Scarborough early the following morning. In addition, sailing is
restricted because an unusually large portion of its waters is too
shallow to permit of the passage of large ships.

The Germans on this occasion had arranged a trap. They knew that after
making two successful raids on the English coast the British would keep
even a closer watch for them. When they sailed from their base, it was
with the expectation of meeting a hostile force, as was undoubtedly
their expectation on the first two raids. But they did not intend to
fight matters out on high waters. What they wanted to do was to get the
British involved in a good running engagement, steering a southeasterly
course the while and luring the British ships within striking force of a
waiting fleet of superdreadnoughts and perhaps land guns and mines. This
explains why Admiral Hipper turned stern as soon as he got into touch
with the enemy.

There was a distance of fourteen miles between the two fleets when the
_Lion_ got her heavy guns into action. The German line was off her port
(left) bow. At the head of that line was the _Moltke_, and following her
came the _Seydlitz_, _Derfflinger_, _Bluecher_, and the destroyers in the
order given. At the head of the British line was the _Lion_, followed by
the _Tiger_, _Princess Royal_, _New Zealand_, and _Indomitable_ in the
order named. The other cruisers and the destroyers of the British fleet
brought up the rear. In the chase which followed the Germans were
handicapped by the fact that the _Bluecher_ was far too slow to be
brought into action, which meant that either the other ships must leave
her behind to certain destruction or that they must slow down to keep
with her. They chose the latter course, while her stokers did their best
to increase her speed. In the English fleet there was the same trouble
with the _Indomitable_, but inasmuch as the British were the pursuers
and had a preponderance in ships and in the range of their guns, this
did not matter so much to them. But the stokers of the _Indomitable_
worked as hard, if not harder, than those of the _Bluecher_.

By half past nine the two forces were seven miles apart and the battle
was on. It is necessary here to give certain facts about gunnery on a
large modern battleship. Firing at a range of seven miles means a test
of mathematics rather than of the mere matter of pointing guns. At that
distance the target--the ship to be hit--is barely visible on the sky