Primary tabs
Transcription
[Page 38]
plenty of visitors around ship. Not so noisy as at Callao. At latter place a party of Englishmen sailed round us in motor boat singing "It's a long, long way etc". But it was evident that they had already arrived at Tipsy-ary. Pronounced pro-Allies feeling, Tramway Co. German. When they brot. out cars, populace smashed them. Both Peru & Chili have Shepherded our merchant ships with their gun boats. After sinking Good Hope & Monmouth on Nov 1st Admiral Von Spee & G. Fleet came here, & when they landed, the German residents strewed flowers before them. They little guessed it was for their burial. English friends send 1500 pkts cigarettes, 1500 pkts tobacco, plenty of papers & etc. Lights of Val: most beautiful I have seen. Coaling all night. Chilianos work all the time, our men in six hour watches.
Dec 27. Finish 7.30 a.m. Under weigh 8.15 a.m. Steering S., cleaning ship all morning. A very welcome "make & mend" in afternoon.
Dec. 28. Off Coronel. A sad day for us. We are passing over the scene of the fight in which Good Hope & Monmouth were sunk. We look anxiously for wreckage but there is not the slightest sign. We are 59 days too late, but it was no fault of ours.