1953-06-27 — Page 11

THE CHINA MAIL, SATURDAY, JUNE 27, 1953.

ONE OF THE most famous names in the Navy, the man who laid the perfect trap for the battleship Schdrhhorst, pride of Gormany, and shattored and sank her in the Arctic on Boxing Day, 1943, now writes his first pårsonal reminiscence of the battle. His táctiès have been described as “a, model for the destruction of the enemy."

HE battle of the North Cupe WRA purely a naval e-

Τ

tion, for no aircraft

took part.

As a duel OK the nával chessboard, therefore, it is worth a study,

In these Northern waters, which were essentially afteréńi from any other, we had threĆ Hain problems to face

attack by submarine, attack from the alt,

powerful capital ship based on Alten Flörd-maln operational base of the Northern German Fleet-some 200 miles on the flank of the convoy route.

To add to our hazards, our Το wn base was about 1,300 milca way,

There was also the weather. Gales scuttered slips, ico and know froze guns and their crews. The Navy stood up to it all

nagnificently.

IN the Merchant Navy, who shared our dangers and iculties and now take up their humoured posts at Spithead, not ship failed, not a man faltered. My task 3 Commander-in- Chief was not unduly com- plientes.

Submarines,

an it turned out, Aircraft could and operate

Admiralty was Arst class, në

wero absent, FOL

Intelligence

usuni.

Scharnhorst again appeared about 12.30 p.m. and the cruisers opened fire.

Scharnhorst left Alten Flord in

Burnett hnd placed himself the correct position for

in Christmas Day. With a the first attack of the Scharn- few hours the news was fabed hon

horst on the convoy. With in its from the Admiralty.

ก

the

CEVAR BLANDE

200 INGESTMENT:

ECDRYCT TO KUESIA

TEA FIRST- THEN

ABWINAL TRÁFEN

TO THE KILL!

by Admiral of the Fleet

LORD FRASER

of North Cape

G.C.B., K.B.E.

ALTEN NOTTOKANTNERE

unerring judgment he again At

the tactical position the righ degree 8am on Boxing Day the secured

of skill of the I know we should be correct Duke of York, my flagship, with which enabled him to make a captains and the coxswaing at for range on opening fire, but the cruiser Jamaica astern, and headlong dash at the Scharnhorst the wheel which prevented them nur ratlar bearings were not so the destroyers Savage. Saumarez, In

second engagement. from broaching-to-

dependable. Scorpion, and the Norwegian Scharnhorst then kurned south

THEN WE SAW THE Stord us

anti-submarine and fled for home,

SILHOUETTE OF HER screen, ny to the west of the

GREAT MASS AND I SAID convoy, steaming eastward.

TO THE CAPTAIN “FIRE." The blast of our great guns rent the air, and the flash scem to illuminate the whole of the Duke of York, and the bridge clock nearly fell on my head.

The weather hucl been wretched, and the previous night few people had had much sleep.

VICE ADMIRAT

R. I..

BURNETT with a force of cruisers was south of the convoy In the latitude of Bear Island.

I had already ordered him to close the convoy, and a division of destroyers to join him.

at

BUT. SCHARNHORST WAS NOW IN THE TRAP. I HAD BEEN STEAMING EASTWARD AT 28 KNOTS AND AT THAT MOMENT I KNEW FOR CERTAIN THAT I COULD INTER- FOR IT WAS MY CEPT. TASK TO PLACE MYSELF BETWEEN THE ENEMY AND IIIS BASE - AND DESTROY HIM.

It is a curious fact that from

About 4 pm, we had to decide whether to have tea before og after the action.

The unanimous opinion was for "tea now."

It is interesting to note that the whole of the main action was fought in darkness. In fact. there is no daylight in these latitudes in winter, Just a time of

twilight in the middle of the

day.

EN I saw the splash of our salvo right in line with the enemy's foremast, and I knew we were all right.

Perhaps my greatest thrill was when Scharnhorst came on the radar screen at about 40 miles Soon came the orange flame

NORWAY

This diagram shows how Lord Fraser trapped the SEHárnhorst by getting between the

German battleship and her base in Norway.

About 6.15 p.m. I began

to

feel a little anxiou

Scharnhorst had increased the range to about 20,000 yards and our are seemed to have no effect, although as we learned after- wards we had nelually done a Jot

AMERICA COLUMN

SPARC Afrom.

NEWELL ROGERS PARDON EX-REDS MOVE

RTHUR

New York.

Hays Sulz- berger, proprietor of the powerful New York Times, has proposed a poli- | tical amnesty for people who Joined Communist front or- ganisations before 1948.

Many such people have been accused recently by McCarthy- type witch-hunters of being pro- Communist Some have been sacked from their jobs.

Mr Sulzberger said in a speech: To make the distinction, between a misled and a real Communist, I would select some date, Bay the beginning of the Berlin air- lift in 1918.

By then it had become clear Stalin had no intention of co-

us to build

operating with

peaceful world,

H

Anyone who joined after that dale

le must.

accept the

CON

quences,

But those who joined, and left; before 1940 should

DO not regarded ar necessarily and automatically having 0 block mark on their records.

Henri Nu, 16-your-

FOLLYWOOD is to film a play

old Premier of Burma.

The

"The People Win Through." It tells of Burma's struggle to quell Communist revolts and build up

democracy.

Modest, austere U Nu his of damage. I went in from the written many plays and books. bridge to the ploiting room. As But this his Arst bid for the I watched my plotting staff and bright lights. radar operators who had done such a great job, the Instructor success of jazz-loving, young Maybe he was spurred by the Commander. in charge, Com- mander, Fleming, suddenly locked King Phumiphon, of neighbour up and said: "She has reduced ing Slam, whose popular songs have been played on Broadway. spded to 20 knots."

Then on the radar I saw my destroyers closing in on Scharn- horst, but I was too far away to give them gun support.

and. Scorpion and CLO

get

EN HOGAN, the '41-year-old Texan they call the world's greatest colfer, intends to Jots of practice nt Carnoustie before he plays in the British then unlil

Open there next month. Ile sighted Scharnhorst

minutes to

set one of our presence. live we only see distant and apparently unaware of the enemy's guns, and we SAVAGE and Saumarez swep

The hurtan golf machine planis about 9.30 am. steaming towards course and speed, 080 degrees at

waited, apprehensively perhaps, in on the starboard bow of and maps his

play exactly the convoy. The cruisers opened 20 knots.

I had decided to open fire at but the only real disturbance we the enemy.

beforehand and with rare ex- flre and Norfolk, got a hit.

about 14,000 yards, but as she had on the bridge was when an stord on the port how under a ception pinces shots willa s Then contact with the enemy The speed was a great trial mate no movement I held on enemy shell went through the murderous fire from the Scharn-few yards of where he wants to was lost because of the weather to my destroyers, for with the until we could sight her with foremast about 15 feet away horst's guns.

as he did in winning the U.S. and Scharnhorst's superior speed. heavy following sea it was only star shells.

without exploding.

recently Suddenly the Duke of York Open for the fourth lime

with D shook

-72-holes aggregate, of with three sharp concussions. It was the effect of 283.

Someone said to him: torpédo explosions trans- mitted through the water, and British Open is one you have

three

torpedoes from my ever won. Shot back Hogan: destroyers had mortally crippled "Because I've never played in

enemy. We closed rapidly and there

Chapter 2 in the story of Alex James- 'the greatest footballer that ever was.

"Wee Alex' has a bath as the ship

HAVE often wonder-

Ied how much Alex

in his ability to throw his

opponents into a state of

goes

by GEORGE ALLISON

Ex-Manager of Arsenal

panic contributed to his ab- were both so keenly interest sorbing displays of football rd. throughout the years.

In his active days, and after wards, he would come to

my

ly took his place in one of the lifeboats he was the coolest man of the whole lot.

down

deck in our railway compart- ments. So off we went to the upper deck,

We

Suddenly We realised were at Peenemunde, and hurriedly serumbled back to were on our the railway carriage, Soon we way to Ham-

burg.

"He even wanted to clumber family." All seemed to be in

I began to check up on aboard the ship again to get a

order until the boys startled

My eyes brighten with office, perhaps to tell me he the memory of that cheeky, was hardly as fit as he would favourite the which he'd left in me by asking: "Where's Alex?" impish little chap, whose like to be but, he invariably his cabin."

ndded, "Whatever you say. twinkle toes rarely failed in guvnor, is O.K.

Alex's next maritime adven- There was no sign of him. To Jose something on I'll have a ture was not so exacting. It journey abroad is understand- their mesmeric effect.

happened in his early days able, but not the most famous football personality of all timef

Naturally I was worried. guessed he had been having 40

A twist of the body and we And here I would like to pay with Arsenal. paw two, sometimes three, op- tribute to his invaluable In- poslug players floundering

wondering how 1 was done.

NO FAINTING!

I

On

Auence in the dressing-room.

weekly

BAD HEALTH

now?

very

en-

the ground and storing at the When we held our disappearing willo the wisp, pre-match conferences he would IIS health was not good, and Winks on the sun-deck of the express his views fearlessly, Herbert Chapman, then train ferry. But where was he fle was not afraid to criticise, Arsenal manager, had an iden and his fellow players had the that a sea voyage would building for the Dutch frontier and Next morning we were head- RECALL in occasion

greatest respect for his opinions, up its strength. many always based on fact, logic, and

It sounded inviting, and Alex the Hook, still minus a years ago when 1 was common sense,

of the valuable portion that broadcasting a rantch in which

was told

arrangements During the last war he had been made he was playing.

for him to lourage.

the served in the

train Army, and

And then when he make the round trip to Bor- I said something must have exercised some Apparently

of deaux. He could Just

stopped at the frontier station to-the-ofTect

relax -that-James-j hypnotic tricks on the and enjoy the health-restoring waiting to greet us.

Lsaw a smal}, famillari. Agure secured possession of the ball, sergeant-major, for wo feinted, and then fell on

rarely vacation. the played a home match without

Yes, he had woken from his muddy pitch.

Alex apparently had visions Alex being on the spot to cn of a luxury liner, for he packed sun-deck nap after our

his bags and Included in his had left the boat.

"

A dear old lady who had courage his former clubmates, been listening wrote an indig nant letter

to the Director-

'MY BATMAN',

wardrobe a dress sult, boiled shirt, and what have you.

come so distressed that they man. He found it difficult to waste paper.

His

Maybe it was just

ns well

ship

General of the BBC saying it E always brought with him He arrived at the docks and

Ha little soldier, was scandalous that these poor,

five-feet- soon discovered that the men should be allowed to go nothing in height, in whom he was a small cargo-boat loaded out in such weather anti be always referred, ns, my

bat with sheepskins, old tyres, and be serious,

disappointment WAS and his indignation natural to the forthright. It took a consider into oblivion as the result of Army and not the Navy, for abje amount of Herbert Chap

calculated And energy- ho was not in love with the mah's persuasive eloquence reserving exertions.

fainted.

Yes, Alex knew how to faint, but he certainly did not pass that he was drafted

his

sea.

to

ing

SMILING

truin

HERE he was, smiling a

usual and thoroughly enjoy- our evident relief.

An official who spoke English hnd grasped the situation, and

Teutonic with

thoroughness train which left later worked out that by taking a different route

thep 13.

no

Alex stood a good chance of reaching get him back in the chip. It is often said that profes- Many years ago, when he

frontier station ahead of Yet it was typical of the Elont footballers

ko was with Raith Rovers, аго

Alex knew And since thin e fellow's sporting peovich prima Yonnas, so very Scottish League club went

spirit German the official converted on that he swallowed his pride Alex into a plece of temperamental. I have known tour to the Canary Islands,

human and enjoyed ht unromantic their type, but Alex was not Let me give the story of the voyage.

baggage. in that category.

trip as told by, an old friend

A huge label was tied to the Vividly I recall an occasion He and I never had one of his who travelled with the when we were utterly mystified lapel of his coat and on it were moment of disagreement, touring party:-

by his disappearance during full instructions about what "Tho, shis struck a reèt, and voyage to Sweden and though he could be a little ob-

should be dond, with; hun. That Ger- zünate, If he was driven and the captain, ordered passengert many.

was just as well becaupo, as I led.

and crew to inke, to the bouts.

ötten told Alex, nót even tho were having our usual During the happy, if exact Alex was enjoying a ball, and summer Continental tour.

clovereat English-speaking Ger ing, year we worked together, to all our entreaties he en were on our way to the Hook fascinating Scott, accent); he man, could have understood the and right, up to a few weeks swered with, a laugh, 'Go of land; via Hamburg. At ago. „I was alwdyś greeted away! I'm not falling for that Gothenburg we caught the train talked in when he was excitell.. with id chedly. "Hello, guv'nar," sort of a, joke,!

not

a puckishamile and a 110 "At last, he renileed we were chat on the game in which we serious, dril when hø eventuat-

We

ferry for Peenemuntlé.

urit

It was n hot, surity day, and.

it «damed a pity: to sit bolow

Next Saturday! Alex Janios'e soñtê of fair

those

the

am-

it."

**The

no

the torrible sight of a great SCIENTISTS · are turning to

rather ship half heeling over,.

rainmalding

than munition bursting on deck, and atomle explosions as a possible the terrife flashes of our own cause of so many tornadoes, shells exploding. and as we Experts tell Congress there is passed into the distance all was:

that A-blasts cauze dark.

aunospheri

changes. But there li much evidence that man-made weather has Cloud- wide climatic effects. seeding now extends over 100 million acres.

She had gone.

While, everyone played their part, I think the final credit goes to my gallurit little destroyers. Don't you?

This is

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