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[Page 32]
Nov. 9th.
During the early hours of the Morning we received a Message from Cocos Island that there was a strange warship cruising about for the purpose of destroying the Wireless Station. At Seven o'clock we left the convoy travelling at 20 Knots making for Cocos Island, and after steaming hard for about 2 hours we sighted smoke on the starbord Bow so we altered course and made straight for it and found it was the Emden with her Collier the Buresh which she had Captured. We came within range and the Emden opened the Ball at 10,500 yards, the shot passing over the fore Bridge. The way the Captain handled the ship was splendid and from 9.40 AM the firing became very hot and furious. All this time we were chasing the Emden northward and now we got our range bring down her fore mast and and shot away away her fore Bridge and her after funnels, one after the other and silencing all her Guns but we had hard luck with our torpedo which ran short. She is now a complete wreck and making for the Island and ran aground on the reef, a few hours before a smart ship and now a mass of twisted steel and her deck like a slaughter house.
Our losses 2 dead, 5 Seriously wounded & 8 wounded slightly and the only damage that she did to us was shot away one range finder on the fore Bridge and destroyed the midship control and one shot passed through the forecastle deck down in the Boys messdeck and destroyed the tables and stools and nearly all the Boys Kits.
One passed through the engine room hatch and out through the shipside in the Commander's Cabin. One shooting away our exhaust to atmosphere on No.3 funnel and schattering Bits of shell all over the deck and setting a pile of Cordite on fire.