Chapter 4

The after gun crew of the Seeteufel waited until the vessel turned and they had a clear field of fire. Firing over their own stern-quarter they risked blowing away the shrouds of the mizzen mast. When they had an uninterrupted view of the French patrol boat they opened fire. The 88mm Krupp gun cracked, brown smoke erupted from the muzzle, and they all looked to see where the shell went.

Capitaine Krusenbourg of the RFS Chasseur saw the flash from the rear of the German sailing ship and held his breath. An enormous geyser erupted from the sea some 150 metres to starboard of them, too close for comfort. He ordered the helm to be swung to port to place him as near as possible dead astern of the German. He'd decided that was the safest position for his ship until he could get within range for his 3 pounder guns.

Steam was escaping through the ventilators of the patrol boat, from the faulty port engine. It shrouded the boat in a grey haze, merging with the sea foam being thrown up by the pitching vessel. Von Seydlitz's range-takers found it hard to spot the little ship.

The Seeteufel continued to turn, trying to open the arcs so her forward gun could bear as well. The German Skipper knew he was beyond the range of the Frenchman's guns, and within range of his bigger armament, and had no intention of letting the enemy vessel get any closer.

But Krusenbourg was running into trouble. His much-abused port engine was failing and he was running low on boiler feedwater. He felt the torpedo boat start to slow. He shouted frantically at his engineer, but the man just shrugged, he was unable to perform miracles.

Wallowing in the German's wake, he saw the raider come around until both her guns were bearing on his vessel. With two bright flashes, the Seeteufel fired her guns almost simultaneously.

Krusenbourg heard the moan of a shell pass over his ship. The bridge crew ducked instinctively. The forward gun crew of their vessel couldn't contain themselves. With a whoomph they fired at the distant German. Krusenbourg thought they seemed bemused, as if they were surprised the ancient gun fired. Suffice to say, the French shell landed well-short of the German ship.

The Seeteufel continued to circle the Frenchman. The Chasseur tried to keep end on to the sailing ship, to present as smaller target as possible. Krusenbourg threw away his service cap in frustration, his ship was slowing still and he knew he couldn't close the German for the benefit of his gun crews.

Von Seydlitz and Theo Seekt watched the torpedo boat with an air of clinical professionalism. They gave out their orders quietly and calmly and watched his signalmen march off smartly with their messages. They were a well-drilled team, and he took pride in the way the crew were working.

"She is hurt, Captain," Theo told his skipper.

"I do not think we have got that close to her. Perhaps it's a bluff?"

"A strange one, sir.

"Hmm, circle around, I think. Make sure we stay away from her bows in case they launch torpedoes."

The Seeteufel fired another salvo. This time the shells fell closer to the French ship, deluging it with water and splinters. The Patrol boat fired back but were again out of range.

Still Krusenbourg wouldn't give up. Again he tried to turn towards the German and close the range but his speed had dropped to under 10 knots. The Seeteufel, at her full motoring speed of 16 knots, carefully remained out of the Frenchman's reach.

Suddenly, the Chasseur shuddered as a shell landed alongside her stern. Some of the after gun crew were blown over the side, plates were sprung, buckled and bent below the waterline and the aft compartments began to flood.

Grimly Krusenbourg held on, and still his guns fired at the German as well as they could. His crew, he saw, were performing magnificently. They set about their tasks with grim determination and spirit, he thought them heroes all.

Finally, with the ship visibly listing and down at the stern, another shell plunged into the Chasseur amidships and exploded in her boiler room. The patrol boat erupted in steam and smoke, it crashed over on her port beam then slowly righted herself. Krusenbourg, hanging onto the bridge rail saw there were men in the water.

'Crack, ' someone fired the forward gun insolently. The French skipper couldn't see his ship past the first funnel, so shrouded as she was in a grey/brown blanket. The ship lurched, Krusenbourg saw the bow begin to rise, then slowly she rolled onto her starboard side. This time she didn't right herself but capsized completely.

"She's gone, sir," remarked Theo to his captain.

"Good," von Seydlitz replied. He didn't feel triumphant. He'd secretly hoped the Frenchman would turn back, but it had kept coming at him. He knew he'd no other option but it gave him no satisfaction. "Let's get out of here," he told Theo.

On the beach, to Rupert, Joanna and Hiram, the silence was deafening. The rumbling from in the distance had abruptly stopped. As the day stretched into the afternoon, it became obvious no-one was coming back for them.

The two men began constructing an additional shelter for Hiram. Few words were spoken, it was clear what was needed to be done.

That night Joanna lay in her lover's arms while Hiram snored lustily a short distance away. She woke up sometime during the night to find Rupert, his back to her, sobbing. She held him a little tighter.

Two days later some Marquesan fishermen found 5 sailors floating on wreckage drifting to the East of Hatutu. They were dehydrated and suffering from exposure. The fishermen took them to the Mission on Eiao and the news was immediately radioed to Papeete. The small mail steamer set out from Nuku Hiva to collect them.

A signal was sent to Sussex speeding towards Tahiti for coal. The rescued sailors were able to tell them the direction Seeteufel took after sinking the Chasseur. The Japanese cruiser Takasago had just departed Suva and hurried to intercept. Von Seydlitz, however, had waited until he was out of sight and turned North. The net would be empty.

A new energy was generated around the Naval base at Papeete. The loss of the Chasseur had shocked the Navy and worked sped up on the Dupetit-Trouars to get her ready for sea. Admiral Michelet vowed that the shells that sunk the Seeteufel would be French.

The day dawned hot and humid. Instead of blue skys, the atmosphere was leaden with an impending storm. Hiram and Rupert gazed at the horizon from the beach at Hatutu like two old Salts.

"Storm!" Rupert said.

"Yep," replied Hiram, "better get ourselves inland."

"There's rising ground and good shelter about 200 metres that way," Rupert pointed, "I found Native campsite. I think Marquesans had same idea."

"You've got this place surveyed good."

Rupert shrugged, "not much else to do but look around."

"And fish?"

"Ja, of course."

By the time Rupert, Hiram and Joanna had got their belongings inland to the fishermen's campsite the wind had begun to rise. Quickly they set about making a shelter with matting lashed together around a grotto formed by an enormous slab of Basalt rock. Huddled together, they waited for the storm to unleash its full fury.

Meanwhile, some 400 kilometres to the East of Christmas Island, the Seeteufel came across some easy pickings. It was the SS Mary B, a British flagged tramp steamer engaged in the copra trade. The diminuative Mary B was owned by her Master, her crew owned shares in the cargo. The ship was old, slow and didn't carry any radio.

Von Seydlitz gave the crew 10 minutes to take to their life boats then sunk her with gunfire. Through Theo, he gave the drifting crew directions to Christmas Island, then headed East, then North again.

HMS Connaught Castle was a former passenger steamer of 3,200 Gross Registered Tons. She'd been enlisted in the Royal Navy as an Armed Merchant Cruiser to assist in patrol and escort work. The Conaught Castle was chosen partly because she was new and had a respectable speed thanks to her steam turbine propulsion. The Navy armed her with four 4 inch guns. one each on foredeck and afterdeck and two mounted in the waist of the vessel. This gave her a broadside of three guns, because the remaining gun couldn't be fired over the deck because of the intervening mainmast.

The ship was a day out of Christmas Island, having called to provision, when she spotted a strange ship to the south. She radioed her position and explained she was investigating an undentified vessel. Her radio operator kept broadcasting more information as the Connaught Castle quickly began to overtake the vessel.

'Strange vessel is a sailing ship of three masts. It appears to be under auxiliary power with sails taken in and heading ENE magnetic. Vessel seems unable or unwilling to answer repeated radio calls for her to hove to. Am using Morse lamp.'

At Papeete, Captain Debenham of HMS Sussex had no doubt it was the Seeteufel. He immediately put to sea and suggested the Edinburgh Castle use her speed advantage to herd the German South.

Von Seydlitz was keeping watch on the rapidly approaching steamer with growing alarm. Still flying the Swedish flag, he read her repeated messages, by radio and Morse lamp, and had no doubt the steamer was an armed auxiliary.

"Conference!" he told his Officers.

"It is a British Royal Mail Steamer," Theo explained, "Castle Line."

"It's 'dazzle painted'," said another Officer, "like their AMCs."

"Are we outgunned?"

"Their AMCs have three or four guns, 4 inchers," Theo continued, "I think they slightly outrange us."

"We can't get into a gunfight with her," the Engineer said, aghast, "our hull will be perforated by even a near miss."

"I agree," von Seydlitz said, "then we must rely on the element of doubt. Theo, send a message to her identifying ourselves as the SV Viggen, then hove to. I want torpedoes loaded and ready to fire. I want the gun crews at their stations. Point blank, Gentleman, we will fight her point blank, like the sailing ships of old."

"Sir, is this wise?" asked the Engineer.

"No, but can you give me four more knots?" The engineer shook his head, "then I don't have any other idea at the moment."

'SV Viggen, ' the Morse lamp flashed from the Seeteufel, 'Stockholm, in ballast to Honolulu.'

'Hove to, ' the Connaught Castle signalled, 'and be prepared for inspection.'

The Seetuefel came into the wind and stopped her engines. The gun crews crept into their disguised positions and loaded the two Krupp 88s. Silently the Germans watched with growing tension as the the British Auxilliary approached.

"Engines dead slow," called von Seydlitz, "I want some steerage way." The only way he could aim his beam torpedo was by turning the ship. Von Seydlitz remembered the incident with the Northampton and didn't want to be caught like that again, unable to maneuvre.

Debenham read the stream of signals from the chatty operator of the Connaught Castle with growing unease. 'Vessel has stopped, am preparing to carry out inspection.'

"Inspection?" he told his Exec in frustration, "don't inspect the bastard, shoot him! Why doesn't that man do as he's told? Crowd him South, for Christ's sake."

At the same time, Theo Seekt and von Seydlitz watched the steamer come to a halt. They saw the AMC had her guns manned and bearing on the Seeteufel. Both ships were rolling in the swell. Seeteufel was slowly moving, ostensibly to keep her nose into the wind but, in reality, von Seydlitz was trying to aim his beam tube at the Englishman.

'We protest, ' von Seydlitz signalled, 'this interference in the right of free passage of a Neutral vessel.'

'Free passage, ' the Britisher sent back, 'in that the Neutral does not carry the contraband of an enemy nation.'

"Keep him talking," von Seydlitz told Theo, "keep him guessing."

'We are in ballast, ' Theo signalled, 'and have never carried Government or private goods for the Central Powers.'

'Notwithstanding, I'm obliged and empowered by His Majesty's Government to inspect the papers of any Neutral suspected of breeching the Hague Convention.'

The Connaught Castle's signaller was growing tired, her Captain exasperated. "Lower the boat!" he ordered, "and tell that Swede to drop a ladder!"

"Wait until that boat's rowed out from their ship," von Seydlitz said, "everything ready?"