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[Page 66]
| 1918 | |
| Apl 12 | well-armed, well-protected, and under very strict naval discipline. Look-out posts were established all over the ship, all guns were manned night and day by their gun crews, to ward off any attempt that might have been made by enemy submarines. It was all futile, for the strong cordon of cruisers and destroyers that surrounded the entire convoy proved too great a barrier, evidently, for anything like this to happen. After two or three days with us, the convoy began to dispel, the cruisers turned back, then the destroyers, and we were then left to the tender mercies of a protected merchant cruiser, which was, no doubt, capable of dealing with any attempt that might have been made by submarines at this distance from England. |
| Apl 20 | About this time, the convoy broke up. All ships headed their own direction under their own protection. We were bound we knew not which route, but our ultimate destination we did know. We endeavoured to elicit information as to our route from the Captain of the ship but he would not inform us as to which route we were taking; but, from what he did tell us we were enabled to deduct the fact that we were going home via the Panama Canal. |
| May 4 | After about three weeks in the Atlantic, we sighted land early one morning, which proved to be Colon, the town at the entrance to the Panama Canal on the Atlantic side. We pulled into the coaling docks here for coal and were granted leave at 1 pm., to go ashore and enjoy the town. We spent a very enjoyable few hours in this place, made several necessary purchases, and returned to ship after having spent the only day on leave that we were to have on the entire voyage. |
| May 5 |
At 7 pm we pulled out from the coaling docks and started on our way toward the Gatun Locks at the entrance to the Canal. We were soon within the confines of their huge bulk and the entire ship's human cargo spent the day looking and marvelling at the wonders of this huge undertaking. It was about 5 pm when we passed through the Pedro Miguel Locks which lower the ship to the level of the Pacific Ocean on the other side, and once through these, we slowly made our way down the rest of the Canal toward the Ocean - and Australia - and home. I was glad we did not stay at Panama as it would mean another day's delay in getting home. So we settled down once again to life on the ocean wave and prepared for a month more of sea travelling, ere we were back home again with our ain folk. |
| Nothing of event transpired from the day we left Panama until | |
| June 6 | when we sighted land once again which proved to be the entrance to Port Phillip, and Melbourne. Sydney men |