Waves were angrily thrashing at the sides of the H.M.S Calliope making it almost impossible to concentrate with the added noise of the rain as it beat down on the crew as they tried to manoeuvre through the storm. They were fighting against a head wind of over one hundred and fifty miles per hour. The hurricane was at its peak as it let nothing get in its way. Other ships in the vicinity had already been damaged beyond repair due to its ferocity and Captain Henry Coey Kane was desperately trying to guide his crew to safety. It was a tough task trying to keep the Calliope upright against the extremity of the winds but Kane was determined to keep his ship from the same fate as those he was slowly leaving behind. Just twenty feet from coral reef the propeller was spinning at seventy four revelations per minute and there were at least ten men on the wheel shouting at each other to make themselves heard as they tried to maintain some control of the rudder as the Calliope narrowly missed hitting another ship.
*
Twelve hours earlier there had been little sign, despite strong gales the night before, that this was the war this crew would have to battle. With his ship quietly stationed on the calm water of the Samoan Islands, Captain Kane was stood at the helm underneath a clear sky, slowly twisting his moustache between his fingers as he waited. What he was waiting for he did not know for sure but he had been sent with his crew to watch over the ever growing diplomatic crisis between the United States and Germany. Confrontation between six vessels, three American and three German, also situated near the port of Apia, looked imminent and Kane's men were on hand to intervene when necessary. Kane's immediate problem was that seven vessels in this small area of the pacific ocean left little room and Kane was of the opinion that more space could be made if only half of the vessels were anchored there, but with six vessels staring each other down and pride being at the forefront of their minds there seemed little hope of any of them backing down and moving out of the small reef engulfed area.
As Kane started thinking strategy he was interrupted by Navigating Lieutenant Henry Pearson who insisted the Captain look at his current barometer reading. “The readings have been gradually falling all morning,” Pearson told Kane who agreed that this meant one thing. A hurricane could be in full swing in a matter of hours. Taking stock of the situation around him, he saw that none of the other ships seemed to be preparing to move despite Kane knowing that each ship would contain a barometer with similar readings. Rubbing the back of his neck as a spasm of tiredness hit him he made a decision. “Keep me updated every thirty minutes or sooner if anything changes dramatically. I want to be prepared for any disaster but at the same time I do not want to act the fool and leave toward open waters only to have to come crawling back when nothing happens. We have already survived one storm. I am sure we will come through another. Dismissed.” Needing no more encouragement the Lieutenant turned on his heel and returned to his workspace.
*
Now in the throes of torrential rain and gale force winds Kane was glad he had been given the early warning. The wind seemed to have reached its climax, screaming around them at 185 miles per hour making it impossible to think, but not thinking was a luxury Kane could not afford as the Calliope had dragged its anchor so far it was only six feet away from the reefs. After several collisions with nearby ships due to the ports anchor breaking free, he was now forced to order all his stokers below deck to shovel for their lives to obtain maximum steam pressure as he finally decided to slip the starboard cable and venture away from the dangers of the nearby reefs and the ships in close proximity. Other ships had already been beached and Kane did not want to join them. He needed to venture into more open space if they were to survive this storm but travelling at one knot per hour, despite engines being at full capacity it took two hours to travel just four cables as Kane's crew battled through the waves, negotiating the space between the neighbouring ships. Ahead of the Calliope were two American ships and to starboard there were two others. As the Calliope edged between them they clipped the side of one of the other ships causing Kane to fear that extensive damage had been caused. “Report,” he screamed at his closest men through the noise of the storm. Rain was still streaming down in sheets and the wind was no less vicious. No real damage could be detected at this point so the crew steered themselves away from immediate collision narrowly missing another ship as they straightened up fighting against the gales all the while. The war against the hurricane was using up the crews combined strength but their morale to beat it never failed.
It took many hours but eventually the H.M.S Calliope made it to open waters. The ship that had been nearest to them cheered as they passed. The Trenton had irreparable wreckage and the Calliope was in no position to help them yet the crew of the American ship were in awe of their bravery wishing them all the best and now eleven hours later Kane was able to instruct his crew to ease the engines as the hurricane was slowly subsiding too. The Calliope had sustained minimal damage and Kane called his crew together to express his gratitude. He was proud of the strength and courage they had portrayed. “This was not the war we anticipated but nevertheless we came through undefeated.” The crew cheered and saluted their captain proud to be working for him. It was after all his guidance that had helped them prevail.
In the hours that followed they celebrated their success and their lives before Captain Kane made the decision to venture back towards Apia to survey the damage the hurricane had left behind. The experience of this short and much quicker journey was sobering as they surveyed the mass of bodies littering the enclosed waters of the port. Some of the ships had drifted ashore where crews were now trying to repair them, others had been wrecked causing the extensive loss of life. The surviving Captains were full of praise for Kane and he found some comfort in their words. His crew after all were safe, but some of that credit, he thought, should go to the H.M.S Calliope herself.
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