REMOVAL OF THE NORTH SEA MINE BARRAGE 



113 



THE LITTLE TOWN OF KIRKWALL, SCOTLAND, WITH ITS BARREN, WIND-SWEPT HILLS, 



HAS PLAYED AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN AMERICAN NAVAL 



LIFE DURING THE PAST FIVE YEARS 



Hundreds of patrol craft engaged in hunting submarines and in escort work were based 



here until the Armistice. Four months later the Mine-Sweeping Force made this its base 



while clearing the North Sea Barraee. 



would prevent mines from exploding 

 when in contact with the ship, but against 

 these countermines it was of no avail — 

 and an upper-level countermine beneath 

 sweeper would undoubtedly destroy her. 



kirkwall, America's mine-sweeping 

 base in the orkneys 



The next mine encountered in the 

 sweep exploded, shattering the sweep- 

 wire, and before the break was mended 

 a blinding snow-storm cut short further 

 experiments. The two ships then pro- 

 ceeded to Lerwick, a drowsy little town 

 in the Shetland Islands, and later to 

 Kirkwall, in the Orkneys, choosing the 

 latter place as our base for the coming 

 operations. 



During this experimental trip twenty- 

 five mines were exploded and fourteen 

 were cut adrift. As many of these float- 

 ing mines as possible were sunk by rifle 

 fire, but it was difficult to find them after 

 they had once been lost to sight. It was 

 evident that special ships would be re- 

 quired to follow up each pair of sweepers 



and sink the mines as fast as they ap- 

 peared. The only vessels then available 

 were the little sub-chasers, which had 

 been doing patrol duty in the English 

 Channel, and twenty of them were ob- 

 tained and sent to Inverness. 



By the middle of April all arrange- 

 ments were completed and we were ready 

 to begin actual sweeping the moment that 

 the mine-sweepers arrived. Oil-ships, 

 colliers, gasoline, and water boats had 

 been borrowed from the British Admi- 

 ralty ; the sub-chasers had been drilled in 

 their new duties ; special buoys had been 

 obtained for marking the barrage, and the 

 sweepers were by then halfway across 

 the Atlantic. 



THE SWEEPERS ARRIVE FOR THE BIG TASK 



On April 20, 1918, the first twelve of 

 these sturdy little vessels arrived in In- 

 verness. What a weird future confronted 

 them ! 



A veil of mystery surrounded every- 

 thing, even more than in the silent oper- 

 ations of the war. Those who manned 



