Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/1/1 - October - December 1914 - Part 4

Hear message got through to Australia
by wireless fr.
Minotaur.

Just as I woke I heard the hoot of the Orvieto's}
siren & was told that we were changing course}
for Colombo - swinging round the Cocos, in fact, at}
a radius of about 50 miles.}
 

20
November 8.9.
& they were burying him.
It is very hot & I am going presently to
sleep on deck. But On the whole the voyage has
been splendid, & enjoyable - the men & officers
fine - & the sight scene, day & night, most
interesting. But today – what with the news of
that engagement, the Euripides affair, & that
idiotic Southern muddle has been a little
depressing.

Monday 9th. Slept on deck _^ last night in case anything were seen
of the Emden. A beautiful night - quite a bright moon. At
midnight the lights on the other ships had disappeared & only the
dark hulls of the convoy was fairly dark & the black smoke of the Japanese ship cd be
seen. The air was beautifully mild. The only sound
was the "fist-fist" of some valve in the engine room &
the occasional cable noises of the stokehold.
Woke at 5.30. An exquisite rosy fingered dawn -
faint pink & blue distances behind the grey clouds. Due
ahead, 4 miles distant was the Melbourne. A curiously
bright white light was showing over her stern; I watched it
for a while wondering if it were a search light. In
this day light it scarcely seemed bright enough for that.
Went down to bath.
At breakfast a rumour was going round the table. "If it were
true they w'dn't let it out," sd someone. "No, I suppose it's
a leakage," "The Sydney's gone off, anyway," sd another.
However - it was not true. By the end of breakfast I heard that
a cruiser warship had been sighted on the other side of the Cocos.
 

21
November 9.
It turned _^ out We had heard the news at about 6. So far as I know
at present the first that was heard was a wireless
call in a strange code (sd to be an 11 letter code – whatever
that may mean.) Shortly afterwds. there ws heard another
call about the same strength. It was judged that the two were near
together although the first call was so loud because that it was clear
they the ship sending it did not know where the other one
was. While these calls were proceeding a third suddenly
started in asking continually "What Code? What code? What code...?"
The others took no notice whatever of it. But a little later
a call was sent out by the third stated instrument: "Strange
warship approaching mouth of harbour" (position of station was
first given) "S.O.S....S.O.S" The first call speaker tried to jam
it - but the message, although short, was read and only
sent once, was read. Then it stopped abruptly It has
not been heard since. It was known that the station calling
"What code" was Cocos Is.; but for a time it was not
certain whether the S.O.S. signal was not being sent
by a Japanese Cruiser - the cruiser Osaki (?) seems
to have been expected in this direction; there is also a
whole squadron of Japanese somewhere to the East of us
perhaps near the Sunda Straits – (I believe we can hear
them).
The S.O.S. message was heard by our wireless & sent on
to the Melbourne at once. She was seen to turn to port &
started off straight for the Cocos – _^ which were then abt 50 miles over the horizon a little abaft the beam on the port
side. Before She was stoking hard, I believe, & had come
[*SILVER*] down close to us when Capt. Silva remembered that he was in
charge of the convoy & considered that his duty was with us.
As he was very keen - one of the keenest in the fleet - it must
have been a hard decision to come to. _^ He turned The Melbourne back,
 

22
November 9.
& a few minutes later the Sydney - which was abt 4
far miles out on our beam in the direction of Cocos - headed towards
Cocos. By was soon It was then about 7.10. By breakfast time (8)
she was out of sight.
Officers gathered in groups outside the saloon entrance
on the port side of the promenade deck. There was by this time no
trace of the Sydney although officers were continually searching the
skyline in that direction with their field glasses. There was The
question was: would the Sydney find the warship (we could get
no news of whether it was the Emden & whether the calls were
to other German warships - she might be meeting the Koenigsberg
or the merchant cruiser supposed to be in these waters) & how
would she get on if she did find her?
About 9.40 it gradually went round that the Sydney
had signalled that she had sighted the enemy. About a quarter of
an hour I heard someone say something about ''fighting". Then:
"Yes, the Sydney's in action now - she's signalled us to say
she is fighting them."
Schuyler was on the boat deck by the
Just then we noticed that the Melbourne was moving
out from ahead of us into a position _^ out on the port side. She _^ was passing
fairly close to us when somebody said "Look at the Ibuki".
The Japanese ship was moving up on the other side of us, where
she was stationed, in order to cross our bows & get on the
port side of us also. She was stoking up; & the smoke was
pouring from her funnels thicker than ever, - the wind carried
it away from us so that the ship appeared nestled into the
black masses of it. She passed us a little few minutes
later - prepared for action. Her decks were naked - a
few white figures were clearing away or fastening down the
last few encumbrances. Her upper works - both bridges, were and I think
the fire control stations were neatly padded with rolled hammocks.
One huge Japanese ensign was flying at the peak - planted fair against the black
smoke cloud. And just as she passed us she broke from the mainmast head
her a second great ensign of the rising sun - her battle flag.
She was moving fast by this time - punching great
masses of white out of the rich dark sea, spreading the seas
 

23
November 9.
wide on either side of her bluff bows as she went. A little
later someone made There were few men showing about her -
jus one or two white figures trotted up the gangway to the bridge.
A little later someone noticed that the big guns were being
moved - we knew by that that the guns crews were in the
turrets going through the normal preliminary to going into action -
testing the turret gear & the guns.
The Melbourne had headed off in a direction almost
exactly 2 points abaft the beam - about 7 or 8 miles out
she turned North & steamed slowly para almost parallel to us
but gradually getting more & more distant. The Ibuki seemed
to be doing the same - but as soon as she got into position
she headed on her original course aga she swung & went on
again. For a time she headed first South on a curiously zig-zag course,
from east SW, to NW & back again; & we learnt afterwards that
some of the officers on the bridge made sure she was firing
her guns first from one side & then from the other. It was not
so - probably some of she was really trying to signal to the
Melbourne by flag & to clear her signals of her own smoke.
Eventually she & the Melbourne lay to the S.W. of the fleet
about 15 miles out, clearly visible from the boat deck
where we stood.
[Hand drawn diagram - see original]
35m     15m.    Orvieto
N. Keeling    Ibuki
Direction Island      Melbourne
Cocos.
(This plan gives roughly the position of our fleet
& the cruisers during the fight except that
N. Keeling & Direction I. ought to be a lot further
south. more like this →
[Hand drawn diagram - see original]
We did not know at this time
(nor have we heard since) where
the Minotaur was. I fancy she
was off to the Cape - she may have
turned back for a bit when she
 

24
November 9
heard of the actual fighting. All we know is that there was
heard a ship talking to the Sydney. This ship called herself
the Pioneer, presumably in order not to needlessly frighten the
Germans. But our wireless people knew _^ by the tone of the plant that she
was the Minotaur. The Sydney made all her reports to the
Minotaur & only spoke to the Melbourne later.)
Before _^ About the time when the Ibuki & Melbourne were reaching their
final position a report spread about the ship we learnt that the Sydney
had reported that the enemy chase was making off to the northward.
This would bring her, as it happened, straight into the convoy.
This was why the Melbourne & Ibuki had taken up their
position between us & the point from which where the enemy would
first be seen. A major on board told us that it was believed
that there might be four of the enemy's ships engaged. This did
not seem likely & I do not know how the report arose;
but it was always possible that some of the Atlantic ships
had turned up. In that case if the Sydney & Melbourne were
settled we might expect an interesting time. There was
no cruiser at all to the N., E., or S. of us, & of course
it was always just possible that the Koenigsberg had been
going to meet the Emden here, & hearing her call wd be hurrying
up. We lounged over the rail like spectators in the gallery
looking down of over the glassy sea - the transports steaming steadily
on their course at their usual snail's pace. Just over the horizon
someone was being done to death, in the midst
[Hand drawn diagram - see original]
of crashing steel work, burning decks, sudden flashes
of flame. Ocas ought to see something of it
any moment. The ordinary training of the ship
was going on on the deck below us & on the boat
deck too exactly as if there were no cruisers nor
anything else within a thousand miles of us. The men
knew something was happening - but not many know any details.
A friend of Peter Schuylers would come up to us every
now & then during a stand-easy in the work. "Hey -
Peter" - then, when Peter nodded - "What do you
know, eh?" he asked in a stage whisper.
 

25
November 9
About 11.15 we heard that the fight was practically over. The
enemy had been stopped before she even came within sight of
us. "Enemy run ashore to save sinking" said the
message. Our wireless got it, but I do not know if
the Melbourne did because she kept out in the same
position The Melbourne & Ibuki still remained out
on our flank & it was reported that they were
waiting there to intercept a collier which had been
with the Sydney German warship, At 11.45 there
We could get no message news at all as to how this search
was going, whether there were other ships, whether a
landing party had been left at the island by the Germans,
whether the wireless & cable station had been destroyed.
We guessed the wireless had gone because we had no
word of it.
At 11.45 we saw the Japanese alter course &
head straight for in the direction of the scene of action.
He had made a signal "Permission to go & help
Sydney" & started off before apparently without
waiting for it. Later he made another signal
"I wish go." But the Melbourne recalled him - to
his great disappointment so the signalman told us.
I must say these Japanese have played the game,
all through. They sent us a very good ship, on
a very long voyage, played second fiddle to our
 

26
November 9
own little cruisers all the time, & seem to have
been as keen as mustard to do the job honourably &
well. We here have accepted their protection - 20,000
Australians & 8,000 New Zealanders - for three weeks
in a time of some risk & whatever may come one
cant ever forget it.
Well, after the Japanese & the Melbourne came
back news came dribbling through. Early in the afternoon
there was one heard a series of spontaneous cheers from
bursting out from under various parts of the
awning foreward & aft like so many exploding
shells. The message had come through at last
"Emden beached & done for." (it was made by Sydney
to Minotaur but we overheard it). Later came a
much louder cheer. The men had got a half holiday.
So the it was the Emden. Her business
had been finished in about 25 minutes that morning -
done whilst we waited. After all her long career, sinking
ship after ship in the Indian Ocean, bombarding
Madras, raiding Penang, she had wandered down
here probably to meet her collier under the lee
of one of these coral islands, to break up the
station in the early morning, coal quietly for a
day or two & then practice for a week on the
 

27
November 9.
Australian trade route. She It had gone well
so far - she sent out a loud call for her collier
& found it was quite close all right; then she
proceeded to smash up the station as soon as
day broke & she could see the harbour. She heard
the station call just as she came up to it – she
couldn't prevent that. But unless her luck was
out she would have all day to finish things in
& would be out of sight long before there was any
danger. She sent a boats crew ashore -
And then someone must have noticed a
smoke on the horizon away to the North East. The
An fear idea must have come over them at once that
this was an Australian a warship because no merchant ship wd
be likely to come from that direction. The Emden
turned and cut away northwards for all she was
worth - most of the warships in these seas
were too slow for them & the chances were they
could get away. The landing party was left on
shore, the collier had to get away as best it
could.
The Sydney probably sighted the Emden a
little later because _^ whilst the Sydneys smoke was
blowing towards her the Emdens smoke was
 

28.
November 9.
blowing away. At the same time the Sydney had
full speed up - & _^ when she turned to head off the Emden she
came rapidly closer. At some point the Emden
must have made out the Sydney's four funnels,
placed her as a British town class cruiser, & known
the fame we that her long run of luck was coming
to an end. The Sydney had left us at 7. At 9.30, travelling
at full speed, she sighted the strange warship; by 9.50,
travelling at full speed (i.e. having covered between 9 & 10 miles) in
20 minutes) she was within range. She signalled to the
fleet that the chase was steering north. By 10.45
she had so overtaken the enemy that she was
engaging her briskly. It did not last long. Twenty five
minutes later, at 11.10, the Emden beached herself on the
island of North Keeling, 15 miles to the North of the Cocos, to
avoid sinking. Her foremast & three funnels were
down but her flag was still flying. S Some 150 of the
Emden's doing her fin crew were killed or wounded, but
not her captain - a fine sport & close friend of the Captain of the Minotaur.
The Sydney had only lost 2 killed & 13 wounded.
The Sydney could not wait to make the
Emden surrender then - it was too important to
chase down that collier. The collier was found
at last, her crew taken off & the ship sunk. Then
the Sydney returned to the Emden which surrendered.
The island was is not inhabited, I believe, & has no
 

29.
November 9.
food supply. The Sydney returned - ^xprobably with
[*^xwrong
- to see the
cable stn.*]
the wounded, - to Direction Island where the wireless
station & cable station are. The German landing party
had destroyed the wireless station; as for the cable
station, one cable had been cut & possibly a second;
& all the instruments found at the station had been
smashed up. But a third cable still remained intact
& one cable instrument had been buried & was not so saved.
des Achen But the landing party had gone. They
had collared a schooner which happened to be there &
put out to sea, & nobody knows - so far as we have
heard - where they have gone. Some say the Minotaur
will have got them. but I doubt if she will
alter her course to the cape. As for the German
wounded they can hardly be left at Direction
Island because I believe there are only some 38
inhabitants & the wounded wd be too many
for them. Probably our own wounded will be
left there. The Sydney is coming on with us.
Probab Probably Possibly the Minotaur will
bring them along & she may take some of the
Sydneys German prisoners & wounded too.
It was all very sudden, this fight in the
morning - the Sydney had raced off, killed them, &
was ready to return as swiftly as a terrier would kill a cat.