This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1920 Excerpt: ...painter and make fast, then the gasoline hose next, and in 40 minutes our tanks would be full. Two boats fuelled astern as well, and I have seen six chasers at a time performing the operation. It sounds simple, but in a chop or heavy ground swell it took all the niceties of judgment and seamanship to get close enough to make fast and yet keep clear and escape being cracked like an egg against the steel sides of the rolling tanker. But the longest trip must terminate, and one morning we sighted the Island of San Miguel, Azores, and finally crept behind the seawall of old-world Ponta Delgada, and feasted on fresh picked luscious pineapples, we were quite willing to forget the past two weeks and continue the war. That night, the greasy, dirty American Pension rivalled Rector's in our eyes, and the Michelenses Club appeared as festive as any cabaret. We spent twelve days there, expediting repairs quite as usual, prowling around through the stinks of the town, seeking souvenirs, or roaming the walled-in fields that rose to the splendid rolling heights. Evenings found us at the club for cards and roulette, and always Anton, his sandwiches and his many merry bottles. And then the Flu descended to ravage poor bewildered Ponta Delgada. Thousands on the Island died, for among those ignorant islanders there were few who knew of sanitation and none had medicines. In a few days we found water scarce and fresh provisions impossible to obtain. So to sea we went, this time without our fuel and mother ships, accompanied only by one destroyer. We left in the midst of a howling northwester which grew worse within 24 hours. If the wind had not been astern our scanty fuel supply would never have lasted to Portugal. We battled for days--scattered apart into detachments of twos a...