WORLD WAR 1 - ROYAL AUSTRALIAN NAVY.

Charles Sykes McIntosh Johnston

No. 2140 Able Seaman. Served 30 September 1912 to 20 April, 1919

Details of the movements of my grandfather’s ships on the net I was able to enter what I know of his time in the Navy.  This data came from C. W. E. Bean's Books on WW1 and Appendices from Royal Australian Navy by F.M. McGuire - notes from this source in different print.  Our family is very proud of his long service for his country. He volunteered on 30 September 1912 in the Navy as a “Boy” sailor and was posted to the H.M.A.S. ‘Australia’ on 15 October 1913. On 5 January 1915, his engagement period was for seven years.  

Postings to ships are as follows, as best that be detailed.

‘Tingira’     Boy 2 Cl.   30 Sept 1912 to12 to17 July191 (Training ship)

    “       Boy 1 Cl.   18 July 1915 to14 October 1913.

From R.A.N. Appendices (Page 345)

1913 Australia, Sydney, Melbourne, Encounter, Warrego, Parramatta and Yarra entered Port Jackson under the flag of Rear-Admiral Sir George Patey K.C.V.O.

‘Australia’   Boy Cl.1         15 October 1913 to 4 January 1914.  (Heavy Cruiser)

    “       Ord. 2^nd Cl.       5 January to 20 April 1914.

He ‘jumped ship’ at the end of April in 1914, because the conditions on the ‘Australia’ were intolerable to him. He had a lot of trouble with the quartermaster or an officer, who used to kick him and others or hit them with a cane, when they were asleep or resting on deck. They then had to jump up and salute him. When war was declared, the Navy issued a notice that all seamen absent without leave, who returned to duty, would be pardoned. Pop returned to the service.

From R.A.N. Appendices (Page 345)

 1914 Aug. 30-31 Capture of German Protectorate Somoa at Apia.  Australia, Melbourne, French cruiser Montcalm, 3 small British cruisers, Psyche, Philomel, Pyramus, escorting convoy of 2 transports Morraki and Mencrai (query spelling of these two names ED.), with New Zealand troops.  No enemy resistance.

From his postings, it does not appear that he was on the 'Australia' or 'Psyche' at this time. He had been working on the cane fields in Queensland when he was A.W.L. and when he returned did not go back to the ‘Australia’ but was posted to ‘Cerberus’ in September (for retraining I presume) and then ‘Psyche’  

Surrendered Granted a Free Pardon.

‘Cerberus’      Ord. Sea 2 Cl.               12 September 1914 to 4 January 1915.  (Melbourne Depot)

     “         Ord.Sea                      5 January 1915 to 30 June 1915.

‘Psyche’           “                         1 July 1915 to 26 September1915.  (Light Cruiser)

     “            A.B.                      27 September 1915 to16 October 1917.

‘Tingira’          A.B.                      17 October 1917 to 1 February 1918.

H.M.A.S.  London Depot                      2 February 1918 to 11 April 1918

‘Melbourne’       A.B.                      12 Apri1 1918 to 20 June 1919.

I believed he had been a Gunner but my brother stated that he was a Stoker. The ‘Psyche’ was originally a Royal Navy ship on loan to Australia at first but the ‘Melbourne’ was gift, so at that time, it then had the title of H.M.A.S.

In July l915, the ‘Psyche’ had warning of a typhoon, when the ship was around Amoy, near Hong Kong, the ship sailed out to sea into it. This was the usual action in those circumstances.  It went full steam ahead for three days and nights and because of the strength of the winds hardly made any headway and limped back to port with the boilers nearly burnt out and needing repairs.  Many Chinese junks headed right back to port and many sailors were drowned. It was fortunate that the winds dropped or the ship could have been in real trouble.

In that month, it was commissioned as an Australian ship and shown as being in the Bay of Bengal and Malaya from July 1915 to October 1917.

He appeared to be happy on this ship and he talked a lot about incidents that occurred while he was on board and stories of other sailors.

The Padre on the ship was continually reminding Pop to write home to his Auntie Jessie. She had written to the Padre complaining, when she had not heard from him for a long time. She was his ’guardian’ after his mother died (in New Zealand), when he was very young and he was sent to live with relations in Moss Vale in Australia.

Often, when Pop went on shore leave, he called into the nearest hotel and would stay there drinking, with his mates, until he was taken into custody by the Navy Shore Patrol or Service Police and returned to the ship. 

TALL STORIES

These are a few of the stories that he related over the years to his family, but whether they are true or not, it is just for your information.

Sailors, who did not keep themselves personally clean, were scrubbed with a deck cleaning brush.

When the officers were harsh, the ratings usually found ways to get back at them. One officer lost a dog overboard and another had his immaculate white uniforms ruined by oily, rusty water leaking on them. One of the men had carefully drilled a hole in the ceiling of the locker or cabinet in his cabin, so that this would happen. One unpopular officer went ‘down’ the ‘up’ stairs one night, when he was drunk and was beaten up. To save confusion, particularly in times of emergency or ‘Action Stations’ on board, it was the strict rule that the stairs on one side of the ship were used to go ‘up’ and on the other side to go ‘down’. The culprits were never found, so no one was punished for this attack as far as I know.

Pop told us this story a few times but I certainly can’t vouch for its truth. A Lascar seaman was washed overboard during a bad storm and got washed round the front of the ship and back on to the deck, on the other side. He looked absolutely ghastly from having a soft brown skin, to a horrible whitish-green from fright or fear. I always thought that this happened on his ship but after reading Bean’s history (P588 – 19-21  Dec. 1916), it is probable he was referring to an incident on the H.M.A.S. ‘Sydney’ whilst on duty in the North Sea that he heard about. It is difficult to believe that a similar occurrence could happen twice.

From the Log of the H.M.A.S. ‘Sydney’

“- An able seaman - was washed overboard the starboard side by a wave that came across the ship from the port side.  As he disappeared over the side a wave  that must have struck the ship ‘head on’ came sweeping along the ship’s side and washed him back again.  He was an extremely lucky lad.

On a special occasion in England, a crowd of English seamen was cheering the King shouting “hip-hip-hooray” and lifting their caps in a very orderly way. This was in great contrast to the Australians, who yelled out their greeting and threw all their caps wildly into the air.

Once, when they were in port in Southampton prior to sailing to France, all the sailors were ordered below decks. This made them very curious and some of them made it their business, to see what was going on. Three men boarded in mufti (with long trench coats etc). When the ship reached France, two civilians disembarked. What happened to the third person was not known. This may have been a spying mission, to get rid of a traitor.

Pop played Rugby Union for the Navy as a Hooker and must have been a reasonably good player, as he was chosen to play in Ireland & Scotland. After one match in Ireland, he was hit on the head with an umbrella, by an irate Irish lady. She evidently did not appreciate their team beating the Irish. (He was not tall but the position of Hooker seemed an unlikely one for him because we only knew him as a very solid, broad-shouldered man but in those days he was very slender.) 

He also mentioned the Fleet putting to sea from Scotland, when they thought they would be having a big battle with the Germans. He and his mates were very scared and many were saying their prayers. He stated that they were given a speech or message from someone in charge that was given by Nelson before Trafalgar that

ran something like this – “England expects this day that every man will do his duty”.  It did not comfort them at all.

I had always thought that this happened when they went out to escort the surrendering German Fleet and it was thought that they might decide to fight instead. However, after reading Bean’s History, I now feel it may have been a earlier time, when the Grand Fleet put to sea in expectation of a battle, some ships with coal still on the decks – Possibly 30^th September 1918 -.

(Page 307) - when this was the entry in ‘Melbourne’s’ diary.

“Left with squadron, but had only gone a short way outside when recalled.” The Fleet returned to port soon after that for some reason, not explained.   

The Sydney took part in the last-mentioned operation, and diary notes it thus:

“The Fleet got a sudden spasm; we coaled ship - .and proceeded to sea with coal on our decks. We fully expected to meet something, but after about two hours run we were recalled.”

END OF TALL TALES AND OTHER NOTES.

From C. E. W. Bean’s History of World War 1914-1918 about the Royal Australian Navy.

MALAY ARCHIPELAGO – H.M.A.S. ‘PSYCHE’

(Page 214 – June-Aug. 1915)  The first mention of the Psyche is noted - The Admiralty was asked to divert the Orama (then on her way from Chiie to dock and refit in Sydney) to examine Christmas Island; when the Admiralty replied that it was too far out of her way, the Encounter was hastily made ready to proceed to Fanning Island. On the 14^th July the board was able to report:-

Three destroyers with oiler now near Townsville can be sent to Thursday Island or farther at once.  Encounter and Psyche could leave Sydney 16 July if required. 

(My grandfather was on the Psyche by that time.)

The mention of the Psyche introduces another chain of contemporaneous intrigue. It will be remembered that the schemes of the German General Staff, mentioned earlier in this chapter, included action in Persia and on the north-western frontier of Persia.  With this, of course, Australia was not directly concerned, but in the redistribution of British squadron nominally belonging to the Pacific area the old small cruiser Psyche and the survey ship Fantome had been stowed away, so to speak, in Port Jackson. When the situation on the coast of Persia became dangerous, the Admiralty bethought itself of these out of date but not yet useless vessels, and on the 21^st June the Board was asked whether it could man them with Australian crews for service in the Persian Gulf.

As usual the reply was prompt. The Psyche should be commissioned on the 1^st of July and be ready to leave Sydney on the 15^th:  her crew must necessarily consist very largely of untrained ratings, but as many trained men as possible to be included.  The Fantome at the moment had no guns; by taking two from the Psyche and one from the Gayundah, and using three old British 12-pounders that were still in store, a respectable armament was provided for her, and she was commissioned on the 27^th ready for sea on the 7^th August (1915).

But the various Maverick (a German Ship) rumours had by the middle of July convinced the Admiralty that the eastern rather than the western approaches to India were the area of greatest danger.  Their reply to the board’s message of the 14^th July was there to dispatch the Encounter instantly to Suva and Fanning Island, visiting Christmas Island thereafter, while the Psyche was to be kept in Australian waters.  Almost at once, however, the situation began to clear up.  On the 16th  ^{............................}

(Page 215 –July – Sept. 1915) news came that the Annie Larsen (a German ship) was on the Oregon coast of United States.  On the 21^st it was known that the Maverick, in custody of Dutch destroyers, had reached Batavia the day before, and that she carried no munitions.  She might, of course, have transferred them to another vessel on the voyage, for not till nearly the end of August was definite information received that the Annie Larsen’s cargo was still in her.

At the beginning of August, it would seem, the Shanghai series of plots came to the knowledge of the Admiralty. On the 6^th the Psyche was ordered to Singapore:-

An extensive German conspiracy is on foot to cause a rising in Burma and India, involving smuggling in very large numbers of rifles.

On the same day the Fantome got her sailing orders for the Persian Gulf.  Both ships were to proceed via Torres Straits. They left Thursday Island independently on 25^th, reached Singapore on the 4^th September – and then Fantome found herself equally involved in the eastern troubles and found her Persian Gulf trip vanish into thin air.  The Bay of Bengal had become the danger area, and the Andamans its most important centre.  Accordingly a system of patrols was established, and to conduct it warships were, it might be said, commandeered from all over the world.  The Diana came from the Mediterranean, the Laurentic from the Cape of Good Hope, the Cadmus from China station: the Psyche and Fantome joined them from Australia; the government of India provided small armed steamers and launches from the Royal Indian marine. The launches scouted persistently along the coastline; the armed steamers patrolled out to sea, under (Page 216 July –Sept. 1915) the direction of the Laurientic (based on Calcutta) and Psyche (based on Rangoon). The Cadmus and Fantome carried out a separate patrol of the Adaman and Nicobar groups from a base at Port Blair. The Diana, with the whole bay for her sphere of action, was in general charge of the whole scheme.

From R.A.N. Appendices (Page 349)

1915 September 4 Patrol Work in Bay of Bengal. HMAS Psyche and Fantome ordered to join the British Light Cruiser Diana, British Auxiliary Merchant Cruiser Laurientis and sloop Cadmus to put down German attempts to land arms and ammunition and cause disaffection in India and an intended raid in the Andamans.

(Then Bean entered extracts from Fantome’s Official narrative detailing day to day operations – “September – November 1915) This one gives insight into some of the conditions.” (Entries of these as they would probably have applied to the Psyche as well. – (Ed.)

(Page 217 - 1915) The ship’s company are shaking down very well, and cheerfully accept the discomforts incidental to our patrol work.  They are mainly due to the incessant wet weather we have experienced, their cramped quarters, inability to get their clothes dry, continually being (Cont’d on P218)

(Page 218 – 1915-1916) - at sea in anything but smooth water etc - It was not life in the trenches.  But then it was not, due to the minds of the average Australian crew, fighting at all.  It was just pottering about strange jungle type islands in the wet, with your clothes never dry and your home for goodness knows how long in the “cramped quarters” of a stuffy, steamy ship that was never designed for either war services or tropical voyages.  Most certainly the crews grumbled and belittled their work, and felt ashamed to be there instead of on the Peninsula.  Probably there was more discontent than the commanding officer cared to admit officially.  But the work was done, and done thoroughly; the plots, which had been very real and dangerous plots, came to nothing; India remained unharmed and tranquil, and the Empire could concentrate its fighting power on the decisive struggle in Europe. The Australian who manned the Fantome and Psyche in 1915-16 most certainly did not like their job; but, now it is all over, they may be reasonably proud of having done it. 

The work of the Psyche differed in details from that of the Fantome, but was essentially of the same nature - work with little recognition but of great responsibility. She was employed, as has been previously mentioned, on patrols of the coast of Burma with a base at Rangoon – ten to twelve day patrols alternating with two to four day stays at the base.  Her experience of bay weather was not good; if she went north she ran into extreme heat; if south, into heavy rains; and she was never free of sickness. 

Being in charge of this section of the Bay of Bengal, she was responsible for what may be called three “beats” – the Arakan and Lower Burma Coast, the upper Tenasserim coast (Moulmein to Tavoy Island), and the lower Tenasserim coast.

Each “beat” was watched by an armed sea patrol of three or four launches for work close inshore; and the prime raison d’etre of the patrol was the thorough examination of suspicious vessels – that is to say, practically all vessels.  As said the orders:-

With the exception of British or Allied vessels known to be employed on local or overseas services, all vessels sighted – whether flying British, Allied, or neutral flags – are to be regarded with suspicion. 

..More of Pop's continued next page..

Page 25