However, to our intense relief, nothing of what we had feared happened, and as the raider came slowly nearer to us—­up till now we had not even seen one of the enemy—­an officer on the bridge megaphoned us to come alongside.  This we did; three boats went astern, and the one in which we were remained near the raider’s bows.  An officer appeared at the bulwarks and told us to come aboard; women first, then their husbands, then the single men.  There was no choice but to obey, but we all felt uneasy in our minds as to what kind of treatment our women were to receive at the hands of the Germans on board.

The ship was rolling considerably, and it is never a pleasant or easy task for a landsman, much less a landswoman, to clamber by a rope-ladder some twenty feet up the side of a rolling ship.  However, all the ladies acquitted themselves nobly, some even going up without a rope round their waists.  The little Japanese stewardess, terrified, but showing a brave front to the enemy, was the last woman to go up before the men’s ascent began.  Two German sailors stood at the bulwarks to help us off the rope-ladder into the well deck forward, and by 5.20 we were all aboard, after having spent a very anxious two hours, possibly the most anxious in the lives of most of us.  We were all wet, dirty, and dishevelled, and looked sorry objects.  One of the passengers, a tall, stout man, was somewhat handicapped by his nether garments slipping down and finally getting in a ruck round his ankles when he was climbing up the ladder on to the raider.  A German sailor, to ease his passage, went down the ladder and relieved him of them altogether.  He landed on the raider’s deck minus this important part of his wardrobe, amid shrieks of laughter from captives and captors.

It was at once evident, directly we got on board, that we were in for kindly treatment.  The ship’s doctor at once came forward, saluted, and asked who was wounded and required his attention.  Most of the passengers—­there were only twenty first and about a dozen second class—­were in our boat, and among the second-class passengers with us were a few Portuguese soldiers going from Macao to Delagoa Bay.

Some of us were slightly bruised, and all were shaken, but luckily none required medical treatment.  Chairs were quickly found for the ladies, the men seated themselves on the hatch, and the German sailors busied themselves bringing tea and cigarettes to their latest captives.  We were then left to ourselves for a short time on deck, and just before dark a spruce young Lieutenant came up to me, saluted, and asked me to tell all the passengers that we were to follow him and go aft.  We followed him along the ship, which seemed to be very crowded, to the well deck aft, where we met the remaining few passengers and some of the crew of the Hitachi.  We had evidently come across a new type of Hun.  The young Lieutenant was most polite, and courteous and attentive.