Eggs should be served for breakfast about twice a week, if fresh. If not strictly fresh, they are wasted and better not be included in the menu. Pie, etc., can be made on the tender and served during the first two days. Pancakes make a very good breakfast about twice a week.

Another wise measure adopted to relieve the personnel mentally as well as physically from the wear and fatigue inevitable in war service was to grant one or two officers and half the crew, on their return from every second eight-day patrol, a leave of absence beginning the moment they reached the tender and extending to the day previous to their departure on the next patrol. This

enabled everyone during the course of two months to have a full week of liberty. Several made trips to London or Edinburgh for rest and recreation. It relieved the monotony of the patrols, and was following the principle emphasized by the army-that to get the best service from soldiers they should be kept at the front for only limited periods, and at frequent intervals be moved back to villages entirely outside of the atmosphere of war, with occasional trips to Paris or London.

Contact with the Enemy by the U.S. S. AL-4. Her Narrow Escape

The AL-4 and the AL-2 were the two lucky American submarines; for each had a record of making five contacts with the

enemy, and combined they got on the track of the Huns only one less time than all the rest of our submarine navy put together. In these they succeeded in giving the enemy several bad scares, and in one case something more.

The two adventures referred to in the sub-heading belong to separate patrols of the AL-4, nearly a month apart. Of the first Lieutenant Garnet Hulings, U. S. N., who was the officer principally concerned, later remarked, "This was the most thrilling moment of my life, and I never expect to have another like it." It occurred about dawn, 24 April, and was all over in four or five minutes.

The AL-4 was on her way to her patrol station, and was run · ning, as she had been through the bright moonlight night, on the surface. At five o'clock, when the moon was setting and there appeared the first signs of morning, she was approximately 125 miles north of the Scilly Isles, in the strategic position commanding the entrance to both St. George's Channel and Bristol Channel (Lat. 51-40 N.; Long. 6-50 W.). As she was about to submerge, the lookout reported a dark object in the smooth sea, one point off the port bow. A minute later (5.13 a. m.) Lieutenant Hulings, who was the officer on watch, from his station on the bridge made it out to be a submarine heading towards them, 1000 yards distant. Hulings at once gave the order, "Get tubes ready for firing," and he stood by the helmsman, coaching him on.

Although the enemy had little way on, the two crafts neared each other so rapidly that Hulings was doubtful whether his crew would have a torpedo ready in time, and he planned to ram.

Two minutes later, the enemy had evidently sighted the AL-4, for she changed her course to starboard, exposing her port side, and began diving.

Hulings had in an instant followed her change of course by swinging his rudder to left, and as he saw her settling so that only her conning tower was visible, distant 200 yards, he fired the only torpedo that was ready, in the lower left tube, aiming at a point just forward of her conning tower.

The torpedo jumped ten yards to the left on leaving the tube, and then straightened out, making a straight hot shot. The wake passed just forward of the conning tower, probably under the enemy.

As no other tubes were yet available, Hulings then held to his original plan, and crowding on all speed attempted to ram her. But since by this time the enemy had entirely submerged, the AL-4 passed through nothing but bubbles, though so near that they could hear the roaring of air from the ballast tanks. They then themselves dived and followed Fritz by their listening devices. They thus tracked him for a half hour before they lost touch.

Two hours later that morning, they sighted the masts and stacks of a convoy six miles distant, and shortly afterwards an enemy submarine, 3000 or 4000 yards from them in the opposite direction. Diving immediately to 30 feet, they ran for several minutes in the direction of their foe. Then reducing their speed, they rose cautiously for periscope observation. No Hun was in sight, nor appeared in that vicinity again that day. It seemed probable that the enemy were intending to attack the convoy, but were scared away by the "Yankee sub."

A peril much more nerve racking, in which the enemy had no part, was one that the AL-4 passed through on 18 May.

She was at the time 30 miles from Small's Lighthouse on the west coast of England, and according to the usual program of the morning patrol she had been running for some hours 30 or 35 feet beneath the surface conducting a listening patrol. The commanding officer, Lieutenant Lewis Hancock, jr., U. S. N., who had been on watch during the latter part of the night, was getting some rest, and the next in rank, Lieutenant K. R. R. Wallace, U. S. N., had for two days been turned in, sick with "flu." This left Lieutenant Hulings as officer of the deck.

The sea being smooth, the depth was easily controlled; but the officer of the deck noticed that when they stopped to listen the boat would settle, indicating a slight unbalance and negative buoyancy. Whereupon he went through the procedure of adjusting

the trim.

"Blow 300 pounds from adjusting overboard," he ordered, and knowing that there was a green hand at the adjusting pump valve manifold he stationed himself beside the gauge to see that he blew out only the amount directed.

The man repeated the order, but putting his hand on the wrong valve, opened not the adjusting but the auxiliary kingston. Hulings, looking at the adjusting tank gauge, saw no change,

and as he knocked it with his hand it did not move. Meanwhile no one noticed that they were taking in more ballast.

The officer of the deck then stepped to the air manifold to see what was the air pressure. That was all right, but it still did not affect the adjusting. As the boat was continuing to settle, he thought by speeding up to regain control.

"Batteries in series," was the order. And not having over much confidence in the electrician, who was another inexperienced man, the officer stepped into the engine compartment to supervise the shift from "parallel to series," and ended by making the shift himself.

"She's settling fast," called the man in charge of the diving rudders, and his tone told unmistakably that in the settling there was something wrong.

Hulings sprang back to the operating compartment, and saw the depth gauge whizz past 100 feet. He now gave orders to go ahead full speed, hoping by the diving rudders to check the descent. But this seemed to send her down all the faster, and before anything could be done to stop her she struck bottom at 294 feet. Heavy with 1900 pounds of negative buoyancy, she had buried her nose in the soft mud.

"Stop both motors and secure everything," was the instant order, and Hulings went to notify the commanding officer. But Hancock had heard the motors speeding up and felt the boat strike bottom. Not waiting to be called, he had come to take charge. A minute later, Wallace, who because of influenza, attended by high fever, had not been out of his bunk since leaving port, appeared.

Hancock had a short conference with his officers. At 100 feet more than their safe depth, half buried in the mud, they were admittedly in a dangerous situation. But all was calmness on the part of officers and men. Some of the latter off watch had been awakened by water coming in around the three-inch gun, but others were still asleep.

Putting their best men on the diving stations, they tried the safest measures first. They thought to bale the water out of the big tanks by transferring it from the auxiliary to the adjusting tank and then blowing it overboard. The adjusting tank was unusually strong and had been designed for emergencies. This expedient they tried two or three times, but without success.

They filled the tanks, but they could not overcome the greater pressure outside so as to blow them.

As now there came reports of leaking at various points, one officer was directed to go forward and aft and constantly make inspections. He found that especially in the engine room the boat was leaking noticeably around the rivets, phlanges, seams, sea valves, and stern glands (through which the propeller shafts run). The hatches were also leaking slightly.

Since the attempt to blow the adjusting tank was only increasing the pressure of air in the boat, this was stopped. They then tried to release the air by running the air compressors, but again they failed because of the excessive sea pressure. So the compressors were secured.

At this point, as the man at the bow rudders tried them, he discovered they could not be moved, for they were buried in the mud. There was the possibility that the boat might be broken out by going ahead or backing on their motors. This they tried. next. They went ahead, 600 amperes on a side (series on each motor). Then they backed full speed. They tried going ahead with rudder hard right and then hard left-every eye glued on the gauges, except those watching the gyro compass. She would move about 5°, but no more. They tried alternately backing full speed on both motors, and backing one while going ahead with the other. Discovering that they were using up electric power and making no progress they desisted. Meanwhile the main pumps had been put on the duct keel for pumping out the main ballast. They pushed out perhaps a few pounds of water, but it was evident the pumps were feeble against the enormous sea pressure.

Again it was decided to try the motors, and at the same time to blow the bow ballast tank. As this tank was designed to withstand 90 pounds, they thought to apply only enough air to overcome the sea pressure, so as to put no more strain on it than necessary. When they attempted this, the air manifold relief valve blew off at 10 pounds. Whereupon they plugged the valve, and tried again, going ahead on both motors, 1200 amperes on a side.

"By Jove, I believe she moved," shouted one of the anxious watchers, who had his eyes fastened on the bubble that showed her balance.

A big argument followed as to whether she had, but the discussion was rather academic; for they were still in the mud on