[SINGING IN THE FACE OF DEATH.]
When the great hurricane swept over Apia Harbor, in Samoa, seven years ago, and wrecked the six American and German war-ships that were gathered there, the world was thrilled with the story of the heroism of the sailors on the United States man-of-war Trenton. Of all the incidents of that memorable disaster, the one which will live longest in the memory of readers is the bravery with which the men of the Trenton faced death. Their vessel had snapped her anchor chains, and was steadily drifting toward the rocks, but the men lined the rigging and gave rousing cheers to the British ship Calliope, which, with all steam on, was headed for the open sea. The Trenton's band was also ordered on deck, and to the strains of "The Star-spangled Banner" the old ship went to her death. As she passed the Vandalia, over which the waves were breaking, the Trenton's men cheered the few survivors in the rigging, and the feeble shout that came in response was the saddest feature of the disaster. When the Trenton's band struck up, amazement fell upon the Americans and other foreigners on shore who were trying to save the lives of those whom the current brought to the beach. Then, when the strains of the national air were recognized, a great shout went up, and men wept to think of heroism that laughed at death.
A similar incident of bravery in the face of death comes from the coast of China, and the crew of the German gun-boat Iltis were the heroes who showed genuine courage when all hope of safety was gone. The Iltis left Che-foo on July 23, passed Wei-hai-wei—made memorable by the defeat and suicide of old Admiral Ting, of the Chinese navy—and rounded the Shan-tung peninsula. As the vessel passed the northern point of the promontory the wind freshened to a gale, and with all sails furled the ship held her way to the south, parallel to the coast. The storm was soon recognized as a typhoon of great violence; the driving sleet and the thick darkness confused the look-out, and the strong currents carried the ship near to the rocky shore. Without warning the vessel struck, and remained hard and fast on a sunken rock. The engine-room filled rapidly, and all hands were warned to come on deck. There they saw that the prospect was hopeless, as every wave helped to stave in the strong steel plates. Rockets were sent up, but no response came from the shore; no boat could live in the wild seas which washed over the doomed vessel. The commander, Lieutenant-Captain Braun, ordered all the men aft, and gathering them around him, called upon them to give three cheers for the Emperor. These were given with a will, and a moment after the masts went overboard, smashing the officers' bridge, and then the ship parted.
The Captain and the greater part of the crew were on the after-part of the ship, which still remained high out of the water. When it was seen that the wreck would last but a few minutes more, gunner Raehm addressed the crew and begged them to join in singing the Flaggenlied, or flag-song. This stirring song was then sung to the accompaniment of the roaring breakers and the howling storm. Its final verse, in German, is as follows:
Und treibt des wilden Sturms Gewalt
Uns an ein Felsenriff,
Gleichviel in welcherlei Gestalt
Gefahr droht unserm Schiff:
Wir wanken und wir weichen nicht,
Wir thun nach Seemanns Brauch,
Getreu erfüll'n wir uns're Pflicht
Auch bis zum leztzen Hauch,
Und rufen freudig sterbend aus,
Getreu bis in den Tod:
"Der Kaiser und die Flagge hoch!
Die Flagge schwarz, weiss, roth!"
Freely rendered into English this reads:
And shout the might of wild, wild storms
On to a reef us drive,
And dangers menace—'t matters not
From where—our ship and life,
Our posts we never will desert;
And sailorlike and true
Until the last breath goes from us
We will our duty do.
And, joyful dying then we shout
United true in death—
"The Kaiser and our standard hoch!
The flag black, white, and red!"
The survivors, with tears in their eyes, described the singing of this battle chant, in which the poet described the fate of the Iltis and the doom of her crew. The last verse had just been roared out with a will when the stern of the vessel heeled over, and a moment later the whole after-half of the ship plunged from the rocks, carrying down to death officers and men, except two sailors, who reached the shore. Those on the other half of the wreck remained for thirty-six hours without food, when they were rescued by the Chinese. Only nine men were saved, making eleven in all who reached the shore out of a total of seventy-seven men and officers.