TNA MT 40 36 Pt 2

YORK
AGE
text e-row
NOS
ASSOTE
1898
OFFICE
&
the
GREAT
AGIS
in gaire
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SLB
were
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Before the boats left I arranged with Commander A.L. Sanders Naval Officer in
70 Lowestoft for an advance of £200 to me so that some cash payments could be to these fishermen suddenly taken out of their daily earnings. The money ha accounted for in detail on the appropriate naval account form and the in view maistry of Shipping has been advised of the advances. I am informed tonight that ne Sea Transport Department is sending out a circular letter to all concerned so that they can make claims for their services.
Wilth the loss of only one boat and a few small damages the operation can be considered to have been a great success so far as boats were concerned which came from north of Lowestoft. This is attributéd to the ceaseless work put in by
Mr. Graham, Mr. Jay and Mr. Macmillan; work involving all night attendance at the office on May 31/June 1st as it was originally intended the little ships should sail at dawn June 1st. The fishermen's only regret is that they were not called on earlier so their long experience of working boats to an inch on flat beaches could have been better utilised. I would like official thanks to be sent to Major Hannam of the Salvation Army Hostel, who on my appeal at once found beds and fed some thirty fishermen making them most comfortable.
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"SILVERY BREEZE
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you et home alright, they have all forgotten, no wonder.
Frantically we kept running in front of the large red rick building which will be familiar to thousands, the remains of he white hot Crested Eagle still smouldering just eastward and still bey marched column after column through the gaps in the sand dunes.
Whilst serving the Destroyer H.M.S. 4.40 I could not get a volunteer from the soldiers to take the 3 or 4 ships life boats back to the shore "They were all done up".
I ordered Roy Brown to do so he did this without hesitation and continued this work for a considerable time, while his place on the Shamrock was taken over by a seaman lent to me by the Destroyer
Commander. The Princess Maud ventured in too close and was aground, scores waded out and climbed on board her but it was obvious she was to be another souvenir for Fritz.
STATEM
I was ordered by an officer of this Destroyer not to bring anymore wounded but my very next trip found me helping aboard a badly wounded young lad, for this I was shouted at by the same
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officer my reply was a rude army one which could not be withdrawn.
The officer was right, there was no room for medical attention on his ship, burp what could you do.
I took in tow 3 large Carley Floats one behind the other these were filled to capacity about 50 men in each standing up to their waists in water in the net inside.
My craft was well loaded too, we were just making for our
Destroyer when I was brought to a standstill, my ungine stopped the propeller had fouled, I believe a human @bstruction. There were many in the shallow water. I signalled the Canvey Queen to take me in tow and with a struggle against the tide she got us along side and every man got aboard o.k. one of them took my revolver from under my nose; its a way they have in the army. Naval men came down and tried to free the obstruction without success. I was too weak to dive under the thick black oil which surrounded us, so rather than be left sitting on our useless craft I asked to be taken on H. S. ship
1
this was the last straw, having to leave my vessel which constituted ay life savings.
the followed fire expinguishers were taken on the Destroyer. Roy Brown
My spare fuel was taken off by a small Naval motor boat, one more glance at the beach.
me up quickly on board as she was about to leave. I took up youing prayed.
Sat down beneath a gun with my hands over my face and you
These notes are true and unpolished. allanBarrell
La ranna
Owing to the engines failing we had to leave with only a few
WE and proceeded back to Dunkirk W here we took five more load the shore which we were now able to do owing to the rising
Whilst these operations were being carried out we were bei

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omber that had been particularly offensive, itself came under the notice of one of our fighters and suddenly plunged vertically into the sea just about 50 yards astern of us. It was the only time any man ever raised his voice above a conversational tone, but as that big black bomber hit the water they raised an echoing cheer.
My youngest son Pilot Officer H.B. Lightoller (lost at the outbreak of war in the first raid on Wilhelmshaven) flew a
Blenheim and had at different times given me a whole lot of useful information about attack, defence and evasive tatics (at which he was apparently particularly good) and I attribute, in a great measure, our success in getting across without a single casualty to his unwitting help.
On one occasion an enemy machine came up astern at about 100 ft with the obvious intention of raking our decks. He was coming down in a gliding dive and I knew that he must elevate some 10 to 15 degrees before his guns would bear. Telling my son
"Stand by" I waited till as near as I could judge, he was just on the point of pulling up and then "Hard-a-port". (She turns exastly
180 degrees in exactly her own length). This threw his aim completely off. He banked and tried àgain. Then "Hard-a-starboard", with the same result. After a third attempt he gave it up in disgust.
Had I had a machine gun of any sort, he was a sitter - in fact there were at least theee that I am confident we could have accounted for during the trip.
Not least of our difficulties was contending with the wash of fast craft, such as destroyers and transposts. In every instance I had to stop completely, take the way off the ship and
La Kanna which is about nine
Owing to the engines failing we had to leave with only a few tr
WE and proceeded back to Dunkirk W here we took five more loads of the shore which we were now able to do owing to the rising tide
Whilst these operations were being carried out we were being

DUNKIRK CLAIMS COMMITTEE.
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given sailing directions and told to join a convoy which had left an hour previously with "Queen Boadicea"
and "Queen of the Thames". Before leaving, the Officer in charge kindly agreed to send telegrams to our respective wives that we would not be home for a day or two.
We set off at full speed and enquired of the Nore Lightship if they had seen the convoy, but without success, so
Horse Gore and South Channels we proceeded via the Cant. Four Fathoms/ and passed a convoy of about six vessels, but they were bound for Ramsgate.
We arrived off Margate without having seen our convoy and as our compass has not been adjusted and could not be relied upon, we reported at Margate to Commander
Stanslet, the Naval Officer in charge, who instructed us to proceed to Ramsgate. About 6 p.m. we arrived at
Ramsgate and reported to the Officer in charge, and were supplied with steel helmets and life belts, and were instructed to join a convoy leaving Ramsgate the following day; having no facilities for sleeping on board, we stayed the night at an Hotel adjoining the harbour.
On Thursday the 30th May, before we left Ramsgate a number of Naval Ratings whose boats had broken down were endeavouring to obtain berths as additional crews on boats which were leaving for Dunkirk, so we consented to take with us a man called McPherson who, I understood, had once been in the Naval Air Force and was a very useful man. At 6.45 p.m. on the same day we joined a convoy of ten craft headed by "Bonny Heather" all towing ship's boats, and proceeded on a coursefor Dunkirk.
At 8 p.m. the engine started to falter, the cause obviously being a failure of the petrol supply. I stopped the engine and disconnected the petrol pipes and endeavoured to clear the obstruction, and had the engine going again in about 25 minutes.
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