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August 3, 1914. Esquimalt Navy Base, British Columbia.

Commander Walter Hose tapped his fingers across the cabins old sea desk, it’s scratched and worn surface hidden by the various piles of paper strewn about. He had tried to get a fair nights rest previously but with everything on his mind, that was an exercise in futility. There was usually enough paperwork to go around but ever since the Komagata Maru incident, there was not a moment of brevity to spare. With the events in Europe rapidly spiraling into full scale war, Hose was sent the war warning telegraph back on July 29 and not even a few days later on August 1, Naval Service Headquarters sent him a message that he never wished to see.

“PREPARE RAINBOW FOR ACTIVE SERVICE TRADE PROTECTION GRAIN SHIPS GOING SOUTH. GERMAN CRUISER NURNBERG OR LEIPZIG IS ON WEST COAST AMERICA. OBTAIN ALL INFORMATION AVAILABLE AS TO MERCHANT SHIPS SAILING FROM CANADIAN OR UNITED STATES PORTS. ORDNANCE STORES TO BE COMPLETE TO FULLEST CAPACITY.”

Only a day later on August 2, Hose received a direct telegram from the British Admiralty. He had expected something along these lines to happen alongside the bureaucratic tug of war both nations would have over his ship but even so, the contents of the message surprised him somewhat.

“GERMAN CRUISER LEIPZIG REPORTED DEPARTING MAZATLAN MEXICO MORNING OF JULY 30. RAINBOW TO PROCEED SOUTH AT ONCE IN ORDER TO GET IN TOUCH WITH LEIPZIG AND GENERALLY GUARD THE TRADE ROUTES NORTH OF THE EQUATOR.”

Hose had heard nothing from NSHQ regarding himself and his ship being placed under Admiralty control at such a point and therefore, spent half an hour contemplating his response. He had decided to forward the message to NSHQ with a request for any instructions. Attached was his own message laying out a realistic scheme he had stormed up in his office.

“With reference to Admiralty telegram submitted Rainbow may remain in the vicinity Cape Flattery until more accurate information is received Leipzig, observing that in the event of Leipzig appearing Cape Flattery with Rainbow 1,200 miles distant and receiving no communications, the Pacific cable, Pachena WT station, and ships entering straits at mercy of Leipzig with opportunity to coal from prizes. Vessels working up the west coast of America could easily be warned to adhere closely to territorial waters as far as possible. Inquiry being made Leipzig through our consul.”

NSHQ were not staffed with incompetent or stupid people, Hose knew this firsthand. It seemed though that judging by their response, they were somewhat timid in opposing Admiralty orders. Their reply was somewhat messy but had allowed Hose the freedom he wanted to utilize his original plan.

“PROCEED TO SEA FORTHWITH TO GUARD TRADE ROUTES NORTH OF EQUATOR. KEEP IN TOUCH WITH THE PACHENA WIRELESS STATION UNTIL WAR HAS BEEN DECLARED.”

Rainbow’s wireless set had seen better days and even with the utmost diligence of her crew, it’s range of 200 miles in absolute perfect conditions effectively meant that the NSHQ orders limited him to the vicinity of the Juan de Fuca Strait. His original proposal would have to do as a battle plan for the moment but as he looked out into the vast sea of paper, the anxiety within him clawed it’s way upwards. The July 29 warning had required him to report the condition of his ship but to everybody and especially himself, all of her flaws were all too familiar. Besides the aforementioned wireless set, Rainbow’s aging machinery was rather worn. On their way from Vancouver days before, Hose had ordered the ship slowly to increase speed until they were operating at maximum revolutions. The ship had not stayed at this state for long as leaks in her steam joints and increasing temperatures of the machinery caused Hose to avert the test. Rainbow had made a consistent 15 knots for roughly an hour, far below her designed speed of 18.5 to 20 knots. The stocks of ordnance he had been ordered to take aboard were of questionable value, consisting entirely of vintage gunpowder filled shells from the base’s ancient magazines. The navy did have new lyddite shells in it’s inventory but yet again in some sort of sick cosmic twist of fate, they all were ear marked for HMCS Niobe and stored on the East Coast. The guns themselves were out ranged by the more modern weapons of Leipzig and Nurnberg, even if his shells worked in the first place.

The final and most pressing concern was that of manpower. Rainbow’s official compliment in Royal Navy service had been 273. This had been reduced in Canadian service to 229 and currently, his compliment consisted of 122. Half the already reduced compliment. To make matters worse, large portions of this crew consisted of inexperienced volunteer reservists that varied in age all the way down to 16 years old. Hose had personally played a key role in both encouraging and training these men, both young and old. In any other situation, he would have put them ashore almost instantly in exchange for properly trained men but he could not afford such luxuries now. These men looked up to him for leading them even before they were official placed under his command, hauling them off on what amounted to a likely suicide mission did not weigh lightly on his mind. With such low numbers of crew, Hose was not completely sure if he could both operate his ships full battery and completely man the machinery spaces, let alone attempt any remotely effective damage control measures.

As the weary officer began to organize and clear the mess from his desk, his glance eventually wondered onto a letter addressed to him from Inspector Reid.

“Now that matters in connection with the Komagata Maru have come to a satisfactory conclusion, I wish to express to you and your Officers and men, and also all who are in anywise concerned with your coming to Vancouver to render the assistance you did, my appreciation of the great difficulties you overcame in arriving at Vancouver so speedily, as well as the courtesies you extended when in Vancouver, and also prior to that to my assistant Mr. Howard and the Departments Solicitor, Mr W.H.D. Ladner. Knowing as I do the fact that your vessel was in the condition she was, I wish that you would communicate to all who so readily assisted you, the knowledge of the fact that the authorities are fully aware of the tremendous amount of detail work that had to be done and appreciate the spirit in which the need of the Immigration Department was answered.”

Just through his pompous yet disjointed style of writing, Hose could imagine the proud face of the inspector as he saw those men back off to whatever hell hole they came from. The thought deeply bothered Hose that if he himself had not been born at sea to such a family as his own, he might have been one of the men starving away on that rusty tramp steamer in Vancouver. He would never forget the one Indian man standing in the superstructure as he sent the semaphore, “Our only weapons are coal.” The burning sense of shame still twinged through him as he recounted looking into the weathered faces of those men, alongside the Inspector as the verdict was delivered. The event had definitely been a low point in his career, although what he was about to embark on did not seem especially fruitful either. Perhaps that was not the correct frame of mind. The people of British Columbia would soon be vulnerable to any sort of German caused destruction and Rainbow was the only ship immediately available to stop or hinder such events from happening. It was the least he could do for a province which was so kind and welcoming to the navy as a whole. They were shielded far away from the political squabbles of the East Coast, although not from their repercussions. Even with that being said, Hose had a duty to his crew as much as the people ashore. He would not throw their lives away needlessly. As the Commander fixed his cap and made for the door, he glanced back for just a moment to the framed photograph of his wife and three children sitting behind his desk.

Rainbow would depart shortly after sunrise that morning, headed for her patrol area along the coast of Washington.