voyage when the smoke disappeared). The officer on the bridge with his
glass must have seen the smoke long before I did, so my suspicions of a
raider were gradually disarmed as we did not alter our course a single
point, but proceeded to meet the stranger, whose course towards us
formed a diagonal one with ours. If nothing had happened she would have
crossed our track slightly astern of us.

But something did happen. More passengers were now awake, discussing the
nationality of the ship bearing down on us. Still no alteration was made
in our course, and we and she had made no sign of recognition.

Surely everything was all right and there was nothing to fear. Even the
Japanese commander of the gun crew betrayed no anxiety on the matter,
but stood with the passengers on the deck watching the oncoming
stranger. Five bells had just gone when the vessel, then about seven
hundred yards away from us, took a sudden turn to port and ran up
signals and the German Imperial Navy flag. There was no longer any
doubt--the worst had happened. We had walked blindly into the open arms
of the enemy. The signals were to tell us to stop. We did not stop. The
raider fired two shots across our bows, and they fell into the sea quite
close to where most of the passengers were standing. Still we did not
stop. It was wicked to ignore these orders and warnings, as there was no
possible chance of escape from an armed vessel of any kind. The attempt
to escape had been left too late; it should have been made immediately
the smoke of the raider was seen. Most of the passengers went to their
cabins for life-belts and life-saving waistcoats, and at once returned
to the deck to watch the raider. As we were still steaming and had not
even yet obeyed the order to stop, the raider opened fire on us in dead
earnest, firing a broadside.