But the Defense paid dearly for this act. The forward guns of the Westphalen poured a veritable rain of shells upon the British vessel and in a moment she was wounded unto death.
There was nothing the other vessels of the fleet could do to aid her; and it was plainly apparent that she must sink. But the British tars stuck to their guns and they continued to hurl shells into the German line until the water of the North Sea washed over them.
The Defense was gone.
This left the Black Prince and the Warrior alone before the larger British vessels and they stood to their work gallantly. The fire of both cruisers was centered on the German flagship; and it was plain that if they continued at their work the Westphalen was doomed.
An order was flashed to the German Zeppelins. Two sped forward.
Captain Raleigh of the Queen Mary saw them advancing and the forward anti-aircraft gun was unloosened. The first Zeppelin, flying low, was pierced before it had moved forward a hundred yards; and it fell into the sea between the German battleships, a flaming mass. But the second came on.
Above the Black Prince the Zeppelin paused. Something dropped through the air. There was a flash, an explosion and a dense black cloud rolled across the water. When it had cleared the Black Prince was gone!
The anti-aircraft guns of the Queen Mary and the Indefatigable fired furiously at the Zeppelin; and a few moments later a shot from the latter struck home. The second Zeppelin fell into the sea. By this time the Marlborough had drawn up with the Queen Mary and the other large British ships; and now these advanced majestically.
The first to encounter the weight of their guns was the German battleship Pommern, of 12,900 tons. Raked fore and aft, she was soon ablaze. Her crew leaped into the sea, almost as one man, following an explosion in her boiler room; and the water was dark with bobbing heads.
The Pommern's sister ship, the Freiderich, slowed down and gave assistance in picking up the crew of the former vessel; and while she was engaged in this work no British gun fired at her.