Three transports, empty but fitted for carrying cavalry, are delayed in Calcutta through fear of Emden. This involves delaying transport of artillery and part of a cavalry division from Bombay. The Cabinet took a serious view, and pressed for special convoy. Have you any ship? I should be very sorry to interrupt the offensive operations against Emden for the sake of convoying three empty transports. I was inclined to recommend that the three should put to sea at night with lights out and steer wide of the track. It is 100 to 1 that they would get round safely, and a 1,000 to 1 that two out of the three would get round safely. Let me have your proposals at once. It is clear that the transports have got to go.[[58]]
Now that Scharnhorst and Gneisenau have been located in the Society Islands there is no need for Melbourne and Sydney to remain in Australasian waters. Sydney should immediately be ordered to join Hampshire, Yarmouth and Chikuma in the Emden hunt, and Melbourne should come there with the Australasian convoy. As soon as Zemchug and Askold have finished with their convoy, they should return and join Hampshire. This will give seven ships searching for Emden and avoid the necessity of moving one of the three Light Cruisers now hunting Königsberg. Numbers are everything, and the extirpation of these pests is a most important object.
What is the use of Psyche, Pyramus and Philomel in New Zealand waters after the convoy has started? There is nothing but the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau to be considered, and they are sufficiently dealt with by—
(1) Australia. Montcalm. (2) First Japanese Squadron. (3) Second Japanese Squadron.
On the other hand, these three vessels, together with Pioneer, would be good for searching for Emden in company with the faster and more powerful ships. I propose, therefore, that they should accompany the Australian and New Zealand convoys home to Indian waters, and should then join up with the seven Cruisers which will then be under Hampshire in hunting Emden, making a total of ten vessels available a month from now. The necessary arrangements to enable them, in spite of their limited fuel capacity, to get to Colombo can easily be made. In the event of Emden being captured before this concentration is complete, all these vessels should be sent to assist in the hunt for Königsberg, or, conversely, if Königsberg is caught, the three Light Cruisers should turn over to the Emden. It is no use stirring about the oceans with two or three ships. When we have got Cruiser sweeps of 8 or 10 vessels ten or fifteen miles apart there will be some good prospect of utilising information as to the whereabouts of the Emden in such a way as to bring her to action. Such large and decisive measures are much the cheapest and most satisfactory in the end.
W. S. C.
And again on October 15.
Sydney should escort Australians and thereafter hunt Emden.
This shot as will presently be seen went home.