Todd war diary, 3 August 1914-29 February 1916 / Arthur Todd - Page 61
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[Page 61]
of his strongest natural fortress and it was well known that Germany was sparing no effort to bring Spain in against us. It was commonly reported that the Germans had an aerodrome over the frontier and that a bomb attack was contemplated on the Ships. So everyone was on the qui vive [French: on the alert], and each night the sky was anxiously searched for the coming of the aeroplanes. Our troops had dug themselves in & put up sandbags at their end of the neutral ground and it was difficult to see how any army not having command of the sea could capture the Rock.
Just before we left the Chamber of Commerce gave us a dinner after which
Meanwhile the Sydney was nearly ready for sea and her coat of many colours was being put on. The ship was painted light grey with an enormous white bow wave to give the impression of speed and deceive the enemy. The funnels and hull were splashed with blotches of grey and white and black to upset the enemy range finders tho how this was supposed to work the writer doesnt know.
The Tiger, and other big ships at home were cunningly reported to have light cruisers painted on their hulls in a darker grey. It was all an experiment and one which has now been dropped as valueless for our ships have resumed their natural appearance. Just as we were settling down to spend Christmas in Harbour the ship was reported ready for sea and we got orders to sail on Christmas Eve. The profanity was up to the best Service traditions. Speculation was now as rife as to where we were bound, for almost up to the moment of pushing off, not even the Captain knew whether we were off to the Adriatic, to England, or bound for the Western Ocean.