REMOVAL OF THE NORTH SEA MINE BARRAGE 



109 



tiny vessels tacking and wearing 

 in perfect unison, keeping sta- 

 tion on each other by furling top- 

 sails or streaming sea anchors. 



But the experiments were cut 

 short by the gale foretold by the 

 morning's sky, which broke with 

 the fury of a hurricane in the 

 early part of the afternoon. The 

 sweep was cut adrift, sails reefed, 

 and course set to pick up the 

 Patapsco and Patuxent, who by 

 now had been left out of sight 

 beyond the horizon. 



EXPERIENCING ONE OF THE GALES 



THAT MAKE THE NORTH 



SEA NOTORIOUS 



By 3 o'clock the sun had set 

 and the oncoming darkness added 

 to the difficulties. Shortly be- 

 fore midnight the tugs were over- 

 taken, but they were suffering 

 equally in the gale, and a few 

 minutes later were again out of 

 sight. 



How it blew ! The Red Rose 

 was hove to under storm- jib and 

 staysail forward and triple-reefed 

 mizzen aft. First, the jib went, 

 followed by the topmast, then 

 but a bare pole. A few hours 

 later the mizzen-boom snapped, 

 and for the next 36 hours the 

 Red Rose wallowed in the North 

 Sea waves — vicious waves, that 

 seemed to come at once from all 

 directions. 



The Patuxent's rudder was 

 carried away, and she had to re- 

 turn to port. 



Not knowing whether the Red 

 Rose and Red Fern were safe, a 

 number of British men-of-war 

 were sent out to join the search, 

 but most of the would-be rescue 

 ships had to return to port, for 

 they could not weather the gale. 



Then followed days of anxiety 

 at Inverness. Had it been ask- 

 ing too much of such fragile 

 craft to undertake this expedition 

 at this period of the year? The 

 North Sea is notorious the world 

 over for its violent weather. But, 

 when hope had almost ebbed 

 away, word came from Peter- 







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