rkness of the British winter they
hurriedly went down to the water front, where, far out at sea,
they could make out faintly the hull of but one vessel, but the
red flashes from the booming guns showed that other ships were
present. The crowds on the shore watched two British destroyers
and two submarines, which had been lying in the harbor, put out
after the German force. The latter by that time had started off,
dropping in its wake a number of floating mines. This strategy
resulted in the loss of the submarine _D-5_, which hit one of the
mines and sank immediately. The German cruiser _Yorck_ was claimed
by the British to have hit a mine also, with the result that she
sank and carried down with her some 300 of her crew. This was denied
later by the German admiralty, and like all such controversies
must remain a secret with the officials of both Governments.

Judged by material effects, this raid was a failure. But in view of
the fact that the Germans had shown that a squadron could actually
elude the large number of British warships patrolling the North
Sea, and was actually able to strike at the British coast, it was
a moral victory for Germany.

"We must see clearly that in order to fight with success we must
fight ruthlessly, in the proper meaning of the word." These were the
words of Count Reventlow, when he heard the news of the defeat of
the German squadron commanded by Von Spee off the Falkland Islands.
As a result, and in revenge for this defeat, the German admiralty
planned a second raid on the coast towns of England. The towns chosen
for attack this time were Hartlepool, Scarborough, and Whitby. The
first of these was a city of 100,000 persons, and its principal
business was shipbuilding. Scarborough was nothing more than a
seaside resort, to which each summer and at Christmas were attracted
thousands of Englishmen who sought to spend their vacations near the
water. Whitby, though it had some attractions for holiday crowds,
such as a quaint cathedral, was at most nothing more than a home
port for a number of fishing boats.

It was claimed later by the Germans that these three towns, according
to the accepted definitions in international law, were fortified
ports, and consequently open to attack by hostile forces. In reply
the British claimed that there was nothing in any of the three
which could bring them into that category. This controversy is
still another which must remain undecided. There is, however