tian. There was no liberty or leave worth mentioning: no one allowed away from the ships after dark, nor for a period longer than four hours, and then only ia the immediate vicin- ity of the ship, in signal or telephone communication, subject to recall. All ships were completely closed and darkened from sunset to suarise, as s precaution against air and other at- tacks; in winter this meant from 15 to 18 hours per day. This, in all but an arctic cimate, was one of our mmay hardships. But there was no com- | plaint; on the other hand, every one of the allled armies | i voemed happy and contented and all eager to go to sea every tiine the oo- casion demanded in the hope that we would meet the Hun flect and engage it. Let me add that with all of the demands which have been placed upon the ships of this division, in apite of this constant readiness for | siz as one of the | Size and would take | action, their maintenance, and efficlency under war conditions, with no general overhaul or repairs, have been maintained at such a high degree that it Is no exaggeration to say that, were they called upon to do so, they could steam around the world as they are now, and still ready to go into action “To glve an idea of the immense number af vessels emploved ia the Grand fleet, it might be of in- terest here to state that, entering or upkeep | leaving port, our column of ships, ex- cluding destroyers, was on an average about 65 miles long: on one occasion, 76 miles. Tts loagth was dependent upon weather and other conditions, Describes the Debacle, “After four years of war for the Grand fleet, and after we had been a part of it for the last year, there came the debacle, the Ilast scenc of the great drama. Not as we had all cxpected, as the successful termina- tion of a groat sea battle, but as an ignominious surrender without firing a gun. Surely no mare complete vie- tory was ever won, nor a more dis- graceful and humiliating end could have come to a powerful and much- vaunted fleet that which came to the German high seas fleet. Let me try to describe it. “The commander in chief of Grand fleet demanded and what actually amounted to an uacon- ditional surrender of the whale Ger- man navy. Under his orders the en- emy's ships were disarmed, ammuni- {ion landed, torpedo warheads seat ashore, breechblocks and fire-control instruments removed, and every of- fensive utility rendered innocuous. Then, with reduced crews, under the commahd of a German admiral, In one long calumn, the heav ships leading, the Flun fleet sailed for a designated rendezvous, to arrive at a specified time, just outside the Firth of Forth in Scotland, where the Grand fleet Jay at anchor. “Before daylight the Grand fleet was under way and proceeded to sea, heading east, in two six miles apart, our tleship force being in the middle of the northern line. A light British cruiser was directed to meet the Ger- mans, who were heading west, conduct them in between our two columns. “Let me diverge for a moment and recall to anyone who has been In China or the Phillippines the vicious- tha American bat- mesticated carabao has far a white man. How ready they are to attack, while aay native child can, with per- fect safety and impunity, go up to the most savage of them, take him by the nose, and lead him where he pleases. I was reminded of this when a little British cruiser rounded to ahead of the much-vaunted German high secas fleet, and hoisted the signal, ‘Follow me,” and led them down between aur columns, where our battle flags werae mast-headed, turrets trained toward the ememy, orews at battle stations, and all in readiness for any act of treachery that might be attempted. “At a prearranged signal our forces swung symmetrically through 180 degrees, and, still paralleling the en- veloped Germans, conducted them into a designated anchorage 1In the entrance of the Firth of Forth. Then came a signal to the commander In chief to the surrendered fleet: ‘At sundown lower your colors and do not hoist them again without permis- sion.’ Surely no greater humiliation could have befallen them after thelr frequent and taunting boasts and threats. “Helpless, Innoocuons, Harmless “There is little else to be told. Aft- er an inspection by British and Amer- jean officers tq gain assurance that tho ships were disarmed, they were sent in groups, under guard, to Seapa Flow, in the oold, dreary, bleak, God- forsaken harbor in the Orkneys where the Grand Fleet had spent many a dreary month and year, walting like ferocious dogs in leash, watching and waiting, to pounce on the German fleet should the opportunity ever oc- cur. Here the Germans now lie at anchor in long symmetrical lines, helpless, innocuous, harmless; their sting and bite removed, their national colors lowered for good and all as a token of submission to their masters. They are corralled ke wild and cruel beasts that have been hobbled, guard- ed by a single division of battleships. “Our mission has been successfully accomplished; the Gierman fleet is a thing of the past; the seas are safe and free to our own and our Allies’ ships. The value of sea pwer could have no better demonstiration. “After a year of strenuous and ar- duous duty, but duty which was most eagerly and gladly performed, our ¢hips have reached home across the ocean; not darkened and zigzagging to avoid danger from hostile forces, but with a blaze of lights turned on, and a feeling of perfect security and confidence, with hearts full of happi- ! ness and contentment that we are | onee more at home in God's country, be | | us by this war is as well as upon the number of ships. | | ended fa | years to come, | It has | ward bringing about a world’s received | battle- | e long columns, | and | ness of and antipathy which the do- | Your Guarantss of Purity and that we have contributed our mite to the winning of the war and done our part in demonstrating to our country that the maintenance of a strong navy bas not been in vain, but has borne abundant f{ruit and more than paid for liselr. “One of the greatest lessons taught that we must, for the preservation of our country's freedom and honor, for our right and liberty for peace and prosperity, build and maintain a navy that will insure us these blessings. “While there arc any other partments of the Government, as many civil and private enterprises, which contributed most abundantly to insuring a successful end to the war, and while all are more or less neces- sary and interdepcndent, an efficient and strong was ready at the very b the war, and which cannot be creat- ed overnignt, this war wouvld have differently from its presnt victorious conclusion. “Not only has our navy in the pres- ent war been largely instrumental in brinzing about and insuring these blessings to us, let many but more. contributed re to- peace, nd put our nation, our country, he lead, in the very forefront of the natiors of the earth, and in that ex- alted position to which the eyes of the world are now turned in admiration as thelr friend and guide in making this peace enduring.” Farewcll Dinne rto Beatty. Admiral Rodman, his staff, and the cers of the Anoughts of the Battle Squadron bade farewell to David Beatty on November 19. occasion was a dinner on the York in honor of Admiral Beat- On that occasion Admiral man, speaking for officers of his command, sald “It i3 truly impossible for me to ex- press to you, the commander-in-chiet and flag officers of the Grand Fleet the pride and honor which I and my fellow countrymen of the §th Battle Squadran feel for the great privilege which has been granted us of serv- ing for the last year as an integral part of your force, under cur most cofficient, genial, and well-tried com- mander-in-chief ,and with the others of the British navy. “It is needless for me to réiferate that which is known and recognized throughont the civilized world; name- ly, that it is the Grand Fleet which has been the very backbone of the structure, which has made a victori- ous peace a certainty. Without it the war would long ago have been disas- trously concluded, with just the re- verse conditions obtaining from those which now exist. “In addition to indisputably em- phasizing the value and necessity of sea power, and the command of the sea, the greatest lesson which this war has brought home to us is that, {hough we may have ben born under different flags and are accredited as belonging to different nations, vet {hese are more a matter of geograph- ic boundary or delineation than of real or important differences and that aftor all the same blood flows through our veins. We have the same ideals f rights, morals, and national liberty, and that when the time came to show this to our common enemy, we could not only unite under a single leader- ship but could co-ordinate and co- operate smoothly, easil pleasantly, without the slightest friction, and yet have an efficient and well adjusted force, ready for any emergency or duty for which it might be called up- on to perform. “1 shall always look upon the year spent in the Grand Fleet not only as one of the profitable, but particularly as one of the most pleasant agreeable of a lifetime, and can only ascribe it to the never ending courte- sy, help and assistance, which you, our commander-in-chief, and other flag officers, one and all, were ever ready to extend to us; particularly in the bezinning, when we wore more or less strangers to you and your ways, but who, if you feel as I do, have be- come more like true and friends, or even as brothers, between whom I trust and believe that the in- timacy and affection which has heen engendered by our mutual association and common cause will last forever afterward.” Admiral Rodman goés to Washing- ton today to confer with officials of the navy department. On January 6 or 7 the squadron will sall for the winter maneuver grounds off Guanta- namo, Cnba. SCOTT’S | EMULSION STRENGTHENS GROWING CHILDREN de- navy, which nning of us hope for it has done tts fair sh 6th Sir The New s well | yet without | Rod- | himself and the ! and | well-tried " Buy all the Thrift Stamps You Can Afford Before January Ist. WISE, SMITH & CO., . . Hartford EINVENTORY SALE ENTIRE STOCK WOMENS' AND MISSES COATS, SUITS, DRESSES AND FURS COMMENCING TOMORROW MORNING Offerings Positively Amazing Values in the Seasons Most Desirable Model Outergarments THE MOST DRASTIC PRICE REDUCING WE HAVE EVER INDULGED IN After mature deliberation we have decided that our immense stocks must be greatly reduced and quickly—and the best way we know of to accomplish a quick stock reduction is to mark prices ‘way down. So, we will not wait, but act now, and our patrons will greatly benefit thereby. 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