The Rainbow. A World War One on Canada's West Coast Timeline
- Thread starter YYJ
- Start date
Saw that, I just had forgotten you had put the town size in an earlier post.
Oh well, It would have been nice to get free loads for both ships.
Do you think they could load up the Prince Rupert with all the coal they could get on board and use it as a deepwater tender? That would allow them to get Leipzig topped off again.
Don't you think that Nürnberg and Leipzig working together in the Northwest would be more effective right now. Combined they outgun anything previously mentioned by Britain, Japan and surley Canada.
I'm thinking trying to take some copper ore or ingots back to Germany might be worthwhile as well ? Or maybe try and trade them to neutrals for supplies later in the voyage ?
They would have a lot of trouble with Izumo. They have several knots on her, so they would run.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_cruiser_Izumo
The space in-between
Aug 16, 1900 hours. SMS Nürnberg, Granby Bay, Anyox B.C.
Captain Von Schönberg brought the Nürnberg into the harbour, and not a moment too soon. The fires were lit in only four of her eleven boilers. As the First Lieutenant guided the cruiser to moor alongside the outboard-most coal barge, directed by the prize crew on Prince Rupert, he surveyed this town of Anyox. The most salient feature was the huge copper smelter on a hill at the far end of the bay, issuing forth an equally huge pall of smoke and fumes from one tall smokestack and many smaller ones. This smoke continued to ground level in a haze that muted the mill’s outline in a blueish chiaroscuro. To the left of the mill was a black slag pile, about the size of the Great Pyramid of Cheops, but flat on top. This much he was familiar with. It could be mistaken for any of a hundred similar mills in Germany. To the right of the mill, the center of the town was made of identical steep roofed wood frame houses, with dark siding and white trim, like Hansel and Gretel cottages. In the midst of the houses sat two huge cylindrical oil storage tanks.
The easternmost part of the town was made of giant warehouses, and multi-storied wood frame administration buildings, workshops and apartment buildings. The occasional church spire rose above the shingle roofs, elevated wood plank roads and rail trestles ran to and fro, and there were more industrial buildings with smokestacks than he could devise a function for. The port facilities were most impressive for the size of the town. The long wooden dock was already accommodating three ocean going ships in a row, some rafted several deep, with room for more at wharfside, and a separate loading facility wharf supporting three travelling gantries. A barge similar to the late Louisiana was being loaded by a gantry just now. Steam and electric trains ran on trestles built out over the bay and along spur lines that wound their way up steep sided valleys. A massive construction project was in progress on the rocky point to the east of the wharf. The strangest thing about the town though was the space in-between. Whatever ground not taken up by structures was a jumble of bedrock outcroppings, dirt, and giant stumps. It seemed that Anyox had not been there long enough for shrubs to grow back, after it had been cleared from the primeval forest that stoped abruptly at the edge of town. It looked as if the whole of Anyox had fallen from the sky yesterday.
Von Schönberg immediately ordered strong parties of guards to be placed around the administration buildings, and at the wireless station and switchboard for the town’s telephone system. A work party immediately began dismantling the wireless equipment, including the 100 metre long antenna that stretched across a small arm of the bay. This was all brought back on board the Prince Rupert. “It would be easier to just smash it all,” Von Schönberg told Von Spee, “but I don’t want to give the townsfolk the idea we are here to smash things, just yet.”
The townsfolk did not exactly all stay inside their homes. In fact they would not miss this spectacle for the world. But they did keep their distance, and some even tried to stay concealed. The children were the most curious. One gang of youngsters watched from the tennis courts, between the Anyox Hotel and the administration offices. They seemed to be egging each other on, as to who was bravest and could get closest to the guards. Finally, a five year old ran up and tagged one of the amused guards on the knee, then ran away, her legs whirling. The petty officer in command of the guards ordered, in German, “Company, roar like bears!” They did. The children ran away, shrieking and delighted, only to reappear several minutes later peeking around the corner of a different building.
https://www.gent.name/_media/bc:towns:anyox:barges_at_anyox_bc.jpg?cache=
Captain Von Schönberg brought the Nürnberg into the harbour, and not a moment too soon. The fires were lit in only four of her eleven boilers. As the First Lieutenant guided the cruiser to moor alongside the outboard-most coal barge, directed by the prize crew on Prince Rupert, he surveyed this town of Anyox. The most salient feature was the huge copper smelter on a hill at the far end of the bay, issuing forth an equally huge pall of smoke and fumes from one tall smokestack and many smaller ones. This smoke continued to ground level in a haze that muted the mill’s outline in a blueish chiaroscuro. To the left of the mill was a black slag pile, about the size of the Great Pyramid of Cheops, but flat on top. This much he was familiar with. It could be mistaken for any of a hundred similar mills in Germany. To the right of the mill, the center of the town was made of identical steep roofed wood frame houses, with dark siding and white trim, like Hansel and Gretel cottages. In the midst of the houses sat two huge cylindrical oil storage tanks.
The easternmost part of the town was made of giant warehouses, and multi-storied wood frame administration buildings, workshops and apartment buildings. The occasional church spire rose above the shingle roofs, elevated wood plank roads and rail trestles ran to and fro, and there were more industrial buildings with smokestacks than he could devise a function for. The port facilities were most impressive for the size of the town. The long wooden dock was already accommodating three ocean going ships in a row, some rafted several deep, with room for more at wharfside, and a separate loading facility wharf supporting three travelling gantries. A barge similar to the late Louisiana was being loaded by a gantry just now. Steam and electric trains ran on trestles built out over the bay and along spur lines that wound their way up steep sided valleys. A massive construction project was in progress on the rocky point to the east of the wharf. The strangest thing about the town though was the space in-between. Whatever ground not taken up by structures was a jumble of bedrock outcroppings, dirt, and giant stumps. It seemed that Anyox had not been there long enough for shrubs to grow back, after it had been cleared from the primeval forest that stoped abruptly at the edge of town. It looked as if the whole of Anyox had fallen from the sky yesterday.
Von Schönberg immediately ordered strong parties of guards to be placed around the administration buildings, and at the wireless station and switchboard for the town’s telephone system. A work party immediately began dismantling the wireless equipment, including the 100 metre long antenna that stretched across a small arm of the bay. This was all brought back on board the Prince Rupert. “It would be easier to just smash it all,” Von Schönberg told Von Spee, “but I don’t want to give the townsfolk the idea we are here to smash things, just yet.”
The townsfolk did not exactly all stay inside their homes. In fact they would not miss this spectacle for the world. But they did keep their distance, and some even tried to stay concealed. The children were the most curious. One gang of youngsters watched from the tennis courts, between the Anyox Hotel and the administration offices. They seemed to be egging each other on, as to who was bravest and could get closest to the guards. Finally, a five year old ran up and tagged one of the amused guards on the knee, then ran away, her legs whirling. The petty officer in command of the guards ordered, in German, “Company, roar like bears!” They did. The children ran away, shrieking and delighted, only to reappear several minutes later peeking around the corner of a different building.
https://www.gent.name/_media/bc:towns:anyox:barges_at_anyox_bc.jpg?cache=
850 tons
Aug 16, 1915 hours. SMS Nürnberg, Granby Bay, Anyox B.C.
Nürnberg’s maximum bunker capacity for coal was 850 tons, and Von Schönberg intended to take every last kilogram. His crew could load about 100 tons per hour, so that meant eight and a half hours of coaling. He also ordered 300 tons of coal to be loaded onto Prince Rupert, in sacks. The crew got right to work on the dirty job. He would work the crew in shifts, to allow them to get some rest.
Prince Rupert, he learned, was oil fired. She could be fueled from pipes that ran under the wharf, and promptly topped up her tanks. He marvelled at how easily an oil-fired ship could be replenished, and then looked back at the dust pall surrounding Nürnberg. He could see where the future in ship design would lead. If you have the oil resources, he thought. Of which Germany has none on her native soil. He now considered the supply situation for his oil-fired prize. She could not be run on captured coal. Could she fuel in a neutral harbour? Could she transfer oil from another prize? He supposed if all else failed she could just be scuttled. As a contingency, he had ninety 45 gallon drums of fuel oil brought on board, and stored low in the hold below the waterline.
In the meantime, SMS Prince Rupert could be quite useful, with a top speed of 18 knots and the ability to carry prize cargo, 236 passengers comfortably and 1500 in a pinch. Von Schönberg could take a battalion of infantry as prisoners of war if the opportunity presented itself. In order to allow her to operate independently, Von Schönberg decided she needed to be better armed. At the moment, there was already a Spandau machinegun on each wing of the open bridge, and on each side amidships beside the third funnel, as well as a 3.7cm pom-pom at the very bow and stern of the top deck. These guns were discretely covered by tarpaulins. Von Schönberg ordered that Nürnberg’s pair of waist 5.2 cm secondary guns be unbolted from the deck in their positions beside the main mast, and be prepared for transfer to Prince Rupert, along with 150 rounds per gun. Although they were considered to be light guns, each still weighed almost 4 tons on its mount, so Prince Rupert maneuvered alongside Nürnberg outboard, and the guns were slung across, and ammunition passed over. One gun was placed on the stern of the promenade deck, the other on the very bow of the main deck, like a whaler’s harpoon gun. Machinists immediately got to work drilling and bolting the bases to Prince Rupert’s deck.
Lieutenant Von Spee searched inside the guarded administration office building. He tipped his hat to Hiram Karlsson, who had set himself up in the office, fretting. He was careful not to assist the Germans in their pillaging, but wanted to make himself available to ward off any catastrophe. He sat in a swivel chair, repeatedly nodding off to sleep and then jerking back awake. Von Spee found one of the things he was looking for, a map with the location of the explosives magazine. He also found three safes, two free standing and one with its own room in the style of a bank vault. He sent an armed work party of 20 men off to the magazine, up the ‘B’ Line train track in the direction of the Hidden Creek Mine. They returned just before dark with a commandeered electric shunting engine and three flat cars loaded with crates marked, Dynamite, or Fuse Cord, or Blasting Caps. These were unloaded, half onto each German ship.
Von Spee also assembled an armed party to go grocery shopping. With 12 men, and a commandeered railway handcar and small flat deck car, they took a short run to the General Store, which adjoined the main wharf. With US dollars from Nürnberg’s coffers, they purchased 100 bags of flour, 100 bags of potatoes, 50 cases of assorted canned vegetables, 50 cases of canned salmon and tuna, coffee, boxes of apples, carrots, and cabbages, and sundries. Next stop was the butcher shop next door, where they bought all the pork chops in the store, and all of the sausages.
http://www.anyox.com/galleries/anyox-past-photos/#/1
Nürnberg’s maximum bunker capacity for coal was 850 tons, and Von Schönberg intended to take every last kilogram. His crew could load about 100 tons per hour, so that meant eight and a half hours of coaling. He also ordered 300 tons of coal to be loaded onto Prince Rupert, in sacks. The crew got right to work on the dirty job. He would work the crew in shifts, to allow them to get some rest.
Prince Rupert, he learned, was oil fired. She could be fueled from pipes that ran under the wharf, and promptly topped up her tanks. He marvelled at how easily an oil-fired ship could be replenished, and then looked back at the dust pall surrounding Nürnberg. He could see where the future in ship design would lead. If you have the oil resources, he thought. Of which Germany has none on her native soil. He now considered the supply situation for his oil-fired prize. She could not be run on captured coal. Could she fuel in a neutral harbour? Could she transfer oil from another prize? He supposed if all else failed she could just be scuttled. As a contingency, he had ninety 45 gallon drums of fuel oil brought on board, and stored low in the hold below the waterline.
In the meantime, SMS Prince Rupert could be quite useful, with a top speed of 18 knots and the ability to carry prize cargo, 236 passengers comfortably and 1500 in a pinch. Von Schönberg could take a battalion of infantry as prisoners of war if the opportunity presented itself. In order to allow her to operate independently, Von Schönberg decided she needed to be better armed. At the moment, there was already a Spandau machinegun on each wing of the open bridge, and on each side amidships beside the third funnel, as well as a 3.7cm pom-pom at the very bow and stern of the top deck. These guns were discretely covered by tarpaulins. Von Schönberg ordered that Nürnberg’s pair of waist 5.2 cm secondary guns be unbolted from the deck in their positions beside the main mast, and be prepared for transfer to Prince Rupert, along with 150 rounds per gun. Although they were considered to be light guns, each still weighed almost 4 tons on its mount, so Prince Rupert maneuvered alongside Nürnberg outboard, and the guns were slung across, and ammunition passed over. One gun was placed on the stern of the promenade deck, the other on the very bow of the main deck, like a whaler’s harpoon gun. Machinists immediately got to work drilling and bolting the bases to Prince Rupert’s deck.
Lieutenant Von Spee searched inside the guarded administration office building. He tipped his hat to Hiram Karlsson, who had set himself up in the office, fretting. He was careful not to assist the Germans in their pillaging, but wanted to make himself available to ward off any catastrophe. He sat in a swivel chair, repeatedly nodding off to sleep and then jerking back awake. Von Spee found one of the things he was looking for, a map with the location of the explosives magazine. He also found three safes, two free standing and one with its own room in the style of a bank vault. He sent an armed work party of 20 men off to the magazine, up the ‘B’ Line train track in the direction of the Hidden Creek Mine. They returned just before dark with a commandeered electric shunting engine and three flat cars loaded with crates marked, Dynamite, or Fuse Cord, or Blasting Caps. These were unloaded, half onto each German ship.
Von Spee also assembled an armed party to go grocery shopping. With 12 men, and a commandeered railway handcar and small flat deck car, they took a short run to the General Store, which adjoined the main wharf. With US dollars from Nürnberg’s coffers, they purchased 100 bags of flour, 100 bags of potatoes, 50 cases of assorted canned vegetables, 50 cases of canned salmon and tuna, coffee, boxes of apples, carrots, and cabbages, and sundries. Next stop was the butcher shop next door, where they bought all the pork chops in the store, and all of the sausages.
http://www.anyox.com/galleries/anyox-past-photos/#/1
If you peruse the photo gallery attached to the post above there is lots of historical detail, including a blackface minstrel show (!) in a local theatre production. These were apparently quite popular at the time. The story is set in early 1914, Anyox was under construction for much of its life, so some buildings in the photos do not exist at the time of the story. The Concentrator mill to the right in picture 35 is one such building. Historical sources seem to disagree on numbering the powerhouses. One was hydro electric, one was coal fired steam. They were named #1 and #2, but switch depending on the source.
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My guess that the RCN will get a LOT more funding iTTL.
The Germans would see them as Red Deer, 'elk' in Europe means what we call a moose.
Edit. Cervus spp. are called Hirsch, the Red Deer is Rothirsch, literally the same as in English.
Obviously, if it's a modern Canadian narrator speaking, not a German's thoughts translated, then Elk might suffice, but Wapiti would be better.
The Brave Boys of Anyox part 1
Aug 16, 1845 hours. Observatory Inlet, near Anyox B.C.
It is scarcely necessary to retell the story of The Brave Boys of Anyox. Since it has been a staple of a number of Grade 5 English textbooks for almost 50 years, the tale is well known to anyone who went to public school in British Columbia, Alberta, or Ontario. Generations of schoolboys and girls have played in the woods, pretending that they were the Brave Boys, surmounting adversity of tide and mountain, Germans and grizzly bears to get the news to the Authorities and Save the Day.
But who were they really? Magnus Karlsson was son of a manager in Anyox. Zacharias Paul was the son of an unwed mother who lived and worked as a housekeeper in the Karlsson household. Both were 12 years old.
Magnus spoke Norwegian, but did not have an accent when he spoke English, unlike his parents. Still, he was not quite English enough for the sons of the other managers and engineers, and he was not included in their after school gang. The working class kids just knew him as one of the bosses’ kids, and didn’t trust him to keep their mischief in confidence. He played baseball, and tennis, and skied in the winter, Nordic style, with his parents.
Zacharias Paul was, like his mother, Tsimshian from Port Simpson. It was unusual for an Indian woman to be a domestic servant in Anyox, most of this work in the managers’ and professionals’ households was done by young Irish or Eastern European girls. But she was quiet and efficient, and made herself almost invisible as she moved through a room. The Karlsson family became quite fond of her, and her son. When the Karlssons, in a personal moment, had asked why she had moved away from her people, all she would say was “To get my boy away from that school.”
Magnus thought it unfair that Zacharias did not have to go to school. Zacharias would have happily gone to the Anyox school, had he been allowed. “Are you kidding?” Magnus said, “I got the strap because I couldn’t remember a poem the teacher wanted me to recite.”
“Still better than my old school,” said Zach. Magnus had no reply to that.
Zacharias had gone to school long enough to learn how to read. When not doing chores and odd jobs for the Karlssons, he read every English book in their home library, and then a large portion of the books in the Anyox library. He was not allowed to take out books, but Magnus brought him armloads. When he was done with boy’s adventure books he moved on to classics.
Proximity and circumstance lead the boys to spend time together. Once they did, they found they got along well, and together explored the wilderness and industrial landscape as boys would. They had learned from experience that there were no fish in Anyox harbour, not healthy ones anyway. They had to go farther to find good fishing spots, and had a favourite just to the east of Davie's Point, where Alice Arm branched off Observatory Inlet. They had landed a good-sized rock cod into the bottom of the canoe, and were hoping for another, when something strange caught their attention.
The boys were very familiar with the comings and goings of the steamships that served their town. The SS Prince Rupert entered the channel between Brooke Island and the Bocking Peninsula, as she had so many times before, sometimes late like today. But she was followed by another ship. The newcomer was obviously a warship. Magnus picked up his spyglass and took a closer look.
“Oh wow!” he said. “Oh wow!”
He ranged his spyglass over the ship. Three funnels. Guns. More guns. A big German war ensign flapping on top of the foremast.
“Zack! It’s just like on the newsreels, and in the papers. It’s the German navy! Oh wow! What do we do?”
“Let me see!” Magnus passed the spyglass. Zacharias had studied every page of the library’s copy of Jane’s Fighting Ships. “I think it’s the Nürnberg,” he said. “The Liepzig has a pointier ram. We have to tell someone! We have to get help!”
They watched a team of sailors load a big machinegun into one of the cruiser’s boats, then it was lowered into the water. The boat rowed to a spot beside Thomas Point on Larcom Island, where it was out of the current, but could see the same line down Observatory Inlet as the boys. Where it could stand watch. The wheels were spinning in the boys’ heads.
“The boat is keeping guard,” said Zacharias. “That means the cruiser is going into the town. We gotta go. To Alice Arm. They’ll know what to do.”
The tide was still running out, towards the sea, and would be for another couple of hours. Although the current in the middle of the channel was strong, the boys knew how to stay close to shore and use the eddies to help them paddle upstream. Alice Arm was the name of the body of water they were in, and the name of a town at its head, 11 miles up the inlet. The town of Alice Arm served half a dozen mines, had a hotel, school, store, post office and a telegraph office.
https://www.stillmanbooks.com/oldreaders.htm
It is scarcely necessary to retell the story of The Brave Boys of Anyox. Since it has been a staple of a number of Grade 5 English textbooks for almost 50 years, the tale is well known to anyone who went to public school in British Columbia, Alberta, or Ontario. Generations of schoolboys and girls have played in the woods, pretending that they were the Brave Boys, surmounting adversity of tide and mountain, Germans and grizzly bears to get the news to the Authorities and Save the Day.
But who were they really? Magnus Karlsson was son of a manager in Anyox. Zacharias Paul was the son of an unwed mother who lived and worked as a housekeeper in the Karlsson household. Both were 12 years old.
Magnus spoke Norwegian, but did not have an accent when he spoke English, unlike his parents. Still, he was not quite English enough for the sons of the other managers and engineers, and he was not included in their after school gang. The working class kids just knew him as one of the bosses’ kids, and didn’t trust him to keep their mischief in confidence. He played baseball, and tennis, and skied in the winter, Nordic style, with his parents.
Zacharias Paul was, like his mother, Tsimshian from Port Simpson. It was unusual for an Indian woman to be a domestic servant in Anyox, most of this work in the managers’ and professionals’ households was done by young Irish or Eastern European girls. But she was quiet and efficient, and made herself almost invisible as she moved through a room. The Karlsson family became quite fond of her, and her son. When the Karlssons, in a personal moment, had asked why she had moved away from her people, all she would say was “To get my boy away from that school.”
Magnus thought it unfair that Zacharias did not have to go to school. Zacharias would have happily gone to the Anyox school, had he been allowed. “Are you kidding?” Magnus said, “I got the strap because I couldn’t remember a poem the teacher wanted me to recite.”
“Still better than my old school,” said Zach. Magnus had no reply to that.
Zacharias had gone to school long enough to learn how to read. When not doing chores and odd jobs for the Karlssons, he read every English book in their home library, and then a large portion of the books in the Anyox library. He was not allowed to take out books, but Magnus brought him armloads. When he was done with boy’s adventure books he moved on to classics.
Proximity and circumstance lead the boys to spend time together. Once they did, they found they got along well, and together explored the wilderness and industrial landscape as boys would. They had learned from experience that there were no fish in Anyox harbour, not healthy ones anyway. They had to go farther to find good fishing spots, and had a favourite just to the east of Davie's Point, where Alice Arm branched off Observatory Inlet. They had landed a good-sized rock cod into the bottom of the canoe, and were hoping for another, when something strange caught their attention.
The boys were very familiar with the comings and goings of the steamships that served their town. The SS Prince Rupert entered the channel between Brooke Island and the Bocking Peninsula, as she had so many times before, sometimes late like today. But she was followed by another ship. The newcomer was obviously a warship. Magnus picked up his spyglass and took a closer look.
“Oh wow!” he said. “Oh wow!”
He ranged his spyglass over the ship. Three funnels. Guns. More guns. A big German war ensign flapping on top of the foremast.
“Zack! It’s just like on the newsreels, and in the papers. It’s the German navy! Oh wow! What do we do?”
“Let me see!” Magnus passed the spyglass. Zacharias had studied every page of the library’s copy of Jane’s Fighting Ships. “I think it’s the Nürnberg,” he said. “The Liepzig has a pointier ram. We have to tell someone! We have to get help!”
They watched a team of sailors load a big machinegun into one of the cruiser’s boats, then it was lowered into the water. The boat rowed to a spot beside Thomas Point on Larcom Island, where it was out of the current, but could see the same line down Observatory Inlet as the boys. Where it could stand watch. The wheels were spinning in the boys’ heads.
“The boat is keeping guard,” said Zacharias. “That means the cruiser is going into the town. We gotta go. To Alice Arm. They’ll know what to do.”
The tide was still running out, towards the sea, and would be for another couple of hours. Although the current in the middle of the channel was strong, the boys knew how to stay close to shore and use the eddies to help them paddle upstream. Alice Arm was the name of the body of water they were in, and the name of a town at its head, 11 miles up the inlet. The town of Alice Arm served half a dozen mines, had a hotel, school, store, post office and a telegraph office.
https://www.stillmanbooks.com/oldreaders.htm
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Very interesting development, looks like we have a group of modern day Laura Secords on our hands.
now the trick is to get the grownups to believe what two kids are saying after a long paddle
Zeitung
Aug 16, 2015 hours. SMS Nürnberg, Anyox B.C.
After suppertime, a tall man in a blazer and fedora approached the cordon of guards and asked to speak to the captain. He held a notepad and a pencil.
“What is your business?” asked the guard with the best English.
“Ernest Moss,” the man replied confidently. “Anyox and Alice Arm Herald.” He extended his arm to shake the guard’s hand. The guard did not reciprocate, and stared back unimpressed. “The newspaper. I want to speak to your captain”
The guards continued to look at him, but spoke between themselves. “ News… paper?”
“Zeitung?”
“Zeitung! Newspaper.”
One guard excused himself as a runner. The others motioned for Moss to remain but not come any farther onto the wharf. After a few minutes, Von Schönberg appeared on the deck of the Nürnberg. The guard pointed back towards Mr. Moss on the wharf. A set of gangways had been rigged, as to get to the wharf from Nürnberg, one had to cross two coal barges, an active coaling operation, and the deck of the coastal steamer Amur. Von Schönberg crossed the gangways and approached the reporter.
“Ernest Moss,” he ventured again, “reporter and editor, Anyox and Alice Arm Herald.” Moss extended his hand. This time he received satisfaction, as Von Schönberg met his hand and shook it.
“Kapitaen zur See Karl Von Schönberg, His Majesty’s Imperial Navy. Let us speak here.” He looked back at the Nürnberg coaling. “It is less dusty. I imagine many people here would like words with me, but I did not imagine the newspapers.”
“This is a news story. It is not every day that a foreign navy invades Canada. I have the statement that you had Manager Karlsson read, and I have interviewed him. I wanted to get the perspective of the…” Moss looked for the right word “Invader.”
Von Schönberg laughed. “Ah, a man who lives by words. A truth teller. Alright Mr. Moss, what do you want to know.”
‘”Well,” Moss asked conversationally. “What brings you to a place like this?” Moss brought up his notepad, his pencil poised.
“You know there is a war,” said Von Schönberg “and sometimes the war happens where you do not expect it. Everyone is surprised when it comes to their personal world. My orders are to carry the war to the enemy, wherever he may be. We are engaged in cruiser warfare, which means disrupting the commerce of the enemy, who now happens to be the British Empire. Copper is a Strategic War Material, ergo, we are here to disrupt the trade in copper.”
“And what is our fate to be?” asked Moss. “Will we end up like Belgian babies, quivering on the end of a bayonet?”
“Hmm…” replied Von Schönberg. “Your newspapers have much to answer for. But I expect this is also true for German newspapers. Our presence here is explicitly permissible under the Hague Conventions of 1907. This same Convention protects the civilians of your town from harm as long as you do not obstruct our men or vessels. If you are wondering what treatment civilians receive when under our care, you are welcome to interview any of the passengers that disembarked from the Prince Rupert today. I invite you to, and publish their accounts in your newspaper. Some have been in our company for ten days. I recall times when the meals became dull, but the crew of the Nürnberg shared this hardship with our charges.”
“And these Conventions allow you to steal ships, and food, and coal?”
“The Conventions indeed allow us to seize ships of a belligerent power. The food here we purchased with cash. The shopkeeper can attest to that. The coal also was purchased.”
“From a willing seller?” probed Moss.
“That is a matter for the buyer, the government of Germany, and the seller, the Granby Mining and Smelting company.”
“So how long do you plan on staying here? What do you intend to do?”
“Please Mr. Moss,” said Von Schönberg. “Do not ask me questions of a military nature. You know I cannot answer. Here,” he said, reaching inside his uniform tunic. I have taken the liberty of providing you with the relevant Articles from the Hague Conventions, Articles 9 and 13, in English. They are most informative.”
“May I take pictures of your cruiser and your men?”
“Yes, that is fine. I will inform the guards. Please do not come onto the wharf proper, or try to cross any line of guards. And please do not use a flash. The guards may mistake it for gunfire.”
During summer in this latitude, darkness came later than in the south, but mid-August was well past the solstice. The sun “set” at 2145, somewhere behind the mountains, beyond the haze. When darkness started to arrive at 2230, Anyox turned on the ample electric streetlights that lined its wood plank roads. Nürnberg turned her four powerful searchlights on to illuminate the coaling, so the wharf was lit with a brilliant white light. The coaling continued all night.
https://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/hague09.asp
https://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/hague13.asp
After suppertime, a tall man in a blazer and fedora approached the cordon of guards and asked to speak to the captain. He held a notepad and a pencil.
“What is your business?” asked the guard with the best English.
“Ernest Moss,” the man replied confidently. “Anyox and Alice Arm Herald.” He extended his arm to shake the guard’s hand. The guard did not reciprocate, and stared back unimpressed. “The newspaper. I want to speak to your captain”
The guards continued to look at him, but spoke between themselves. “ News… paper?”
“Zeitung?”
“Zeitung! Newspaper.”
One guard excused himself as a runner. The others motioned for Moss to remain but not come any farther onto the wharf. After a few minutes, Von Schönberg appeared on the deck of the Nürnberg. The guard pointed back towards Mr. Moss on the wharf. A set of gangways had been rigged, as to get to the wharf from Nürnberg, one had to cross two coal barges, an active coaling operation, and the deck of the coastal steamer Amur. Von Schönberg crossed the gangways and approached the reporter.
“Ernest Moss,” he ventured again, “reporter and editor, Anyox and Alice Arm Herald.” Moss extended his hand. This time he received satisfaction, as Von Schönberg met his hand and shook it.
“Kapitaen zur See Karl Von Schönberg, His Majesty’s Imperial Navy. Let us speak here.” He looked back at the Nürnberg coaling. “It is less dusty. I imagine many people here would like words with me, but I did not imagine the newspapers.”
“This is a news story. It is not every day that a foreign navy invades Canada. I have the statement that you had Manager Karlsson read, and I have interviewed him. I wanted to get the perspective of the…” Moss looked for the right word “Invader.”
Von Schönberg laughed. “Ah, a man who lives by words. A truth teller. Alright Mr. Moss, what do you want to know.”
‘”Well,” Moss asked conversationally. “What brings you to a place like this?” Moss brought up his notepad, his pencil poised.
“You know there is a war,” said Von Schönberg “and sometimes the war happens where you do not expect it. Everyone is surprised when it comes to their personal world. My orders are to carry the war to the enemy, wherever he may be. We are engaged in cruiser warfare, which means disrupting the commerce of the enemy, who now happens to be the British Empire. Copper is a Strategic War Material, ergo, we are here to disrupt the trade in copper.”
“And what is our fate to be?” asked Moss. “Will we end up like Belgian babies, quivering on the end of a bayonet?”
“Hmm…” replied Von Schönberg. “Your newspapers have much to answer for. But I expect this is also true for German newspapers. Our presence here is explicitly permissible under the Hague Conventions of 1907. This same Convention protects the civilians of your town from harm as long as you do not obstruct our men or vessels. If you are wondering what treatment civilians receive when under our care, you are welcome to interview any of the passengers that disembarked from the Prince Rupert today. I invite you to, and publish their accounts in your newspaper. Some have been in our company for ten days. I recall times when the meals became dull, but the crew of the Nürnberg shared this hardship with our charges.”
“And these Conventions allow you to steal ships, and food, and coal?”
“The Conventions indeed allow us to seize ships of a belligerent power. The food here we purchased with cash. The shopkeeper can attest to that. The coal also was purchased.”
“From a willing seller?” probed Moss.
“That is a matter for the buyer, the government of Germany, and the seller, the Granby Mining and Smelting company.”
“So how long do you plan on staying here? What do you intend to do?”
“Please Mr. Moss,” said Von Schönberg. “Do not ask me questions of a military nature. You know I cannot answer. Here,” he said, reaching inside his uniform tunic. I have taken the liberty of providing you with the relevant Articles from the Hague Conventions, Articles 9 and 13, in English. They are most informative.”
“May I take pictures of your cruiser and your men?”
“Yes, that is fine. I will inform the guards. Please do not come onto the wharf proper, or try to cross any line of guards. And please do not use a flash. The guards may mistake it for gunfire.”
During summer in this latitude, darkness came later than in the south, but mid-August was well past the solstice. The sun “set” at 2145, somewhere behind the mountains, beyond the haze. When darkness started to arrive at 2230, Anyox turned on the ample electric streetlights that lined its wood plank roads. Nürnberg turned her four powerful searchlights on to illuminate the coaling, so the wharf was lit with a brilliant white light. The coaling continued all night.
https://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/hague09.asp
https://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/hague13.asp
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Excellent!
For chapter "The Brave Boys of Anyox part 1" it appears we have the first elements of Ferdinand. (The Coastwatchers)
For the 'bad guys' it's always the unexpected that does them in..
For the next chapter "Zeitung" I like the moxey of Ernest Moss. He too could present unforeseen issues to the 'bad guys'.
As usual great writing. I am enjoying very much.
For chapter "The Brave Boys of Anyox part 1" it appears we have the first elements of Ferdinand. (The Coastwatchers)
For the 'bad guys' it's always the unexpected that does them in..
For the next chapter "Zeitung" I like the moxey of Ernest Moss. He too could present unforeseen issues to the 'bad guys'.
As usual great writing. I am enjoying very much.