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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Submarine Hunters, by Percy F. Westerman
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Submarine Hunters
+       A Story of the Naval Patrol Work in the Great War
+
+Author: Percy F. Westerman
+
+Illustrator: E. S. Hodgson
+
+Release Date: March 17, 2013 [EBook #26641]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SUBMARINE HUNTERS ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Al Haines
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration: Cover art]
+
+
+[Frontispiece: "THE BLACK CROSS FLAG WAS HAULED DOWN,
+  AND REHOISTED UNDER THE WHITE ENSIGN"]
+
+
+
+
+
+
+The Submarine Hunters
+
+
+  A Story of Naval Patrol
+  Work in the Great War
+
+
+BY
+
+PERCY F. WESTERMAN
+
+
+
+  Author of
+
+  "Rounding Up the Raider"
+  "The Dispatch-Riders"
+  "The Fight for Constantinople"
+  &c. &c.
+
+
+
+_Illustrated by E. S. Hodgson_
+
+
+
+
+BLACKIE AND SON LIMITED
+
+LONDON GLASGOW AND BOMBAY
+
+1918
+
+
+
+
+Contents
+
+
+   CHAP.
+
+      I.  THE MYSTERIOUS MEETING ON ST. MENA'S ISLAND
+     II.  THE TABLES TURNED
+    III.  KIDNAPPED
+     IV.  THE AWAKENING
+      V.  ABOARD U75
+     VI.  THE TRAMP
+    VII.  ON THE BED OF THE SEA
+   VIII.  BALKED BY A SEA-PLANE
+     IX.  THE LANDING AT PORT TREHERNE
+      X.  A TREACHEROUS PLOT
+     XI.  PREPARATIONS
+    XII.  THE WHITE FLAG--AND AFTERWARDS
+   XIII.  THE ARM OF THE LAW
+    XIV.  A FRUITLESS QUEST
+     XV.  THE ADMIRAL WORKS THE ORACLE
+    XVI.  H.M.S. "CAPELLA"
+   XVII.  A DOUBLE BAG
+  XVIII.  THE SMOKE-SIGNALS
+    XIX.  THAT FRIDAY NIGHT
+     XX.  TO THE RESCUE
+    XXI.  ADRIFT IN THE CHANNEL
+   XXII.  AN UNEXPECTED CAPTURE
+  XXIII.  MINED
+   XXIV.  "SHRAP"
+    XXV.  OFF THE BELGIAN COAST
+   XXVI.  DISABLED IN MID-AIR
+  XXVII.  NOT ON PAROLE
+ XXVIII.  ALMOST RECAPTURED
+   XXIX.  BOUND FOR THE BALTIC
+    XXX.  THE AFFAIR OFF KIEL
+
+
+
+
+Illustrations
+
+
+"THE BLACK CROSS FLAG WAS HAULED DOWN AND
+  RE-HOISTED UNDER THE WHITE ENSIGN" . . . . . . . . . _Frontispiece_
+
+THE INTERVIEW WITH THE GERMAN CAPTAIN (missing from book)
+
+"'D'YE KEN YON?' ASKED THE BRITISH SKIPPER, AS HE
+  EYED THE PODGY GERMAN LEUTNANT WITH CONTEMPT"
+
+"THE 'TREMENDOUS' WAS HEADING STRAIGHT FOR THE DOOMED SUBMARINE"
+
+THE SINKING OF THE "ORONTABELLA" (missing from book)
+
+"THE WORK OF DEMOLITION WAS ACCOMPLISHED"
+
+
+
+
+THE SUBMARINE HUNTERS
+
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+The Mysterious Meeting on St. Mena's Island
+
+"We've made a proper mess of things this time!" ejaculated Ross
+Trefusis--"or rather I have."
+
+"It can't be helped," rejoined his chum, Vernon Haye.  "We've done our
+level best to get her off.  How long is it before the tide floats her?"
+
+"A matter of seven or eight hours, worse luck.  You see, it was only
+half ebb when we landed."
+
+Ross bent down to remove a streak of bluish-grey mud from his ankle.
+
+"I wish we'd taken the rowing-boat instead of this heavy old tub," he
+continued.  "We'll be pretty peckish before we get back to the Hall,
+and dinner's at seven-thirty."
+
+Vernon laughed.
+
+"It wouldn't be the first time I've had to go without grub," he
+remarked.  "If you don't mind, I don't."
+
+"Then it's no use standing here," said Ross.  "Let's get on our shoes
+and go for a stroll."
+
+Vernon Haye was a broad-shouldered lad of fifteen, with clear-cut
+features and dark hair.  His companion was of about the same age, but a
+good two inches taller.  His complexion was florid, his hair of an
+auburn tint that narrowly escaped coming within the category of red or
+ginger.  His features were full and rounded.  In short, he was a
+typical Cornish youth.
+
+Ross's father, Admiral Paul Trefusis, lived at Killigwent Hall, a
+large, rambling, sixteenth-century house, standing within a mile of the
+sea on the North Cornish coast.
+
+Both lads went to the same public school, but owing to the fact that
+Vernon's father, Captain Haye, was on active service with the Grand
+Fleet, young Haye was spending the summer holidays with his chum at
+Killigwent Hall.
+
+That afternoon the lads had taken a small sailing-boat and had made for
+St. Mena's Island, a small rocky piece of land lying about a mile off
+shore, and nearly five miles from Killigwent Cove.  The island was
+roughly three-quarters of a mile in length, and four hundred yards wide
+in the broadest part.  The north and west sides were precipitous, but
+on the side nearest to the mainland the ground sloped gradually, and
+was indented by several narrow tidal coves.
+
+The glamour of romance lay thickly around that rocky pile.  Centuries
+ago it was the abode of a hermit, who, amongst his various self-imposed
+tasks, had built a chapel on the summit, from the tower of which a wood
+fire was kindled nightly to warn mariners of the treacherous reefs in
+the vicinity of the island.
+
+In course of time, St. Mena's Island became the haunt of wreckers and
+smugglers.  The chapel, in spite of its massive construction, fell a
+victim to the ravages of wind and weather, but still served as a
+convenient shelter for the lawless Cornishmen who profited by the
+misfortunes of honest seamen.  Immune from interference, by reason of
+the superstitious awe in which the island was held by the country-folk,
+the smugglers and wreckers thrived exceedingly until late in the
+eighteenth century, when stern measures were taken to suppress their
+misdeeds.  From that time St. Mena's Island was deserted, except for
+the casual visits of tourists and summer visitors from the neighbouring
+towns of Padstow and Newquay, and countless numbers of sea-birds that
+take up their abode in crannies in the almost inaccessible cliffs.
+
+Ross Trefusis was right in taking the blame of their misfortunes upon
+himself.  He knew better, but, neglecting to take ordinary precautions,
+he had allowed the boat to be left high and dry by the falling tide.
+Upon returning to the cove the lads had found the heavy craft lying on
+its bilge in the stiff bluish clay, with a ridge of jagged rocks
+cutting her off from the sea.
+
+"Perhaps," suggested Vernon, "some other boat will put off to the
+island, and we can get them to put us ashore."
+
+"Hardly likely," was the reply.  "Anyway, we'll keep a look-out.  Which
+would you prefer to do--explore the Smugglers' Cave and Dead Man's
+Cave, or climb up to the ruins?"
+
+"The ruins," decided young Haye eagerly.  "I like fooling about old
+ruins, and I've already seen the caves.  Besides, we can see if there
+are any boats about.  It's almost like being shipwrecked on a desert
+island."
+
+"Hard lines if we were," commented Ross.  "Suppose we take an inventory
+of our possessions?  Let the see: one pocket-knife, a silver watch that
+has refused duty, a notebook and pencil, and five shillings and three
+halfpence.  What have you to add to the common stock?"
+
+"A knife, a pocket compass, my watch--which does go; it's now
+five-and-twenty to four--and sixteen shillings and eightpence in paper
+money and hard coin."
+
+"Not a morsel of grub between the pair of us, then," declared Ross.
+"Outlook beastly unpromising.  Faced with starvation unless we make up
+our minds to knock over some gulls.  They are horribly fishy to eat, I
+believe, and we've nothing to make a fire."
+
+"It makes you pine for the flesh-pots of Kllligwent Hall, old man,"
+exclaimed Vernon laughingly.  "Never mind, let's make a move.  I vote
+we get rid of these sweaters.  It is frightfully hot."
+
+Stripping off their woollen garments, and placing them for safety under
+a gorse bush, the two lads made their way up the steep ascent to the
+ruins, till, hot and well-nigh breathless in spite of being "in
+training", they reached the summit of the island.
+
+"What a jolly view!" exclaimed Vernon, turning and taking in the
+panorama of rocky coast-line, an expanse of jagged, frowning, brownish
+cliffs topped by the brilliant green of the Cornish moorland.
+
+"Not bad," agreed Ross complaisantly, for the view was no stranger to
+him.  "See that cliff shaped like the head and shoulders of a bearded
+man?  That's Hidden Money Cove that I was speaking to you about last
+night.  We'll go there next week, all being well.  You see, there's not
+a sail in sight, so our chances of getting back to dinner are very
+remote.  What's more, unless I'm very much mistaken, there's a
+rain-storm coming.  See that dark cloud working up against the wind?"
+
+"Yes," assented Haye.  "What of it?  A little rain won't hurt."
+
+"It's the after effect," said Ross.  "It's quite possible it may blow
+hard before night, in which case we're done for.  I've known it
+impossible to approach Killigwent Cove for a week at a time."
+
+Vernon whistled.
+
+"Sounds lively," he remarked.
+
+"Of course that is in the winter," his chum hastened to remind him.
+"These summer gales don't last very long, but we'll be feeling precious
+hungry by the time we get home, I guess."
+
+"Look here," said Vernon after a while.  "I vote we get those sweaters.
+We don't want to be soaked."
+
+"Very well," assented Ross.  "But there's no great hurry."
+
+Having retrieved the sweaters, the chums leisurely retraced their way
+to the ruins.  For half an hour or more they wandered around the
+remains, descending into the dark crypt, and running considerable risk
+in climbing to the summit of the tower.  Since the spiral stone steps
+had vanished long ago, the only means of getting to the top was by
+climbing the gnarled stem of the ivy which grew profusely on the face
+of the building.  The tower was roofless, a low, partly demolished
+parapet encircling it on three sides, while a couple of weather-worn
+oak-beams supporting a few planks formed a kind of platform where the
+roof formerly existed.
+
+"Think it's safe?" asked Vernon anxiously, as his chum, having got
+astride the parapet, was about to lower himself upon the decrepit
+woodwork.
+
+"I've done it scores of times," said Ross confidently.  "That's right,
+I'll guide your foot.  Now let go."
+
+"By Jove!" suddenly exclaimed Haye; "there's a fellow coming towards
+the ruin.  How on earth did he get here?"
+
+"Goodness only knows," said Trefusis inconsequently.  "He may have
+landed in Main Beach Cove.  Anyhow, he's at perfect liberty to do so.
+I suppose he's interested in ruins."
+
+"Let's drop a bit of stone and give him a shock when he gets here,"
+suggested Vernon.  "We'll apologize afterwards.  Ten to one he'll give
+us a passage back."
+
+"I'm not so keen on dropping chunks of stone," objected Ross.  "I vote
+we lie low for a bit at any rate, and see what he's up to."
+
+"Why, do you think he's a spy?" asked his companion.  Trefusis grunted
+scoffingly.
+
+"Spy?" he repeated.  "What object would a spy have on St. Mena's
+Island?  This part of Cornwall is well outside the military area.
+There's nothing in the fortification line for miles.  No, it's not
+that.  But _cave_, here he comes."
+
+The lads crouched behind the crumbling parapet, and by means of
+conveniently placed gaps in the masonry watched the stranger's approach.
+
+There was nothing about the man's appearance to suggest that he was
+anything but an ordinary holiday-maker.  He was slightly above average
+height, rather heavily built, and inclined to flabbiness.  His
+complexion was undoubtedly florid, although his face and hands were
+tanned a deep brown.
+
+He was dressed in a light-grey lounge suit, with a straw hat and brown
+shoes, while in his right hand he carried a thick Malacca cane.
+
+The exertion of climbing up the hill on which the ruined chapel stood
+apparently told upon him, for he was considerably out of breath when he
+passed under the ivy-clad arch.  Here he stopped to wipe his face with
+a handkerchief, and while doing so dropped his cane.
+
+It fell upon the stones with a dull thud.
+
+At the same time the stranger gave vent to an exclamation that
+certainly was not English.
+
+The lads exchanged glances.  Here was the beginning of a mystery.  The
+heaviest Malacca cane would not have made that dull metallic sound in
+falling, while it was evident by the careful examination the stranger
+made of the retrieved article that he was more than considerate for its
+appearance.
+
+The man made no attempt to explore the ruins.  The weather-worn fane
+had no attractions for him.  It was apparently only a rendezvous, as
+far as he was concerned, for at frequent intervals he would walk
+stealthily through the archway, and look attentively down the hill
+leading to the coves on the side facing the mainland.
+
+It had now begun to rain--big drops that were the precursors of a heavy
+shower.  The lads, in their exposed position on the tower, paid scant
+heed.  Their interest and attention were centred upon the anxiously
+awaiting stranger fifty feet beneath them.
+
+Presently Ross happened to glance towards the stretch of water that
+separated St. Mena's Island from the mainland.  A boat was approaching.
+Already it was more than half-way across.  It was a rowing-boat,
+containing only one person.  What object would anyone have in rowing
+across on a wet afternoon like this? wondered the lad.
+
+Just then the stranger began rubbing his hands with ill-concealed
+satisfaction.  Although he had been frequently on the look-out, he had
+evidently only just caught sight of the approaching boat.
+
+The lads watched the little craft till it was hidden by the intervening
+high ground, but already Ross felt certain that it was making for Main
+Beach Cove.
+
+There were three landing-places on St. Mena's Island--Half Tide Cove,
+where the lads had left their stranded boat; Main Beach Cove, a little
+to the north-east; and Deadman's Cove, farther away.  Of these, only
+Main Beach was available between one hour on either side of low water.
+The fact that the boat was making for it, and had already successfully
+skirted the submerged reef lying off it, proved that its occupant had
+local knowledge.
+
+Some considerable time elapsed between the temporary disappearance of
+the boat and the appearance of the new-comer; but at length he came
+into view, walking rapidly up the steep incline without showing
+anything of the physical strain that the first stranger had betrayed.
+
+Suddenly Ross Trefusis recognized the man.  He almost felt inclined to
+laugh at his suspicions.  It was Dr. Ramblethorne, the medical
+practitioner at St. Bedal--a town of considerable importance about
+seven miles from Killigwent Hall.  The doctor was a frequent guest of
+Admiral Trefusis, and was generally considered a good, all-round
+sportsman.  He was about thirty years of age, over six feet in height,
+of sinewy frame and of great muscular power.  He was the wildest
+motorist in that part of Cornwall, as the endorsements on his driver's
+licence testified.  A keen golfer, good shot, and fisherman, he was
+also a botanist; and that, perhaps, thought Ross, might account for his
+presence on St. Mena's Island, although it was difficult to reconcile
+the fact that Ramblethorne had an appointment with a stranger at this
+desolate spot.  If a joint botanic expedition had been fixed up, why
+had not the two men met on the mainland?
+
+The unknown made no attempt to advance to meet the doctor.  Instead, he
+remained within the ruins until Ramblethorne entered.
+
+Their greeting was a surprise even to the lads, for the doctor, holding
+out his hand, exclaimed in German:
+
+"Well met, von Ruhle!  Let us hope that your arrangements will prove
+satisfactory."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+The Tables Turned
+
+Both Ross Trefusis and Vernon Haye understood and could speak German.
+Ross was especially good in his knowledge of the language of the modern
+Hun, for in his early youth he had been inflicted with a German
+governess.  Since German is one of the subjects for Sandhurst--for
+which both lads were preparing--their knowledge had been considerably
+improved under the cast-iron rule of a native professor.
+
+"Eminently satisfactory," replied von Ruhle.  "We will go into details
+later.  You had no difficulty in coming here, I hope?"
+
+"None whatever."
+
+"No suspicions?" asked von Ruhle anxiously.
+
+Ramblethorne smiled.
+
+"My dear von Ruhle," he replied.  "A medical practitioner is above
+suspicion.  He is free to go anywhere at any hour of the day or night
+without question.  No man would suspect----"
+
+"You are clever, von Hauptwald----"
+
+"Ssh!" interrupted the doctor.  "Call me Ramblethorne, if you please.
+Of course there is no danger here, but at other times and in other
+places you might incautiously give the show away.  You had a good
+passage?"
+
+"Excellent," replied von Ruhle.  "I am getting well-known to the
+strafed English custom-house officers at Queenboro' and Harwich.  They
+recognize me by my stick, I believe, but they little know that it is a
+new one every time.  What do you think of this?  I have brought it as a
+specimen for you to see.  Just fancy! every time I cross to Holland
+twenty kilogrammes of good copper are on their way to the Fatherland.
+By this time Herr Stabb of Essen is well acquainted with my Malacca
+canes."
+
+"A good weight to carry about," remarked Ramblethorne, wielding the
+disguised bar of copper.  "I wonder you troubled."
+
+"Mein Gott!  I could not leave it," declared von Ruhle.  "Someone might
+take a fancy to it, and then the secret would be out.  But tell me:
+have you succeeded in getting that commission you spoke of?"
+
+"I am still living in hopes," replied Ramblethorne.  "Of course I could
+have obtained a post of temporary surgeon in the British Navy, but it
+wasn't good enough.  It's no fun running the risk of being torpedoed by
+our own Submarines.  The English Army offers a wider scope.  Believe
+me, I am worth more than a division to the Emperor.  I'll get a
+commission, never you fear, for I have heaps of influence.  Then, of
+course, I will do my utmost to fight against a terrible epidemic that
+will mysteriously break out amongst the troops."
+
+Ramblethorne, otherwise von Hauptwald, threw back his shoulders and
+laughed uproariously.
+
+"Careful!" hissed his companion.  "You will be heard over the whole
+island."
+
+"What matters?  There is not another soul in sight besides ourselves.
+How much petrol have you?"
+
+"Fifty two-gallon tins.  I expect some more by boat to-morrow.  It's
+safely stored in a cave on the side of the creek.  It is a nuisance it
+is raining.  I do not fancy a night's work in weather like this.
+Himmel, what's that?"
+
+Accidentally Vernon's foot had dislodged a small piece of stone.
+
+"Nerves, my dear von Ruhle," said Ramblethorne, with his usual
+good-natured smile.  "A bit of masonry has fallen from the tower.  See,
+the floor is covered with similar pieces."
+
+"If anyone should be up there----" suggested von Ruhle, pointing to the
+top of the tower.
+
+The lads could feel their hearts thumping against their ribs.  Through
+a small crack in the planking they could see the eyes of the two
+Germans directed upwards.
+
+"Impossible; there are no steps," declared Ramblethorne.  "Besides,
+what object would anyone have in ascending a tower on a day like this?
+I fully appreciate the danger of being overheard, of course.  We've
+said enough to find ourselves faced by a firing-party in the Tower of
+London, my friend."
+
+"Don't!" expostulated von Ruhle, closing his eyes as if to shut out the
+unpleasant mental vision.  Then: "You have the signalling apparatus, I
+hope?"
+
+"Trust me for that, von Ruhle," replied his companion, tapping his
+breast-pocket.  "All we have to do is to wait until yonder lighthouse
+exposes its light.  Really the ways of these English pass
+understanding.  They rigorously forbid the showing of lights in private
+houses on shore, imagining that our agents would be so foolish as to
+start blinking with a lamp; yet they allow these lighthouses to work as
+usual, and obligingly enable us to communicate to our hearts' content."
+
+Von Hauptwald was not far wrong in his remarks, for the instrument he
+had enabled him to flash a message to a confederate without having to
+be in possession of a lamp.  The flash was obtained from any distant
+and visible light by means of a complicated system of mirrors.  The
+reflected rays could then be projected in any desired direction so as
+to be quite invisible except on a certain bearing.  It was one of the
+carefully-thought-out plans adopted by the German Government to permit
+its spies to communicate with their submarines without running any
+great risk of detection.
+
+"It's two hours to sunset," remarked the doctor; "three before we
+commence operations.  I would suggest that we adjourn to the cave and
+partake of refreshment.  You see, I have not omitted to make suitable
+provision."
+
+"Very good!" agreed von Ruhle; "but I only wish I had a waterproof.
+The rain is most annoying."
+
+Arm-in-arm the two men left the building, and presently disappeared
+from view behind a slight rise in the ground.
+
+"I say!" exclaimed Ross; "we've tumbled on something this time.  Fancy
+Ramblethorne a rotten German spy.  I always thought he was a rattling
+good chap."
+
+"Evidently he isn't," rejoined Vernon.  "But the point is: what do you
+propose to do?  It's beastly wet here."
+
+"It is, now I come to think of it," agreed his chum.  "The fact is,
+that until you mentioned it I was hardly aware that it was raining.
+We'll discuss this knotty point."
+
+"I vote we make tracks for the boat," suggested Haye.  "The tide must
+be rising by this time.  We can then slip off and raise the alarm."
+
+Ross shook his head.
+
+"No go," he decided.  "We might get nabbed ourselves.  Besides, who
+would be able to lay these chaps by the heels?  There's only that
+motor-boat chap at Penydwick Cove, and he's precious little use.  There
+are no soldiers nearer than at St. Bedal.  I propose we hang on here.
+There's a snug, sheltered hole in these ruins, just big enough for us
+to lie hidden.  Then we stand a good chance of hearing more of the
+conversation between those beggars."
+
+"Three hours more, remember."
+
+"Yes, I know.  In the meanwhile we might slip down to Main Beach Cove.
+There's plenty of cover amongst the rocks."
+
+"What for?" asked Vernon.
+
+"To see what these fellows are up to.  I'm rather anxious to renew my
+slight acquaintance with friend Copperstick.  By Jove, what a cute move
+to get contraband metal into Germany!"
+
+"Not much at a time.  It shows how hard up the Germans must be for
+copper when it pays a fellow to carry over about half a hundredweight
+at a time."
+
+"Well, let's get a move on," said Ross.  "Be careful how you descend.
+The ivy will be fairly slippery with the wet."
+
+Cautiously the two lads descended, reaching the ground without mishap.
+
+"Our sweaters!" exclaimed Vernon.
+
+"Dash it all!  Yes," agreed his companion.  "I had forgotten all about
+them."
+
+The sweaters, carefully rolled up, had been placed for security in one
+corner of the chapel.  Unless anyone actually came close to the spot,
+they were hidden from sight.
+
+"Neither of those fellows stood about here, I think," remarked Ross as
+the chums retrieved and donned the additional clothing.  "It's jolly
+lucky, or they would have smelt a rat."
+
+Trefusis and his companion went out into the rain, walking rapidly
+towards a slight mound capped by a few irregularly shaped stones.  It
+was behind this rise of ground that the two spies had gone.  Up to this
+point, Ross argued, there was little need for caution; beyond, it would
+be necessary to keep well under cover until they reached Main Beach.
+
+"'Ware the skyline," cautioned Ross as the chums approached the hillock.
+
+"Ay; 'ware the skyline," said a deep voice mockingly, "It's bad
+strategy."
+
+Turning, the lads made the disconcerting discovery that Ramblethorne
+and von Ruhle were within five yards of their would-be trackers.
+
+Ross realized that he and his chum had been badly outmanoeuvred.
+Evidently the Germans suspected that they had been overheard, and
+ostentatiously leaving the ruins for Main Beach Cove, they had made a
+detour from the hillock, and had waited until Ross and Vernon had
+emerged from the chapel.  Then, taking advantage of the wet grass that
+effectually deadened the sound of their footsteps, they had turned the
+tables on their shadowers.
+
+So completely taken aback were the two lads that they stood stock-still
+as if rooted to the earth.
+
+"Not a nice evening to be out, Trefusis," continued the doctor.  "What
+brings you on St. Mena's Island at this late hour of the day?"
+
+"Our boat was left high and dry by the tide, so we had to wait and take
+shelter," replied Ross.
+
+"And so you chose a place where there was no shelter," remarked
+Ramblethorne.  "Idiotic thing to do--very idiotic.  Now tell me: what
+were you doing on the top of the tower?"
+
+Ross did not hesitate in his reply.  Perhaps it would have been better
+had he done so, for he had never betrayed his knowledge of German to
+the doctor on any of their previous meetings, and it would have been
+judicious to keep up the deception.
+
+"What were we doing?  Listening to your precious schemes," he retorted
+boldly.  "Now we know all about you, and it will be our duty to report
+you as spies to the authorities.  We are expecting a search-party from
+Killigwent Hall at any moment, you see."
+
+"So that's the line of defence you propose to adopt, eh?" sneered
+Ramblethorne.  "Well, look out!"
+
+With a sudden spring the athletic man flung himself upon Ross, while
+von Ruhle with equal promptitude made a rush to secure Vernon.
+
+Strong and active though he was, Ross was no match for his huge and
+powerful antagonist.  Knowing that flight was impossible, the lad
+feinted, and aimed a blow with his left straight for the doctor's chin.
+This Ramblethorne parried easily, and grasping the lad's wrist, held it
+as in a vice, and in such a manner that rendered fruitless any attempt
+on Trefusis' part to make use of his right arm.
+
+Having thus secured his opponent, Ramblethorne watched the result of
+the encounter between his fellow-spy and young Haye.
+
+Von Ruhle had opened the attack by brandishing his heavy stick, and
+calling upon Vernon to surrender.
+
+Haye returned the compliment by closing, and dealing the German such a
+terrific blow upon the chest that von Ruhle recoiled quite a couple of
+yards.  The lad's onslaught had only missed the German's solar plexus
+by a few inches; had it not, the chances were that von Ruhle would have
+lost all interest in life for the next quarter of an hour.
+
+But instead of following up his initial success Vernon, seeing Ross
+helpless in the doctor's grip, rushed to his chum's aid.  For a few
+seconds he feinted, striving to find an opening, while Ramblethorne,
+dragging his captive with him, pivoted in order to keep his front
+towards his new antagonist.
+
+Those few seconds were Vernon's undoing.
+
+Quickly recovering himself, von Ruhle sprang forward with the agility
+of a panther.  The imitation Malacca cane descended with a dull thud
+upon the lad's head, and like a felled ox Vernon fell inertly upon the
+sodden grass.
+
+"Hold him--so," exclaimed Ramblethorne, handing Ross over to the
+custody of von Ruhle.  Then drawing a small hypodermic syringe from a
+case, the former inserted the needle into the lad's forearm.
+
+Five seconds later Ross Trefusis lay unconscious beside his companion
+in misfortune.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+Kidnapped
+
+"I thought you had killed him, von Ruhle," said the doctor, bending
+over Vernon and making a cursory examination of the unconscious lad.
+
+"I thought I had," was the unconcerned reply.  "Dead men tell no tales."
+
+"There I beg to differ," protested Ramblethorne.  "Corpses have a nasty
+way of turning up at inopportune moments.  These youngsters are worth
+more to us alive than dead."
+
+"How so?"
+
+"One is a son of Admiral Trefusis; his companion is, I believe, also a
+son of a distinguished English naval officer."
+
+"Well, and what of it?" asked von Ruhle.
+
+"Hostages," replied the doctor briefly.  "Later I will explain.
+Meanwhile we'll carry them to the cave.  It's farther than back to the
+ruins; but perhaps, as young Trefusis said, there may be a
+search-party, and the ruins would be one of the first objects of
+investigation."
+
+Although, with the exception of periodical visits abroad, Dr.
+Ramblethorne had lived in England all his life and was a fully
+qualified medical man, he was a highly trusted and talented agent of
+the German Secret Service.  Months before the outbreak of war, he had
+been ordered to report upon the defences of Devonport, and in order to
+do this he had bought a practice on the outskirts of Plymouth.  Upon
+the commencement of hostilities, he was detailed to keep under
+observation the military preparations of the Duchy of Cornwall, and
+also to take necessary steps for communicating with German submarines
+that, under von Tirpitz's prearranged scheme, were to operate in the
+Bristol Channel.  Von Ruhle was one of the few subordinates he actually
+knew.  There were others with whom he communicated only through an
+intermediary, and who knew him only by a number.
+
+Von Ruhle was almost as mentally clever as his superior.
+Ostentatiously he was an Englishman.  Sometimes he posed as a mining
+engineer; at others as a commercial traveller; as an accredited
+representative of the British Red Cross Society he was in the habit of
+making frequent journeys to Holland, presumably in connection with work
+at Groningen Internment Camp.  At the present time, his activities were
+centred upon the formation of a secret petrol depot for the supply of
+fuel to unterseebooten operating in the Bristol Channel and off the
+south coast of Ireland.
+
+A couple of slight incidents had served to put the cautious
+Ramblethorne on his guard during his interview with von Ruhle in the
+ruined chapel.
+
+Although he verbally deprecated his subordinate's alarm when the lads
+accidentally dislodged a stone from the tower, it was merely to disarm
+possible eavesdroppers of any suspicion that their presence was
+suspected.
+
+The ability to control his feelings was one of the super-spy's chief
+assets.  Suspicion once aroused, he proceeded without the faintest sign
+to investigate his surroundings.  His keen eye soon lighted upon the
+lads' sweaters.  Then it was that an adjournment was suggested to Main
+Beach Cove.
+
+This was simply and solely a "blind", for on gaining the cover of the
+boulder-strewn hillock the doctor communicated his suspicions to his
+companion.  The pair then crouched behind the rocks, whence they were
+able to command a view of the tower.
+
+It was not long before their enterprise met with success.  They saw
+Trefusis and his chum cautiously descend by means of the ivy; then,
+directly the lads set out upon their ill-starred tracking expedition,
+the Germans, as before related, succeeded in outflanking them and
+effecting their capture.
+
+"Time!" announced Ramblethorne, consulting his watch.
+
+"Are these safe?" asked von Ruhle, stirring Vernon's unconscious form
+with his foot.
+
+"Quite; though, perhaps, to make sure I will give this youngster a
+slight injection.  Pity you hadn't held him with the double arm-lock
+instead of cracking him over the head.  Herr Kapitan Schwalbe won't
+want to be troubled with a passenger with a swollen head."
+
+Leaving their senseless victims in the cave, the two Germans again
+ascended the hill to St. Mena's Chapel.  As they breasted the summit,
+they could see the fixed white light of Black Bull Head showing
+momentarily brighter and brighter against the rapidly failing daylight.
+
+Setting a prismatic compass in position upon the sill of one of the
+glazeless windows, Ramblethorne took a careful bearing in a seaward
+direction.  This done, he pointed the projector of the signalling
+apparatus in precisely the same direction, and threw a waterproofed
+cloth over the instrument.
+
+"Too early yet, von Ruhle," he remarked.  "Nevertheless it is advisable
+to fix our bearings while twilight lasts.  A light might spell
+disaster."
+
+"A deucedly unpleasant night for such a task," grumbled von Ruhle.
+
+"On the contrary, it is just the very thing," replied the doctor.  "It
+is not thick enough to be dangerous, but the rain is just sufficient to
+assist in the screening of U75.  Do not think of your personal comfort,
+my dear von Ruhle, when urgent work for the Fatherland has to be
+undertaken."
+
+For another half-hour the two men paced the grass-grown stones.  Their
+choice of St. Mena's Island as a secret signalling station was an
+excellent one.  It was isolated, and, being slightly greater in
+elevation than the cliffs of the mainland in the immediate vicinity,
+would effectually screen any ray of light sent landwards from the
+expected German submarine.  Thus all danger of the narrow gleam of
+reflected light being detected by the none too smart members of the
+coast patrol was entirely obviated.
+
+"Time!" exclaimed the doctor, consulting the luminous face of his watch.
+
+Dexterously, and without disturbing the position of the instrument, von
+Ruhle whipped off the covering.  Although there were no visible signs
+that anything was taking place, both men knew that a beam of light,
+reflected from the distant lighthouse on Black Bull Head, was being
+directed seawards.
+
+In silence the two men peered through the driving rain, von Ruhle
+making use of a pair of powerful night-glasses.
+
+Suddenly, after an interval of almost five minutes, a faint pin-prick
+of light flickered from the surface of the sea.
+
+Instantly Ramblethorne stepped a dozen paces to the right.
+
+"I can see nothing from here," he announced in a low voice.  "Can you?"
+
+"Yes," replied his companion.
+
+"Good: that's friend Schwalbe."
+
+The doctor was right.  From the deck of the unterseeboot a signalling
+apparatus similar to that employed by the spies was in use.  By an
+ingenious automatic arrangement it projected a beam of light, derived
+from the same sources as that on St. Mena's Island, rigidly in a fixed
+direction, regardless of the "lift" of the submarine under the action
+of the waves.
+
+For several minutes a rapid exchange of signals was maintained; then
+the two spies, folding up their apparatus, walked rapidly towards Main
+Beach Cove.
+
+They had not long to wait before the faint sound of oars was borne to
+their ears.
+
+"Himmel!  They have arrived already," exclaimed von Ruhle.
+
+"So it appears," replied Ramblethorne dryly.  "I pride myself that I
+have exceptionally good eyesight, but I fail to see her.  The neutral
+colour of the submarine is indeed excellent for night work."
+
+They descended the sandy and shingly beach until further progress was
+barred by the lapping wavelets of the rising tide.
+
+Through the mirk loomed up the outlines of a canvas collapsible boat
+crowded with men.  At two lengths from the shore the rowers laid on
+their oars.  One of the men gave vent to a low whistle resembling the
+call of a curlew.
+
+"All clear," replied Ramblethorne.
+
+The boat's keel rasped on the shingle.  A cloaked figure in the
+stern-sheets made his way for'ard and leapt ashore.
+
+"Herr von Hauptwald?" he asked.
+
+"The same," replied the doctor.  "And Kapitan Schwalbe?"
+
+"The captain is still on board," replied the officer.  "It is hard to
+resist the opportunity of getting ashore after being cooped up there
+for more than a fortnight.  But the petrol?"
+
+"We have not so much as we hoped to obtain," replied von Ruhle.
+
+The Leutnant muttered an oath.
+
+"And how is business?" asked Ramblethorne, with a view of distracting
+the officer's thoughts from the shortage of fuel.
+
+The Leutnant muttered another oath.
+
+"Bad!" he replied savagely.  "Only one wretched little tramp steamer,
+which we fell in with about twenty miles from the Stacks.  She gave us
+a run for our money, but we had her at last.  Even then she tried to
+ram us.  One has to be most cautious also.  These accursed English have
+been far too active with their new-fangled contrivances.  We called up
+U71 early this morning.  She replied.  Again at noon we called her, but
+there was no reply.  U70 we have lost all touch with since Monday, yet
+she was under orders to assist in the blockade of the Bristol Channel
+until we, as senior unterseeboot, gave instructions to return to
+Wilhelmshaven."
+
+"Lost, I suppose," remarked Ramblethorne.
+
+The Leutnant had walked to a distance of nearly ten yards from his men,
+who were drawn up in military order awaiting their officer's commands.
+
+He lowered his voice.
+
+"Although I am sorry to say it," he declared, "I am afraid she has gone
+too.  Our losses are not only serious--they are appalling.  Submarine
+work is now a continual nightmare.  We do our duty, but before long, if
+we are sufficiently fortunate to escape the toils that these English
+cast about us, we shall all be physical wrecks."
+
+The man's agitation increased as he spoke.  Obviously he was labouring
+under a severe strain.
+
+"And this petrol?" he asked anxiously.  "What quantity?"
+
+Ramblethorne told him.
+
+"Not enough," declared the Leutnant.  "Himmel, it is not enough to get
+us round Cape Wrath.  On board we have only sufficient for six hours'
+surface running, while our batteries are not far short of running down.
+You had better see the captain and explain."
+
+Leaving von Ruhle to direct the seamen to the secret petrol store in
+the cave, Ramblethorne accompanied the Leutnant to the submarine.
+
+The U75 was one of the latest type of Germany's submarines.  Over three
+hundred feet in length, there was little about her in common with the
+accepted idea of under-water craft.  Her deck ran in one continuous
+sweep for almost her entire length, and rose nearly six feet above the
+surface.  The visible part of her sides was perpendicular, the bulging
+sections being entirely beneath the surface.  Her conning-tower was
+surrounded by a platform as long as the navigation-bridge of a modern
+destroyer.  The two periscopes were "housed", but two slender
+"wireless" masts gave the boat the appearance of a swift torpedo craft.
+
+Acknowledging a salute from a burly quartermaster, Ramblethorne gained
+the deck, and was escorted aft by the Leutnant.  Pacing the tapering
+platform was a broad-shouldered, fair-haired man of about thirty,
+although a carefully trimmed blonde beard made him look much older.
+
+He lacked the natural elastic stride of the British naval officer.  His
+movements resembled those of a thoroughly drilled soldier, yet ever and
+anon he would glance furtively in the direction of the open sea as if
+in constant dread of sudden and unknown peril.
+
+"Greetings, Herr von Hauptwald!" he exclaimed, when the Leutnant had
+formally introduced his visitor.  "You are well known to me by repute,
+but I doubt whether we have met before."
+
+"I fancy so," rejoined the doctor.  "Do you not remember that little
+affair in the Strauer Platz?  Ah, I thought you would!  But to come to
+the point.  We have been unable to obtain the requisite quantity of
+petrol."
+
+"Somehow I thought it," replied Kapitan Schwalbe.  "How much have you?"
+
+Ramblethorne told him.
+
+"Enough, with what we have left on board, for only eight hundred miles
+run.  It will not take us home, and we are under orders not to leave
+these waters before Friday next.  We have been let down badly."
+
+"I know that it is useless to express regrets," said Ramblethorne
+boldly.  "I can only hope that other means of supplying the requisite
+fuel will be forthcoming.  But here is another matter.  We have had to
+secure two English lads, both sons of distinguished naval officers.
+Unfortunately they overheard a conversation between von Ruhle and
+myself.  In the interests of the Secret Service it is absolutely
+necessary that they are kept out of the way for at least a couple of
+months.  I am averse to doing them personal injury."
+
+"Then what do you wish?" asked Kapitan Schwalbe.
+
+"Take them on board with you.  If possible, land them at a German port.
+If this be possible, you will realize that we have a strong tool to
+work with."
+
+"I fail to understand," said the Kapitan of U75.
+
+"They could be made good use of as hostages," resumed Ramblethorne.
+"If these English persist in talking about reprisals, we can hint
+that--well, it is unnecessary to go into details."
+
+"I see," remarked Kapitan Schwalbe.  "But if it is impossible to land
+them?"
+
+"Then you must put them on board the first outward-bound tramp steamer
+you fall in with--provided she is bound for South American ports, or
+anywhere that will mean a long voyage."
+
+"Very well," assented the submarine officer.  "I quite understand your
+anxiety to get them out of the way."
+
+"Temporarily, mind," added Ramblethorne.
+
+"Precisely.  Herr Rix," he exclaimed, addressing the Leutnant.  "Take
+four men and go ashore.  Von Ruhle will tell you where these English
+boys are; have them brought on board."
+
+"One moment," interrupted Ramblethorne.  "They came to the island in a
+boat.  There is nothing unusual in that, I admit, but the fact remains
+that the boat is still lying in the cove next to this.  You might order
+the men to set the boat adrift."
+
+"Water-logged, and with sails set and the main-sheet made fast.
+Another deplorable accident.  Ach!  It shall be so."
+
+Half an hour later Ross Trefusis and Vernon Haye, still unconscious
+under the action of the anaesthetic injection, were brought on board
+U75 and passed below.  Their boat, lying on its beam-ends, was drifting
+slowly in the direction of Black Bull Head.  Ramblethorne and von
+Ruhle, their work for the present done, were already on the way to the
+mainland.
+
+Meanwhile, alarmed at the non-appearance of the young heir to
+Killigwent Hall and his guest, a party had set off to search St. Mena's
+Island.
+
+Just as the boat's keel grounded on the beach of Half Tide Cove, the
+German submarine slipped quietly through the blurr of misty rain, and
+under cover of darkness headed towards the mouth of Bristol Channel.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+The Awakening
+
+"Dash it all!  What am I doing here?" muttered Ross Trevor drowsily, as
+he opened his eyes.
+
+For the moment he quite imagined that he was in his dormitory at
+school, and that by an oversight the rest of his chums had left him in
+bed.  The suggestion was strengthened by the sound of gurgling water,
+as if the bathroom tap were running.  Then he became aware that
+everything was pitching up and down.  Once before he had experienced a
+similar sensation--when he had had a violent headache following a
+slight touch of sunstroke.
+
+It puzzled him, too, that he was almost in darkness.  Somewhere
+without, and partly screened by some projection, an electric light was
+burning.  The reflected rays were just sufficient to enable him to take
+stock of his surroundings.
+
+No, he was not back in the school dormitory.  True, he had a headache,
+but that would not account for the actual motion.  He fumbled, his
+fingers came in contact with a curved board that served to prevent the
+occupant of the bed--or, rather, bunk--from falling on the floor.
+
+Almost mechanically he rolled out, and stood supporting himself by
+grasping the ledge of the bunk.  The swaying, due partly to dizziness
+and partly to an unaccountable see-saw motion, would have thrown him to
+the floor but for the assistance afforded by the side of the bunk.
+
+Gradually he became aware that there was a similar sleeping-place
+immediately beneath the one he had been occupying.  Someone was lying
+there, breathing heavily.  There was sufficient light for Ross to
+recognize him.  It was his chum Vernon.
+
+Just then a bell clanged noisily.  The sound of running water was
+outvoiced by the loud din of machinery in motion.  A wave of hot air
+that reminded the lad of the atmosphere of a Tube station wafted past
+him.  The whole fabric trembled under the powerful pulsations of the
+mechanism.
+
+With his legs trembling through sheer physical weakness, Ross hung on
+grimly.  He wanted to shout, but no sound came from his parched tongue.
+He was bewildered.  It seemed as if he were in the throes of a terrible
+nightmare, and that he would awake on finding himself falling into a
+bottomless abyss.
+
+The reflected light was obscured as a broad-shouldered man made his way
+along the narrow corridor in which the bunks were placed.  As he did so
+he caught sight of the lad.  Without a word he seized Ross in his arms,
+not roughly, but nevertheless unceremoniously, and lifted him back into
+the bunk.  There was something so peremptory in the action that Ross
+lay still and closed his eyes.  All his will power seemed to have
+deserted him.
+
+"Make a dash for it, old man!" exclaimed a muffled voice that Trefusis
+hardly recognized as his chum's.  "Make a dash for it.  Don't let them
+collar us."
+
+It was Vernon rambling in his sleep.  The words were sufficient to give
+Ross a key to the hitherto baffling problem.
+
+Like a flash he recalled the episode of their adventure on St. Mena's
+Island.  He remembered himself being held in the grasp of the powerful
+Ramblethorne until unconsciousness overcame him.  He was still a
+prisoner, but with the qualifying knowledge that he was not alone.
+Vernon Haye was sharing his captivity, wherever it might be.
+
+"We're afloat then," he muttered.  "What has happened?"
+
+Moistening his lips, Ross leant over the side of the bunk and called
+his chum by name.  His voice sounded strangely unfamiliar.  He could
+only just hear himself above the clamorous noise of the engines.
+
+It was not long before another man appeared at the end of the corridor.
+As he did so he switched on a lamp almost above the lad's head.  For a
+few seconds Ross was temporarily blinded by the sudden transition from
+artificial twilight to the intense brilliancy of electric light.
+
+"So!  You are now awake, hein?" asked a guttural voice.  "How you vos
+feel?"
+
+"Rotten!" replied Ross emphatically.  His reply was brief and to the
+point.  It summed up his sensations during the last ten minutes.
+
+The man laughed.
+
+"So you look.  You better soon will be.  You know where you now vos?"
+
+"On board a ship," answered the lad.  He was still hoping against hope
+that his questioner was anything but a German.  There was a small
+chance that he had by some means been picked up at sea by a Dutch or a
+Swedish vessel.
+
+The man's announcement "put the lid on" that possibility.
+
+"Sheep--goot!" he chuckled.  "German unterseeboot--vot you vos call
+submarine.  No danger to you boys if you yourselves behave.  Much to
+see--ach! plenty much."
+
+The lad's eyes had now become more accustomed to the light.  He could
+see that his visitor was a broad-shouldered, muscular man of average
+height, florid-featured, and with light-yellow hair and a fair
+moustache.  He was dressed in a uniform that was apparently a bad copy
+of that worn by executive officers of the British Navy.  On the breast
+of his coat he wore an Iron Cross.
+
+"Me Hermann Rix, Ober-leutnant of unterseeboot," he announced.  "Der
+Kapitan send me to see how you get better.  Goot!  I tell seaman to
+bring food quick.  In one hour you go on deck.  Den you feel all well."
+
+The German Leutnant bent and peered into the lower cot.
+
+"Fat head," he remarked seriously.  "Bad knock, but he get well soon."
+
+With that the officer went away, leaving the light switched on.
+
+Scrambling out of his bunk, Ross approached his chum.  Vernon was now
+sleeping quietly.  His face, however, was flushed, while it was quite
+evident that he had received a fairly heavy blow across the skull, for
+the top of his head was swollen to a considerable extent.
+
+Before Ross had finished his examination a sailor entered, bearing a
+tray on which were three slices of rye bread, some tinned beef, and a
+bottle of Rhenish wine.
+
+"Sprechen Sie deutsch?" he asked.
+
+For an instant Trefusis hesitated before replying.  To profess
+ignorance of the German language would be an immense advantage while on
+board the submarine, provided he could control his facial expressions
+and listen without betraying himself.  Then, on the other hand, he
+reflected that Ramblethorne, the spy, might have been instrumental in
+getting him into this predicament.  More than likely the Captain of the
+submarine had been informed of the fact that his unconscious passengers
+were well acquainted with the tongue-twisting language of the
+Fatherland.
+
+"Here is food for you," said the man, placing the tray on the floor.
+"You had better take hold of the bottle before it upsets.  We are
+rolling a bit.  When your friend open his eyes, call me.  I am in
+yonder compartment.  It would be well for you to dress.  I will bring
+your clothes to you very soon."
+
+Ross made a sorry meal.  The food was not at all appetizing.  His
+throat was in no condition to enable him to swallow easily.  A feeling
+of nausea, due either to the motion, the hot, confined air, or the
+after effects of the stupefying injection--perhaps a little of all
+three--was still present.
+
+He was actually on board a German submarine--one of Tirpitz's
+twentieth-century pirates.  He racked his brains to find a reason.
+With its limited accommodation an unterseeboot seemed the last type of
+craft that would receive a pair of prisoners--and
+non-combatants--within its steel-clad hull.  It must have been at
+Ramblethorne's instigation; yet why had not the spy knocked the pair of
+luckless eavesdroppers over the head and tumbled them into the sea?  It
+seemed by far the easiest solution; yet, in spite of that, Ross and
+Vernon were being carried to an unknown destination in one of the
+"mystery-craft" of the Imperial German Navy.
+
+The reappearance of the seaman bearing Ross's clothes cut short the
+latter's unsolved meditations.  Without a word the man laid the neatly
+folded garments on the bunk--a pair of flannel trousers, cricket shirt,
+underclothes, and the sweater that had been the cause of the lads'
+undoing; but in place of his shoes a pair of half-boots, reeking with
+tallow, had been provided.
+
+Ross proceeded to dress.  As he did so a voice that he hardly
+recognized asked:
+
+"Hulloa, Trefusis, where are we?"
+
+It was Haye.  His companion was now awake, but hardly conscious of his
+surroundings.
+
+"Better?" asked Ross laconically.  He could not at that moment bring
+himself to answer the question.
+
+"Didn't know that I was ill," remonstrated Vernon.  Then, after a vain
+attempt to raise his head--perhaps fortunately, since the bottom of
+Ross's cot was within a few inches of his face--he added:
+
+"Dash it all!  I remember.  That beastly German gave me a crack over
+the head with his copper walking-stick.  Where are we?"
+
+"In a rotten hole, old man.  We're in a German submarine, bound
+goodness knows where."
+
+"Where are my clothes?" asked Haye, this time successfully getting out
+of his bunk.  "Since you have yours, there seems to be no reason why I
+shouldn't have mine.  Hang it!  What's the matter with me?
+Everything's spinning round like a top."
+
+Mindful of the seaman's words, and with a docility that would have
+surprised him in different circumstances, Ross staggered along the
+corridor.  The passage was about thirty feet in length.  On one side
+the metal wall was flat, on the other it had a pronounced curve.
+Against it were six bunks arranged in pairs.  Four were used as
+stowing-places for baggage, the remaining ones had been given up to the
+two prisoners.  The roof was almost hidden by numerous pipes, most of
+them running fore and aft, while a few branched off through the walls.
+The flat bulkhead evidently formed one of the walls of the engine-room,
+for, as the lad placed his hand against it to steady himself, he could
+feel a distinct tremor, quite different from the vibration under his
+feet.  The floor was of steel, with a raised chequer pattern in order
+to give a better grip to one's feet.  At frequent intervals there were
+circular places, similar to those covering the coal-shoots in the
+pavement of residential thoroughfares.  Walls, ceiling, and floor were
+covered with beads of moisture, but whether from condensation or
+leakage Ross could not decide.
+
+At the end of the corridor or alley-way was a steel water-tight door,
+running in gun-metal grooves packed with india-rubber.  The door was
+closed.
+
+Seizing the lever that served as a handle, Trefusis tried to turn it,
+but without success.  Failing that, he kicked the steelwork with his
+heavy half-boots, yet no response came to his appeal.
+
+"The fellow told me to call," he muttered airily.  "What did he want to
+play the fool for?"
+
+Retracing his steps, Ross went to the other end of the alley-way.
+There was barely room to pass his companion as he did so.  The place
+from which he had previously seen the reflected light was now shut off
+by a door similarly constructed to the one that he had vainly attempted
+to open.  He was locked in a steel tomb that was itself a metal box
+within a metal box--a water-tight compartment of the submarine.
+
+"They might just as well have switched off the light while they were
+about it," he exclaimed bitterly; then at the next instant he wildly
+regretted his words.  The idea of being imprisoned in that cheerless
+compartment without a light of any description appalled him.
+
+Almost frantically he returned to the door that had previously baffled
+him.  As he did so he became aware that the submarine was tilting
+longitudinally.  Since he was unaware of the direction of the craft,
+and which was the bow or stern, he was unable to judge whether the
+unterseeboot was diving, or ascending to the surface.
+
+The incline became so great that he had to grasp the door-lever for
+support.  Turning his head, he saw that Vernon was hanging on grimly to
+the partition between the tiers of bunks.
+
+Then, as the vessel regained an even keel, silently and smoothly the
+door slid back in its grooves, revealing a small space barely six feet
+in length and five in breadth, and separated from the rest of the
+vessel by a closed water-tight panel.  Part of the compartment was
+occupied by a bend, at which the seaman to whom he had previously
+spoken was busily engaged in mending a rent in an oilskin coat.
+
+"My friend is now awake," announced Ross.
+
+The man laid aside his work.
+
+"Good!" he replied.  "He is just in time.  I will bring him his food
+and his clothes.  After that you will both go on deck for fresh air
+before you are interviewed by Herr Kapitan Schwalbe.  See that door?
+Beyond that you must not pass without permission.  It is forbidden.  If
+you do so, you will not have another opportunity in a hurry."
+
+"What are they going to do with us?" asked Ross.
+
+The sailor shook his head.
+
+"It is forbidden to ask questions," he said sternly.  "Whatever is
+necessary that you should know will be told you."
+
+He turned his back upon his questioner, signifying in a plain manner
+that it was useless for Trefusis to say more.  Taking the hint the lad
+returned to his chum, wondering deeply at the fate that had thrown them
+into the hands of the enemy.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+Aboard U75
+
+Like Ross, Vernon Haye made a poor meal.  He had barely finished when a
+petty officer appeared and curtly ordered the lads to follow him.
+Since he did so in German it was fairly certain that Trefusis'
+admission had been communicated to both officers and crew.
+
+Staggering, they passed along the alley-way into a broad subdivision
+that extended completely athwartships.  It was one of the two broadside
+torpedo-rooms, and contained two tubes of slightly greater diameter
+than the British 21-inch.  In "launching-trays" by the side of the
+tubes were eight torpedoes with their deadly war-heads attached.  Both
+transverse bulkheads were almost hidden by indicators, voice-tubes, and
+pipes for transmitting the compressed air from the air-flasks to the
+torpedo-tubes.
+
+Passing through another water-tight door the prisoners found themselves
+in yet another compartment.  On one side was an "air-lock", with its
+complement of life-saving helmets; on the other was an oval-shaped door
+forming means of communication with the small room built against the
+curved sides of the submarine.  Ross guessed, and rightly as it
+afterwards transpired, that the door led into a space that could be
+flooded at will, and which in turn enabled a diver to operate from the
+U-boat while submerged.
+
+Confronting the lads was an almost perpendicular steel ladder
+communicating with the conning-tower.  Their guide was about to ascend
+when a stern voice exclaimed in German:
+
+"Not that, you idiotic clodhopper!  Have you lost your reason?  The
+forward hatchway, don't you know?"
+
+"Pardon, Herr Leutnant," said the petty officer, abjectly apologetic,
+and, backing down the ladder, he passed through another door entering
+into an alley-way between the officers' cabins.  Here was the bowl of a
+supplementary periscope, so that a vision of what was taking place
+could be obtained without going into the conning-tower.
+
+The alley-way terminated at another broadside torpedo-room, the pairs
+of tubes pointing in the opposite direction to those the lads had just
+seen.
+
+Beyond were the living-quarters of the crew, kept spotlessly clean and
+tidy, yet Spartan-like in their simplicity.  Two of the men were sound
+asleep in their bunks.  Three more, who were playing cards at a plain
+deal table, glanced up from their game as the British lads passed by;
+but their interest was of brief duration, and stolidly they resumed
+their play.
+
+Stooping down to avoid a large metal trough--the "house" for the
+for'ard 105-millimetre disappearing gun--Ross and his chum arrived at
+the ladder by which they were to gain the open air.
+
+The hatch-cover was thrown back.  For the first time during their
+captivity they made the discovery that it was night.  Looking upwards,
+they could see a rectangle of dark sky twinkling with stars that, with
+the slight motion of the submarine, appeared to sway to and fro.
+
+The cool night breeze fanned their heated foreheads as they gained the
+deck.  For some time, coming suddenly from the glare of the
+electrically lighted interior, their eyes were blinded.  They could see
+nothing but an indistinct blurr of star-lit, gently heaving water.
+
+Gradually the sense of vision returned.  They found themselves on the
+fore-deck of the unterseeboot.  They had made up their minds to see a
+turtle-back deck with a narrow level platform in the centre; instead
+they found that the deck was almost flat and, in nautical parlance,
+flush, save where it was broken by the elongated conning-tower topped
+by the twin periscopes and slender wireless mast.
+
+Lying on the deck in all conceivable attitudes were most of the
+U-boat's crew, taking advantage of a brief spell on the surface to
+breathe deeply of the ozone-laden atmosphere.
+
+Not a light was visible on board.  Even the hatchway by which the lads
+had gained the deck was constructed to trap any stray beam from the
+brilliant glare below.
+
+Miles away, and low down upon the horizon, a white light blinked
+solemnly; then after a brief interval it was succeeded by a red gleam.
+This in turn was followed by white again.
+
+Trefusis, with a sailor's inborn instinct, began to count the
+intervals.  Although having no means of consulting the only
+time-recording watch in the possession of the two captives, he had a
+fair idea of counting seconds.  At fourteen from the disappearance of
+the red light the white appeared.  An almost identical space of time
+occurred before the red reappeared.
+
+"It's the Wolf Light," mentally ejaculated the lad.
+
+His next step was to fix the bearing of the lighthouse.  This he did by
+looking for the Great Bear, and then, following the Pointers, the North
+Star.
+
+"Phew!" he muttered softly.  "Nor'-nor'-west.  This brute of a
+submarine is right in the chops of the Channel--the main highway for
+vessels making for London and the south coast ports."
+
+"What's that?" asked Vernon, who heard his chum speaking, but had
+failed to grasp the significance of his words.
+
+"Nothing," replied Ross almost in a whisper.  "I'll tell you later."
+
+The cool air had revived both lads wonderfully.  They had been left to
+their own devices, for the petty officer had gone aft.  Those of the
+crew who were on deck seemed as apathetic as the men below concerning
+the presence of the kidnapped youths.  They looked like men utterly
+worn out by fatigue and nervous strain.
+
+Grasping the flexible wire hand-rail Ross continued his survey of the
+horizon, all of which was visible except a small portion obscured by
+the rise of the conning-tower.  The air was remarkably clear.  Taking
+into consideration the refraction of the atmosphere, the navigation
+lamps of a vessel shown at twenty feet above the sea would be visible
+from the low-lying deck of the submarine at a distance of six to seven
+miles.
+
+But there were no signs of any vessels in the vicinity.  The German
+submarine rolled lazily in complete isolation, waiting, like a snake in
+the grass, for its prey.
+
+"Herr Kapitan would see you," exclaimed the guttural voice of the petty
+officer.  "Come aft.  Remember, when you are addressed, to remove your
+caps."
+
+The man led the way, making no attempt to avoid the recumbent limbs and
+bodies of the crew who impeded his passage.  Treading with discretion
+Ross and Vernon followed till, after skirting the base of the
+conning-tower, they found themselves in the presence of
+Lieutenant-Commander Schwalbe, the Kapitan of U75.
+
+Schwalbe was sitting in a small arm-chair which had been brought from
+his cabin.  He was smoking a cigar.  At his elbow stood his satellite,
+Hermann Rix, who was also smoking.  This luxury was denied the crew,
+the officers being permitted to smoke only when the submarine was
+running awash or resting on the surface.
+
+[Illustration: THE INTERVIEW WITH THE GERMAN CAPTAIN (missing from
+book)]
+
+"So you have recovered from your little involuntary rest," exclaimed
+Schwalbe in excellent English.  He was a remarkably good linguist, for
+previous to the outbreak of the war he had been the skipper of a
+North-German-Lloyd boat.  By sheer good luck he had reached a home port
+the day after the momentous declaration of hostilities, having narrowly
+escaped capture by a British destroyer.
+
+Owing to the great expansion of the German submarine service, and its
+equally rapid reduction at the hands of the British Navy, the supply of
+specially trained officers of the Imperial Navy for this branch had run
+out.  More had been transferred from the pent-up High Seas Fleet, while
+others had been absorbed from the now useless German Mercantile Marine,
+and hastily put through a course of instruction.  Schwalbe was one of
+these, and after less than two months' hazardous work in the capacity
+of Unter-leutnant found himself in command of U75, one of the "last
+words" of von Tirpitz's piratical fleet.
+
+Neither Ross nor Vernon replied.  They could form no suitable answer.
+It was no doubt very considerate on the part of the Kapitan to enquire
+after their healths, but somehow the lads felt that the skipper of U75
+was responsible for their presence on board.
+
+"Come, come," continued Schwalbe.  "Don't be sulky."
+
+"We are not," expostulated Ross.
+
+"I'm glad to hear it," rejoined the Kapitan, with a grin that had the
+effect of letting his cigar fall to the deck.  He stooped to retrieve
+it, but, suddenly remembering that it was beneath his dignity, changed
+his mind and kicked the glowing stump on one side.  Having taken
+another from a gun-metal case, he lit it with a device that merely
+smouldered instead of giving a bright light.
+
+"It is as well we understand each other," he continued.  "Do you know
+why you are on board U75?"
+
+"No, sir," replied Ross.
+
+"Neither do I," rejoined Schwalbe with astonishing candour.  "I wish I
+had not been honoured with your company."
+
+"The remedy is in your hands then, sir," said Trefusis.  "You can land
+us the next time you put in at St. Mena's Island for petrol, or else
+put us on board the first fishing craft we fall in with."
+
+"I beg to differ," was the rejoinder.  "Unfortunately you are on board,
+and you must make the best of it, I understand from my friend--shall I
+say Dr. Ramblethorne--that you are both very inquisitive.
+Inquisitiveness is a bad trait in ones so young.  You see, it has got
+you into trouble.  The doctor has strong reasons for getting me to take
+care of you for some considerable time, so you will have an opportunity
+of seeing how we Germans make war.  No half-measures, mark you.  It is
+useless to make war with a velvet glove.  You English people call us
+pirates, I believe?"
+
+"It certainly looks like piracy when German submarines sink harmless
+merchantmen without warning," declared Vernon.
+
+"For my part I have never sent a merchant vessel to the bottom without
+warning," said Schwalbe.  "As a seaman I regret having to sink any ship
+of commerce.  As an officer of the German Navy I have to obey orders
+unquestionably.  Nevertheless I have always given the crews of British
+ships a chance of escape, and have never sunk any vessel until the men
+are safely in the boats, unless she attempts to show fight or to run
+away."
+
+"Would you blame a skipper for trying to save his ship?" asked Ross.
+
+"You do not understand," exclaimed Schwalbe.  "We are at war.  A
+blockade has been declared upon the British Islands.  If, after full
+warning, merchantmen persist in taking the risk, it is their look-out,
+not mine.  However, to return to a more personal matter: having been
+saddled with you, I must endure your presence.  You will be well fed,
+as far as the resources at our command will allow.  You will be free to
+go wherever you wish on board, with the exception of the conning-tower,
+motor- and torpedo-rooms.  I am not ungrateful, for my brother, who had
+the misfortune to be in the _Ariadne_, was captured by your fleet.  He
+is being well treated somewhere in England.  Hence I give privileges to
+the son of Admiral Trefusis and the son of Commander Haye so long as
+they are my compulsory guests.  But bear in mind: you will be watched.
+Should you commit any fault, however slight, you will pay dearly for
+it.  If you are foolish enough to attempt any act of treachery, death
+will be the penalty.  Have I made myself perfectly clear?"
+
+"Yes, sir," replied both lads.
+
+"Very well.  Is there anything you would like me to do within the
+bounds of reason?"
+
+"Could we communicate with our parents?" asked Ross.
+
+"No," replied Schwalbe decisively.  "There are strong objections.  And,
+while I am on the subject, should you fall in with the crews of
+destroyed ships you are strictly forbidden to communicate with them
+either by word or gesture.  That will be a punishable offence of the
+second degree.  Anything more?"
+
+"My friend has had a nasty knock on the head," said Trefusis.  "Have
+you a doctor on board?"
+
+Again Kapitan Schwalbe smiled broadly.
+
+"No," he replied.  "There is no need.  Cases of illness must wait till
+we return to port.  The only injuries we are likely to sustain would
+put us beyond all medical aid.  But several of the men are fairly
+skilled in rough surgery, so I will----"
+
+"Vessel on the port bow, sir; she's showing no lights," announced a
+voice.
+
+"All hands to stations!" ordered the skipper.
+
+"Down below with you!" hissed the petty officer, who during the
+interview had stood rigidly at attention at two paces to the rear of
+his charges.
+
+Already the hitherto recumbent men were alert.  Quickly, yet in order,
+they disappeared down the fore hatchway, and amongst them were Ross and
+Vernon.
+
+The officers had taken their places inside the shelter of the
+conning-tower.  Everything was battened down from within, and with a
+gentle purr the electric motors were set in motion, while at the same
+time water ballast was admitted into the trimming-tanks.
+
+Swift and stealthy had been their preparations, but the presence of the
+submarine was betrayed by the phosphorescent swirl of the water caused
+by the churning of the twin propellers as she slipped beneath the
+surface.
+
+Twenty seconds later a swift vessel that looked suspiciously like a
+trawler, although her speed belied her, tore over the place where U75
+had disappeared.  Bare inches only separated the top of the latter's
+conning-tower from the massive keel plates of the craft that had all
+but accomplished its mission.
+
+The watch-dogs of the British Navy were at work.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+The Tramp
+
+Like a startled hare the unterseeboot fled for shelter.  Not until she
+reached a depth of fifteen fathoms did she check her diagonally
+downward course.  At intervals a dull booming, audible above the rattle
+of the motors, proclaimed the unpleasant fact that her antagonist was
+circling around the spot marked by the phosphorescent swirl and the
+iridescence of escaped oil, and was firing explosive grapnels in the
+hope of ripping open the U-boat's hull.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe, looking very grey in the artificial light, was
+standing behind the quartermaster.  His hands were clenched in
+momentary apprehension.  Beads of perspiration stood out upon his
+forehead.  He was experiencing a foretaste of the torment of the lost.
+
+As a submarine officer of the Imperial German Navy he was a failure.
+Only sheer luck had hitherto saved him from the fate that had overtaken
+scores of his brother officers in that branch of the service.  Skilled
+as he was in the handling of a huge liner, he lacked the iron nerve
+that is essential to the man who has to risk his life in a steel box
+that, in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred, offers no means of escape
+in the event of a catastrophe.
+
+Yet he had to do his duty, notwithstanding his utter distaste for
+submarine work.  He had had no option.  The officers of the British
+Navy volunteer for submarine duties; those of the German Navy are
+simply told off whether they want to or not.
+
+The nerve-racking work was beginning to tell upon him.  His orders
+condemned him to a forlorn hope, for the English Channel was known to
+be a death-trap for the under-sea blockaders.  The sight of a trawler
+filled him with feelings akin to terror.  The possibility, nay
+probability, of a merchantman carrying guns made him approach his
+intended prey with the utmost caution; yet, as he had remarked to Ross
+Trefusis, he had never torpedoed any vessel flying the red ensign
+without giving her warning.
+
+But it was not chivalry that prompted Schwalbe to act with
+consideration.  Had he been untrammelled he would have sent his prey to
+the bottom without compunction, for he had all the brutal instincts of
+the kultured Hun.  It was a superstitious fear that held his
+frightfulness in check--a presentiment based upon the Mosaic Law, an
+eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.
+
+Having placed a considerable distance between him and his attacker,
+Kapitan Schwalbe ordered the electric motors to be stopped.  The
+ballast tanks were "blown", and cautiously U75 rose to the surface.
+
+It was the best course open to her.  The depth of the water was much
+too great to allow her to rest on the bed of the sea.  On the other
+hand, in order to keep submerged, the motors would have to be in
+motion.  No one knew better than Schwalbe that the British patrol-boats
+would be in a position to locate with uncanny certitude the presence of
+their quarry, unless the strictest silence were maintained by the
+fugitive.
+
+So, ready to dive at the first alarm, U75 floated awash until such
+times as were considered favourable for getting under way.  Decidedly
+this part of the English Channel was, for the time being at least,
+unhealthy; and Kapitan Schwalbe resolved to make for the Bristol
+Channel, where the dangers of being destroyed by modern mosquitoes were
+more remote.
+
+Meanwhile Ross and Vernon had been sent back to the quarters in the
+alley-way, by the side of the motor-room.  Not knowing the reason for
+the U-boat's sudden submergence, and consequently unaware of the danger
+that threatened her, they formed the erroneous impression that the
+submarine was about to attack.
+
+"The old fellow gave us a pretty straight tip," remarked Vernon, when
+the chums found themselves alone.  "All the same, I vote we get out of
+it at the first opportunity, favourable or otherwise."
+
+"'Ssh," whispered Ross.  "Someone might be listening.  I don't see how
+you propose to clear out, though."
+
+"We were on deck just now."
+
+"We were," agreed Trefusis.
+
+"It was fairly dark.  All the men up for'ard were lying down.  It would
+have been an easy matter to have dived overboard and swum for it, if we
+hadn't been twenty miles or more from land."
+
+"There was a bright look-out kept, all the same," objected Ross.  "And
+I wouldn't mind saying that if the submarine were closer inshore,
+getting a supply of petrol, for example, we should be closely watched.
+All the same, I'm with you if we get the ghost of a chance.  But it's a
+rummy affair altogether.  Fancy that chap knowing our names and the
+rank of our respective fathers."
+
+"Ramblethorne must have told him that," said Vernon.
+
+"I suppose so; but for what reason?  By Jove, if we get out of this
+mess all right, we'll have something to talk about--having been
+prisoners on a German submarine!"
+
+The lads were not allowed on deck again that night.  Acting upon Haye's
+suggestion they "turned in", and slept fitfully until awakened by the
+noise of the watch being relieved.
+
+The seaman, Hans Koppe, brought them their breakfast.  The meal
+consisted of fish, coffee, and the usual black bread.  By this time the
+captives had practically recovered from the effects of the injection.
+Haye's head was still painful, although the headache had left him.
+
+They ate with avidity, owing possibly to the atmosphere of the confined
+space, which was highly charged with oxygen.
+
+"What is the Captain's name?" asked Ross, when the man came to remove
+the breakfast things.
+
+The sailor told him.
+
+"Where are we now?" enquired Vernon.
+
+The man winked solemnly.
+
+"Afloat," he replied.  "Be content with that."
+
+Just then there were unmistakable signs of activity on the part of the
+submarine crew.  Several men hurried along the alley-way, each with a
+set purpose.  They paid little heed to the Englanders as they passed.
+
+At their heels came Herr Rix, the Leutnant of the submarine.  He was
+beaming affably.
+
+"Goot mornings!" he exclaimed.  "You come mit me, den I show you how we
+blockade."
+
+He led the way to the compartment in which the bowl of the
+supplementary periscope was placed.  It was now broad daylight, and
+consequently the bowl showed a distinct image.  A junior officer was
+standing by, but on seeing Rix approach he saluted and moved aside.
+
+"Look!" exclaimed the Leutnant.
+
+Both lads peered into the bowl.  On its dull sides, an expanse of sea
+and sky was portrayed.  Beyond that they could see nothing, until Rix
+called their attention to a small dark object.
+
+"Englische sheep!" he declared.  "Now you vos watch."
+
+He touched a metal stud.  Instantly an arrangement of telescopic lenses
+came into play within the tube of the periscope, with the result that a
+small portion of the view was greatly magnified upon the object card.
+It revealed a tramp of about nine hundred tons.  She had a single
+funnel painted black, with two broad red bands; two stumpy masts, with
+derricks, and a lofty bridge and chart-house abaft the funnel.  She was
+wall-sided.  Her rusty hull was originally painted black.  Here and
+there were squares of red lead, showing that her crew had been engaged
+in trying to smarten her up before she reached port.  Aft, frayed and
+dirty with the smoke that poured from her funnel, floated the red
+ensign.
+
+The submarine began to rise.  Although she tilted abruptly, the image
+of the tramp steamer still remained upon the object bowl.  By an
+ingenious arrangement, the lenses were constructed to compensate for
+any deviation of the tube of the periscope from the vertical.  The lads
+could see the bows of the U-boat shaking clear of the water, throwing
+cascades of foam off on either side as the passing craft forged ahead
+at at least eighteen knots.
+
+Now, for the first time, the skipper of the tramp saw the danger.  He
+was a short, thick-set man, with white hair and an iron-grey moustache,
+and a face the colour of mahogany.  For an instant he grasped the
+bridge-rails and looked towards the submarine, then gesticulated
+violently to the man at the wheel.
+
+The spikes ran through the helmsman's hands, as he rapidly revolved the
+wheel actuating the steam steering-gear.  The tramp swung hard to port,
+with the idea of baffling the momentarily expected torpedo.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe acted up to his principles.  In any case he was loath
+to use a torpedo upon a comparatively small vessel.  In response to an
+order, half a dozen of the submarine's crew swarmed on deck, three
+going for'ard and three aft.  Within forty-five seconds the two
+disappearing guns were raised from the water-tight "houses".
+
+Ross, Vernon, and the German Leutnant remained gazing into the bowl of
+the periscope.  The vision so absorbed the attention of the two lads
+that they hardly heeded the presence of Herr Rix, who occasionally
+emitted grunts of satisfaction or annoyance as the scene was enacted.
+
+The bow gun spat viciously.  The range was but three hundred yards.
+The missile passed a few feet in front of the tramp's bows, and,
+throwing up a shower of spray that burst inboard on the British
+vessel's fo'c'sle, ricochetted a mile or so away.
+
+The tramp's skipper showed his mettle.  Round swung the vessel, listing
+heavily as she did so.  By this time the call for more steam had been
+responded to, and dense clouds of black smoke belched from her funnel,
+mingled with puffs of white vapour as the siren bleated loudly for aid.
+
+Running awash, U75 had a great advantage of speed; overtaking her prey
+she was able to send half a dozen shells into the lofty target
+presented as she slid by.
+
+Holes gaped in the thin plating close to the waterline.  A shell,
+passing completely through the funnel, demolished the siren.  Being
+without wireless, the tramp was now without means of long-distance
+signalling.
+
+Another missile hit the chart-house and, exploding, swept the frail
+structure overboard in a thousand fragments.  The old skipper, hit by a
+splinter of wood, fell inertly upon the bridge; but the next instant he
+staggered to his feet, bawling to the crew to get the hand-steering
+gear connected.
+
+"He's down again!" exclaimed Ross breathlessly, as the brave old man
+dropped upon the shattered planking of the bridge.  "Hurrah!  He's
+still alive."
+
+The skipper had deliberately taken cover behind the slender shelter
+afforded by the metal side-light boards.  By the frantic movement of
+his arm, it was evident that he was exhorting his men to "stick it"
+like Britons.
+
+The hail of shells continued.  Already fire had broken out on board in
+several places.  A sliver of metal sheered through the ensign staff.
+Without hesitation one of the crew rushed off, retrieved the
+weather-worn bunting, and made his way to the mainmast.
+
+Slowly and deliberately he re-hoisted the ensign until it fluttered
+proudly from the truck, then with apparent unconcern the man
+disappeared below.
+
+By this time the tramp was again under control, with a course shaped
+for land, which lay about ten miles to the S.S.E.  It was, however, a
+foregone conclusion that unless help were speedily forthcoming the
+vessel was doomed.
+
+The tramp began to heel, almost imperceptibly at first, then with
+increasing speed.  She had received her _coup de grâce_.
+
+Still the engines were kept going full speed ahead.  The dauntless
+skipper remained on the bridge, with a look of grim resolution on his
+weather-beaten features.
+
+Slowly the vessel's way diminished.  Her bow-wave, owing to the
+gradually increasing draught, was greater, but less sharp than before.
+In a few minutes the water would be pouring over her fore-deck.
+
+Seeing that their work was completed, the pirates ceased fire, the
+guns' crews standing with folded arms and stolidly watching the tramp
+as she struggled in her death-throes.
+
+Presently a vast cloud of steam issued from her engine-room.  The
+inrush of water had damped her furnaces.  The engineer and firemen,
+their faces black with coal-dust and streaming with moisture, hurried
+on deck.
+
+For another quarter of a mile the doomed vessel carried way, then came
+to a sudden stop.  As she did so she gave a quick list to starboard,
+until only a few inches of bulwark amidships showed above the waves.
+
+Then, and only then, did the skipper give orders for the boats to be
+lowered.  In an orderly manner the crew manned the falls, and the task
+of abandoning the ship began.
+
+Without undue haste, the crew dropped into the waiting boats, each man
+with a bundle containing his scanty personal effects wrapped up in a
+handkerchief.  The Captain was the last to leave.  He did so
+reluctantly, his left hand tightly grasping the ship's papers.
+
+Having rowed a safe distance from the foundering vessel, the men rested
+on their oars, and waited in silence for the end.  It was not long in
+coming.
+
+The tramp was heeling more and more, and slightly down by the bows.
+Suddenly she almost righted; then, amid a smother of foam as the
+compressed air burst open her hatches, she flung her stern high in the
+air.
+
+Even then she seemed in no hurry.  The after part from the mainmast
+remained in view, the now motionless propeller being well clear of the
+water.
+
+For quite a minute she remained thus, then with a quick yet almost
+gentle movement slid under the waves.  The last seen of her was the
+weather-worn red ensign still fluttering from the truck.
+
+The periscope's bowl showed nothing but an expanse of sea and sky, and
+the two boats rising buoyantly to the waves.
+
+A grim chuckle brought Ross and Vernon back to their surroundings.
+Herr Rix was rubbing his hands and grunting with evident satisfaction.
+
+"Goot!" he ejaculated.  "Now, how you like dat?  Now you see how we
+German make blockade, hein?"
+
+"A brave deed," replied Ross scornfully, and, gripping Vernon by the
+arm, led him back to their uncomfortable quarters in the alley-way.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+On the Bed of the Sea
+
+For the next twenty-four hours nothing exciting occurred.  The U-boat
+kept to the surface as much as possible, running under her petrol
+motors at fifteen knots.  To exceed that pace would mean too great a
+consumption of fuel, and already the vessel was short of petrol.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe was prone to act on the side of extreme caution.
+Having sunk one vessel, he would not tackle another in the same
+vicinity.  He invariably put at least a hundred miles between him and
+the scene of his latest ignominious exploit before attempting another
+act of kultur.
+
+Three times during that twenty-four hours he dived: twice on sighting
+what were unquestionably Bristol Channel pilot-boats, and on the third
+occasion when a Penzance lugger under motor-power (for it was a dead
+calm) crossed his track.
+
+All this time a regular stream of shipping was passing up and down the
+Bristol Channel, as unconcernedly as in the piping days of peace.  To
+anyone but a bumptious German, the sight would have told its own tale;
+for the British Mercantile Marine, used to danger and difficulties, was
+not to be deterred by the "frightfulness" of von Tirpitz's blockade.
+On the contrary, the possibility of falling in with a hostile submarine
+gave an unwonted spice to the everyday routine of the toilers of the
+sea.
+
+After breakfast on the following morning Ross and Vernon were told to
+go on deck.  The sea was still calm, and the submarine, now running
+awash at full speed, was cleaving the water with practically dry decks.
+
+The lads soon realized what was in progress.  A couple of miles away
+was a large ocean cargo-boat, outward bound, and U75 was in pursuit.
+
+Trefusis and his chum were not allowed for'ard, where the quick-firer
+was already in position for opening fire.  They were ordered abaft the
+conning-tower, the hatch of which was open.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe's head and shoulders could be seen projecting above
+the opening.  On the raised grating surrounding the conning-tower,
+stood a boyish-looking Unter-leutnant.  Hermann Rix was nowhere to be
+seen.  Apparently his duties compelled him to remain below.
+
+Presently the quick-firer barked, and a projectile struck the water
+about a hundred yards from the starboard side of the pursued vessel.
+With the discharge of the gun, a sailor hoisted the black cross ensign
+of Germany from a small flagstaff aft, while a signal in the
+International Code ordering the British vessel to heave to instantly
+fluttered from the light mast immediately abaft the conning-tower.
+
+The only response from the chase was the hoisting of the red ensign,
+for previously she had shown no colours.  Slowly, defiantly, the
+bunting was hauled close up, and ironically "dipped" three times.
+
+Again and again the submarine's bow-chaser fired.  The shells were well
+aimed as regards direction, but all fell short.  Imperceptibly the
+merchantman had increased distance.
+
+"Look at the fools!" Ross heard the Kapitan remark, as he kept his
+binoculars focused on his intended prey.  "They are trying to snapshot
+us.  Are all Englishmen so blind to peril?"
+
+"Are you sure they haven't a couple of quick-firers mounted aft, sir?"
+asked the Unter-leutnant.  "There are several men gathered round
+something on the poop."
+
+"Himmel, I hope not!" ejaculated Schwalbe.  "But no; had they any guns
+they would have opened fire before now.  What is the matter with our
+gun-layer?  It is about time he got a shell home."
+
+The Unter-leutnant lowered himself on the foredeck, and shouted angrily
+at the seaman whose duty it was to "lay" the bow-chasers.  The man
+again bent over the sights.
+
+This time the shell pitched ahead of the chase, but slightly to port.
+Some of the spray thrown up by the projectile fell on board.
+
+"Is that the best you can do, you brainless idiot?" shouted Schwalbe
+wrathfully.  Now that he was in pursuit he was loath to be baffled, but
+at the same time he realized that the submarine was using a lot of
+precious fuel and a prodigious amount of ammunition without any
+definite result.
+
+In the midst of his torrent of abuse directed upon the luckless
+gun-layer, Kapitan Schwalbe suddenly stopped.  Gripping the rim of the
+oval hatchway he gazed, horror-stricken, at two objects bobbing in the
+water directly in the path of the submarine.  Then, recovering his
+voice, he shouted to the quartermaster to port helm.
+
+The fellow obeyed promptly, but it was too late.  Practically
+simultaneously, two barrels swung round and crashed alongside the
+submarine's hull.
+
+Officers and men, expecting momentarily to find themselves blown into
+the air, stood stock-still.  Then, as nothing so disastrous occurred,
+Schwalbe gave orders for easy astern.
+
+The barrels, connected by a span of grass rope, had been thrown
+overboard from the pursued vessel, in the hope that the submarine would
+foul her propellers in the tangle of line.  Once a blade picked up that
+trailing rope, the latter would coil round the boss as tightly as a
+band of flexible steel.
+
+The plan all but succeeded; only the metal guards protecting the
+propellers saved them from being hopelessly jammed.  Yet the attempt
+was attended with good results as far as the British ship was
+concerned, for by the time U75 had lost way and had cautiously backed
+away from the obstruction, the swift cargo-vessel had gained a distance
+that put her beyond all chance of being overhauled.
+
+Infuriated by his failure, Kapitan Schwalbe went aft and descended into
+his cabin.  He was hardly conscious of the presence of his two
+involuntary guests as he passed.  He was thinking of the fate that had
+consigned him to a perilous and uncongenial task.  Without doubt the
+vessel he had been pursuing was equipped with wireless, and by this
+time a number of those dreaded hornets would be tearing towards the
+spot.  To add to his discomfiture it was reported to him that the
+reserve of fuel on board had seriously dwindled.  In order to remain
+effective it was necessary that U75 should replenish her tanks before
+another forty-eight hours had passed.
+
+According to his customary tactics, Schwalbe ordered the submarine to
+dive to sixty feet.  At that depth she would be safe from any
+possibility of being rammed.  Provided she could avoid the under-water
+obstructions with which the British naval authorities had sown the bed
+of the sea at almost every point likely to be frequented by lurking
+hostile submarines, she was in no actual danger.
+
+Gaining his diminutive cabin, Schwalbe by sheer force of habit
+consulted the aneroid.  The mercury was falling rapidly.  Since he last
+looked, barely two hours previously, it had dropped 764 to 734
+millimetres, or an inch and two-tenths.  That meant that the
+anti-cyclone was rapidly breaking up, and that a severe gale was
+approaching with considerable swiftness.
+
+U75 must submerge and seek shelter.  It was impossible for her to keep
+at a uniform depth unless she maintained steerage-way; that meant a
+great demand upon her storage batteries.  She could not remain on the
+bottom of the sea in a heavy gale, owing to the constant "pumping" or
+up-and-down movements caused by the varying pressure of passing waves,
+unless she sought a sheltered roadstead--and sheltered roadsteads were
+generally mined, or guarded by some ingenious device that had already
+accounted for several of U75's consorts.
+
+Producing a chart of the Bristol Channel, Schwalbe unfolded and spread
+it upon a table.  Then, in conjunction with a translation of the latest
+British Admiralty guide to the west coast of England, he proceeded to
+select what he hoped would be a snug shelter during the coming storm.
+
+"Herr Rix!" he shouted.  "I'll make for this anchorage.  There's every
+indication of a strong blow from the nor'-east."
+
+"This" was Helwick Channel, a deep, almost blind passage between the
+Glamorgan coast and an outlying submerged reef known as the East and
+West Helwick.  In fine weather it was a short cut for traders plying
+between Llanelly and Swansea.  In bad weather it was a place to be
+avoided, as far as sailing vessels were concerned.  Sheltered by the
+bold outlines of Worm's Head, it ought to prove an ideal lurking-place
+until the gale had blown itself out, for there was little danger of the
+place being used as an anchorage, since vessels preferred to give the
+rock-bound coast a wide berth.  On this account, it was also highly
+probable that the Helwick channel had not been safe-guarded by the
+British naval authorities.
+
+Just before sunset, U75, having made the passage unobserved, brought up
+in twelve fathoms of water, resting evenly on the firm, hard sands at
+the bottom.
+
+Ross and his chum turned in early.  There was nothing for them to do.
+They held aloof from the crew; there were no books to entertain them,
+no games to amuse them.  The submarine was now motionless, sufficient
+water ballast having been taken in to allow her to settle firmly upon
+the bottom; but, in order to be prepared, the anchor was let go.  Thus
+not the slightest movement of the hull was apparent.  The rest, after
+hours of erratic movement on the oily swell, was a welcome one.
+
+The lads had set their joint watch by the submarine's time, which,
+being mid-European standard, was one hour fast of Greenwich.
+
+For several hours they slept soundly and undisturbed.  Suddenly they
+were both awakened by the muffled tramp of men in heavy sea-boots.  The
+solitary light in the alley-way was switched off; the water-tight doors
+were firmly closed.  Already the air in the confined space was stifling.
+
+"What has happened?" asked Vernon anxiously, for the vessel, instead of
+resting immovably upon the bed of the channel, was now rolling
+sluggishly.  Yet she could not be under way, for the motors were silent.
+
+Springing from his bunk, Ross felt for the switch of the electric
+light.  It was already down, yet the flow of current was interrupted.
+
+"Let's find out," he said.  "Come along."
+
+The lads, before turning in, had carefully laid out their clothes, so
+as to be ready to slip into them at a moment's notice, yet it was a
+matter of considerable difficulty to dress in the dark.
+
+"The door's closed," announced Ross as the lads groped their way to the
+end of the alley-way.
+
+"I believe the submarine's holed," suggested Haye.
+
+"No; she wouldn't lift as she's doing.  Besides, the crew are moving
+about.  Let's bang on the door with our boots."
+
+For several minutes they hammered, but without result.  The air, never
+very fresh, was now almost unbearable, owing to lack of ventilation.
+The imprisoned youths began to get desperate.
+
+Then, without warning, the door slid back.  The alley-way was flooded
+with brilliant light.
+
+"Make haste!" shouted a voice which the lads recognized as that of Hans
+Koppe.  At the same time he grasped Ross by the shoulder and literally
+dragged him across the steel threshold.  Vernon followed quickly, but
+barely had he gained the compartment beyond than the massive steel door
+shot back again.
+
+"Didn't you hear the order all hands for'ard?" asked Hans, not
+unkindly, for the white faces of the English lads told their own tale.
+
+"No," replied Ross.  "Besides, we are not included in the 'hands', are
+we?"
+
+"You'll have to bear the consequences if you don't obey," rejoined
+Koppe.  "I'm supposed to be looking after you, but how was I to know
+you hadn't turned out?  Fortunately for you, I heard your knocking, and
+asked Herr Kapitan to open the doors.  He was angry, but did so."
+
+"What has happened then?" asked Trefusis, for the seaman seemed in a
+communicative mood.
+
+"A shift of wind.  It's blowing great guns up aloft, and there's a
+terrific tumble into this channel.  We've dragged, or, rather, swung
+round our anchor."
+
+"But we are safe enough?" asked Vernon.
+
+"Yes, safe," replied Hans.  "Too safe; we cannot break out our anchor.
+They are sending a diver to see what is amiss."
+
+Evidently the diving arrangements on board were not considered to be of
+a confidential nature, for Hans led the way to the compartment under
+the fore-hatch, without the lads being sent back by the significant
+word "verboten".
+
+A man was preparing for a submarine walk.  He was already dressed in an
+india-rubber suit, with leaden weights attached to his chest, back, and
+boots.  Two others were standing by, ready to place the helmet over his
+head, when Leutnant Rix had finished giving him minute directions.
+
+The officer spoke rapidly and in a low tone.  Ross could not catch all
+he said, but the words "gefährliche Strömungen" (dangerous currents)
+and "Der Wendepunkt der Flut" (slack water) and "Drei Viertel funf" (a
+quarter to five) occurred frequently.
+
+Vernon glanced at his watch.  It was then a minute after four.
+Apparently Rix was impressing upon the man that he must clear the
+anchor at slack water, which occurred at a quarter to five.
+
+The two attendants then proceeded to place the diver's helmet on his
+head.  The lads noticed that it had neither air-tube nor telephone
+wire.  Nor was there a life-line attached to his waist.  Fresh air was
+obtained from a metal case strapped to his back.  The man was able to
+work independently, and without having to rely upon his air supply from
+the submarine.
+
+The oval door in the diving-chamber was thrown open.  The diver
+entered, and the water-tight panel was quickly replaced.  One of the
+seamen thrust over a short lever, and immediately water rushed into the
+small compartment.  As soon as the space was filled the diver was able
+to open a similar door in the outer plating of the submarine, and thus
+gain the bed of the sea.
+
+Presently Leutnant Rix turned, and saw for the first time that Ross and
+Vernon were discreetly standing in the background.
+
+"Go away.  It is forbidden!" he shouted angrily.
+
+They obeyed promptly, retreating to the space allotted to the crew,
+since it was neither desirable nor possible to return to their bunks.
+
+For some minutes the luckless Hans Koppe was subjected to a severe
+dressing-down by his hot-headed officer, and when at length the seaman
+rejoined the lads he was in no humour to resume conversation.
+
+Slowly the minutes sped.  The submarine was still rolling sluggishly,
+in spite of the fact that more water had been admitted into the ballast
+tanks.
+
+The men were talking seriously amongst themselves.  From scraps of
+conversation that drifted to the lads' ears, it was evident that they
+had grave doubts concerning the ability of the diver to perform his
+task, and even of his chances of regaining the submarine, owing to the
+violent disturbances of the water.
+
+Presently the motion of the anchored submarine became more acute.  A
+weird grating sound--the noise made by the hull rasping over the bed of
+the sea--was distinctly audible.
+
+One of the seamen produced a pocket compass.  His startled exclamation
+brought other members of the crew around him.  The magnetic needle was
+apparently describing a semicircle.  U75 was swinging round her anchor.
+
+Just then a bell tinkled, and a disc oscillated on the indicator board
+on the bulkhead.  Instantly the two men who had been told off as
+attendants upon the diver hurried aft, while their companions crowded
+expectantly around the door.
+
+The two men came back, staggering under the weight of the diver.  They
+had already removed his head-dress and leaden weights.  Water dropped
+from his rubber suit.  His face was livid, his eyes wide open and
+rolling.  One of his bare hands was streaked with blood that flowed
+sullenly from a cut in his numbed flesh.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe and Leutnant Rix followed him into the crew-space.  It
+was not through feelings of compassion that they had come for'ard.  It
+was acute anxiety to hear the diver's report.
+
+The luckless man was laid upon the mess-table.  His attendants divested
+him of his diving-suit, and rubbed his body with rough towels.  A petty
+officer poured half a glass of brandy down his throat.
+
+"What is amiss?" Kapitan Schwalbe kept on repeating.
+
+With a great effort the diver sat up.
+
+"An anchor, sir," he gasped feebly.  "An anchor--an English naval
+pattern one--has been dropped right over ours.  A very big one."
+
+Then his eyes closed, and he fell back unconscious.
+
+"Gott in Himmel!" ejaculated Rix.  "We are trapped!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+Balked by a Sea-plane
+
+"How so?" demanded Kapitan Schwalbe.  "If we keep quiet, the
+cruiser--for cruiser she must be, judging by the fellow's
+description--will weigh and proceed."
+
+"When she does weigh we are undone," said Rix despondently.  "We are
+swinging round our anchor.  For all we know, our cable has taken a turn
+round hers.  As soon as they heave up their anchor, our anchor and
+cable will be brought up with it, and then the game is up.  Either the
+strain will overcome our dead weight and we will be hauled to the
+surface, or else they'll lower one of their brutal explosive charges."
+
+"The situation is serious," admitted Schwalbe in a low tone, for his
+Leutnant's words had produced a demoralizing effect upon the men.  "How
+much cable have we inboard?"
+
+Rix repeated the question.  A petty officer doubled forward to consult
+the cable indicator.  U75's anchor, when under way, was housed in a
+trough on the under side of the submarine's forefoot.  The cable was
+automatically ranged in a compartment between the inner and outer
+skins, the space being always filled with water.  The inboard end of
+the cable was not shackled; but to prevent its being able to take
+charge and run out, an indicator was placed on the bulkhead nearest to
+the cable tier.  The amount of chain let go was regulated by a
+compressor, which was actuated from within the hull by means of levers
+and cranks, watertight glands being provided to prevent any leakage
+into the interior of the submarine.
+
+"Seventy-five fathoms," reported the petty officer.  "When we commenced
+to swing we paid out the length we had taken on board when we hove
+short."
+
+"We must sacrifice the lot, Herr Rix," decided Kapitan Schwalbe.
+"There is no time to lose.  Storm or no storm, we must slip and run for
+it."
+
+It was U75's only chance, but it left her with only a small stockless
+kedge-anchor and chain, insufficient to withstand a heavy strain.
+
+The compressor was released.  With a loud rumble, for every sound was
+magnified within the confined space, the rest of the cable was allowed
+to take charge.  It did so promptly, the end of the chain giving the
+hull a defiant smack as it did so.  U75, no longer held by her anchor,
+began to drift with the tide, scraping dismally over the bed of Helwich
+Channel.
+
+Schwalbe was now back at his post in the conning-tower.  He dare not
+take the submarine to the surface until he had put a safe distance
+between him and the anchored British warship.  Nor did he care to order
+the ballast tanks to be blown.  Rather than allow the "pumping" of the
+seas to hammer the submerged craft upon the hard sand, he preferred to
+take the risk of letting her drag.
+
+Fortunately the tide set evenly along the bed of the channel.  A
+cross-current would have set the submarine upon the jagged rocks of the
+hidden West Helwick Ridge.  Nevertheless there was always the danger of
+being hurled violently against a detached rock, or of fouling a live
+mine if by chance the British had laid obstructions in the channel.
+
+Both Ross and Vernon knew the danger, but, manfully concealing their
+misgivings, they watched the faces of those of the crew who were "watch
+below".  Most of the men were Frisians, broad-shouldered,
+blonde-featured, and generally devoid of fear.  Yet the ceaseless
+strain upon the nerves had already begun to tell.  As hardy fishermen,
+they would not have hesitated to launch their open boats in a storm to
+go to the rescue of a hapless vessel aground on the grim sand-banks of
+the Frisian shore.  As the conscript crew of the submarine, compelled
+to keep within the limits of a steel box that almost momentarily
+threatened to be their tomb, their natural bravery was quenched.
+
+Many of them sat upon their lockers, stolid-faced men who had already
+tasted of the bitterness of death.  Others showed unmistakable signs of
+excitement, bordering on frenzy.  They dreaded their life of modern
+piracy.  The idea of sinking hapless merchantmen was repugnant to them,
+for they understood the brotherhood of the sea.  It would be different
+if they were called upon to attack an armed British ship of war.  They
+had no option but to obey their junker officers, who in turn were
+compelled to accept the misguided orders of the arch-pirate, von
+Tirpitz.
+
+They were disheartened, too, for reports, in spite of the vigilance of
+the officers to conceal them, had reached them of the losses inflicted
+upon other unterseebooten.  Occasionally they heard of a submarine crew
+being saved, but generally it was a case of total loss of all on board,
+by some hitherto unknown means, at the hands of the British Navy.
+
+A hand touched Ross lightly on the shoulder.  Turning, he saw Hans
+Koppe standing in a darkened corner of the compartment.
+
+"Can you tell me this, mein herr?" asked the seaman in a low tone.  "Is
+it true that the English give no quarter to German seamen in
+submarines?"
+
+"I shouldn't think that they would refuse to do so," replied Trefusis.
+"Of course, I can quite understand that an opportunity doesn't often
+occur; but I've heard of several instances in which your U-boats have
+surrendered, and the crews have been treated exactly the same as other
+prisoners of war."
+
+"I have heard differently," said Hans, "but I hope it's a mistake.  I
+have a feeling that we won't see Wilhelmshaven again.  And I have a
+wife and six children at Flensburg.  Our Kapitan, too, expects that we
+might be denied quarter, because we have sunk your merchantmen.
+Believe me, I regret having done so, but we have orders.  Do you know
+why Kapitan Schwalbe took you on board?"
+
+"Because a certain German agent wanted us out of the way, I suppose,"
+replied Ross.
+
+"Perhaps," admitted Hans Koppe.  "But in the event of our being
+captured he thinks that his good treatment of you will be in his
+favour.  We are, I do not mind telling you, in a very tight corner.
+Our fuel supply is almost run out.  We cannot hope to return home by
+way of the Straits of Dover.  Not one of our submarines has tried that
+passage of late without meeting with disaster--at least, so I heard der
+Kapitan tell der Leutnant.  Ach!  It is deplorable, this war."
+
+The rapid ringing of a gong was the signal for the watch below to turn
+out.  A peculiar hissing noise proclaimed the fact that the ballast
+tanks were being emptied.  U75 no longer grated over the bottom; her
+motors were running almost dead slow.
+
+Although submerged, the submarine was "pumping" violently.  Seasoned
+men were prostrate with sea-sickness.  The air, in spite of chemical
+purifiers, was becoming almost intolerable.  Everything movable was
+being thrown about in utter disorder, while to add to the discomfort of
+the crew the covering-plates of one of the lubricating-oil tanks had
+been strained, and at every jerk jets of viscous fluid would squirt
+through the fracture and trickle sullenly over the floor of the
+crew-space.
+
+Since the watertight doors were still closed, Ross and Vernon were
+unable to get back to their bunks.  Feeling thoroughly wretched, they
+were glad to accept Hans Koppe's offer to lie down on a long locker.
+
+At noon, U75 came to the surface.  The storm, being short forecasted,
+had quickly blown itself out, but the waves still ran high.
+
+It was a prearranged plan on the part of the three U-boats operating in
+the English and Bristol Channels to communicate with each other by
+wireless at noon and at midnight.  U75's wireless had a range of about
+180 miles, and although it could be "jammed", the call could not be
+tapped by vessels other than the one for which it was intended.  To
+make doubly sure, the messages were sent in code.
+
+For nearly ten minutes U75 "made her number" without eliciting any
+reply.  Perhaps it was well that Kapitan Schwalbe did not know what had
+happened to her consorts.  U74 was at that moment lying on her side at
+the bottom of a Welsh harbour, her crew poisoned by the chlorine fumes
+from her batteries--the result of a rash curiosity on the part of her
+Lieutenant-Commander to investigate the approaches to the anchorage.
+As for U77, she was flying blindly for safety, with a couple of
+destroyers hard on her track, and a naval sea-plane overhead to direct
+them in their search.
+
+Foiled in her efforts to get in touch with her consorts, U75 remained
+awash.  The heave of the sea made it most difficult for her to use her
+periscope with certainty, for she had chosen a bad pitch on her
+ascent--the furious "overfalls" or "tide-rips" to the west of Lundy
+Island.
+
+"We'll pay another visit to St. Mena's Island, Herr Rix," decided
+Kapitan Schwalbe, after the two officers had discussed the sinister
+matter of their futile attempt to make use of the wireless.  "To-night
+at nine o'clock ought to suit.  If we cannot get von Ruhle to see our
+signals--for my own part, I doubt whether he is in these parts--we'll
+have to do our best to get ashore.  Meanwhile, keep a bright look-out.
+If we see any likely vessel coming this way, we'll try our luck once
+more."
+
+"Message just received, mein herr," announced the wireless operator.
+
+"From whom?" enquired Kapitan Schwalbe eagerly.  He was devoutly hoping
+that either U74 or U77 had been able to "call up".
+
+"I cannot say, sir," replied the man as he handed a code message to his
+superior.
+
+Decoded, the "wireless" was as follows:
+
+"Station 41 to unterseebooten.  Two hundred gallons of fuel available
+here.  Will be on the look-out for signals at 1 a.m."
+
+The message was a "general call" for a secret petrol depot to any
+German submarine operating in the vicinity.  Reference to the list of
+stations showed that "41" was at Port Treherne, a remote cove on the
+North Cornish coast about fifty miles from St. Mena's Island.
+
+"I suppose it's safe," remarked Rix.
+
+"With due precautions--yes," rejoined Kapitan Schwalbe.  "At any rate,
+petrol we must have.  Where's the chart?  Ah, there we are!  It looks a
+fairly easy place to approach, don't you think?  The only danger from a
+navigation point is apparently this ledge of rocks--Lost Chance Reef,
+it's called.  What unpleasant names these Englishmen give to their
+coasts!"
+
+At that moment the Unter-leutnant, who happened to be at the
+conning-tower periscope, reported that a large vessel was bearing down
+towards them.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe hurried to the conning-tower.  The object depicted was
+that of a modern tank-vessel about four hundred feet in length.  She
+was low in the water, showing that she was well laden.  In place of
+masts she had four stumpy poles supporting derricks.  Right aft was the
+single funnel.  The navigation bridge was well for'ard, connected with
+another bridge just in front of the funnel by a long slender gangway.
+
+"An oil-tank homeward bound!" exclaimed Kapitan Schwalbe.  "Just what
+we want to fall in with.  All being well, there will be no necessity to
+visit either Port Treherne or St. Mena's Island.  Ach!  When we have
+taken what we require we will set fire to the ship, and the English
+will have a splendid view of a maritime bonfire."
+
+The crew were ordered to their stations, the ballast tanks "blown", and
+U75 rose to the surface instead of "running awash", since the Kapitan
+had resolved to stop the tank by gun-fire.
+
+Even then the waves were running so high that the guns' crews were
+almost constantly up to their knees in water.
+
+Somewhat to the surprise of the submarine's officers and crew, the
+tank-steamer made no attempt to escape.  The firing of a shot across
+her bows and the display of the black cross ensign were enough to cause
+the skipper to reverse her engines.
+
+In less than five minutes, the oil-vessel was rolling in the trough of
+the sea and drifting slowly to leeward.  Yet it was a somewhat
+remarkable circumstance that no attempt was made to lower the red
+ensign that was proudly displayed at the stern.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe, with his intimate knowledge of navigation, knew that
+the only way possible to board the prize was to run to leeward of her,
+and let the hull of the large vessel serve as a breakwater.  He also
+knew that the submarine would have to be constantly under way during
+the boarding operations, otherwise the tank-vessel, offering
+considerable resistance to the wind, would drift down upon U75, whose
+leeway was almost unappreciable.
+
+"Send a boat, and lower your accommodation ladder," ordered Kapitan
+Schwalbe, who, as the submarine ranged up half a cable's length to
+leeward of the tank-vessel, had left the shelter of the conning-tower
+and was standing on the platform in its wake.
+
+"Aye, aye," was the prompt response.
+
+"Board her, Herr Rix," said the Leutnant's superior officer.  "Bring
+back her papers with you.  Order them to pump heavy oil both to
+windward and leeward.  We will then be able to run close alongside and
+receive her hoses."
+
+A boat containing two seamen and an apprentice was lowered from the
+tank's quarter and rowed to the submarine.  Into it dropped Leutnant
+Rix and half a dozen armed men.  With them they took two incendiary
+bombs fitted with time-fuses.
+
+Rix smiled grimly as he gained the oil-steamer's deck.  The captain and
+first mate were at the head of the accommodation ladder to receive him.
+Most of the crew were already mustering on deck, each with a bundle
+containing his private effects.
+
+"You prize to German boat," announced the Leutnant.  "Make you no
+trouble and we you will not harm.  First we will haf much
+oil--petroleum, is it not?  Order your engineer to get steam to
+donkey-engine, and your men--the--the----  Hein!  Ach, I haf it--the
+hoses to get ready.  When we fill up, then twenty minutes we give you
+to clear out.  You onderstan'?"
+
+"Perfectly," replied the British skipper, a tall, raw-boned Scot, as he
+eyed the podgy German Leutnant with grim contempt.  "But d'ye ken yon?"
+
+[Illustration: "'D'YE KEN YON?' ASKED THE BRITISH SKIPPER, AS HE EYED
+THE PODGY GERMAN LEUTNANT WITH CONTEMPT"]
+
+He pointed skywards.  Less than five hundred feet up, yet sufficiently
+far from the tank-vessel to enable the latter to screen her from the
+unterseeboot, was a large naval sea-plane.  It was to deaden the noise
+of her motors that the ship's steam-pipe was continually blowing off
+steam from the time that U75 made her peremptory demand.
+
+The eyes of the Leutnant and his six men followed the direction
+indicated by the British skipper's outstretched hand.
+
+At that instant the sea-plane was visible above the towering sides of
+the British vessel.
+
+U75 was still forging slowly ahead.  In a trice Kapitan Schwalbe
+decided how to act.  Ordering the men on deck to their diving stations,
+he dropped agilely into the conning-tower and gave the word for the
+helm to be ported.
+
+Thus, while the quick-firers were being housed, the submarine had drawn
+close under the oil-tank's quarter.  Here she was comparatively safe
+from the sea-plane, as the latter could not drop any bombs without risk
+of exploding the highly inflammable cargo of the British vessel.
+
+In ten seconds the sea-plane was over and beyond her quarry.  She had
+then to turn and circle overhead, awaiting the chance of shattering her
+enemy as she dived.
+
+U75 was already disappearing beneath the waves.
+
+She dived at a very oblique angle, steeper than she had ever done
+before.
+
+Ross and Vernon, unaware of what was taking place, thought for a moment
+that the submarine was plunging headlong to the bed of the Bristol
+Channel.  They had to cling desperately to the nearest object to hand
+to prevent themselves from sliding violently against a transverse
+bulkhead.
+
+Even as they clung they heard two muffled detonations in quick
+succession, followed by a distinct quiver of the submarine's hull--a
+movement that bore a marked difference to the vibrations under the
+pulsations of the motors.
+
+The sea-plane had dropped two bombs, both of which very nearly attained
+their object.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe did not bring the submarine to a horizontal position
+until she had reached a depth of fifteen fathoms.  At that depth he was
+safe, both from explosives dropped from the sea-plane and also from
+observation.  The water being still agitated, made it impossible for
+the observer on the biplane to follow the movements of a dark shadow
+fathoms deep.  For once, the rough seas had been kind to U75; but the
+fact remained that she was still badly in want of fuel, while his last
+attempt had resulted in the loss of an officer and six men, who could
+not well be spared.
+
+Although the sea-plane had failed to achieve her object by pulverizing
+the U-boat's hull, the moral and material result was none the less
+effective.
+
+The explosion of the bombs had started several of U75's plates.
+Numerous jets of water were spurting through the seams, the inrush
+requiring all the mechanical appliances at the command of the modern
+pirate to keep the leaks under control, while the badly-jarred nerves
+of Kapitan Schwalbe and his crew warned them of the grave risks they
+ran in attempting to try conclusions with even an apparently harmless
+craft displaying the Red Ensign of Britain's Mercantile Marine.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+The Landing at Port Treherne
+
+"I wonder if they'll let us go on deck," remarked Vernon Haye.  "If so,
+I vote we have a shot at getting ashore.  What sort of show is Port
+Treherne?"
+
+"I know it fairly well," replied Ross.  "It's the most forsaken crib
+you are ever likely to meet along the coast.  It's a deep gully in the
+cliffs.  There's only one small landing-place--a flat rock.  Years ago
+there used to be a tramway down to the rock, and they shipped copper
+ore by means of derricks into lighters, which were towed across in fine
+weather to Swansea.  But the mine closed down, the village is now
+deserted, and I don't believe there are any fishermen there.  They say
+that the stream that flows into the port is still heavily charged with
+mundic.  At all events the water is of a bright-red colour for several
+hundred yards from shore, and no fish will stick that."
+
+It was close on the midnight following the disastrous attempt on the
+part of U75 to capture the oil-tank.  The submarine was running awash,
+proceeding very slowly and cautiously towards Port Treherne--Station 41
+of the secret petrol depots established by German agents along the
+coast of the British Islands.
+
+The lads had been informed of the destination of the submarine, but had
+not been told why.  Nevertheless it was an easy conjecture that U75 was
+going there to pick up stores that she had been unable to obtain in
+sufficient quantities at St. Mena's Island.
+
+The Unter-leutnant was in charge of the submarine.  Kapitan Schwalbe
+had taken the advantage of the opportunity of a few hours' sleep.
+Under-officered and undermanned, the strain on the personnel was a
+severe one.  It was only on rare occasions that Schwalbe could in
+future descend from his post in the conning-tower.
+
+At midnight, according to custom, the submarine called up her consorts
+by wireless.  Judging by the previous attempt it seemed a useless task,
+but to the Operator's surprise he received a reply from U77, which was
+then lying off the Scillies.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe, aroused from his sleep, eagerly awaited the decoding
+of the message.  It was to the effect that the commander of U77 had
+received information that H.M.S. _Tremendous_, one of the earlier
+Dreadnoughts, was leaving Gibraltar for Rosyth.  The _Tremendous_, he
+knew, had been engaged in the Dardanelles operations.  U77 therefore
+suggested that the two unterseebooten should meet at a rendezvous off
+The Lizard, and attempt a _coup de main_, the success of which would go
+towards atoning for the blunders and losses sustained by the German
+submarines in their endeavour to blockade the British Isles.
+
+"Good!" exclaimed Kapitan Schwalbe.  "Tell them that I purpose to
+rendezvous twenty kilometres S.W. by W. of The Lizard, on Thursday at
+10 p.m.  I am now about to take in fuel.  Will communicate again at
+noon to-morrow.  Ask them if they have picked up a wireless from U74."
+
+Some time elapsed before the message could be coded by the sender and
+translated by the receiving submarine.  When the reply confirming the
+rendezvous was received, a message was added to the effect that U77 had
+heard nothing of U74 for three days.  It was presumed, however, that
+she was now on her way back to Wilhelmshaven, and was already out of
+wireless range.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe knew better.  As senior officer of the three
+submarines detached to operate in these waters, he was aware that U74
+would not have left her station without orders from him.  That part of
+the message had been sent merely as a "blind", so that the crews of the
+remaining unterseebooten should not be discouraged.  It was safe to
+conclude, decided Kapitan Schwalbe, that another of the blockaders had
+gone to the bottom for the last time.
+
+It was close on one o'clock when the "wirelessing" terminated.  U75,
+which had hitherto been running awash, was now trimmed for surface work.
+
+Most of the crew went on deck.  Amongst them were Ross and Vernon, no
+one offering any objection.
+
+The sea was no longer rough.  A long oily swell took the place of the
+white-crested wave.  The night was dark.  Only a few stars were
+visible.  Away to the S.E., the black outlines of the Cornish coast
+reared themselves like an enormous wall against the gloomy sky.
+
+Suddenly Vernon touched his chum's elbow, as a faint pin-prick of light
+glimmered twice.  It was the shore agent's signal that the coast was
+clear.
+
+Barely carrying steerage-way, U75 stood in towards the as yet invisible
+Port Treherne.  Already her crew had brought the collapsible canvas
+boat from below, "man-handling" it through the fore hatch.  The men,
+having opened it out and shipped the felt-lined and well-greased
+rowlocks, stood by to launch it.
+
+Gradually the towering cliffs enclosing the creek became
+distinguishable against the loftier background of gaunt hills.  Into
+the gap the submarine crept with the utmost caution, until it seemed as
+if she were on the point of running her nose against the sheer face of
+the granite wall.  The water bubbled slightly as her motors were
+reversed; then, turning in her own length, she brought up, with her
+bows pointing seawards.
+
+Three of the crew grasped the canvas boat and pushed it gently into the
+water on the port side.  One of them clambered in and shipped the oars
+in the row-locks.
+
+The two lads were cautiously scanning the shores of the inlet.  Ross
+could sniff the unmistakable Cornish air.  The call of home seemed
+irresistible.  It looked a comparatively easy matter to slip quietly
+over the starboard side, and swim with noiseless strokes towards the
+weed-covered rocks that showed six feet or more above the sea.  It was
+half ebb-tide; there was little or no drift out of the cove.  Under the
+shadow of those dark cliffs detection seemed almost impossible, unless
+the submarine went to the risky expedient of switching on her
+search-light.
+
+They moved stealthily towards the light wire railing on the starboard
+side just abaft the conning-tower.  Everything seemed in their favour.
+Kapitan Schwalbe and the Unter-leutnant were on the navigation
+platform, peering through their night-glasses towards the flat rock
+that served as a landing-place.  Two of the seamen were engaged in
+coiling down a hand-lead line; the rest of the men on deck were
+devoting their attention to the now departing canvas boat.
+
+"Not so fast, my friends," exclaimed a low deep voice, which the lads
+recognized as that of Kapitan Schwalbe.  "Remember I have a pistol
+ready to hand."
+
+"How in the name of goodness did he know what we were up to?" thought
+Ross.
+
+The chums stood stock-still.  They felt much like children found out in
+some petty escapade.
+
+"Koppe!  Where are you?" asked the Kapitan in a loud whisper.
+
+"Here, sir," replied the seaman.
+
+"I hold you responsible for these Englishmen.  Now they are trying to
+give us the slip.  Take them below.  But hold on.  Secure them to a
+stanchion.  Chain them up, and bring me the key."
+
+The seaman approached the lads almost apologetically, and led them to
+the port side just for'ard of the conning-tower.  A light steel chain
+was hitched round Ross's right ankle and Vernon's left, and deftly
+padlocked round one of the uprights supporting the hand-rail.
+
+"It is of no use trying any of your pranks here," commented Kapitan
+Schwalbe, still in a low tone.  "You are only looking for trouble."
+
+For several moments all was still, save for the screech of a benighted
+gull.  Overhead a meteor passed swiftly across the sky, throwing a pale
+gleam upon-the lurking submarine.
+
+"Wer da?"
+
+The words, although uttered in an undertone, travelled distinctly over
+the placid waters of the cove.
+
+The sailor in the boat muttered some inaudible reply.  The listeners in
+the submarine could detect the sound of his oars as he laid them across
+the thwarts.  Then, after further conversation, could be heard the
+rumble of metal as the tins of petrol were rapidly placed in the boat.
+
+"How many are there?" asked Kapitan Schwalbe eagerly as the men
+returned with the first load.
+
+"Forty here, Herr Kapitan.  Altogether there are over two hundred."
+
+"Then be sharp and whip them on board.  Was there any communication for
+me?"
+
+"A bundle of English newspapers, sir, and this letter."
+
+The man drew the documents from the inside of his jumper and passed
+them to a seaman, who in turn handed them to the skipper.
+
+"I may have to land, sir," continued the seaman.  "The rest of the cans
+are in a cove at some distance from the landing-place.  Can Max go with
+me to mind the boat?  There is a slight ground-swell at times, and she
+might have a hole through her canvas if she is allowed to grind against
+the rocks."
+
+Receiving an affirmative reply, the man told his comrade to get on
+board, and once more the boat vanished into the darkness.
+
+Another twenty minutes elapsed, then came the sounds of muffled
+footsteps, and of volatile spirit surging inside the petrol cans.  Then
+one of the men must have slipped, for there was a slight scuffling,
+followed by the loud crash of a can clattering over the rocks.
+
+"'Alt!  Who goes there?" shouted a hoarse and unmistakably English
+voice.
+
+"Freund," promptly replied the German sailor.
+
+It would have been far wiser on his part if he had waited for his
+fellow-worker, the German agent, to reply, since his knowledge and
+pronunciation of English were almost perfect.  But unfortunately it was
+the spy who had fallen, and, half-winded by coming in contact with one
+of the tins, was gasping for breath and at the same time rubbing a
+barked shin.
+
+"Not good enough for me, old sport," rejoined the challenger, and
+without further ado he let loose "five rounds rapid".
+
+A loud yell announced that one of the bullets had at least taken
+effect.  It was the prostrate spy who received a dose of nickel through
+the fleshy part of his thigh.
+
+The seaman, dropping his cans, fled for his life.  Recklessly he leapt
+from the landing-place into the canvas boat, which his comrade had been
+keeping at oar's length from the shore.  The sudden impetus was too
+much for the frail craft.  She capsized, and, being only
+single-skinned, sank like a stone.
+
+Already men, members of a picket, were hastening to the sentry's
+support, their progress marked by a lantern held by a stout and sleepy
+sergeant.
+
+By this time U75 was making for the open sea.  Kapitan Schwalbe was
+cursing loudly; not because the luckless agent had been hit--it was his
+fault for not making sure of his ground; not so much on account of the
+loss of two more men, nor of the sinking of the only boat belonging to
+the submarine.  His anger was aroused at the knowledge that once again
+his efforts to obtain fuel had been balked.  The quantity contained in
+forty tins was a mere fraction of the amount he required in order to
+carry out his ambitious programme.  Bitterly he realized that, like
+those of transgressors, the ways of modern pirates are hard.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+
+A Treacherous Plot
+
+A ragged volley of musketry followed the departing submarine.  One
+bullet mushroomed itself against the steel conning-tower; another
+zipped through one of the guard-rails.  The rest either flew harmlessly
+overhead or ricochetted from the surface of the placid water.
+
+Nevertheless the firing was a signal for the crew to hasten below.
+Kapitan Schwalbe and the Unter-leutnant disappeared with ignominious
+speed within the conning-tower.  The men, bending low, bolted for the
+fore hatch.  In twenty seconds the deck of U75 was deserted save for
+Ross and Vernon, who, padlocked to the stanchion, were unable to move
+six inches in either direction.  They were only partly screened by the
+rise of the conning-tower.  A sharp splinter from the bullet that had
+splayed against the steel wall cut cleanly through Vernon's coat sleeve
+and inflicted a slight gash in the lad's forearm, yet in the excitement
+he hardly noticed it.
+
+"I say, old man," exclaimed Ross, as a wave slapping against the
+submarine's bow threw a shower of spray over the two prisoners.  "What
+will happen if they submerge?  It seems to me as if old Schwalbe has
+forgotten us."
+
+"He would have dived before this if he intended so doing," replied
+Haye.  "Ten to one he's going to pay us out for attempting to take
+French, or rather German, leave.  It's jolly cold and mighty
+uncomfortable, but we'll keep a stiff upper lip and show him what we
+are made of."
+
+"With all due deference to you, old chap," rejoined Trefusis, his teeth
+chattering as the keen wind played upon his saturated garments, "I
+would far rather be without this badge of German kultur."  He indicated
+the chain that encircled his ankle.  "I don't think that you can hold a
+brief for Kapitan Schwalbe.  I am not so sure about it that he is not
+going to dive."
+
+U75 dipped as he spoke, submerging her fore deck almost to the base of
+the conning-tower.  Then, with a double cascade of water pouring from
+her, she shook herself free, throwing her bows high above the surface.
+
+A man, gripping the stanchion-rail as he made his way knee-deep in
+water, came towards the two prisoners.  It was Hans Koppe.  He had
+obtained the Kapitan's permission to release his charges from their
+uncomfortable position.
+
+"Hold on tightly as you go aft," he cautioned.  "There is hot coffee
+waiting for you below."
+
+It was impracticable to descend by means of the fore hatch.  That means
+of communication had already been closed and battened down, owing to
+the constant flow of water over the bows.  Even the after hatch, in
+spite of the protection afforded by the conning-tower and the raised
+coaming, was admitting water into the interior of the submarine.
+
+Cold, exhausted, and hungry, the lads were glad to be able to eat and
+drink, discard their wringing-wet garments, and turn in.  Without
+waking they slept solidly for ten hours.  It was one in the afternoon
+when they turned out.  U75 was rounding Land's End.  She was submerged,
+steering a compass course, but frequently showing her periscope to
+ascertain her whereabouts.  Already the Longships Lighthouse was broad
+on the port beam.
+
+It was a tedious, discomforting run from Land's End to The Lizard.  The
+Mounts Bay fishing fleets were out, a circumstance that compelled the
+submarine to keep below the surface.  Kapitan Schwalbe knew that once
+the alert skippers of these boats sighted even the tip of the
+periscope, the news of the presence of a hostile submarine would be
+quickly sent to the naval authorities at Devonport.  The necessity for
+secrecy also prevented him from making use of the wireless: not that
+the message would be deciphered, but because the origin of the message
+could be fixed with comparative certainty by any of the British
+wireless stations that "picked up" her call.
+
+The approaches to Plymouth Sound, too, gave Kapitan Schwalbe a bad
+time.  Far beyond the Eddystone, and from Looe Island to Bigbury Bay,
+armed trawlers and torpedo-boats patrolled incessantly, their movements
+aided by sea-planes.  It was almost a matter of impossibility for a
+hostile submarine to approach Plymouth Sound by daylight, since the
+aeroplanes were able to discern any sinister object moving under the
+comparatively shallow and clear waters between Rame Head and Stoke
+Point; while at night the precautions taken were of such an elaborate
+and efficient description as to seal the fate of any submarine rash
+enough to run her head into a noose.
+
+Accordingly U75 gave the Eddystone a wide berth, shaping a course to
+pass twenty miles to the south'ard of the far-famed lighthouse.  Here
+she was in the thick of the Channel traffic, a stream of mercantile
+ships passing up and down as unconcernedly as if such a thing as a
+German submarine did not exist.
+
+Although there were plenty of opportunities, Kapitan Schwalbe made no
+attempt to molest the ships.  For one thing, experience had taught him
+that the British merchant skipper possessed a bull-dog tenacity, and a
+courage not to be daunted by the sight of a hostile periscope appearing
+from nowhere in the midst of a waste of water.  For another, he was now
+on the look-out for more important game--his chance to retrieve his
+already vanishing prestige.
+
+However, one of the merchant vessels served him a good purpose,
+although unknown to her.  Marking a large ocean tramp bound up-Channel,
+U75 dived deeply, so as to be free from any danger of being hit by her
+forefoot.
+
+With the noise of the tramp's propeller to guide her, U75 followed,
+unsuspected, in her wake as she made for the Lizard Light.
+
+Arriving safely at the rendezvous, Kapitan Schwalbe waited until it was
+dark, and then cautiously brought the submarine awash.  Punctually at
+ten o'clock a feeble violet light blinked through the night.  It was
+U77's call to her consort.
+
+"What's the game, I wonder?" asked Vernon, as a hail in German was
+borne faintly to their ears.
+
+The chums had turned in.  There was nothing else for them to do, since
+they had been ordered to leave the quarters allotted to the crew.  As
+there was no furniture of any description in the alley-way that had
+been made their sleeping compartment, they had climbed into their
+bunks.  Here they could maintain an almost uninterrupted conversation.
+
+"Hist!" exclaimed Ross warningly.  He had been lying with his ear
+almost touching one of the many voice-tubes that led from the
+conning-tower to various parts of the submarine.  Quite by accident, he
+discovered that the pipes formed an excellent conductor of sound in a
+manner that had not been intended.
+
+"What are you doing?" asked Haye curiously.
+
+"Jam your ear against the centre one of these three pipes," said his
+chum.
+
+Vernon did so.  It required very little movement on his part, since the
+bunks were rather narrow.  The same voice-tube that Ross was "tapping"
+ran vertically past Haye's bunk, which was immediately underneath the
+one Trefusis had appropriated from the time when he had been laid upon
+it under the influence of the injection.
+
+This particular pipe formed a means of vocal communication between the
+conning-tower and Kapitan Schwalbe's cabin.  For some reason the
+whistle had been removed from the cabin end, and consequently sounds
+from the Kapitan's quarters were conveyed with tolerable clearness.
+
+There were two men engaged in conversation.  One was Kapitan Schwalbe;
+the other, who spoke in a lower key, and so rapidly that Ross had great
+difficulty in mentally translating his words, was the
+Lieutenant-Commander of U77.  He had been put aboard U75 only a few
+minutes previously.
+
+"My dear von Hoffner," Kapitan Schwalbe was saying.  "Your plan is all
+very well as far as you are concerned; but where do we come in?
+Understand that while we are on the surface our risks are increased
+ten-fold.  Suppose, for instance, the battleship does not notice, or
+affects not to notice, the white flag?"
+
+"She will, right enough," assured the Lieutenant-Commander of U77.
+"These English are such fools that in their anxiety to observe the
+rules of warfare" (here von Hoffner laughed sardonically) "they play
+into our hands.  More than a twelvemonth of war has not taught them
+that the hitherto recognized observances of war are no longer binding.
+This is not a petty squabble between two nations.  It is a struggle for
+existence; consequently it is where our frightfulness scores."
+
+"It hasn't up to the present, according to my experience," objected
+Kapitan Schwalbe gloomily.  "These Englishmen simply won't be
+frightened.  But to return once more to the point: what steps do you
+propose to take to minimize my risk?"
+
+"There must be risk, of course," remarked von Hoffner.  "According to
+latest reports, it seems pretty certain that we cannot hope to
+intercept the _Tremendous_ during the hours of darkness.  Consequently
+we have to make use of a ruse.  Directly I spot her I dive, keeping as
+much as possible close to her track, say three hundred metres off."
+
+"Yes, you dive," commented Schwalbe caustically.  "That is quite
+feasible.  But what of U75?"
+
+"She will keep on the surface almost exactly in the indicated path of
+the battleship.  You will strike your ensign and hoist a large white
+flag in its place.  It will mean scrapping your best tablecloth, mein
+herr.  With the wind in its present quarter the flag will blow athwart
+the battleship's course, so there is no risk of it not being seen.  You
+and your crew will, of course, form up aft.  That will give more colour
+to the deception."
+
+"Perhaps it will work," said Kapitan Schwalbe.
+
+"Perhaps?  Of course it will," declared von Hoffher sanguinely.  "Then
+the rest is child's play.  Directly the _Tremendous_ slows down--it's
+the speed of these battleships that has caused us to miss hitherto--I
+will let loose two torpedoes.  There will be no bungling, I assure you.
+I'll take good care to hit her close to the magazine, and there will be
+no opportunity for her to use her quick-firers.
+
+"By the by, I've two English boys on board," said the Kapitan of U75.
+In a few words he related the circumstances in which they were made
+prisoners.  "I suppose they ought to line up on deck with the hands?"
+
+"Certainly," replied von Hoffher, with one of his cold-blooded
+sniggers.  "It will heighten the illusion.  It will do them good to see
+what one of our unterseebooten can do.  But it is highly important that
+there be no survivors from the torpedoed battleship.  The ruse is a
+grand one, and can be employed over and over again, provided that the
+secret does not leak out.  After all, I don't think I would bring these
+English youths on deck."
+
+"They are safe enough," protested Schwalbe.  "If we return to
+Wilhelmshaven, they will be locked up in safe custody until the end of
+the war.  If we do not, then I fancy there will be no survivors from
+U75 as well as from the English battleship _Tremendous_."
+
+The two treacherous officers conversed in a similar strain for several
+minutes longer.  Then came the sound of glasses being clinked as an
+accompaniment to a boastful toast.  Talking boisterously, the two
+officers left the cabin, and presently the lads heard the sound of oars
+as von Hoffner was rowed back to his command.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+Preparations
+
+"The brutes!" ejaculated Vernon savagely.  He was violently excited.
+Perspiration was pouring off his face at the thought of the almost
+unparalleled act of wanton treachery that was about to be enacted.  "If
+we could only prevent them!"
+
+"I can't see how," rejoined Ross gloomily.  "We cannot give an alarm.
+If we could control the valves for half a minute, I'd sink this blessed
+craft with all on board, myself included, for good and all.  But it is
+no use talking of the impossibly heroic."
+
+"I have a plan," announced Vernon, after thinking deeply for a few
+minutes.
+
+"Well, out with it!"
+
+"We have to pass through one of the broadside torpedo-rooms as we go on
+deck.  We could each snatch a spanner and give the war-heads a terrific
+blow.  You'll remember that there are half a dozen torpedoes in the
+cages against the bulkhead.  It would mean certain death for us, but it
+would save nearly a thousand lives."
+
+Ross shook his head.
+
+"There's no certainty of success," he objected.  "Those torpedoes are
+very much like our own Whiteheads.  The striker in the head is
+protected against accidental discharge by a small propeller.  Until the
+torpedo travels a certain distance through the water--sufficient for
+the resistance against the blades to cause the safety device to
+unthread and leave the striker free to hit the primer--the danger of
+premature explosion is almost negligible.  We shouldn't have time to
+revolve the safety blades enough, and I'm pretty certain that even a
+heavy blow on the war-head itself would not explode the charge."
+
+"Then I'm done," said Vernon dejectedly.  "Think of something, old
+man--something that will hold water."
+
+Silence ensued for nearly ten minutes, broken only by the tapping of
+the waves against the sides of the submarine, and the gentle purr of
+the dynamos for supplying light to the interior of the vessel.
+
+Suddenly Ross leapt out of his bunk.  He dared not trust himself to
+speak above a whisper for fear of being overheard.
+
+"Dash it all, old man!" exclaimed Vernon, when his chum had confided
+his plans; "it ought to work.  If it doesn't, nothing else will.  I'm
+on it, happen what may!"
+
+"We'll want our knives for the job," continued Ross.  "Yours will open
+easily, I hope?  Good!  Sharp?  We'll run no risks.  A sharp blade is
+absolutely necessary."
+
+They drew the knives and whetted the blades upon the soles of their
+boots.  At Vernon's suggestion they kept open the big blades, making a
+hole through the lining of their pockets in order to keep the knives in
+a horizontal position and ready to hand.
+
+"Now let's turn in properly," suggested the practical Ross.  "We want
+to be fairly fresh for the job in front of us."
+
+Soon after sunrise on the morrow all hands were mustered aft on deck,
+Ross and Vernon included.  It was a bright morning.  The sun had risen
+seemingly out of the sea, or in nautical parlance it was a "low dawn".
+There was a chilliness in the air that made the lads wish that they had
+been wearing overcoats.
+
+They looked in vain for U75's consort.  The unterseeboot that was to
+deal the coward's blow was not to be seen.  Her presence was to be kept
+a secret from the crew of the decoy.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe, accompanied by his Unter-leutnant, made his way aft.
+He looked pale and care-worn.  He had lost his military manner.  His
+gait suggested that of a man recovering from a long illness.
+
+"My men," he exclaimed, "circumstances over which I have no control
+make it necessary to bring our cruise to a speedy termination.  U75 is
+no longer in a state of efficiency, either for offence or flight.  It
+therefore remains for us to save our lives by surrendering to the first
+English ship of war that we fall in with.  It is a humiliating and
+distasteful step to take, but there is no option."
+
+The crew heard this lying speech in silence.  They hardly knew what to
+make of it.  The majority mentally decided that it was better to be
+imprisoned in England than to rot on the bed of the sea.  Kapitan
+Schwalbe had no faith in his men's histrionic abilities; he was also
+afraid that they would oppose the scheme that he himself had deprecated
+as being too risky.
+
+Hiding their indignation, Ross and his chum saw the Kapitan hand a
+petty officer a white flag.  The man took it, and lashed short pieces
+of cord to two adjacent corners.
+
+Hans Koppe sidled up to his charges.
+
+"You will soon be free," he remarked.  "Ach! but you do not seem
+overjoyed.  You English are indeed a queer race."
+
+Receiving no reply, the man went below to follow the example of his
+comrades, who were getting together their personal belongings.  Many of
+them thought of the times when they had seen non-belligerents do
+likewise.  It was the boot on the other foot with a vengeance.
+
+Ross gave another glance across the horizon.  Nothing was in sight.
+Gripping his chum's arm, he led him for'ard.  U75 was motionless.  The
+deck was deserted.  A quartermaster stood on the navigation platform in
+front of the conning-tower.  Kapitan Schwalbe and his Unter-leutnant
+had likewise vanished.
+
+As Ross passed the conning-tower, he pulled out his knife and deftly
+severed the lashings of a couple of buoys secured to the hand-rail.  It
+was the first act of the lad's plan of operations.
+
+"Vessel on the port bow, sir!" shouted the quartermaster.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe was on deck in a trice, closely followed by his
+subordinate.  For a few moments, he kept his binoculars focused upon
+the indistinct grey object, then three miles off.
+
+"It is the _Tremendous_," he announced in an undertone to the
+Unter-leutnant.  "Another ten minutes will see the business through."
+
+He spoke with confidence, but it was a confidence inspired by a liberal
+dose of brandy.  He felt that he had already passed the Rubicon.  There
+could be no turning back.
+
+A whistle trilled shrilly.  At the signal the men again doubled aft,
+and joined up in a double line.
+
+"Where are the English boys?" enquired Kapitan Schwalbe.
+
+"Coming," replied Ross.  For the first time on board he omitted to add
+the word "sir".  His omission was deliberate.  Utter contempt for the
+German captain consumed him.  Schwalbe, too, noticed the manner in
+which he had replied.  He smiled grimly, imagining that now the lads
+thought themselves about to be free they could afford to be curt.
+
+As the chums passed the lifebuoys, they deftly heaved them overboard.
+They fell with hardly a splash, dropping close to the side of the
+motionless submarine.
+
+No one noticed the act.  The attention of the crew was centred upon a
+little ceremony that was taking place.  Bareheaded, the men stood at
+attention.  Their voices broke into the song of "Die Wacht am Rhein" as
+the emblem of German sea-power was slowly lowered from the ensign staff.
+
+The men sang sonorously and in perfect cadence.  They firmly believed
+that it was their last tribute as free men to their Fatherland.  As the
+last bar terminated, the petty officer smartly hoisted the white flag.
+For an instant it hung limply, confined by one of the halliards; then
+like a square of stretched canvas it blew out in the steady breeze--a
+modern counterpart of the kiss of Judas.
+
+And standing just behind the Kapitan, within arm's reach of the ensign
+staff, were Ross Trefusis and Vernon Haye.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+The White Flag--and Afterwards
+
+H.M.S. _Tremendous_, super-Dreadnought of 24,000 tons displacement, and
+mounting ten 13.5-inch guns as her principal armament, was tearing
+up-Channel at 21 knots.
+
+She looked far different from the spick-and-span battleship which had
+left Portsmouth only six weeks previously.
+
+Her armoured sides still showed unmistakable traces of the impact of
+Turkish shells.  Her grey paint was blotched, blistered, and stained.
+Her after funnel had plates of sheet-iron riveted to it to hide a
+gaping hole large enough to drive a stage-coach through.  Her guns were
+worn out by sheer hard work.  It was mainly on this account that she
+was homeward bound: to have the gigantic weapons "re-lined" in order
+that she might again take her place as an effective unit of the Grand
+Fleet.
+
+The middle watch was about to relieve the morning watch.  The mess
+decks were a seething mass of humanity.  In spite of the apparent
+confusion everyone was in high good humour, for another few hours
+(D.V.) would find H.M.S. _Tremendous_ at Pompey--as Portsmouth has from
+time immemorial been termed by the Navy.
+
+On the fire-control platform sleepy-eyed officers were awaiting their
+reliefs.  Around the 12-pounders, the muzzles of which grinned
+menacingly from apparently haphazard positions in the superstructure,
+men were grouped, ready at the first alarm to train the weapons upon a
+possible foe.  Day after day ceaseless vigilance was maintained.  One
+and all realized that a moment's negligence might result in destruction
+by one of the most horrible creations of modern science.
+
+"Submarine on the starboard bow, sir!"
+
+For an instant all was tense silence.  Then a bugle blared, followed by
+the clear trills of the bos'n's mates' pipes and the hurried tramp of
+men's feet.
+
+The officer of the watch brought his telescope to bear ahead.  He was a
+junior lieutenant, Bourne by name, and in receipt of a private income
+of eight hundred a year.  On that sum he might have lived the life of a
+man of leisure, but he vastly preferred a strenuous life as a
+commissioned officer in the Royal Navy.  Not once had he regretted his
+choice, and upon the outbreak of war he was ready to execute a hornpipe
+of sheer delight at the prospect of "being in the big scrap".
+
+"She's flying the white flag, by Jove!" he ejaculated.  "Funny,
+deucedly funny!"
+
+He had to act, and act promptly, for a battleship travelling at 21
+knots does not give a man time to think for any length of time.
+Already a messenger had been despatched to inform the "skipper", but
+before the captain could gain the navigation bridge (more than likely
+he was in his bath) the _Tremendous_ would have covered the intervening
+distance.
+
+The quartermaster looked enquiringly at the Lieutenant.  Bourne stepped
+hastily to the engine-room telegraph indicator, half inclined to ring
+down for "half-speed", or even "stop both engines".
+
+He stopped abruptly.
+
+"Steady on your helm, quartermaster."
+
+"Steady it is, sir," replied the petty officer.
+
+The telegraph indicator remained untouched.  With undiminished speed
+H.M.S.  _Tremendous_ held on, under the propelling force of turbine
+engines of 30,000 indicated horse-power.
+
+A midshipman, standing by the side of the officer of the watch, had
+been keeping the submarine under observation by means of his telescope.
+
+"By Jove, sir!" he exclaimed.  "There's something wrong there.  The
+white flag's down, and two fellows in mufti have leapt overboard."
+
+"Torpedo on the port bow, sir!" sang out half a dozen lusty voices in
+chorus.
+
+"Hard-a-port, quartermaster!" ordered Bourne.
+
+The spokes of the steam steering-gear revolved quicker than they had
+ever done before.  Listing heavily to port, the _Tremendous_ turned
+with a rapidity that belied her huge bulk and apparent unhandiness.  A
+double track of ever-diverging foam marked the progress of the deadly
+missile.  Another followed almost in its wake, both torpedoes
+travelling at the speed of an express train.
+
+For four seconds all on board who watched these messages of death stood
+with bated breath.  Then a general roar of relief went up as the two
+"tinfish" glided harmlessly past the ship, the nearest at a distance of
+less than twenty feet, and parallel to the new course of the battleship.
+
+Half a dozen quick-firers spat viciously.  A 6-inch, two of which for
+some obscure reason the designers had placed on the main deck abreast
+of the after 15-inch guns, added to the din.  A chaos of smoke, flame,
+and spray marked the spot beneath which U77 had lurked to launch her
+cowardly and treacherous bolt.
+
+"That's blinded her, at least," thought Bourne.
+
+He knew that even if the hidden submarine had escaped injury, a minute
+at least would elapse before she could be conned into a position to
+discharge another torpedo.  That minute would be enough for his purpose.
+
+"Starboard!" he ordered.  "Ram her, quartermaster!"
+
+Round swung the 24,000 tons of dead weight, steadied, and bore down
+upon the motionless U75.  Cries of terror burst from the doomed crew,
+many of whom leapt overboard in a vain attempt to swim clear of the
+vengeful leviathan.
+
+Bourne gripped the guard-rail, half expecting to be thrown violently by
+the force of the impact.  He was mistaken.
+
+With hardly a tremor the bows of the _Tremendous_ crashed into the
+unterseeboot, hitting her just abaft the conning-tower.  The bow
+portion sank like a stone.  The after part reared itself high in the
+air, revealing the curiously shaped stern, the two propellers, and the
+complication of rudders.  Then, before the cloud of smoke and spray had
+time to drift inboard, the _Tremendous_ was over and beyond the
+ever-widening circle of iridescent oil that marked the ocean grave of
+yet another of the would-be blockaders of Britain's shores.
+
+Even in the midst of his great responsibility Bourne's keen eye
+discerned two heads bobbing up and down in the water.  The midshipman
+noticed them too.
+
+"They are those fellows who hauled down the white flag, sir," he
+exclaimed.  "They are quite youngsters, too, and we daren't stop."
+
+"No, we dare not," agreed the Lieutenant.  For aught he knew, another
+unterseeboot might be in the vicinity, reserving her torpedoes in the
+hope that the battleship would slow down to investigate.  "Pass the
+word to the sentry to let go the Kisbie.  It's the best we can do."
+
+With a splash the patent lifebuoy was dropped from the cage at the
+extremity of the navigation-bridge.  It bobbed up again under the
+battleship's quarter, emitting a dense cloud of calcium smoke as it did
+so.  By the time the marine had dropped the Kisbie the ship was a
+quarter of a mile away from the two swimmers.
+
+"It's the best we can do," repeated Bourne as he closed the eyepiece of
+his telescope.  "They may fetch it, they are swimming strongly."
+
+"Well done, Mr. Bourne!" exclaimed a deep voice.
+
+Turning, the Lieutenant faced the Captain standing beside him.
+
+"A smart manoeuvre!" continued the skipper approvingly.  "We can now
+only carry on; but we'll wireless the Commander-in-Chief Devonport, and
+report that there are survivors from the rammed submarine.  He'll have
+a destroyer patrol on the spot within an hour, and I hope it won't be
+too late."
+
+Bourne stepped to the extremity of the bridge and glanced astern.  His
+effort to distinguish the heads of the two swimmers was fruitless, for
+a thin haze, the smoke from the ship's funnel, spread far in her wake,
+completely obliterating the spot where Ross Trefusis and Vernon Haye
+were swimming for dear life.
+
+
+It will be necessary to set back the hands of the clock in order to
+follow the fortunes of Ross and his chum.
+
+"Is she slowing down?" whispered Vernon anxiously, as they stood on the
+deck of U75 awaiting the approach of the _Tremendous_.
+
+"I don't think so," replied Ross.  "But now's our time."
+
+The attention of Schwalbe and his crew was centred upon the battleship;
+the Kapitan momentarily expecting to see the huge vessel reel under the
+impact of the terrible torpedo, while the men began to entertain grave
+doubts as to whether the British ship would accept their token of
+surrender.  The fact that the super-Dreadnought showed no signs of
+slowing down revived Kapitan Schwalbe's doubts.  Knowing the difficulty
+of hitting, even at a comparatively short range, a swiftly moving
+target, he began to wonder whether he did the right thing in falling in
+with von Hoffner's diabolical plan.
+
+His hurried thoughts were suddenly interrupted by some light object
+enveloping his head and shoulders.  Before he could tear the fabric
+away he heard two distinct splashes, followed by shouts of astonishment
+from the crew; for with one clean sweep with his knife Ross had severed
+the halliards of the ensign staff.
+
+The lads dived deep, swimming the while with long, powerful strokes,
+for both were accomplished in the art of natation.  They were longer in
+coming to the surface than they anticipated, owing to the weight of
+their half-boots, which they had been unable to remove without risk of
+causing suspicion.
+
+When at length their heads emerged almost simultaneously, they found
+themselves nearly fifteen yards from the doomed U75.
+
+"Strike out!" spluttered Ross.  "Get as far away from her as you can.
+Never mind about old Schwalbe.  He can't hurt us."
+
+Ross was right, for however much the Kapitan wanted to wreak his
+vengeance upon his former prisoners, he was unable to do so.  In his
+rôle as that of an officer waiting to surrender, the possession of a
+revolver would tend to "give the show away".  He had left his pistol in
+his cabin--an example that his Unter-leutnant had followed.  And now
+his attention was directed upon the British battleship.
+
+Meanwhile, the lads, swimming strongly, saw the _Tremendous_ heel as
+she ported helm.  For a minute, not knowing how a ship behaves when the
+helm is suddenly put hard over, they thought that the treacherous
+unterseeboot had successfully carried out her cold-blooded plan.  Yet
+no explosion occurred, and the battleship recovered her normal trim.
+
+With their eyes only a few inches above the surface, the lads could see
+nothing of the track of the torpedoes.  They had no indication that
+they had been fired until the _Tremendous_ let fly with her 12-pounders.
+
+"I think we've saved her," said Vernon.  "Now there'll be trouble for
+us.  Schwalbe will certainly have a shot at recapturing us after the
+battleship has cleared off.  Why doesn't she settle U75, I wonder?"
+
+The lads both expressed astonishment that the motionless unterseeboot
+had escaped the attention of the super-Dreadnought's quick-firers.  It
+seemed as if the latter were ignoring U75 altogether and was sheering
+off at full speed.
+
+Suddenly Ross gave a whoop of delight, which ended in his swallowing a
+mouthful of salt water.  The _Tremendous_ was turning once more, and
+heading straight for the doomed submarine.
+
+[Illustration: "THE _TREMENDOUS_ WAS HEADING STRAIGHT FOR THE DOOMED
+SUBMARINE"]
+
+Mentally Ross compared the on-coming battleship with an express train,
+as shown on a cinematograph screen, in the act of approaching the
+audience.  At one moment the ship was visible from her water-line to
+the truck of her top-mast; at the next her bulk had suddenly expanded
+and seemed to fill the complete field of vision.  It looked as if the
+two lads, in spite of the distance they had put between themselves and
+the motionless submarine, would yet be in the way of the vengeful
+battleship, whose extreme beam was not less than ninety feet.
+
+Yet neither of the two chums made the slightest effort to swim farther
+away.  Mechanically treading water, they waited and watched.
+
+They could see the terror-stricken attitudes of the crew of the doomed
+U75.  They heard the shouts of consternation as the massive steel bows
+bore down upon her.  Then, in a second it seemed, there was a hideous
+crash that outvoiced the yells and shouts of despair as the
+unterseeboot was rent in twain.
+
+Of what happened during the next minute the lads had but a very hazy
+idea.  Caught by the irresistible bow wave as the _Tremendous_ tore
+past, they were hurled aside like feathers and buried a couple of
+fathoms down under the breaking, foaming mass of water.  Vaguely they
+heard the whirring of the four propellers--very near, it seemed; then,
+caught by an eddy caused by the cavitation in the wake of the monstrous
+vessel, they were separated and flung to the surface, half-breathless
+and dazed.
+
+Ross opened his eyes.  The _Tremendous_ had already covered nearly a
+quarter of a mile.  Twenty yards away he saw his chum's head, as
+Vernon, puffing like a grampus, was striking out towards him.
+
+Where the submarine had dived for the last time was an ever-widening
+circle of oil.  Those of the German crew who had not been carried down
+by the sinking unterseeboot were too shaken by the concussion to make
+any great effort to save their lives.  Attempting to keep afloat in
+that oil-covered water added to their difficulties, for whenever the
+head of a swimmer disappeared he did not rise again.
+
+"Kick off your boots, old man," exclaimed Ross.
+
+"Where are the lifebuoys?" asked Vernon as he carried out his friend's
+advice.
+
+One buoy had disappeared; the other was supporting a seaman, the only
+survivor of the crew.
+
+"A case of finding's are keeping's," announced Ross.  "We can't sling
+him out of it.  It might support two people.  We could take turns at
+hanging on."
+
+"Stop!" exclaimed Vernon as Ross began to strike out towards the buoy.
+"There'll be trouble if we get mixed up in that oil.  It's much lighter
+than water.  I doubt whether we could swim in it.  Do you think the
+_Tremendous_ will put back?"
+
+"Not likely," replied Trefusis.
+
+He looked in the direction of the fast-vanishing battleship, half
+hoping that she would slow down and lower a boat.  As he did so,
+something caught his eye: a cloud of grey smoke apparently issuing from
+the sea.
+
+"What's that?" he asked, pointing in that direction.
+
+"Torpedo, perhaps; one that has finished her run," suggested Vernon;
+but his chum waved aside the explanation.
+
+"If U77 did fire a torpedo, you can bet your bottom dollar it wasn't
+one with a dummy head!" he said.  "Only practice torpedoes send up a
+calcium light when their compressed air has given out.  By Jove, I
+believe it's one of those patent buoys!  Let's make for it."
+
+The lads swam strongly, making powerful and comparatively slow
+breast-strokes.  The water was warm.  They were in no immediate danger
+of cramp.
+
+As they skirted the patch of oil they noticed that the seaman holding
+on to the buoy had turned round.  His face was now in their direction.
+The man was Hans Koppe.
+
+"Are you all right, Hans?" shouted Ross.
+
+"Yes, mein herr," replied the man.  "I've found a buoy."
+
+"Thanks to us," thought Trefusis; then raising his voice: "You had
+better kick out and get clear of the oil," he advised.  "We are making
+for yonder buoy."
+
+By the time the swimmers reached the Kisbie the emission of calcium
+smoke had ceased.  They found that not only did the buoy support them
+both, but that it was so constructed as to allow them to maintain a
+sitting position without having to hold on with both hands.  Glad of a
+seat they waited, watching the approach of Hans Koppe, and also looking
+for the undesired reappearance of U77.
+
+"Ach!  My wife and children!" exclaimed Hans Koppe disconsolately, as
+he brought his lifebuoy close alongside.  "I shall never see them
+again."
+
+"Cheer up, Hans!" replied Vernon.  "At any moment U77 might come to the
+surface and take you on board.  We don't mind, so long as they let us
+alone.  We've had enough of your unterseebooten."
+
+"U77?" gasped the German incredulously.  "How do you know that?"
+
+Briefly Haye related the story of the ill-fated Kapitan Schwalbe's
+treachery.  As he proceeded Han's face bore a surprised expression that
+presently changed to one of fear.
+
+"If we are picked up by an English ship," he remarked, "they will shoot
+me for abuse of the white flag.  And I am innocent.  Ach! my poor wife."
+
+"They won't," replied Ross reassuringly.  "We can swear that you knew
+nothing about it."
+
+The minutes passed slowly.  There was no sign of U77.  Little did the
+three survivors know that she lay within a quarter of a mile of her
+consort, on the bed of the English Channel--to add to the
+ever-increasing roll of unterseebooten that were fated never to enter a
+German port again.
+
+The sun rose higher and higher, its rays gathering strength as it did
+so.  The heads of the three survivors were exposed to the solar heat;
+their bodies and limbs were numbed by prolonged immersion.  The desire
+for conversation had long since passed.  Almost exhausted they hung to
+their supports, listless and torpid.  A few sea-gulls, struck with the
+silence of the three men, hovered overhead, and swooped with shrill
+cries to settle on the water within close distance of what appeared to
+be a possible meal.  One bolder than the rest perched upon Trefusis'
+head.
+
+Raising his arm, Ross dealt the bird a furious blow.  It missed, but
+had the effect of scattering the gulls.  Apathetically the lad watched
+them as they flew off.  As he did so he caught sight of three vessels
+being driven at high speed.
+
+"Hurrah!" he exclaimed feebly.  "The destroyers, old man; we are saved!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII
+
+The Arm of the Law
+
+"Hulloa!  What the deuce have we got here?" enquired Commander Devereux
+of H.M. torpedo-boat destroyer _Yealm_, as three dripping figures were
+transferred from the destroyer's dinghy to the deck.  "One strafed Hun,
+right enough; but who are these fellows in mufti?"
+
+"Can't say, sir," replied the coxswain.  "They sort o' collapsed
+directly we got 'em into the boat."
+
+"Then take them below," continued Devereux.  "I say, Fanshawe, there's
+a job for you at last, my festive sawbones."
+
+Fanshawe, lately a young country practitioner with a scattered "panel"
+connection, had but recently entered the Navy as a surgical probationer
+R.N.V.R.  He joined purely through patriotic motives, having sacrificed
+a fairly substantial income in order to do so.  Up to the present his
+work had been almost a sinecure.  The _Yealm_ had not had the faintest
+chance of taking part in an engagement.  Her crew--to use Fanshawe's
+own words--were "that beastly healthy, don't you know", that, out of
+sheer anxiety to do something, he was learning navigation from the
+Sub-lieutenant.
+
+The medico undertook his first important professional task on board the
+_Yealm_ with great alacrity, and it was not long before Ross and Vernon
+were in a fit state to be questioned.  Hans Koppe was in a bad plight.
+So utterly shaken were his nerves that he seemed on the point of
+collapse.
+
+"So you are the son of Admiral Trefusis," said the
+Lieutenant-Commander.  "I can't say that I know him personally,
+although I know of him.  But how did you get on board the submarine?"
+
+Ross explained.  He felt hurt at having to do so.  The
+Lieutenant-Commander's ignorance of the disappearance of the two chums
+from St. Mena's Island "took all the wind out of his sails".  In
+pre-War days the principal papers would have devoted at least half a
+column to the supposed deaths by drowning, off the Cornish coast, of
+two well-connected youths.  Nowadays editors had neither space nor
+inclination to devote to such a comparatively trivial matter.
+Consequently Devereux could be exonerated of all lack of knowledge of
+the supposed accident.  Yet his interest grew as Ross proceeded with
+his narrative.
+
+"Look here," he remarked.  "We've got to dodge around for a few hours
+in case your pal U77 does put in an appearance.  But I'll wireless the
+Admiral and ask for a telegram to be sent to your homes, to let your
+people know you are still alive and kicking."
+
+"Better not, sir," objected Ross.
+
+Devereux looked curiously at the lad.
+
+"And why not?" he asked.
+
+"Well, you see," explained Trefusis, "a telegram is not such a
+confidential matter as one would like it to be, especially in a remote
+country district."
+
+"It's good news though," remarked the Lieutenant-Commander.
+
+"Yes," admitted Ross; "but it is absolutely necessary to keep it dark
+for a while.  A few hours won't make very much difference one way or
+the other to my people, but it would make a thumping lot to our friend
+Dr. Ramblethorne, otherwise von Hauptwald.  If he were to hear that we
+were alive, he'd do a bunk.  The same with that other spy, von Ruhle.
+They must be arrested promptly, and within a few hours of each other,
+in case one of them scents trouble and clears out."
+
+"I see your point," admitted Devereux.  "I won't send a wireless at
+present.  You must be feeling peckish.  I'll get my steward to bring
+you in some grub.  Excuse me, I must be off again.  We've a lot to
+attend to, you know."
+
+The Lieutenant-Commander went on deck to conduct operations.  He was
+temporarily senior officer, and it fell to him to issue orders to his
+two consorts relating to the investigation of the scene of the
+battleship's exploit.
+
+For two hours the three destroyers cruised over the spot where the two
+submarines were supposed to have sunk.  At length wreckage was found by
+means of grapnels.  It was, of course, much too deep to send a diver
+down to report; but the spot was buoyed, and served as a base while
+sweeping operations were proceeded with in the hope of locating the
+hull of the second unterseeboot.  In a very short space of time two
+operations undertaken for the purpose of destroying the sunken
+submarine were highly satisfactorily carried out.  The first resulted
+in the release of a small quantity of buoyant wreckage, amongst which
+was the flagstaff of U75.  The second brought to the surface a quantity
+of oil, showing that a submarine had been sunk there, but the injuries
+she previously received had not been sufficient to liberate the
+contents of the heavy oil-tanks.  The explosive charge had completed
+the destruction of U77.
+
+Just before five in the afternoon, the _Yealm_ and her consorts passed
+the eastern arm of the breakwater in Plymouth Sound and brought up in
+the Hamoaze.  Ross and Vernon, arrayed in borrowed clothes and
+accompanied by Lieutenant-Commander Devereux, lost no time in going
+ashore and proceeding to the offices of the Commander-in-Chief.
+
+"You are acting with remarkable discretion," observed the Admiral, when
+Ross reiterated his desire not to communicate with his home until the
+spies were safely under lock and key.  "Fortunately there ought to be
+no undue delay, as we have two expert Scotland Yard men investigating a
+case in the Dockyard.  I'll telephone to the Superintendent of Police,
+and get him to send the officers here at once."
+
+Within ten minutes the officers were ushered into the
+Commander-in-Chief's presence.  Ross and Vernon looked at them with
+considerable curiosity.  It had not before fallen to their lot to come
+into contact with two real representatives of the famous Scotland Yard.
+Yet there was little about the appearance to occasion comment.  They
+were not in any way disguised.  The taller of the two, who was
+introduced as Detective-Inspector Ferret, was about forty years of age.
+His closely cut hair was dark-brown, with a plentiful sprinkling of
+grey hairs.  He wore a beard trimmed naval or "torpedo" fashion, with a
+moustache.  He was dressed in a grey lounge suit, with dark-brown boots
+and a golfing cap.  There was nothing of a piercing nature about his
+eyes, which were of a deep-grey tint.  He seemed to be perpetually
+beaming; the lines on his face gave one that impression.
+
+His companion, Detective Hawke, was a short, thick-set man of about
+thirty-five.  He was clean-shaven.  His features were ruddy and heavy.
+There was a bulldog look about his jaw that proclaimed him to be a
+tough customer.  His rough, brown, Harris-tweed suit and bowler hat
+gave him the appearance of a prosperous yeoman rather than a successful
+tracker of criminals.
+
+"Now, young gentlemen," began Mr. Hawke briskly, after the
+introductions had been made, "we'll get to business.  With your
+permission, sir" (addressing the Admiral), "I will ask Mr. Trefusis to
+give me his version of the affair.  To save time, I feel certain that
+Mr. Haye will have no objection to going with my colleague and telling
+him his story.  That, I must explain, is the best way to eliminate any
+discrepancies.  We prefer to make a fair start, and then all ought to
+go well."
+
+During the next hour Detective-inspector Hawke was very busy.  He made
+no written notes.  He relied solely upon his marvellous retentive
+memory, and it was not long before he was in full possession of the
+facts of the case.
+
+His next step was to telephone to St. Bedal.  From the police there, he
+learnt that Dr. Ramblethorne was medical officer to the 4th battalion
+of a west-country regiment, but that he was temporarily detailed to act
+on the recruiting staff at Wellington.
+
+Hawke thereupon telegraphed to Harwich.  The Customs officers there
+informed him that the Harwich-Flushing boat service had been suspended
+for nearly a week, owing to the discovery of a hostile mine-field off
+the Dutch coast.  Sailings were to be resumed that night.  A man who
+gave himself out to be a Dutchman, but who answered to the description
+of von Ruhle, had applied that morning for a permit to leave the
+country by the night boat.  His berth had been booked under the name of
+Cornelius Vanderhuit.
+
+"Which one ought we to nab first?" asked Ferret.  "We'll have to be
+very sharp, or one of them, finding that he is no longer in
+communication with his accomplice, would smell a rat and clear out."
+
+"Under normal conditions I would reply, 'Collar the principal first',"
+replied Hawke.  "It is evident that Ramblethorne, _alias_ von
+Hauptwald, is the master-spy.  Directly he's laid by the heels, the
+whole of the organization immediately under his control goes by the
+board.  But there's this Harwich business.  Von Ruhle crosses the North
+Sea to-night, unless otherwise prevented.  We comprise the otherwise, I
+hope."
+
+"Then it would mean catching the midday express to Waterloo," remarked
+Ferret.
+
+"Could we go with you?" asked Ross.
+
+The police officers looked rather astonished at the cool request.  Like
+most professional men, they scouted the idea of amateur assistance when
+the main issue was at stake.
+
+"Perhaps it wouldn't be a bad idea," remarked Hawke.  "You have already
+shown great discretion in the matter.  Most fellows would have made a
+bee-line to the nearest telegraph office and given the whole show away.
+The only difficulty is--I suppose, by the way, you are not feeling too
+done up after your trying experiences?--the only difficulty is, I was
+remarking, that von Ruhle might spot you.  Look here, Ferret; suppose
+you take these young gentlemen, and proceed to Harwich by an ordinary
+train?  Keep well out of sight when you arrive at Parkeston Quay, but
+keep a sharp eye on the boat.  I'll travel from Liverpool Street by the
+boat train, and see if I can pick out our quarry amongst the
+passengers."
+
+It was a tedious journey from Plymouth to Harwich.  Arriving at
+Waterloo, Ferret took the lads to a quiet hotel and ordered lunch;
+while Hawke, excusing himself, called in at "the Yard" to report his
+new case to the Chief, and to wait for the Great Eastern boat train.
+
+The weather had changed completely during the run from the West, for
+when Ferret and the two lads arrived at Parkeston Quay it was raining
+heavily, accompanied by half a gale of wind from the east'ard.
+
+"We've a long wait," commented Ferret.  "Fortunately I know several of
+the Customs officials very well.  I'll get them to let you take shelter
+in their shed.  It's almost opposite the berth where the steamer
+generally makes fast.  You'll be able to watch everyone who goes up the
+gangway.  I'll go on board and speak to the steward.  I don't suppose
+we'll spot friend von Ruhle until the boat train arrives, and by that
+time perhaps Hawke will have marked his man."
+
+Undoubtedly, the wisest course would have been to send other officers
+to Wellington to arrest Dr. Ramblethorne; but Hawke was out for
+"kudos".  Only a short while ago he had let a wanted man slip through
+his fingers, and had been rapped over the knuckles for it.  With the
+professional assistance of Ferret, he hoped to carry out a double
+_coup_ and arrest both German Secret Service agents, thereby recovering
+his lost prestige.
+
+Arriving at Liverpool Street he took his ticket, and spent the time
+until the departure of the boat train in walking up and down the
+platform.  He had the knack of observing without being observed.  He
+would look at a man in quite a casual way; there was no gleam of
+intelligence in his eyes as he did so, but little escaped his notice.
+An hour or two later he could accurately describe his appearance,
+dress, and mannerisms.
+
+A minute before the train started, a man answering von Ruhle's
+description hurried down the platform.  He carried a new cane under his
+left arm.  In his right hand he held an attaché case with the initials
+C. V.
+
+Hawke waited until he had entered a carriage, then strolled to the
+other end of the corridor coaches and took his seat.  He knew that the
+run was supposed to be a non-stop one.
+
+The train started.  The detective took his time.  He waited for nearly
+twenty minutes before he made his way along the corridor, and entered
+the smoking-compartment occupied by the suspect.
+
+Presently Hawke made a commonplace remark.  The stranger replied
+stiffly and in rather a deep voice, with a slight foreign accent.
+
+"An assumed voice," soliloquized the detective; but undaunted by the
+chilliness of his reception he again made some remark about the weather.
+
+Before the train ran through Witham station, conversation was
+proceeding briskly.  Hawke assumed the rôle of a commercial traveller,
+and volunteered the information that his brother had just returned from
+the Front.
+
+The stranger showed no hesitation in discussing the war.  Emboldened,
+the detective tackled the subject of East Coast defences and the futile
+German blockade.
+
+"He's giving me absolutely false information," he thought.  "Perhaps
+he's trying to throw me off the scent.  I'll put a few questions that
+no one but an ignoramus would ask in good faith.  If he's trying to
+bluff me, I'll beat him at that game."
+
+Presently his fellow-passenger excused himself and, without removing
+his luggage, went into the corridor.  As soon as he was out of sight
+Hawke took hold of the cane that the stranger had left in the rack.
+With a grunt of satisfaction he found that it was certainly not a
+Malacca, but made of metal.
+
+The train began to slow down.  Lifting the blind, Hawke looked out of
+the window.  He could just discern a fairly big town, completely in
+darkness.
+
+"Manningtree Junction," said Hawke to himself.  "Something on the line,
+I suppose.  H'm, we're stopping."
+
+With a jerk the train pulled up at the station.  The platform was
+almost deserted, for no train was due at that time to stop there.  A
+door slammed.  Again the detective pulled aside the blind.  He was just
+in time to see his fellow-traveller, accompanied by the guard,
+disappear into the station waiting-room.
+
+"He's tumbled to it!" exclaimed Hawke.  "He's making off.  He's tipped
+the guard to set him down.  I'm after him!"
+
+He made his way swiftly and stealthily down the platform, and with a
+quick movement threw open the waiting-room door.
+
+The sudden transition from the semi-darkness of the platform to the
+brilliantly lighted interior of the room temporarily dazzled his eyes.
+Dimly he was aware that the place was occupied by khaki-clad soldiers
+struggling into their equipment, and that in their midst was the guard
+and the man of whom he was in search.
+
+"At any rate there is plenty of assistance," thought Hawke as he
+advanced to tap the suspect on the shoulder; but before he could attain
+his object a deep, stern voice exclaimed:
+
+"Arrest him, men!"
+
+The next instant Detective-inspector Hawke was seized by half a dozen
+muscular hands.
+
+"What's this tomfoolery?" he demanded angrily.  "I'm a Scotland Yard
+officer, and----"
+
+A roar of laughter burst from the Tommies.  Even the subaltern in
+command smiled broadly.
+
+The stranger spoke again.
+
+"Take him to the guard-room.  He is arrested under the Defence of the
+Realm Act for attempting to elicit information prejudicial to the
+welfare of the State.  I won't detain the train any longer, guard,
+although I'll ask you to drop my gear on the platform."
+
+Still protesting vehemently but ineffectually, the detective was
+unceremoniously hustled into an ante-room, used since the outbreak of
+the war as a guard-room for the military in charge of the line.  The
+door was locked upon him.  He heard the train rumble out of the station.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV
+
+A Fruitless Quest
+
+From their places of concealment Ross and Vernon watched the boat train
+run alongside the steamer.  At last the weary vigil was a thing of the
+past.  All fatigue was forgotten at the prospect of witnessing the
+capture of one of the active members of the German spy system at work
+in this country.
+
+For a quarter of an hour everything was in a state of bustle.  There
+was a continuous stream of passengers and porters, the latter bending
+under the weight of trunks and boxes as they hurried up the steeply
+sloping gangway.
+
+At length the throng thinned.  As yet there was no sign either of von
+Ruhle or of Detective-inspector Hawke.
+
+A man with his coat collar turned up ran through the driving rain and
+entered the shed.  It was Ferret.
+
+"Something's gone wrong," he declared.  "I've just had a telephone
+message from my colleague.  I'm off to the post-office.  If you want me
+during the next ten minutes you'll find me there."
+
+Hawke had at length managed to get a word with his former
+fellow-traveller, who happened to be a staff-officer of the Eastern
+command.  The detective had been under a misapprehension.  The officer
+had good reason for ordering his arrest; but the comedy threatened to
+take a serious development.  Even when the detective showed his
+credentials the officer was not satisfied.  He proposed telegraphing to
+Scotland Yard, but Hawke, mindful of a former failure, induced him not
+to do so.  The detective, who had occasion to contrast unfavourably the
+summary powers of arrest under the Defence of the Realm Act with those
+allowed by the Civil Power, was eventually allowed to communicate with
+his brother officer at Parkeston Quay.  And then the military
+authorities required a considerable amount of convincing.  It looked as
+if Detective-inspector Hawke would have to remain under arrest until
+next morning.
+
+While Ferret was losing time and patience in his efforts to release his
+confrère, Ross and Vernon noticed a man hurrying along the quay.  He
+was short and thick-set.  He wore a long mackintosh, the collar of
+which was turned up and helped, with the peak of his cap, to hide his
+features.
+
+Suddenly the man's foot tripped over a ring-bolt.  He cursed under his
+breath, but sufficiently loudly for the lads to overhear.
+
+Ross gripped his companion's arm.  The fellow was swearing in German.
+
+"Von Ruhle!" he whispered.  He made a movement as if to issue from his
+place of concealment, but Haye restrained him.
+
+"Hold on!" he cautioned in a low voice.
+
+The man paused on the gangway.  A partly shaded electric light threw a
+glare upon his face.  He wore a heavy beard and moustache.
+
+"You're wrong," whispered Vernon.
+
+"He's a German, anyhow," persisted Trefusis.
+
+The man still hesitated.  Then he hailed a seaman.
+
+"Where is the post office?" he asked.  "I wish to telegraph.  Is there
+time before the boat sails?"
+
+Receiving an affirmative reply the man hurried off.
+
+"Come on!" exclaimed Ross.
+
+Neither of the lads had now any doubts as to the man's identity.  The
+beard and moustache were false, but the voice was the same--von Ruhle's.
+
+Keeping close to the wall of the line of sheds, the lads followed the
+spy at a distance of about fifty feet.  More than once von Ruhle
+glanced furtively over his shoulder, as if suspecting that he was being
+tracked.
+
+Presently a man, reeling along the quay, approached.  The spy made no
+effort to avoid him.  As the inebriated one rolled past he whispered a
+few words.  The effect was instantaneous.  Instead of continuing his
+way towards the post office, von Ruhle turned and made off abruptly in
+the direction of the gate of the Company's premises.
+
+"An accomplice," whispered Vernon.  "He's been warned."
+
+They had to wait until the man who had feigned drunkenness had
+disappeared.  By this time the German had gained a considerable
+distance.  To get the assistance of the detective was out of the
+question.
+
+"Come on!" exclaimed Ross, breaking into a run.
+
+Concealment was no longer necessary.  Should occasion arise, there
+would be plenty of help forthcoming, for there were several dock
+policemen and soldiers on duty close at hand.
+
+Von Ruhle had increased his pace into a brisk walk when he heard the
+noise of his pursuers.  Then he, too, began to run.
+
+"Stop him!" shouted Trefusis, calling to a group of uniformed men
+standing in front of an abattoir.
+
+Turning, the German made towards the quay-side.  He was no match in
+speed for his youthful pursuers; but he gained the water's edge before
+Ross headed him off.
+
+"Give in, von Ruhle!" he challenged.
+
+The spy recognized the voice of the British lad whom he imagined to be
+miles away, on board an unterseeboot.
+
+With a quick movement, the spy plucked a leather case from his coat
+pocket and hurled it over the edge of the quay, then, throwing up his
+arms, he dropped lifeless upon the rain-sodden ground.
+
+Rapidly a crowd collected.  Amongst them was Detective-inspector
+Ferret, who, having finished his conversation with his luckless
+confrère, was leaving the post office when he heard the commotion.
+
+"Well, what's all this?" he asked brusquely.  He bent over the body of
+the spy and flashed a pocket-lamp upon his face.  "It's our man," he
+continued, addressing the lads in an undertone.  This remark was
+needless, since they were already certain upon that point.  "He's done
+us out of a job.  Heart disease?  No fear: it's poison.  Don't wait
+here.  Your work in this direction is done.  I have still a few
+unpleasant tasks to perform.  Cut off to the hotel and await me there.
+I may be an hour."
+
+"One moment," protested Vernon.  "We saw von Ruhle heave something over
+the quay.  It might float; if so, there might be a chance to pick it up
+by means of a boat.  The tide is almost slack.  If it has sunk it will
+be a diver's task to recover it."
+
+"'Something' is always unsatisfactory," remarked Ferret reprovingly.
+"Was it large, small, heavy, or light?"
+
+"He was so jolly quick that I could hardly see it," replied Haye.  "I
+should think it was about the size of a cigar-case."
+
+Directing two policemen to remove and take charge of the body, the
+Detective-inspector accompanied the lads to the edge of the quay.  It
+was dead low water.  There was hardly sufficient current coming down
+the Stour to swing the anchored craft against the wind.  Then the
+investigators made a discovery.  Although there was a good depth of
+water at the greater extent of the quay, at this spot the mud was
+uncovered at the base of the wall, while almost at their feet was a
+flight of stone steps.
+
+Ferret descended cautiously and switched on the light of the torch.
+Almost within arm's length, and partly buried in the slime, was the
+object which the spy had thrown away.
+
+As the detective hooked at it with his stick a hoarse voice shouted:
+
+"Ahoy there!  What are you doing with that light?"
+
+Apparently from nowhere a boat ploughed through the mud until its bows
+were within a couple of feet of the steps.  The next instant Ferret and
+his companions were covered by a revolver.
+
+It was a naval guard-boat, the watchful eye of the officer in charge
+having discovered what he took to be surreptitious signalling.
+Explanations followed, and were accepted.  Ferret, holding the
+recovered prize, ascended the steps, followed by Ross and Vernon, while
+the boat backed noiselessly away.  It was but one more example of the
+ceaseless vigilance of the great, silent Navy.
+
+Almost dead-beat, Trefusis and his chum made their way to the hotel,
+had supper, and went straight to bed.  Ferret, they decided, could wait
+until morning.
+
+At 6 a.m. Hawke, having secured his release, arrived at Parkeston,
+having engaged a motor-car to bring him from Manningtree.  Already his
+vindictiveness towards the military had vanished.  He had taken a
+sensible view of the situation.  He had played and lost, and the staff
+officer was justified in the circumstances.  As for the soldiers, they
+had to obey orders.
+
+Nevertheless he was chagrined when he heard his confrère's report.  It
+was galling to think that their spy had outwitted him by taking his own
+life.  The whole energies of the two detectives must, for the present,
+be concentrated upon the capture of the master-spy, Von Hauptwald,
+otherwise Dr. Ramblethorne.
+
+Ross and Vernon met Hawke again at breakfast.  He was now quite
+cheerful.
+
+"You managed to get hold of von Ruhle so well," he remarked, "that I
+think you really ought to bear a hand with friend Ramblethorne,--that
+is, unless you've had enough of man-hunting?"
+
+"We'll do our best," said Ross.  "It's our duty."
+
+"When do you start?" asked Vernon.
+
+"Almost at once," he declared.  "Ramblethorne might be alarmed if no
+telegram arrives from his fellow-spy.  Again, the man who communicated
+with von Ruhle on the quay last night might have given Ramblethorne
+warning.  It's not at all surprising to me, since what you told us, Mr.
+Trefusis, that there has been an alarming outbreak of enteric at St.
+Bedal camp."
+
+He turned over several pages of a complex timetable.
+
+"Here we are," he announced.  "We must get to Paddington in time to
+catch the 10.20 for Wellington.  One thing, young gentlemen, you'll be
+nearly home.  Ferret has arranged about the inquest on von Ruhle.  Your
+evidence will be taken down in writing, and in that case you won't have
+to put in an appearance at that grim farce."
+
+Hawke spoke feelingly and from experience.  In his opinion, based upon
+circumstantial evidence, "crowner's quests" were a form of legal
+absurdity.
+
+The train journey to Liverpool Street was undertaken almost in silence,
+as far as the four travellers were concerned.  Hawke buried himself in
+his paper; Ferret was poring over some document found in von Ruhle's
+pocket-book, trying to unravel the complex code that, if deciphered,
+would be of the utmost importance to the country.  Ross and Vernon,
+still feeling tired, tried to make up for arrears of sleep.
+
+Taking a taxi across London, they were just in time to catch the Great
+Western express, which would take them to Taunton.  Arriving at that
+place, they changed into a slow train that eventually landed them at
+the little Somersetshire town nestling under the Black Down Hills.
+
+Without delay the party proceeded to the regimental depot.  Enquiries
+for Captain Ramblethorne, R.A.M.C., only resulted in looks of
+perplexity.  He was unknown to the authorities.
+
+"But we heard from St. Bedal that Captain Ramblethorne was ordered to
+Wellington for recruiting duties," persisted Hawke.
+
+The orderly-room clerk smiled sadly.
+
+"Are you quite sure that it was this Wellington?" he asked.  "We've had
+similar mistakes before."
+
+Detective-inspector Hawke felt like kicking himself.  He, too, was
+aware of the existence of the Shropshire Wellington, but, without
+giving the possibility any consideration, he had rashly jumped to the
+conclusion that the place to which Ramblethorne had been appointed was
+the one nearest to St. Bedal.
+
+Sorrowfully the four marched out of the office.  More delay ensued
+while a wire was dispatched to St. Bedal, asking for further details.
+
+It took two hours before the reply came.  "Regret not to have added
+Salop to Captain Ramblethorne's address.--C.O."
+
+"It's a long lane that has no turning," observed Ferret as they made
+for the railway station.
+
+Hawke bit his lip.  He knew that had the spy been warned promptly he
+might be out of the country by this time.
+
+It was dark when, after a tedious journey, the four travellers alighted
+at Wellington, Salop.  Here, guarded enquiries elicited the information
+that Captain Ramblethorne had gone to Bridgnorth to examine men "roped
+in" at a recruiting meeting.  He had left for Bridgnorth two hours
+previously.
+
+"There are no trains to-night," announced Hawke.  "We'll have to get a
+car."
+
+Ten minutes later, Ross and his companions were speeding over the
+horribly rough and hilly road between Wellington and Bridgnorth.  Past
+ironworks and coal-fields, over or under a network of railway lines,
+the car tore; then, leaving the mining district behind, it entered the
+picturesque valley of the Severn, where the road skirts a range of
+towering limestone crags.
+
+In spite of their fatigue, the lads could not restrain an exclamation
+of surprise and delight as the town of Bridgnorth, bathed in moonlight,
+appeared in sight--a cluster of houses perched upon a bold rock, and
+dominated by the scanty ruins of the old castle.  At the foot of the
+cliff the Severn meandered placidly.  In the midst of the greatest war
+the world has ever known, Bridgnorth appeared to retain all the
+characteristics of complete peace.
+
+The recruiting office was closed for the night.  With unerring instinct
+the detective made for the principal hotel.  Here they found that
+Captain Ramblethorne had engaged a room, but the manager showed them a
+telegram that had just reached him.
+
+"Took wrong train cancel room arriving to-morrow morning Ramblethorne."
+
+"A blind," mentally ejaculated Ferret.  "He has been warned."
+
+The telegram had been dispatched from Shrewsbury.  Ferret was again at
+fault, for the mistake was a genuine one.  It so happened that the two
+trains left Wellington at precisely the same time, the one for
+Bridgnorth starting from a side platform.  Before he realized his
+mistake Ramblethorne found himself well on the way to Shrewsbury, for
+the train stopped at no intermediate station.
+
+"Shrewsbury, as hard as you can go!" ordered Hawke, addressing the
+chauffeur.
+
+At a pace averaging fifty miles an hour the powerful car bounded over
+the road.  Without mishap it gained the outskirts of the county town of
+Shropshire, when an involuntary halt occurred.
+
+It was on the English Bridge, a comparatively narrow structure crossing
+the Severn.  A belated drover was driving a herd of refractory cattle
+into the town when a motor-bicycle whizzed down the hill.
+
+The cattle stampeded.  With a jerk that almost threw Ferret and Vernon
+from the seat, the car brought up.  At the same time the motor-bicycle
+slowed down, and dexterously avoiding a huge bullock, glided past the
+stationary car.
+
+The moonbeams shone directly upon the rider's face as Ross thrust his
+head out of the window.  The motor-cyclist was Ramblethorne the spy.
+
+The recognition was mutual.  The spy, cool and collected, gave no sign
+of recognition.  The next moment he was travelling "all out" along the
+Much Wenlock road.
+
+"That's Ramblethorne!" exclaimed Ross excitedly.
+
+"Botheration take him!" ejaculated Ferret.  "Are we to get no rest
+to-night?"
+
+He opened the window in front of him.  Hawke was sitting with the
+chauffeur.  Quickly the detectives arrived at their decision.
+
+"After that chap!" exclaimed Hawke, addressing the chauffeur; "that
+motor-cyclist who has just passed.  Ten pounds if you overhaul and stop
+him."
+
+It was the bright moonlight that had tempted Ramblethorne to go for a
+midnight ride.  He was a keen out-of-door man.  He could handle almost
+any make of car or motor-cycle with the utmost skill.  Finding himself
+at Shrewsbury, he hired a motor-cycle from an agent, intending to have
+a run along the road following the banks of the Severn as far as
+Ironbridge.  It was his practice, whenever in a strange place, speedily
+to become conversant with the locality.  It was, in fact, part of his
+training as a spy.
+
+Ramblethorne was somewhat taken aback when he saw Ross's face in the
+moonlight, although he betrayed no sign of surprise.  In an instant he
+realized that, by some means, young Trefusis had escaped from U75;
+more, he was with a party of men evidently hard on his track.
+
+Quickly he made up his mind.  His career as a medical officer to the
+British Service was ended.  He could no longer hope to serve the German
+Government in that direction.  Before morning a hue and cry would be
+raised.
+
+As he swung along the broad, level road he thought out his plans.  He
+would ride as hard as he could until his supply of petrol gave out--a
+matter of about seventy or eighty miles.  Then he would abandon and
+hide the motor-cycle, and make his way on foot to the Essex coast.
+There, he had means to get on board a nominally British fishing-boat,
+which would run him over to a Dutch port.
+
+Although the motor-cycle was travelling at close on forty miles an
+hour, Ramblethorne glanced back over his shoulder.  He hardly expected
+to be pursued.  If the car had turned to attempt to overhaul him, it
+would almost to a certainty take the wider of the two fork roads--that
+leading to Wellington.
+
+Disagreeably surprised, the spy saw the two powerful head-lights of the
+car less than a mile behind him.
+
+The chauffeur of the pursuing vehicle had set his heart on winning the
+promised guerdon.  "All out" the car bounded along the road, leaving in
+its trail a dense cloud of dust that slowly dispersed in the moon-lit
+air.
+
+Hanging on desperately to the sides of the swaying car, Ferret and the
+two lads knelt upon the front seat of the coupe and peered through the
+dust-flecked glass at the solitary motor-cyclist in front.  They were
+gaining--rapidly at first, but now the gap between lessened almost
+imperceptibly.
+
+At that tremendous rate, the bursting of a tyre would result in
+complete disaster, yet not one thought did the pursuers give to the
+danger they were running.  Their sole attention was centred upon the
+spy.
+
+A sharp bend close to the village of Cressage enabled the car to get
+within fifty yards of the motor-cyclist.  Hawke drew a revolver from
+his pocket.  The chauffeur noticed the action out of the corner of his
+eye.  Purposely he toyed with the sensitive steering-wheel, causing the
+car to swerve erratically.
+
+"Put it up, sir!" he exclaimed, shouting in order to make himself heard
+above the roar of the wind over the screen.  "If you bring him down
+we'll smash up on top of him before we can pull up.  We'll have him on
+Harley Bank right enough."
+
+A sharp run down through the village of Harley brought the car within
+sight of a very steep hill, up which the road wound like a silver
+thread against the black slope.  This was Harley Bank, one of the
+steepest of many stiff Shropshire hills, its gradient averaging one in
+seven.
+
+Up mounted the motor-cycle.  Ramblethorne was attempting to take it on
+high gear.
+
+The chauffeur of the car took no risks.  He promptly dropped into
+second gear, with the result that the gap between them increased to
+nearly a hundred yards.  Then the motor-cycle began to falter.  Perhaps
+Ramblethorne was not thoroughly acquainted with the mechanism of the
+two-speed.  By the time he got the friction-clutch into action the car
+had more than regained the lost distance--and the fugitive had not yet
+reached the stiffest part of the hill.
+
+"Head him off--jam him up against that bank!" ordered Hawke.
+
+"What for, sir?" asked the chauffeur.  He had no objection to taking
+part in a midnight chase, but his sense of prudence told him that it
+was not advisable to deliberately smash up another vehicle.
+
+"He's a spy," replied Hawke.  "Don't hesitate.  I will take all risks."
+
+Fifteen seconds later the near front wheel of the car was abreast of
+Ramblethorne's back wheel.  Hawke leant sideways with the intention of
+gripping the motor-cyclist by the collar, since the relative speeds
+were practically the same.  At the same moment the car edged a little
+closer to the left-hand side of the road.
+
+Ramblethorne realized the danger.  A collision would with almost
+certainty result in his receiving a broken neck; capture meant
+ignominious death at the hands of a firing-party.  There was yet a
+third alternative--a dash for safety.
+
+He threw out the clutch and applied both brakes, at the same time
+bringing the motor-cycle on to the grassy bank.  He alighted on all
+fours, but almost immediately regained his feet.  The car was already
+twenty yards on ahead and still in gear.
+
+He grasped his cycle by the handle-bars and raised it from its
+recumbent position.  One look showed that the glancing impact had bent
+the front forks.  The machine was no longer rideable.  Without
+hesitation he sprang up the bank.  As he did so he heard the footfalls
+of his pursuers.
+
+"Be steady!" cautioned Ferret, as Ross and Vernon alighted from the
+car.  "He may be armed.  We're the people to take the brunt of it--not
+you."
+
+They were now within a few feet of the summit of the road, which at
+this spot ran through the hill by means of a cutting.  Close by were
+three excavations.  Someone had evidently attempted to commence
+quarrying there, but had abandoned the undertaking.  As far as the
+detective could conclude, these pits formed the only possible
+hiding-place in the vicinity.
+
+"Hist!" exclaimed Hawke, holding up one hand to enjoin silence.
+
+All was still.  No sound of stealthily retreating footsteps reached
+their ears.  Hawke knelt down and placed one ear to the ground.
+
+"Someone breathing pretty hard," he whispered.  "He can't be very far
+away; in one of these holes most likely.  Perhaps he's hurt himself."
+
+An investigation of the first possible hiding-place produced no result.
+At the second Ross heard a long-drawn sigh, emanating from a patch of
+bushes and tall grass.
+
+"Here you are!" he exclaimed.
+
+The place was in shadow, yet he could discern some dark object lying at
+full length in the midst of the grass.
+
+In a trice the two detectives threw themselves upon their prey.  For an
+instant the man struggled wildly.  Ross and his chum joined in the
+fray, each hanging on desperately to his plunging legs.  Ignominiously
+he was dragged from his place of concealment into the bright moonlight.
+
+Ferret was the first to give a gasp of astonishment.  Their victim was
+not Ramblethorne the spy, but a powerfully built tramp, who, finding
+himself released, began to expostulate with alarming vehemence.
+
+"Stop that!" exclaimed Hawke authoritatively.  "We are police officers.
+If you don't behave we'll take you in charge for sleeping out without
+visible means."
+
+The fellow, cowed into silence, slunk away.
+
+"Confound it!" ejaculated Ferret.  "We've let Ramblethorne slip away
+under our very noses.  He'll be clear by this time."
+
+"I'm afraid so," agreed Hawke ruefully; then turning to the chauffeur
+he told him to drive into the nearest village, which happened to be
+Much Wenlock.
+
+Here Ross and Vernon were able to secure a room at an inn, while the
+Scotland Yard men were busy at the little police station, getting a
+description of the spy issued through the countryside.
+
+Next morning the lads set out on their return journey to Killigwent
+Hall.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV
+
+The Admiral Works the Oracle
+
+"Look here, old man; what do you say about having a shot for the Naval
+Reserve?" asked Ross.  "In ordinary circs I would be prepared to go
+through Sandhurst, but this isn't ordinary circs.  Before we pass out,
+the war will be over perhaps."
+
+"I'd rather like to see something of the fun," agreed Vernon.
+
+"As if we hadn't already," added his chum.  "But I know what you mean.
+Instead of being cooped up in an unterseeboot and hunted by our
+fellows, we want to have a hand in rounding up the German submarines.
+I vote we write to our respective governors about it."
+
+This conversation occurred two days after the lads' return to
+Killigwent Hall.  They had been given up as lost, and their unexpected
+return had caused unbounded rejoicings.  Pressmen thronged the Hall to
+gather "exclusive" information of the manner of their seemingly
+miraculous rescue, but both Ross and Vernon were determined not to
+satisfy outside curiosity.  They even kept the story of how the white
+flag fluttered down from the signalling mast of U75 from their
+immediate friends.
+
+"It will take a long time for us to get a reply," objected Vernon.  "By
+the time the letters hang about at the G.P.O., before they are sent to
+the fleet, a week will elapse, and before we get a reply bang goes a
+whole fortnight.  Let's get hold of a Navy List and see what the
+qualifications are."
+
+A careful perusal of the regulations resulted in a setback.  Midshipmen
+in the R.N.R., they found, had to be between 16 and 18 years of age,
+and must either have passed through a course of instruction for two
+years on board an "approved" training ship, or else one year on board a
+first-class British merchant ship.
+
+"That's put the hat on it," declared Ross.
+
+"One minute," interposed Vernon.  "Why not write to Admiral Garboard?
+He's an old shipmate of my governor's, and I know he's a bit of a pot
+up at Whitehall, although he's on the Retired List."
+
+"He was with my pater in the old _Rhodaphlare_ on the China station,"
+added Ross.  "We'll try; the wheeze might work."
+
+Accordingly Vernon wrote to the Admiral, who lived about twenty miles
+from Killigwent Hall.  Promptly came Sir Peter Garboard's reply:
+
+
+"TRELANGKERRICK,"
+  CORNWALL.
+
+"DEAR VERNON,
+
+"In reply to your letter I am sorry that I cannot help you in the
+matter to which you refer, unless you and your friend can produce
+sufficient evidences of qualifications for the desired posts.
+
+"On principle I object to influence in any shape or form.  Entry into
+any branch of the Service should, like promotion, depend solely upon
+the aptitude and ability of a candidate.  This has been my standpoint
+throughout the whole of my career, and I see no reason why I should now
+depart from it.
+
+"If, however, you think you have strong reasons for pressing your
+claims, and you care to see me, we will go more fully into the matter.
+
+"Believe me,
+  "Yours faithfully,
+    "PETER GARBOARD."
+
+
+"Not so dusty," commented Ross.  "He does leave us a loophole, although
+I'm afraid we'll have to blow our own trumpets.  I vote we cycle over
+at once.  We'll catch him in just before lunch."
+
+"Better wait until after he's had his grub," said Vernon.  "That's
+always the time to get a man in a good humour."
+
+"We'll risk that," declared young Trefusis.  "Come on."
+
+It was a very hilly twenty miles run across the moors to
+Trelangkerrick.  Starting at ten in the morning it took the lads two
+hours and a quarter, in the face of a strong south-westerly breeze, to
+cover the distance.
+
+Half-way up the drive, they saw the Admiral and a companion emerging
+from a path leading from the kennels.
+
+"Hulloa!" exclaimed Sir Peter cordially, as he recognized Vernon Haye.
+"So you haven't marked time in coming to see me.  This is young
+Trefusis, I presume?  Glad to meet you.  Knew your father very well
+back in the 'eighties.  Hope to renew the acquaintance soon, you know.
+If it hadn't been for the war----"
+
+Admiral Garboard had taken Trelangkerrick only since the declaration of
+hostilities; consequently he had had no opportunity of meeting Admiral
+Trefusis, who, since July of the previous year, had been continuously
+"somewhere in the North Sea".
+
+"Cecil, my boy," he continued, addressing his companion, a tall,
+sunburnt man, in shooting garb although his clean-shaven features and
+slightly rolling gait proclaimed him to be a sailor.  "Let me introduce
+the sons of two of my old shipmates to you.  Ross Trefusis and Vernon
+Haye--my nephew, Cecil Bourne.  You'll stay to lunch, of course.
+Cecil's on three days' leave.  He's not satisfied with hunting German
+submarines, but must needs go after my rabbits."
+
+They walked towards the house, Ross and Bourne leading, and the Admiral
+and Vernon bringing up the rear.
+
+"We'll discuss this little matter after lunch, my boy," remarked the
+Admiral.
+
+The meal proceeded without a hitch, the Admiral in his breezy way
+relating anecdote after anecdote of the Service in the good old days.
+
+"By the by," he remarked, "what's this yarn I hear about your
+neighbour, Dr. Ramblethorne?  There's a report that a warrant has been
+issued for his arrest."
+
+"For espionage, I believe," replied Vernon.
+
+"Bless my soul!  Is that a fact?  One doesn't know whom to trust in
+these days.  No details, I suppose.  A decent fellow, too, from what I
+saw of him.  No, I don't think you've met him, Cecil, at least not
+here.  By the by, you might tell the boys about your little adventure
+up-Channel in the _Tremendous_."
+
+Ross and Vernon turned very red in the face, but as they sat with their
+backs to the window the change of colour passed unnoticed.
+
+"Oh, that submarine business!" remarked Lieutenant Bourne modestly.
+"Just an ordinary occurrence, don't you know, except for one thing.  I
+was officer of the watch at the time.  We spotted a strafed
+unterseeboot flying a white flag.  Have to be jolly careful, you see.
+Either give the thing a wide berth, and wireless the destroyers to take
+possession of the prize, or else cut the brute in two.  Anyhow,
+something funny did happen.  There were two fellows in mufti standing
+close to the skipper on the submarine's deck.  Goodness only knows why
+they did it, but I saw one of them----"
+
+"Cut the halliards and let the white flag down," interposed Vernon.
+
+There was dead silence in the room.  Only intense excitement was
+responsible for young Haye's lapse of manners.  The words had slipped
+from him almost unconsciously.  Ross barked his shin as a gentle
+reminder.
+
+"By Jove!  How did you know that?" demanded Bourne.  "Shouldn't have
+thought that the yarn had had time to travel very far.  Hope I haven't
+been boring you?"
+
+Vernon took his courage in his hands.
+
+"It was Ross who cut the halliards," he announced.  "We were both on
+board, and jumped overboard just in time, and got hold of a lifebuoy
+dropped from the _Tremendous_ as she passed."
+
+"By Jove!" ejaculated the Lieutenant.  "I am surprised.  I wondered
+whether you were picked up.  It was a jolly plucky action.  But how did
+you get on board the unterseeboot?"
+
+"Aye, out with it!" added the Admiral.  "I heard that you were missing,
+of course, and also of your return.  Truth to tell, I thought when I
+got your letter that the pair of you had been acting the goat, and had
+run away to sea and had thought better of it."
+
+"We didn't run, sir, we were carried," explained Ross.  "And Dr.
+Ramblethorne was responsible for it."
+
+Admiral Sir Peter Garboard was not satisfied until he had heard the
+complete story of his young friends' adventures.  When they had
+finished he turned to his nephew.
+
+"Young Haye and his chum came to see me on a private matter," he
+remarked, "but I don't think they will object to your hearing what we
+have to say."
+
+"Are you quite sure you won't?" asked Bourne, addressing the lads.
+
+"Both Trefusis and Haye are supposed to be going in for Sandhurst,"
+continued Sir Peter.  "Although, candidly speaking, I don't see why a
+naval man should want to put his son in the Army."
+
+"In my case it is only following a family precedent," said Ross.  "For
+generations back the eldest son has alternately been in the Navy and
+Army."
+
+"And in my case it is the force of circumstances," added Vernon.  "When
+I was of the age to be sent to Osborne I was a puny little chap.  The
+doctor wouldn't pass me."
+
+"You've altered a bit since then, I can see," remarked Bourne.  "You
+look as strong as a young horse now."
+
+"Yes, I've grown out of my early ailments, I think," said Vernon.
+
+"Pity the doctor hadn't passed you," said Sir Peter bluntly.  "Ten or
+eleven is too young an age for any medical man to express a final
+opinion upon.  I remember a fellow in the Service who was nearly blind
+on one eye and almost as deaf as a post.  He got through the
+medical--influence, I expect.  Anyway the Navy was none the worse for
+it.  You'll remember him by name, Cecil: he was my secretary on the
+China Station.  Funny thing about him was that he couldn't see to read
+red figures unless he looked through a green glass.  Do you know that
+when I received your letter I imagined that your temporary
+disappearance had something to do with your running away to sea?"
+reiterated the Admiral.  "The idea, I believe, comes to most boys
+almost as a matter of course; something like measles, in fact."
+
+"Well, now we've had a taste of submarine work, we feel that it is high
+time we had a hand at helping to collar the German unterseebooten,"
+explained Ross.
+
+"I think it could be arranged," remarked the Admiral.  "You haven't had
+actual experience, of course----"
+
+"Eh!" exclaimed Bourne.  "By Jove, Uncle, I should say they had!"
+
+"From a strictly professional standpoint, I ought to have said, only
+you didn't give me time," added Sir Peter.  "I'll write off to the
+Admiralty to-night and see if I can get you both into the R.N.R.  You
+are too young to receive commissions as Sub-lieutenants, but no doubt
+you can be taken on as midshipmen.  Stringent regulations go by the
+board in war-time.  Isn't that so, Cecil?"
+
+"They would probably be appointed to an armed liner for patrol duty,"
+observed Bourne.  "There are, I believe, no midshipmen on the trawlers
+and motor-boats in submarine-hunting."
+
+"We must take what we can get," said Vernon, "but we would rather----"
+
+"Yes, yes," interrupted the Admiral.  "I know.  You leave that to me."
+
+Accordingly Ross and Vernon "left it to" the genial Sir Peter, with the
+result that within a week they were specially appointed as temporary
+midshipmen to the motor-patrol ship _Capella_.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI
+
+H.M.S. "Capella"
+
+With the least possible delay the two chums joined the _Capella_ at
+Southampton.  She was one of an entirely new class of vessel, built for
+the express purpose of ridding the high seas of the presence of the
+modern pirates.  Looking at her as she lay in the Empress Dock, there
+was little about her to attract the eye.  A raised fo'c'sle and poop,
+and a low superstructure abaft the funnel, two stumpy masts and
+grey-coloured "wall" sides, gave her the appearance of a trawler.  It
+was only when one had an opportunity of seeing her in dry dock, where
+her graceful under-body, with its fine "entry" and clean run aft, was
+visible, that any idea of her speed could be arrived at.  Further
+details would be undesirable.  Sufficient to add, to quote a Yankee
+journalist who had been given an opportunity of paying a visit to the
+Grand Fleet and inspecting the component units of the greatest armada
+that the world has yet seen, the class to which she belonged were "some
+boats".  The exigencies of the hitherto unprecedented method of
+carrying out the naval side of the Great War had demanded the creation
+of large flotillas of small motor-driven hornets.  In the initial
+stages the want was temporarily supplied through the patriotism of
+owners of private motor-boats.  These craft, good in their way, were
+handicapped by a lack of uniformity.  Nevertheless they served as an
+excellent training-school until the Admiralty with remarkable celerity
+produced the novel type of craft to which the _Capella_ belonged.
+
+The _Capella_ carried a large crew in proportion to her size--four
+officers and twenty-four men.  Her skipper was Stanley Syllenger, who
+held the rank of Lieutenant-Commander, R.N.R.  He was a big, bluff man
+of about thirty-five, a strict disciplinarian, and a stickler for duty.
+He could be very outspoken when he wanted, which was fairly frequently,
+but withal he was of a thoroughly good-natured disposition.
+
+There were two Sub-lieutenants, R.N.R.  The senior was John Barry, a
+very mild type of young officer.  He usually spoke in a very soft
+voice, except when occasion warranted, when he could bellow in a way
+that would take a stranger entirely by surprise.  It seemed incredible
+that such a bull voice could belong to such a dapper little man as John
+Barry.
+
+The other Sub was Noel Fox--a tall, deep-chested fellow of twenty,
+boisterous, and full of spirits.  In five crowded years he had gained a
+good knowledge of three oceans, and a nodding acquaintance with the
+remaining two.  Beginning his career on board a five-masted sailing
+ship, he had served in tramps, "intermediates", and mail steamers until
+the outbreak of the war, when he found himself appointed to an armed
+liner that abruptly terminated her existence by trying conclusions with
+a German mine.
+
+Captain Syllenger and Sub-lieutenant Barry were pacing the diminutive
+quarter-deck of the _Capella_ as she lay alongside the quay.  The
+skipper had heard officially that morning of the appointment of two
+temporary midshipmen to the craft under his command.  "Hanged if I can
+understand it, Barry!" he exclaimed in his outspoken manner.  "What's
+the idea of turning the _Capella_ into a nursery, I should like to
+know!  These youngsters are somebody's pigeons, I suppose.  The usual
+yarn.  Influence up topsides does the trick, and we're saddled with two
+raw lubbers."
+
+"There is no mention of their having had previous sea-service, sir?"
+remarked Barry.  "But perhaps they'll turn out fairly smart."
+
+"They will," added the Lieutenant-Commander grimly; "that is, if I have
+anything to do with them for any length of time.  But, by Jove! here
+they are, unless I'm much mistaken."
+
+Looking rather self-conscious in their brand-new uniforms, Ross and
+Vernon doubled down the steeply sloping gangway.  As they came aboard,
+Syllenger noted with professional satisfaction that they both saluted
+the quarter-deck.  The action showed, by one thing at least, they were
+not the greenhorns he expected to receive.
+
+"You have had no previous experience, I believe?" he asked, after the
+midshipmen had introduced themselves.
+
+"Very little, beyond knocking about in yachts and boats," replied Ross.
+
+"That's something," decided the skipper.  "A fellow who starts his
+career in a small boat has the makings of a good seaman.  It is rare
+indeed that a man who goes straight to sea in a steamship makes a smart
+man in a boat.  If ever you go on patrol duty you'll find your
+experience of value.  By the by, I suppose you know our particular job?"
+
+"Yes, sir," replied Ross.  "Hunting submarines."
+
+"Ever seen one?" asked Syllenger abruptly.
+
+"Several of the D and E classes manoeuvring in Plymouth Sound."
+
+"But a German one?"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"Where?"
+
+"We've both spent nearly a week on board an unterseeboot, sir."
+
+The skipper sternly regarded the two midshipmen.
+
+"Look here," he said.  "If you think you've come on board to gammon me,
+the sooner you get that idea out of your heads the better.  There's no
+room on the _Capella_ for a pair of modern Ananiases."
+
+Ross said nothing.  From the outside left breast-pocket of his
+"undress" coat he produced a white foolscap envelope, bearing in blue
+the "foul anchor" badge of the Admiralty.
+
+The Lieutenant-Commander took the proffered envelope somewhat
+suspiciously.  He more than half expected that it was a letter of
+introduction from a high official at Whitehall, on the strength of
+which the two midshipmen felt inclined to "put on side".
+
+Instead, he found that it contained an autograph letter from the
+Admiralty, thanking the lads for their bravery and presence of mind,
+whereby they materially assisted in the preservation of H.M.S.
+_Tremendous_ and in the destruction of two of the enemy submarines.
+The document finished by congratulating Ross and Vernon on their escape
+from U75, and trusted that their career as midshipmen of the R.N.R.
+would be marked with success.
+
+Syllenger read it through carefully and slowly, deliberately returned
+it to the envelope, and handed it back to Ross.  Then he held out his
+hand.
+
+"I'm sorry for what I've said," he declared simply.  "Forget it, if you
+can.  Come and lunch with me at one bell."
+
+"Thank you, sir," replied Ross in answer to the invitation; then, after
+a pause, he added: "we didn't want to brag about it, but you made us."
+
+"So I understand," said the skipper.  "I've misjudged the pair of you,
+but the least said about my part of it the better, I fancy."
+
+He hailed a couple of men, instructing them to strike the midshipmen's
+luggage down the companion-ladder.  Ross and Vernon followed, to be
+introduced to their new quarters.
+
+Owing to the _Capella's_ shallow draught, the cabin space was rather
+limited.  The Captain's quarters were a double cabin, comprising a
+state-room and sleeping-room, in a deck-house under the bridge.  The
+two Subs had each a small "dog-box", as they termed it, aft on the
+starboard side.  The engineer had a similar cabin on the port side.
+Adjoining his quarters was another cabin, which had hitherto been used
+as an overflow receptacle for officers' luggage.  This had now been
+cleared out, and hooks provided for the two midshipmen to sling their
+hammocks.  The slinging and unlashing of the hammocks was performed by
+a servant, to whom Ross and Vernon had each to pay ten shillings a
+month for the privilege.  During the day the cabin made a fairly
+comfortable room, although the furniture was Spartan-like in its
+simplicity.
+
+At six bells (11 a.m.) the _Capella_, having replenished her fuel and
+stores, and made good slight defects, was "tracked" out of the dock.
+An hour later she left Southampton, bound for a rendezvous off Beachy
+Head, near which a U-boat had been reported to have made an
+unsuccessful attack upon a swift merchant vessel.
+
+The run down Southampton Water was necessarily performed at
+quarter-speed, for in spite of her light displacement the _Capella's_
+wash at full speed was almost equal to that of a liner.  Even as it
+was, a long line of white foam lashed itself upon the mudflats several
+minutes after she had passed.
+
+When Calshot Castle was abreast, speed was increased to 30 knots.
+There was an easterly breeze blowing against the ebb-tide, with the
+result that quite a choppy sea was met with outside Southampton Water.
+Like a knife, the sharp cutwater of the _Capella_ cleft the waves,
+sending up showers of white spray; but such was her speed that, before
+the wind could carry the spindrift on deck, the swift vessel was beyond
+the cascade of foam.  She hardly felt the motion of the waves; indeed,
+she was so steady that it was possible to place a pail of water on deck
+without any of the contents being spilt by the "lift" of the ship.
+
+Under the guidance of Noel Fox, the midshipmen made the round of the
+vessel, the Sub explaining everything to them in detail.  Already the
+lads had taken a great fancy to the Sub, and Fox reciprocated the
+sentiment.  He had a way about him that enabled him to give particulars
+of the most intricate mechanism without having to resort to dry,
+parrot-like instruction.
+
+By the time he had explained the ingenious devices used to entrap the
+German unterseebooten, Ross and Vernon felt inclined to marvel how it
+was they found themselves on board the _Capella_, since only sheer good
+luck had saved U75 from being doomed during every hour of their brief
+and involuntary detention.
+
+"Yes, we can mop up the German submarines quicker than they can turn
+them out," said the Sub.  "Of course I don't mean to say that a few of
+them won't get a smack at some of our ships for some time to come; but
+all the same we are giving them beans.  From a strictly professional
+point of view we would be sorry if Old Turps abandoned his 'effectual'
+blockade.  Our chances of having a high old game with the
+unterseebooten would be considerably reduced."
+
+"There are still some in the English Channel," hazarded Vernon.
+
+"Yes, a few; but have you noticed how those fellows fight shy of Dover?
+They shun it like the plague.  It's horribly unhealthy for them.  D'ye
+know why?  Perhaps you wouldn't have paid much attention to it, but
+some months ago the Admiralty issued a 'Notice to Mariners', stating
+that the Straits of Dover were heavily mined, and that all shipping was
+to pass through the Downs within three miles of the Kentish coast.
+
+"So it's fairly safe to assume that the few stray unterseebooten that
+are still lurking in the Channel have made the passage round the north
+coast of Scotland.  It's only a matter of time before we bag the lot, I
+fancy."
+
+"And our submarines?" enquired Ross.
+
+"Have fewer opportunities since the Hun battleships and cruisers have
+such a decided inclination to remain in harbour," rejoined Fox.  "When
+there's a chance, you can bet your bottom dollar that our fellows seize
+it.  Quite recently one of our submarines found herself alone and
+disabled in the Bight of Heligoland.  Undismayed, her
+lieutenant-commander signalled to a passing German trawler, covered her
+with his guns, and made the Hun tow the crippled submarine into British
+waters.  Then he released his involuntary benefactor, but before so
+doing can you guess what he did?"
+
+"No," replied both lads.
+
+"Made the Huns line up on deck and sing the 'Hymn of Hate'.  You can
+imagine the surprise of the trawler's men, who, judging by the
+treatment meted out to our fishermen by the German submarines, expected
+nothing less than imprisonment and the loss of their boat.  But it's
+close on one bell," remarked Fox at length.  "You're messing with the
+skipper to-day, I believe.  He's quite a decent sort when you know him
+properly, but it takes a bit of doing."
+
+A seaman strode up to the bell and gave it a sharp stroke.  Just then a
+messenger hurried from the diminutive "wireless" room abaft the
+chart-house and, leaping down the ladder at a single bound, knocked at
+the door of the Captain's cabin.
+
+"Stow those things away, Sparkes," exclaimed Captain Syllenger.  "Lunch
+will have to wait."
+
+He dashed out of his cabin.  On the way to the bridge he passed Fox and
+the two midshipmen.
+
+"You'll have to tighten your belts, my lads," he announced.  "We've
+just had a message through.  A strafed unterseeboot has been spotted
+trying to get into Spithead.  If we don't nab her within half an hour,
+I'll eat my hat!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII
+
+A Double Bag
+
+It was a sea-plane, flying at fifteen hundred feet above the Warner and
+The Nab Lightships, that had detected an elongated shadow creeping
+stealthily over the shingly bottom close to the Dean Tail Buoy.  The
+shadow was that of a German unterseeboot, since none of the British
+submarines were known to be in the eastern approaches to Spithead.
+Evidently she had gone out of her course, for instead of being in the
+main channel she was well to the north of it.  More than likely the
+strong east-going tide, which hereabout surges at such a rate that it
+causes the shingle 30 or 40 feet beneath the surface to emit a deep
+rumble, had taken the unterseeboot in its grip.
+
+Promptly the sea-plane wirelessed the news, and quickly a "general
+call" was sent to the patrol vessels in the vicinity.  The _Capella_
+was one of the craft that picked up the welcome order.
+
+She was now only seven sea miles distant from the Dean Tail Buoy.
+Within ten minutes of the receipt of the wireless she was on the
+spot--one of the very first of a regular hornet flotilla bent upon
+adding yet another of Von Tirpitz's pets to the "bag".
+
+For the next quarter of an hour it looked as if a novel kind of marine
+waltz was in progress.  Nearly a score of swift vessels were executing
+fantastic movements at full speed, circling and interchanging positions
+until it seemed as if collisions were impossible to avoid.
+
+Their object was to thoroughly bewilder the already doomed U-boat, for,
+if possible, her capture in a practically intact condition was desired.
+In very deep water, salvage of a sunken submarine was out of the
+question; here, in a comparatively shallow depth, and close to an
+important naval base, to which the prize could be taken with little
+trouble, the opportunity for capture rather than instant destruction
+was too good to be missed.
+
+Suddenly a cloud of white smoke shot up from the sea.  Its appearance
+was greeted by hearty cheers from the patrol vessels.  It was a signal
+that the U-boat, in her attempt to find deep water, had floundered
+blindly into the trap.  Over and over again the hunters passed, towing
+non-explosive grapnels, until it was certain that the prey was helpless
+in their toils.
+
+Then, in obedience to an order from the senior officer, the swift
+vessels withdrew for nearly three cables' length from the spot where
+the boat lay.  Two slow but powerfully engined trawlers approached at a
+cable's length abreast, towing the bight of a massive steel hawser
+between.  Doing little more than drift with the tide they crept past
+the submerged U-boat, one on either side of the mark-buoy that
+indicated her position.
+
+Presently the strain on the hawser increased.  It was only by making
+full use of the twin-screws that the trawlers were able to prevent
+themselves from swinging together.  The steel rope stretched until it
+resembled two metal bars which bore silent testimony to the strain.
+
+Just then the two vessels shot ahead.  Although the hawser was still
+intact, it no longer took any strain.  But its work was done.  The
+bight, engaging the conning-tower of the unterseeboot, had turned the
+submarine on its side.  In the space of a few seconds the deadly fumes
+from the capsized batteries had almost painlessly accounted for the
+crew of the U-boat, who themselves had neither pity nor consideration
+for the hapless victims, men, women, and children, massacred against
+all dictates of humanity and convention of civilized warfare.
+
+"A bit of work for the dockyard lighters to-morrow," commented
+Sub-lieutenant Barry, as the _Capella_ parted company to resume her run
+up-Channel.  "They'll raise the U-boat, and take her into dry dock,
+before the sulphuric acid has had time to do much damage to her
+mechanism."
+
+"I shouldn't be surprised if there were another U-boat knocking
+around," remarked Vernon.  "From our limited experience we know that
+they work either in pairs or threes."
+
+"Then the worse for them," rejoined Barry.  "It would be a great wheeze
+to bag two of them in one day.  Desperate diseases need desperate
+remedies, you know."
+
+Therein the Sub voiced the unanimous opinion of the British Navy.  At
+the commencement of the war, the torpedoing of several battleships and
+cruisers by German submarines aroused no enmity within the hearts of
+the British tars.  They realized that a warship is "fair sport" to the
+submarines of the opposing side.  To run the risk of being blown up was
+one of the excitements to undergo in the course of duty.  But when it
+came to torpedoing helpless merchantmen, and jeering at the
+death-struggles of the unfortunate crews, Jack Tar began to regard the
+unterseebooten in the light of pirates and murderers.  The wanton
+destruction of the _Lusitania_, accompanied by the appalling death-roll
+of non-combatants, women and children, literally sounded the
+death-knell of the crews of von Tirpitz's jolly-Roger-flying
+submarines.  In their methods of "frightfulness" they had overreached
+themselves.  They had sown a wind: they were now reaping a whirlwind
+with a vengeance.
+
+And now the great silent Navy was paying back von Tirpitz in almost,
+but not quite, his own coin.  While the much-advertised blockade of
+Great Britain was petering out, British submarines were playing havoc
+with German shipping in the Baltic--a sea which the Teutons regarded as
+being almost their very own.  Yet what a difference marked the methods
+adopted by the humane commanders of our submarines when dealing with
+German mercantile shipping.  A punctilious regard for the safety of the
+crews of overhauled merchantmen won admiration even from the seamen of
+the destroyed vessels.  Humiliation and reproach seemed to haunt the
+white-bearded dotard, whose hands had sought in vain to wrest the
+trident from Britannia's virile grasp.
+
+At about five in the afternoon the _Capella_ arrived at her station off
+Beachy Head, relieving her sister ship the _Markab_, that, with three
+other motor-driven craft, had been engaged in a vigorous, but for the
+most part uneventful, patrol.
+
+Day and night for a fortnight at a stretch, unless anything unforeseen
+took place, the _Capella_ was to cruise up and down, keeping a smart
+look-out for any sign of an object resembling a hostile periscope.  In
+order to economize her fuel supply her speed was reduced to 10 knots.
+It was then that her bad qualities showed themselves.  With her shallow
+draught and high freeboard she rolled like a barrel, since speed was
+essential to impart steadiness.  The motion was certainly
+disconcerting, although it did not imply that the _Capella_ was
+unseaworthy.
+
+"'Fraid our chances of bagging another U-boat to-day are off," remarked
+Barry to Ross.
+
+It was within half an hour of sunset.  The chums had been temporarily
+separated.  It was Vernon's "watch below".  The senior Sub and young
+Trefusis were on the bridge.  In spite of the still-prevailing east
+wind it was a grand evening.  Three miles away, broad on the starboard
+beam, the chalk cliffs known as the Seven Sisters were beginning to be
+tinted by the crimson hues of the western sky.  To seaward, three large
+vessels were in sight.  One, a liner bound down-Channel, was pelting
+along at such a pace with the wind that the smoke from her funnels was
+rising almost perpendicularly.  Forging ahead in the opposite direction
+were two big tramps, the smoke from their funnels, beaten down by the
+strong breeze, trailing across the surface of the water for a couple of
+miles in their wake.
+
+"An object lesson," remarked Barry.  "The arteries of the Empire.  Hang
+it all!  The blockade reminds me of a pigmy treacherously stealing up
+behind a giant and trying to cut his jugular vein.  Instead, he merely
+scratched a comparatively unimportant capillary, and feels mighty sorry
+for himself when the giant turns and scruffs him by the neck."
+
+Leaning over the bridge-rails, the Sub startled his companion by
+bellowing in a voice loud enough to be heard a mile away:
+
+"On look-outs!  Stand by bow and stern lights!"
+
+The _Capella_ was making preparations for the night.  Unlike the armed
+merchantmen that are compelled to scour the North Sea, summer and
+winter alike, without showing the faintest glimmer of a lamp, the
+_Capella_ observed the rules and regulations for preventing collision
+at sea.  Her port, starboard, and bow lamps were lighted by
+electricity, but, in order to guard against possible break-down of
+current, oil lamps had also to be trimmed and lighted, ready, should
+occasion serve, to take their places.
+
+It was part of Ross's duty to report to the officer of the watch that
+these lamps were in order, and also, at regular intervals, that the
+navigation lights were burning brightly.
+
+Presently the Sub prepared to take a cross-bearing.  He was fairly
+certain that the _Capella_ had reached the westernmost limit of her
+patrol-ground.  From that point she was to proceed due south for 10 sea
+miles, and then due east for 20 miles until she fell in with her
+"opposite number".
+
+While Barry was thus engaged, Ross noticed a sail about 2 miles distant
+on the starboard quarter.
+
+"By Jove!" he muttered as he brought his glass to bear upon the
+stranger.  "That's a funny rig."
+
+The craft was a "two-sticker".  She was square-rigged on the foremast,
+carrying fore-topsail and fore-course.  No jibs were set; neither, as
+far as he could see, was any sail set on the mainmast.  The vessel's
+sides were painted green with a broad red band.
+
+Even as he kept the craft under observation she starboarded her helm,
+shaping a course that would converge upon that of the rearmost of the
+two tramps.  By so doing she exposed a considerable portion of her
+broadside.
+
+Ross gave an exclamation of astonishment.  Above the green sides
+appeared what was undoubtedly the conning-tower and housed periscope of
+a submarine.  "Submarine on the starboard quarter, sir!" he reported.
+
+"What!" exclaimed Barry, levelling his telescope.  "By Jove, yes!  What
+luck!"
+
+The unterseeboot had, of course, noticed the _Capella_, and had
+mistaken her for a trawler.  She realized that she ran a risk in case
+the latter might be armed, but, trusting to her disguise, she hoped to
+get within torpedo range of the tramp--a vessel of over 3000 tons--sink
+her, and make her escape in the confusion that was bound to ensue.  On
+the other hand, her Kapitan had good reasons for thinking that the
+supposed trawler was not one of the armed patrol, since they usually
+worked in company.  By rigging canvas bulwarks and setting sail upon
+dummy masts, he was able to approach with little fear of detection.
+
+"Action!"
+
+Quickly the _Capella's_ crew were at their stations.  The quick-firers
+were loaded, and their screens lowered so as not to impede their arc of
+fire.  Until these preparations were complete the vessel still held on
+her course.
+
+Then Captain Syllenger, who had come on deck, telegraphed for full
+speed ahead.  Like a racehorse the _Capella_ leapt forward.
+
+A double, converging line of white foam marked the track of a torpedo
+from the doomed U-boat.  By a slight alteration of helm the _Capella_
+avoided it.  The action was hardly necessary: it was merely a matter of
+precaution, since the _Capella's_ peculiarities of construction made
+her practically immune from torpedo attack.
+
+Captain Syllenger had no intention of ramming his opponent.  Ramming
+with a lightly built vessel, such as the _Capella_, would only be
+employed as a last resource.
+
+At an almost point-blank range of 400 yards both bow guns were fired
+simultaneously.  There was no need for another shot.  One of the
+projectiles, hitting the U-boat at the base of the conning-tower, tore
+a jagged hole a couple of feet in diameter.  The other shell hit her
+about 10 feet from the bows, and, with an erratic peculiarity that such
+missiles have after the first impact, was deflected downward, expending
+the full force of its explosive charge in the submarine's bow
+torpedo-room.
+
+In a moment the luckless U-boat was done for.  A huge column of smoke
+marked the spot where she had disappeared like a stone, while flying
+pieces of metal hurtled far and wide through the air.  Several of the
+fragments clattered upon the _Capella's_ deck as she swung round to
+avoid any possibility of fouling debris.  Of the crew not a man was to
+be seen.  Those who had not been killed by the shell-fire had been
+wiped out by the explosion of their own torpedoes.
+
+"We've pulled off a double event to-day, after all," remarked
+Sub-lieutenant Fox as he disappeared down the companion-ladder to
+resume his interrupted "watch below".  "Barry has got his wish."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII
+
+The Smoke-signals
+
+For the next ten days nothing occurred beyond the ordinary routine.
+Even Ross and Vernon, to whom everything was at first a novelty, began
+to feel the irksomeness of the constant and vigilant patrol.  No
+hostile submarines made their appearance; there were not even any
+reports, true or otherwise, that they had been sighted.  It was the
+same all along the English Channel--"nothin' doing".  It seemed as if
+the unterseebooten had finally given up these waters as a "bad egg".
+
+Yet it would be most injudicious for the naval authorities to relax
+their watchfulness.  Areas of strategic importance must still be
+closely guarded, since it was just possible that the wily Teuton would
+refrain from submarine warfare in the Channel until the patrol-boats'
+crews were lulled into a sense of false optimism.
+
+The only break in the monotony was the occasional and welcome
+appearance of a motor-boat from Shoreham, bringing off fresh supplies,
+newspapers and letters for the patrol vessels.
+
+Amongst Ross's correspondence was a letter from his father.  Admiral
+Trefusis gave no indication of what he was doing, merely a brief
+statement that he was still "somewhere in the North Sea".  He
+congratulated his son upon his escape, and mentioned that he had heard
+from the captain of H.M.S. _Tremendous_ with reference to his son's
+action in warning the battleship.  But although the Admiral did not
+express himself very enthusiastically on paper, he was as pleased as
+only a proud father can be at his boy's display of gallantry and
+resource.  "Under the circumstances," he wrote, "I think you did right
+in temporarily abandoning your preparation for Sandhurst.  No doubt you
+will acquit yourself in your present position as a Trefusis should do.
+I was certainly surprised to hear about that fellow Ramblethorne.  He
+always appeared to be a really decent man.  It only shows how careful
+one has to be when dealing with a highly organized enemy."
+
+Amongst Vernon's batch of correspondence was a letter from
+Detective-inspector Hawke.  It was couched in semi-official language, a
+survival of days long ago when the Inspector was a budding constable
+and had to submit countless written reports to his superiors.
+
+There was, he wrote, no definite news concerning Ramblethorne,
+otherwise von Hauptwald.  The local police had taken up the case, and,
+assisted by the military, were still scouring the country.  As usual,
+there were inaccurate and misleading reports from various parts of the
+country.  It was generally accepted that the spy was being hidden by
+some of his compatriots who, by indulgence of the British Government,
+were still at large in the country, or else that he had succeeded in
+getting away on board a neutral ship.
+
+The inquest on von Ruhle had taken place, with the anticipated result,
+a verdict of _felo de se_ being returned by the jury.  No evidence had
+been submitted as to the dead man's real occupation.  Under the name of
+Cornelius Vanderhuit his body was handed over to the authorities for
+interment.
+
+But the case did not end there.  It remained for the competent
+Authorities to decide the steps to be taken with reference to the
+papers that had been found in von Ruhle's possession.
+
+"I am keeping von Ruhle's 'malacca' as a memento," concluded Hawke.
+"It may help me to discriminate between it and a portable metal tripod,
+and save me from being placed under arrest by the military.
+Fortunately, upon the last occasion, I did not meet with my Waterloo."
+
+"The old chap feels a bit sore about it, I can see," remarked Ross.
+"He's written a good deal more than he evidently intended.  However, he
+looks like 'making good' this time."
+
+"It's a pity Ramblethorne slipped through the detectives' fingers,"
+said Vernon, as he prepared to go on deck.  "That fellow's bound to
+cause trouble until he's laid by the heels."
+
+It was Noel Fox's "trick".  The Sub was standing on the bridge with his
+eye glued to his telescope.  A mile or so inland, on the summit of the
+South Downs where they approach Beachy Head, three columns of smoke
+were rising in the still air.  There was nothing extraordinary in that.
+It might be a farmer burning rubbish on his fields; but what attracted
+the Sub's attention was the remarkable and systematic changes in the
+density of the smoke.  At one moment the two outside pillars were
+heavy, the centre one being little more than a thin haze; at another
+the conditions would be reversed.
+
+Fox decided to take action.  Rapidly the _Capella_ closed with the
+shore, until she was within signalling distance of a coast-guard
+station.
+
+The station in question was not manned by coast-guards.  Not considered
+important, its complement was depleted at the outbreak of hostilities,
+most of the men joining the large armoured cruisers.  A chief officer
+and a boatman alone remained.  These were at a later period augmented
+by a party of Sea Scouts.
+
+As soon as the _Capella_ had "made her number", a signaller took up his
+position on the roof of the chart-house.
+
+"Fires burning one mile inland to north-west of coast-guard station,"
+he semaphored.  "Suspect smoke-signals.  Investigate and report."
+
+Keeping his telescope bearing on shore, Vernon watched the result of
+the signal.  Promptly half a dozen Scouts, mounted on bicycles, set off
+to the position indicated.  Their progress was hidden by an intervening
+clump of trees, but in less than a quarter of an hour they returned.
+By this time the smoke had disappeared.  One of their number worked the
+semaphore attached to the station.
+
+"Fires made with damp straw.  Found old blankets apparently used to
+stifle smoke.  Saw large car stationary; made towards Lewes on
+approach; number known; have informed police."
+
+"Smart youngsters!" exclaimed Captain Syllenger.  "They've helped to
+nip some little plan in the bud.  We'll have to be jolly careful for
+the next few days, I expect.  Did you make a note of the fog-signals,
+Mr. Fox?"
+
+"I did, sir," replied the Sub, producing a leaf of a notebook covered
+with an unintelligible number of lines.  "Each of these strokes
+represents a column of smoke according to its position."
+
+"I can make nothing of it," remarked Syllenger.  "At any rate I'll send
+your result to the Admiralty with the utmost dispatch.  Take her in,
+Mr. Fox, and bring up where you find the two-fathom mark."
+
+The _Capella_ headed nearer towards the shore, a leads-man sounding
+until the required depth was found.  One of the boats was lowered,
+manned, and rowed to the coast-guard station, Sub-lieutenant Barry
+being in charge, with Ross as his immediate subordinate.
+
+"I want this to be forwarded to the Admiralty with the least possible
+delay," he announced, addressing the chief officer.  "How long do you
+think it will take to get through?"
+
+"Too late for the eleven something train from Brighton, sir," was the
+reply.  "There's a gentleman in the village who has a big car.  He's a
+member of the Volunteer Training Corps.  No doubt he'll take it as far
+as Lewes.  Why, sir, here's the gent himself!  Mr. Hyde's his name."
+
+The newcomer was a sparely built man of below medium height.  He looked
+about thirty years of age.  In reality he was nearly fifty.  Having
+vainly attempted to obtain a commission in the R.N.R. and the Army, he
+had joined the V.T.C. in the hope that, perhaps, some day his services
+might be utilized in a very practical form.  Now his chance was at hand.
+
+He had strolled down to the beach on noticing a boat putting off from
+the patrol vessel.
+
+"Lewes?  Certainly," he replied in answer to Barry's question.  "I
+doubt whether you'll save much.  Why not let me take the message right
+to the Admiralty?  I'd like to do it, 'pon my word I would."
+
+The Sub hesitated.  Perhaps the stranger might be all right; but he
+might be all wrong.  One had to be very careful in these times.  Yet
+the offer was a tempting one.  If possible, it was most desirable to be
+able to decipher the transcription of these mysterious columns of smoke.
+
+"I say, Trefusis," he said, "you've had a fairly long time afloat; what
+do you say to a run up to town?  I'm sure this gentleman would make no
+objection to giving you a seat in his car."
+
+"With the greatest pleasure," declared Mr. Hyde.
+
+"Thanks!" rejoined Barry.  "Of course the honour of delivering the
+letter will be yours, sir.  Mr. Trefusis accompanies you merely as a
+passenger.  We'll stand by to pick you up, Trefusis.  I'll make it all
+right with the skipper."
+
+The Sub accompanied Mr. Hyde and the midshipman to the garage, which
+was about four minutes' walk from the coast-guard station.  While the
+man was getting out the car (he was his own chauffeur), Barry seized
+the opportunity of telling Ross to be on his guard, in case anything
+suspicious occurred.
+
+With a terrific bound the powerful car started on its sixty-mile
+journey.  Between the sea and Lewes the needle of the speed-indicator
+never fell below 40 miles an hour, until at times the car was running
+at 60.  Village after village was passed at almost break-neck speed.
+In vain, sleepy rural constables sought to hold up the reckless driver.
+Discretion was the better part of valour, so they stood aside and
+attempted to note the number on the identification plate of the car.
+Again in vain.  All they could see and swallow was a cloud of white,
+chalky dust that hung thickly on the sultry air long after the car was
+out of sight and hearing.
+
+The hills around East Grinstead it surmounted at 40 miles an hour,
+dashing down the inclines at the speed of an express train, and
+swerving time after time to avoid lumbering farm wagons.
+
+At Croydon Mr. Hyde wisely slowed down.  He had covered 49 miles in
+exactly fifty-five minutes, but twenty-eight minutes later the car drew
+up under the Admiralty Arch.
+
+"Room 445 is the one I want," he explained to Ross.  "I know my way
+about here, you know.  I've several relations at the Admiralty.  Come
+along: the car won't hurt where she is."
+
+"Your pass, sir," demanded a Metropolitan policeman who, with a naval
+pensioned petty officer, was stationed at the door.
+
+"Haven't one," replied Mr. Hyde.  "Urgent business--see?" and he
+produced the envelope, bearing the words "On His Majesty's Service", in
+which was enclosed Captain Syllenger's communication.
+
+The policeman was the essence of imperturbable dignity.
+
+"No use, sir; you must have a pass.  They are obtainable across the
+road there."
+
+"It will mean at least twenty minutes' delay," muttered the motorist
+savagely, as he turned away.  "Come on, Mr. Trefusis, let's try our
+luck across the way."
+
+As Ross descended the short flight of stone steps leading from the
+lobby to the street, he nearly cannoned into a couple of naval officers
+who were about to enter the building.  Suddenly remembering that he was
+in uniform, the midshipman brought his right hand smartly to the peak
+of his cap.  As he did so, he recognized that one of the naval men was
+his father.
+
+The recognition was mutual.
+
+"Hullo, pater!"
+
+"Hullo, Ross!  What brings you here?  Duty, eh?  It's the same in my
+case.  Sorry I can't have you to lunch, but must catch the first train
+north.  This is the first time I've come up to town since the war
+started.  In any case I'm not sorry that I am not stopping the night
+here.  Judging by reports, it's a jolly sight too dangerous for me.
+Don't fancy being run over by a taxi in a dark main thoroughfare.  Give
+me the North Sea any day.  Well, I must be moving.  Can't keep My Lords
+waiting, you know.  Good-bye, Ross!"
+
+It was Admiral Paul Trefusis' way.  Whenever he had any business on
+hand that kept him from his ship, he invariably spoke in short, jerky
+sentences.  Ross knew his parent's little mannerism.
+
+"One moment, pater," he exclaimed.  "We're in an awful hurry too----"
+
+"Don't look like it," growled the Admiral good-naturedly.  "You were
+ambling out like an old shellback.  Always execute orders at the
+double: that's my advice to budding midshipmen.  Well, what is it?"
+
+As briefly as possible, Ross told his parent of the rebuff Mr. Hyde and
+he had received, and of the matter that brought them at 50 miles an
+hour from a remote Sussex coast-guard station.
+
+Making a hurried excuse to his companion, the Admiral skipped up the
+steps into the lobby, Ross and his fellow-traveller following closely.
+
+The policeman naturally asked for no pass from a Flag officer in
+uniform, but he was on the point of stopping his companions when the
+messenger recognized the Admiral as his former captain.  His apologies
+surprised even the stolid policeman.
+
+"Don't apologize for doing your duty, my man," remarked Admiral
+Trefusis.  "Hope you're fit.  Must have a yarn with you when I've more
+time.  Come along, Ross."
+
+Having seen Mr. Hyde and Ross safely to the outside of the door of Room
+445, the Admiral abruptly took his departure.
+
+In reply to a knock the door was opened by a very tired-looking clerk,
+who was bravely bearing up under the strain of having to work ninety
+hours a week, including Sundays.  Having explained his business, Mr.
+Hyde was shown into the presence of an official whose talent was little
+short of miraculous.
+
+A dozen precise and pointed questions put him in full possession of all
+the facts bearing upon the document that he required.  He touched an
+electric bell.  An assistant hurried to his desk.
+
+"Bring me the papers on the von Ruhle case," he ordered in an undertone.
+
+In less than half an hour the transcription was completed, although the
+_Capella's_ officer of the watch had not taken down the actual
+commencement of the smoke-signal.  Then, having "pressed" the paper in
+order to obtain a duplicate copy, the official placed it in an
+envelope, which he secured with an imposing wax seal.
+
+"No mistake about it, the war has bucked the civilian staff at the
+Admiralty," observed Mr. Hyde to Ross as they gained the street.  "I
+can remember a time when all you had to do was to mention someone's
+name, and you had practically a free entry.  Your particular pal could
+always contrive to have an hour's yarn with you, and perhaps an
+interval for refreshment.  They know what working at high pressure
+means now."
+
+Hyde was more cautious on the return journey.  He was well within the
+limit that he had set himself.  An hour and forty minutes later, the
+car drew up outside the coast-guard station.
+
+"Captain Syllenger presents his compliments, Mr. Hyde, and requests
+your company on board," said Sub-lieutenant Barry when the _Capella's_
+boat arrived to take off the midshipman.  "Ton my word, you haven't
+been long.  We didn't expect you back before six o'clock."
+
+Having received his guest, Captain Syllenger led the way to his cabin,
+Barry and Ross being included in the party.  The skipper's face glowed
+with satisfaction when he had opened the envelope, for the signal as
+decoded was as follows:
+
+"(words missing) closely patrolled.  Unable to provide stores here.
+Will attempt removal of (word missing) from Station 123 on Friday
+night.  Will signal from Station 125 at 1 a.m. on Saturday if possible.
+Transports leaving by Needles Channel at daybreak."
+
+Following this was an explanatory note.
+
+"Station 123 is stated to be in Keyhaven Marshes.  Station 125 one mile
+west of white house at Milford-on-Sea."
+
+"Humph!" ejaculated Captain Syllenger.  "It looks as if there's trouble
+in store for some gentlemen of marked Teutonic sympathies.  I only hope
+we'll have a chance of being off Station 125."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX
+
+That Friday Night
+
+Three hours later H.M.S. _Capella_ received the following order by
+wireless:--
+
+"Await relief by _Taurus_, then proceed to Rendezvous Y, Portsmouth
+Command.  _Capella_ to be temporarily attached to Western Inner Patrol."
+
+The meaning of the message was plain to all on board.  The _Capella_
+was to proceed to Rendezvous Y, which according to Admiralty
+instructions was off Yarmouth, Isle of Wight, where a flotilla of small
+craft was patrolling day and night, as a precautionary measure in the
+unlikely event of any hostile craft forcing the formidable defences of
+the western entrance to the Solent.
+
+At eight on the following morning the _Taurus_ arrived on the station,
+and with the least possible delay the _Capella_ made for the west'ard.
+
+Only one incident marked the run.  A few miles from the Royal Sovereign
+Lightship, the _Capella_ sighted a number of submarines running on the
+surface.  They were on Particular Service, and although opportunities
+for torpedoing a hostile surface craft were very remote, the submarines
+were constantly rendering yeoman service by keeping the approaches to
+the German North Sea ports under close observation.  On rare occasions,
+when a German light-cruiser or destroyer did venture beyond the
+protection of the mine-fields and guns of the land-batteries, British
+submarines were not backward in seizing their chance of letting loose
+"tinfish" against their quarry.
+
+Having arrived off Yarmouth, Captain Syllenger reported himself to the
+senior officer.  He came back beaming.  The _Capella_ was to take part
+in combined sea and land operations for the capture of the German
+agents, who were supplying petrol to one of the submarines, and also
+for the capture of the U-boat.
+
+The eventful Friday evening came at last.  The _Capella_, in company
+with four first-class torpedo-boats, was to be ready at a signal from
+Hurst to make a dash through the North Channel.  A fleet of armed
+trawlers from the Poole base was to operate farther out to sea, in
+order to cut off the U-boat's retreat should she be lucky enough to
+escape the attentions of the _Capella_ and her consorts.
+
+At ten o'clock the east-going tidal stream began to set through the
+Needles Channel.  Half an hour later it ran with a velocity exceeding
+five knots.  The _Capella_, moving at a rate equal to that of the tide,
+kept about half a mile from the Isle of Wight shore, with the white,
+occulting light of the Needles just visible to the north of Cliff End
+Fort.
+
+It was a perfectly calm night, overcast, but with no wind.  A dull
+rumble, rising and falling in volume, could be heard from the direction
+of the open sea.
+
+"Breakers on the Shingles--a large bank on the starboard hand of the
+Needles Channel," explained Barry in answer to the midshipmen's enquiry.
+
+"Then it means that bad weather is approaching," said Ross, who had had
+plenty of opportunities of observing the phenomenon of "ground swells"
+on the North Cornish coast.  "If it's like this, the U-boat won't be
+able to make direct communication with the shore."
+
+The appearance of Captain Syllenger on the bridge put an end to
+conversation.  The officers, by the aid of telescopes and binoculars,
+kept the Hampshire shore under close observation.
+
+To the naked eye nothing was visible but a dark bank of trees.  Not a
+light was to be seen, although there were several houses in the
+vicinity.  The position of Lymington, in time of peace discernible by
+reason of a strong blaze of light, could only be determined by the
+feeble glow of the high red light marking the course up the river.
+
+"It's nearly midnight," observed the skipper.  "If our friends the
+Germans are going to shift their supplies from here to Milford, they'll
+have to be pretty sharp.  Seems to me like a case of 'nuthin' doing'."
+
+Hardly were the words out of his mouth, when the silence was broken by
+a peremptory hail.  The sound travelled clearly across the water,
+although the person shouting must have been a mile and a half away.
+
+Then came the jumbled noise of men's voices, quickly followed by two
+rifle-shots.  The voices then died away, and, as far as the listeners
+on the _Capella_ could hear, all was quiet.
+
+"That's soon over, whatever it was, sir," remarked Barry.
+
+"Hurst calling up, sir," announced a signalman, as a light blinked
+rapidly from the fort guarding the Hampshire side of the narrow
+channel.  It was the order to proceed at full speed to the position
+previously decided upon.
+
+Although the torpedo-boats were speedy craft, the _Capella_ left them
+behind "hands down".  Fortunately there were no search-lights to baffle
+her quartermaster, for those of both Hurst and the batteries on the
+Isle of Wight shore had been previously switched off.  Since the Needle
+Channel was closed to all mercantile shipping, the _Capella_ could, and
+did, without risk, extinguish her navigation lights.  Only the
+phosphorescent spray from her sharp cutwater marked her position.
+
+Suddenly she ported helm, just in time to avoid a collision with a long
+dark shape that proved to be an unterseeboot in the act of diving.  Her
+commander had detected the pulsations of the _Capella_ motors, but he
+was too late.
+
+Round spun the patrol vessel.  From her quarter, a long length of
+something that resembled an exaggerated string of sausages was paid
+out.  At the rate that the _Capella_ was circling, it was impossible
+for the U-boat to escape from her toils.  Dive to a safe depth she
+could not, since the maximum depth was but 5 3/4 fathoms.
+
+The last of the "sausages", to which was attached stout flexible wire,
+disappeared beneath the water.  Then a jerk upon the wire announced the
+gratifying fact that the fugitive submarine had fouled the string of
+sausages, which was in reality a number of gun-cotton charges, primed
+and connected to a powerful battery by means of an insulated wire.
+
+Sub-lieutenant Fox, who was standing by the firing-key, needed no
+orders.  His fingers pressed the ebonite disc.  A hundred yards astern
+of the _Capella_ a column of water was flying high in the air, followed
+by a tremendous roar.  For one minute the vessel rocked violently in
+the agitated waters, then, circling, she made for the spot under which
+the explosion had occurred.  With a splash a mark-buoy was dropped
+overboard to indicate the position of the shattered U-boat.  By this
+time the torpedo-boats had arrived on the scene.
+
+"A deuce of a commotion on shore, Barry," exclaimed the skipper.
+
+"I should be surprised if there were not, sir," replied the Sub.  "The
+racket was enough to smash every window within a couple of miles of the
+beach.  They're signalling, sir."
+
+"German submarine's boat rowing off.  Intercept her," was the signal
+spelt out by the long and short flashes.
+
+"More work," remarked Barry.  "It's like looking for a needle in a
+bottle of hay.  Shall I order the searchlight to be run, sir?"
+
+"Very good," replied Captain Syllenger.  "But before you do so you
+might signal to Hurst, and request that all available search-light be
+brought to bear in this direction."
+
+Soon the hitherto pitch-dark sea was flooded in a blaze of light.
+Giant beams from the Isle of Wight shore joined with those of Hurst
+Castle to sweep slowly across the waves, supplementing the twin rays
+projected from the two search-lights on the _Capella's_ bridge.
+
+It was indeed a brilliant spectacle.  The _Capella_ and the
+torpedo-boats seemed outlined in silver.  Along the shore as far as
+Hengistbury Head, the low line of cliffs was thrown into strong relief
+against the dark background of sky.  The crest of every wave seemed as
+if made of delicate filigree work.  Nothing afloat could hope to escape
+detection within the radius of action of the concentrated millions of
+candle-power search-lights.
+
+Less than a mile away, and about the same distance from shore, a small
+black object bobbed buoyantly upon the waves.  It was the ill-fated
+U-boat's canvas dinghy, apparently empty.
+
+Down bore the _Capella_, her search-lights fixed upon the object of her
+search.  The boat was not deserted.  Lying at full length on the bottom
+boards were two men, who had adopted that position, in the vain hope of
+escaping detection.
+
+As the patrol vessel approached, they sat up and raised dolorous cries
+of "Mercy, Englishmen!"
+
+"Chuck it, Fritz!" shouted one of the British seamen.  "You won't get
+hurt.  You ain't in a strafed submarine now, you know."
+
+"Silence!" ordered the skipper.  "Stand by there.  Get that boat
+aboard.  See they don't sling anything overboard."
+
+There was precious little that the German seamen could throw overboard,
+for when the canvas boat was placed on the Capellus deck it was found
+to contain only a pair of oars and two crutches.  What the German
+sailors hoped to do had they escaped detection was a matter for
+conjecture, for without a compass, food, and water, and in a frail
+cockle-shell with every indication of bad weather approaching, certain
+death stared them in the face.
+
+Finding themselves well treated, the Germans grew quite communicative.
+They freely admitted that they expected to obtain a considerable
+quantity of petrol from their agents ashore.  They did not know their
+names, or if they did they professed complete ignorance on the point.
+Their craft, numbered for some vague reason U7, was built at Altona,
+and completed only a fortnight previously.  In addition to her normal
+crew of twenty-eight officers and men, she carried five officers and
+ten men for instructional purposes.  She was one of four that had come
+round Cape Wrath and the West and South coasts of Ireland, rather than
+risk the hazardous passage through the Straits of Dover, or the almost
+equally dangerous North Channel between Scotland and Ireland.  Two of
+the five were missing; the other was supposed to be in the
+neighbourhood of Cape Ushant.  U7's particular mission was to intercept
+transports that were known to be leaving Southampton for the French
+coast.
+
+The men admitted that they had been tricked.  A light had been flashed
+seaward, and although the signal was not strictly in accordance with
+the prearranged plan, it was sufficiently accurate to delude the U7's
+Lieutenant-Commander.
+
+The German officer had shown considerable skill and audacity in closing
+with the shore so close to the numerous and powerful batteries.  He
+dwelt upon the almost absolute certainty of the gunners devoting their
+attention solely to the Needles Channel, and since it was a little past
+the time of dead low water the intervening Shingles Bank, which in
+places rears itself 20 feet above the sea, would afford an efficient
+screen from the search-lights.
+
+But he had reckoned without the patrol vessels.  Barely had the
+U-boat's collapsible rowed a hundred yards from her parent when the
+_Capella_ raced up, and promptly put another hostile submarine to her
+credit.
+
+Early next morning, the _Capella_ having returned to her station off
+Yarmouth to await orders, Vernon Haye went ashore in charge of the
+whaler in order to pick up mails and secure fresh provisions.
+
+Arriving alongside the little stone quay, he left a boat-keeper in
+charge and proceeded towards the post office, while the coxswain and
+the rest of the men went in search of the much-desired commodities in
+the shape of fresh butter and milk.
+
+Just as Vernon was about to enter the post office, he nearly collided
+with a very sleepy-looking subaltern in the uniform of the Royal
+Garrison Artillery.
+
+"By Jove, Barraclough!" he exclaimed.  "I didn't expect to see you
+here."
+
+Barraclough was an Upper Sixth man at the same school as Haye, but had
+left four terms previously.  On the outbreak of war he had applied for,
+and had obtained, a commission, and had been stationed, somewhat to his
+disappointment, at Hurst Castle.  Beyond a few false alarms and a
+liberal experience in target practice, his existence at that isolated
+fortress bordered on the monotonous.  He was simply on thorns to be
+able to proceed to the Front; the probability was that he would have to
+"do his bit" for his country at a spot within 20 miles of his home
+until the termination of the war.
+
+"Bless my soul, Haye!" he rejoined.  "Whoever would have thought to see
+you here, and in naval get-up.  How long have you been in the Service,
+and what ship are you on?"
+
+"Only a few weeks; and I'm on the _Capella_ with Trefusis."
+
+"Trefusis, eh?  Well, he's a lucky boy to have an Admiral for a father.
+And the _Capella_?  Then you were in last night's affair?  I heard they
+bagged the submarine."
+
+"Rather!" declared Vernon proudly.
+
+Barraclough stifled a prodigious yawn.
+
+"Jolly glad to hear it.  'Scuse me, but I'm beastly tired.  Had a night
+of it after those spies across yonder.  Didn't turn in till three, and
+at six I had to cross from Hurst to Vic.--that's Fort Victoria, you
+know--on duty."
+
+"Did you collar them?" asked the midshipman eagerly.
+
+The subaltern yawned again.
+
+"No," he drawled.  "Worse luck, we didn't; but we had some fun.  You
+know we were warned to watch Keyhaven marshes--and a dreary spot it is.
+Worse than the most dismal flats on the Essex coast, which is saying a
+lot.  Well, before I tell you what happened, I ought to describe the
+place.  It's a marsh, with patches of dry ground thickly covered with
+furze, that extends from Keyhaven to Lymington River--about four miles.
+It is separated from the sea--or rather mud-flats, covered at high
+tide--by a low bank on which is an apology for a footpath.
+
+"Our orders were to post a squad at a certain point where the spies
+were supposed to have hidden a quantity of petrol.  The place in
+question was close to a rifle-butt.  Men were detailed to guard all
+roads leading to the marsh, and to allow all traffic, whether
+motor-cars, carts, or pedestrians, to pass unchallenged.  The sentries
+were on no account to show themselves, except to hold up everything and
+everyone coming _from_ the marsh.
+
+"Other men were told off to watch the three available roads between
+Keyhaven and Milford, where the submarine was expected to send ashore
+for her stores, so you see the U-boat didn't stand much chance of
+getting what she wanted.  She copped something she didn't expect.
+
+"As soon as it was dark, my squad left Hurst by motor-boat and landed
+near the toll-house at Keyhaven.  It was almost dead low water, you
+know, or we might have been able to save ourselves a long tramp--you
+couldn't call it a march.
+
+"We followed the wretched footpath, slipping on the slimy mud, and
+either tumbling over each other or else side-slipping into the morass,
+which was a jolly sight worse.  To make a long story short, we took up
+our position, which was in the middle of a circular clump of furze
+within 50 yards of the butts, at ten o'clock.
+
+"There we stuck for nearly two mortal hours, and not so much as a
+chance of having a cigarette.  Of course the men were frightfully keen,
+and it took me all my time to stop them from chin-wagging.  Some of
+them began to get jumpy, swearing they saw all manner of men and things.
+
+"I had just looked at my watch--luminous face, thank goodness--when my
+sergeant whispered to me that someone was approaching.  It was then
+close on twelve.  He was right.  There were three men ambling
+cautiously along the sea-wall.  They were talking softly.  Once one of
+them stopped, bent under the lee of a furze bush and lit a cigarette,
+which seemed a rummy thing for a spy to do unless it was a prearranged
+signal.
+
+"We let them come on until they got within 20 yards, then up popped my
+sergeant.
+
+"'Halt, who goes there?' he shouted, loud enough to be heard a couple
+of miles away.
+
+"Bless me if the three fellows hadn't the cheek to answer in exactly
+the same words, although they didn't sound particularly cheerful over
+the job; and, instead of halting, one of them came on, holding a stick
+above his head.  The others didn't seem very keen to follow him, but
+began jabbering away as hard as they could.
+
+"So I gave orders for a couple of shots to be fired over their heads,
+just to let them know what to expect when they deliberately ignore a
+challenge.  But instead of 'hands up' they bolted, with our men after
+them.
+
+"Then I had good reason to bless that blessed marsh, for between us and
+the rifle-butt was a deep ditch filled with water, and a nice wire
+fence on the other side.  Half a dozen of us, myself included, were
+floundering up to our waists; the others were lucky enough to avoid the
+ditch by making straight for the path.  But we had the fellows all
+right."
+
+"The spies?" asked Vernon.
+
+Barraclough yawned, and then laughed mirthlessly.
+
+"Nuthin' doing," he replied.  "They were three members of a local
+defence corps engaged in patrolling the marshes.  Goodness only knows
+what for, for they hadn't any weapon with them except walking-sticks.
+Perhaps 'twas as well, though, for they might have let rip in their
+excitement.  When a man's nerves are all upset it's not safe for him to
+have his finger on the trigger of a rifle, you know."
+
+"But the spies?" asked Vernon.
+
+"Not a sign of 'em," replied the subaltern.  "If they were anywhere
+about, they must have sheered off pretty quickly when they heard the
+racket.  An hour later an orderly brought us word to return to the
+fort, so we guessed that something had taken place between a
+patrol-ship and the submarine.  But I must be on the move.  Regards to
+Trefusis.  If you've a chance to get ashore on the other side, look me
+up."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX
+
+To the Rescue
+
+Twelve hours later found H.M.S. _Capella_ back on her station off
+Beachy Head.
+
+The long-threatened gale had burst with great violence upon the South
+coast.  Long crested breakers surged towards the chalky cliffs,
+thundering with terrific force against the sheer face of the rocks.
+
+Seaward, as far as the eye could reach, was nothing but a confused
+tumble of foam, backed by a lowering bank of ragged and sombre clouds.
+
+The _Capella_ and her consorts had to "stick it".  Without orders they
+dare not seek shelter in Newhaven harbour.  All they could do was to
+forge slowly ahead, keeping bows on to the furious seas.  In spite of
+her shallow draught, the _Capella_ was an excellent sea boat, although
+inclined to be "jumpy".  Frequently green waves broke over the fo'c'sle
+and surged aft as far as the deck-house under the bridge; but with
+unfailing regularity the stanch vessel would shake herself clear of the
+tons of water that had invaded her deck, to be ready to receive the
+next contribution from the hand of King Neptune.
+
+Nevertheless, while the gale lasted it was a time of discomfort.  One
+thing for which the crew were thankful was the fact that it was still
+September, and the gale was not one of those wintry varieties which are
+so trying to the hardy patrollers of the North Sea.
+
+Everything had to be battened down.  'Tween-decks the air was stifling,
+and reeked of fumes from the motors.  It was impossible for a man to
+stand unsupported.  Anything that had not been securely lashed would be
+sure to be flung across the deck by the erratic motion.  No hot meals
+were obtainable.  Officers and crew had to eat as best they might,
+without the use of articles of civilization such as plates and similar
+things.
+
+Ross and Vernon saw very little of each other during the gale, except
+for a brief interval during the changes of the watch on deck.  Each
+enjoyed his "trick" on deck, as he crouched behind the bulging
+storm-dodgers and faced the howling wind and the stinging spray.  It
+was greatly to be preferred to being below, cooped up in an atmosphere
+which resembled that of an underground scullery on washing-day, with
+the odours of petrol and lubricating oil thrown in as extras.
+
+"One thing we've to be thankful for," remarked Barry, "and that is that
+it's a sou'wester.  It minimizes the chance of being blown up by a
+derelict mine."
+
+"How is that?" asked Ross.
+
+"A sou'easter's the brute for that.  Brings with it dozens of German
+mines that have broken adrift from the Belgian coast.  When I was
+stationed at Great Yarmouth we had the same game in easterly gales.  It
+was nothing unusual to find twenty of the brutes lying ashore; and on
+several occasions they have exploded on coming into contact with the
+rocks, and then, especially at night, everyone thought that the Germans
+had at last ventured to risk 'The Day'.
+
+"I remember one that came ashore a few miles from Lowestoft.  It was a
+whopper, of a different type from the rest.  An Engineer officer
+brought a dozen young subalterns down to see it and give them an
+object-lesson.  He talked for the best part of an hour, explaining its
+construction, and laying particular stress upon the need of the
+greatest caution when handling it.  Finally he proceeded to explode it
+electrically.  The circuit of the battery was tested and found to be in
+perfect order, and the wires were then connected with the detonator of
+the mine, after the tube containing the fulminate of mercury had been
+removed.
+
+"The whole crowd took cover.  The circuit was completed, but the mine
+didn't budge.  They tried three times, and finally came to the
+conclusion that the thing was a dud.
+
+"Then a squad of soldiers took pot-shots at it until it was fairly
+riddled with bullet holes, but still the blessed thing wouldn't
+explode.  Eventually it was decided to remove the mine to a laboratory
+for examination, and a team of mules was requisitioned to drag it off
+the beach.
+
+"One of the mules suddenly took it into his head to be a little bit
+premature, for he lashed out, broke away from the traces, and pelted
+down the beach.  When the brute came to the place where the mine lay,
+he found that the tackle which the men had already rove to shift it was
+in his way.  Possibly the sight of a rope upset him, for he backed and
+lashed out with his hind legs--and up went the mine with a terrific
+bang.  They never found any of the pieces of the mule."
+
+At length, as is invariably the case, the gale blew itself out, and,
+although the sea still ran high, the absence of broken water made it
+possible for the hatchways to be kept open.
+
+The behaviour of the _Capella_ and her consorts was a matter for
+congratulation.  They had stood the test remarkably well, and had
+proved themselves good all-weather craft, provided that they could be
+kept head to wind.
+
+A week later the _Capella_ returned to Southampton to replenish her
+stores, and after three days in port she received orders to proceed to
+the French coast and patrol off Cape Levi, where the presence of a
+hostile submarine had been reported.
+
+This intelligence was serious.  It meant that, once again, an
+unterseeboot had made its way into the English Channel, and was lying
+on the track of the British transports and hospital ships running
+between Southampton and Rouen.
+
+It took the _Capella_ two hours only to run from The Nab to within
+sight of the French coast.  Even then her motors were not running at
+the maximum number of revolutions.  Extreme speed was only resorted to
+when actually engaged in submarine hunting.
+
+As the vessel closed with the grey cliffs of Normandy, Ross suddenly
+shouted: "Submarine on the port bow!"
+
+Less than two cables' length away could be discerned the twin
+periscopes and a portion of the conning-tower.  The submarine was not
+forging ahead; it was simply stationary, except for a slight movement
+caused by the action of the waves.  It certainly was not a British
+craft.  It might be French.  The odds were that it was German, since
+submarines belonging to the allied nations were not in the habit of
+keeping awash, unless in the presence of an enemy.
+
+Quickly the guns, which were already cleared for action, were trained
+upon the visible part of the submarine; but as she made no attempt to
+move, Captain Syllenger refrained from giving the order to open fire.
+
+Thrice the _Capella_ circled round the mysterious craft, at the same
+time gradually closing, since she had nothing to fear from the
+discharge of a torpedo.
+
+"I believe she's abandoned, sir," said Barry.
+
+The _Capella_ stopped.  Preparations were being made for the lowering
+of a boat, when one of the seamen shouted:
+
+"It's a dud, sir; a blessed decoy-bird!"
+
+The man was right.  Upon investigation, the submarine was found to be
+nothing more than a couple of barrels covered with painted canvas.  Two
+thick poles passing vertically through them, and weighted at the
+lowermost ends to give the necessary stability, served as periscopes.
+
+"There's a real submarine knocking about, I'll swear," said the
+skipper.  "Put a shot into those barrels, Morgan."
+
+One shell was sufficient.  Little more than a hundred chips floating on
+the surface was left of the decoy.
+
+The _Capella_ was about to resume her course when a warning cry was
+heard:
+
+"Torpedo coming, sir!"
+
+From a point bearing half a mile on the vessel's port quarter, the
+track of the on-coming torpedo was clearly discernible.  The _Capella_,
+being without way, would undoubtedly have fallen a victim had it not
+been for her light draught, for before she could forge ahead the
+missile passed under her keel.  Its track could be followed as far as
+the eye could reach, which showed that it was a modern weapon propelled
+with superheated air and having a range of about five miles.
+
+Straight for the source of the missile, tore the British craft, but her
+effort to grapple with the unterseeboot was in vain.  The submarine had
+dived immediately.  No sounds betrayed her presence in the vicinity.
+Had the U-boat been moving, the churning of her propellers would have
+been distinctly audible.
+
+"She's got away, worse luck," growled Sub-lieutenant Fox.  "I wonder
+how she did it?  It's too deep for her to sound, and she can't be
+moving under her own power."
+
+"We'll have her right enough," rejoined Barry, the optimist.  "A light
+haze and a calm sea is what we want.  We'll run her down in less than a
+week, you mark my words."
+
+Four days passed.  The _Capella_ kept her station almost without
+incident.  Ship after ship, deeply laden with troops and munitions,
+entered the sand-banked estuary of the Seine, having been escorted thus
+far by destroyers.  Ship after ship, more lightly burdened, left the
+river, homeward bound.  Amongst them were hospital ships, clearly
+distinguishable by their broad green bands and conspicuous red crosses
+on both bows and quarters.  A big action had taken place "somewhere in
+France", and the passing of the Red Cross vessels was the aftermath of
+a dearly-bought victory.
+
+Yet nothing occurred to threaten the constant stream of shipping.  It
+seemed reasonable to surmise that either the U-boat had met with an
+accident or else that she had transferred her energies to another area.
+
+Meanwhile Ross and Vernon had been working hard, improving their
+seamanship.  Under the instruction of the two sub-lieutenants they were
+making rapid progress in navigation; they could fix their position by
+the use of a sextant, were able to use the semaphore, and, generally,
+competent to carry out the duties required as midshipmen of the watch.
+
+Captain Syllenger had long before overcome his prejudices against the
+sons of Flag Officers--at least in their case--and even expressed his
+willingness to grant them each a certificate of proficiency, should
+they wish to transfer to one of the cruisers of the Royal Navy.
+
+At length the _Capella_ received orders for recall to her station off
+Beachy Head.  She was to put into Havre to revictual that day, leaving
+at 9 a.m. on the morrow.
+
+The lads were heartily glad when the _Capella_ left the malodorous
+_bassin à flotte_.  The irksomeness of lying in the harbour at Le Havre
+palled upon them, even after a few hours.  They yearned for the open
+sea almost from the time their ship made fast alongside the grimy quay.
+
+Forty minutes after leaving French waters, the _Capella_ sighted a
+large cargo-boat steaming northwards.  She was high in ballast and
+rolling like a barrel.  On bringing glasses to bear upon her, the
+_Capella's_ officers found that she was the _Orontabella_, one of the
+vessels chartered by the British Government and fitted as a
+horse-transport ship.  She was doing 16 knots to the _Capella's_ 34,
+and when first sighted was nearly five miles off.
+
+Suddenly a low rumble was heard by the crew of the patrol-vessel.
+Telescopes and binoculars that had just been laid aside were again
+brought into action, and it was seen that the transport was sinking
+rapidly by the stern.  She had been torpedoed under the starboard
+quarter.  The terrific impact of the explosion had torn a large hole,
+besides shattering the rudder and one of the propellers, while all her
+boats in davits were rendered useless by the concussion.
+
+It was a matter of but a few moments before she made her final plunge.
+Already signals were fluttering from her stumpy masts--the well-known
+N.C. (in distress; want immediate assistance) and A.R. (boats are stove
+in).
+
+Captain Syllenger gave a quick glance astern.  There were other
+vessels, but low down on the horizon.  To expect succour from them was
+for the present out of the question.  He had a double task: to attempt
+to destroy the aggressor, and to rescue the transport's crew.
+
+"Prepare to lower boats!" he shouted.  "A midshipman and a couple of
+hands in each.  Guns' crews stand by!"
+
+Clang, chang, went the engine-room telegraph.  Like a greyhound, the
+_Capella_ increased her speed, until she was within a quarter of a mile
+of the foundering vessel.  Then reversing engines, she almost lost way
+at less than a cable's length from the transport.
+
+By this time Ross and Vernon were in their respective boats.  Before
+way was off the ship the falls were paid out and the disengaging gear
+cast off.
+
+"Give way, men," ordered Ross.
+
+His scanty crew, for more men could not well be spared, "gave way" with
+a will, gaining a couple of lengths before his chum was able to push
+off.
+
+With hardly a pause the _Capella_ dashed off, quickly increasing her
+pace to full speed ahead, in her quest for the U-boat that had launched
+the deadly torpedo.
+
+The _Orontabella's_ stern was now under water.  She had a pronounced
+list to starboard.  Dense volumes of smoke and steam, pouring from her
+funnels and hatchways, showed that the water had already invaded her
+boiler-room.  Above the hiss of the scalding vapour and the rush of
+escaping air, could be heard the terrified neighing of a dozen or more
+wounded horses, for whom no escape was possible.
+
+Clustering on the fo'c'sle were about twenty or thirty men, the
+officers and crew who had survived the explosion; for the death-roll,
+especially in the engine-room and stokehold, was very high, men being
+overwhelmed by the inrush of water before they could scramble up the
+steep ladder and through the narrow hatchway.
+
+The waiting men showed no signs of panic.  Those who could swim had not
+troubled to don their cork life-belts, but were calmly engaged in
+lashing their life-saving devices round the shoulders of their less
+fortunate comrades.
+
+[Illustration: THE SINKING OF THE "ORONTABELLA" (missing from book)]
+
+Ross ordered his men to back towards the foundering vessel.  He
+realized that at any moment the transport might plunge suddenly, and
+the danger of being dragged down by the suction was a thing he had to
+avoid.  There was also a risk of the boat being swamped by the men as
+they clambered on board.
+
+"Jump!" he shouted.  "Not too many at a time."
+
+Three men accepted the invitation: two good swimmers and a non-swimmer.
+The former, grasping their struggling companion by the shoulders,
+struck out without much difficulty and reached Ross's boat, where they
+were quickly hauled into safety.
+
+Setting the rescued men to take an oar each, for there were several to
+spare lying on the thwarts, Ross took the whaler closer in, since he
+had now more means of propulsion at his command.
+
+Four more followed, and were picked up by Vernon's men.  Meanwhile the
+bows of the _Orontabella_ were rising high out of the water, as the
+stern sank correspondingly deeper, until those of the officers and crew
+who still remained on board had to cling desperately to the rails to
+prevent themselves slipping into the maelstrom that surged over the
+submerged part of the sinking ship.
+
+Suddenly the vessel dived.  Where a few seconds previously a towering
+mass of black and red plating rose high above the boats, there hung a
+cloud of smoke, steam, and spray, while all around the water was
+thrashed white with foam.
+
+"Give way, men!" shouted Ross.
+
+The rowers were too late.  Before the boat could pull clear of the
+scene of disaster, a vicious, crested wave, so hollow that the lean
+quarters of the whaler were unable to rise to it, poured into the frail
+craft.
+
+The next instant Ross and his crew were struggling in the confusion of
+the broiling sea.
+
+Vernon, although farther from the spot, narrowly escaped the fate of
+his chum.  It was surprising what a terrific commotion the
+_Orontabella_ caused at the last.  For some minutes he could see
+nothing beyond the tips of the blades of the oars.  Everything else was
+enveloped in smoke, steam, and spray.
+
+Gradually the waves subsided and the wind dispersed the pall of vapour.
+The sea was dotted with the heads of swimmers.  Ross's boat, with her
+stem and stern-posts just visible above the surface, was waterlogged,
+yet retained sufficient buoyancy to support half a dozen men.
+
+Here, indeed, was a pretty pickle.  At the very most, Vernon's boat
+would hold fifteen or sixteen men.  The _Capella_ was almost out of
+sight.  The whole attention of her officers and crew would be centred
+upon the U-boat.  So long as there was any indication of the latter's
+whereabouts, the patrol-vessel would cling tenaciously to her quest.
+
+There was very little left floating from the sunken ship.  A few
+gratings, handspikes, a couple of breakers, and fragments of the
+shattered boats, but nothing substantial enough to support a man above
+water; and in mid-Channel, although it was only September, the sea was
+too cold to enable the swimmers to keep afloat very long without almost
+certain danger of cramp.
+
+Vernon looked around for his chum.  He saw him sharing an oar with one
+of the crew.
+
+"Come on, my lads!" shouted Ross encouragingly.  "We'll hike her up.
+Half a dozen of you who have life-belts come round this side, and when
+I say 'All together!' lift for all you're worth."
+
+The men obeyed as quickly as they could in the circumstances.  Finding
+that they could easily keep afloat, the non-swimmers had regained their
+confidence.  Piloted by those who could swim, the men ranged themselves
+along one gunwale of the waterlogged whaler.
+
+"All ready?" asked Ross, whose knowledge of how to empty a waterlogged
+Canadian canoe prompted him to try a large, heavy boat.  "Together!"
+
+Up rose the boat's gunwale as high as the men's arms could reach, but
+with a dull swish the whaler resumed its former position.  In lifting
+one side the other had dropped deeply beneath the surface, and the
+attempt to shake out the water had ended in failure.
+
+"Now then," ordered Vernon, taking his turn to direct operations.  "All
+swimmers get overboard for a few minutes.  Those with life-belts get on
+board, and take off your belts."
+
+In five minutes a dozen cork life-belts were available.  Manoeuvring
+his boat alongside the waterlogged whaler, Vernon gave directions for
+the belts to be lashed underneath the thwarts, so that they were
+completely submerged.  Then taking the whaler's painter he hove taut
+until, added to the lifting powers of the cork and the upward strain on
+the ropes, the gunwale rose a good three inches above the water.
+
+This done, one of the _Capella's_ men, armed with a baler, began
+throwing out the water from the whaler.  In another five minutes the
+boat showed sufficient buoyancy to allow two more hands to clamber on
+board.  They, too, baled vigorously, with the result that once more the
+whaler was free from water.
+
+Between the two boats, all the survivors of the _Orontabella_ were
+easily accommodated; but when at length the midshipmen looked for the
+_Capella_, the patrol-boat was nowhere to be seen.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI
+
+Adrift in the Channel
+
+"She'll be back for us soon," declared Vernon optimistically,
+addressing his chum, for the two boats were within twenty feet of each
+other.  "Can you see any signs of her now?"
+
+Ross stood upright in the stern-sheets and, shading his eyes with his
+hand, gave a careful look in the direction where the _Capella_ was
+supposed to be.
+
+"No," he answered.  "And I cannot see any signs of the other vessels we
+saw some time ago.  We'd better let the men rest on their oars."
+
+Unknown to the two midshipmen, they had for the last hour and a half
+been in the grip of the strong west-going tide that surges along the
+French coast.  In that interval they had been carried out of the course
+of the vessels they had sighted, and were some four or six miles from
+the spot where the _Orontabella_ had sunk.
+
+Another hour passed.  The men who had been in the water took the
+opportunity of drying their clothing in the hot sunshine.  They treated
+their misfortune lightly, making very little reference to the loss of
+their vessel.  One would have thought that being torpedoed was almost
+an everyday occurrence.
+
+As the minutes slipped by, it began to occur to Ross and his chum that
+the _Capella_ had missed them entirely.  In another few hours night
+would be coming on, and the prospect of spending ten hours of darkness
+in a couple of open boats in mid-Channel was not at all alluring.
+
+Each boat was equipped with compass, lead-line, signal-book, lamp, box
+of biscuits, and beaker of water.  None of these articles belonging to
+Ross's boat had suffered, in spite of their being immersed, except the
+lamp, for the provisions were in watertight boxes.  Masts and sails
+were not in the boats, having been left on board the _Capella_ when the
+rescuers put off hurriedly on their errand of mercy.
+
+"What's the best thing to be done, skipper?" asked Ross, addressing the
+master of the _Orontabella_.
+
+"Well, sir, since you ask me," was the reply, "I'd shape a course due
+north.  We'd be in the track of craft making up and down Channel before
+it gets dark.  If we don't fall in with any vessel, we can carry on.
+'Taint so very far to land, considering the number of hands we've got
+in the boats."
+
+Quickly the available oars were manned, the men being told off in
+relays to row for half an hour at a time, while the skipper of the
+torpedoed boat relieved Ross at the yoke-lines.  The mate, who had been
+picked up by the other boat, was also able to give Vernon a spell.
+
+At six o'clock, a biscuit and a small quantity of water were served out
+to each man, and preparations were made for the approaching night.
+Vernon's boat, which possessed the only lantern that would burn, was to
+take the lead as soon as darkness set in, the light enabling the whaler
+to keep in touch with her consort.
+
+"Jolly funny where the _Capella's_ got to," remarked Ross to the
+skipper.  "With her speed she could search a couple of hundred square
+miles by this time."
+
+"'Spose she wasn't torpedoed?" asked the _Orontabella's_ master.
+
+"No jolly fear!" replied the midshipman decidedly.  "She's
+torpedo-proof.  We've had plenty of them fired at us, but never the
+least danger of being hit."
+
+"It's a good thing the sea's calm," continued the skipper.  "We're
+doing a good four knots.  Twelve hours at the very most ought to bring
+us in sight of the Wight, but we've dropped a long way to lee'ard.
+P'raps it's as well, for it's no joke to be in the thick of the
+cross-Channel traffic at night, with only a tuppenny dip to light us.
+Good heavens!  What's that?"
+
+Less than fifty yards from the boat a pole-like object, throwing off a
+double feather of spray, was forging through the water.
+
+"A periscope, sir!" shouted half a dozen voices.
+
+Ross did not require to be told that.  With considerable misgivings, he
+saw the metal shaft rise higher and higher out of the water; then the
+tip of an ensign-staff, followed almost simultaneously by the snout and
+conning-tower of a large German submarine.  Finally the unterseeboot
+rose to the surface, revealing her entire length, which was not less
+than three hundred feet.
+
+She slowed down.  The aperture in her conning-tower opened and a couple
+of officers appeared.  From hatchways fore and aft, seamen clad in grey
+fearnought coats came tumbling on deck, greeting the British with jibes
+and laughter.
+
+"So you getting on, Englishmen!" exclaimed a leutnant.  "Still it is
+long vay to land, hein?  An' where vos der _Capella_?  Suppose I tell
+you: we her haf sent to der bottom.  Goot night, ver' goot night.  Our
+ver' kind regards to Jellicoe."
+
+The U-boat forged ahead, then, getting way, made off at high speed.  In
+a quarter of an hour she was out of sight.
+
+"I suppose those fellows were telling the truth, old man," called out
+Ross, addressing his chum.
+
+"'Fraid so," replied Vernon.  "They had her name pat, so it looks as if
+the poor old ship's done for.  But, I say, what a whopper of a
+submarine!"
+
+"One of the new type, I should fancy," said the skipper of the
+_Orontabella_.  "I shouldn't be surprised if she were a mine-layer as
+well."
+
+Darkness fell upon the scene.  The men rowed doggedly, Vernon setting
+the course by the simple expedient of keeping the Pole Star in line
+with the boat's stem.  It saved the strain of peering into the compass
+bowl, and in any case the boats were bound to hit the English coast,
+unless they were swamped or run down.
+
+Throughout the long night the steady progress was maintained.  It was
+horribly cold.  Most of the men were lightly clad in imperfectly dried
+garments.  Both Ross and Vernon were glad when the officers of the
+_Orontabella_ relieved them, since they could take turn at the oars and
+derive a certain amount of warmth from the exertion.
+
+Day dawned at last, a brilliant pink sky that betokened bad weather
+before the day was out.  Away on the starboard bow could be discerned a
+grey cliff surmounted by dark hills.  It was the Isle of Wight, distant
+about six miles off.
+
+With the appearance of the sun the wind freshened, and soon developed
+into a strong breeze dead in their teeth.  Spray began to fly over the
+bows, soon to be followed by green seas, that necessitated constant
+baling.  It was quite evident that every yard of that six miles meant
+desperate work, with the chances of being swamped before the boat
+reached land.
+
+The men, weakened by hunger and exposure, stuck gamely to their task,
+yet after another half an hour's hard pulling the boats seemed no
+nearer their object.  They were barely holding their own against the
+wind and waves.
+
+"What's to be done now?" asked Ross, consulting the experienced
+skipper.  Although the midshipman was in charge, he was not above
+asking the advice of a man who had been to sea almost as many years as
+the lad had been days.  "We're hardly making headway, and the sea's
+beating up fast."
+
+"And the men are almost done up," added the skipper.  "It's bound to be
+worse before it gets better.  I would suggest that we ride to a
+sea-anchor, and trust to luck to be picked up."
+
+The men quickly got to work.  A triangle was composed of six oars in
+pairs lashed together, two of the boat's gratings being secured between
+the ash spars.  To the apex the anchor was made fast, in order to make
+the sea-anchor float in a vertical position, its weight compensated by
+the use of the now empty water-beaker as a float.
+
+Secured by three spans of equal length, which in turn were bent to the
+boat's painter, the sea-anchor was dropped overboard.  For some
+distance the whaler drifted to leeward, until held by the strain of the
+painter she rode head to wind, and in comparative safety in the wake of
+the floating breakwater.
+
+Vernon's boat then came close alongside.  Her painter was caught and
+secured, allowing her to ride astern.
+
+The crews were then at liberty to rest, with the knowledge that their
+drift was little more than half a knot.  Yet every two hours they would
+be drifting a mile farther from shore, unless their plight were
+observed by passing vessels.
+
+By this time the sea was running high.  At one moment the whaler would
+be tossing high upon the rounded crest of a wave, with the other boat
+deep in the trough.  At the next, nothing was to be seen from the
+whaler save an incline of green water and a canopy of dark-grey sky.
+On either side the crests were white with foam, yet, thanks to the
+sea-anchor, hardly a drop of water was taken in over the boats'
+gunwales.
+
+The men sat in silence, turning their backs to the keen wind.  A few
+who had tobacco smoked.  Those who had not were glad to chew the small
+quantity given them by their more fortunate comrades.  As for Ross and
+Vernon, they were glad to doze, lying on the damp bottom-boards with
+their heads pillowed on their arms.
+
+Ross was almost asleep when he was aroused by one of the men announcing
+that a vessel was in sight.  At the prospect of rescue, all hands were
+alert.  The man was right, for, as the whaler rose on the crests of the
+waves, a dark, grey shape could be discerned through the mirk at a
+distance of about a couple of miles.
+
+Quickly the shape resolved itself into a large four-funnelled cruiser
+pelting down-Channel at full speed.  Unless she altered her course she
+would pass within a hundred yards of the boats.
+
+"Lash a shirt to the boat-hook, lads!" ordered Ross.
+
+A few moments of intense anxiety followed.  Then a groan of
+disappointment rose from the men as the cruiser ported helm.
+
+She was then a couple of miles to windward.  The smoke from her funnels
+drifted around the boats, making it impossible for the derelict men to
+see what she was doing, until the evil-smelling haze dispersed, showing
+the cruiser less than two cables' length away and bearing down towards
+them.
+
+From her after bridge a seaman was semaphoring vigorously.
+
+"Will slow down to windward of you," read the message.
+
+"Oars, lads!" ordered Ross.
+
+The bowman of each boat promptly cut the painter.  With renewed spirit
+the rowers bent to their work, and soon the boats were alongside and
+under the lee of H.M.S. _Oxford_, armoured cruiser of the County class.
+
+By the aid of bowlines the rescued men were quickly hauled over the
+side.  Without delay the _Capella's_ boats were cut adrift, and the
+cruiser proceeded on her way.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII
+
+An Unexpected Capture
+
+"I can see no possibility of landing you at present," said the officer
+of the watch, after Ross had reported the events that had led up to the
+rescue of the two boats.  "We're under sealed orders.  We have to make
+for a certain rendezvous at full speed.  When we arrive we shall know
+where we are bound for--until then we are quite in the dark.  We'll
+wireless, however, and let the Commander-in-Chief at Portsmouth know
+that you are safe."
+
+"Have you any news of the _Capella_?"
+
+"Yes; she was mined while in pursuit of a submarine.  It is a dickens
+of a puzzle to know why, for our sweepers were over there early that
+morning and never found a single mine.  Whatever it was, it was not so
+powerful as they generally are, for the _Capella_ was able to make for
+shore and run aground within a few miles of Barfleur.  All hands were
+saved, luckily, but I'm afraid this gale will do for her entirely.
+It's blowing great guns."
+
+"Then those fellows on the unterseeboot were wrong," remarked Vernon.
+"They said she had gone down with all hands.  We believe that the
+submarine is a mine-layer, and perhaps it was one of her mines that the
+old _Capella_ bumped against."
+
+"Let's hope the patrol-vessels will settle her," rejoined the officer
+of the watch.  "But you must be awfully knocked up.  I'll introduce you
+to your new messmates, and they'll give you a shake-down in the
+steerage flat.  The _Orontabella's_ officers can mess with the
+'warrants', and the men will be berthed for'ard."
+
+The Lieutenant stepped to the top of the ladder from the navigation
+bridge.  A couple of midshipmen were standing on the superstructure,
+watching with professional interest the splicing of a six-inch hawser.
+
+"Mr. Sefton!" sang out the officer of the watch.
+
+The midshipman ran up the ladder and saluted.
+
+"Your messmates for the time being," continued the Lieutenant, after he
+had formally introduced Trefusis and Haye.  "They've had a pretty rough
+time, and they are jolly peckish, I know."
+
+Midshipman Sefton led the two chums below, and piloted them into a very
+long room on the main deck.  It was plainly, nay scantily furnished,
+and appeared at first sight to be utterly cheerless.  Possibly the idea
+was heightened by the fact that frequently the scuttles were obscured
+by the seas that slapped viciously against the cruiser's sides.
+
+"This is the gun-room," explained Sefton apologetically.  "We've had to
+clear it out pretty thoroughly, you know.  No knick-knacks or
+pretty-pretties in war time.  Sorry the other fellows aren't here.
+We're four one-stripers, three midshipmen R.N., and five midshipmen
+R.N.R.--a jolly lively crowd of us, I can assure you."
+
+He touched a bell.  A messman appeared.
+
+"Jones," ordered the midshipman, "a good square meal for two, and jolly
+well look sharp about it."
+
+"You've got to be dead nuts on that chap if you want anything done in a
+hurry," explained Sefton after the man had cleared off.  "It's the only
+way to check slackness.  No doubt he gets his own back by giving us
+plum-duff without troubling to extract the cockroaches; but we manage
+to thrive on it.  By the by, I'll tell my servant to sling a couple of
+hammocks for you.  There'll be no need to turn out before dinner."
+
+Sefton hastened below to acquaint the marine who, for the sum of ten
+shillings a month, acted as the budding Nelson's factotum to make the
+necessary preparations for his new chums.  By the time he returned, a
+substantial lunch had been set before Trefusis and Haye.
+
+"I say, you fellows," remarked the midshipman; "I notice that
+Eccles--that's the officer of the watch, you know--was greasing his jaw
+tackle a good bit.  Did he mention where we are bound for?"
+
+"Nothing definite," replied Vernon.  "He said that the ship was under
+sealed orders."
+
+"Then it's no use hazarding a guess," decided Sefton.  "It might be
+anywhere from China to Peru.  In any case, it's a change from what
+we've been doing--knocking about in the North Sea, waiting for an
+appointment which the Germans flatly decline to keep.  Four months
+solid, and I've never seen a gun discharged except at target practice."
+
+During the progress of the meal young Sefton was a little inclined to
+patronize his guests.  Perhaps he did it unconsciously.
+
+"My governor's a post-captain," he observed in the course of
+conversation.  "What's yours?"
+
+"Only an Admiral," replied Ross.
+
+"Is he, by Jove!" exclaimed Sefton.  "Then why the deuce are you a
+'with but after'?"
+
+"A what?" asked Trefusis, somewhat mystified.
+
+"An R.N.R. man ranks with, but after, an R.N. fellow with equal rank,"
+explained the midshipman.  "It's a fact: look it up in the King's
+Regulations.  But, I say, do you play footer?  We're in a match.
+Gun-room versus Ward-room, coming off this week.  If you play, I'll get
+Cranbury--he's president of our mess--to put you in the team."
+
+The meal over, Ross and Vernon were taken to the steerage flat, an
+electrically lighted space out of which opened the cabin of the junior
+officers.  At the after end of the flat, a marine sentry paced day and
+night, his post extending from the stern torpedo-tube to the gun-room
+door on the port side, and to the armoured door on the starboard side.
+Amongst his varied and multitudinous duties, particularly strict orders
+were given him not to allow anyone to put their hands on the
+paintwork--one of the standing orders dating from the prehistoric days
+before the war, when "spit and polish" were regarded as being
+absolutely essential to the efficiency of H.M. ships.
+
+At three bells in the second dog-watch, the _Oxford_ having arrived at
+the rendezvous, the sealed orders were opened.  It was then found that,
+in company with the _Guildford_ and the _Launceston_, the cruiser had
+to proceed to Halifax, Nova Scotia, to escort a contingent of Canadian
+troops to Liverpool.
+
+This was but one of the manifold odd jobs performed by the British Navy
+in connection with the war--necessary, but without any prospect of
+excitement.  The trip was regarded as a picnic, after weeks of
+monotonous patrol duty, for when 800 miles west of Ireland there was
+little likelihood of falling in with any hostile submarine, while other
+German craft had been swept off the board months previously.
+
+On the third day out the football match came off.  Ross and Vernon were
+included in the gun-room team, and never before had they participated
+in a rugger match in such strange circumstances.  The _Oxford_ was
+pitching slightly in the long Atlantic swell.  The "ground" was the
+port side of the quarter-deck, nets being rigged up to prevent the ball
+getting very much in touch with the sea.  The fun was fast and furious,
+the referee being inclined to tolerance; and before half-time half the
+players were off the field owing to minor injuries, ranging from the
+smashing of the Assistant Paymaster's eyeglasses to the laying out of
+the portly Engineer-Commander.
+
+Suddenly the _Oxford_ turned 8 degrees to starboard.  The alteration of
+course resulted in a break in the game.  Something out of the usual had
+occurred for the cruiser, which was the leading vessel in line ahead,
+to break out of station.
+
+A bugle sharply sounded the "G"--officers' call.  For'ard the bosn's
+mates' pipes were turning up the hands.  The Captain, Commander, and
+officer of the watch were on the fore-bridge looking steadily at a dark
+cloud of smoke showing beyond the horizon.
+
+It was a ship on fire.  The alert officer of the watch had noticed the
+smoke, which was much too dense to be caused by the vessel's furnaces.
+On reporting the matter to the captain, the latter immediately ordered
+the _Oxford_ to be steered in that direction.  As senior officer, he
+gave orders for the other cruisers to stand on that course.
+
+"She's quite a small packet, I should imagine," remarked one of the
+Subs.  "At any rate she's not fitted with wireless."
+
+In half an hour the cruiser was sufficiently near to see clearly the
+distressed vessel.  She was a cargo-boat of about two thousand tons.
+Amidships, flames were mounting fiercely from her hatches.  She had
+stopped her engines, and was preparing to lower boats.  Aft, she flew
+the Stars and Stripes, upside down as a signal of distress.
+
+The ship was doomed.  Fanned by the light breeze, the flames were
+rapidly spreading.  Her cargo undoubtedly consisted of highly
+inflammable material, since it blazed freely, while the smoke smelt
+strongly of burnt oil.
+
+The _Oxford_ stopped at four cables' length to windward of the burning
+ship.  She could do nothing beyond rescuing the crew on board.  There
+was no necessity to lower her boats, since the cargo-boat obviously had
+enough for all hands.
+
+At length the boats of the unfortunate ship were lowered.  There was no
+undue haste.  Men deliberately threw their bundles into the arms of
+their waiting comrades before they swarmed down the falls.  The captain
+was the last to leave, a bulge under his coat betraying the fact that
+he had taken the ship's papers with him.
+
+"Nothing of an explosive nature in her cargo," said Ross to his chum.
+"Otherwise they would have sheered off a bit quicker.  My word, how she
+does burn!  Isn't it a grand sight?"
+
+"Yes," admitted Vernon.  "It's lucky there's help at hand.  Knocking
+about in the boats in mid-Atlantic must be ten times as bad as in the
+English Channel."
+
+"I beg to differ," remarked one of the Subs who was standing by.
+"There's not so much shipping, I'll admit, but the waves are longer and
+more regular in mid-ocean.  It's marvellous what an open boat can do
+when she's put to it, except in very broken water."
+
+The boats were now approaching the _Oxford_.  A monkey-ladder had been
+lowered to enable the men to surmount the lofty side of the cruiser,
+while the sailors, always ready to lend a hand in cases of distress,
+were swarming down to the net-shelves in readiness to receive the
+personal belongings of the American seamen.
+
+"Look!" whispered Vernon.  "Isn't that chap like our old pal
+Ramblethorne?"
+
+He pointed to a tall, bronzed man clad in canvas jumper and trousers,
+and wearing a grey slouched hat.  He was sitting in the stern-sheets of
+the second boat, with his shoulders hunched and his face half-averted.
+
+"Like him?" echoed Ross.  "By Jove, it's he, right enough!"
+
+Trefusis was right.  Von Hauptwald, alias Ramblethorne, had succeeded
+in evading the hue and cry after his escape on Harley Bank, and had
+continued to remain hidden in the house of a naturalized German in
+Cheshire until the search for him had somewhat relaxed.
+
+He then managed to ship as a fireman on board a vessel bound for
+Montreal, knowing that his chances of getting out of Great Britain
+would be greater if he made for a Dominion port rather than one in the
+United States.
+
+At Montreal he promptly deserted, made his way across the border, and
+thence to New York.  Here he picked up with a German-American
+shipowner, who readily agreed to help him back to Germany.
+
+A cargo-boat, the _Tehuantepec Girl_, was loading with a cargo
+consisting of cotton, ready-made clothing, and leather equipment.
+Nominally her destination was Leith.  Her manifest and bill of lading
+were made out to that effect, but secretly her skipper had instructions
+to make for Stockholm.  If he were overhauled and taken into Lerwick by
+a British patrol-boat, well and good.  The owners must be compensated
+by the British Government, even if the _Tehuantepec Girl_ was miles out
+of her course for Leith.  On the other hand, if the boat succeeded in
+reaching the Baltic, she would be conveniently "captured", by previous
+arrangement, by a German cruiser or destroyer and taken into Kiel.
+
+Unfortunately the fact of keeping secret the real destination of the
+_Tehuantepec Girl_ led to her undoing.  A German dock-hand, who was
+really in the pay of the Teutonic Government, had placed an infernal
+machine in the cargo, setting it to explode two days after leaving New
+York.
+
+In less than a quarter of an hour after the discovery of the outbreak,
+the fire had taken such a firm hold that all attempts to subdue it were
+hopeless.
+
+And now von Hauptwald, in the disguise of a Yankee deck-hand, was being
+rowed towards a craft which he would have given almost anything to
+avoid--a British cruiser.
+
+Still, he was not dismayed.  The chances of detection were absurdly
+small.  None of the _Tehuantepec Girl's_ crew knew his true personality
+except the captain, and he was to be handsomely rewarded as soon as the
+spy was safe in German territory.  On the other hand, there might be
+one amongst the 655 forming the complement of the _Oxford_ who might
+recognize the one-time doctor who had lived at Devonport.
+
+"Let's get out of his way," suggested Vernon.  "We'll inform the
+Commander, and he will order him to be put under arrest."
+
+"I'm not going to budge," declared Ross.  "If he sees us, what can he
+do?"
+
+"I'm not afraid of him," protested Haye.
+
+"Very well, then; let's stop where we are.  He's got to know sooner or
+later."
+
+The first boat had already delivered her human cargo Upon the cruiser's
+quarter-deck.  As each man's name was taken down by the master-at-arms
+he was sent forward.  The first mate remained in conversation with the
+Commander until the arrival of the _Tehuantepec Girl's_ skipper.
+
+Von Hauptwald was one of the last men to come aboard.  As he swung
+himself over the rail he gave a swift glance at the group of officers.
+His eye caught that of Ross Trefusis.
+
+For a moment the spy thought that he was mistaken, but a second glimpse
+confirmed his suspicions.
+
+"Steady on there!" shouted the Commander.  "What the deuce are you up
+to?"
+
+Von Hauptwald had broken into a run across the quarter-deck.  With a
+bound he cleared the stanchion-rails, and plunged head foremost into
+the sea.
+
+He had realized that to remain on the cruiser meant arrest and ultimate
+death as a dangerous spy.  Better by far to be drowned without further
+delay than to experience all the horrors of lying under sentence of
+death.
+
+He had acted spontaneously, yet there was method in his madness.  By
+running across to the other side of the ship there was little chance of
+the boats being able to pick him up ere he sank for the last time.  Not
+until he rose to the surface did he realize his difficulty.  He was a
+strong swimmer, and the natural instinct to strike out overpowered his
+determination to sink.
+
+There was a rush of officers and men to the ship's side to see what was
+taking place.  With two exceptions, they thought that the supposed
+seaman had suddenly lost his reason.
+
+Two seamen, one a brawny specimen, the other a red-haired
+middle-weight, dived after the would-be suicide.  Others were on the
+point of following when the Commander restrained them.
+
+"Away sea-boat!" was the order.
+
+The _Oxford_ was now forging slowly through the water.  During the
+rescue of the _Tehuantepec Girl's_ people, she had drifted rather too
+close to the burning ship to be safe, should an explosion occur.
+Already von Hauptwald was fifty yards astern, with the two seamen
+swimming towards him with powerful strokes.
+
+His efforts to drown were a failure.  He simply couldn't keep his head
+under.  His attempts to swallow quantities of salt water only increased
+the instinctive motion of the limbs to keep himself afloat.  Bitterly
+he regretted that he had not picked up some heavy metal object during
+his career across the cruiser's quarterdeck.
+
+The approach of his would-be rescuers made him realize the necessity of
+self-destruction.  At the encouraging shout of "Cheer up, old mate,
+you're safe!" spluttered by the leading seaman, he dived, pressing his
+chest with both hands in the hope that he would be able to expel the
+air from his lungs.
+
+A horny hand gripped him by the arm.  He felt himself being drawn to
+the surface.  As his head appeared, he swung round and dealt the seaman
+a powerful blow with his fist.  The man, taken completely by surprise,
+relaxed his grip.  Von Hauptwald's blow had almost broken his shoulder.
+
+"Be careful, Ginger!" he shouted to his mate.  "He's fair balmy.  Mind
+he don't plug you."
+
+The second seaman swam in a circle just beyond reach of the spy's arm.
+His attempt to get behind the German failed, for the simple reason that
+von Hauptwald gave no opportunity for an attack in the rear.  The other
+sailor, floating on his back and rubbing his injured arm, was content
+to shout advice and await developments.
+
+The red-haired man was not deficient in courage, but he did not at all
+relish the idea of tackling single-handed a powerfully built
+maniac--for such he took the spy to be.  He wisely awaited the approach
+of the _Oxford's_ sea-boat, which, manned by four rowers who were
+encouraged by Midshipman Setley, was being urged rapidly towards the
+scene.
+
+"Way enough!" shouted the middy.
+
+The bowman boated his oar and leant over the bows.  As he did so von
+Hauptwald avoided his grip, and, seizing the boat's keel, brought his
+head in violent contact with the elm planking.
+
+Then it was that Ginger saw his chance and took it.  Grabbing the
+German by the legs, he hung on like grim death, shouting to his
+comrades to "tackle the lubber".
+
+Within an ace of capsizing the boat, von Hauptwald was hauled on board.
+He fought desperately.  For a moment it seemed as if he would more than
+hold his own against the four seamen, until one of them, seizing a
+stretcher, dealt the spy a crack on the head that laid him senseless
+across the thwarts.
+
+"Couldn't help it, sir," exclaimed the man apologetically.
+
+"You did perfectly right, Dickenson," said the midshipman.  "He's
+properly mad.  Come on, you men, are you going to bathe for the rest of
+the day?"
+
+The victim of von Hauptwald's attack had to be assisted into the boat,
+which, on making the ship, was quickly hoisted and secured.
+
+Meanwhile the _Tehuantepec Girl_ was on the point of sinking.  From
+stem to stern she was a roaring furnace.  Mingled with the roar of the
+flames could be heard the hiss of water coming in contact with the
+red-hot plates, while ever and anon came the crash of metal as the deck
+beams gave way and fell into the hold.
+
+Suddenly she parted amidships.  The flames died out, overpowered by the
+inrush of water.  A thick column of smoke and steam arose as the bow
+and stem [Transcriber's note: stern?] portions floated apart.  Then
+with the roar of escaping air the remains of the Yankee cargo-boat
+disappeared, to find a resting-place 7000 fathoms deep on the bed of
+the Atlantic.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII
+
+Mined
+
+"So that accounts for the fellow's behaviour," remarked the Captain of
+the _Oxford_, after Ross and Vernon had communicated their discovery to
+the Commander, who in turn reported the news to the skipper.  "The
+doctor says he is out of danger, eh?  From a medical point of view, no
+doubt.  Put him in the cells, Master-at-arms.  We'll take good care not
+to land him at Halifax."
+
+Upon arriving at the Nova Scotian port, whither the _Oxford's_ consorts
+had preceded her, the officers and crew of the _Tehuantepec Girl_ were
+landed.  Forty-eight hours elapsed before the transports were ready to
+leave, and thus Ross and Vernon, with most of the officers of the
+cruisers, had an opportunity of a "spell ashore".
+
+On the homeward run nothing untoward occurred, except that, instead of
+proceeding to Liverpool, the cruisers and their convoy were suddenly
+ordered by wireless to make for the Clyde.
+
+Off the Pladda Light the transports were met by a flotilla of
+destroyers, while the cruisers were ordered to proceed via Cape Wrath
+to rejoin the fleet at Rosyth.  Without slackening speed the three
+cruisers flung about, and steered a course immediately opposed to the
+one they had previously been following.  Experience had told them that
+speed was one of the essentials to safety, even when in land-locked
+waters such as the Firth of Clyde.
+
+"You don't look like leaving us in a hurry," remarked Midshipman
+Sefton, when he communicated the latest change of plans to Trefusis and
+his chum.
+
+"We don't mind in the slightest," Ross hastened to assure him.  "It's
+jolly comfortable on board the _Oxford_."
+
+"Wait until we're ordered straight away for patrol work," said Sefton.
+"It's more than likely that we may be pushed off to the Norwegian coast
+without having so much as a sniff at Rosyth.  We'll just about hit the
+equinoctial gales, and in those latitudes they get ice and snow pretty
+early in the autumn.  But, by the by, I heard the doctor tell the
+Commander that your pal, von Hauptwald, is in a pretty state of funk."
+
+"I shouldn't wonder," replied Ross.  "A court-martial will make it
+pretty hot for him."
+
+"It's hardly that," said Sefton.  "The fellow's absolutely crazy with
+fear.  He's been imploring the master-at-arms and the sentry on the
+cells to ask the skipper to shift him above the water-line.  It's only
+since the ship arrived in home waters, so it seems as if he's in mortal
+dread of being cooped up below and the _Oxford_ being mined or
+torpedoed."
+
+"And what did the Captain say?"
+
+"Merely told the M.A.A. to carry on.  Since the cells are below the
+water-line, and the King's Regulations say that prisoners are to be
+placed in cells, that ends the matter."
+
+Passing through the Little Minch, and continually steering an erratic
+course in order to baffle any unterseebooten, should they be operating
+off the West coast of Scotland, the _Oxford_ rounded Cape Wrath.
+
+In spite of a rapidly falling glass the weather still remained fine,
+although the heavy swell encountered off the coast of Sutherland and
+Caithness betokened, in conjunction with the barometer, a gale at no
+distant date.
+
+"This will be you fellows' last night on board," remarked Farnworth,
+one of the Acting Sub-lieutenants, as Ross and Vernon prepared to turn
+into their hammocks after a strenuous sing-song in the gun-room mess.
+"We'll be at Rosyth before noon to-morrow.  'Fraid it's been a bit tame
+after the _Capella_.  Beyond that affair of the _Tehuantepec Girl_
+there hasn't been much doing.  The small fry get all the excitement,
+I'm sorry to say.  These armoured cruisers seem to be neither fish,
+fowl, nor good red herring in these times."
+
+It seemed to Ross that he had been asleep only a few minutes when he
+was suddenly awakened by a terrific crash, followed by a concussion
+that shook the cruiser from stem to stern.  His hammock rolled so
+violently that he promptly fell out on the floor of the flat.  Before
+he could rise, the occupant of the next hammock tried his level best to
+thrust his toes into Trefusis' mouth.  The rest of the midshipmen, who
+were watch below, were either thrown from their hammocks or had leapt
+hurriedly from them.  The electric lights were out.  The shock had
+either shattered the carbon threads or had broken the wires.
+
+"Torpedoed!" exclaimed a junior midshipman.
+
+"Dry up!" ordered Sefton sternly.  "On deck all of you; there's the
+'Action' bugle--no, it's 'Collision Stations'."
+
+Just then a light appeared.  The sentry in the steerage flat had lit
+one of the bulkhead lamps, which are always in readiness for use in the
+event of a break-down in the electric current.
+
+The cruiser was listing perceptibly to starboard.
+
+She was in danger of turning turtle and foundering, but even in the
+face of death not one of the handful of young officers showed the
+faintest sign of fear.  If in their inmost minds the lads were a little
+timorous, they bravely kept their feelings to themselves.  They were
+part and parcel of a British warship's complement.  They had a
+reputation to maintain--the reputation of a Navy dating back for
+centuries.  It was in safe keeping, for the _Oxford's_ midshipmen were
+made of the right stuff.
+
+A few made a hasty dive into their sea-chests to make sure of some
+precious article.  Others scrambled into their thick coats, bantering
+each other as they did so.
+
+Overhead, the noise of hundreds of feet could be heard as the men
+doubled aft to the quarter-deck.  Above the tumult rose the shrill
+pipes of the bos'n's mates' whistles, and the hoarse shouts of "On
+deck, every mother's son of you!" bawled by a leather-lunged petty
+officer.
+
+"We don't want to leave you, but we fear that we must go," parodied one
+of the midshipmen, giving a farewell glimpse into the gun-room that had
+been his home for the last fifteen months.  "Come on, you fellows,
+who's going to enter for the long-distance swimming race?"
+
+Up the ladder swept the throng of youthful humanity, followed by the
+sentry, who had received orders to abandon his post.  On the half-deck,
+the gun-room officers met the swarm of senior officers issuing from
+their cabins, mostly clad in pyjamas and uniform caps.  The
+Gunnery-lieutenant was afterwards heard to declare solemnly that he had
+seen the Paymaster issuing from the ship's office with the ledger on
+his head, while under his left arm he held his cap.
+
+"Let's stick together, old man!" exclaimed Ross as the chums gained the
+quarter-deck.
+
+The first hurried rush aft had now given place to strict discipline.
+The men were falling in as calmly as if mustered for divisions.  Some
+were blowing up their pneumatic swimming-collars, others helping to
+adjust a comrade's life-belt.  A few were joking and talking, none of
+the officers gainsaying them.  By virtue of an unwritten law the men
+were allowed to smoke, and the odour of strong tobacco wafted across
+the broad quarterdeck.
+
+"Got a fag, Lofty?" Vernon overheard a burly stoker ask his neighbour.
+
+"No; I don't smoke, mate," replied the man.
+
+"You will soon," replied the stoker, and a roar of merriment rose from
+the lips of the men within hearing.  They thought the retort was a
+smart bit of humour, and, when at length the implied nature of the
+man's words dawned upon him, even Vernon had to smile.
+
+From the after bridge, search-lights were playing upon the waves.  The
+light quick-firers were manned ready to deal with any visible foe.  On
+the navigation bridge the Captain, with the officer of the watch, was
+pacing calmly up and down the slightly inclined structure.
+
+Presently he was joined by two dark forms--the Commander and the
+carpenter.  A bugle sounded the "Still".  A hush fell upon the swarm of
+humanity, the silence being broken only by the hiss of escaping steam,
+and the rush of water under the action of the powerful Downton pumps.
+
+"My lads!" shouted the skipper.  "The old ship is holding out.  We'll
+get her into dock yet.  Pipe down!"
+
+The _Oxford_ had not been struck by a torpedo.  Examination showed that
+she had bumped against a mine, with the result that the fore
+compartments were flooded.  Fortunately the transverse bulkhead and
+watertight doors withstood the strain of the terrific inrush of water.
+Although well down by the bows the cruiser was in no immediate danger.
+
+The watch below disappeared from sight; those of the officers who were
+not on duty retired to their cabins, yet few of them slept again that
+night.
+
+As Ross and his chum were about to leave the quarterdeck, the Commander
+strode by.
+
+
+"Pass the word for the master-at-arms," he ordered.  "Master-at-arms
+went below, sir, to release the prisoners," reported a petty officer.
+
+"By Jove!" whispered Ross.  "I'd clean forgotten Ramblethorne.  I
+wonder how he liked the business?"
+
+"Let's wait," suggested Vernon.
+
+They took up their position on the leeward side of the after 7.5-inch
+gun-shield.  Here they were sheltered from the wind and out of sight of
+the alert Commander, although they could hear what was being said.
+
+"Master-at-arms is in the sick-bay, sir," reported the messenger as he
+came up at the double.  "He's nearly done for, trying to get to the
+prisoners.  The ship's corporal managed to release the two ordinary
+seamen, but the spy's done in, sir--I mean he's drownded."
+
+Almost immediately following the explosion, the master-at-arms had
+hurried to the cells.  The flat was in darkness.  The sentry on No. 6
+post, in charge of the prisoners, was lying stunned on the floor of the
+passage.  Water was surging aft.  Already it was up to the knees of the
+master-at-arms as he plunged through the gloom towards his goal.
+
+The three prisoners were shouting in mad panic.  They realized their
+awful peril.  Caged like rats in a trap, they felt certain that the
+cruiser was foundering, and that they would be carried down in a living
+tomb until the pressure of water burst open the comparatively strong
+steel walls of the cell.
+
+At length the chief of the ship's police forced the door of the
+nearmost cell.  By sheer good luck he inserted the key into the lock
+without having to fumble for the opening.  The prisoner, a young seaman
+who had broken out of the ship at Halifax, was too terrified to know
+his way to safety.  He clutched at the master-at-arms, following him to
+the next cell.
+
+The water was now waist-deep.  In trying to find the keyhole the
+master-at-arms dropped the keys.  It took some minutes to find them--a
+loss of valuable time.
+
+The noise of the inrushing water was deafening.  For all the petty
+officer knew, the ship might be about to make her last plunge.  Yet his
+duty lay before him.  At the risk of his life the prisoners must be set
+free.
+
+A light appeared upon the scene.  A ship's corporal, bearing a lantern,
+descended to the flat with the laudable intention, of assisting his
+superior.
+
+The door of the second cell flew open, but a rush of water on the
+flood, under the movement of the stricken vessel surged and swept the
+master-at-arms off his feet.  His forehead came in violent contact with
+the steel frame of the door, and, rendered senseless, he dropped
+inertly upon the flooded floor of the passage.
+
+"Pull yourselves together, men!" exclaimed the corporal to the two
+prisoners.  "You're all right.  Bear a hand here."
+
+Together they carried the unconscious master-at-arms out of the flat.
+The corporal returned to liberate the occupier of the third cell--von
+Hauptwald.  But once again the keys were missing, having slipped from
+the insensible man's hand.
+
+The water in the confined space was now shoulder-deep.  The corporal
+could hear the stout bulkhead groaning under the pressure.  Fixing the
+lantern on a bracket he dived, groping with both hands for the keys.
+At length he found them, and threw open the door of the cell.
+
+"Out you come!" he shouted.
+
+There was no reply.  Von Hauptwald had ceased to shout for some
+minutes.  The silence was ominous.
+
+A movement of the badly stricken ship sent the water well over the
+corporal's head.  He was swept off his feet.  It was time for him to
+get back to safety.  He had done all he could.  The spy was dead.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV
+
+"Shrap"
+
+It was late in the afternoon when the _Oxford_ arrived, under her own
+steam, at Rosyth.  Although the dry docks were in use, accommodation
+was quickly found for the damaged cruiser by the simple expedient of
+floating out a battleship that was being cleaned and recoated with
+anti-fouling composition.  Since speed is an absolute necessity for
+efficiency in war-time, it was the practice to dock all the ships of
+the battle-cruiser and armoured cruiser class in rotation, the margin
+of safety being sufficient to allow this to be done without impairing
+the strength of the squadrons.
+
+By the aid of powerful arc-lamps the dockyard hands took the crippled
+_Oxford_ into dock, and, the caisson having been replaced, the water
+was quickly pumped out.  The damage done was found, on examination, to
+be limited to a space extending 30 feet from the bows.  The actual
+aperture caused by the explosion measured 6 feet by 30 inches, but the
+adjacent plates had been buckled and the bolts "started" under the
+violent concussion.  Well it was that the armoured bulkhead had
+withstood the strain, otherwise nothing could have saved the ship.
+
+There was no delay in setting to work.  Almost before the last of the
+water had been pumped out of the dock, stagings were built up round the
+bows, and scores of shipwrights set to work to rebuild the damaged
+portion of the hull.  Under normal conditions the work would have taken
+a couple of months, but, by working day and night, the efficient
+dockyard staff hoped to effect repairs within nine days.
+
+Since the commencement of the greatest war the world has ever yet seen,
+it was the custom to allow the officers and crews of torpedoed or mined
+ships--if they were fortunate enough to be numbered amongst the
+survivors--seven days' leave.  A rest on shore was necessary for the
+crews to recover from the mental shock, for it was found that although
+the men might escape from physical injury and appear bright and
+cheerful immediately after the occurrence, the reaction was most marked
+at about forty-eight hours afterwards.
+
+Ross and Vernon, although not borne in the books of the _Oxford_,
+received permission to go on leave.  Since Haye's father was somewhere
+in the North Sea, and he had no near relatives, he gladly accepted
+Ross's offer to sample again the hospitality of Killigwent Hall.
+
+It was late when their train arrived at King's Cross; so much so that
+the lads realized it would be useless to attempt to catch the Cornwall
+express that would land them at St. Bedal just before midnight.
+
+"I vote we have an evening in town," suggested Vernon.  "Let's go to a
+theatre.  It seems ages since I was inside a music hall, or even a
+picture palace."
+
+"All right," agreed Ross.  "We'll have a jolly good square meal before
+we go.  I know of a decent little hotel just off the Strand."
+
+The two midshipmen took the Underground as far as Charing Cross.  As
+they emerged from the station they renewed their acquaintance with the
+metropolis in war-time.  The streets were plunged in almost Stygian
+darkness.  Omnibuses and taxicabs crawled painfully through the gloom;
+pedestrians were cannoning into each other at every step.  The only
+relief to the blackness were the two search-lights from the Admiralty
+Arch that swung like gigantic pendulums across the dark and misty sky.
+
+"Let's get out of it," exclaimed Ross, as he just managed to save
+himself from being run down by a motor-car.  "It's a jolly sight more
+dangerous than keeping the middle watch on the old _Capella_."
+
+Five minutes later they were sitting down to an ample dinner, provided
+at a cost that proved pretty conclusively the futility of the German
+submarine blockade.  In the well-lighted room there was little to
+suggest that business was not proceeding "as usual", except perhaps the
+predominance of khaki-clad officers.
+
+A string band was discoursing the latest operatic music, the diners
+were laughing and chattering.  Within, the gaiety and light-heartedness
+contrasted violently with the dismal gloom inflicted upon the
+metropolis as a result of precautions adopted by the triple authorities
+responsible for its defence against air-craft.
+
+Presently the band finished one item on the programme.  The comparative
+silence that followed was almost immediately interrupted by a series of
+sharp reports, punctuated by a deeper crash.
+
+"Zepps!" exclaimed a dozen voices.
+
+Instantly there was a rush--not for the deep cellars underneath the
+building, but for the open street.  The white faces of a few of the
+guests showed that they had, perhaps, a little anxiety, but for the
+most part an excitable curiosity took possession of the crowd.
+
+"Come on!" exclaimed Ross to his chum.  "Let's see the fun.  We haven't
+had a chance of seeing a real Zepp before."
+
+The lad's words voiced the thoughts of nine-tenths of the dwellers of
+the metropolis who were within sight of the would-be Terror of the Air.
+Useless, indeed, were the official warnings as to the right thing to be
+done when the Zeppelins came.  One man, however, drew a respirator from
+a hand-bag and proceeded to don it, until a roar of laughter from the
+stream of people issuing from the hotel caused him somewhat
+shamefacedly to replace the useless article.
+
+Into the street the lads elbowed their way.  The progress through the
+long corridor of the hotel reminded them of a football scrum.  It was
+not the blind rush of panic; merely a desire to lose nothing of the
+"fun".
+
+A couple of thousand feet overhead, a silvery-grey, bluff-pointed
+cylinder was moving with apparent slowness.  Half a dozen search-lights
+concentrated their beams upon it.  All around were rings of smoke,
+marking the bursting shells from the anti-aircraft guns; yet,
+apparently untouched by the hail of bullets, the giant gas-bag passed
+on, hurling out death and destruction upon the greatest city on
+earth--a city that, until the present war, had only once heard the
+thunder of hostile guns.
+
+Breathlessly the lads watched the progress of the huge Zeppelin,
+momentarily expecting it to collapse and come tumbling, a tangled mass
+of flaming wreckage, to the ground.  Viewed from below, it seemed
+impossible for the airship to escape the bursting shells.  The air was
+rent by the crash of falling bombs and the sharp reports of the
+"anti's", while in the distance could be heard the clatter of broken
+glass.  The explosive bombs wrought havoc upon the homes of harmless
+Londoners.  Flames, too, were springing up, throwing a lurid glare upon
+the sky.
+
+Yet, unless actually within radius of the German explosives, the
+populace was remarkably calm.  Men, women, and children watched the
+Zeppelin, much in the same way as if they were witnessing a Brock's
+display at the Crystal Palace.  Once again German frightfulness had
+failed--and failed badly--to attain its desired end.
+
+"Hurrah!  She's got it properly in the neck," shouted an excited
+special constable, as the Zeppelin gave a sudden lurch and began to
+drop at an acute angle.
+
+But the next instant the silvery envelope was hidden in a cloud of
+dense black smoke.  Seconds passed, but no shattered wreckage streamed
+earthwards.  When the vapour dispersed, the Zeppelin was nowhere to be
+seen.  Under cover of the smoke-cloud she had dropped a large quantity
+of ballast, and had soared skyward to a great altitude.
+
+Gradually, like the rumble of a passing thunderstorm, the reports of
+the distant anti-aircraft guns died away.  The Zepps had taken
+themselves off, leaving half a dozen fires and hundreds of more or less
+damaged buildings to impress upon the strafed English that insularity
+is no longer a protection from the cowardly night-raiders of the air.
+
+"The show's over," declared Ross.  "I vote we turn in.  By Jove,
+there'll be a rush to the recruiting offices to-morrow!"
+
+Requesting to be called at eight, the two midshipmen entered the lift
+and were whisked up to their room.
+
+"What's that noise?" asked Vernon, pausing in the midst of unpacking
+his portmanteau.
+
+"Something in the corridor," replied Ross.
+
+"I don't think so.  It's something or someone under my bed.  Lock the
+door, old man; no, don't ring, if it's a burglar we'll tackle him."
+
+Haye knelt by the bedside, Ross standing behind him ready to grapple
+with the intruder.  Cautiously Vernon lifted the valance.  As he did so
+he quickly withdrew his hand, which had come in contact with something
+warm and moist.
+
+"Dash it all!" he exclaimed.  "It's a dog.  Come out, sir!"
+
+He was right.  The animal gave a low whine, but made no attempt to
+budge.
+
+"Mind the brute doesn't fix you," cautioned Ross.
+
+"No fear," replied his chum confidently.  "All dogs take to me.  Come
+along, old boy."
+
+Again he groped with his hand.  His fingers touched the long, silky
+hair on the animal's neck.  Slowly he drew the creature from its place
+of concealment.  It was a sheep-dog pup, of about four months.
+
+"Pretty-looking dog," exclaimed Vernon.  "I wonder how it came here?
+Suppose it was frightened at the racket.  It looks terrified out of its
+wits.  Good dog!"
+
+The pup fixed its large brown eyes upon Vernon's face, and attempted to
+wag its stumpy tail.  As it did so the lads discovered that its hind
+quarters were tinged with blood.
+
+"Oh, you poor little beggar!" said Vernon sympathetically.  "However
+did you get that?  I say, Ross, fill that basin with water."
+
+"Better send for the boots," suggested Trefusis.  "He'll take it to a
+vet.'s, or perhaps he'll know whose dog it is."
+
+"Not much chance of finding a vet. at this time of night," objected
+Vernon.  "Even the chemist will be busy with minor casualties.  No, I
+won't worry the management.  I've doctored dogs before now."
+
+He began bathing the matted hair.  The flow of blood had ceased, but
+upon examining the wound he found that it was a small circular incision.
+
+He felt the spot.  The pup, hitherto patient, uttered a low moan.
+
+"There's something hard there," reported Vernon.  "It's only a little
+way under the skin.  We'll have it out.  Hold his head, old man.  Don't
+let him yelp; keep your hand over his muzzle.  I'm afraid I must hurt
+the poor little beggar a bit."
+
+Using the little blade of a knife, Haye adroitly probed the wound.
+Soft-hearted as he was, the action seemed to hurt him more than the
+patient; but his efforts were rewarded by the extraction of a small
+steel ball.
+
+"A shrapnel bullet!" exclaimed Ross.  "That accounts for the poor
+little brute being in such a terrible funk.  Give him a drink of water.
+He'll be better now.  We can bandage the wound with our handkerchiefs."
+
+Five minutes later the dumb patient, his hind quarters swathed in
+elaborate bandages, was lying contentedly upon the hearth-rug, his
+stumpy tail, protruding between the folds of linen, wagging, as he
+tried to express his gratitude in doggy fashion.
+
+"Now what's to be done?" enquired Ross.
+
+"Let him stop until morning," replied Vernon decisively.  "There might
+be a row if the hotel people know that there's a dog in the bedroom.
+The owner can't be much of a chap if he doesn't make enquiries."
+
+"Perhaps he hasn't missed the dog," suggested Ross; "or it's just
+likely he isn't stopping at the hotel.  Well, here goes.  I'm turning
+in."
+
+Ten minutes later both midshipmen were fast asleep.  They had no middle
+watch to keep, and as for Zeppelins, they were merely a passing show.
+
+At daylight Vernon was awakened by something licking his face.  The
+pup, having shown his contempt for bandages by biting them to ribbons,
+was standing on his hind legs and licking his benefactor's nose, while
+his tail was wagging with the rapidity of the flag of an expert
+signaller.  The hardy little animal had made light of his wound.
+
+Having dressed, the midshipman made enquiries of the waiter, but
+without satisfactory results.  No one in the hotel had a dog.
+
+"I'll report him to the police," decided Vernon.  "Ten to one the owner
+won't claim him.  At any rate I'll stick to him.  He's awfully fond of
+me already."
+
+After breakfast Vernon sent the obliging waiter to purchase a collar,
+for the sheep-dog was wearing none.  Sticking closely to Vernon's
+heels, the pup followed his new master to the police station, where an
+inspector took down a number of particulars.
+
+"Very good, sir; that's all I want.  I don't fancy you'll hear any more
+about it."
+
+"What are you going to call him?" asked Ross, as the chums were seated
+in a first-class carriage, with the dog at Vernon's feet, on their way
+to Cornwall.
+
+"Zepp," replied Vernon promptly.
+
+"Not patriotic," objected Ross with a laugh.
+
+"I think so," rejoined his chum.
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because, like last night's Zeppelin, he turned tail when he had a
+shrapnel bullet in his stern."
+
+"That's all very well," said Ross, "but you can't explain all that to
+everyone.  Why not call him Shrapnel?"
+
+"All right.  'Shrap' for short," agreed Vernon.  "Good boy, Shrap!  Wag
+your tail, you little rascal."
+
+And Shrap obeyed promptly.  Evidently the choice of a name reminiscent
+of bodily injury troubled him not one jot.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV
+
+Off the Belgian Coast
+
+"A chance of seeing something exciting at last!" exclaimed Ross.  "Of
+course we've not had altogether a dull time, but this ought to be
+absolutely 'it'."
+
+Two months had elapsed since the lads saw a hostile air-ship over
+London.  Now they were about to see what a fleet of heavily armed
+British ships could do--not against a practically defenceless town, but
+against the strongly fortified German batteries on the Belgian coast.
+
+Trefusis and Haye were on board the _Capella_, lying in the outer
+harbour at Dover.  It was not the _Capella_ that had come off
+second-best in an encounter with a floating mine, but another, similar
+in almost every respect to the lost patrol-boat.  She was manned, too,
+by the same officers and crew--with one exception.  Sub-lieutenant John
+Barry had obtained his promotion, and had been appointed to H.M.S.
+_Hunbilker_ in command.
+
+What the _Hunbilker_ was, no one on board the _Capella_ knew.  The
+Admiralty publications at their disposal were blank as far as that ship
+was concerned.  Speculation ran high: some of the officers expressing
+their opinion that Barry's command was a subsidized cargo-boat; others
+that she was one of the mosquito flotilla that had been evolved out of
+modern naval requirements.  All were wrong, as they had yet to learn
+something more of the type of vessel flying the White Ensign that was
+helping to sweep the seas of the Black Cross of Germany.
+
+"Well, old boy, how do you think you will like the racket?" asked
+Vernon, stooping to pat the massive head of a healthy-looking
+sheep-dog.  Shrap had been allowed, by the Captain's permission, to
+join the _Capella_ as a mascot--the pet of both officers and crew, and
+of Vernon Haye in particular.
+
+Shrap winked knowingly, then trotted off to a secluded part of the
+chart-room, where, under a locker, he had hidden the remains of what,
+half an hour previously, had been Sub-lieutenant Fox's shaving-brush.
+
+The _Capella_ was by no means the only craft rolling sluggishly in the
+vast artificial harbour.  There were seven motor patrol-vessels,
+specially detailed for the forthcoming operations as tenders to the
+sea-planes.
+
+A strong array of monitors, craft of ugly but utilitarian design,
+low-lying, and mounting two 14-inch guns, had assembled for the purpose
+of making it hot for the Hun on the morrow.  Only light-draughted craft
+were to be employed in the attack, since they could approach within
+very effective range of their guns, and at the same time stand little
+chance of being torpedoed by a handful of unterseebooten that had been
+transported in sections to Zeebrugge and there fitted for service.
+
+According to the Admiral's plan, the monitors were to approach Ostend
+just after daybreak.  In the offing a number of empty transports were
+to assemble, protected by a powerful flotilla of destroyers.  The
+appearance of these transports would be taken by the Germans as an
+indication of an attempted landing of a British force, and troops would
+be hurriedly massed to repel the threatened invasion.
+
+The monitors were thereupon to fire a certain number of rounds, then,
+followed in a parallel course by the transports, make for Zeebrugge.
+Alternate visits to both the Belgian ports in German hands were to be
+made throughout the day, thereby wearing out the German troops in
+fruitless marching and counter-marching, and at the same time diverting
+a strong body of men from a section of the trenches upon which the
+British troops were to deliver a sudden and unexpected assault.
+
+At four in the morning the monitors began to leave Dover Harbour.
+Thanks to the stringent military precautions taken in the
+town--precautions that could with decided advantage be imitated
+elsewhere--the presence of spies was almost, if not quite, a matter of
+impossibility.  Unheralded by the Kaiser's agents, the small yet
+powerful vessels cleared the entrance to the breakwater and headed for
+the Belgian coast.
+
+An hour later a masthead lamp blinked from the _Vega_--the senior
+officer's ship of the patrol flotilla.  Then, in line ahead, the swift
+motor craft slipped quietly out of the harbour to overtake their slower
+consorts.
+
+The _Capella_, like the rest of her sister ships, was cleared for
+action.  Stanchion-rails were unshipped; everything likely to splinter
+was sent below.  In the wake of the armoured protection, sandbags were
+placed to reinforce the steel plating.  Although the patrol-vessels
+were not to take part in the bombardment, they had to be prepared in
+case a forlorn hope in the shape of a few German torpedo-boats might
+attempt a sudden onslaught.
+
+As attendants upon the sea-planes, too, it was possible that the
+patrol-boats would have to approach within range of the garrison
+artillery, especially in the event of one of the aerial craft being
+disabled and falling into the sea, on its return from "spotting" the
+hits of the monitors' guns.
+
+Dawn had not yet broken when the monitors, followed at two miles'
+distance by the motor patrol, came in sight of the search-lights on the
+low-lying Belgian coast.  Beyond the limit of direct rays, yet within
+range of their monster guns, the monitors were safe from detection.
+All that was wanting was the presence of the sea-planes, for whose work
+daylight was essential.
+
+Slowly a pale light spread on the north-eastern horizon.  The short
+wintry day was breaking.  The sea was calm.  The air was piercingly
+cold.  A thin coating of frost covered the _Capella's_ deck.  Ross and
+his chum were heartily glad of their thick pilot-coats, mufflers, and
+woollen "mitts", as they sheltered behind the breast-work erected on
+the bridge.
+
+Captain Syllenger slowly paced the bridge, frequently glancing at the
+clock in the chart-room, since it was almost a matter of impossibility
+to consult his watch, owing to his generous accumulation of clothing.
+It was now nearly eight o'clock, but as yet there were no signs of the
+expected sea-planes.
+
+Just then the dull morning light was pierced by a brilliant flash from
+one of the monitors.  The watchers on the _Capella's_ bridge could see
+the low-lying hull give a decided jerk in a sternward direction under
+the reaction of the enormous projectile.
+
+Long before the shell reached its objective, other 14-inch guns added
+their quota, and the air was rent with the flashes of the ordnance and
+the ear-splitting detonations following the discharge.
+
+"By Jove!" exclaimed Sub-lieutenant Fox, who with his brother officers
+had had telescopes levelled upon the faintly outlined sand dunes.
+"There are the sea-planes!"
+
+He was right.  Flying at a great height the air-squadron had passed
+over the warships, and had taken up their observation stations without
+being seen or heard by anyone on board the patrol-vessels immediately
+over the German batteries, they were cutting "figure eights" and
+describing seemingly erratic circles, while the observers, coolly
+wirelessing the results of the monitors' shells, hardly heeded the
+furious fire directed upon them by the hostile anti-aircraft guns.
+
+On a point extending for nearly three miles, the shore was torn by the
+terrific explosive shells.  Clouds of sand, and yellow smoke mingled
+marked the scene of destruction, as battery after battery was spotted
+and promptly put out of action.  Across the dunes could be seen swarms
+of ant-like figures--German troops flying for shelter from the
+devastating fire of the British guns.
+
+But the action was by no means a one-sided one.  Guns, large and small,
+replied; the heavier ordnance vigorously at first, and then gradually
+slackening down as the lyddite shells sought out the fixed
+emplacements.  The lighter guns, mounted on armoured motor-cars, gave
+more trouble, since, after every shot, each piece was moved a hundred
+yards or more.
+
+For several minutes the lads watched the unusual spectacle through the
+binoculars.  Then something resembling a concentrated tornado screeched
+above their heads.  Instinctively they ducked, the glasses falling from
+their hands.  Ten seconds later Ross ventured to look up.  Vernon was
+still holding his hands over his face.  Then slowly he, too, opened his
+eyes.
+
+The lads smiled sadly at each other, picked up their binoculars, and
+somewhat shamefacedly resumed their former positions.
+
+It was their baptism of heavy gun-fire.  A 42-centimetre shell had
+ricochetted and leapt full twenty feet above their heads.
+
+Captain Syllenger was standing a few paces from them.  Luckily, thought
+Ross, the skipper's back was turned, and he had not noticed the action
+of his young subordinates.  But Trefusis was wrong.  The Captain had
+seen them.  Out of consideration, for he remembered his own sensations
+when first under fire, he affected not to notice the temporary panic
+that had overtaken the midshipmen.
+
+The _Capella_ was now running at half speed, in a direction parallel to
+the shore.  All around, the sea was torn by the falling projectiles,
+most of which were sufficiently large to send her to the bottom like a
+stone.  Yet, beyond the wounding of her wireless operator, the loss of
+her signalling-mast, and the shattering of one of her boats, she came
+off lightly.  Although not the object of the hostile guns, she narrowly
+escaped several ricochets, until, at a signal from the senior officer,
+the patrol-vessels withdrew to a safer distance.
+
+One of the monitors, too, was slowly steaming seawards, well down by
+the bows and smoke issuing from her fo'c'sle, while her single funnel
+was riddled like a sieve.
+
+"Sea-plane returning, sir!" announced Sub-lieutenant Fox.
+
+Flying at an altitude of about a thousand feet, one of the aerial
+scouts was making towards the line of patrol-vessels.  She was flying
+steadily; her motor was purring rhythmically; a trail of thin bluish
+smoke from her exhaust belied the suggestion of an overheated engine.
+Yet something must have taken place for her to have quitted her
+observation station.
+
+Promptly Captain Syllenger gave orders for the _Capella's_ motors to
+stop, then "Easy astern" until way was off the ship.
+
+Making a graceful volplane, the sea-plane alighted with a faint splash
+upon the surface of the water, and "taxied" to leeward of the
+motionless vessel.
+
+The sea-plane was a "two-seater".  The rearmost or observer's seat was
+unoccupied.  In the foremost was a young Flight-Sub-lieutenant heavily
+clad, and his clean-shaven face almost hidden by an airman's helmet.
+For the first time, the officers on the bridge of the _Capella_ noticed
+that the light steel plating was holed in many places, while the planes
+bore testimony to the accuracy of the enemy's shrapnel.
+
+"A casualty!" sang out the Flying officer.  "My pilot's been hit.  Can
+you take him on board?"
+
+Two of the _Capella's_ crew swarmed over the side and gained the
+nearmost float, whence they clambered upon the body of the sea-plane.
+At the same time, one of the davits from which the _Capella's_
+shattered boat had hung was slung outboard.  By dint of careful
+manoeuvring, the sea-plane was brought alongside with her main planes
+practically parallel to the side of the ship.
+
+The injured man was lying on the floor of the fuselage.  A canvas band
+was strapped round his waist, and, supported by the two seamen, he was
+gently hoisted on board the ship by means of the davit tackle.
+
+The Flight-Sub swung himself over the side of the _Capella_ and
+ascended the bridge.
+
+"Got it hot at fifteen hundred feet," he explained.  "My pilot was
+winged.  Hit twice, I believe.  Luckily the old bird kept fairly steady
+until I could clamber into the pilot's seat and take control.  Rough
+luck, too.  We were just doing a useful bit of spotting.  I suppose,
+sir, there's no one on board who can handle a 'plane?"
+
+"I'm afraid not," replied Captain Syllenger.
+
+"Rough luck!" exclaimed the Sub despondently.  Then, brightening up, he
+asked:
+
+"Can you lend me a 'wireless' man?  I could take on the pilot's job."
+
+"Our man's knocked out," said the skipper.
+
+"That's done it!" exclaimed the Sub.  "There's a particularly tough
+battery that I wanted to see knocked out.  No. 5 was almost on it when
+we got it hot."
+
+Ross was thinking rapidly and deeply.  He knew the Morse code well.  He
+had dabbled in wireless telegraphy at school.  Perhaps----
+
+He felt that it was almost too impertinent to offer his services, yet
+the matter was urgent.  It was dangerous, too, most dangerous; but the
+midshipman had learnt to place duty before personal consideration.
+
+"Well?" asked Captain Syllenger as Trefusis stepped up and saluted
+smartly.
+
+"I'll go if I can be of any assistance, sir," said Ross.  "I can Morse
+and use a buzzer, and I have a knowledge of wireless."
+
+"Carry on, then," replied Captain Syllenger.
+
+"Good man!" exclaimed the Flight-Sub-lieutenant.  "Can you stick
+heights?"
+
+"I've done a lot of cliff climbing--I am a Cornishman, you know," said
+Trefusis.  "I haven't had a chance of flying before."
+
+"You have now!" added the Flight-Sub.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVI
+
+Disabled in Mid-air
+
+Ross climbed agilely into the observer's seat, and, at his flying
+companion's suggestion, buckled a broad leather strap round his waist.
+At his right hand was the wireless transmitter, together with a pair of
+prismatic glasses and map.  The latter was held in a transparent
+celluloid case, while the glasses were secured by a cord sufficiently
+long to enable the observer to use them in any direction.  Everything
+was attached to the sea-plane so that in the event of the machine
+having to "loop the loop" nothing would be lost.
+
+The Sub, who for the present was to act as pilot, took his place in the
+forward part of the body.  Giving a few preliminary touches to the
+mechanism, he announced that everything was in order.
+
+The self-starter was released and the motor fired, causing the twin
+propellers to buzz smoothly and powerfully.
+
+Ross waved his hand to his chum as the sea-plane glided away from the
+_Capella_, and from that moment his whole attention was centred upon
+the work on which he was engaged.
+
+For nearly a hundred yards the sea-plane "taxied", rising lightly over
+the waves; then almost imperceptibly it glided upwards with an even
+motion.  Ross could hardly believe he was flying until he saw the sea
+apparently receding from him.
+
+"All right?" asked the Sub through the telephone that formed the only
+audible means of communication between pilot and observer.  "Not
+feeling giddy?"
+
+"Not a bit," replied Ross.  Without experiencing the faintest sensation
+of vertigo, he found himself able to lean over the side of the chassis
+and look down at the scene two thousand feet beneath him.
+
+The sea-plane was rising in a direction diverging obliquely with the
+coast.  She was, in fact, almost over the line of empty transports that
+looked little bigger than a fleet of toy boats.  Farther away could be
+discerned the _Capella_ and her consorts, moving with apparent slowness
+upon a perfectly calm sea, for at that altitude the waves were merged
+into a flat surface.  Small splashes of white--the spray thrown up by
+falling shells--could be seen all around the patrol-vessels, which, in
+obedience to a signal, had now taken up a position rather nearer to the
+monitors.
+
+Presently the Flight-Sub, having gained the desired altitude, moved the
+steering-plane ever so slightly.  Quickly the machine answered her
+helm, swinging round until she pointed towards the land.
+
+Three minutes later Ross found himself immediately above the British
+monitors.  The sea-plane was now pitching slightly in the disturbed
+air, for the concussion of the heavy weapons was distinctly felt even
+at seven hundred yards above the bombarding ships.  Although the roar
+of the concerted cannonade was deafening, Ross heard not a sound of it.
+To all intents, as far as he was concerned, the guns might have been
+fired with silencers attached to their muzzles.  The whirr of the
+sea-plane's motor and the rush of air past his ears out-voiced every
+other sound.
+
+Five miles beyond the line of monitors, could be discerned the Belgian
+coast, composed for the most part of undulating sand-dunes dotted with
+clusters of buildings.
+
+As the sea-plane approached the land Ross could, with the aid of his
+binoculars, distinguish other objects--wavy lines, dotted with ant-like
+figures bunched together round something that looked like stumps of a
+lead pencil.  The lines were the German trenches, the "ants"
+grey-coated artillerymen, and the "stumps" the heavy howitzers.
+
+"That's our pigeon!" spoke the Flight-Sub through the telephone.  "The
+battery a hundred yards to the north of that ruined church tower.  Our
+fellows haven't knocked it out yet.  Wireless them; fifty yards over."
+
+Ross sent the desired information.  The sea-plane, having flown over
+its objective, turned, describing an elongated figure eight.  As she
+swung round, Ross noticed a mushroom-like cloud of white smoke a short
+distance beneath, and to the left of the fuselage.  Then another a
+hundred feet immediately in front.  At each "mushroom" the sea-plane
+curtsied.  Something zipped close to the lad's ear.  A wire snapped,
+the severed portions circling themselves into erratic spirals.  A
+fragment of fabric from one of the main planes flew past him, like a
+scrap of tissue-paper in the grip of a boisterous wind.
+
+Then Ross tumbled to it.  Those silent mushrooms of smoke were shrapnel
+shells bursting unpleasantly close.  For a moment, the young observer
+felt himself seized by an almost irresistible impulse to take refuge
+under the coaming surrounding his seat.  He uttered an involuntary
+exclamation of unwelcome surprise.
+
+"What's up?" asked a voice in his ear.  It was the Flight-Sub, to whom
+the telephone had transmitted Ross's exclamation.
+
+"Nothing," replied the lad.
+
+"Thought so," was the laconic reply.  "Don't worry."
+
+Reasoning with himself, Ross came to the decision that the advice was
+thoroughly sound.  Worrying would not help him in the least; neither
+would cowering inside the frail body of the sea-plane.  Twice within a
+very short space of time he had experienced a sensation of "funk".
+Twice he was surprised to find how quickly he recovered; for, at the
+next shot from the monitor for which he was "spotting", he found that
+the sensation of "cold feet" had given place to one of exhilaration
+when he was able to record a "direct hit".
+
+By this time the initial operations were terminating.  The German fire
+had almost ceased to be troublesome.  Most of the big howitzers and
+long-range guns had been knocked out.  A few were still firing, but
+very erratically.
+
+At a signal from the senior officer, the monitors drew out of range,
+and steaming at the maximum speed--a bare 11 knots--kept a course
+parallel with the shore, accompanied by the patrol-vessels and
+transports.
+
+Well above effective shrapnel range, the squadron of sea-planes headed
+for Zeebrugge.  A number of aviatiks, which were flying over the German
+new sea base, hurriedly turned tail.  Previous experience had taught
+them that naval air-craft could hit hard, in addition to carrying out
+observation work.
+
+There were, however, plenty of evidences that the Germans were rushing
+up thousands of troops in order to deal with the supposed landing in
+force.  Train after train made towards the town, crammed with soldiers.
+
+The sea-planes let the trains pass unhindered.  It was not their
+purpose to stop Germans from pouring into Zeebrugge.  Once the troops
+were there, then would be the time to cut their lines of communication.
+
+Again the monitors opened fire.  Their reception was hotter than it had
+been in the neighbourhood of Ostend, for, in spite of frequent and
+destructive molestation, the Germans had succeeded in throwing up
+numerous heavily armed and cleverly concealed batteries.
+
+At almost extreme range the British ships maintained a rapid high-angle
+fire.  In a few minutes fires had broken out in several places.
+Fifteen-hundred-pound shells dropped in the canal basin, blowing to
+atoms several submarines that were in the process of fitting out.  The
+harbour works were swept by the huge projectiles.  The long curved
+breakwater suffered heavily.  Huge gaps appeared in the solid masonry.
+Everything lying afloat in the enclosed water was either set on fire or
+sunk.  In an hour the havoc wrought at Zeebrugge had wiped out the work
+of months.
+
+Ross had little time to notice the work of destruction.  His particular
+business was to observe the fire directed upon a large redoubt to the
+north-east of the town.  The first shell from the monitor fell short,
+blowing an enormous crater in the grass-grown dunes.  The second fell
+beyond, completely demolishing a house.  The third dropped fairly in
+the centre of the redoubt, causing a terrific explosion that was not
+due solely to the lyddite bursting-charge.  The magazine had exploded.
+
+Skywards rushed an enormous cloud of black and yellow smoke.  Caught by
+the blast of the violently displaced air the sea-plane rocked, then
+began dropping like a stone.
+
+For the moment Ross imagined that the end had come.  He was no longer
+afraid.  A sensation of intense curiosity as to what the machine and
+its occupants would look like seemed to obsess his mind.
+
+Then, with a jerk that reminded the midshipman of the sudden starting
+of a lift, the sea-plane "flattened out" and began to climb out of the
+enveloping cloud of smoke.
+
+The Flight-Sub turned his head and grinned broadly.  His manner could
+not do otherwise than inspire confidence.  Although not a pilot, he was
+master of the frail machine.  Side-slips and nose-dives troubled him
+but little, provided he was flying at a safe altitude.
+
+"A jolly good wipe-out!" he exclaimed.  "There won't be many Bosches
+left within half a mile of that battery, I'm thinking.  Now watch when
+the next shot lands: that will give you the objective."
+
+A sharp buzzing in the receiver attached to Ross's flying helmet
+announced that the monitor was "calling up" her observer.  Quickly the
+lad seized the pencil, and gave the signal that he was ready to take
+down the message.
+
+The Morse signal, when translated into writing, was as follows:--
+
+"Register Position 47."
+
+"Good!" exclaimed the Plight-Sub when Ross had telephoned him the
+message.  He consulted his map, which was similar to the one at the
+observer's disposal "Position 47: that's a railway junction."
+
+In the course of their work of fortifying Zeebrugge, the Huns had
+constructed a double-track railway, passing within a few yards of the
+Dutch frontier for several miles before heading straight for the new
+submarine base.  Two miles from Zeebrugge the line joined the existing
+railway, the junction being recorded on British airmen's maps as
+Position 47.
+
+The time was now ripe for the monitor which had successfully demolished
+the redoubt to attempt a similar exploit, namely, to destroy the
+junction.
+
+The sea-plane's appearance was the signal for a furious fire from the
+numerous anti-aircraft guns mounted in the vicinity of the station.
+
+At six thousand feet the risk of being hit was small, while the height
+did not prevent the observer making a fairly accurate register of the
+hits.
+
+It was a very long range, but the monitor's 14-inch guns did excellent
+work.  Seven shells sufficed to reduce the station to a heap of ruins
+and blow whole sections of the line to atoms.
+
+Again came a wireless order:
+
+"Sea-plane to proceed to Zwilhuit.  Attempt destruction of bridge
+across canal."
+
+Once more the Flight-Sub smiled.  This was work that suited him
+immensely.  For the nonce "spotting" was finished with.  The sea-plane
+had to drop her cargo of bombs upon an important strategic position.
+
+"All right!" exclaimed the Flying officer.  "Keep a cool head.  When I
+give the word, press that pedal under your right foot.  Bend down and
+you'll find a safety pin just above the floor.  Remove it, but be jolly
+careful not to touch the pedal until I give the word."
+
+Underneath the fuselage were six bombs hanging from an inclined steel
+rod.  These were released by means of a rachet operated by the pedal to
+which the Flight-Sub had alluded.  To prevent a premature release the
+pedal was "locked" by a safety device.  When this was removed, each
+depression of the pedal would result in the liberation of a potent
+missile of destruction.
+
+The sea-plane was not alone on her errand.  In her wake flew two more,
+for the actual bombardment had now ceased, and the air-craft were at
+liberty to engage upon a raid several miles inland.
+
+The Huns had not constructed their strategic railway close to the Dutch
+frontier without a cunning reason.  Extreme care had to be exercised by
+British airmen, since it was an easy matter for a bomb to drop across
+the border.  Nothing would please the Germans better, for at once there
+would be a case of violation of Dutch territory.  On the other hand,
+the Huns had no scruple in mounting a battery of anti-aircraft guns,
+training them in such a manner that the earthward flight of spent
+shrapnel would assuredly fall upon the Dutch village of Venterloos,
+which was separated from Zwilhuit by a distance of less than four
+hundred yards.
+
+In twenty minutes the sea-plane's objective came in sight: a broad line
+of railway crossing a canal by means of a steel bridge.  It was evident
+that the Germans meant this base to be a permanent one, for the bridge
+was of massive construction, strong enough to bear the transport of the
+heavy 42-centimetre guns, and yet sufficiently high above the waterway
+to admit the passage of large lighters with towering deck-cargoes.
+
+"Stand by!" cautioned the Flight-Sub.  "Keep cool.  Do as well as you
+have already done, and everything will go like greased lightning."
+
+Volplaning at an acute angle, the sea-plane swooped down upon her
+quarry.  Shrapnel shells burst over, in front, behind, and underneath
+her.  It seemed impossible that such a frail object could escape
+destruction.
+
+At five hundred feet the Flight-Sub checked her downward course.
+
+"Now!" he ordered.  "And again!"
+
+Two puffs of white smoke marked the points of explosion of the powerful
+bombs.  One had fallen fifty yards short of the bridge; the other had
+burst almost at the junction of the railway lines.
+
+Round spun the sea-plane.  As she turned Ross could discern the second
+of the aerial raiders gliding down, while the third was still at a
+great altitude.  Before the one in which Ross was flying could again
+soar over its target the second sea-plane had dropped three of her
+missiles.  All fell close to the bridge.  The work of demolition was
+accomplished, for when the smoke and dust cleared away the substantial
+fabric had been precipitated, a mass of twisted steel, into the canal.
+
+[Illustration: "THE WORK OF DEMOLITION WAS ACCOMPLISHED"]
+
+"Two more on the station and then we've finished," exclaimed the
+Flight-Sub.  "Ready?"
+
+"Ay, ay!" replied Ross.
+
+He turned his head to watch the progress of the other sea-planes.  One
+was still maintaining a terrific altitude, and showed no signs of
+making a volplane.
+
+The other was nowhere to be seen.  Perhaps it was as well that the
+midshipman had not noticed what had befallen her, for a few seconds
+previously a shrapnel shell had burst close underneath the chassis.
+The explosion had communicated itself to the remaining bombs, with the
+result that utter annihilation had overtaken the plucky British airmen
+in the moment of their triumph.
+
+Ross's companion had witnessed the catastrophe.  More, his trained eye
+had discerned half a dozen small specks in the western sky.  Quickly he
+brought his binoculars to bear upon them.  No mistake now; the specks
+revealed themselves as German aviatiks intent upon cutting off the
+retreat of the two remaining British air-craft.
+
+Not until Ross had dropped the remaining bombs did his companion speak.
+
+"We've a bit of a shooting match on," he announced.  "Get that rifle
+ready.  It's under the coaming on your right hand.  Sight at three
+hundred yards, and let rip when I give the word."
+
+Ross took up the weapon almost as a matter of course.  After the
+excitement of bomb-dropping and being shelled by shrapnel, the approach
+of a fleet of Zeppelins would hardly disturb his equanimity.
+
+Already the third sea-plane, having gained a favourable altitude, was
+making straight for her numerous opponents.
+
+The Flight-Sub now began to speed his machine up, climbing in short
+spirals, so as to gain what was equivalent to the "weather-gauge" in
+the sea battles of Nelson's days.
+
+Ross unslipped the rifle.  Mechanically he set the back-sight, and
+jerked open the bolt-action to assure himself that the magazine was
+charged.  As he did so he became aware that the cartridges were bent
+and buckled.  A piece of shrapnel, passing through the side of the
+fuselage, had lodged in the magazine of the rifle.  In addition,
+although it was possible to withdraw the bolt, the striking-pin had
+jammed.  As a weapon the rifle was useless.  By stopping the shrapnel
+bullet the rifle had saved Ross from a serious and perhaps mortal wound.
+
+The midshipman was on the point of reporting the disablement of the
+weapon, when the motor gave vent to a peculiar cough and abruptly
+stopped.  Unknown to the pilot the petrol-tank had been pierced almost
+at its lowest point.  The remaining petrol had been used up during the
+spiraling process.  The sea-plane was now at an altitude of three
+thousand feet; propulsion, except under the force of gravity, was no
+longer possible.
+
+The Flight-Sub was quick to act.  Before the hitherto climbing
+air-craft began diving tail downwards, he regulated the elevating
+planes, and a long volplane ensued.  The sea-plane was bound to come to
+earth, but it was not on hostile soil that the airman hoped to alight.
+His goal was the ground beyond the seemingly endless line of barbed
+wire that marked the frontier between Belgium and Holland.
+
+The anti-aircraft guns had now opened fire, blazing furiously away at
+the rapidly descending sea-plane.  The rapidity of her descent saved
+her, for, before the time-fuses could be altered to suit the
+ever-varying range, the air-craft was well below the bursting-point of
+the missiles.  Nothing but a direct hit--a most difficult matter--could
+harm her now.
+
+At a thousand feet she passed the border-line.  Still the Archibalds
+barked.  Ross could see the Dutch frontier guards bolting for shelter
+as the hall of bullets fell on neutral ground.  Not until the sea-plane
+was well over the boundary did the guns reluctantly cease fire.
+
+The earth appeared to leap up and meet the descending machine.  It
+looked as if a terrific smash were inevitable.  A sea-plane alighting
+upon solid ground has a thousand chances against her, for, being
+unprovided with landing wheels, she is not adapted to withstand
+successfully the impact with the earth.
+
+Cool and collected, the Flight-Sub "flattened her out" to a nicety.  At
+forty miles an hour the floats struck the ground.  For twenty yards the
+sea-plane skidded, then with a rending crash the floats and a network
+of struts and tension-wires gave way under the abnormal strain.  The
+next instant Ross found himself sprawling on the sandy soil, the sudden
+jerk tearing his securing-belt from its fastenings.
+
+He sat up.  A multitude of dazzling lights seemed to flash before his
+eyes.  He was dimly aware of a tangle of wreckage, out of which a
+practically undamaged plane rose at an oblique angle, lumbering the
+ground quite twenty yards from where he found himself.  Men were
+hastening towards the wrecked sea-plane from all directions, but, thank
+Heaven, they did not wear the uniform of the Hun.
+
+With his head still whirling, Ross was supported by two Dutch soldiers,
+while a third poured a quantity of raw spirits down his throat.  Blood
+was streaming from a gash on his forehead, and his knees, grazed and
+discoloured, were visible through rents in his trousers.
+
+Of what happened during the next quarter of an hour, the midshipman had
+but a very hazy idea.  The men had laid him on the ground, propping him
+against a large stone.  He felt horribly sick.  The pain across his
+chest, caused by the strain upon the leather belt, was acute--far worse
+than the wound on his forehead which the kindly soldiers were bathing
+with handkerchiefs dipped in water.
+
+The men were talking excitedly.  He could not understand what they were
+saying.  He felt inclined to tell them to shut up.  They irritated him
+beyond measure; if only they would go away and leave him in peace he
+would be deeply grateful.
+
+Suddenly it dawned upon him that he had been in an awful smash.  The
+wrecked sea-plane had not hitherto led the train of his thoughts to the
+subject of the accident.  Now he realized his position.
+
+"Where's my companion?" he asked,  "Is he knocked out?"
+
+"Do not yourself fret," said a voice that sounded far away.  "He is
+hurt, but badly not at all.  We him have carried away.  I am a doctor.
+You quiet must be, and zen recovery rapide will be."
+
+The doctor--a Dutch army surgeon--ran his hands lightly over the lad's
+limbs.
+
+"Goot!" he ejaculated.  "Nodings broken is."
+
+He gave directions to the men in attendance.  A stretcher was laid on
+the ground beside the lad.  Two men lifted him gently upon it.  Even as
+they did so, Ross gave a low groan and passed into merciful oblivion.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVII
+
+Not on Parole
+
+"Ver' goot.  I understan' you no give parole?"
+
+"No, sir," replied the Flight-Sub firmly.
+
+"An' you, mynheer?"
+
+"I am in the same boat, sir," replied Ross.
+
+The camp-commandant smiled--a hearty smile, bordering on a laugh.
+
+"Goot, I understan' also," he reiterated.  Then, shaking a podgy little
+finger, he added: "Same boat, ah?  English idiomatic expression?  Ver'
+well, it is so; but if you make escape, do not let me you catch.  Zat
+is all."
+
+A week had elapsed since the involuntary descent of the sea-plane.
+Both officers were making rapid progress towards recovery, for, in
+spite of the violence of the impact, neither of them had received
+anything worse than contusions and bruises.
+
+After three days in hospital at Utrecht, the interned aviators were
+transferred to a small concentration camp at the village of Koedijk, a
+short distance from Alkmaar.  A few miles to the westward, and beyond
+an expanse of sand dunes, was the North Sea.  The temptation to refuse
+to give their parole was not to be wondered at, with the call of the
+sea so near at hand.  It was, indeed, rather remarkable that the two
+officers had not been sent to the large internment camp at Groningen,
+where so many of the ill-fated Naval Brigade languished, if not in
+captivity, in a state of enforced and tedious detention.
+
+"We'll have to be doubly careful now," remarked the Flight-Sub.  "The
+mere fact that we have declined to give our parole will put the
+commandant on his guard.  Our best plan will be to mark time for a bit."
+
+"Marking time is always an unsatisfactory business," protested the
+energetic Ross.  "Nothing rusts a fellow like inaction.  It wouldn't be
+much of a task to tunnel our way out."
+
+The Flight-Sub shook his head.
+
+"Tunnelling's not much good in this water-logged country," he declared.
+"We are not water-rats.  Patience, my festive: where there's a will
+there's a way."
+
+Their quarters consisted of a long, two-storied building.  The only
+other occupants beside the guards, were three British Naval officers
+rescued from a mined trawler that had managed to reach Dutch waters
+before foundering.  Two of them had broken legs; the third was down
+with double pneumonia, the legacy of many a cold, stormy night in the
+North Sea.
+
+Surrounding the house was a high brick wall, on which had been recently
+placed a triple row of barbed wire.  At the entrance, an archway about
+ten feet in height, stood a wooden sentry-box, where a soldier with
+rifle and fixed bayonet kept guard in the leisurely manner of the
+stolid Dutch menfolk.  One could imagine him, a picturesque figure in
+baggy trousers and coat of fantastic cut, smoking his pipe on the quay
+at Volendam.  The blue uniform did not form a fitting mantle for his
+corpulent form.
+
+The sentry was one of a type.  The rest of the guards--middle-aged men
+called up on mobilization--were much of the same build and demeanour.
+Their innate love of gossiping tempted them to be on most friendly
+terms with the interned officers.  One and all were violently
+pro-British.  They had reason to dread the German menace, for they were
+level-headed enough to realize that, with the Central Powers
+triumphant, the independence of Holland would be a thing of the past.
+
+Adjoining the grounds were the quarters occupied by interned seamen, to
+the number of about sixty.  They were strictly guarded; a formidable
+double fence of barbed wire, between which armed sentries patrolled,
+enclosed the premises.  For discipline, the men were under the orders
+of their own petty officers.
+
+"Jolly good luck to you!" exclaimed one of the wounded officers, to
+whom the two new-comers confided their intention of escaping.  "If we
+three weren't crocked we should have been across the ditch by this
+time."
+
+He pointed seawards as he spoke.  From the upper windows of the
+building the sunlit sea could be seen.  Beyond the "ditch", as he
+termed it, was England and freedom.
+
+"It's no use trying to break out," he continued.  "German spies as
+thick as blackberries along the coast.  The most benevolent-looking
+mynheer might, as likely as not, be a kultured Hun.  You have to be
+smuggled out.  Try your blandishments on old Katje."
+
+"Old who?" asked the Flight-Sub.
+
+"Katje, the old vrouw who calls for the washing.  She comes every
+Tuesday and Friday with a cart drawn by dogs, and a basket big enough
+to stow the pair of you.  You'll want plenty of palm oil.  There are
+the sentries to be squared, and the fellow who provides you with a suit
+of 'mufti'.  Wilson, our Lieutenant-Commander, got clear about a month
+ago.  He made his way to Ymuiden."
+
+"Wasn't there a row about it?" asked Ross.
+
+"Naturally," replied the wounded officer.  "We had a pretty strenuous
+time after it--certain privileges withdrawn and all that sort of thing.
+However, when we heard that Wilson had succeeded in making his way to
+England we didn't mind that, and things have now recovered their normal
+appearance."
+
+On the following Tuesday, Ross and his companion anxiously awaited the
+arrival of Vrouw Katje.  At length the old lady--she was nearly
+eighty--drove up in style, shouting shrilly to her dogs from her perch
+on top of an enormous wicker hamper.
+
+"More washing for you, Katje," announced one of the crippled officers.
+"Two more of my countrymen.  They will be very pleased to see you."
+
+Without further ado, Katje ascended the stairs and hammered violently
+upon the door of the sitting-room.
+
+Her knowledge of English was good, for earlier in life she was the wife
+of the skipper of a bolter that made regular voyages to Hole Haven at
+the mouth of the Thames, where a large eel trade was in the hands of
+the Dutch fishermen.
+
+"Very well; but I must ask permission of the Commandant," replied
+Katje, in perfect good faith, when the Flight-Sub had broached the
+subject of being conveyed from the internment camp.
+
+"No, no," protested the young officer in alarm; "that won't do."
+
+"Why not?" persisted the washerwoman.  "Mynheer the Commandant is very
+kind."
+
+"Undoubtedly," replied the Flight-Sub.  "But we would much rather that
+you wait until we are away from the place before you ask him.  See,
+here are five English sovereigns.  They are yours once you get us
+clear."
+
+The vrouw shook her head.
+
+"I do not care to," she replied firmly; then without a pause she
+continued: "My son-in-law, Jan van Beverwijk, will.  I am sure he will.
+Next Friday he will come instead of me.  He is mate of a steamship that
+takes the bulbs from Holland to England.  He returns to-morrow, and
+sails on Saturday from Ymuiden."
+
+"That sounds excellent," commented the Flight-Sub.
+
+"It is excellent," agreed Katje.  "It will cost you each twenty English
+sovereigns."
+
+"But we haven't ten between us."
+
+The vrouw smiled till her weather-beaten face was one mass of deep
+wrinkles.
+
+"You English have a proverb about a road," she remarked.
+
+"'It's a long lane that has no turning?'" quoted the officer; but Katje
+shook her head.
+
+"'Where there's a will there's a way'," suggested Ross.
+
+"Ah!  That is it.  I knew it was something about a road or a lane.
+Way, you call it.  Very well; by next Friday you will find a way."
+
+"Artful old baggage!" exclaimed the Flight-Sub when Katje had taken her
+departure.  "She's mighty keen on the rhino.  We'll have to have a whip
+round, Trefusis, and give a note of hand."
+
+Their brothers in adversity willingly responded to the call, and before
+the eventful Friday a sum in English and Dutch coinage, equivalent to
+forty pounds, was ready to be handed to Jan van Beverwijk.
+
+"I wouldn't pay cash on the nail if I were you," suggested the crippled
+officer who had been so useful in advising them before.  "Half down,
+and the rest when you land in England.  Jan might object, but he'll
+give in.  No Dutchman of his standing would shut his eyes to twenty in
+hard cash."
+
+At eight o'clock on Friday morning Katje's dog-team romped up; but,
+instead of the old vrouw, a lean, leather-faced man with a long coat
+reaching to his heels and a flat-topped peak cap strode beside the cart.
+
+At the gate he stopped, and spoke at considerable length with the
+sentry.  There was hardly any expression on the faces of the two men as
+they talked.  Whether the soldier fell in with the suggestion, Ross,
+who was anxiously watching from the window, could not decide.
+
+Presently Jan stooped to fasten the strap of one of his _klompen_, or
+wooden shoes; then shouting to the dogs he came towards the house.
+Before he had gone very far, the sentry bent and picked up something
+that was lying on the spot where Jan had been attending to his footgear.
+
+"Palm oil!" remarked the Flight-Sub laconically.
+
+"Heavy wash to-day," was Jan's greeting as he deposited his heavy
+basket in the corridor.  "Spot cash, down on the nail."
+
+"Your knowledge of English is remarkable," said the Flight-Sub affably.
+
+"It has to be," rejoined the Dutchman stolidly.
+
+"We have only twenty pounds," declared the Sub.  "That we will give you
+as soon as we are on board and in English waters.  The balance Mr.
+Brown will give you on your return, on receipt of a note from us to the
+effect that we are safely home."
+
+"It cannot be done," said Jan.
+
+"Then the deal's off," remarked the Flight-Sub coolly; but he
+ostentatiously poured the coins from his right hand into his left
+before returning them to his pocket.
+
+The Dutchman capitulated.
+
+"Very good," he said.  "I can trust an English Naval officer, although
+many a time have I been done in London.  Get in, one of you."
+
+"But the other?" enquired the Sub.
+
+"I am strong, but I am not a Hercules," replied the Dutchman with a
+shrug of his shoulders.  "One I can carry to the cart.  To-day is a
+heavy wash, so I must return for a second load.  You twig?"
+
+"In you get, Trefusis," ordered his companion, in a tone that would
+brook no refusal.
+
+By dint of hunching his shoulders and bending his knees, Ross managed
+to get into the basket.  The lid was shut, and Jan, assisted by the
+Sub, lifted the heavy load on to his shoulders.
+
+Jolting over the cobble-stones, the cart proceeded at a rapid pace for
+nearly a quarter of an hour.  Then Jan called to the dogs to stop.  The
+lid was thrown back and Ross told to get out.
+
+He found himself outside a small cottage by the side of a canal.  Katje
+was on her knees washing a bundle of clothes; the operation assisted,
+with disastrous results to the interned officers' effects, by means of
+two large stones with which she pounded the saturated garments.
+Without even turning her head to watch the midshipman's exit from the
+basket, she proceeded vigorously with her task.
+
+Jan led him into the cottage and pointed to a heap of clothes.
+
+"Put these on you," he said.  "I will now go for your friend."
+
+Before the Flight-Sub rejoined him, Ross was rigged out as a Dutch
+youth, in voluminous trousers, long coat, stock, tall cylindrical hat,
+green stockings, and wooden shoes.  His companion had to look twice
+before he recognized him.
+
+"Now you come with me to Mynheer Guit," said Jan.  "He is a bulb
+merchant, and lives just outside Ymuiden.  You will then go on board a
+barge that brings the boxes of bulbs from Mynheer Guit's warehouse to
+the ship.  I will be with you.  The men in the barge will say nothing.
+Before to-night you will be safe on board the _Hoorn_."
+
+Jan was as good as his word.  That night the fugitives slept
+comfortably in the cabin of the mate of the steamship _Hoorn_; and at
+tide-time, early on Saturday morning while it was still dark, the
+vessel glided between the breakwater of Ymuiden, and shaped a course
+for the mouth of the Thames.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVIII
+
+Almost Recaptured
+
+"What's that light, Jan?" asked the Flight-Sub.
+
+The _Hoorn_ was now well beyond the three-mile limit.  Ross and his
+fellow-passenger were standing aft, sheltering from the keen
+south-westerly wind.  The mate of the vessel was with them, the skipper
+being on the bridge.
+
+"Those lights?" corrected Jan.  "They have been visible all the time.
+They are the two white leading-lights to Ymuiden harbour."
+
+"No, I don't mean those," said the Flight-Sub.  "Away to the south'ard,
+quite a mile from the harbour.  See, it's showing again."
+
+From the dunes a white light blinked thrice and then disappeared.
+
+"I do not know," answered Jan gravely.  He thought for a moment and
+then said: "Half a mo'.  I will speak to the skipper."
+
+"Hanged if I like it," muttered the Flight-Sub.  "I say, Trefusis, that
+light blinking away looks very fishy.  It would mean a fifty-pound fine
+in England; but here, apparently, it is not objected to."
+
+The skipper and the mate were talking rapidly.  Both men were leaning
+over the after side of the bridge-rails, with their eyes fixed upon the
+dark shore from which the mysterious light flickered at regular
+intervals.
+
+"Light on the port bow," reported the helmsman.  Both of the _Hoorn's_
+officers turned just in time to catch sight of a steady white light
+before it disappeared.  Whatever its meaning, it was remarkable that
+from that moment the shore light ceased to blink.
+
+"Put out our navigation lamps, Jan," said the skipper.  "Someone has
+betrayed your English friends.  Nevertheless I will do all in my power
+to aid them.  We'll steer south-west for an hour.  Perhaps we may
+outwit yon craft, whatever she may be, before dawn."
+
+Ross and his companion were quick to note the alteration of helm.  They
+knew, too, that the removal of the steaming-lights was for the purpose
+of baffling what must be, to a dead certainty, a German craft--a
+submarine, or perhaps a torpedo-boat, since the latter frequently
+ventured out of Borkum and crept stealthily towards the Schelde,
+keeping close to the Dutch territorial waters in order to avoid being
+snapped by the vigilant British destroyer flotilla.
+
+Slowly the wintry day dawned.  Anxiously the British officers scanned
+the horizon.  The low-lying Dutch coast was now invisible.  All around
+was a waste of grey, tumbling waves, unbroken by a sail of any
+description.
+
+The _Hoorn_ was ploughing her way at a modest ten knots.  Short, beamy,
+and deep-draughted, she was pitching heavily, sending a frothy bow wave
+far to leeward each time she dipped her nose into the steep seas.
+
+"I'd give a fiver for the sight of a good old White Ensign at the
+present moment," remarked the Flight-Sub anxiously.  "Good heavens,
+what's that?"
+
+Ten seconds later he laughed mirthlessly.
+
+"Nerves going to blazes," he muttered.  "A bit of wreckage gave me the
+jumps.  By Jove, don't we look a pair of comical objects?"
+
+They had discarded their grotesque head-dress.  Ross had a woollen
+muffler wrapped round his head, while his companion had been given the
+loan of a red stocking-cap, but they still retained the weird garb in
+which they had made their journey down the ship canal.
+
+Suddenly Ross gripped his companion's arm and pointed with his right
+hand to a spar-like object projecting a few feet, close to the waves,
+at less than a cable's length on the port quarter.
+
+"A periscope!" ejaculated the Flight-Sub.
+
+"Let's hope it's one of our own submarines," said Ross.
+
+"We'll soon find out," added his companion.  "It's forging ahead.
+Whatever it is, they've got us under observation."
+
+Jan, who was now on the bridge, had his attention called to the
+disconcerting fact.  He beckoned to his two passengers.
+
+"You had better go below and stow yourselves away," he suggested.  "We
+will be boarded before long."
+
+"Not I," replied the Flight-Sub.  "They've marked us already.  If they
+do take us they won't have to dig us out of a coal-bunker."
+
+The submarine was emerging.  At a pace that more than held its own with
+the _Hoorn_, she shook herself clear of the water, although green seas
+were breaking across the flat deck as far aft as the conning-tower.
+
+Then muffled forms clambered through the hatchway; a young,
+yellow-bearded officer appeared on the navigation platform and hailed
+the _Hoorn_ in Dutch to heave to instantly.
+
+Even then the tough old Dutch skipper was not going to give in without
+a protest.
+
+"For what reason?" he shouted back.  "This is a Netherlands ship."
+
+"That I do not doubt," rejoined the officer of the submarine.  "But you
+have two Englishmen on board who have broken their parole----"
+
+"You lie!" interrupted the skipper vehemently.
+
+"Not a word more!" exclaimed the German fiercely.  "Heave to, or we
+sink you!"
+
+Reluctantly the "old man" gave the order to stop the engines.  Jan,
+sliding down the bridge ladder, communicated to the British officers
+the text of the conversation.
+
+"Some rascal of a German spy has betrayed you," he added.  "If I could
+lay my hands upon him----"
+
+There was a look on the Dutchman's face which showed that his anger was
+genuine.
+
+"All right, Jan," said the Flight-Sub.  "It's the fortune of war."
+
+      *      *      *      *      *
+
+"Deucedly rotten morning," remarked Sub-lieutenant Fox as he greeted
+the officer of the watch, whom he was about to relieve.
+
+Eccles, the Lieutenant, who had been on the _Capella's_ bridge for four
+long and dreary hours, merely nodded sleepily.  He was thinking, with
+feelings of satisfaction, of the hot coffee and fragrant bacon and eggs
+awaiting him below.  Three minutes had to elapse before eight bells.
+Wearily he rubbed his salt-rimmed eyelids with a heavily gloved hand.
+
+"_Taurus_ wirelessed twenty minutes ago," he reported, as the two
+officers entered the chart-room.  "She was then at the extreme limit of
+her northerly course.  You ought to sight her very shortly.  Here's our
+course"--he indicated the pencilled line on the chart.  "Nothing to
+report: there never is when I'm officer of the watch.  It's this
+infernal monotony that plays havoc with a fellow's nerves."
+
+Noel Fox nodded sympathetically.  Although the _Capella_ had been only
+six days on her new station--keeping a watch on the Dutch coast between
+the Texel and the North Hinder Lightship--he, too, was mightily "fed
+up" with the task of "treading on the tail of Germany's coat".
+
+Not so much as the periscope of a hostile submarine had been sighted.
+The German torpedo-boats that occasionally sneaked southwards from
+Borkum were taking an enforced holiday.  Perhaps it was in sympathy
+with the "High Seas Fleet" skulking in the Kiel Canal.  In any case,
+the six motor craft of the _Capella_ class had a full share of wintry
+conditions in the North Sea without any compensating adventures to
+mitigate the monotony.
+
+As Eccles descended from the bridge, a great-coated muffled-up figure,
+followed by a large dog, swung himself up the ladder.
+
+"Morning, Haye," was Noel Fox's salutation, as he stooped to pat Shrap,
+the chartered libertine of the _Capella_.  "Dash it all, it is cold!
+Makes a fellow wish he were a sheep-dog.  Here, Shrap, off you go and
+get your whiskers trimmed.  I can see Tomkins waiting for you."
+
+The dog needed no second order.  Every morning just after eight bells
+Shrap would be taken over by the watch below.  Every man took a delight
+in combing the animal's long hair, until Shrap's coat was the pride of
+the _Capella's_ crew and the envy of the rest of the flotilla, whose
+mascots never aspired to be more than a tame rat, parrot, or canary.
+
+"Sail on the port bow, sir," bawled the look-out.
+
+The Sub and the midshipman promptly levelled their telescopes.  A small
+cargo-steamer was pitching and rolling as she forged slowly ahead on a
+westerly course.  Although she was fairly discernible against the pale
+grey of the eastern sky, it could be taken for granted that from the
+Dutchman's bridge the neutral-grey-painted _Capella_ would be
+practically invisible.
+
+"She's slowing down," declared Vernon.
+
+"What on earth for?" enquired the Sub.  "She couldn't possibly have
+spotted us.  Starboard your helm, quartermaster.  Good!  Keep her at
+that.  We'll get her to make her number, if nothing else."
+
+Again Noel Fox levelled his telescope.  Then he thrust it into a rack
+on the side of the chart-room, and bellowed:
+
+"Turn up, both watches.  Action stations.  Submarine ahead."
+
+His quick glance had discerned the after part of a large unterseeboot
+as she ranged alongside the Dutchman, whose high sides screened most of
+the submarine from the _Capella_, and conversely prevented the Germans
+clustered amidships from noticing the approach of the swift British
+patrol-vessel.
+
+For the next few minutes, all was bustle and orderly confusion on board
+the _Capella_.  Taking three steps at a time, Captain Syllenger gained
+the bridge, closely followed by Eccles, to whom the sudden interruption
+of a hearty breakfast came as a welcome call.
+
+At a terrific pace the sleuth-hound of the sea tore towards the
+_Hoorn_, for such she was.  Rounding under her squat counter, and
+reversing engines, the _Capella_ brought up within fifty yards of the
+submarine before the astonished Germans could realize their precarious
+plight.
+
+"Surrender, or I sink you!" roared Captain Syllenger.
+
+The grim muzzles of the _Capella's_ 4.7's, trained at a point-blank
+range, were a conclusive argument.  Without waiting for orders, the
+majority of the unterseeboot's crew held up their arms.  For a brief
+instant did her Kapitan hesitate.
+
+"Me surrender," he replied.
+
+"Very good; I accept your surrender," replied the _Capella's_ skipper.
+"But understand, any attempt to open the sea-cocks will mean that no
+quarter will be given.  Order all hands below, and leave the hatchways
+open.  You will oblige me by proceeding on board His Majesty's ship
+_Capella_."
+
+By this time the _Hoorn_ was forging ahead, since she was in danger of
+drifting down upon the captured submarine.  In the excitement of the
+capture, no one on board noticed two grotesquely garbed men on the
+_Hoorn_ whose antics resembled those of a pair of demented creatures;
+nor was the presence of a couple of dejected German leutnants and five
+seamen, stranded on board the Dutchman, observed, as the Huns
+frantically besought the obdurate skipper of the _Hoorn_ to steam as
+hard as he could towards the Dutch coast.
+
+It was Vernon Haye's duty to take the cutter and board the prize.  It
+was a hazardous piece of work, for the sea was now fairly high, and
+breaking under the effect of tide against wind; but, with the exception
+of a broken top-strake, the boat managed to lie sufficiently close
+alongside the submarine to enable the midshipman and five seamen to
+board.
+
+Already the German crew were below.  Hatches were lowered and secured,
+with the exception of the one in the after side of the conning-tower.
+This could be left open without fear of the submarine being swamped,
+while, to prevent the captured crew closing it and making an attempt to
+dive, the steel cover was removed from its hinges and secured on deck.
+The Black Cross flag was hauled down and rehoisted under the White
+Ensign, and preparations were made to take the prize in tow.
+
+It was some time before a grass rope, to which a stout wire hawser was
+bent, could be veered from the _Capella's_ quarter and taken on board
+the submarine, but eventually the hawser was made fast.
+
+"Now, sir," said Vernon, addressing the German Kapitan.  "Will you
+please step into that boat?  Where are the other officers?"
+
+"In that ship," replied the Hun sullenly, as he pointed towards the
+_Hoorn_.  "They will not welcome you, but there are others who will."
+
+Not knowing what the German meant, Vernon indicated that he should get
+on board the cutter.
+
+"There are two German officers on board that vessel, air," reported the
+midshipman, as the boat came alongside the _Capella_.  "Am I to bring
+them off?"
+
+Captain Syllenger hesitated before replying.  It was a knotty problem.
+To remove by force the subjects of a hostile nation from a neutral ship
+was contrary to international law.  However much the Germans violated
+the "right of search", it was not Great Britain's policy to engage upon
+reprisals.  Holland, although a third-rate Power, had to be treated
+with due courtesy.
+
+"It's all the same in the long run," replied Captain Syllenger.  "Board
+that vessel, Mr. Haye, and see what those fellows are doing there.  If
+the Dutch skipper objects to their presence on his hooker, then bundle
+them into the boat.  If, on the other hand, he protests against their
+removal, let them remain.  They will be collared as soon as the ship
+enters our three-mile limit."
+
+The _Hoorn_ had once more come to a dead stop, at two cables' length
+from the British patrol-vessel.
+
+As the _Capella's_ cutter came alongside, Vernon agilely scrambled up
+the "monkey ladder" and gained the deck.
+
+"Hulloa, old man!" exclaimed a well-known voice.
+
+Vernon looked at the speaker.  He knew the voice, but for a moment he
+failed to recognize in the oddly garbed youth his chum Ross Trefusis.
+Then he grinned broadly.
+
+"My word!" he exclaimed.  "You do cut a pretty figure."
+
+Had they been of any nationality but British, the lads would have
+fallen on each other's necks and perhaps kissed each other.  Instead,
+they stood a yard apart and laughed--but their mutual joy was none the
+less genuine.
+
+"So you've come to fetch the German Leutnant and his boat's crew," said
+Ross, after Haye had been introduced to the Flight-Sub.  "He's
+somewhere below.  You'll recognize him right enough."
+
+"Eh?" asked Vernon incredulously.
+
+"Rather!" declared Ross emphatically.  "You'd never guess.  It's our
+old pal, Hermann Rix, late of U75.  No wonder he's tearing his hair,
+for he must have broken his parole.  He knew me directly he came over
+the side, and didn't forget to rub it in.  You should have seen his
+face when, in the midst of his beastly gibes, the old _Capella_ came
+snorting up."
+
+With Jan acting as interpreter, Vernon put his case before the Dutch
+skipper, who seemed only too delighted at the way events had turned.
+His satisfaction at getting rid of his Hunnish visitors was evident, in
+spite of the stolidity of his manners.
+
+"I want no pirates on board the _Hoorn_," he said.  "Take them and
+welcome!"
+
+While the Flight-Sub and Ross were "squaring up" with the good-hearted
+Jan, Vernon rounded up Ober-leutnant Rix and his boat's crew.  Finding
+that their protests to the Dutch skipper were of no avail, they
+sullenly gave in.
+
+"Look here," said Ross, taking his chum aside.  "I don't want to crow
+over that fellow.  It isn't cricket.  You might take him to the
+_Capella_ and come back for us.  You'll have a pretty good load as it
+is."
+
+"Two British officers, escaped from an internment camp, on board the
+_Hoorn_, sir," reported Vernon, as he delivered his cargo of German
+prisoners on board the _Capella_.  "They would like to be taken off."
+
+"Carry on, then," replied Captain Syllenger.
+
+As the cutter returned from her second trip to the _Hoorn_, the
+_Capella's_ crew awaited with undisguised curiosity the arrival of the
+men who had contrived to escape from irksome detention in a neutral
+country.
+
+Presently Shrap, who was sitting up on the quarterdeck, gave a bark of
+delight.
+
+"Good old Shrap!" said Ross.  "He knew me in spite of my rig-out."
+
+"Blow me, if it ain't Mr. Trefusis!" exclaimed one of the men.
+
+The next instant the first of three hearty cheers burst from the
+throats of the crew, with whom Ross was a great favourite.  The
+Dutchmen, too, joined in, to the accompaniment of a prolonged blast
+upon the _Hoorn's_ siren as she resumed her interrupted voyage.
+
+"It's like being home again," declared Ross, after Captain Syllenger
+and the other officers had congratulated him.  "But, I say, can anyone
+lend me a decent suit of togs?"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIX
+
+Bound for the Baltic
+
+A fortnight had elapsed since the day on which H.M.S. _Capella_ towed
+the captured unterseeboot into Harwich harbour.  Since then she had
+been attached to a base on the East coast of Scotland, her sphere of
+usefulness in the English Channel being a thing of the past.
+
+The German blockade had fizzled out like a damp squib.  Absolutely
+afraid to risk the remaining boats in operations that would certainly
+end in their being unceremoniously conveyed to Davy Jones's locker, the
+German Admiralty had dispatched them to the Mediterranean, where, under
+the Austrian flag, they attempted, at first with a certain degree of
+success, to terrorize merchantmen by their "frightfulness".
+
+So the _Capella_ had been ordered to Cromarty Firth, pending the
+completion of arrangements for sending a fleet of swift destroyers and
+patrol-boats to operate in conjunction with the British submarines in
+the Baltic.
+
+Almost the first duty Ross had to undertake upon arrival was to draw
+money for the ship's company from the Paymaster's office at Invergordon.
+
+Accompanied by six seamen, wearing their side-arms and carrying three
+canvas bags, the midshipman landed, and proceeded to the office.
+Leaving the escort "standing easy", Ross entered the building and found
+himself confronted by a door on which was painted the words,
+"Accountant Officer".  Underneath was a piece of cardboard on which was
+written: "Don't knock--walk in".
+
+The midshipman accepted the invitation and entered.  It was a large
+room.  Against one wall were three knee-hole desks, at which were
+seated naval "writers"--petty officers detached for clerical work.  Two
+more were bending over a large tray, studiously engaged in "putting the
+money up", or placing wages in the compartments of the tray in order to
+facilitate the forthcoming payment to the civilian workers attached to
+the establishment.  At a large desk was an officer, with his head
+almost touching a litter of papers.  His back was turned, but Ross
+could see by the gold-and-white band that he was an Assistant Paymaster.
+
+Hearing footsteps behind him, the A.P. broke into a torrent of abuse:
+
+"Of all the scatter-brained idiots that act the giddy goat, this
+strafed lunatic takes the proverbial ship's biscuit!" he exclaimed.
+"Just look here, Carruthers; did you ever see such a piece of arrant
+tomfoolery----"
+
+He turned his head, and saw it was not Carruthers.
+
+"Sorry," he said apologetically.  "Thought it was someone else.  You
+must have imagined that I was off my head.  It's a wonder I'm not.
+Look at this: here am I up to my eyes in work, and I get this sort of
+thing fired at me."
+
+Ross looked at the tendered document.  It was headed: "Queries in the
+Store Ledger", and the gem to which the harassed A.P. had referred was
+as follows:--
+
+"4 oz. tin-tacks.  Please say if these are synonymous with 'tacks
+tinned'."
+
+The midshipman laughed.  The A.P. glared.
+
+"Some rotten idiot drawing five hundred a year evidently doesn't
+realize it's war-time," he growled.  "Now, what can I do for you?"
+
+At length the midshipman received the necessary coin.  He was about to
+leave the officer when he found himself face to face with John Barry,
+now a Lieutenant-Commander, R.N.R.
+
+"Bless my soul, Trefusis!" exclaimed Barry cordially.  "I am glad to
+see you.  I heard the new _Capella_ was ordered round.  How's everyone?
+Thanks, I'm top-hole.  In a deuce of a hurry!  Look here, come on board
+and see me to-night.  The _Hunbilker_ is lying off Cromarty.  Can you
+manage it?"
+
+"I think so," replied Ross.
+
+"Very good; bring Haye with you.  I'll send a boat at seven bells."
+
+Captain Syllenger readily gave the midshipmen permission.
+
+"It looks as if it might blow a bit before very long," he added.  "If
+so, remain on board until morning.  It's no joke making a five-mile
+trip in a steamboat on a pitch-dark night with a sea running."
+
+The lads were delighted at the prospect of the visit.  They were both
+awfully keen on John Barry; besides, they were rather anxious to see
+what sort of command he had.  The ship's name was enough to excite
+their curiosity.  She had evidently arrived later than the _Capella_,
+for there was no sign of a craft bearing that name when the
+patrol-vessel passed Cromarty on the previous afternoon.
+
+Punctually at seven bells a grey motor-boat dashed up alongside the
+_Capella's_ gangway.  Shrap, whose instinct told him that his young
+master was leaving the ship, anticipated him by making a prodigious
+bound from the side into the waiting boat, alighting upon the shoulders
+of the coxswain, much to that worthy's astonishment.
+
+"Never mind, sir," replied the man, in answer to Vernon's apologies.
+"I've a dog myself at home, very much like this one."
+
+"Let him come with us," suggested Ross.  "He'll kick up an awful row if
+you don't."
+
+So Shrap, coiled up in the stern-sheets, had his way.
+
+Having received the midshipmen, the boat turned and threshed its way in
+the teeth of a strong easterly breeze.
+
+"Yes, sir, that's the _Hunbilker_," replied the coxswain in answer to
+Vernon's query, as a large grey shape loomed through the twilight.
+
+"By Jove!" ejaculated Ross, absolutely taken aback.  "She's a whopper.
+Old Barry's got a battleship.  If she isn't a sister ship to the
+_Tremendous_, I'm a----"
+
+Fortunately for him, Ross refrained from saying what he might be, for
+as things turned out he was wrong.  The _Hunbilker_ commenced her
+career as a 6000-ton merchantman, but no one would recognize her as
+such.
+
+In all probability, but for the war, she would have ended her career as
+such.  But the Navy required her for a certain purpose, and loyally the
+old tramp stepped into the breach.  When, after a lapse of nine weeks,
+she emerged from the repairing basin, her disguise was complete.  She
+looked to be what she was not.  It is, therefore, no cause for
+wonderment that the two midshipmen were deceived by the enormous
+outlines of what appeared to be a formidable unit of the British Navy.
+The _Hunbilker_ was, in short, a maritime ass in lion's skin, but her
+role was none the less a responsible one.
+
+"I was rather doubtful whether you would turn up," remarked Barry.
+"The glass is dropping like billy-ho, and there's a brute of a sea
+tumbling in."
+
+"We need not return to-night," announced Ross.
+
+"That's capital," rejoined the Lieutenant-Commander.  "I'll get the
+hands to hoist in the boat and trice the accommodation-ladder up.  We
+roll like a barrel in a sea-way."
+
+"You've got a big command this time, sir," said Vernon.
+
+Barry smiled.
+
+"Yes," he replied.  "Plenty of room, but the lighting 'tween decks is
+rotten.  All artificial, you know, except the little we get in through
+the quarter-deck skylights.  I'm expecting young Jolly; he's the A. P.
+you saw ashore at Invergordon.  Not a bad sort of youngster when he's
+clear of his work.  Would you like to look round before we go below?"
+
+"Of course the Germans know all about our dummy battleships," continued
+Barry as he led the way.  "They jeered at the scheme in the papers as
+far back as last November twelvemonth."
+
+"Then what's the object?" asked Ross.
+
+"It muddles them up.  They can't distinguish the _Tremendous_ from this
+packet, especially in hazy weather.  They've got to guess which is the
+substance and which is the shadow.  From actual results we know now
+that the costly experiment has more than justified the expenditure."
+
+The Lieutenant-Commander and his young guests continued to talk shop
+until it was time to go below.  From that moment, conversation drifted
+into other channels of more or less personal interest.
+
+Presently a loud whistle was heard from without.
+
+"That's Jolly," declared the Lieutenant-Commander.  "It's the last boat
+to-night, I fancy."
+
+A few minutes later the A. P., having divested himself of his dripping
+oilies and sou'wester, was ushered into the cabin.  Separated from his
+duties as Accountant Officer, he was much the same as other men.  Ross
+could hardly believe that the jovial officer--for he did not now belie
+his name--was the same explosive man who had figuratively lost his head
+over four ounces of "tacks tinned".
+
+Dinner over, the four officers drew their chairs close to the fire and
+yarned incessantly.  Even the laboured rolling of the ship, the howling
+of the wind overhead, and the _chouf chouf_ of the waves as they
+slapped against the sides, failed to remind them that they were afloat
+and in an exposed anchorage.
+
+"Heard from your sister recently?" enquired Barry, addressing the A. P.
+He tried to ask the question in a natural tone of voice, but the
+midshipmen were quick to perceive a deepening of the tan in the
+Lieutenant-Commander's weather-beaten face.
+
+"Had a letter only this morning," replied Jolly; "a fairly long one,
+too.  I suppose things have quieted down a bit after the rush.  My
+sister's a double one, you know," he added, turning to Ross and his
+chum.
+
+"A what?" asked Ross.
+
+"She's my sister, and she's a nursing sister at a naval hospital,"
+explained the A.P.  "There's a very quaint little bit.  I must read it
+to you."
+
+He produced an envelope from his pocket.
+
+"'You remember Marjory May?'" he read.  "'She's had her wish.  She
+joined here as a probationer, on the day after that terrible destroyer
+affair.  We had most of the cases.  One of the patients was a stoker,
+who had been knocked about by a shell exploding in a bunker (whatever
+that is--it sounds like golf).  Marjorie had her first task--to wash
+him before the doctor could operate.  I went to see how she was
+progressing, and found the poor girl on the verge of tears.  'Oh,
+sister!' she exclaimed; 'I've been scrubbing him for ten minutes, and I
+can't get him clean!'  It was rather dull in the ward, so I switched on
+the light.  Then I saw the cause of Marjory's distress.  The poor
+stoker was a half-caste."
+
+"By Jove!" ejaculated the A.P. as a particularly savage gust laid the
+ship well over.  "It isn't half blowing!"
+
+"Yes, my festive friend," agreed Barry; "it is!  Fortunately you are
+not due back to-night.  If you were it wouldn't signify, for I wouldn't
+order a boat away on a night like this.  To-morrow, if it hasn't
+moderated--and the worst is yet to come--we'll weigh and stand up the
+Firth into smoother water."
+
+There was a pause in the conversation.  The din without was now
+terrific.  One of the worst of the winter gales was approaching its
+climax--a furious nor'easter.
+
+"Come in!" shouted Barry as a knock was heard at the cabin door.
+
+"Wireless message, sir," announced one of the ship's boys.
+
+"Very good," replied the Lieutenant-Commander.  Then, after the
+messenger had backed out, he started to his feet.
+
+"I say, you fellows!" he exclaimed.  "Here's a pretty kettle of fish:
+'Flag to _Hunbilker_: Proceed to sea at once.  Rendezvous Lat. 5° E.,
+Long. 57° 30' N.'  That means, whether you like it or whether you
+don't, you're bound for the Baltic."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXX
+
+The Affair off Kiel
+
+Clad in their oilskins over their greatcoats, the two midshipmen
+accompanied Barry to the bridge.  The A. P., on second thoughts,
+decided to remain below.  He had a rooted objection to getting his
+glasses smothered in spray if it could be avoided.
+
+Steam had been raised a week ago, when the _Hunbilker_ left Newcastle
+for Cromarty, so there was no delay on that account.  Already the steam
+capstan was clanking dolorously as fathom after fathom of chain crept
+with seeming reluctance through the hawse-pipe.
+
+It was a night.  Towering seas, sweeping in from the exposed Moray
+Firth, surged madly into the more sheltered inlet where the dummy
+battleship strained at her cable.  The air was thick with sleet.
+Overhead, black clouds scudded rapidly across the moon.
+
+Even though the ship was partly under the lee of the projecting ground,
+the midshipmen knew that it would be hopeless to attempt to lower a
+boat.  For good or ill they were bound to remain on board.
+
+"Suppose it's all right," remarked Ross.  "We may get a chance of doing
+something, far more so than if we were on board the _Capella_, now this
+submarine blockade fiasco is finished.  At any rate it's not our fault
+we're here."
+
+"But our good fortune," added Vernon.  "Evidently there's a big affair
+coming off, though I can't quite see what this vessel's going to do in
+it."
+
+For fifteen hours of darkness the _Hunbilker_ plodded steadily onwards.
+No lights were shown, yet it was a known fact that at least thirty
+vessels of various types were converging upon the rendezvous.
+
+Captain Barry never once quitted the bridge.  Although his lofty post
+was constantly deluged by clouds of icy spray, and the weather side of
+the bridge-rail canvas was inches deep in sleet, he braved the elements
+through watch and watch, snatching a hasty meal of cocoa (which was
+cold by the time it reached him) and biscuits under the lee of the
+chart-house.
+
+Day dawned at last.  Ross and Vernon, who had gone below to snatch a
+few hours' sleep, came on deck to find the _Hunbilker_ at the
+rendezvous.  She lay in the midst of a fleet.  There were the great
+battle-cruisers, Dreadnoughts and their replicas, light cruisers, and a
+galaxy of torpedo-boats--the latter swept from stem to stern by the
+waves.
+
+Without any appreciable weakening of the Grand Fleet, this maritime
+force had been assembled for particular service--presumably in the
+Baltic, although no orders to that effect had yet been received.
+
+All that short January day the fleet steamed slowly eastward, while
+signal flags fluttered incessantly.  No hostile submarine put in an
+appearance.  Either the Germans feared the swift destroyers that
+encircled the large vessels, or else they were in ignorance of the
+presence of the British within four hours' steaming of their shores.
+
+It was not until night that the _Hunbilker_ received her orders.  She
+had to proceed in advance of the destroyers, and under cover of
+darkness pass through the Great Belt.  Having done so, she was to be
+run aground on a shoal between the Danish island of Laaland and the
+Prussian island of Fehmern, the latter being within forty miles of the
+stronghold of the German Navy at Kiel.
+
+Then she was to await developments.  If attacked by submarines, the
+British destroyers would dash in; but what the British Admiral fondly
+hoped was that the hostile battleships or armoured cruisers would not
+be able to resist the temptation of sallying forth from Kiel to give
+the supposed Dreadnought her _coup de grâce_.  In this case our
+submarines would "chip in", and possibly the battle-cruisers might
+score with their deadly and accurate long-range salvoes.
+
+"It's not so risky as it looks," commented Barry as he explained the
+tactics to the midshipmen.  "You see, they can torpedo us as much as
+they like, and blow the dummy sides of the ship to bits piecemeal.  We
+can't sink, since we'll be hard aground.  We can't take fire--at least,
+it would be quite a job to get any part of her to burn without being
+able to keep the flames under control.  Gunnery, of course, puts a
+different aspect on the subject.  If the enemy start shelling us with
+their heavy guns, then the sooner we abandon ship and clear out the
+better, and leave our big cruisers to mop up the Huns."
+
+Grey dawn was breaking when the _Hunbilker_, having made the passage
+through the Great Belt, ran gently aground at the spot indicated in the
+Admiral's orders.  Away in the sou'west, a glare in the sky that was
+rapidly fading with the growing morn indicated the search-lights of the
+Kiel defences.  Eastwards, two huge grey shapes loomed ghost-like in
+the half-light.  Whether they were British cruisers or decoys, or even
+German battleships, Ross could not determine.
+
+The _Hunbilker_ lay with a slight list to starboard.  All around her
+the sea was covered with drifting ice.  An utter stillness brooded over
+everything.  The silence was in keeping with the scene of desolation.
+
+Suddenly the deafening blast of the _Hunbilker's_ siren rent the air.
+It was the prearranged signal that she was in readiness; it was also
+her challenge to the Kiel-tied German fleet.
+
+Ten minutes later a lurid flash, followed by a dull booming noise, came
+from the nearmost of the two vessels Ross had previously noticed.
+
+"Either mine or torpedo," remarked Barry casually.  "It doesn't
+signify.  They won't sink her in a hurry."
+
+"What is she, sir?" asked Vernon.
+
+"Our opposite number, the _Snark_," replied the Lieutenant-Commander.
+"See, she's steaming northwards, without any apparent injury.  It will
+be our turn before very long."
+
+At frequent intervals the siren shrieked, as if calling to the rest of
+the squadron for assistance.  Then out of the rising mist, for with the
+break of day a thin pall of vapour rose from the ice-flecked water,
+leapt two German torpedo-boats.
+
+"Port side, all hands!" roared Barry.
+
+Officers and crew put the greatest possible distance between them and
+the side of the ship exposed to the hostile craft.  Without slackening
+speed, the torpedo-boats described a sharp curve.  Their officers must
+have wondered why they were not greeted by the stranded battleship's
+quick-firers.  As they turned, two gleaming objects flopped
+ungracefully from their decks and disappeared with a splash beneath the
+surface.  Each boat had fired a torpedo from her broadside tubes.
+
+From the place where the midshipmen stood, they were not able to follow
+the track of the formidable missiles; but they had not long to wait.
+Both torpedoes struck almost simultaneously--one abreast of the for'ard
+dummy turret, the other fifty feet farther aft.
+
+High in the air rose a column of water mingled with fragments of iron
+plating; while in their place of hiding the two lads were smothered
+with cork-dust and blackened cotton that had been blown from the space
+betwixt the outer and inner hulls.
+
+"It's lucky for us that they didn't use their quick-firers," remarked
+Barry.  "They would have pulverized us before our destroyers romped up.
+By Jove, Haye, that dog of yours looks as though he likes it!  Hulloa!
+There you are!"
+
+The Lieutenant-Commander pointed to the southward.  A rift in the mist
+disclosed a two-masted, two-funnelled armoured cruiser about two miles
+off.
+
+"The _Prinz Heinrich_ or the _Fürst Bismarck_," declared Barry.  "We've
+turned 'em out.  Hope to goodness our little lot will be in time to
+snap them up.  Unless I'm much mistaken, there are two more astern of
+her."
+
+Almost as he spoke, a spurt of flame rent the dull sky.  Then, to the
+accompaniment of a vivid flash and an ear-splitting detonation, a
+5.9-inch shell burst against the for'ard dummy turret of the
+_Hunbilker_.
+
+When the smoke had cleared away, guns, turret, and conning-tower,
+together with a portion of the bridge, had vanished.
+
+"All hands abandon ship!" ordered Barry, as a salvo of light
+projectiles flew round, over, and through the decoy.
+
+It was quite time.  Several men had been hit, since there was nothing
+to afford complete protection from the hail of shells.  The difficulty
+was to find a boat that was seaworthy, since these suffered almost at
+once from the flying fragments of metal.
+
+"Hurrah, sir!" shouted one of the men.  "There are our destroyers."
+
+He was right.  Seven British destroyers were tearing through the water,
+intent upon giving the Germans the punishment that they had boasted to
+inflict upon the strafed Englishmen--a hussar stroke.
+
+Instantly the galling fire ceased.  The German cruiser had all her work
+cut out to endeavour to beat off her wasp-like antagonists.
+
+The _Hunbilker_ was doomed.  In spite of elaborate precautions against
+fire, she was burning furiously.  Her fo'c'sle was a mass of flames,
+generated by the intense heat of the first shell that had struck her.
+Smaller fires, too, had started in other parts of the ship.
+
+But help was at hand.  One of the covering destroyers had witnessed her
+plight.  Adroitly manoeuvring, she came right alongside the burning
+ship.
+
+"Jump, men!" shouted Barry.
+
+There was no time to be lost.  The danger of the flames communicating
+with the shells and war-heads on the destroyer's deck was to be taken
+into consideration.
+
+"Come on, old man!" exclaimed Ross, as his chum looked anxiously about
+him.
+
+"Where's Shrap?" asked Vernon.  "He was here a minute ago."
+
+In the confusion, occasioned by the rush of men to leap upon the
+destroyer, the dog had vanished.
+
+Without a word Vernon ran towards the companion leading to the
+half-deck.  Above the roar of the flames and the hissing of steam, he
+had heard the well-known bark of his pet.
+
+"Silly ass!" muttered Ross; but he, too, followed his chum.
+
+Wreaths of thin smoke were issuing from the companion as Ross gained
+the head of the ladder.  Putting his muffler round his mouth, he groped
+his way down.  'Tween decks the air was full of smoke.  He could hear
+Shrap's insistent bark, and Vernon's voice as, amidst fits of coughing,
+he called to his canine companion.
+
+"Whatever is the matter with the brute?" thought Ross, as he fought his
+way along the half-deck.
+
+A gaping hole in the ship's side admitted sufficient light to enable
+him to discern his comrade backing from one of the cabins.  Shrap was
+preceding him, while Vernon was dragging something limp and heavy.  It
+was the body of the luckless A. P.
+
+Without a word, for the atmosphere was hot and choky, Ross bore a hand.
+Stumbling and slipping, the two lads bore their burden to the
+companion, and by dint of much exertion carried Jolly on deck.
+
+"Is he dead?" asked Ross, after he had refilled his lungs with less
+smoke-laden air.
+
+"I don't think so," said Vernon.  "It was good old Shrap that found
+him."
+
+The A. P. was below when the salvo from the German cruiser struck the
+ship.  He had gone to the cabin temporarily allotted to him to obtain
+some small but cherished belonging.  A fragment from one of the shells
+had inflicted a nasty scalp wound, stretching him senseless upon the
+floor.
+
+Had it not been for the sheep-dog, whose sagacity made him recognize
+that Jolly was a friend of his master's, the A. P. would have ended his
+career in the burning hull of the _Hunbilker_.
+
+"Hurry up!" exclaimed Ross.  "Let's get him aboard the destroyer."
+
+Between them they carried the insensible officer across the
+quarter-deck, but as they reached the side abreast the wreckage of the
+superstructure they came to an abrupt halt.
+
+The destroyer had sheered off and was out of sight.
+
+"Now what's to be done?" asked Vernon, aghast at the latest turn of
+fortune.
+
+They laid the A. P. on the deck and looked over the side.  Still made
+fast to the falls was a whaler, with her keel ten feet above water.
+When the order had been given to abandon ship, the boat had been
+lowered, but the appearance of the destroyer had done away with the
+necessity of having to make use of her.
+
+"Lower away!" ordered Ross.
+
+Checking the descent by taking a turn round the cleats, the lads
+allowed the whaler to reach the water.  To their satisfaction they
+found that she leaked but very little.  Oars and crutches were already
+on board, together with mast and sail.
+
+"Down you get," said Ross.  "Let go the after disengaging gear, then
+stand by.  I'll let Jolly down to you."
+
+Vernon quickly swarmed down the falls, while his chum carried the A.P.
+to the now empty davit.  Taking a few turns with his strong muffler
+round the chest of the unconscious man, Ross engaged the hook of the
+lower block, and slowly lowered him into Vernon's arms.  Shrap followed
+in a similar manner, since the drop was too great for him to leap
+without risk of limb.  Then Ross climbed down and gained the boat.  He
+was not a minute too soon, for the flames were drawing nearer and the
+heat was becoming almost unbearable.
+
+Placing Jolly in the stern-sheets, the lads stepped the mast and
+hoisted sail.  Nothing else was in sight, although the rumble of heavy
+firing was still audible.
+
+"I'll steer north," declared Ross, who had taken the helm, while Vernon
+attended to the A.P.'s ugly wound.  "If we are not picked up by one of
+our own boats, we are almost bound to hit one of the Danish islands."
+
+There was but little wind.  What there was, blew from a couple of
+points abaft the beam, so that the little craft was able to lie
+comfortably upon her course.
+
+At length Jolly opened his eyes.  Somewhat to his companions' amusement
+his first words were:
+
+"Dash it all!  Where did I leave my glasses?  Hulloa!  I've been
+plugged.  Where am I?"
+
+He attempted to sit up, but promptly subsided upon the gratings in the
+stern-sheets, and in a very short time he began to talk incoherently,
+and finally dropped off into a fitful slumber.
+
+The fog had now increased in density, so that it was no longer possible
+to see more than a hundred yards ahead.  Several vessels moving at high
+speed passed within hailing distance, but no reply came to the lads'
+shouts.
+
+"There's a hail!" exclaimed Vernon.
+
+Again came the sound of a human voice.  It was a call for aid, and was
+uttered in German.
+
+"Steady!" cautioned Vernon, as Ross put the helm down.  "We don't want
+to run alongside a cargo of Huns."
+
+"There's only one, I should imagine," replied his chum.  "At any rate
+we'll have a look.  If there are too many, we'll sheer off."
+
+Guided by the repeated calls for assistance, the midshipmen came in
+sight of a disabled boat.  It had been holed, and was kept afloat only
+by some of its air-tanks which had escaped damage.  The gunwales,
+jagged by shell-fire, were showing only a few inches above the water.
+The stern was almost awash, but the bows rose sufficiently high for the
+forefoot to be seen.  Crouching on the for'ard thwart was a German
+officer.  He was bareheaded.  The collar of his greatcoat was turned
+up.  His face was blanched by the intense cold.  As the whaler
+approached and he saw that it was a British one, he held up his hands
+in token of surrender.
+
+Dropping to leeward, Ross luffed smartly.  The whaler lost way almost
+alongside the waterlogged boat.
+
+Awkwardly the German clambered over the gunwale, for his limbs were
+numbed.  Then, as soon as he was safely on board, he drew a revolver
+from the pocket of his greatcoat and fired twice in quick succession.
+
+Ross saw his chum throw up his arms and pitch across the centre thwart.
+The next instant he felt a stinging pain in his shoulder, as if it were
+pierced by a red-hot needle.
+
+"The brute has plugged me!" was the thought that flashed through his
+mind, as he subsided heavily upon the grating by the side of the A. P.
+
+He was still conscious, although everything seemed misty.  Up to a
+certain point he remembered exactly what happened, for with a sudden
+spring Shrap flew at the treacherous Teuton's throat.
+
+Again and again the German fired, wildly and in the air, for the
+sheep-dog had him fixed in his unyielding jaws, shaking the fellow like
+a rat.  Unable to move a limb, Ross remained conscious until the issue
+was decided and victory rested with the devoted Shrap; then his head
+dropped upon his chest and everything became a blank.
+
+      *      *      *      *      *
+
+Ross Trefusis recovered consciousness to find himself in hospital on
+the East coast.  In the next cot was Jolly, cutting a sorry figure with
+his head swathed in surgical bandages.  Vernon was in an adjoining
+ward, making a promising recovery from the wound caused by the cowardly
+German's bullet that had passed between his ribs, fortunately just
+missing his lungs.
+
+It was not until a week later that Ross heard of the manner of his
+rescue.  The whaler had been picked up by a destroyer.  In it they
+found the three wounded British officers, and a dead German with his
+throat fearfully lacerated.  Not only had Shrap saved the situation,
+but he had helped still further to save his master's life, for it was
+owing to the warmth of the dog's body that Vernon was saved from death
+by exposure.
+
+One of the first of visitors to Ross's bedside was John Barry, now
+Commander Barry, R.N.R., D.S.O.
+
+"And how did the scrap come off?" asked Ross.
+
+"Fairly well," replied the Commander.  "We bagged a cruiser and a
+couple of destroyers.  The old _Hunbilker_ justified her existence, you
+see."
+
+"I'm afraid Haye and I are out of the running," remarked Ross
+disconsolately.
+
+"Not a bit of it," replied Barry in his breezy way.  "Not a bit of it.
+You'll both be as fit as fiddles in a couple of months.  The Navy's
+pushing on with the job all right, Ross, but it's slow and sure.
+You'll be at it again long before the end."
+
+Ross gave a sigh of satisfaction.
+
+"Sounds promising, sir, doesn't it?" he exclaimed.
+
+
+
+
+By PERCY F. WESTERMAN
+
+"No boy alive will be able to peruse Mr. Westerman's pages without a
+quickening of his pulses."--Outlook.
+
+
+With Beatty off Jutland.  A Romance of the Great Sea Fight.
+
+The Submarine Hunters.  A Story of Naval Patrol Work.
+
+A Lively Bit of the Front.  A Tale of the New Zealand Rifles on the
+Western Front.
+
+A Sub and a Submarine.  The Story of H.M. Submarine R19 in the Great
+War.
+
+Under the White Ensign.  A Naval Story of the Great War.  "No one can
+tell sea stories like Percy F. Westerman."--Outlook.
+
+The Dispatch-Riders: The Adventures of Two British Motor-cyclists with
+the Belgian Forces.  "No boy will find a dull page in Mr. Westerman's
+story."--Bookman.
+
+The Sea-girt Fortress: A Story of Heligoland.  "Mr. Westerman has
+provided a story of breathless excitement, and boys of all ages will
+read it with avidity."--Athenaeum.
+
+Rounding up the Raider: A Naval Story of the Great War.
+
+The Fight for Constantinople: A Tale of the Gallipoli Peninsula.
+"Breathless adventures crowd into this thrilling story....  It teems
+with enthralling episodes and vivid word-pictures."--British Weekly.
+"The reader sits absolutely spellbound to the end of the
+story."--Sheffield Daily Telegraph.
+
+Captured at Tripoli: A Tale of Adventure.
+
+"We cannot imagine a better gift-book than this to put into the hands
+of the youthful book-lover, either as a prize or
+present."--Schoolmaster.
+
+The Quest of the "Golden Hope": A Seventeenth-century Story of
+Adventure.  "The boy who is not satisfied with this crowded story must
+be peculiarly hard to please."--Liverpool Courier.
+
+A Lad of Grit: A Story of Restoration Times.  "The tale is well
+written, and has a good deal of variety in the scenes and
+persons."--Globe.
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+End of Project Gutenberg's The Submarine Hunters, by Percy F. Westerman
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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Submarine Hunters, by Percy F. Westerman
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+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Submarine Hunters
+       A Story of the Naval Patrol Work in the Great War
+
+Author: Percy F. Westerman
+
+Illustrator: E. S. Hodgson
+
+Release Date: March 17, 2013 [EBook #26641]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SUBMARINE HUNTERS ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Al Haines
+
+
+
+
+
+</pre>
+
+
+<BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="img-cover"></A>
+<CENTER>
+<IMG CLASS="imgcenter" SRC="images/img-cover.jpg" ALT="Cover art" BORDER="2" WIDTH="489" HEIGHT="743">
+<H4 CLASS="h4center" STYLE="width: 489px">
+Cover art
+</H4>
+</CENTER>
+
+<BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="img-front"></A>
+<CENTER>
+<IMG CLASS="imgcenter" SRC="images/img-front.jpg" ALT="&quot;THE BLACK CROSS FLAG WAS HAULED DOWN,   AND REHOISTED UNDER THE WHITE ENSIGN&quot;" BORDER="2" WIDTH="409" HEIGHT="635">
+<H4 CLASS="h4center" STYLE="width: 409px">
+&quot;THE BLACK CROSS FLAG WAS HAULED DOWN,   AND REHOISTED UNDER THE WHITE ENSIGN&quot;
+</H4>
+</CENTER>
+
+<BR><BR>
+
+<H1 ALIGN="center">
+The Submarine Hunters
+</H1>
+
+<BR>
+
+<H4 ALIGN="center">
+A Story of Naval Patrol<BR>
+Work in the Great War<BR>
+</H4>
+
+<BR>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+BY
+</H3>
+
+<H2 ALIGN="center">
+PERCY F. WESTERMAN
+</H2>
+
+<BR><BR>
+
+<H5 ALIGN="center">
+Author of<BR>
+<BR>
+"Rounding Up the Raider"<BR>
+"The Dispatch-Riders"<BR>
+"The Fight for Constantinople"<BR>
+&amp;c. &amp;c.<BR>
+</H5>
+
+<BR><BR>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+<I>Illustrated by E. S. Hodgson</I>
+</H3>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<H4 ALIGN="center">
+BLACKIE AND SON LIMITED
+<BR>
+LONDON GLASGOW AND BOMBAY
+<BR>
+1918
+</H4>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<H2 ALIGN="center">
+Contents
+</H2>
+
+<TABLE ALIGN="center" WIDTH="80%">
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">CHAP.</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">&nbsp;</TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">I.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap01">THE MYSTERIOUS MEETING ON ST. MENA'S ISLAND</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">II.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap02">THE TABLES TURNED</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">III.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap03">KIDNAPPED</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">IV.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap04">THE AWAKENING</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">V.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap05">ABOARD U75</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">VI.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap06">THE TRAMP</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">VII.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap07">ON THE BED OF THE SEA</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">VIII.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap08">BALKED BY A SEA-PLANE</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">IX.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap09">THE LANDING AT PORT TREHERNE</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">X.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap10">A TREACHEROUS PLOT</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XI.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap11">PREPARATIONS</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XII.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap12">THE WHITE FLAG&mdash;AND AFTERWARDS</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XIII.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap13">THE ARM OF THE LAW</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XIV.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap14">A FRUITLESS QUEST</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XV.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap15">THE ADMIRAL WORKS THE ORACLE</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XVI.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap16">H.M.S. "CAPELLA"</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XVII.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap17">A DOUBLE BAG</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XVIII.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap18">THE SMOKE-SIGNALS</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XIX.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap19">THAT FRIDAY NIGHT</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XX.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap20">TO THE RESCUE</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XXI.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap21">ADRIFT IN THE CHANNEL</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XXII.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap22">AN UNEXPECTED CAPTURE</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XXIII.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap23">MINED</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XXIV.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap24">"SHRAP"</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XXV.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap25">OFF THE BELGIAN COAST</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XXVI.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap26">DISABLED IN MID-AIR</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XXVII.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap27">NOT ON PAROLE</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XXVIII.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap28">ALMOST RECAPTURED</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XXIX.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap29">BOUND FOR THE BALTIC</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+<TR>
+<TD ALIGN="right" VALIGN="top">XXX.&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
+<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top">
+<A HREF="#chap30">THE AFFAIR OFF KIEL</A></TD>
+</TR>
+
+</TABLE>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<H2 ALIGN="center">
+Illustrations
+</H2>
+
+<H4>
+<A HREF="#img-front">
+"THE BLACK CROSS FLAG WAS HAULED DOWN AND<BR>
+RE-HOISTED UNDER THE WHITE ENSIGN"&nbsp;.&nbsp;.&nbsp;.&nbsp;.&nbsp;.&nbsp;.&nbsp;.&nbsp;.&nbsp;. <I>Frontispiece</I>
+</A>
+</H4>
+
+<H4>
+<A HREF="#img-049">
+THE INTERVIEW WITH THE GERMAN CAPTAIN (missing from book)
+</A>
+</H4>
+
+<H4>
+<A HREF="#img-082">
+"'D'YE KEN YON?' ASKED THE BRITISH SKIPPER, AS HE<BR>
+  EYED THE PODGY GERMAN LEUTNANT WITH CONTEMPT"
+</A>
+</H4>
+
+<H4>
+<A HREF="#img-110">
+"THE 'TREMENDOUS' WAS HEADING STRAIGHT FOR THE DOOMED SUBMARINE"
+</A>
+</H4>
+
+<H4>
+<A HREF="#img-192">
+THE SINKING OF THE "ORONTABELLA" (missing from book)
+</A>
+</H4>
+
+<H4>
+<A HREF="#img-247">
+"THE WORK OF DEMOLITION WAS ACCOMPLISHED"
+</A>
+</H4>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap01"></A>
+
+<H1 ALIGN="center">
+THE SUBMARINE HUNTERS
+</H1>
+
+<BR>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER I
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+The Mysterious Meeting on St. Mena's Island
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+"We've made a proper mess of things this time!" ejaculated Ross
+Trefusis&mdash;"or rather I have."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It can't be helped," rejoined his chum, Vernon Haye.  "We've done our
+level best to get her off.  How long is it before the tide floats her?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A matter of seven or eight hours, worse luck.  You see, it was only
+half ebb when we landed."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross bent down to remove a streak of bluish-grey mud from his ankle.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I wish we'd taken the rowing-boat instead of this heavy old tub," he
+continued.  "We'll be pretty peckish before we get back to the Hall,
+and dinner's at seven-thirty."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Vernon laughed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It wouldn't be the first time I've had to go without grub," he
+remarked.  "If you don't mind, I don't."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Then it's no use standing here," said Ross.  "Let's get on our shoes
+and go for a stroll."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Vernon Haye was a broad-shouldered lad of fifteen, with clear-cut
+features and dark hair.  His companion was of about the same age, but a
+good two inches taller.  His complexion was florid, his hair of an
+auburn tint that narrowly escaped coming within the category of red or
+ginger.  His features were full and rounded.  In short, he was a
+typical Cornish youth.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross's father, Admiral Paul Trefusis, lived at Killigwent Hall, a
+large, rambling, sixteenth-century house, standing within a mile of the
+sea on the North Cornish coast.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Both lads went to the same public school, but owing to the fact that
+Vernon's father, Captain Haye, was on active service with the Grand
+Fleet, young Haye was spending the summer holidays with his chum at
+Killigwent Hall.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+That afternoon the lads had taken a small sailing-boat and had made for
+St. Mena's Island, a small rocky piece of land lying about a mile off
+shore, and nearly five miles from Killigwent Cove.  The island was
+roughly three-quarters of a mile in length, and four hundred yards wide
+in the broadest part.  The north and west sides were precipitous, but
+on the side nearest to the mainland the ground sloped gradually, and
+was indented by several narrow tidal coves.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The glamour of romance lay thickly around that rocky pile.  Centuries
+ago it was the abode of a hermit, who, amongst his various self-imposed
+tasks, had built a chapel on the summit, from the tower of which a wood
+fire was kindled nightly to warn mariners of the treacherous reefs in
+the vicinity of the island.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In course of time, St. Mena's Island became the haunt of wreckers and
+smugglers.  The chapel, in spite of its massive construction, fell a
+victim to the ravages of wind and weather, but still served as a
+convenient shelter for the lawless Cornishmen who profited by the
+misfortunes of honest seamen.  Immune from interference, by reason of
+the superstitious awe in which the island was held by the country-folk,
+the smugglers and wreckers thrived exceedingly until late in the
+eighteenth century, when stern measures were taken to suppress their
+misdeeds.  From that time St. Mena's Island was deserted, except for
+the casual visits of tourists and summer visitors from the neighbouring
+towns of Padstow and Newquay, and countless numbers of sea-birds that
+take up their abode in crannies in the almost inaccessible cliffs.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross Trefusis was right in taking the blame of their misfortunes upon
+himself.  He knew better, but, neglecting to take ordinary precautions,
+he had allowed the boat to be left high and dry by the falling tide.
+Upon returning to the cove the lads had found the heavy craft lying on
+its bilge in the stiff bluish clay, with a ridge of jagged rocks
+cutting her off from the sea.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Perhaps," suggested Vernon, "some other boat will put off to the
+island, and we can get them to put us ashore."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hardly likely," was the reply.  "Anyway, we'll keep a look-out.  Which
+would you prefer to do&mdash;explore the Smugglers' Cave and Dead Man's
+Cave, or climb up to the ruins?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"The ruins," decided young Haye eagerly.  "I like fooling about old
+ruins, and I've already seen the caves.  Besides, we can see if there
+are any boats about.  It's almost like being shipwrecked on a desert
+island."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hard lines if we were," commented Ross.  "Suppose we take an inventory
+of our possessions?  Let the see: one pocket-knife, a silver watch that
+has refused duty, a notebook and pencil, and five shillings and three
+halfpence.  What have you to add to the common stock?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A knife, a pocket compass, my watch&mdash;which does go; it's now
+five-and-twenty to four&mdash;and sixteen shillings and eightpence in paper
+money and hard coin."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Not a morsel of grub between the pair of us, then," declared Ross.
+"Outlook beastly unpromising.  Faced with starvation unless we make up
+our minds to knock over some gulls.  They are horribly fishy to eat, I
+believe, and we've nothing to make a fire."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It makes you pine for the flesh-pots of Kllligwent Hall, old man,"
+exclaimed Vernon laughingly.  "Never mind, let's make a move.  I vote
+we get rid of these sweaters.  It is frightfully hot."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Stripping off their woollen garments, and placing them for safety under
+a gorse bush, the two lads made their way up the steep ascent to the
+ruins, till, hot and well-nigh breathless in spite of being "in
+training", they reached the summit of the island.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What a jolly view!" exclaimed Vernon, turning and taking in the
+panorama of rocky coast-line, an expanse of jagged, frowning, brownish
+cliffs topped by the brilliant green of the Cornish moorland.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Not bad," agreed Ross complaisantly, for the view was no stranger to
+him.  "See that cliff shaped like the head and shoulders of a bearded
+man?  That's Hidden Money Cove that I was speaking to you about last
+night.  We'll go there next week, all being well.  You see, there's not
+a sail in sight, so our chances of getting back to dinner are very
+remote.  What's more, unless I'm very much mistaken, there's a
+rain-storm coming.  See that dark cloud working up against the wind?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes," assented Haye.  "What of it?  A little rain won't hurt."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It's the after effect," said Ross.  "It's quite possible it may blow
+hard before night, in which case we're done for.  I've known it
+impossible to approach Killigwent Cove for a week at a time."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Vernon whistled.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Sounds lively," he remarked.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Of course that is in the winter," his chum hastened to remind him.
+"These summer gales don't last very long, but we'll be feeling precious
+hungry by the time we get home, I guess."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Look here," said Vernon after a while.  "I vote we get those sweaters.
+We don't want to be soaked."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Very well," assented Ross.  "But there's no great hurry."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Having retrieved the sweaters, the chums leisurely retraced their way
+to the ruins.  For half an hour or more they wandered around the
+remains, descending into the dark crypt, and running considerable risk
+in climbing to the summit of the tower.  Since the spiral stone steps
+had vanished long ago, the only means of getting to the top was by
+climbing the gnarled stem of the ivy which grew profusely on the face
+of the building.  The tower was roofless, a low, partly demolished
+parapet encircling it on three sides, while a couple of weather-worn
+oak-beams supporting a few planks formed a kind of platform where the
+roof formerly existed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Think it's safe?" asked Vernon anxiously, as his chum, having got
+astride the parapet, was about to lower himself upon the decrepit
+woodwork.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I've done it scores of times," said Ross confidently.  "That's right,
+I'll guide your foot.  Now let go."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"By Jove!" suddenly exclaimed Haye; "there's a fellow coming towards
+the ruin.  How on earth did he get here?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Goodness only knows," said Trefusis inconsequently.  "He may have
+landed in Main Beach Cove.  Anyhow, he's at perfect liberty to do so.
+I suppose he's interested in ruins."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Let's drop a bit of stone and give him a shock when he gets here,"
+suggested Vernon.  "We'll apologize afterwards.  Ten to one he'll give
+us a passage back."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I'm not so keen on dropping chunks of stone," objected Ross.  "I vote
+we lie low for a bit at any rate, and see what he's up to."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Why, do you think he's a spy?" asked his companion.  Trefusis grunted
+scoffingly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Spy?" he repeated.  "What object would a spy have on St. Mena's
+Island?  This part of Cornwall is well outside the military area.
+There's nothing in the fortification line for miles.  No, it's not
+that.  But <I>cave</I>, here he comes."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The lads crouched behind the crumbling parapet, and by means of
+conveniently placed gaps in the masonry watched the stranger's approach.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+There was nothing about the man's appearance to suggest that he was
+anything but an ordinary holiday-maker.  He was slightly above average
+height, rather heavily built, and inclined to flabbiness.  His
+complexion was undoubtedly florid, although his face and hands were
+tanned a deep brown.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He was dressed in a light-grey lounge suit, with a straw hat and brown
+shoes, while in his right hand he carried a thick Malacca cane.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The exertion of climbing up the hill on which the ruined chapel stood
+apparently told upon him, for he was considerably out of breath when he
+passed under the ivy-clad arch.  Here he stopped to wipe his face with
+a handkerchief, and while doing so dropped his cane.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It fell upon the stones with a dull thud.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At the same time the stranger gave vent to an exclamation that
+certainly was not English.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The lads exchanged glances.  Here was the beginning of a mystery.  The
+heaviest Malacca cane would not have made that dull metallic sound in
+falling, while it was evident by the careful examination the stranger
+made of the retrieved article that he was more than considerate for its
+appearance.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The man made no attempt to explore the ruins.  The weather-worn fane
+had no attractions for him.  It was apparently only a rendezvous, as
+far as he was concerned, for at frequent intervals he would walk
+stealthily through the archway, and look attentively down the hill
+leading to the coves on the side facing the mainland.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It had now begun to rain&mdash;big drops that were the precursors of a heavy
+shower.  The lads, in their exposed position on the tower, paid scant
+heed.  Their interest and attention were centred upon the anxiously
+awaiting stranger fifty feet beneath them.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Presently Ross happened to glance towards the stretch of water that
+separated St. Mena's Island from the mainland.  A boat was approaching.
+Already it was more than half-way across.  It was a rowing-boat,
+containing only one person.  What object would anyone have in rowing
+across on a wet afternoon like this? wondered the lad.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Just then the stranger began rubbing his hands with ill-concealed
+satisfaction.  Although he had been frequently on the look-out, he had
+evidently only just caught sight of the approaching boat.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The lads watched the little craft till it was hidden by the intervening
+high ground, but already Ross felt certain that it was making for Main
+Beach Cove.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+There were three landing-places on St. Mena's Island&mdash;Half Tide Cove,
+where the lads had left their stranded boat; Main Beach Cove, a little
+to the north-east; and Deadman's Cove, farther away.  Of these, only
+Main Beach was available between one hour on either side of low water.
+The fact that the boat was making for it, and had already successfully
+skirted the submerged reef lying off it, proved that its occupant had
+local knowledge.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Some considerable time elapsed between the temporary disappearance of
+the boat and the appearance of the new-comer; but at length he came
+into view, walking rapidly up the steep incline without showing
+anything of the physical strain that the first stranger had betrayed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Suddenly Ross Trefusis recognized the man.  He almost felt inclined to
+laugh at his suspicions.  It was Dr. Ramblethorne, the medical
+practitioner at St. Bedal&mdash;a town of considerable importance about
+seven miles from Killigwent Hall.  The doctor was a frequent guest of
+Admiral Trefusis, and was generally considered a good, all-round
+sportsman.  He was about thirty years of age, over six feet in height,
+of sinewy frame and of great muscular power.  He was the wildest
+motorist in that part of Cornwall, as the endorsements on his driver's
+licence testified.  A keen golfer, good shot, and fisherman, he was
+also a botanist; and that, perhaps, thought Ross, might account for his
+presence on St. Mena's Island, although it was difficult to reconcile
+the fact that Ramblethorne had an appointment with a stranger at this
+desolate spot.  If a joint botanic expedition had been fixed up, why
+had not the two men met on the mainland?
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The unknown made no attempt to advance to meet the doctor.  Instead, he
+remained within the ruins until Ramblethorne entered.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Their greeting was a surprise even to the lads, for the doctor, holding
+out his hand, exclaimed in German:
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Well met, von Ruhle!  Let us hope that your arrangements will prove
+satisfactory."
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap02"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER II
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+The Tables Turned
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+Both Ross Trefusis and Vernon Haye understood and could speak German.
+Ross was especially good in his knowledge of the language of the modern
+Hun, for in his early youth he had been inflicted with a German
+governess.  Since German is one of the subjects for Sandhurst&mdash;for
+which both lads were preparing&mdash;their knowledge had been considerably
+improved under the cast-iron rule of a native professor.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Eminently satisfactory," replied von Ruhle.  "We will go into details
+later.  You had no difficulty in coming here, I hope?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"None whatever."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No suspicions?" asked von Ruhle anxiously.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ramblethorne smiled.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"My dear von Ruhle," he replied.  "A medical practitioner is above
+suspicion.  He is free to go anywhere at any hour of the day or night
+without question.  No man would suspect&mdash;&mdash;"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You are clever, von Hauptwald&mdash;&mdash;"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Ssh!" interrupted the doctor.  "Call me Ramblethorne, if you please.
+Of course there is no danger here, but at other times and in other
+places you might incautiously give the show away.  You had a good
+passage?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Excellent," replied von Ruhle.  "I am getting well-known to the
+strafed English custom-house officers at Queenboro' and Harwich.  They
+recognize me by my stick, I believe, but they little know that it is a
+new one every time.  What do you think of this?  I have brought it as a
+specimen for you to see.  Just fancy! every time I cross to Holland
+twenty kilogrammes of good copper are on their way to the Fatherland.
+By this time Herr Stabb of Essen is well acquainted with my Malacca
+canes."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A good weight to carry about," remarked Ramblethorne, wielding the
+disguised bar of copper.  "I wonder you troubled."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Mein Gott!  I could not leave it," declared von Ruhle.  "Someone might
+take a fancy to it, and then the secret would be out.  But tell me:
+have you succeeded in getting that commission you spoke of?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I am still living in hopes," replied Ramblethorne.  "Of course I could
+have obtained a post of temporary surgeon in the British Navy, but it
+wasn't good enough.  It's no fun running the risk of being torpedoed by
+our own Submarines.  The English Army offers a wider scope.  Believe
+me, I am worth more than a division to the Emperor.  I'll get a
+commission, never you fear, for I have heaps of influence.  Then, of
+course, I will do my utmost to fight against a terrible epidemic that
+will mysteriously break out amongst the troops."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ramblethorne, otherwise von Hauptwald, threw back his shoulders and
+laughed uproariously.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Careful!" hissed his companion.  "You will be heard over the whole
+island."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What matters?  There is not another soul in sight besides ourselves.
+How much petrol have you?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Fifty two-gallon tins.  I expect some more by boat to-morrow.  It's
+safely stored in a cave on the side of the creek.  It is a nuisance it
+is raining.  I do not fancy a night's work in weather like this.
+Himmel, what's that?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Accidentally Vernon's foot had dislodged a small piece of stone.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Nerves, my dear von Ruhle," said Ramblethorne, with his usual
+good-natured smile.  "A bit of masonry has fallen from the tower.  See,
+the floor is covered with similar pieces."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"If anyone should be up there&mdash;&mdash;" suggested von Ruhle, pointing to the
+top of the tower.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The lads could feel their hearts thumping against their ribs.  Through
+a small crack in the planking they could see the eyes of the two
+Germans directed upwards.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Impossible; there are no steps," declared Ramblethorne.  "Besides,
+what object would anyone have in ascending a tower on a day like this?
+I fully appreciate the danger of being overheard, of course.  We've
+said enough to find ourselves faced by a firing-party in the Tower of
+London, my friend."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Don't!" expostulated von Ruhle, closing his eyes as if to shut out the
+unpleasant mental vision.  Then: "You have the signalling apparatus, I
+hope?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Trust me for that, von Ruhle," replied his companion, tapping his
+breast-pocket.  "All we have to do is to wait until yonder lighthouse
+exposes its light.  Really the ways of these English pass
+understanding.  They rigorously forbid the showing of lights in private
+houses on shore, imagining that our agents would be so foolish as to
+start blinking with a lamp; yet they allow these lighthouses to work as
+usual, and obligingly enable us to communicate to our hearts' content."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Von Hauptwald was not far wrong in his remarks, for the instrument he
+had enabled him to flash a message to a confederate without having to
+be in possession of a lamp.  The flash was obtained from any distant
+and visible light by means of a complicated system of mirrors.  The
+reflected rays could then be projected in any desired direction so as
+to be quite invisible except on a certain bearing.  It was one of the
+carefully-thought-out plans adopted by the German Government to permit
+its spies to communicate with their submarines without running any
+great risk of detection.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It's two hours to sunset," remarked the doctor; "three before we
+commence operations.  I would suggest that we adjourn to the cave and
+partake of refreshment.  You see, I have not omitted to make suitable
+provision."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Very good!" agreed von Ruhle; "but I only wish I had a waterproof.
+The rain is most annoying."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Arm-in-arm the two men left the building, and presently disappeared
+from view behind a slight rise in the ground.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I say!" exclaimed Ross; "we've tumbled on something this time.  Fancy
+Ramblethorne a rotten German spy.  I always thought he was a rattling
+good chap."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Evidently he isn't," rejoined Vernon.  "But the point is: what do you
+propose to do?  It's beastly wet here."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It is, now I come to think of it," agreed his chum.  "The fact is,
+that until you mentioned it I was hardly aware that it was raining.
+We'll discuss this knotty point."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I vote we make tracks for the boat," suggested Haye.  "The tide must
+be rising by this time.  We can then slip off and raise the alarm."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross shook his head.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No go," he decided.  "We might get nabbed ourselves.  Besides, who
+would be able to lay these chaps by the heels?  There's only that
+motor-boat chap at Penydwick Cove, and he's precious little use.  There
+are no soldiers nearer than at St. Bedal.  I propose we hang on here.
+There's a snug, sheltered hole in these ruins, just big enough for us
+to lie hidden.  Then we stand a good chance of hearing more of the
+conversation between those beggars."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Three hours more, remember."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes, I know.  In the meanwhile we might slip down to Main Beach Cove.
+There's plenty of cover amongst the rocks."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What for?" asked Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"To see what these fellows are up to.  I'm rather anxious to renew my
+slight acquaintance with friend Copperstick.  By Jove, what a cute move
+to get contraband metal into Germany!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Not much at a time.  It shows how hard up the Germans must be for
+copper when it pays a fellow to carry over about half a hundredweight
+at a time."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Well, let's get a move on," said Ross.  "Be careful how you descend.
+The ivy will be fairly slippery with the wet."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Cautiously the two lads descended, reaching the ground without mishap.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Our sweaters!" exclaimed Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Dash it all!  Yes," agreed his companion.  "I had forgotten all about
+them."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The sweaters, carefully rolled up, had been placed for security in one
+corner of the chapel.  Unless anyone actually came close to the spot,
+they were hidden from sight.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Neither of those fellows stood about here, I think," remarked Ross as
+the chums retrieved and donned the additional clothing.  "It's jolly
+lucky, or they would have smelt a rat."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Trefusis and his companion went out into the rain, walking rapidly
+towards a slight mound capped by a few irregularly shaped stones.  It
+was behind this rise of ground that the two spies had gone.  Up to this
+point, Ross argued, there was little need for caution; beyond, it would
+be necessary to keep well under cover until they reached Main Beach.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"'Ware the skyline," cautioned Ross as the chums approached the hillock.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Ay; 'ware the skyline," said a deep voice mockingly, "It's bad
+strategy."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Turning, the lads made the disconcerting discovery that Ramblethorne
+and von Ruhle were within five yards of their would-be trackers.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross realized that he and his chum had been badly outmanoeuvred.
+Evidently the Germans suspected that they had been overheard, and
+ostentatiously leaving the ruins for Main Beach Cove, they had made a
+detour from the hillock, and had waited until Ross and Vernon had
+emerged from the chapel.  Then, taking advantage of the wet grass that
+effectually deadened the sound of their footsteps, they had turned the
+tables on their shadowers.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+So completely taken aback were the two lads that they stood stock-still
+as if rooted to the earth.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Not a nice evening to be out, Trefusis," continued the doctor.  "What
+brings you on St. Mena's Island at this late hour of the day?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Our boat was left high and dry by the tide, so we had to wait and take
+shelter," replied Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"And so you chose a place where there was no shelter," remarked
+Ramblethorne.  "Idiotic thing to do&mdash;very idiotic.  Now tell me: what
+were you doing on the top of the tower?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross did not hesitate in his reply.  Perhaps it would have been better
+had he done so, for he had never betrayed his knowledge of German to
+the doctor on any of their previous meetings, and it would have been
+judicious to keep up the deception.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What were we doing?  Listening to your precious schemes," he retorted
+boldly.  "Now we know all about you, and it will be our duty to report
+you as spies to the authorities.  We are expecting a search-party from
+Killigwent Hall at any moment, you see."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"So that's the line of defence you propose to adopt, eh?" sneered
+Ramblethorne.  "Well, look out!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+With a sudden spring the athletic man flung himself upon Ross, while
+von Ruhle with equal promptitude made a rush to secure Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Strong and active though he was, Ross was no match for his huge and
+powerful antagonist.  Knowing that flight was impossible, the lad
+feinted, and aimed a blow with his left straight for the doctor's chin.
+This Ramblethorne parried easily, and grasping the lad's wrist, held it
+as in a vice, and in such a manner that rendered fruitless any attempt
+on Trefusis' part to make use of his right arm.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Having thus secured his opponent, Ramblethorne watched the result of
+the encounter between his fellow-spy and young Haye.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Von Ruhle had opened the attack by brandishing his heavy stick, and
+calling upon Vernon to surrender.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Haye returned the compliment by closing, and dealing the German such a
+terrific blow upon the chest that von Ruhle recoiled quite a couple of
+yards.  The lad's onslaught had only missed the German's solar plexus
+by a few inches; had it not, the chances were that von Ruhle would have
+lost all interest in life for the next quarter of an hour.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+But instead of following up his initial success Vernon, seeing Ross
+helpless in the doctor's grip, rushed to his chum's aid.  For a few
+seconds he feinted, striving to find an opening, while Ramblethorne,
+dragging his captive with him, pivoted in order to keep his front
+towards his new antagonist.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Those few seconds were Vernon's undoing.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Quickly recovering himself, von Ruhle sprang forward with the agility
+of a panther.  The imitation Malacca cane descended with a dull thud
+upon the lad's head, and like a felled ox Vernon fell inertly upon the
+sodden grass.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hold him&mdash;so," exclaimed Ramblethorne, handing Ross over to the
+custody of von Ruhle.  Then drawing a small hypodermic syringe from a
+case, the former inserted the needle into the lad's forearm.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Five seconds later Ross Trefusis lay unconscious beside his companion
+in misfortune.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap03"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER III
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+Kidnapped
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+"I thought you had killed him, von Ruhle," said the doctor, bending
+over Vernon and making a cursory examination of the unconscious lad.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I thought I had," was the unconcerned reply.  "Dead men tell no tales."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"There I beg to differ," protested Ramblethorne.  "Corpses have a nasty
+way of turning up at inopportune moments.  These youngsters are worth
+more to us alive than dead."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"How so?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"One is a son of Admiral Trefusis; his companion is, I believe, also a
+son of a distinguished English naval officer."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Well, and what of it?" asked von Ruhle.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hostages," replied the doctor briefly.  "Later I will explain.
+Meanwhile we'll carry them to the cave.  It's farther than back to the
+ruins; but perhaps, as young Trefusis said, there may be a
+search-party, and the ruins would be one of the first objects of
+investigation."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Although, with the exception of periodical visits abroad, Dr.
+Ramblethorne had lived in England all his life and was a fully
+qualified medical man, he was a highly trusted and talented agent of
+the German Secret Service.  Months before the outbreak of war, he had
+been ordered to report upon the defences of Devonport, and in order to
+do this he had bought a practice on the outskirts of Plymouth.  Upon
+the commencement of hostilities, he was detailed to keep under
+observation the military preparations of the Duchy of Cornwall, and
+also to take necessary steps for communicating with German submarines
+that, under von Tirpitz's prearranged scheme, were to operate in the
+Bristol Channel.  Von Ruhle was one of the few subordinates he actually
+knew.  There were others with whom he communicated only through an
+intermediary, and who knew him only by a number.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Von Ruhle was almost as mentally clever as his superior.
+Ostentatiously he was an Englishman.  Sometimes he posed as a mining
+engineer; at others as a commercial traveller; as an accredited
+representative of the British Red Cross Society he was in the habit of
+making frequent journeys to Holland, presumably in connection with work
+at Groningen Internment Camp.  At the present time, his activities were
+centred upon the formation of a secret petrol depot for the supply of
+fuel to unterseebooten operating in the Bristol Channel and off the
+south coast of Ireland.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A couple of slight incidents had served to put the cautious
+Ramblethorne on his guard during his interview with von Ruhle in the
+ruined chapel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Although he verbally deprecated his subordinate's alarm when the lads
+accidentally dislodged a stone from the tower, it was merely to disarm
+possible eavesdroppers of any suspicion that their presence was
+suspected.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The ability to control his feelings was one of the super-spy's chief
+assets.  Suspicion once aroused, he proceeded without the faintest sign
+to investigate his surroundings.  His keen eye soon lighted upon the
+lads' sweaters.  Then it was that an adjournment was suggested to Main
+Beach Cove.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+This was simply and solely a "blind", for on gaining the cover of the
+boulder-strewn hillock the doctor communicated his suspicions to his
+companion.  The pair then crouched behind the rocks, whence they were
+able to command a view of the tower.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was not long before their enterprise met with success.  They saw
+Trefusis and his chum cautiously descend by means of the ivy; then,
+directly the lads set out upon their ill-starred tracking expedition,
+the Germans, as before related, succeeded in outflanking them and
+effecting their capture.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Time!" announced Ramblethorne, consulting his watch.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Are these safe?" asked von Ruhle, stirring Vernon's unconscious form
+with his foot.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Quite; though, perhaps, to make sure I will give this youngster a
+slight injection.  Pity you hadn't held him with the double arm-lock
+instead of cracking him over the head.  Herr Kapitan Schwalbe won't
+want to be troubled with a passenger with a swollen head."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Leaving their senseless victims in the cave, the two Germans again
+ascended the hill to St. Mena's Chapel.  As they breasted the summit,
+they could see the fixed white light of Black Bull Head showing
+momentarily brighter and brighter against the rapidly failing daylight.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Setting a prismatic compass in position upon the sill of one of the
+glazeless windows, Ramblethorne took a careful bearing in a seaward
+direction.  This done, he pointed the projector of the signalling
+apparatus in precisely the same direction, and threw a waterproofed
+cloth over the instrument.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Too early yet, von Ruhle," he remarked.  "Nevertheless it is advisable
+to fix our bearings while twilight lasts.  A light might spell
+disaster."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A deucedly unpleasant night for such a task," grumbled von Ruhle.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"On the contrary, it is just the very thing," replied the doctor.  "It
+is not thick enough to be dangerous, but the rain is just sufficient to
+assist in the screening of U75.  Do not think of your personal comfort,
+my dear von Ruhle, when urgent work for the Fatherland has to be
+undertaken."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For another half-hour the two men paced the grass-grown stones.  Their
+choice of St. Mena's Island as a secret signalling station was an
+excellent one.  It was isolated, and, being slightly greater in
+elevation than the cliffs of the mainland in the immediate vicinity,
+would effectually screen any ray of light sent landwards from the
+expected German submarine.  Thus all danger of the narrow gleam of
+reflected light being detected by the none too smart members of the
+coast patrol was entirely obviated.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Time!" exclaimed the doctor, consulting the luminous face of his watch.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Dexterously, and without disturbing the position of the instrument, von
+Ruhle whipped off the covering.  Although there were no visible signs
+that anything was taking place, both men knew that a beam of light,
+reflected from the distant lighthouse on Black Bull Head, was being
+directed seawards.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In silence the two men peered through the driving rain, von Ruhle
+making use of a pair of powerful night-glasses.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Suddenly, after an interval of almost five minutes, a faint pin-prick
+of light flickered from the surface of the sea.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Instantly Ramblethorne stepped a dozen paces to the right.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I can see nothing from here," he announced in a low voice.  "Can you?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes," replied his companion.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Good: that's friend Schwalbe."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The doctor was right.  From the deck of the unterseeboot a signalling
+apparatus similar to that employed by the spies was in use.  By an
+ingenious automatic arrangement it projected a beam of light, derived
+from the same sources as that on St. Mena's Island, rigidly in a fixed
+direction, regardless of the "lift" of the submarine under the action
+of the waves.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For several minutes a rapid exchange of signals was maintained; then
+the two spies, folding up their apparatus, walked rapidly towards Main
+Beach Cove.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+They had not long to wait before the faint sound of oars was borne to
+their ears.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Himmel!  They have arrived already," exclaimed von Ruhle.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"So it appears," replied Ramblethorne dryly.  "I pride myself that I
+have exceptionally good eyesight, but I fail to see her.  The neutral
+colour of the submarine is indeed excellent for night work."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+They descended the sandy and shingly beach until further progress was
+barred by the lapping wavelets of the rising tide.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Through the mirk loomed up the outlines of a canvas collapsible boat
+crowded with men.  At two lengths from the shore the rowers laid on
+their oars.  One of the men gave vent to a low whistle resembling the
+call of a curlew.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"All clear," replied Ramblethorne.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The boat's keel rasped on the shingle.  A cloaked figure in the
+stern-sheets made his way for'ard and leapt ashore.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Herr von Hauptwald?" he asked.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"The same," replied the doctor.  "And Kapitan Schwalbe?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"The captain is still on board," replied the officer.  "It is hard to
+resist the opportunity of getting ashore after being cooped up there
+for more than a fortnight.  But the petrol?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We have not so much as we hoped to obtain," replied von Ruhle.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Leutnant muttered an oath.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"And how is business?" asked Ramblethorne, with a view of distracting
+the officer's thoughts from the shortage of fuel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Leutnant muttered another oath.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Bad!" he replied savagely.  "Only one wretched little tramp steamer,
+which we fell in with about twenty miles from the Stacks.  She gave us
+a run for our money, but we had her at last.  Even then she tried to
+ram us.  One has to be most cautious also.  These accursed English have
+been far too active with their new-fangled contrivances.  We called up
+U71 early this morning.  She replied.  Again at noon we called her, but
+there was no reply.  U70 we have lost all touch with since Monday, yet
+she was under orders to assist in the blockade of the Bristol Channel
+until we, as senior unterseeboot, gave instructions to return to
+Wilhelmshaven."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Lost, I suppose," remarked Ramblethorne.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Leutnant had walked to a distance of nearly ten yards from his men,
+who were drawn up in military order awaiting their officer's commands.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He lowered his voice.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Although I am sorry to say it," he declared, "I am afraid she has gone
+too.  Our losses are not only serious&mdash;they are appalling.  Submarine
+work is now a continual nightmare.  We do our duty, but before long, if
+we are sufficiently fortunate to escape the toils that these English
+cast about us, we shall all be physical wrecks."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The man's agitation increased as he spoke.  Obviously he was labouring
+under a severe strain.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"And this petrol?" he asked anxiously.  "What quantity?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ramblethorne told him.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Not enough," declared the Leutnant.  "Himmel, it is not enough to get
+us round Cape Wrath.  On board we have only sufficient for six hours'
+surface running, while our batteries are not far short of running down.
+You had better see the captain and explain."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Leaving von Ruhle to direct the seamen to the secret petrol store in
+the cave, Ramblethorne accompanied the Leutnant to the submarine.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The U75 was one of the latest type of Germany's submarines.  Over three
+hundred feet in length, there was little about her in common with the
+accepted idea of under-water craft.  Her deck ran in one continuous
+sweep for almost her entire length, and rose nearly six feet above the
+surface.  The visible part of her sides was perpendicular, the bulging
+sections being entirely beneath the surface.  Her conning-tower was
+surrounded by a platform as long as the navigation-bridge of a modern
+destroyer.  The two periscopes were "housed", but two slender
+"wireless" masts gave the boat the appearance of a swift torpedo craft.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Acknowledging a salute from a burly quartermaster, Ramblethorne gained
+the deck, and was escorted aft by the Leutnant.  Pacing the tapering
+platform was a broad-shouldered, fair-haired man of about thirty,
+although a carefully trimmed blonde beard made him look much older.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He lacked the natural elastic stride of the British naval officer.  His
+movements resembled those of a thoroughly drilled soldier, yet ever and
+anon he would glance furtively in the direction of the open sea as if
+in constant dread of sudden and unknown peril.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Greetings, Herr von Hauptwald!" he exclaimed, when the Leutnant had
+formally introduced his visitor.  "You are well known to me by repute,
+but I doubt whether we have met before."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I fancy so," rejoined the doctor.  "Do you not remember that little
+affair in the Strauer Platz?  Ah, I thought you would!  But to come to
+the point.  We have been unable to obtain the requisite quantity of
+petrol."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Somehow I thought it," replied Kapitan Schwalbe.  "How much have you?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ramblethorne told him.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Enough, with what we have left on board, for only eight hundred miles
+run.  It will not take us home, and we are under orders not to leave
+these waters before Friday next.  We have been let down badly."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I know that it is useless to express regrets," said Ramblethorne
+boldly.  "I can only hope that other means of supplying the requisite
+fuel will be forthcoming.  But here is another matter.  We have had to
+secure two English lads, both sons of distinguished naval officers.
+Unfortunately they overheard a conversation between von Ruhle and
+myself.  In the interests of the Secret Service it is absolutely
+necessary that they are kept out of the way for at least a couple of
+months.  I am averse to doing them personal injury."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Then what do you wish?" asked Kapitan Schwalbe.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Take them on board with you.  If possible, land them at a German port.
+If this be possible, you will realize that we have a strong tool to
+work with."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I fail to understand," said the Kapitan of U75.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"They could be made good use of as hostages," resumed Ramblethorne.
+"If these English persist in talking about reprisals, we can hint
+that&mdash;well, it is unnecessary to go into details."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I see," remarked Kapitan Schwalbe.  "But if it is impossible to land
+them?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Then you must put them on board the first outward-bound tramp steamer
+you fall in with&mdash;provided she is bound for South American ports, or
+anywhere that will mean a long voyage."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Very well," assented the submarine officer.  "I quite understand your
+anxiety to get them out of the way."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Temporarily, mind," added Ramblethorne.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Precisely.  Herr Rix," he exclaimed, addressing the Leutnant.  "Take
+four men and go ashore.  Von Ruhle will tell you where these English
+boys are; have them brought on board."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"One moment," interrupted Ramblethorne.  "They came to the island in a
+boat.  There is nothing unusual in that, I admit, but the fact remains
+that the boat is still lying in the cove next to this.  You might order
+the men to set the boat adrift."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Water-logged, and with sails set and the main-sheet made fast.
+Another deplorable accident.  Ach!  It shall be so."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Half an hour later Ross Trefusis and Vernon Haye, still unconscious
+under the action of the anaesthetic injection, were brought on board
+U75 and passed below.  Their boat, lying on its beam-ends, was drifting
+slowly in the direction of Black Bull Head.  Ramblethorne and von
+Ruhle, their work for the present done, were already on the way to the
+mainland.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Meanwhile, alarmed at the non-appearance of the young heir to
+Killigwent Hall and his guest, a party had set off to search St. Mena's
+Island.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Just as the boat's keel grounded on the beach of Half Tide Cove, the
+German submarine slipped quietly through the blurr of misty rain, and
+under cover of darkness headed towards the mouth of Bristol Channel.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap04"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER IV
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+The Awakening
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+"Dash it all!  What am I doing here?" muttered Ross Trevor drowsily, as
+he opened his eyes.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For the moment he quite imagined that he was in his dormitory at
+school, and that by an oversight the rest of his chums had left him in
+bed.  The suggestion was strengthened by the sound of gurgling water,
+as if the bathroom tap were running.  Then he became aware that
+everything was pitching up and down.  Once before he had experienced a
+similar sensation&mdash;when he had had a violent headache following a
+slight touch of sunstroke.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It puzzled him, too, that he was almost in darkness.  Somewhere
+without, and partly screened by some projection, an electric light was
+burning.  The reflected rays were just sufficient to enable him to take
+stock of his surroundings.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+No, he was not back in the school dormitory.  True, he had a headache,
+but that would not account for the actual motion.  He fumbled, his
+fingers came in contact with a curved board that served to prevent the
+occupant of the bed&mdash;or, rather, bunk&mdash;from falling on the floor.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Almost mechanically he rolled out, and stood supporting himself by
+grasping the ledge of the bunk.  The swaying, due partly to dizziness
+and partly to an unaccountable see-saw motion, would have thrown him to
+the floor but for the assistance afforded by the side of the bunk.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Gradually he became aware that there was a similar sleeping-place
+immediately beneath the one he had been occupying.  Someone was lying
+there, breathing heavily.  There was sufficient light for Ross to
+recognize him.  It was his chum Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Just then a bell clanged noisily.  The sound of running water was
+outvoiced by the loud din of machinery in motion.  A wave of hot air
+that reminded the lad of the atmosphere of a Tube station wafted past
+him.  The whole fabric trembled under the powerful pulsations of the
+mechanism.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+With his legs trembling through sheer physical weakness, Ross hung on
+grimly.  He wanted to shout, but no sound came from his parched tongue.
+He was bewildered.  It seemed as if he were in the throes of a terrible
+nightmare, and that he would awake on finding himself falling into a
+bottomless abyss.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The reflected light was obscured as a broad-shouldered man made his way
+along the narrow corridor in which the bunks were placed.  As he did so
+he caught sight of the lad.  Without a word he seized Ross in his arms,
+not roughly, but nevertheless unceremoniously, and lifted him back into
+the bunk.  There was something so peremptory in the action that Ross
+lay still and closed his eyes.  All his will power seemed to have
+deserted him.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Make a dash for it, old man!" exclaimed a muffled voice that Trefusis
+hardly recognized as his chum's.  "Make a dash for it.  Don't let them
+collar us."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was Vernon rambling in his sleep.  The words were sufficient to give
+Ross a key to the hitherto baffling problem.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Like a flash he recalled the episode of their adventure on St. Mena's
+Island.  He remembered himself being held in the grasp of the powerful
+Ramblethorne until unconsciousness overcame him.  He was still a
+prisoner, but with the qualifying knowledge that he was not alone.
+Vernon Haye was sharing his captivity, wherever it might be.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We're afloat then," he muttered.  "What has happened?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Moistening his lips, Ross leant over the side of the bunk and called
+his chum by name.  His voice sounded strangely unfamiliar.  He could
+only just hear himself above the clamorous noise of the engines.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was not long before another man appeared at the end of the corridor.
+As he did so he switched on a lamp almost above the lad's head.  For a
+few seconds Ross was temporarily blinded by the sudden transition from
+artificial twilight to the intense brilliancy of electric light.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"So!  You are now awake, hein?" asked a guttural voice.  "How you vos
+feel?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Rotten!" replied Ross emphatically.  His reply was brief and to the
+point.  It summed up his sensations during the last ten minutes.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The man laughed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"So you look.  You better soon will be.  You know where you now vos?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"On board a ship," answered the lad.  He was still hoping against hope
+that his questioner was anything but a German.  There was a small
+chance that he had by some means been picked up at sea by a Dutch or a
+Swedish vessel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The man's announcement "put the lid on" that possibility.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Sheep&mdash;goot!" he chuckled.  "German unterseeboot&mdash;vot you vos call
+submarine.  No danger to you boys if you yourselves behave.  Much to
+see&mdash;ach! plenty much."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The lad's eyes had now become more accustomed to the light.  He could
+see that his visitor was a broad-shouldered, muscular man of average
+height, florid-featured, and with light-yellow hair and a fair
+moustache.  He was dressed in a uniform that was apparently a bad copy
+of that worn by executive officers of the British Navy.  On the breast
+of his coat he wore an Iron Cross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Me Hermann Rix, Ober-leutnant of unterseeboot," he announced.  "Der
+Kapitan send me to see how you get better.  Goot!  I tell seaman to
+bring food quick.  In one hour you go on deck.  Den you feel all well."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The German Leutnant bent and peered into the lower cot.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Fat head," he remarked seriously.  "Bad knock, but he get well soon."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+With that the officer went away, leaving the light switched on.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Scrambling out of his bunk, Ross approached his chum.  Vernon was now
+sleeping quietly.  His face, however, was flushed, while it was quite
+evident that he had received a fairly heavy blow across the skull, for
+the top of his head was swollen to a considerable extent.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Before Ross had finished his examination a sailor entered, bearing a
+tray on which were three slices of rye bread, some tinned beef, and a
+bottle of Rhenish wine.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Sprechen Sie deutsch?" he asked.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For an instant Trefusis hesitated before replying.  To profess
+ignorance of the German language would be an immense advantage while on
+board the submarine, provided he could control his facial expressions
+and listen without betraying himself.  Then, on the other hand, he
+reflected that Ramblethorne, the spy, might have been instrumental in
+getting him into this predicament.  More than likely the Captain of the
+submarine had been informed of the fact that his unconscious passengers
+were well acquainted with the tongue-twisting language of the
+Fatherland.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Here is food for you," said the man, placing the tray on the floor.
+"You had better take hold of the bottle before it upsets.  We are
+rolling a bit.  When your friend open his eyes, call me.  I am in
+yonder compartment.  It would be well for you to dress.  I will bring
+your clothes to you very soon."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross made a sorry meal.  The food was not at all appetizing.  His
+throat was in no condition to enable him to swallow easily.  A feeling
+of nausea, due either to the motion, the hot, confined air, or the
+after effects of the stupefying injection&mdash;perhaps a little of all
+three&mdash;was still present.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He was actually on board a German submarine&mdash;one of Tirpitz's
+twentieth-century pirates.  He racked his brains to find a reason.
+With its limited accommodation an unterseeboot seemed the last type of
+craft that would receive a pair of prisoners&mdash;and
+non-combatants&mdash;within its steel-clad hull.  It must have been at
+Ramblethorne's instigation; yet why had not the spy knocked the pair of
+luckless eavesdroppers over the head and tumbled them into the sea?  It
+seemed by far the easiest solution; yet, in spite of that, Ross and
+Vernon were being carried to an unknown destination in one of the
+"mystery-craft" of the Imperial German Navy.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The reappearance of the seaman bearing Ross's clothes cut short the
+latter's unsolved meditations.  Without a word the man laid the neatly
+folded garments on the bunk&mdash;a pair of flannel trousers, cricket shirt,
+underclothes, and the sweater that had been the cause of the lads'
+undoing; but in place of his shoes a pair of half-boots, reeking with
+tallow, had been provided.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross proceeded to dress.  As he did so a voice that he hardly
+recognized asked:
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hulloa, Trefusis, where are we?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was Haye.  His companion was now awake, but hardly conscious of his
+surroundings.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Better?" asked Ross laconically.  He could not at that moment bring
+himself to answer the question.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Didn't know that I was ill," remonstrated Vernon.  Then, after a vain
+attempt to raise his head&mdash;perhaps fortunately, since the bottom of
+Ross's cot was within a few inches of his face&mdash;he added:
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Dash it all!  I remember.  That beastly German gave me a crack over
+the head with his copper walking-stick.  Where are we?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"In a rotten hole, old man.  We're in a German submarine, bound
+goodness knows where."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Where are my clothes?" asked Haye, this time successfully getting out
+of his bunk.  "Since you have yours, there seems to be no reason why I
+shouldn't have mine.  Hang it!  What's the matter with me?
+Everything's spinning round like a top."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Mindful of the seaman's words, and with a docility that would have
+surprised him in different circumstances, Ross staggered along the
+corridor.  The passage was about thirty feet in length.  On one side
+the metal wall was flat, on the other it had a pronounced curve.
+Against it were six bunks arranged in pairs.  Four were used as
+stowing-places for baggage, the remaining ones had been given up to the
+two prisoners.  The roof was almost hidden by numerous pipes, most of
+them running fore and aft, while a few branched off through the walls.
+The flat bulkhead evidently formed one of the walls of the engine-room,
+for, as the lad placed his hand against it to steady himself, he could
+feel a distinct tremor, quite different from the vibration under his
+feet.  The floor was of steel, with a raised chequer pattern in order
+to give a better grip to one's feet.  At frequent intervals there were
+circular places, similar to those covering the coal-shoots in the
+pavement of residential thoroughfares.  Walls, ceiling, and floor were
+covered with beads of moisture, but whether from condensation or
+leakage Ross could not decide.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At the end of the corridor or alley-way was a steel water-tight door,
+running in gun-metal grooves packed with india-rubber.  The door was
+closed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Seizing the lever that served as a handle, Trefusis tried to turn it,
+but without success.  Failing that, he kicked the steelwork with his
+heavy half-boots, yet no response came to his appeal.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"The fellow told me to call," he muttered airily.  "What did he want to
+play the fool for?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Retracing his steps, Ross went to the other end of the alley-way.
+There was barely room to pass his companion as he did so.  The place
+from which he had previously seen the reflected light was now shut off
+by a door similarly constructed to the one that he had vainly attempted
+to open.  He was locked in a steel tomb that was itself a metal box
+within a metal box&mdash;a water-tight compartment of the submarine.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"They might just as well have switched off the light while they were
+about it," he exclaimed bitterly; then at the next instant he wildly
+regretted his words.  The idea of being imprisoned in that cheerless
+compartment without a light of any description appalled him.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Almost frantically he returned to the door that had previously baffled
+him.  As he did so he became aware that the submarine was tilting
+longitudinally.  Since he was unaware of the direction of the craft,
+and which was the bow or stern, he was unable to judge whether the
+unterseeboot was diving, or ascending to the surface.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The incline became so great that he had to grasp the door-lever for
+support.  Turning his head, he saw that Vernon was hanging on grimly to
+the partition between the tiers of bunks.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Then, as the vessel regained an even keel, silently and smoothly the
+door slid back in its grooves, revealing a small space barely six feet
+in length and five in breadth, and separated from the rest of the
+vessel by a closed water-tight panel.  Part of the compartment was
+occupied by a bend, at which the seaman to whom he had previously
+spoken was busily engaged in mending a rent in an oilskin coat.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"My friend is now awake," announced Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The man laid aside his work.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Good!" he replied.  "He is just in time.  I will bring him his food
+and his clothes.  After that you will both go on deck for fresh air
+before you are interviewed by Herr Kapitan Schwalbe.  See that door?
+Beyond that you must not pass without permission.  It is forbidden.  If
+you do so, you will not have another opportunity in a hurry."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What are they going to do with us?" asked Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The sailor shook his head.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It is forbidden to ask questions," he said sternly.  "Whatever is
+necessary that you should know will be told you."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He turned his back upon his questioner, signifying in a plain manner
+that it was useless for Trefusis to say more.  Taking the hint the lad
+returned to his chum, wondering deeply at the fate that had thrown them
+into the hands of the enemy.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap05"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER V
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+Aboard U75
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+Like Ross, Vernon Haye made a poor meal.  He had barely finished when a
+petty officer appeared and curtly ordered the lads to follow him.
+Since he did so in German it was fairly certain that Trefusis'
+admission had been communicated to both officers and crew.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Staggering, they passed along the alley-way into a broad subdivision
+that extended completely athwartships.  It was one of the two broadside
+torpedo-rooms, and contained two tubes of slightly greater diameter
+than the British 21-inch.  In "launching-trays" by the side of the
+tubes were eight torpedoes with their deadly war-heads attached.  Both
+transverse bulkheads were almost hidden by indicators, voice-tubes, and
+pipes for transmitting the compressed air from the air-flasks to the
+torpedo-tubes.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Passing through another water-tight door the prisoners found themselves
+in yet another compartment.  On one side was an "air-lock", with its
+complement of life-saving helmets; on the other was an oval-shaped door
+forming means of communication with the small room built against the
+curved sides of the submarine.  Ross guessed, and rightly as it
+afterwards transpired, that the door led into a space that could be
+flooded at will, and which in turn enabled a diver to operate from the
+U-boat while submerged.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Confronting the lads was an almost perpendicular steel ladder
+communicating with the conning-tower.  Their guide was about to ascend
+when a stern voice exclaimed in German:
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Not that, you idiotic clodhopper!  Have you lost your reason?  The
+forward hatchway, don't you know?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Pardon, Herr Leutnant," said the petty officer, abjectly apologetic,
+and, backing down the ladder, he passed through another door entering
+into an alley-way between the officers' cabins.  Here was the bowl of a
+supplementary periscope, so that a vision of what was taking place
+could be obtained without going into the conning-tower.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The alley-way terminated at another broadside torpedo-room, the pairs
+of tubes pointing in the opposite direction to those the lads had just
+seen.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Beyond were the living-quarters of the crew, kept spotlessly clean and
+tidy, yet Spartan-like in their simplicity.  Two of the men were sound
+asleep in their bunks.  Three more, who were playing cards at a plain
+deal table, glanced up from their game as the British lads passed by;
+but their interest was of brief duration, and stolidly they resumed
+their play.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Stooping down to avoid a large metal trough&mdash;the "house" for the
+for'ard 105-millimetre disappearing gun&mdash;Ross and his chum arrived at
+the ladder by which they were to gain the open air.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The hatch-cover was thrown back.  For the first time during their
+captivity they made the discovery that it was night.  Looking upwards,
+they could see a rectangle of dark sky twinkling with stars that, with
+the slight motion of the submarine, appeared to sway to and fro.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The cool night breeze fanned their heated foreheads as they gained the
+deck.  For some time, coming suddenly from the glare of the
+electrically lighted interior, their eyes were blinded.  They could see
+nothing but an indistinct blurr of star-lit, gently heaving water.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Gradually the sense of vision returned.  They found themselves on the
+fore-deck of the unterseeboot.  They had made up their minds to see a
+turtle-back deck with a narrow level platform in the centre; instead
+they found that the deck was almost flat and, in nautical parlance,
+flush, save where it was broken by the elongated conning-tower topped
+by the twin periscopes and slender wireless mast.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Lying on the deck in all conceivable attitudes were most of the
+U-boat's crew, taking advantage of a brief spell on the surface to
+breathe deeply of the ozone-laden atmosphere.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Not a light was visible on board.  Even the hatchway by which the lads
+had gained the deck was constructed to trap any stray beam from the
+brilliant glare below.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Miles away, and low down upon the horizon, a white light blinked
+solemnly; then after a brief interval it was succeeded by a red gleam.
+This in turn was followed by white again.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Trefusis, with a sailor's inborn instinct, began to count the
+intervals.  Although having no means of consulting the only
+time-recording watch in the possession of the two captives, he had a
+fair idea of counting seconds.  At fourteen from the disappearance of
+the red light the white appeared.  An almost identical space of time
+occurred before the red reappeared.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It's the Wolf Light," mentally ejaculated the lad.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+His next step was to fix the bearing of the lighthouse.  This he did by
+looking for the Great Bear, and then, following the Pointers, the North
+Star.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Phew!" he muttered softly.  "Nor'-nor'-west.  This brute of a
+submarine is right in the chops of the Channel&mdash;the main highway for
+vessels making for London and the south coast ports."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What's that?" asked Vernon, who heard his chum speaking, but had
+failed to grasp the significance of his words.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Nothing," replied Ross almost in a whisper.  "I'll tell you later."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The cool air had revived both lads wonderfully.  They had been left to
+their own devices, for the petty officer had gone aft.  Those of the
+crew who were on deck seemed as apathetic as the men below concerning
+the presence of the kidnapped youths.  They looked like men utterly
+worn out by fatigue and nervous strain.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Grasping the flexible wire hand-rail Ross continued his survey of the
+horizon, all of which was visible except a small portion obscured by
+the rise of the conning-tower.  The air was remarkably clear.  Taking
+into consideration the refraction of the atmosphere, the navigation
+lamps of a vessel shown at twenty feet above the sea would be visible
+from the low-lying deck of the submarine at a distance of six to seven
+miles.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+But there were no signs of any vessels in the vicinity.  The German
+submarine rolled lazily in complete isolation, waiting, like a snake in
+the grass, for its prey.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Herr Kapitan would see you," exclaimed the guttural voice of the petty
+officer.  "Come aft.  Remember, when you are addressed, to remove your
+caps."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The man led the way, making no attempt to avoid the recumbent limbs and
+bodies of the crew who impeded his passage.  Treading with discretion
+Ross and Vernon followed till, after skirting the base of the
+conning-tower, they found themselves in the presence of
+Lieutenant-Commander Schwalbe, the Kapitan of U75.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Schwalbe was sitting in a small arm-chair which had been brought from
+his cabin.  He was smoking a cigar.  At his elbow stood his satellite,
+Hermann Rix, who was also smoking.  This luxury was denied the crew,
+the officers being permitted to smoke only when the submarine was
+running awash or resting on the surface.
+</P>
+
+<A NAME="img-049"></A>
+<H4>
+[Illustration: THE INTERVIEW WITH THE GERMAN CAPTAIN (missing from book)]
+</H4>
+
+<P>
+"So you have recovered from your little involuntary rest," exclaimed
+Schwalbe in excellent English.  He was a remarkably good linguist, for
+previous to the outbreak of the war he had been the skipper of a
+North-German-Lloyd boat.  By sheer good luck he had reached a home port
+the day after the momentous declaration of hostilities, having narrowly
+escaped capture by a British destroyer.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Owing to the great expansion of the German submarine service, and its
+equally rapid reduction at the hands of the British Navy, the supply of
+specially trained officers of the Imperial Navy for this branch had run
+out.  More had been transferred from the pent-up High Seas Fleet, while
+others had been absorbed from the now useless German Mercantile Marine,
+and hastily put through a course of instruction.  Schwalbe was one of
+these, and after less than two months' hazardous work in the capacity
+of Unter-leutnant found himself in command of U75, one of the "last
+words" of von Tirpitz's piratical fleet.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Neither Ross nor Vernon replied.  They could form no suitable answer.
+It was no doubt very considerate on the part of the Kapitan to enquire
+after their healths, but somehow the lads felt that the skipper of U75
+was responsible for their presence on board.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Come, come," continued Schwalbe.  "Don't be sulky."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We are not," expostulated Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I'm glad to hear it," rejoined the Kapitan, with a grin that had the
+effect of letting his cigar fall to the deck.  He stooped to retrieve
+it, but, suddenly remembering that it was beneath his dignity, changed
+his mind and kicked the glowing stump on one side.  Having taken
+another from a gun-metal case, he lit it with a device that merely
+smouldered instead of giving a bright light.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It is as well we understand each other," he continued.  "Do you know
+why you are on board U75?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No, sir," replied Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Neither do I," rejoined Schwalbe with astonishing candour.  "I wish I
+had not been honoured with your company."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"The remedy is in your hands then, sir," said Trefusis.  "You can land
+us the next time you put in at St. Mena's Island for petrol, or else
+put us on board the first fishing craft we fall in with."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I beg to differ," was the rejoinder.  "Unfortunately you are on board,
+and you must make the best of it, I understand from my friend&mdash;shall I
+say Dr. Ramblethorne&mdash;that you are both very inquisitive.
+Inquisitiveness is a bad trait in ones so young.  You see, it has got
+you into trouble.  The doctor has strong reasons for getting me to take
+care of you for some considerable time, so you will have an opportunity
+of seeing how we Germans make war.  No half-measures, mark you.  It is
+useless to make war with a velvet glove.  You English people call us
+pirates, I believe?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It certainly looks like piracy when German submarines sink harmless
+merchantmen without warning," declared Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"For my part I have never sent a merchant vessel to the bottom without
+warning," said Schwalbe.  "As a seaman I regret having to sink any ship
+of commerce.  As an officer of the German Navy I have to obey orders
+unquestionably.  Nevertheless I have always given the crews of British
+ships a chance of escape, and have never sunk any vessel until the men
+are safely in the boats, unless she attempts to show fight or to run
+away."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Would you blame a skipper for trying to save his ship?" asked Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You do not understand," exclaimed Schwalbe.  "We are at war.  A
+blockade has been declared upon the British Islands.  If, after full
+warning, merchantmen persist in taking the risk, it is their look-out,
+not mine.  However, to return to a more personal matter: having been
+saddled with you, I must endure your presence.  You will be well fed,
+as far as the resources at our command will allow.  You will be free to
+go wherever you wish on board, with the exception of the conning-tower,
+motor- and torpedo-rooms.  I am not ungrateful, for my brother, who had
+the misfortune to be in the <I>Ariadne</I>, was captured by your fleet.  He
+is being well treated somewhere in England.  Hence I give privileges to
+the son of Admiral Trefusis and the son of Commander Haye so long as
+they are my compulsory guests.  But bear in mind: you will be watched.
+Should you commit any fault, however slight, you will pay dearly for
+it.  If you are foolish enough to attempt any act of treachery, death
+will be the penalty.  Have I made myself perfectly clear?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes, sir," replied both lads.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Very well.  Is there anything you would like me to do within the
+bounds of reason?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Could we communicate with our parents?" asked Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No," replied Schwalbe decisively.  "There are strong objections.  And,
+while I am on the subject, should you fall in with the crews of
+destroyed ships you are strictly forbidden to communicate with them
+either by word or gesture.  That will be a punishable offence of the
+second degree.  Anything more?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"My friend has had a nasty knock on the head," said Trefusis.  "Have
+you a doctor on board?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Again Kapitan Schwalbe smiled broadly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No," he replied.  "There is no need.  Cases of illness must wait till
+we return to port.  The only injuries we are likely to sustain would
+put us beyond all medical aid.  But several of the men are fairly
+skilled in rough surgery, so I will&mdash;&mdash;"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Vessel on the port bow, sir; she's showing no lights," announced a
+voice.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"All hands to stations!" ordered the skipper.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Down below with you!" hissed the petty officer, who during the
+interview had stood rigidly at attention at two paces to the rear of
+his charges.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Already the hitherto recumbent men were alert.  Quickly, yet in order,
+they disappeared down the fore hatchway, and amongst them were Ross and
+Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The officers had taken their places inside the shelter of the
+conning-tower.  Everything was battened down from within, and with a
+gentle purr the electric motors were set in motion, while at the same
+time water ballast was admitted into the trimming-tanks.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Swift and stealthy had been their preparations, but the presence of the
+submarine was betrayed by the phosphorescent swirl of the water caused
+by the churning of the twin propellers as she slipped beneath the
+surface.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Twenty seconds later a swift vessel that looked suspiciously like a
+trawler, although her speed belied her, tore over the place where U75
+had disappeared.  Bare inches only separated the top of the latter's
+conning-tower from the massive keel plates of the craft that had all
+but accomplished its mission.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The watch-dogs of the British Navy were at work.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap06"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER VI
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+The Tramp
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+Like a startled hare the unterseeboot fled for shelter.  Not until she
+reached a depth of fifteen fathoms did she check her diagonally
+downward course.  At intervals a dull booming, audible above the rattle
+of the motors, proclaimed the unpleasant fact that her antagonist was
+circling around the spot marked by the phosphorescent swirl and the
+iridescence of escaped oil, and was firing explosive grapnels in the
+hope of ripping open the U-boat's hull.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Kapitan Schwalbe, looking very grey in the artificial light, was
+standing behind the quartermaster.  His hands were clenched in
+momentary apprehension.  Beads of perspiration stood out upon his
+forehead.  He was experiencing a foretaste of the torment of the lost.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As a submarine officer of the Imperial German Navy he was a failure.
+Only sheer luck had hitherto saved him from the fate that had overtaken
+scores of his brother officers in that branch of the service.  Skilled
+as he was in the handling of a huge liner, he lacked the iron nerve
+that is essential to the man who has to risk his life in a steel box
+that, in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred, offers no means of escape
+in the event of a catastrophe.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Yet he had to do his duty, notwithstanding his utter distaste for
+submarine work.  He had had no option.  The officers of the British
+Navy volunteer for submarine duties; those of the German Navy are
+simply told off whether they want to or not.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The nerve-racking work was beginning to tell upon him.  His orders
+condemned him to a forlorn hope, for the English Channel was known to
+be a death-trap for the under-sea blockaders.  The sight of a trawler
+filled him with feelings akin to terror.  The possibility, nay
+probability, of a merchantman carrying guns made him approach his
+intended prey with the utmost caution; yet, as he had remarked to Ross
+Trefusis, he had never torpedoed any vessel flying the red ensign
+without giving her warning.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+But it was not chivalry that prompted Schwalbe to act with
+consideration.  Had he been untrammelled he would have sent his prey to
+the bottom without compunction, for he had all the brutal instincts of
+the kultured Hun.  It was a superstitious fear that held his
+frightfulness in check&mdash;a presentiment based upon the Mosaic Law, an
+eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Having placed a considerable distance between him and his attacker,
+Kapitan Schwalbe ordered the electric motors to be stopped.  The
+ballast tanks were "blown", and cautiously U75 rose to the surface.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was the best course open to her.  The depth of the water was much
+too great to allow her to rest on the bed of the sea.  On the other
+hand, in order to keep submerged, the motors would have to be in
+motion.  No one knew better than Schwalbe that the British patrol-boats
+would be in a position to locate with uncanny certitude the presence of
+their quarry, unless the strictest silence were maintained by the
+fugitive.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+So, ready to dive at the first alarm, U75 floated awash until such
+times as were considered favourable for getting under way.  Decidedly
+this part of the English Channel was, for the time being at least,
+unhealthy; and Kapitan Schwalbe resolved to make for the Bristol
+Channel, where the dangers of being destroyed by modern mosquitoes were
+more remote.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Meanwhile Ross and Vernon had been sent back to the quarters in the
+alley-way, by the side of the motor-room.  Not knowing the reason for
+the U-boat's sudden submergence, and consequently unaware of the danger
+that threatened her, they formed the erroneous impression that the
+submarine was about to attack.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"The old fellow gave us a pretty straight tip," remarked Vernon, when
+the chums found themselves alone.  "All the same, I vote we get out of
+it at the first opportunity, favourable or otherwise."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"'Ssh," whispered Ross.  "Someone might be listening.  I don't see how
+you propose to clear out, though."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We were on deck just now."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We were," agreed Trefusis.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It was fairly dark.  All the men up for'ard were lying down.  It would
+have been an easy matter to have dived overboard and swum for it, if we
+hadn't been twenty miles or more from land."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"There was a bright look-out kept, all the same," objected Ross.  "And
+I wouldn't mind saying that if the submarine were closer inshore,
+getting a supply of petrol, for example, we should be closely watched.
+All the same, I'm with you if we get the ghost of a chance.  But it's a
+rummy affair altogether.  Fancy that chap knowing our names and the
+rank of our respective fathers."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Ramblethorne must have told him that," said Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I suppose so; but for what reason?  By Jove, if we get out of this
+mess all right, we'll have something to talk about&mdash;having been
+prisoners on a German submarine!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The lads were not allowed on deck again that night.  Acting upon Haye's
+suggestion they "turned in", and slept fitfully until awakened by the
+noise of the watch being relieved.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The seaman, Hans Koppe, brought them their breakfast.  The meal
+consisted of fish, coffee, and the usual black bread.  By this time the
+captives had practically recovered from the effects of the injection.
+Haye's head was still painful, although the headache had left him.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+They ate with avidity, owing possibly to the atmosphere of the confined
+space, which was highly charged with oxygen.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What is the Captain's name?" asked Ross, when the man came to remove
+the breakfast things.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The sailor told him.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Where are we now?" enquired Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The man winked solemnly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Afloat," he replied.  "Be content with that."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Just then there were unmistakable signs of activity on the part of the
+submarine crew.  Several men hurried along the alley-way, each with a
+set purpose.  They paid little heed to the Englanders as they passed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At their heels came Herr Rix, the Leutnant of the submarine.  He was
+beaming affably.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Goot mornings!" he exclaimed.  "You come mit me, den I show you how we
+blockade."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He led the way to the compartment in which the bowl of the
+supplementary periscope was placed.  It was now broad daylight, and
+consequently the bowl showed a distinct image.  A junior officer was
+standing by, but on seeing Rix approach he saluted and moved aside.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Look!" exclaimed the Leutnant.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Both lads peered into the bowl.  On its dull sides, an expanse of sea
+and sky was portrayed.  Beyond that they could see nothing, until Rix
+called their attention to a small dark object.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Englische sheep!" he declared.  "Now you vos watch."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He touched a metal stud.  Instantly an arrangement of telescopic lenses
+came into play within the tube of the periscope, with the result that a
+small portion of the view was greatly magnified upon the object card.
+It revealed a tramp of about nine hundred tons.  She had a single
+funnel painted black, with two broad red bands; two stumpy masts, with
+derricks, and a lofty bridge and chart-house abaft the funnel.  She was
+wall-sided.  Her rusty hull was originally painted black.  Here and
+there were squares of red lead, showing that her crew had been engaged
+in trying to smarten her up before she reached port.  Aft, frayed and
+dirty with the smoke that poured from her funnel, floated the red
+ensign.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The submarine began to rise.  Although she tilted abruptly, the image
+of the tramp steamer still remained upon the object bowl.  By an
+ingenious arrangement, the lenses were constructed to compensate for
+any deviation of the tube of the periscope from the vertical.  The lads
+could see the bows of the U-boat shaking clear of the water, throwing
+cascades of foam off on either side as the passing craft forged ahead
+at at least eighteen knots.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Now, for the first time, the skipper of the tramp saw the danger.  He
+was a short, thick-set man, with white hair and an iron-grey moustache,
+and a face the colour of mahogany.  For an instant he grasped the
+bridge-rails and looked towards the submarine, then gesticulated
+violently to the man at the wheel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The spikes ran through the helmsman's hands, as he rapidly revolved the
+wheel actuating the steam steering-gear.  The tramp swung hard to port,
+with the idea of baffling the momentarily expected torpedo.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Kapitan Schwalbe acted up to his principles.  In any case he was loath
+to use a torpedo upon a comparatively small vessel.  In response to an
+order, half a dozen of the submarine's crew swarmed on deck, three
+going for'ard and three aft.  Within forty-five seconds the two
+disappearing guns were raised from the water-tight "houses".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross, Vernon, and the German Leutnant remained gazing into the bowl of
+the periscope.  The vision so absorbed the attention of the two lads
+that they hardly heeded the presence of Herr Rix, who occasionally
+emitted grunts of satisfaction or annoyance as the scene was enacted.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The bow gun spat viciously.  The range was but three hundred yards.
+The missile passed a few feet in front of the tramp's bows, and,
+throwing up a shower of spray that burst inboard on the British
+vessel's fo'c'sle, ricochetted a mile or so away.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The tramp's skipper showed his mettle.  Round swung the vessel, listing
+heavily as she did so.  By this time the call for more steam had been
+responded to, and dense clouds of black smoke belched from her funnel,
+mingled with puffs of white vapour as the siren bleated loudly for aid.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Running awash, U75 had a great advantage of speed; overtaking her prey
+she was able to send half a dozen shells into the lofty target
+presented as she slid by.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Holes gaped in the thin plating close to the waterline.  A shell,
+passing completely through the funnel, demolished the siren.  Being
+without wireless, the tramp was now without means of long-distance
+signalling.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Another missile hit the chart-house and, exploding, swept the frail
+structure overboard in a thousand fragments.  The old skipper, hit by a
+splinter of wood, fell inertly upon the bridge; but the next instant he
+staggered to his feet, bawling to the crew to get the hand-steering
+gear connected.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"He's down again!" exclaimed Ross breathlessly, as the brave old man
+dropped upon the shattered planking of the bridge.  "Hurrah!  He's
+still alive."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The skipper had deliberately taken cover behind the slender shelter
+afforded by the metal side-light boards.  By the frantic movement of
+his arm, it was evident that he was exhorting his men to "stick it"
+like Britons.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The hail of shells continued.  Already fire had broken out on board in
+several places.  A sliver of metal sheered through the ensign staff.
+Without hesitation one of the crew rushed off, retrieved the
+weather-worn bunting, and made his way to the mainmast.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Slowly and deliberately he re-hoisted the ensign until it fluttered
+proudly from the truck, then with apparent unconcern the man
+disappeared below.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+By this time the tramp was again under control, with a course shaped
+for land, which lay about ten miles to the S.S.E.  It was, however, a
+foregone conclusion that unless help were speedily forthcoming the
+vessel was doomed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The tramp began to heel, almost imperceptibly at first, then with
+increasing speed.  She had received her <I>coup de grâce</I>.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Still the engines were kept going full speed ahead.  The dauntless
+skipper remained on the bridge, with a look of grim resolution on his
+weather-beaten features.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Slowly the vessel's way diminished.  Her bow-wave, owing to the
+gradually increasing draught, was greater, but less sharp than before.
+In a few minutes the water would be pouring over her fore-deck.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Seeing that their work was completed, the pirates ceased fire, the
+guns' crews standing with folded arms and stolidly watching the tramp
+as she struggled in her death-throes.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Presently a vast cloud of steam issued from her engine-room.  The
+inrush of water had damped her furnaces.  The engineer and firemen,
+their faces black with coal-dust and streaming with moisture, hurried
+on deck.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For another quarter of a mile the doomed vessel carried way, then came
+to a sudden stop.  As she did so she gave a quick list to starboard,
+until only a few inches of bulwark amidships showed above the waves.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Then, and only then, did the skipper give orders for the boats to be
+lowered.  In an orderly manner the crew manned the falls, and the task
+of abandoning the ship began.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Without undue haste, the crew dropped into the waiting boats, each man
+with a bundle containing his scanty personal effects wrapped up in a
+handkerchief.  The Captain was the last to leave.  He did so
+reluctantly, his left hand tightly grasping the ship's papers.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Having rowed a safe distance from the foundering vessel, the men rested
+on their oars, and waited in silence for the end.  It was not long in
+coming.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The tramp was heeling more and more, and slightly down by the bows.
+Suddenly she almost righted; then, amid a smother of foam as the
+compressed air burst open her hatches, she flung her stern high in the
+air.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Even then she seemed in no hurry.  The after part from the mainmast
+remained in view, the now motionless propeller being well clear of the
+water.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For quite a minute she remained thus, then with a quick yet almost
+gentle movement slid under the waves.  The last seen of her was the
+weather-worn red ensign still fluttering from the truck.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The periscope's bowl showed nothing but an expanse of sea and sky, and
+the two boats rising buoyantly to the waves.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A grim chuckle brought Ross and Vernon back to their surroundings.
+Herr Rix was rubbing his hands and grunting with evident satisfaction.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Goot!" he ejaculated.  "Now, how you like dat?  Now you see how we
+German make blockade, hein?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A brave deed," replied Ross scornfully, and, gripping Vernon by the
+arm, led him back to their uncomfortable quarters in the alley-way.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap07"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER VII
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+On the Bed of the Sea
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+For the next twenty-four hours nothing exciting occurred.  The U-boat
+kept to the surface as much as possible, running under her petrol
+motors at fifteen knots.  To exceed that pace would mean too great a
+consumption of fuel, and already the vessel was short of petrol.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Kapitan Schwalbe was prone to act on the side of extreme caution.
+Having sunk one vessel, he would not tackle another in the same
+vicinity.  He invariably put at least a hundred miles between him and
+the scene of his latest ignominious exploit before attempting another
+act of kultur.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Three times during that twenty-four hours he dived: twice on sighting
+what were unquestionably Bristol Channel pilot-boats, and on the third
+occasion when a Penzance lugger under motor-power (for it was a dead
+calm) crossed his track.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+All this time a regular stream of shipping was passing up and down the
+Bristol Channel, as unconcernedly as in the piping days of peace.  To
+anyone but a bumptious German, the sight would have told its own tale;
+for the British Mercantile Marine, used to danger and difficulties, was
+not to be deterred by the "frightfulness" of von Tirpitz's blockade.
+On the contrary, the possibility of falling in with a hostile submarine
+gave an unwonted spice to the everyday routine of the toilers of the
+sea.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+After breakfast on the following morning Ross and Vernon were told to
+go on deck.  The sea was still calm, and the submarine, now running
+awash at full speed, was cleaving the water with practically dry decks.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The lads soon realized what was in progress.  A couple of miles away
+was a large ocean cargo-boat, outward bound, and U75 was in pursuit.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Trefusis and his chum were not allowed for'ard, where the quick-firer
+was already in position for opening fire.  They were ordered abaft the
+conning-tower, the hatch of which was open.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Kapitan Schwalbe's head and shoulders could be seen projecting above
+the opening.  On the raised grating surrounding the conning-tower,
+stood a boyish-looking Unter-leutnant.  Hermann Rix was nowhere to be
+seen.  Apparently his duties compelled him to remain below.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Presently the quick-firer barked, and a projectile struck the water
+about a hundred yards from the starboard side of the pursued vessel.
+With the discharge of the gun, a sailor hoisted the black cross ensign
+of Germany from a small flagstaff aft, while a signal in the
+International Code ordering the British vessel to heave to instantly
+fluttered from the light mast immediately abaft the conning-tower.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The only response from the chase was the hoisting of the red ensign,
+for previously she had shown no colours.  Slowly, defiantly, the
+bunting was hauled close up, and ironically "dipped" three times.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Again and again the submarine's bow-chaser fired.  The shells were well
+aimed as regards direction, but all fell short.  Imperceptibly the
+merchantman had increased distance.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Look at the fools!" Ross heard the Kapitan remark, as he kept his
+binoculars focused on his intended prey.  "They are trying to snapshot
+us.  Are all Englishmen so blind to peril?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Are you sure they haven't a couple of quick-firers mounted aft, sir?"
+asked the Unter-leutnant.  "There are several men gathered round
+something on the poop."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Himmel, I hope not!" ejaculated Schwalbe.  "But no; had they any guns
+they would have opened fire before now.  What is the matter with our
+gun-layer?  It is about time he got a shell home."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Unter-leutnant lowered himself on the foredeck, and shouted angrily
+at the seaman whose duty it was to "lay" the bow-chasers.  The man
+again bent over the sights.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+This time the shell pitched ahead of the chase, but slightly to port.
+Some of the spray thrown up by the projectile fell on board.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Is that the best you can do, you brainless idiot?" shouted Schwalbe
+wrathfully.  Now that he was in pursuit he was loath to be baffled, but
+at the same time he realized that the submarine was using a lot of
+precious fuel and a prodigious amount of ammunition without any
+definite result.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In the midst of his torrent of abuse directed upon the luckless
+gun-layer, Kapitan Schwalbe suddenly stopped.  Gripping the rim of the
+oval hatchway he gazed, horror-stricken, at two objects bobbing in the
+water directly in the path of the submarine.  Then, recovering his
+voice, he shouted to the quartermaster to port helm.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The fellow obeyed promptly, but it was too late.  Practically
+simultaneously, two barrels swung round and crashed alongside the
+submarine's hull.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Officers and men, expecting momentarily to find themselves blown into
+the air, stood stock-still.  Then, as nothing so disastrous occurred,
+Schwalbe gave orders for easy astern.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The barrels, connected by a span of grass rope, had been thrown
+overboard from the pursued vessel, in the hope that the submarine would
+foul her propellers in the tangle of line.  Once a blade picked up that
+trailing rope, the latter would coil round the boss as tightly as a
+band of flexible steel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The plan all but succeeded; only the metal guards protecting the
+propellers saved them from being hopelessly jammed.  Yet the attempt
+was attended with good results as far as the British ship was
+concerned, for by the time U75 had lost way and had cautiously backed
+away from the obstruction, the swift cargo-vessel had gained a distance
+that put her beyond all chance of being overhauled.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Infuriated by his failure, Kapitan Schwalbe went aft and descended into
+his cabin.  He was hardly conscious of the presence of his two
+involuntary guests as he passed.  He was thinking of the fate that had
+consigned him to a perilous and uncongenial task.  Without doubt the
+vessel he had been pursuing was equipped with wireless, and by this
+time a number of those dreaded hornets would be tearing towards the
+spot.  To add to his discomfiture it was reported to him that the
+reserve of fuel on board had seriously dwindled.  In order to remain
+effective it was necessary that U75 should replenish her tanks before
+another forty-eight hours had passed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+According to his customary tactics, Schwalbe ordered the submarine to
+dive to sixty feet.  At that depth she would be safe from any
+possibility of being rammed.  Provided she could avoid the under-water
+obstructions with which the British naval authorities had sown the bed
+of the sea at almost every point likely to be frequented by lurking
+hostile submarines, she was in no actual danger.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Gaining his diminutive cabin, Schwalbe by sheer force of habit
+consulted the aneroid.  The mercury was falling rapidly.  Since he last
+looked, barely two hours previously, it had dropped 764 to 734
+millimetres, or an inch and two-tenths.  That meant that the
+anti-cyclone was rapidly breaking up, and that a severe gale was
+approaching with considerable swiftness.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+U75 must submerge and seek shelter.  It was impossible for her to keep
+at a uniform depth unless she maintained steerage-way; that meant a
+great demand upon her storage batteries.  She could not remain on the
+bottom of the sea in a heavy gale, owing to the constant "pumping" or
+up-and-down movements caused by the varying pressure of passing waves,
+unless she sought a sheltered roadstead&mdash;and sheltered roadsteads were
+generally mined, or guarded by some ingenious device that had already
+accounted for several of U75's consorts.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Producing a chart of the Bristol Channel, Schwalbe unfolded and spread
+it upon a table.  Then, in conjunction with a translation of the latest
+British Admiralty guide to the west coast of England, he proceeded to
+select what he hoped would be a snug shelter during the coming storm.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Herr Rix!" he shouted.  "I'll make for this anchorage.  There's every
+indication of a strong blow from the nor'-east."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"This" was Helwick Channel, a deep, almost blind passage between the
+Glamorgan coast and an outlying submerged reef known as the East and
+West Helwick.  In fine weather it was a short cut for traders plying
+between Llanelly and Swansea.  In bad weather it was a place to be
+avoided, as far as sailing vessels were concerned.  Sheltered by the
+bold outlines of Worm's Head, it ought to prove an ideal lurking-place
+until the gale had blown itself out, for there was little danger of the
+place being used as an anchorage, since vessels preferred to give the
+rock-bound coast a wide berth.  On this account, it was also highly
+probable that the Helwick channel had not been safe-guarded by the
+British naval authorities.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Just before sunset, U75, having made the passage unobserved, brought up
+in twelve fathoms of water, resting evenly on the firm, hard sands at
+the bottom.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross and his chum turned in early.  There was nothing for them to do.
+They held aloof from the crew; there were no books to entertain them,
+no games to amuse them.  The submarine was now motionless, sufficient
+water ballast having been taken in to allow her to settle firmly upon
+the bottom; but, in order to be prepared, the anchor was let go.  Thus
+not the slightest movement of the hull was apparent.  The rest, after
+hours of erratic movement on the oily swell, was a welcome one.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The lads had set their joint watch by the submarine's time, which,
+being mid-European standard, was one hour fast of Greenwich.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For several hours they slept soundly and undisturbed.  Suddenly they
+were both awakened by the muffled tramp of men in heavy sea-boots.  The
+solitary light in the alley-way was switched off; the water-tight doors
+were firmly closed.  Already the air in the confined space was stifling.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What has happened?" asked Vernon anxiously, for the vessel, instead of
+resting immovably upon the bed of the channel, was now rolling
+sluggishly.  Yet she could not be under way, for the motors were silent.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Springing from his bunk, Ross felt for the switch of the electric
+light.  It was already down, yet the flow of current was interrupted.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Let's find out," he said.  "Come along."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The lads, before turning in, had carefully laid out their clothes, so
+as to be ready to slip into them at a moment's notice, yet it was a
+matter of considerable difficulty to dress in the dark.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"The door's closed," announced Ross as the lads groped their way to the
+end of the alley-way.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I believe the submarine's holed," suggested Haye.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No; she wouldn't lift as she's doing.  Besides, the crew are moving
+about.  Let's bang on the door with our boots."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For several minutes they hammered, but without result.  The air, never
+very fresh, was now almost unbearable, owing to lack of ventilation.
+The imprisoned youths began to get desperate.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Then, without warning, the door slid back.  The alley-way was flooded
+with brilliant light.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Make haste!" shouted a voice which the lads recognized as that of Hans
+Koppe.  At the same time he grasped Ross by the shoulder and literally
+dragged him across the steel threshold.  Vernon followed quickly, but
+barely had he gained the compartment beyond than the massive steel door
+shot back again.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Didn't you hear the order all hands for'ard?" asked Hans, not
+unkindly, for the white faces of the English lads told their own tale.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No," replied Ross.  "Besides, we are not included in the 'hands', are
+we?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You'll have to bear the consequences if you don't obey," rejoined
+Koppe.  "I'm supposed to be looking after you, but how was I to know
+you hadn't turned out?  Fortunately for you, I heard your knocking, and
+asked Herr Kapitan to open the doors.  He was angry, but did so."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What has happened then?" asked Trefusis, for the seaman seemed in a
+communicative mood.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A shift of wind.  It's blowing great guns up aloft, and there's a
+terrific tumble into this channel.  We've dragged, or, rather, swung
+round our anchor."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"But we are safe enough?" asked Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes, safe," replied Hans.  "Too safe; we cannot break out our anchor.
+They are sending a diver to see what is amiss."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Evidently the diving arrangements on board were not considered to be of
+a confidential nature, for Hans led the way to the compartment under
+the fore-hatch, without the lads being sent back by the significant
+word "verboten".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A man was preparing for a submarine walk.  He was already dressed in an
+india-rubber suit, with leaden weights attached to his chest, back, and
+boots.  Two others were standing by, ready to place the helmet over his
+head, when Leutnant Rix had finished giving him minute directions.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The officer spoke rapidly and in a low tone.  Ross could not catch all
+he said, but the words "gefährliche Strömungen" (dangerous currents)
+and "Der Wendepunkt der Flut" (slack water) and "Drei Viertel funf" (a
+quarter to five) occurred frequently.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Vernon glanced at his watch.  It was then a minute after four.
+Apparently Rix was impressing upon the man that he must clear the
+anchor at slack water, which occurred at a quarter to five.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The two attendants then proceeded to place the diver's helmet on his
+head.  The lads noticed that it had neither air-tube nor telephone
+wire.  Nor was there a life-line attached to his waist.  Fresh air was
+obtained from a metal case strapped to his back.  The man was able to
+work independently, and without having to rely upon his air supply from
+the submarine.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The oval door in the diving-chamber was thrown open.  The diver
+entered, and the water-tight panel was quickly replaced.  One of the
+seamen thrust over a short lever, and immediately water rushed into the
+small compartment.  As soon as the space was filled the diver was able
+to open a similar door in the outer plating of the submarine, and thus
+gain the bed of the sea.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Presently Leutnant Rix turned, and saw for the first time that Ross and
+Vernon were discreetly standing in the background.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Go away.  It is forbidden!" he shouted angrily.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+They obeyed promptly, retreating to the space allotted to the crew,
+since it was neither desirable nor possible to return to their bunks.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For some minutes the luckless Hans Koppe was subjected to a severe
+dressing-down by his hot-headed officer, and when at length the seaman
+rejoined the lads he was in no humour to resume conversation.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Slowly the minutes sped.  The submarine was still rolling sluggishly,
+in spite of the fact that more water had been admitted into the ballast
+tanks.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The men were talking seriously amongst themselves.  From scraps of
+conversation that drifted to the lads' ears, it was evident that they
+had grave doubts concerning the ability of the diver to perform his
+task, and even of his chances of regaining the submarine, owing to the
+violent disturbances of the water.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Presently the motion of the anchored submarine became more acute.  A
+weird grating sound&mdash;the noise made by the hull rasping over the bed of
+the sea&mdash;was distinctly audible.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+One of the seamen produced a pocket compass.  His startled exclamation
+brought other members of the crew around him.  The magnetic needle was
+apparently describing a semicircle.  U75 was swinging round her anchor.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Just then a bell tinkled, and a disc oscillated on the indicator board
+on the bulkhead.  Instantly the two men who had been told off as
+attendants upon the diver hurried aft, while their companions crowded
+expectantly around the door.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The two men came back, staggering under the weight of the diver.  They
+had already removed his head-dress and leaden weights.  Water dropped
+from his rubber suit.  His face was livid, his eyes wide open and
+rolling.  One of his bare hands was streaked with blood that flowed
+sullenly from a cut in his numbed flesh.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Kapitan Schwalbe and Leutnant Rix followed him into the crew-space.  It
+was not through feelings of compassion that they had come for'ard.  It
+was acute anxiety to hear the diver's report.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The luckless man was laid upon the mess-table.  His attendants divested
+him of his diving-suit, and rubbed his body with rough towels.  A petty
+officer poured half a glass of brandy down his throat.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What is amiss?" Kapitan Schwalbe kept on repeating.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+With a great effort the diver sat up.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"An anchor, sir," he gasped feebly.  "An anchor&mdash;an English naval
+pattern one&mdash;has been dropped right over ours.  A very big one."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Then his eyes closed, and he fell back unconscious.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Gott in Himmel!" ejaculated Rix.  "We are trapped!"
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap08"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER VIII
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+Balked by a Sea-plane
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+"How so?" demanded Kapitan Schwalbe.  "If we keep quiet, the
+cruiser&mdash;for cruiser she must be, judging by the fellow's
+description&mdash;will weigh and proceed."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"When she does weigh we are undone," said Rix despondently.  "We are
+swinging round our anchor.  For all we know, our cable has taken a turn
+round hers.  As soon as they heave up their anchor, our anchor and
+cable will be brought up with it, and then the game is up.  Either the
+strain will overcome our dead weight and we will be hauled to the
+surface, or else they'll lower one of their brutal explosive charges."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"The situation is serious," admitted Schwalbe in a low tone, for his
+Leutnant's words had produced a demoralizing effect upon the men.  "How
+much cable have we inboard?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Rix repeated the question.  A petty officer doubled forward to consult
+the cable indicator.  U75's anchor, when under way, was housed in a
+trough on the under side of the submarine's forefoot.  The cable was
+automatically ranged in a compartment between the inner and outer
+skins, the space being always filled with water.  The inboard end of
+the cable was not shackled; but to prevent its being able to take
+charge and run out, an indicator was placed on the bulkhead nearest to
+the cable tier.  The amount of chain let go was regulated by a
+compressor, which was actuated from within the hull by means of levers
+and cranks, watertight glands being provided to prevent any leakage
+into the interior of the submarine.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Seventy-five fathoms," reported the petty officer.  "When we commenced
+to swing we paid out the length we had taken on board when we hove
+short."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We must sacrifice the lot, Herr Rix," decided Kapitan Schwalbe.
+"There is no time to lose.  Storm or no storm, we must slip and run for
+it."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was U75's only chance, but it left her with only a small stockless
+kedge-anchor and chain, insufficient to withstand a heavy strain.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The compressor was released.  With a loud rumble, for every sound was
+magnified within the confined space, the rest of the cable was allowed
+to take charge.  It did so promptly, the end of the chain giving the
+hull a defiant smack as it did so.  U75, no longer held by her anchor,
+began to drift with the tide, scraping dismally over the bed of Helwich
+Channel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Schwalbe was now back at his post in the conning-tower.  He dare not
+take the submarine to the surface until he had put a safe distance
+between him and the anchored British warship.  Nor did he care to order
+the ballast tanks to be blown.  Rather than allow the "pumping" of the
+seas to hammer the submerged craft upon the hard sand, he preferred to
+take the risk of letting her drag.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Fortunately the tide set evenly along the bed of the channel.  A
+cross-current would have set the submarine upon the jagged rocks of the
+hidden West Helwick Ridge.  Nevertheless there was always the danger of
+being hurled violently against a detached rock, or of fouling a live
+mine if by chance the British had laid obstructions in the channel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Both Ross and Vernon knew the danger, but, manfully concealing their
+misgivings, they watched the faces of those of the crew who were "watch
+below".  Most of the men were Frisians, broad-shouldered,
+blonde-featured, and generally devoid of fear.  Yet the ceaseless
+strain upon the nerves had already begun to tell.  As hardy fishermen,
+they would not have hesitated to launch their open boats in a storm to
+go to the rescue of a hapless vessel aground on the grim sand-banks of
+the Frisian shore.  As the conscript crew of the submarine, compelled
+to keep within the limits of a steel box that almost momentarily
+threatened to be their tomb, their natural bravery was quenched.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Many of them sat upon their lockers, stolid-faced men who had already
+tasted of the bitterness of death.  Others showed unmistakable signs of
+excitement, bordering on frenzy.  They dreaded their life of modern
+piracy.  The idea of sinking hapless merchantmen was repugnant to them,
+for they understood the brotherhood of the sea.  It would be different
+if they were called upon to attack an armed British ship of war.  They
+had no option but to obey their junker officers, who in turn were
+compelled to accept the misguided orders of the arch-pirate, von
+Tirpitz.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+They were disheartened, too, for reports, in spite of the vigilance of
+the officers to conceal them, had reached them of the losses inflicted
+upon other unterseebooten.  Occasionally they heard of a submarine crew
+being saved, but generally it was a case of total loss of all on board,
+by some hitherto unknown means, at the hands of the British Navy.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A hand touched Ross lightly on the shoulder.  Turning, he saw Hans
+Koppe standing in a darkened corner of the compartment.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Can you tell me this, mein herr?" asked the seaman in a low tone.  "Is
+it true that the English give no quarter to German seamen in
+submarines?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I shouldn't think that they would refuse to do so," replied Trefusis.
+"Of course, I can quite understand that an opportunity doesn't often
+occur; but I've heard of several instances in which your U-boats have
+surrendered, and the crews have been treated exactly the same as other
+prisoners of war."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I have heard differently," said Hans, "but I hope it's a mistake.  I
+have a feeling that we won't see Wilhelmshaven again.  And I have a
+wife and six children at Flensburg.  Our Kapitan, too, expects that we
+might be denied quarter, because we have sunk your merchantmen.
+Believe me, I regret having done so, but we have orders.  Do you know
+why Kapitan Schwalbe took you on board?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Because a certain German agent wanted us out of the way, I suppose,"
+replied Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Perhaps," admitted Hans Koppe.  "But in the event of our being
+captured he thinks that his good treatment of you will be in his
+favour.  We are, I do not mind telling you, in a very tight corner.
+Our fuel supply is almost run out.  We cannot hope to return home by
+way of the Straits of Dover.  Not one of our submarines has tried that
+passage of late without meeting with disaster&mdash;at least, so I heard der
+Kapitan tell der Leutnant.  Ach!  It is deplorable, this war."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The rapid ringing of a gong was the signal for the watch below to turn
+out.  A peculiar hissing noise proclaimed the fact that the ballast
+tanks were being emptied.  U75 no longer grated over the bottom; her
+motors were running almost dead slow.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Although submerged, the submarine was "pumping" violently.  Seasoned
+men were prostrate with sea-sickness.  The air, in spite of chemical
+purifiers, was becoming almost intolerable.  Everything movable was
+being thrown about in utter disorder, while to add to the discomfort of
+the crew the covering-plates of one of the lubricating-oil tanks had
+been strained, and at every jerk jets of viscous fluid would squirt
+through the fracture and trickle sullenly over the floor of the
+crew-space.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Since the watertight doors were still closed, Ross and Vernon were
+unable to get back to their bunks.  Feeling thoroughly wretched, they
+were glad to accept Hans Koppe's offer to lie down on a long locker.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At noon, U75 came to the surface.  The storm, being short forecasted,
+had quickly blown itself out, but the waves still ran high.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was a prearranged plan on the part of the three U-boats operating in
+the English and Bristol Channels to communicate with each other by
+wireless at noon and at midnight.  U75's wireless had a range of about
+180 miles, and although it could be "jammed", the call could not be
+tapped by vessels other than the one for which it was intended.  To
+make doubly sure, the messages were sent in code.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For nearly ten minutes U75 "made her number" without eliciting any
+reply.  Perhaps it was well that Kapitan Schwalbe did not know what had
+happened to her consorts.  U74 was at that moment lying on her side at
+the bottom of a Welsh harbour, her crew poisoned by the chlorine fumes
+from her batteries&mdash;the result of a rash curiosity on the part of her
+Lieutenant-Commander to investigate the approaches to the anchorage.
+As for U77, she was flying blindly for safety, with a couple of
+destroyers hard on her track, and a naval sea-plane overhead to direct
+them in their search.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Foiled in her efforts to get in touch with her consorts, U75 remained
+awash.  The heave of the sea made it most difficult for her to use her
+periscope with certainty, for she had chosen a bad pitch on her
+ascent&mdash;the furious "overfalls" or "tide-rips" to the west of Lundy
+Island.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We'll pay another visit to St. Mena's Island, Herr Rix," decided
+Kapitan Schwalbe, after the two officers had discussed the sinister
+matter of their futile attempt to make use of the wireless.  "To-night
+at nine o'clock ought to suit.  If we cannot get von Ruhle to see our
+signals&mdash;for my own part, I doubt whether he is in these parts&mdash;we'll
+have to do our best to get ashore.  Meanwhile, keep a bright look-out.
+If we see any likely vessel coming this way, we'll try our luck once
+more."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Message just received, mein herr," announced the wireless operator.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"From whom?" enquired Kapitan Schwalbe eagerly.  He was devoutly hoping
+that either U74 or U77 had been able to "call up".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I cannot say, sir," replied the man as he handed a code message to his
+superior.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Decoded, the "wireless" was as follows:
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Station 41 to unterseebooten.  Two hundred gallons of fuel available
+here.  Will be on the look-out for signals at 1 a.m."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The message was a "general call" for a secret petrol depot to any
+German submarine operating in the vicinity.  Reference to the list of
+stations showed that "41" was at Port Treherne, a remote cove on the
+North Cornish coast about fifty miles from St. Mena's Island.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I suppose it's safe," remarked Rix.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"With due precautions&mdash;yes," rejoined Kapitan Schwalbe.  "At any rate,
+petrol we must have.  Where's the chart?  Ah, there we are!  It looks a
+fairly easy place to approach, don't you think?  The only danger from a
+navigation point is apparently this ledge of rocks&mdash;Lost Chance Reef,
+it's called.  What unpleasant names these Englishmen give to their
+coasts!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At that moment the Unter-leutnant, who happened to be at the
+conning-tower periscope, reported that a large vessel was bearing down
+towards them.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Kapitan Schwalbe hurried to the conning-tower.  The object depicted was
+that of a modern tank-vessel about four hundred feet in length.  She
+was low in the water, showing that she was well laden.  In place of
+masts she had four stumpy poles supporting derricks.  Right aft was the
+single funnel.  The navigation bridge was well for'ard, connected with
+another bridge just in front of the funnel by a long slender gangway.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"An oil-tank homeward bound!" exclaimed Kapitan Schwalbe.  "Just what
+we want to fall in with.  All being well, there will be no necessity to
+visit either Port Treherne or St. Mena's Island.  Ach!  When we have
+taken what we require we will set fire to the ship, and the English
+will have a splendid view of a maritime bonfire."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The crew were ordered to their stations, the ballast tanks "blown", and
+U75 rose to the surface instead of "running awash", since the Kapitan
+had resolved to stop the tank by gun-fire.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Even then the waves were running so high that the guns' crews were
+almost constantly up to their knees in water.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Somewhat to the surprise of the submarine's officers and crew, the
+tank-steamer made no attempt to escape.  The firing of a shot across
+her bows and the display of the black cross ensign were enough to cause
+the skipper to reverse her engines.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In less than five minutes, the oil-vessel was rolling in the trough of
+the sea and drifting slowly to leeward.  Yet it was a somewhat
+remarkable circumstance that no attempt was made to lower the red
+ensign that was proudly displayed at the stern.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Kapitan Schwalbe, with his intimate knowledge of navigation, knew that
+the only way possible to board the prize was to run to leeward of her,
+and let the hull of the large vessel serve as a breakwater.  He also
+knew that the submarine would have to be constantly under way during
+the boarding operations, otherwise the tank-vessel, offering
+considerable resistance to the wind, would drift down upon U75, whose
+leeway was almost unappreciable.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Send a boat, and lower your accommodation ladder," ordered Kapitan
+Schwalbe, who, as the submarine ranged up half a cable's length to
+leeward of the tank-vessel, had left the shelter of the conning-tower
+and was standing on the platform in its wake.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Aye, aye," was the prompt response.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Board her, Herr Rix," said the Leutnant's superior officer.  "Bring
+back her papers with you.  Order them to pump heavy oil both to
+windward and leeward.  We will then be able to run close alongside and
+receive her hoses."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A boat containing two seamen and an apprentice was lowered from the
+tank's quarter and rowed to the submarine.  Into it dropped Leutnant
+Rix and half a dozen armed men.  With them they took two incendiary
+bombs fitted with time-fuses.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Rix smiled grimly as he gained the oil-steamer's deck.  The captain and
+first mate were at the head of the accommodation ladder to receive him.
+Most of the crew were already mustering on deck, each with a bundle
+containing his private effects.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You prize to German boat," announced the Leutnant.  "Make you no
+trouble and we you will not harm.  First we will haf much
+oil&mdash;petroleum, is it not?  Order your engineer to get steam to
+donkey-engine, and your men&mdash;the&mdash;the&mdash;&mdash;  Hein!  Ach, I haf it&mdash;the
+hoses to get ready.  When we fill up, then twenty minutes we give you
+to clear out.  You onderstan'?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Perfectly," replied the British skipper, a tall, raw-boned Scot, as he
+eyed the podgy German Leutnant with grim contempt.  "But d'ye ken yon?"
+</P>
+
+<A NAME="img-082"></A>
+<CENTER>
+<IMG CLASS="imgcenter" SRC="images/img-082.jpg" ALT="&quot;'D'YE KEN YON?' ASKED THE BRITISH SKIPPER, AS HE EYED THE PODGY GERMAN LEUTNANT WITH CONTEMPT&quot;" BORDER="2" WIDTH="410" HEIGHT="639">
+<H4 CLASS="h4center" STYLE="width: 500px">
+&quot;'D'YE KEN YON?' ASKED THE BRITISH SKIPPER, AS HE EYED<BR>
+THE PODGY GERMAN LEUTNANT WITH CONTEMPT&quot;
+</H4>
+</CENTER>
+
+<P>
+He pointed skywards.  Less than five hundred feet up, yet sufficiently
+far from the tank-vessel to enable the latter to screen her from the
+unterseeboot, was a large naval sea-plane.  It was to deaden the noise
+of her motors that the ship's steam-pipe was continually blowing off
+steam from the time that U75 made her peremptory demand.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The eyes of the Leutnant and his six men followed the direction
+indicated by the British skipper's outstretched hand.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At that instant the sea-plane was visible above the towering sides of
+the British vessel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+U75 was still forging slowly ahead.  In a trice Kapitan Schwalbe
+decided how to act.  Ordering the men on deck to their diving stations,
+he dropped agilely into the conning-tower and gave the word for the
+helm to be ported.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Thus, while the quick-firers were being housed, the submarine had drawn
+close under the oil-tank's quarter.  Here she was comparatively safe
+from the sea-plane, as the latter could not drop any bombs without risk
+of exploding the highly inflammable cargo of the British vessel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In ten seconds the sea-plane was over and beyond her quarry.  She had
+then to turn and circle overhead, awaiting the chance of shattering her
+enemy as she dived.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+U75 was already disappearing beneath the waves.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+She dived at a very oblique angle, steeper than she had ever done
+before.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross and Vernon, unaware of what was taking place, thought for a moment
+that the submarine was plunging headlong to the bed of the Bristol
+Channel.  They had to cling desperately to the nearest object to hand
+to prevent themselves from sliding violently against a transverse
+bulkhead.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Even as they clung they heard two muffled detonations in quick
+succession, followed by a distinct quiver of the submarine's hull&mdash;a
+movement that bore a marked difference to the vibrations under the
+pulsations of the motors.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The sea-plane had dropped two bombs, both of which very nearly attained
+their object.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Kapitan Schwalbe did not bring the submarine to a horizontal position
+until she had reached a depth of fifteen fathoms.  At that depth he was
+safe, both from explosives dropped from the sea-plane and also from
+observation.  The water being still agitated, made it impossible for
+the observer on the biplane to follow the movements of a dark shadow
+fathoms deep.  For once, the rough seas had been kind to U75; but the
+fact remained that she was still badly in want of fuel, while his last
+attempt had resulted in the loss of an officer and six men, who could
+not well be spared.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Although the sea-plane had failed to achieve her object by pulverizing
+the U-boat's hull, the moral and material result was none the less
+effective.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The explosion of the bombs had started several of U75's plates.
+Numerous jets of water were spurting through the seams, the inrush
+requiring all the mechanical appliances at the command of the modern
+pirate to keep the leaks under control, while the badly-jarred nerves
+of Kapitan Schwalbe and his crew warned them of the grave risks they
+ran in attempting to try conclusions with even an apparently harmless
+craft displaying the Red Ensign of Britain's Mercantile Marine.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap09"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER IX
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+The Landing at Port Treherne
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+"I wonder if they'll let us go on deck," remarked Vernon Haye.  "If so,
+I vote we have a shot at getting ashore.  What sort of show is Port
+Treherne?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I know it fairly well," replied Ross.  "It's the most forsaken crib
+you are ever likely to meet along the coast.  It's a deep gully in the
+cliffs.  There's only one small landing-place&mdash;a flat rock.  Years ago
+there used to be a tramway down to the rock, and they shipped copper
+ore by means of derricks into lighters, which were towed across in fine
+weather to Swansea.  But the mine closed down, the village is now
+deserted, and I don't believe there are any fishermen there.  They say
+that the stream that flows into the port is still heavily charged with
+mundic.  At all events the water is of a bright-red colour for several
+hundred yards from shore, and no fish will stick that."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was close on the midnight following the disastrous attempt on the
+part of U75 to capture the oil-tank.  The submarine was running awash,
+proceeding very slowly and cautiously towards Port Treherne&mdash;Station 41
+of the secret petrol depots established by German agents along the
+coast of the British Islands.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The lads had been informed of the destination of the submarine, but had
+not been told why.  Nevertheless it was an easy conjecture that U75 was
+going there to pick up stores that she had been unable to obtain in
+sufficient quantities at St. Mena's Island.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Unter-leutnant was in charge of the submarine.  Kapitan Schwalbe
+had taken the advantage of the opportunity of a few hours' sleep.
+Under-officered and undermanned, the strain on the personnel was a
+severe one.  It was only on rare occasions that Schwalbe could in
+future descend from his post in the conning-tower.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At midnight, according to custom, the submarine called up her consorts
+by wireless.  Judging by the previous attempt it seemed a useless task,
+but to the Operator's surprise he received a reply from U77, which was
+then lying off the Scillies.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Kapitan Schwalbe, aroused from his sleep, eagerly awaited the decoding
+of the message.  It was to the effect that the commander of U77 had
+received information that H.M.S. <I>Tremendous</I>, one of the earlier
+Dreadnoughts, was leaving Gibraltar for Rosyth.  The <I>Tremendous</I>, he
+knew, had been engaged in the Dardanelles operations.  U77 therefore
+suggested that the two unterseebooten should meet at a rendezvous off
+The Lizard, and attempt a <I>coup de main</I>, the success of which would go
+towards atoning for the blunders and losses sustained by the German
+submarines in their endeavour to blockade the British Isles.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Good!" exclaimed Kapitan Schwalbe.  "Tell them that I purpose to
+rendezvous twenty kilometres S.W. by W. of The Lizard, on Thursday at
+10 p.m.  I am now about to take in fuel.  Will communicate again at
+noon to-morrow.  Ask them if they have picked up a wireless from U74."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Some time elapsed before the message could be coded by the sender and
+translated by the receiving submarine.  When the reply confirming the
+rendezvous was received, a message was added to the effect that U77 had
+heard nothing of U74 for three days.  It was presumed, however, that
+she was now on her way back to Wilhelmshaven, and was already out of
+wireless range.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Kapitan Schwalbe knew better.  As senior officer of the three
+submarines detached to operate in these waters, he was aware that U74
+would not have left her station without orders from him.  That part of
+the message had been sent merely as a "blind", so that the crews of the
+remaining unterseebooten should not be discouraged.  It was safe to
+conclude, decided Kapitan Schwalbe, that another of the blockaders had
+gone to the bottom for the last time.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was close on one o'clock when the "wirelessing" terminated.  U75,
+which had hitherto been running awash, was now trimmed for surface work.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Most of the crew went on deck.  Amongst them were Ross and Vernon, no
+one offering any objection.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The sea was no longer rough.  A long oily swell took the place of the
+white-crested wave.  The night was dark.  Only a few stars were
+visible.  Away to the S.E., the black outlines of the Cornish coast
+reared themselves like an enormous wall against the gloomy sky.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Suddenly Vernon touched his chum's elbow, as a faint pin-prick of light
+glimmered twice.  It was the shore agent's signal that the coast was
+clear.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Barely carrying steerage-way, U75 stood in towards the as yet invisible
+Port Treherne.  Already her crew had brought the collapsible canvas
+boat from below, "man-handling" it through the fore hatch.  The men,
+having opened it out and shipped the felt-lined and well-greased
+rowlocks, stood by to launch it.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Gradually the towering cliffs enclosing the creek became
+distinguishable against the loftier background of gaunt hills.  Into
+the gap the submarine crept with the utmost caution, until it seemed as
+if she were on the point of running her nose against the sheer face of
+the granite wall.  The water bubbled slightly as her motors were
+reversed; then, turning in her own length, she brought up, with her
+bows pointing seawards.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Three of the crew grasped the canvas boat and pushed it gently into the
+water on the port side.  One of them clambered in and shipped the oars
+in the row-locks.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The two lads were cautiously scanning the shores of the inlet.  Ross
+could sniff the unmistakable Cornish air.  The call of home seemed
+irresistible.  It looked a comparatively easy matter to slip quietly
+over the starboard side, and swim with noiseless strokes towards the
+weed-covered rocks that showed six feet or more above the sea.  It was
+half ebb-tide; there was little or no drift out of the cove.  Under the
+shadow of those dark cliffs detection seemed almost impossible, unless
+the submarine went to the risky expedient of switching on her
+search-light.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+They moved stealthily towards the light wire railing on the starboard
+side just abaft the conning-tower.  Everything seemed in their favour.
+Kapitan Schwalbe and the Unter-leutnant were on the navigation
+platform, peering through their night-glasses towards the flat rock
+that served as a landing-place.  Two of the seamen were engaged in
+coiling down a hand-lead line; the rest of the men on deck were
+devoting their attention to the now departing canvas boat.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Not so fast, my friends," exclaimed a low deep voice, which the lads
+recognized as that of Kapitan Schwalbe.  "Remember I have a pistol
+ready to hand."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"How in the name of goodness did he know what we were up to?" thought
+Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The chums stood stock-still.  They felt much like children found out in
+some petty escapade.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Koppe!  Where are you?" asked the Kapitan in a loud whisper.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Here, sir," replied the seaman.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I hold you responsible for these Englishmen.  Now they are trying to
+give us the slip.  Take them below.  But hold on.  Secure them to a
+stanchion.  Chain them up, and bring me the key."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The seaman approached the lads almost apologetically, and led them to
+the port side just for'ard of the conning-tower.  A light steel chain
+was hitched round Ross's right ankle and Vernon's left, and deftly
+padlocked round one of the uprights supporting the hand-rail.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It is of no use trying any of your pranks here," commented Kapitan
+Schwalbe, still in a low tone.  "You are only looking for trouble."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For several moments all was still, save for the screech of a benighted
+gull.  Overhead a meteor passed swiftly across the sky, throwing a pale
+gleam upon-the lurking submarine.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Wer da?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The words, although uttered in an undertone, travelled distinctly over
+the placid waters of the cove.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The sailor in the boat muttered some inaudible reply.  The listeners in
+the submarine could detect the sound of his oars as he laid them across
+the thwarts.  Then, after further conversation, could be heard the
+rumble of metal as the tins of petrol were rapidly placed in the boat.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"How many are there?" asked Kapitan Schwalbe eagerly as the men
+returned with the first load.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Forty here, Herr Kapitan.  Altogether there are over two hundred."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Then be sharp and whip them on board.  Was there any communication for
+me?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A bundle of English newspapers, sir, and this letter."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The man drew the documents from the inside of his jumper and passed
+them to a seaman, who in turn handed them to the skipper.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I may have to land, sir," continued the seaman.  "The rest of the cans
+are in a cove at some distance from the landing-place.  Can Max go with
+me to mind the boat?  There is a slight ground-swell at times, and she
+might have a hole through her canvas if she is allowed to grind against
+the rocks."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Receiving an affirmative reply, the man told his comrade to get on
+board, and once more the boat vanished into the darkness.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Another twenty minutes elapsed, then came the sounds of muffled
+footsteps, and of volatile spirit surging inside the petrol cans.  Then
+one of the men must have slipped, for there was a slight scuffling,
+followed by the loud crash of a can clattering over the rocks.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"'Alt!  Who goes there?" shouted a hoarse and unmistakably English
+voice.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Freund," promptly replied the German sailor.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It would have been far wiser on his part if he had waited for his
+fellow-worker, the German agent, to reply, since his knowledge and
+pronunciation of English were almost perfect.  But unfortunately it was
+the spy who had fallen, and, half-winded by coming in contact with one
+of the tins, was gasping for breath and at the same time rubbing a
+barked shin.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Not good enough for me, old sport," rejoined the challenger, and
+without further ado he let loose "five rounds rapid".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A loud yell announced that one of the bullets had at least taken
+effect.  It was the prostrate spy who received a dose of nickel through
+the fleshy part of his thigh.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The seaman, dropping his cans, fled for his life.  Recklessly he leapt
+from the landing-place into the canvas boat, which his comrade had been
+keeping at oar's length from the shore.  The sudden impetus was too
+much for the frail craft.  She capsized, and, being only
+single-skinned, sank like a stone.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Already men, members of a picket, were hastening to the sentry's
+support, their progress marked by a lantern held by a stout and sleepy
+sergeant.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+By this time U75 was making for the open sea.  Kapitan Schwalbe was
+cursing loudly; not because the luckless agent had been hit&mdash;it was his
+fault for not making sure of his ground; not so much on account of the
+loss of two more men, nor of the sinking of the only boat belonging to
+the submarine.  His anger was aroused at the knowledge that once again
+his efforts to obtain fuel had been balked.  The quantity contained in
+forty tins was a mere fraction of the amount he required in order to
+carry out his ambitious programme.  Bitterly he realized that, like
+those of transgressors, the ways of modern pirates are hard.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap10"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER X
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+A Treacherous Plot
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+A ragged volley of musketry followed the departing submarine.  One
+bullet mushroomed itself against the steel conning-tower; another
+zipped through one of the guard-rails.  The rest either flew harmlessly
+overhead or ricochetted from the surface of the placid water.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Nevertheless the firing was a signal for the crew to hasten below.
+Kapitan Schwalbe and the Unter-leutnant disappeared with ignominious
+speed within the conning-tower.  The men, bending low, bolted for the
+fore hatch.  In twenty seconds the deck of U75 was deserted save for
+Ross and Vernon, who, padlocked to the stanchion, were unable to move
+six inches in either direction.  They were only partly screened by the
+rise of the conning-tower.  A sharp splinter from the bullet that had
+splayed against the steel wall cut cleanly through Vernon's coat sleeve
+and inflicted a slight gash in the lad's forearm, yet in the excitement
+he hardly noticed it.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I say, old man," exclaimed Ross, as a wave slapping against the
+submarine's bow threw a shower of spray over the two prisoners.  "What
+will happen if they submerge?  It seems to me as if old Schwalbe has
+forgotten us."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"He would have dived before this if he intended so doing," replied
+Haye.  "Ten to one he's going to pay us out for attempting to take
+French, or rather German, leave.  It's jolly cold and mighty
+uncomfortable, but we'll keep a stiff upper lip and show him what we
+are made of."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"With all due deference to you, old chap," rejoined Trefusis, his teeth
+chattering as the keen wind played upon his saturated garments, "I
+would far rather be without this badge of German kultur."  He indicated
+the chain that encircled his ankle.  "I don't think that you can hold a
+brief for Kapitan Schwalbe.  I am not so sure about it that he is not
+going to dive."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+U75 dipped as he spoke, submerging her fore deck almost to the base of
+the conning-tower.  Then, with a double cascade of water pouring from
+her, she shook herself free, throwing her bows high above the surface.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A man, gripping the stanchion-rail as he made his way knee-deep in
+water, came towards the two prisoners.  It was Hans Koppe.  He had
+obtained the Kapitan's permission to release his charges from their
+uncomfortable position.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hold on tightly as you go aft," he cautioned.  "There is hot coffee
+waiting for you below."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was impracticable to descend by means of the fore hatch.  That means
+of communication had already been closed and battened down, owing to
+the constant flow of water over the bows.  Even the after hatch, in
+spite of the protection afforded by the conning-tower and the raised
+coaming, was admitting water into the interior of the submarine.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Cold, exhausted, and hungry, the lads were glad to be able to eat and
+drink, discard their wringing-wet garments, and turn in.  Without
+waking they slept solidly for ten hours.  It was one in the afternoon
+when they turned out.  U75 was rounding Land's End.  She was submerged,
+steering a compass course, but frequently showing her periscope to
+ascertain her whereabouts.  Already the Longships Lighthouse was broad
+on the port beam.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was a tedious, discomforting run from Land's End to The Lizard.  The
+Mounts Bay fishing fleets were out, a circumstance that compelled the
+submarine to keep below the surface.  Kapitan Schwalbe knew that once
+the alert skippers of these boats sighted even the tip of the
+periscope, the news of the presence of a hostile submarine would be
+quickly sent to the naval authorities at Devonport.  The necessity for
+secrecy also prevented him from making use of the wireless: not that
+the message would be deciphered, but because the origin of the message
+could be fixed with comparative certainty by any of the British
+wireless stations that "picked up" her call.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The approaches to Plymouth Sound, too, gave Kapitan Schwalbe a bad
+time.  Far beyond the Eddystone, and from Looe Island to Bigbury Bay,
+armed trawlers and torpedo-boats patrolled incessantly, their movements
+aided by sea-planes.  It was almost a matter of impossibility for a
+hostile submarine to approach Plymouth Sound by daylight, since the
+aeroplanes were able to discern any sinister object moving under the
+comparatively shallow and clear waters between Rame Head and Stoke
+Point; while at night the precautions taken were of such an elaborate
+and efficient description as to seal the fate of any submarine rash
+enough to run her head into a noose.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Accordingly U75 gave the Eddystone a wide berth, shaping a course to
+pass twenty miles to the south'ard of the far-famed lighthouse.  Here
+she was in the thick of the Channel traffic, a stream of mercantile
+ships passing up and down as unconcernedly as if such a thing as a
+German submarine did not exist.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Although there were plenty of opportunities, Kapitan Schwalbe made no
+attempt to molest the ships.  For one thing, experience had taught him
+that the British merchant skipper possessed a bull-dog tenacity, and a
+courage not to be daunted by the sight of a hostile periscope appearing
+from nowhere in the midst of a waste of water.  For another, he was now
+on the look-out for more important game&mdash;his chance to retrieve his
+already vanishing prestige.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+However, one of the merchant vessels served him a good purpose,
+although unknown to her.  Marking a large ocean tramp bound up-Channel,
+U75 dived deeply, so as to be free from any danger of being hit by her
+forefoot.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+With the noise of the tramp's propeller to guide her, U75 followed,
+unsuspected, in her wake as she made for the Lizard Light.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Arriving safely at the rendezvous, Kapitan Schwalbe waited until it was
+dark, and then cautiously brought the submarine awash.  Punctually at
+ten o'clock a feeble violet light blinked through the night.  It was
+U77's call to her consort.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What's the game, I wonder?" asked Vernon, as a hail in German was
+borne faintly to their ears.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The chums had turned in.  There was nothing else for them to do, since
+they had been ordered to leave the quarters allotted to the crew.  As
+there was no furniture of any description in the alley-way that had
+been made their sleeping compartment, they had climbed into their
+bunks.  Here they could maintain an almost uninterrupted conversation.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hist!" exclaimed Ross warningly.  He had been lying with his ear
+almost touching one of the many voice-tubes that led from the
+conning-tower to various parts of the submarine.  Quite by accident, he
+discovered that the pipes formed an excellent conductor of sound in a
+manner that had not been intended.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What are you doing?" asked Haye curiously.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Jam your ear against the centre one of these three pipes," said his
+chum.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Vernon did so.  It required very little movement on his part, since the
+bunks were rather narrow.  The same voice-tube that Ross was "tapping"
+ran vertically past Haye's bunk, which was immediately underneath the
+one Trefusis had appropriated from the time when he had been laid upon
+it under the influence of the injection.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+This particular pipe formed a means of vocal communication between the
+conning-tower and Kapitan Schwalbe's cabin.  For some reason the
+whistle had been removed from the cabin end, and consequently sounds
+from the Kapitan's quarters were conveyed with tolerable clearness.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+There were two men engaged in conversation.  One was Kapitan Schwalbe;
+the other, who spoke in a lower key, and so rapidly that Ross had great
+difficulty in mentally translating his words, was the
+Lieutenant-Commander of U77.  He had been put aboard U75 only a few
+minutes previously.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"My dear von Hoffner," Kapitan Schwalbe was saying.  "Your plan is all
+very well as far as you are concerned; but where do we come in?
+Understand that while we are on the surface our risks are increased
+ten-fold.  Suppose, for instance, the battleship does not notice, or
+affects not to notice, the white flag?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"She will, right enough," assured the Lieutenant-Commander of U77.
+"These English are such fools that in their anxiety to observe the
+rules of warfare" (here von Hoffner laughed sardonically) "they play
+into our hands.  More than a twelvemonth of war has not taught them
+that the hitherto recognized observances of war are no longer binding.
+This is not a petty squabble between two nations.  It is a struggle for
+existence; consequently it is where our frightfulness scores."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It hasn't up to the present, according to my experience," objected
+Kapitan Schwalbe gloomily.  "These Englishmen simply won't be
+frightened.  But to return once more to the point: what steps do you
+propose to take to minimize my risk?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"There must be risk, of course," remarked von Hoffner.  "According to
+latest reports, it seems pretty certain that we cannot hope to
+intercept the <I>Tremendous</I> during the hours of darkness.  Consequently
+we have to make use of a ruse.  Directly I spot her I dive, keeping as
+much as possible close to her track, say three hundred metres off."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes, you dive," commented Schwalbe caustically.  "That is quite
+feasible.  But what of U75?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"She will keep on the surface almost exactly in the indicated path of
+the battleship.  You will strike your ensign and hoist a large white
+flag in its place.  It will mean scrapping your best tablecloth, mein
+herr.  With the wind in its present quarter the flag will blow athwart
+the battleship's course, so there is no risk of it not being seen.  You
+and your crew will, of course, form up aft.  That will give more colour
+to the deception."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Perhaps it will work," said Kapitan Schwalbe.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Perhaps?  Of course it will," declared von Hoffher sanguinely.  "Then
+the rest is child's play.  Directly the <I>Tremendous</I> slows down&mdash;it's
+the speed of these battleships that has caused us to miss hitherto&mdash;I
+will let loose two torpedoes.  There will be no bungling, I assure you.
+I'll take good care to hit her close to the magazine, and there will be
+no opportunity for her to use her quick-firers.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"By the by, I've two English boys on board," said the Kapitan of U75.
+In a few words he related the circumstances in which they were made
+prisoners.  "I suppose they ought to line up on deck with the hands?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Certainly," replied von Hoffher, with one of his cold-blooded
+sniggers.  "It will heighten the illusion.  It will do them good to see
+what one of our unterseebooten can do.  But it is highly important that
+there be no survivors from the torpedoed battleship.  The ruse is a
+grand one, and can be employed over and over again, provided that the
+secret does not leak out.  After all, I don't think I would bring these
+English youths on deck."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"They are safe enough," protested Schwalbe.  "If we return to
+Wilhelmshaven, they will be locked up in safe custody until the end of
+the war.  If we do not, then I fancy there will be no survivors from
+U75 as well as from the English battleship <I>Tremendous</I>."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The two treacherous officers conversed in a similar strain for several
+minutes longer.  Then came the sound of glasses being clinked as an
+accompaniment to a boastful toast.  Talking boisterously, the two
+officers left the cabin, and presently the lads heard the sound of oars
+as von Hoffner was rowed back to his command.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap11"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XI
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+Preparations
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+"The brutes!" ejaculated Vernon savagely.  He was violently excited.
+Perspiration was pouring off his face at the thought of the almost
+unparalleled act of wanton treachery that was about to be enacted.  "If
+we could only prevent them!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I can't see how," rejoined Ross gloomily.  "We cannot give an alarm.
+If we could control the valves for half a minute, I'd sink this blessed
+craft with all on board, myself included, for good and all.  But it is
+no use talking of the impossibly heroic."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I have a plan," announced Vernon, after thinking deeply for a few
+minutes.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Well, out with it!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We have to pass through one of the broadside torpedo-rooms as we go on
+deck.  We could each snatch a spanner and give the war-heads a terrific
+blow.  You'll remember that there are half a dozen torpedoes in the
+cages against the bulkhead.  It would mean certain death for us, but it
+would save nearly a thousand lives."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross shook his head.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"There's no certainty of success," he objected.  "Those torpedoes are
+very much like our own Whiteheads.  The striker in the head is
+protected against accidental discharge by a small propeller.  Until the
+torpedo travels a certain distance through the water&mdash;sufficient for
+the resistance against the blades to cause the safety device to
+unthread and leave the striker free to hit the primer&mdash;the danger of
+premature explosion is almost negligible.  We shouldn't have time to
+revolve the safety blades enough, and I'm pretty certain that even a
+heavy blow on the war-head itself would not explode the charge."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Then I'm done," said Vernon dejectedly.  "Think of something, old
+man&mdash;something that will hold water."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Silence ensued for nearly ten minutes, broken only by the tapping of
+the waves against the sides of the submarine, and the gentle purr of
+the dynamos for supplying light to the interior of the vessel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Suddenly Ross leapt out of his bunk.  He dared not trust himself to
+speak above a whisper for fear of being overheard.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Dash it all, old man!" exclaimed Vernon, when his chum had confided
+his plans; "it ought to work.  If it doesn't, nothing else will.  I'm
+on it, happen what may!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We'll want our knives for the job," continued Ross.  "Yours will open
+easily, I hope?  Good!  Sharp?  We'll run no risks.  A sharp blade is
+absolutely necessary."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+They drew the knives and whetted the blades upon the soles of their
+boots.  At Vernon's suggestion they kept open the big blades, making a
+hole through the lining of their pockets in order to keep the knives in
+a horizontal position and ready to hand.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Now let's turn in properly," suggested the practical Ross.  "We want
+to be fairly fresh for the job in front of us."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Soon after sunrise on the morrow all hands were mustered aft on deck,
+Ross and Vernon included.  It was a bright morning.  The sun had risen
+seemingly out of the sea, or in nautical parlance it was a "low dawn".
+There was a chilliness in the air that made the lads wish that they had
+been wearing overcoats.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+They looked in vain for U75's consort.  The unterseeboot that was to
+deal the coward's blow was not to be seen.  Her presence was to be kept
+a secret from the crew of the decoy.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Kapitan Schwalbe, accompanied by his Unter-leutnant, made his way aft.
+He looked pale and care-worn.  He had lost his military manner.  His
+gait suggested that of a man recovering from a long illness.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"My men," he exclaimed, "circumstances over which I have no control
+make it necessary to bring our cruise to a speedy termination.  U75 is
+no longer in a state of efficiency, either for offence or flight.  It
+therefore remains for us to save our lives by surrendering to the first
+English ship of war that we fall in with.  It is a humiliating and
+distasteful step to take, but there is no option."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The crew heard this lying speech in silence.  They hardly knew what to
+make of it.  The majority mentally decided that it was better to be
+imprisoned in England than to rot on the bed of the sea.  Kapitan
+Schwalbe had no faith in his men's histrionic abilities; he was also
+afraid that they would oppose the scheme that he himself had deprecated
+as being too risky.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Hiding their indignation, Ross and his chum saw the Kapitan hand a
+petty officer a white flag.  The man took it, and lashed short pieces
+of cord to two adjacent corners.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Hans Koppe sidled up to his charges.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You will soon be free," he remarked.  "Ach! but you do not seem
+overjoyed.  You English are indeed a queer race."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Receiving no reply, the man went below to follow the example of his
+comrades, who were getting together their personal belongings.  Many of
+them thought of the times when they had seen non-belligerents do
+likewise.  It was the boot on the other foot with a vengeance.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross gave another glance across the horizon.  Nothing was in sight.
+Gripping his chum's arm, he led him for'ard.  U75 was motionless.  The
+deck was deserted.  A quartermaster stood on the navigation platform in
+front of the conning-tower.  Kapitan Schwalbe and his Unter-leutnant
+had likewise vanished.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As Ross passed the conning-tower, he pulled out his knife and deftly
+severed the lashings of a couple of buoys secured to the hand-rail.  It
+was the first act of the lad's plan of operations.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Vessel on the port bow, sir!" shouted the quartermaster.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Kapitan Schwalbe was on deck in a trice, closely followed by his
+subordinate.  For a few moments, he kept his binoculars focused upon
+the indistinct grey object, then three miles off.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It is the <I>Tremendous</I>," he announced in an undertone to the
+Unter-leutnant.  "Another ten minutes will see the business through."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He spoke with confidence, but it was a confidence inspired by a liberal
+dose of brandy.  He felt that he had already passed the Rubicon.  There
+could be no turning back.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A whistle trilled shrilly.  At the signal the men again doubled aft,
+and joined up in a double line.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Where are the English boys?" enquired Kapitan Schwalbe.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Coming," replied Ross.  For the first time on board he omitted to add
+the word "sir".  His omission was deliberate.  Utter contempt for the
+German captain consumed him.  Schwalbe, too, noticed the manner in
+which he had replied.  He smiled grimly, imagining that now the lads
+thought themselves about to be free they could afford to be curt.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As the chums passed the lifebuoys, they deftly heaved them overboard.
+They fell with hardly a splash, dropping close to the side of the
+motionless submarine.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+No one noticed the act.  The attention of the crew was centred upon a
+little ceremony that was taking place.  Bareheaded, the men stood at
+attention.  Their voices broke into the song of "Die Wacht am Rhein" as
+the emblem of German sea-power was slowly lowered from the ensign staff.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The men sang sonorously and in perfect cadence.  They firmly believed
+that it was their last tribute as free men to their Fatherland.  As the
+last bar terminated, the petty officer smartly hoisted the white flag.
+For an instant it hung limply, confined by one of the halliards; then
+like a square of stretched canvas it blew out in the steady breeze&mdash;a
+modern counterpart of the kiss of Judas.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+And standing just behind the Kapitan, within arm's reach of the ensign
+staff, were Ross Trefusis and Vernon Haye.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap12"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XII
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+The White Flag&mdash;and Afterwards
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+H.M.S. <I>Tremendous</I>, super-Dreadnought of 24,000 tons displacement, and
+mounting ten 13.5-inch guns as her principal armament, was tearing
+up-Channel at 21 knots.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+She looked far different from the spick-and-span battleship which had
+left Portsmouth only six weeks previously.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Her armoured sides still showed unmistakable traces of the impact of
+Turkish shells.  Her grey paint was blotched, blistered, and stained.
+Her after funnel had plates of sheet-iron riveted to it to hide a
+gaping hole large enough to drive a stage-coach through.  Her guns were
+worn out by sheer hard work.  It was mainly on this account that she
+was homeward bound: to have the gigantic weapons "re-lined" in order
+that she might again take her place as an effective unit of the Grand
+Fleet.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The middle watch was about to relieve the morning watch.  The mess
+decks were a seething mass of humanity.  In spite of the apparent
+confusion everyone was in high good humour, for another few hours
+(D.V.) would find H.M.S. <I>Tremendous</I> at Pompey&mdash;as Portsmouth has from
+time immemorial been termed by the Navy.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+On the fire-control platform sleepy-eyed officers were awaiting their
+reliefs.  Around the 12-pounders, the muzzles of which grinned
+menacingly from apparently haphazard positions in the superstructure,
+men were grouped, ready at the first alarm to train the weapons upon a
+possible foe.  Day after day ceaseless vigilance was maintained.  One
+and all realized that a moment's negligence might result in destruction
+by one of the most horrible creations of modern science.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Submarine on the starboard bow, sir!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For an instant all was tense silence.  Then a bugle blared, followed by
+the clear trills of the bos'n's mates' pipes and the hurried tramp of
+men's feet.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The officer of the watch brought his telescope to bear ahead.  He was a
+junior lieutenant, Bourne by name, and in receipt of a private income
+of eight hundred a year.  On that sum he might have lived the life of a
+man of leisure, but he vastly preferred a strenuous life as a
+commissioned officer in the Royal Navy.  Not once had he regretted his
+choice, and upon the outbreak of war he was ready to execute a hornpipe
+of sheer delight at the prospect of "being in the big scrap".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"She's flying the white flag, by Jove!" he ejaculated.  "Funny,
+deucedly funny!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He had to act, and act promptly, for a battleship travelling at 21
+knots does not give a man time to think for any length of time.
+Already a messenger had been despatched to inform the "skipper", but
+before the captain could gain the navigation bridge (more than likely
+he was in his bath) the <I>Tremendous</I> would have covered the intervening
+distance.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The quartermaster looked enquiringly at the Lieutenant.  Bourne stepped
+hastily to the engine-room telegraph indicator, half inclined to ring
+down for "half-speed", or even "stop both engines".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He stopped abruptly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Steady on your helm, quartermaster."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Steady it is, sir," replied the petty officer.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The telegraph indicator remained untouched.  With undiminished speed
+H.M.S.  <I>Tremendous</I> held on, under the propelling force of turbine
+engines of 30,000 indicated horse-power.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A midshipman, standing by the side of the officer of the watch, had
+been keeping the submarine under observation by means of his telescope.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"By Jove, sir!" he exclaimed.  "There's something wrong there.  The
+white flag's down, and two fellows in mufti have leapt overboard."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Torpedo on the port bow, sir!" sang out half a dozen lusty voices in
+chorus.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hard-a-port, quartermaster!" ordered Bourne.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The spokes of the steam steering-gear revolved quicker than they had
+ever done before.  Listing heavily to port, the <I>Tremendous</I> turned
+with a rapidity that belied her huge bulk and apparent unhandiness.  A
+double track of ever-diverging foam marked the progress of the deadly
+missile.  Another followed almost in its wake, both torpedoes
+travelling at the speed of an express train.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For four seconds all on board who watched these messages of death stood
+with bated breath.  Then a general roar of relief went up as the two
+"tinfish" glided harmlessly past the ship, the nearest at a distance of
+less than twenty feet, and parallel to the new course of the battleship.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Half a dozen quick-firers spat viciously.  A 6-inch, two of which for
+some obscure reason the designers had placed on the main deck abreast
+of the after 15-inch guns, added to the din.  A chaos of smoke, flame,
+and spray marked the spot beneath which U77 had lurked to launch her
+cowardly and treacherous bolt.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"That's blinded her, at least," thought Bourne.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He knew that even if the hidden submarine had escaped injury, a minute
+at least would elapse before she could be conned into a position to
+discharge another torpedo.  That minute would be enough for his purpose.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Starboard!" he ordered.  "Ram her, quartermaster!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Round swung the 24,000 tons of dead weight, steadied, and bore down
+upon the motionless U75.  Cries of terror burst from the doomed crew,
+many of whom leapt overboard in a vain attempt to swim clear of the
+vengeful leviathan.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Bourne gripped the guard-rail, half expecting to be thrown violently by
+the force of the impact.  He was mistaken.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+With hardly a tremor the bows of the <I>Tremendous</I> crashed into the
+unterseeboot, hitting her just abaft the conning-tower.  The bow
+portion sank like a stone.  The after part reared itself high in the
+air, revealing the curiously shaped stern, the two propellers, and the
+complication of rudders.  Then, before the cloud of smoke and spray had
+time to drift inboard, the <I>Tremendous</I> was over and beyond the
+ever-widening circle of iridescent oil that marked the ocean grave of
+yet another of the would-be blockaders of Britain's shores.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Even in the midst of his great responsibility Bourne's keen eye
+discerned two heads bobbing up and down in the water.  The midshipman
+noticed them too.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"They are those fellows who hauled down the white flag, sir," he
+exclaimed.  "They are quite youngsters, too, and we daren't stop."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No, we dare not," agreed the Lieutenant.  For aught he knew, another
+unterseeboot might be in the vicinity, reserving her torpedoes in the
+hope that the battleship would slow down to investigate.  "Pass the
+word to the sentry to let go the Kisbie.  It's the best we can do."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+With a splash the patent lifebuoy was dropped from the cage at the
+extremity of the navigation-bridge.  It bobbed up again under the
+battleship's quarter, emitting a dense cloud of calcium smoke as it did
+so.  By the time the marine had dropped the Kisbie the ship was a
+quarter of a mile away from the two swimmers.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It's the best we can do," repeated Bourne as he closed the eyepiece of
+his telescope.  "They may fetch it, they are swimming strongly."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Well done, Mr. Bourne!" exclaimed a deep voice.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Turning, the Lieutenant faced the Captain standing beside him.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A smart manoeuvre!" continued the skipper approvingly.  "We can now
+only carry on; but we'll wireless the Commander-in-Chief Devonport, and
+report that there are survivors from the rammed submarine.  He'll have
+a destroyer patrol on the spot within an hour, and I hope it won't be
+too late."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Bourne stepped to the extremity of the bridge and glanced astern.  His
+effort to distinguish the heads of the two swimmers was fruitless, for
+a thin haze, the smoke from the ship's funnel, spread far in her wake,
+completely obliterating the spot where Ross Trefusis and Vernon Haye
+were swimming for dear life.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It will be necessary to set back the hands of the clock in order to
+follow the fortunes of Ross and his chum.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Is she slowing down?" whispered Vernon anxiously, as they stood on the
+deck of U75 awaiting the approach of the <I>Tremendous</I>.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I don't think so," replied Ross.  "But now's our time."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The attention of Schwalbe and his crew was centred upon the battleship;
+the Kapitan momentarily expecting to see the huge vessel reel under the
+impact of the terrible torpedo, while the men began to entertain grave
+doubts as to whether the British ship would accept their token of
+surrender.  The fact that the super-Dreadnought showed no signs of
+slowing down revived Kapitan Schwalbe's doubts.  Knowing the difficulty
+of hitting, even at a comparatively short range, a swiftly moving
+target, he began to wonder whether he did the right thing in falling in
+with von Hoffner's diabolical plan.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+His hurried thoughts were suddenly interrupted by some light object
+enveloping his head and shoulders.  Before he could tear the fabric
+away he heard two distinct splashes, followed by shouts of astonishment
+from the crew; for with one clean sweep with his knife Ross had severed
+the halliards of the ensign staff.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The lads dived deep, swimming the while with long, powerful strokes,
+for both were accomplished in the art of natation.  They were longer in
+coming to the surface than they anticipated, owing to the weight of
+their half-boots, which they had been unable to remove without risk of
+causing suspicion.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+When at length their heads emerged almost simultaneously, they found
+themselves nearly fifteen yards from the doomed U75.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Strike out!" spluttered Ross.  "Get as far away from her as you can.
+Never mind about old Schwalbe.  He can't hurt us."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross was right, for however much the Kapitan wanted to wreak his
+vengeance upon his former prisoners, he was unable to do so.  In his
+rôle as that of an officer waiting to surrender, the possession of a
+revolver would tend to "give the show away".  He had left his pistol in
+his cabin&mdash;an example that his Unter-leutnant had followed.  And now
+his attention was directed upon the British battleship.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Meanwhile, the lads, swimming strongly, saw the <I>Tremendous</I> heel as
+she ported helm.  For a minute, not knowing how a ship behaves when the
+helm is suddenly put hard over, they thought that the treacherous
+unterseeboot had successfully carried out her cold-blooded plan.  Yet
+no explosion occurred, and the battleship recovered her normal trim.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+With their eyes only a few inches above the surface, the lads could see
+nothing of the track of the torpedoes.  They had no indication that
+they had been fired until the <I>Tremendous</I> let fly with her 12-pounders.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I think we've saved her," said Vernon.  "Now there'll be trouble for
+us.  Schwalbe will certainly have a shot at recapturing us after the
+battleship has cleared off.  Why doesn't she settle U75, I wonder?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The lads both expressed astonishment that the motionless unterseeboot
+had escaped the attention of the super-Dreadnought's quick-firers.  It
+seemed as if the latter were ignoring U75 altogether and was sheering
+off at full speed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Suddenly Ross gave a whoop of delight, which ended in his swallowing a
+mouthful of salt water.  The <I>Tremendous</I> was turning once more, and
+heading straight for the doomed submarine.
+</P>
+
+<A NAME="img-110"></A>
+<CENTER>
+<IMG CLASS="imgcenter" SRC="images/img-110.jpg" ALT="&quot;THE _TREMENDOUS_ WAS HEADING STRAIGHT FOR THE DOOMED SUBMARINE&quot;" BORDER="2" WIDTH="406" HEIGHT="645">
+<H4 CLASS="h4center" STYLE="width: 406px">
+&quot;THE <I>TREMENDOUS</I> WAS HEADING STRAIGHT FOR THE DOOMED SUBMARINE&quot;
+</H4>
+</CENTER>
+
+<P>
+Mentally Ross compared the on-coming battleship with an express train,
+as shown on a cinematograph screen, in the act of approaching the
+audience.  At one moment the ship was visible from her water-line to
+the truck of her top-mast; at the next her bulk had suddenly expanded
+and seemed to fill the complete field of vision.  It looked as if the
+two lads, in spite of the distance they had put between themselves and
+the motionless submarine, would yet be in the way of the vengeful
+battleship, whose extreme beam was not less than ninety feet.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Yet neither of the two chums made the slightest effort to swim farther
+away.  Mechanically treading water, they waited and watched.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+They could see the terror-stricken attitudes of the crew of the doomed
+U75.  They heard the shouts of consternation as the massive steel bows
+bore down upon her.  Then, in a second it seemed, there was a hideous
+crash that outvoiced the yells and shouts of despair as the
+unterseeboot was rent in twain.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Of what happened during the next minute the lads had but a very hazy
+idea.  Caught by the irresistible bow wave as the <I>Tremendous</I> tore
+past, they were hurled aside like feathers and buried a couple of
+fathoms down under the breaking, foaming mass of water.  Vaguely they
+heard the whirring of the four propellers&mdash;very near, it seemed; then,
+caught by an eddy caused by the cavitation in the wake of the monstrous
+vessel, they were separated and flung to the surface, half-breathless
+and dazed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross opened his eyes.  The <I>Tremendous</I> had already covered nearly a
+quarter of a mile.  Twenty yards away he saw his chum's head, as
+Vernon, puffing like a grampus, was striking out towards him.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Where the submarine had dived for the last time was an ever-widening
+circle of oil.  Those of the German crew who had not been carried down
+by the sinking unterseeboot were too shaken by the concussion to make
+any great effort to save their lives.  Attempting to keep afloat in
+that oil-covered water added to their difficulties, for whenever the
+head of a swimmer disappeared he did not rise again.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Kick off your boots, old man," exclaimed Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Where are the lifebuoys?" asked Vernon as he carried out his friend's
+advice.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+One buoy had disappeared; the other was supporting a seaman, the only
+survivor of the crew.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A case of finding's are keeping's," announced Ross.  "We can't sling
+him out of it.  It might support two people.  We could take turns at
+hanging on."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Stop!" exclaimed Vernon as Ross began to strike out towards the buoy.
+"There'll be trouble if we get mixed up in that oil.  It's much lighter
+than water.  I doubt whether we could swim in it.  Do you think the
+<I>Tremendous</I> will put back?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Not likely," replied Trefusis.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He looked in the direction of the fast-vanishing battleship, half
+hoping that she would slow down and lower a boat.  As he did so,
+something caught his eye: a cloud of grey smoke apparently issuing from
+the sea.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What's that?" he asked, pointing in that direction.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Torpedo, perhaps; one that has finished her run," suggested Vernon;
+but his chum waved aside the explanation.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"If U77 did fire a torpedo, you can bet your bottom dollar it wasn't
+one with a dummy head!" he said.  "Only practice torpedoes send up a
+calcium light when their compressed air has given out.  By Jove, I
+believe it's one of those patent buoys!  Let's make for it."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The lads swam strongly, making powerful and comparatively slow
+breast-strokes.  The water was warm.  They were in no immediate danger
+of cramp.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As they skirted the patch of oil they noticed that the seaman holding
+on to the buoy had turned round.  His face was now in their direction.
+The man was Hans Koppe.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Are you all right, Hans?" shouted Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes, mein herr," replied the man.  "I've found a buoy."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Thanks to us," thought Trefusis; then raising his voice: "You had
+better kick out and get clear of the oil," he advised.  "We are making
+for yonder buoy."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+By the time the swimmers reached the Kisbie the emission of calcium
+smoke had ceased.  They found that not only did the buoy support them
+both, but that it was so constructed as to allow them to maintain a
+sitting position without having to hold on with both hands.  Glad of a
+seat they waited, watching the approach of Hans Koppe, and also looking
+for the undesired reappearance of U77.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Ach!  My wife and children!" exclaimed Hans Koppe disconsolately, as
+he brought his lifebuoy close alongside.  "I shall never see them
+again."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Cheer up, Hans!" replied Vernon.  "At any moment U77 might come to the
+surface and take you on board.  We don't mind, so long as they let us
+alone.  We've had enough of your unterseebooten."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"U77?" gasped the German incredulously.  "How do you know that?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Briefly Haye related the story of the ill-fated Kapitan Schwalbe's
+treachery.  As he proceeded Han's face bore a surprised expression that
+presently changed to one of fear.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"If we are picked up by an English ship," he remarked, "they will shoot
+me for abuse of the white flag.  And I am innocent.  Ach! my poor wife."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"They won't," replied Ross reassuringly.  "We can swear that you knew
+nothing about it."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The minutes passed slowly.  There was no sign of U77.  Little did the
+three survivors know that she lay within a quarter of a mile of her
+consort, on the bed of the English Channel&mdash;to add to the
+ever-increasing roll of unterseebooten that were fated never to enter a
+German port again.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The sun rose higher and higher, its rays gathering strength as it did
+so.  The heads of the three survivors were exposed to the solar heat;
+their bodies and limbs were numbed by prolonged immersion.  The desire
+for conversation had long since passed.  Almost exhausted they hung to
+their supports, listless and torpid.  A few sea-gulls, struck with the
+silence of the three men, hovered overhead, and swooped with shrill
+cries to settle on the water within close distance of what appeared to
+be a possible meal.  One bolder than the rest perched upon Trefusis'
+head.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Raising his arm, Ross dealt the bird a furious blow.  It missed, but
+had the effect of scattering the gulls.  Apathetically the lad watched
+them as they flew off.  As he did so he caught sight of three vessels
+being driven at high speed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hurrah!" he exclaimed feebly.  "The destroyers, old man; we are saved!"
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap13"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XIII
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+The Arm of the Law
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+"Hulloa!  What the deuce have we got here?" enquired Commander Devereux
+of H.M. torpedo-boat destroyer <I>Yealm</I>, as three dripping figures were
+transferred from the destroyer's dinghy to the deck.  "One strafed Hun,
+right enough; but who are these fellows in mufti?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Can't say, sir," replied the coxswain.  "They sort o' collapsed
+directly we got 'em into the boat."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Then take them below," continued Devereux.  "I say, Fanshawe, there's
+a job for you at last, my festive sawbones."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Fanshawe, lately a young country practitioner with a scattered "panel"
+connection, had but recently entered the Navy as a surgical probationer
+R.N.V.R.  He joined purely through patriotic motives, having sacrificed
+a fairly substantial income in order to do so.  Up to the present his
+work had been almost a sinecure.  The <I>Yealm</I> had not had the faintest
+chance of taking part in an engagement.  Her crew&mdash;to use Fanshawe's
+own words&mdash;were "that beastly healthy, don't you know", that, out of
+sheer anxiety to do something, he was learning navigation from the
+Sub-lieutenant.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The medico undertook his first important professional task on board the
+<I>Yealm</I> with great alacrity, and it was not long before Ross and Vernon
+were in a fit state to be questioned.  Hans Koppe was in a bad plight.
+So utterly shaken were his nerves that he seemed on the point of
+collapse.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"So you are the son of Admiral Trefusis," said the
+Lieutenant-Commander.  "I can't say that I know him personally,
+although I know of him.  But how did you get on board the submarine?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross explained.  He felt hurt at having to do so.  The
+Lieutenant-Commander's ignorance of the disappearance of the two chums
+from St. Mena's Island "took all the wind out of his sails".  In
+pre-War days the principal papers would have devoted at least half a
+column to the supposed deaths by drowning, off the Cornish coast, of
+two well-connected youths.  Nowadays editors had neither space nor
+inclination to devote to such a comparatively trivial matter.
+Consequently Devereux could be exonerated of all lack of knowledge of
+the supposed accident.  Yet his interest grew as Ross proceeded with
+his narrative.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Look here," he remarked.  "We've got to dodge around for a few hours
+in case your pal U77 does put in an appearance.  But I'll wireless the
+Admiral and ask for a telegram to be sent to your homes, to let your
+people know you are still alive and kicking."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Better not, sir," objected Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Devereux looked curiously at the lad.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"And why not?" he asked.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Well, you see," explained Trefusis, "a telegram is not such a
+confidential matter as one would like it to be, especially in a remote
+country district."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It's good news though," remarked the Lieutenant-Commander.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes," admitted Ross; "but it is absolutely necessary to keep it dark
+for a while.  A few hours won't make very much difference one way or
+the other to my people, but it would make a thumping lot to our friend
+Dr. Ramblethorne, otherwise von Hauptwald.  If he were to hear that we
+were alive, he'd do a bunk.  The same with that other spy, von Ruhle.
+They must be arrested promptly, and within a few hours of each other,
+in case one of them scents trouble and clears out."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I see your point," admitted Devereux.  "I won't send a wireless at
+present.  You must be feeling peckish.  I'll get my steward to bring
+you in some grub.  Excuse me, I must be off again.  We've a lot to
+attend to, you know."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Lieutenant-Commander went on deck to conduct operations.  He was
+temporarily senior officer, and it fell to him to issue orders to his
+two consorts relating to the investigation of the scene of the
+battleship's exploit.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For two hours the three destroyers cruised over the spot where the two
+submarines were supposed to have sunk.  At length wreckage was found by
+means of grapnels.  It was, of course, much too deep to send a diver
+down to report; but the spot was buoyed, and served as a base while
+sweeping operations were proceeded with in the hope of locating the
+hull of the second unterseeboot.  In a very short space of time two
+operations undertaken for the purpose of destroying the sunken
+submarine were highly satisfactorily carried out.  The first resulted
+in the release of a small quantity of buoyant wreckage, amongst which
+was the flagstaff of U75.  The second brought to the surface a quantity
+of oil, showing that a submarine had been sunk there, but the injuries
+she previously received had not been sufficient to liberate the
+contents of the heavy oil-tanks.  The explosive charge had completed
+the destruction of U77.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Just before five in the afternoon, the <I>Yealm</I> and her consorts passed
+the eastern arm of the breakwater in Plymouth Sound and brought up in
+the Hamoaze.  Ross and Vernon, arrayed in borrowed clothes and
+accompanied by Lieutenant-Commander Devereux, lost no time in going
+ashore and proceeding to the offices of the Commander-in-Chief.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You are acting with remarkable discretion," observed the Admiral, when
+Ross reiterated his desire not to communicate with his home until the
+spies were safely under lock and key.  "Fortunately there ought to be
+no undue delay, as we have two expert Scotland Yard men investigating a
+case in the Dockyard.  I'll telephone to the Superintendent of Police,
+and get him to send the officers here at once."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Within ten minutes the officers were ushered into the
+Commander-in-Chief's presence.  Ross and Vernon looked at them with
+considerable curiosity.  It had not before fallen to their lot to come
+into contact with two real representatives of the famous Scotland Yard.
+Yet there was little about the appearance to occasion comment.  They
+were not in any way disguised.  The taller of the two, who was
+introduced as Detective-Inspector Ferret, was about forty years of age.
+His closely cut hair was dark-brown, with a plentiful sprinkling of
+grey hairs.  He wore a beard trimmed naval or "torpedo" fashion, with a
+moustache.  He was dressed in a grey lounge suit, with dark-brown boots
+and a golfing cap.  There was nothing of a piercing nature about his
+eyes, which were of a deep-grey tint.  He seemed to be perpetually
+beaming; the lines on his face gave one that impression.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+His companion, Detective Hawke, was a short, thick-set man of about
+thirty-five.  He was clean-shaven.  His features were ruddy and heavy.
+There was a bulldog look about his jaw that proclaimed him to be a
+tough customer.  His rough, brown, Harris-tweed suit and bowler hat
+gave him the appearance of a prosperous yeoman rather than a successful
+tracker of criminals.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Now, young gentlemen," began Mr. Hawke briskly, after the
+introductions had been made, "we'll get to business.  With your
+permission, sir" (addressing the Admiral), "I will ask Mr. Trefusis to
+give me his version of the affair.  To save time, I feel certain that
+Mr. Haye will have no objection to going with my colleague and telling
+him his story.  That, I must explain, is the best way to eliminate any
+discrepancies.  We prefer to make a fair start, and then all ought to
+go well."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+During the next hour Detective-inspector Hawke was very busy.  He made
+no written notes.  He relied solely upon his marvellous retentive
+memory, and it was not long before he was in full possession of the
+facts of the case.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+His next step was to telephone to St. Bedal.  From the police there, he
+learnt that Dr. Ramblethorne was medical officer to the 4th battalion
+of a west-country regiment, but that he was temporarily detailed to act
+on the recruiting staff at Wellington.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Hawke thereupon telegraphed to Harwich.  The Customs officers there
+informed him that the Harwich-Flushing boat service had been suspended
+for nearly a week, owing to the discovery of a hostile mine-field off
+the Dutch coast.  Sailings were to be resumed that night.  A man who
+gave himself out to be a Dutchman, but who answered to the description
+of von Ruhle, had applied that morning for a permit to leave the
+country by the night boat.  His berth had been booked under the name of
+Cornelius Vanderhuit.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Which one ought we to nab first?" asked Ferret.  "We'll have to be
+very sharp, or one of them, finding that he is no longer in
+communication with his accomplice, would smell a rat and clear out."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Under normal conditions I would reply, 'Collar the principal first',"
+replied Hawke.  "It is evident that Ramblethorne, <I>alias</I> von
+Hauptwald, is the master-spy.  Directly he's laid by the heels, the
+whole of the organization immediately under his control goes by the
+board.  But there's this Harwich business.  Von Ruhle crosses the North
+Sea to-night, unless otherwise prevented.  We comprise the otherwise, I
+hope."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Then it would mean catching the midday express to Waterloo," remarked
+Ferret.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Could we go with you?" asked Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The police officers looked rather astonished at the cool request.  Like
+most professional men, they scouted the idea of amateur assistance when
+the main issue was at stake.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Perhaps it wouldn't be a bad idea," remarked Hawke.  "You have already
+shown great discretion in the matter.  Most fellows would have made a
+bee-line to the nearest telegraph office and given the whole show away.
+The only difficulty is&mdash;I suppose, by the way, you are not feeling too
+done up after your trying experiences?&mdash;the only difficulty is, I was
+remarking, that von Ruhle might spot you.  Look here, Ferret; suppose
+you take these young gentlemen, and proceed to Harwich by an ordinary
+train?  Keep well out of sight when you arrive at Parkeston Quay, but
+keep a sharp eye on the boat.  I'll travel from Liverpool Street by the
+boat train, and see if I can pick out our quarry amongst the
+passengers."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was a tedious journey from Plymouth to Harwich.  Arriving at
+Waterloo, Ferret took the lads to a quiet hotel and ordered lunch;
+while Hawke, excusing himself, called in at "the Yard" to report his
+new case to the Chief, and to wait for the Great Eastern boat train.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The weather had changed completely during the run from the West, for
+when Ferret and the two lads arrived at Parkeston Quay it was raining
+heavily, accompanied by half a gale of wind from the east'ard.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We've a long wait," commented Ferret.  "Fortunately I know several of
+the Customs officials very well.  I'll get them to let you take shelter
+in their shed.  It's almost opposite the berth where the steamer
+generally makes fast.  You'll be able to watch everyone who goes up the
+gangway.  I'll go on board and speak to the steward.  I don't suppose
+we'll spot friend von Ruhle until the boat train arrives, and by that
+time perhaps Hawke will have marked his man."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Undoubtedly, the wisest course would have been to send other officers
+to Wellington to arrest Dr. Ramblethorne; but Hawke was out for
+"kudos".  Only a short while ago he had let a wanted man slip through
+his fingers, and had been rapped over the knuckles for it.  With the
+professional assistance of Ferret, he hoped to carry out a double
+<I>coup</I> and arrest both German Secret Service agents, thereby recovering
+his lost prestige.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Arriving at Liverpool Street he took his ticket, and spent the time
+until the departure of the boat train in walking up and down the
+platform.  He had the knack of observing without being observed.  He
+would look at a man in quite a casual way; there was no gleam of
+intelligence in his eyes as he did so, but little escaped his notice.
+An hour or two later he could accurately describe his appearance,
+dress, and mannerisms.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A minute before the train started, a man answering von Ruhle's
+description hurried down the platform.  He carried a new cane under his
+left arm.  In his right hand he held an attaché case with the initials
+C. V.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Hawke waited until he had entered a carriage, then strolled to the
+other end of the corridor coaches and took his seat.  He knew that the
+run was supposed to be a non-stop one.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The train started.  The detective took his time.  He waited for nearly
+twenty minutes before he made his way along the corridor, and entered
+the smoking-compartment occupied by the suspect.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Presently Hawke made a commonplace remark.  The stranger replied
+stiffly and in rather a deep voice, with a slight foreign accent.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"An assumed voice," soliloquized the detective; but undaunted by the
+chilliness of his reception he again made some remark about the weather.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Before the train ran through Witham station, conversation was
+proceeding briskly.  Hawke assumed the rôle of a commercial traveller,
+and volunteered the information that his brother had just returned from
+the Front.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The stranger showed no hesitation in discussing the war.  Emboldened,
+the detective tackled the subject of East Coast defences and the futile
+German blockade.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"He's giving me absolutely false information," he thought.  "Perhaps
+he's trying to throw me off the scent.  I'll put a few questions that
+no one but an ignoramus would ask in good faith.  If he's trying to
+bluff me, I'll beat him at that game."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Presently his fellow-passenger excused himself and, without removing
+his luggage, went into the corridor.  As soon as he was out of sight
+Hawke took hold of the cane that the stranger had left in the rack.
+With a grunt of satisfaction he found that it was certainly not a
+Malacca, but made of metal.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The train began to slow down.  Lifting the blind, Hawke looked out of
+the window.  He could just discern a fairly big town, completely in
+darkness.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Manningtree Junction," said Hawke to himself.  "Something on the line,
+I suppose.  H'm, we're stopping."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+With a jerk the train pulled up at the station.  The platform was
+almost deserted, for no train was due at that time to stop there.  A
+door slammed.  Again the detective pulled aside the blind.  He was just
+in time to see his fellow-traveller, accompanied by the guard,
+disappear into the station waiting-room.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"He's tumbled to it!" exclaimed Hawke.  "He's making off.  He's tipped
+the guard to set him down.  I'm after him!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He made his way swiftly and stealthily down the platform, and with a
+quick movement threw open the waiting-room door.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The sudden transition from the semi-darkness of the platform to the
+brilliantly lighted interior of the room temporarily dazzled his eyes.
+Dimly he was aware that the place was occupied by khaki-clad soldiers
+struggling into their equipment, and that in their midst was the guard
+and the man of whom he was in search.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"At any rate there is plenty of assistance," thought Hawke as he
+advanced to tap the suspect on the shoulder; but before he could attain
+his object a deep, stern voice exclaimed:
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Arrest him, men!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The next instant Detective-inspector Hawke was seized by half a dozen
+muscular hands.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What's this tomfoolery?" he demanded angrily.  "I'm a Scotland Yard
+officer, and&mdash;&mdash;"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A roar of laughter burst from the Tommies.  Even the subaltern in
+command smiled broadly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The stranger spoke again.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Take him to the guard-room.  He is arrested under the Defence of the
+Realm Act for attempting to elicit information prejudicial to the
+welfare of the State.  I won't detain the train any longer, guard,
+although I'll ask you to drop my gear on the platform."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Still protesting vehemently but ineffectually, the detective was
+unceremoniously hustled into an ante-room, used since the outbreak of
+the war as a guard-room for the military in charge of the line.  The
+door was locked upon him.  He heard the train rumble out of the station.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap14"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XIV
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+A Fruitless Quest
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+From their places of concealment Ross and Vernon watched the boat train
+run alongside the steamer.  At last the weary vigil was a thing of the
+past.  All fatigue was forgotten at the prospect of witnessing the
+capture of one of the active members of the German spy system at work
+in this country.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For a quarter of an hour everything was in a state of bustle.  There
+was a continuous stream of passengers and porters, the latter bending
+under the weight of trunks and boxes as they hurried up the steeply
+sloping gangway.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At length the throng thinned.  As yet there was no sign either of von
+Ruhle or of Detective-inspector Hawke.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A man with his coat collar turned up ran through the driving rain and
+entered the shed.  It was Ferret.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Something's gone wrong," he declared.  "I've just had a telephone
+message from my colleague.  I'm off to the post-office.  If you want me
+during the next ten minutes you'll find me there."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Hawke had at length managed to get a word with his former
+fellow-traveller, who happened to be a staff-officer of the Eastern
+command.  The detective had been under a misapprehension.  The officer
+had good reason for ordering his arrest; but the comedy threatened to
+take a serious development.  Even when the detective showed his
+credentials the officer was not satisfied.  He proposed telegraphing to
+Scotland Yard, but Hawke, mindful of a former failure, induced him not
+to do so.  The detective, who had occasion to contrast unfavourably the
+summary powers of arrest under the Defence of the Realm Act with those
+allowed by the Civil Power, was eventually allowed to communicate with
+his brother officer at Parkeston Quay.  And then the military
+authorities required a considerable amount of convincing.  It looked as
+if Detective-inspector Hawke would have to remain under arrest until
+next morning.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+While Ferret was losing time and patience in his efforts to release his
+confrère, Ross and Vernon noticed a man hurrying along the quay.  He
+was short and thick-set.  He wore a long mackintosh, the collar of
+which was turned up and helped, with the peak of his cap, to hide his
+features.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Suddenly the man's foot tripped over a ring-bolt.  He cursed under his
+breath, but sufficiently loudly for the lads to overhear.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross gripped his companion's arm.  The fellow was swearing in German.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Von Ruhle!" he whispered.  He made a movement as if to issue from his
+place of concealment, but Haye restrained him.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hold on!" he cautioned in a low voice.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The man paused on the gangway.  A partly shaded electric light threw a
+glare upon his face.  He wore a heavy beard and moustache.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You're wrong," whispered Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"He's a German, anyhow," persisted Trefusis.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The man still hesitated.  Then he hailed a seaman.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Where is the post office?" he asked.  "I wish to telegraph.  Is there
+time before the boat sails?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Receiving an affirmative reply the man hurried off.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Come on!" exclaimed Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Neither of the lads had now any doubts as to the man's identity.  The
+beard and moustache were false, but the voice was the same&mdash;von Ruhle's.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Keeping close to the wall of the line of sheds, the lads followed the
+spy at a distance of about fifty feet.  More than once von Ruhle
+glanced furtively over his shoulder, as if suspecting that he was being
+tracked.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Presently a man, reeling along the quay, approached.  The spy made no
+effort to avoid him.  As the inebriated one rolled past he whispered a
+few words.  The effect was instantaneous.  Instead of continuing his
+way towards the post office, von Ruhle turned and made off abruptly in
+the direction of the gate of the Company's premises.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"An accomplice," whispered Vernon.  "He's been warned."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+They had to wait until the man who had feigned drunkenness had
+disappeared.  By this time the German had gained a considerable
+distance.  To get the assistance of the detective was out of the
+question.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Come on!" exclaimed Ross, breaking into a run.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Concealment was no longer necessary.  Should occasion arise, there
+would be plenty of help forthcoming, for there were several dock
+policemen and soldiers on duty close at hand.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Von Ruhle had increased his pace into a brisk walk when he heard the
+noise of his pursuers.  Then he, too, began to run.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Stop him!" shouted Trefusis, calling to a group of uniformed men
+standing in front of an abattoir.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Turning, the German made towards the quay-side.  He was no match in
+speed for his youthful pursuers; but he gained the water's edge before
+Ross headed him off.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Give in, von Ruhle!" he challenged.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The spy recognized the voice of the British lad whom he imagined to be
+miles away, on board an unterseeboot.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+With a quick movement, the spy plucked a leather case from his coat
+pocket and hurled it over the edge of the quay, then, throwing up his
+arms, he dropped lifeless upon the rain-sodden ground.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Rapidly a crowd collected.  Amongst them was Detective-inspector
+Ferret, who, having finished his conversation with his luckless
+confrère, was leaving the post office when he heard the commotion.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Well, what's all this?" he asked brusquely.  He bent over the body of
+the spy and flashed a pocket-lamp upon his face.  "It's our man," he
+continued, addressing the lads in an undertone.  This remark was
+needless, since they were already certain upon that point.  "He's done
+us out of a job.  Heart disease?  No fear: it's poison.  Don't wait
+here.  Your work in this direction is done.  I have still a few
+unpleasant tasks to perform.  Cut off to the hotel and await me there.
+I may be an hour."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"One moment," protested Vernon.  "We saw von Ruhle heave something over
+the quay.  It might float; if so, there might be a chance to pick it up
+by means of a boat.  The tide is almost slack.  If it has sunk it will
+be a diver's task to recover it."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"'Something' is always unsatisfactory," remarked Ferret reprovingly.
+"Was it large, small, heavy, or light?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"He was so jolly quick that I could hardly see it," replied Haye.  "I
+should think it was about the size of a cigar-case."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Directing two policemen to remove and take charge of the body, the
+Detective-inspector accompanied the lads to the edge of the quay.  It
+was dead low water.  There was hardly sufficient current coming down
+the Stour to swing the anchored craft against the wind.  Then the
+investigators made a discovery.  Although there was a good depth of
+water at the greater extent of the quay, at this spot the mud was
+uncovered at the base of the wall, while almost at their feet was a
+flight of stone steps.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ferret descended cautiously and switched on the light of the torch.
+Almost within arm's length, and partly buried in the slime, was the
+object which the spy had thrown away.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As the detective hooked at it with his stick a hoarse voice shouted:
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Ahoy there!  What are you doing with that light?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Apparently from nowhere a boat ploughed through the mud until its bows
+were within a couple of feet of the steps.  The next instant Ferret and
+his companions were covered by a revolver.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was a naval guard-boat, the watchful eye of the officer in charge
+having discovered what he took to be surreptitious signalling.
+Explanations followed, and were accepted.  Ferret, holding the
+recovered prize, ascended the steps, followed by Ross and Vernon, while
+the boat backed noiselessly away.  It was but one more example of the
+ceaseless vigilance of the great, silent Navy.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Almost dead-beat, Trefusis and his chum made their way to the hotel,
+had supper, and went straight to bed.  Ferret, they decided, could wait
+until morning.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At 6 a.m. Hawke, having secured his release, arrived at Parkeston,
+having engaged a motor-car to bring him from Manningtree.  Already his
+vindictiveness towards the military had vanished.  He had taken a
+sensible view of the situation.  He had played and lost, and the staff
+officer was justified in the circumstances.  As for the soldiers, they
+had to obey orders.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Nevertheless he was chagrined when he heard his confrère's report.  It
+was galling to think that their spy had outwitted him by taking his own
+life.  The whole energies of the two detectives must, for the present,
+be concentrated upon the capture of the master-spy, Von Hauptwald,
+otherwise Dr. Ramblethorne.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross and Vernon met Hawke again at breakfast.  He was now quite
+cheerful.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You managed to get hold of von Ruhle so well," he remarked, "that I
+think you really ought to bear a hand with friend Ramblethorne,&mdash;that
+is, unless you've had enough of man-hunting?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We'll do our best," said Ross.  "It's our duty."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"When do you start?" asked Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Almost at once," he declared.  "Ramblethorne might be alarmed if no
+telegram arrives from his fellow-spy.  Again, the man who communicated
+with von Ruhle on the quay last night might have given Ramblethorne
+warning.  It's not at all surprising to me, since what you told us, Mr.
+Trefusis, that there has been an alarming outbreak of enteric at St.
+Bedal camp."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He turned over several pages of a complex timetable.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Here we are," he announced.  "We must get to Paddington in time to
+catch the 10.20 for Wellington.  One thing, young gentlemen, you'll be
+nearly home.  Ferret has arranged about the inquest on von Ruhle.  Your
+evidence will be taken down in writing, and in that case you won't have
+to put in an appearance at that grim farce."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Hawke spoke feelingly and from experience.  In his opinion, based upon
+circumstantial evidence, "crowner's quests" were a form of legal
+absurdity.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The train journey to Liverpool Street was undertaken almost in silence,
+as far as the four travellers were concerned.  Hawke buried himself in
+his paper; Ferret was poring over some document found in von Ruhle's
+pocket-book, trying to unravel the complex code that, if deciphered,
+would be of the utmost importance to the country.  Ross and Vernon,
+still feeling tired, tried to make up for arrears of sleep.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Taking a taxi across London, they were just in time to catch the Great
+Western express, which would take them to Taunton.  Arriving at that
+place, they changed into a slow train that eventually landed them at
+the little Somersetshire town nestling under the Black Down Hills.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Without delay the party proceeded to the regimental depot.  Enquiries
+for Captain Ramblethorne, R.A.M.C., only resulted in looks of
+perplexity.  He was unknown to the authorities.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"But we heard from St. Bedal that Captain Ramblethorne was ordered to
+Wellington for recruiting duties," persisted Hawke.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The orderly-room clerk smiled sadly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Are you quite sure that it was this Wellington?" he asked.  "We've had
+similar mistakes before."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Detective-inspector Hawke felt like kicking himself.  He, too, was
+aware of the existence of the Shropshire Wellington, but, without
+giving the possibility any consideration, he had rashly jumped to the
+conclusion that the place to which Ramblethorne had been appointed was
+the one nearest to St. Bedal.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Sorrowfully the four marched out of the office.  More delay ensued
+while a wire was dispatched to St. Bedal, asking for further details.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It took two hours before the reply came.  "Regret not to have added
+Salop to Captain Ramblethorne's address.&mdash;C.O."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It's a long lane that has no turning," observed Ferret as they made
+for the railway station.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Hawke bit his lip.  He knew that had the spy been warned promptly he
+might be out of the country by this time.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was dark when, after a tedious journey, the four travellers alighted
+at Wellington, Salop.  Here, guarded enquiries elicited the information
+that Captain Ramblethorne had gone to Bridgnorth to examine men "roped
+in" at a recruiting meeting.  He had left for Bridgnorth two hours
+previously.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"There are no trains to-night," announced Hawke.  "We'll have to get a
+car."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ten minutes later, Ross and his companions were speeding over the
+horribly rough and hilly road between Wellington and Bridgnorth.  Past
+ironworks and coal-fields, over or under a network of railway lines,
+the car tore; then, leaving the mining district behind, it entered the
+picturesque valley of the Severn, where the road skirts a range of
+towering limestone crags.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In spite of their fatigue, the lads could not restrain an exclamation
+of surprise and delight as the town of Bridgnorth, bathed in moonlight,
+appeared in sight&mdash;a cluster of houses perched upon a bold rock, and
+dominated by the scanty ruins of the old castle.  At the foot of the
+cliff the Severn meandered placidly.  In the midst of the greatest war
+the world has ever known, Bridgnorth appeared to retain all the
+characteristics of complete peace.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The recruiting office was closed for the night.  With unerring instinct
+the detective made for the principal hotel.  Here they found that
+Captain Ramblethorne had engaged a room, but the manager showed them a
+telegram that had just reached him.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Took wrong train cancel room arriving to-morrow morning Ramblethorne."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A blind," mentally ejaculated Ferret.  "He has been warned."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The telegram had been dispatched from Shrewsbury.  Ferret was again at
+fault, for the mistake was a genuine one.  It so happened that the two
+trains left Wellington at precisely the same time, the one for
+Bridgnorth starting from a side platform.  Before he realized his
+mistake Ramblethorne found himself well on the way to Shrewsbury, for
+the train stopped at no intermediate station.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Shrewsbury, as hard as you can go!" ordered Hawke, addressing the
+chauffeur.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At a pace averaging fifty miles an hour the powerful car bounded over
+the road.  Without mishap it gained the outskirts of the county town of
+Shropshire, when an involuntary halt occurred.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was on the English Bridge, a comparatively narrow structure crossing
+the Severn.  A belated drover was driving a herd of refractory cattle
+into the town when a motor-bicycle whizzed down the hill.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The cattle stampeded.  With a jerk that almost threw Ferret and Vernon
+from the seat, the car brought up.  At the same time the motor-bicycle
+slowed down, and dexterously avoiding a huge bullock, glided past the
+stationary car.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The moonbeams shone directly upon the rider's face as Ross thrust his
+head out of the window.  The motor-cyclist was Ramblethorne the spy.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The recognition was mutual.  The spy, cool and collected, gave no sign
+of recognition.  The next moment he was travelling "all out" along the
+Much Wenlock road.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"That's Ramblethorne!" exclaimed Ross excitedly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Botheration take him!" ejaculated Ferret.  "Are we to get no rest
+to-night?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He opened the window in front of him.  Hawke was sitting with the
+chauffeur.  Quickly the detectives arrived at their decision.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"After that chap!" exclaimed Hawke, addressing the chauffeur; "that
+motor-cyclist who has just passed.  Ten pounds if you overhaul and stop
+him."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was the bright moonlight that had tempted Ramblethorne to go for a
+midnight ride.  He was a keen out-of-door man.  He could handle almost
+any make of car or motor-cycle with the utmost skill.  Finding himself
+at Shrewsbury, he hired a motor-cycle from an agent, intending to have
+a run along the road following the banks of the Severn as far as
+Ironbridge.  It was his practice, whenever in a strange place, speedily
+to become conversant with the locality.  It was, in fact, part of his
+training as a spy.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ramblethorne was somewhat taken aback when he saw Ross's face in the
+moonlight, although he betrayed no sign of surprise.  In an instant he
+realized that, by some means, young Trefusis had escaped from U75;
+more, he was with a party of men evidently hard on his track.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Quickly he made up his mind.  His career as a medical officer to the
+British Service was ended.  He could no longer hope to serve the German
+Government in that direction.  Before morning a hue and cry would be
+raised.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As he swung along the broad, level road he thought out his plans.  He
+would ride as hard as he could until his supply of petrol gave out&mdash;a
+matter of about seventy or eighty miles.  Then he would abandon and
+hide the motor-cycle, and make his way on foot to the Essex coast.
+There, he had means to get on board a nominally British fishing-boat,
+which would run him over to a Dutch port.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Although the motor-cycle was travelling at close on forty miles an
+hour, Ramblethorne glanced back over his shoulder.  He hardly expected
+to be pursued.  If the car had turned to attempt to overhaul him, it
+would almost to a certainty take the wider of the two fork roads&mdash;that
+leading to Wellington.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Disagreeably surprised, the spy saw the two powerful head-lights of the
+car less than a mile behind him.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The chauffeur of the pursuing vehicle had set his heart on winning the
+promised guerdon.  "All out" the car bounded along the road, leaving in
+its trail a dense cloud of dust that slowly dispersed in the moon-lit
+air.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Hanging on desperately to the sides of the swaying car, Ferret and the
+two lads knelt upon the front seat of the coupe and peered through the
+dust-flecked glass at the solitary motor-cyclist in front.  They were
+gaining&mdash;rapidly at first, but now the gap between lessened almost
+imperceptibly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At that tremendous rate, the bursting of a tyre would result in
+complete disaster, yet not one thought did the pursuers give to the
+danger they were running.  Their sole attention was centred upon the
+spy.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A sharp bend close to the village of Cressage enabled the car to get
+within fifty yards of the motor-cyclist.  Hawke drew a revolver from
+his pocket.  The chauffeur noticed the action out of the corner of his
+eye.  Purposely he toyed with the sensitive steering-wheel, causing the
+car to swerve erratically.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Put it up, sir!" he exclaimed, shouting in order to make himself heard
+above the roar of the wind over the screen.  "If you bring him down
+we'll smash up on top of him before we can pull up.  We'll have him on
+Harley Bank right enough."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A sharp run down through the village of Harley brought the car within
+sight of a very steep hill, up which the road wound like a silver
+thread against the black slope.  This was Harley Bank, one of the
+steepest of many stiff Shropshire hills, its gradient averaging one in
+seven.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Up mounted the motor-cycle.  Ramblethorne was attempting to take it on
+high gear.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The chauffeur of the car took no risks.  He promptly dropped into
+second gear, with the result that the gap between them increased to
+nearly a hundred yards.  Then the motor-cycle began to falter.  Perhaps
+Ramblethorne was not thoroughly acquainted with the mechanism of the
+two-speed.  By the time he got the friction-clutch into action the car
+had more than regained the lost distance&mdash;and the fugitive had not yet
+reached the stiffest part of the hill.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Head him off&mdash;jam him up against that bank!" ordered Hawke.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What for, sir?" asked the chauffeur.  He had no objection to taking
+part in a midnight chase, but his sense of prudence told him that it
+was not advisable to deliberately smash up another vehicle.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"He's a spy," replied Hawke.  "Don't hesitate.  I will take all risks."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Fifteen seconds later the near front wheel of the car was abreast of
+Ramblethorne's back wheel.  Hawke leant sideways with the intention of
+gripping the motor-cyclist by the collar, since the relative speeds
+were practically the same.  At the same moment the car edged a little
+closer to the left-hand side of the road.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ramblethorne realized the danger.  A collision would with almost
+certainty result in his receiving a broken neck; capture meant
+ignominious death at the hands of a firing-party.  There was yet a
+third alternative&mdash;a dash for safety.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He threw out the clutch and applied both brakes, at the same time
+bringing the motor-cycle on to the grassy bank.  He alighted on all
+fours, but almost immediately regained his feet.  The car was already
+twenty yards on ahead and still in gear.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He grasped his cycle by the handle-bars and raised it from its
+recumbent position.  One look showed that the glancing impact had bent
+the front forks.  The machine was no longer rideable.  Without
+hesitation he sprang up the bank.  As he did so he heard the footfalls
+of his pursuers.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Be steady!" cautioned Ferret, as Ross and Vernon alighted from the
+car.  "He may be armed.  We're the people to take the brunt of it&mdash;not
+you."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+They were now within a few feet of the summit of the road, which at
+this spot ran through the hill by means of a cutting.  Close by were
+three excavations.  Someone had evidently attempted to commence
+quarrying there, but had abandoned the undertaking.  As far as the
+detective could conclude, these pits formed the only possible
+hiding-place in the vicinity.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hist!" exclaimed Hawke, holding up one hand to enjoin silence.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+All was still.  No sound of stealthily retreating footsteps reached
+their ears.  Hawke knelt down and placed one ear to the ground.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Someone breathing pretty hard," he whispered.  "He can't be very far
+away; in one of these holes most likely.  Perhaps he's hurt himself."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+An investigation of the first possible hiding-place produced no result.
+At the second Ross heard a long-drawn sigh, emanating from a patch of
+bushes and tall grass.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Here you are!" he exclaimed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The place was in shadow, yet he could discern some dark object lying at
+full length in the midst of the grass.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In a trice the two detectives threw themselves upon their prey.  For an
+instant the man struggled wildly.  Ross and his chum joined in the
+fray, each hanging on desperately to his plunging legs.  Ignominiously
+he was dragged from his place of concealment into the bright moonlight.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ferret was the first to give a gasp of astonishment.  Their victim was
+not Ramblethorne the spy, but a powerfully built tramp, who, finding
+himself released, began to expostulate with alarming vehemence.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Stop that!" exclaimed Hawke authoritatively.  "We are police officers.
+If you don't behave we'll take you in charge for sleeping out without
+visible means."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The fellow, cowed into silence, slunk away.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Confound it!" ejaculated Ferret.  "We've let Ramblethorne slip away
+under our very noses.  He'll be clear by this time."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I'm afraid so," agreed Hawke ruefully; then turning to the chauffeur
+he told him to drive into the nearest village, which happened to be
+Much Wenlock.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Here Ross and Vernon were able to secure a room at an inn, while the
+Scotland Yard men were busy at the little police station, getting a
+description of the spy issued through the countryside.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Next morning the lads set out on their return journey to Killigwent
+Hall.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap15"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XV
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+The Admiral Works the Oracle
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+"Look here, old man; what do you say about having a shot for the Naval
+Reserve?" asked Ross.  "In ordinary circs I would be prepared to go
+through Sandhurst, but this isn't ordinary circs.  Before we pass out,
+the war will be over perhaps."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I'd rather like to see something of the fun," agreed Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"As if we hadn't already," added his chum.  "But I know what you mean.
+Instead of being cooped up in an unterseeboot and hunted by our
+fellows, we want to have a hand in rounding up the German submarines.
+I vote we write to our respective governors about it."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+This conversation occurred two days after the lads' return to
+Killigwent Hall.  They had been given up as lost, and their unexpected
+return had caused unbounded rejoicings.  Pressmen thronged the Hall to
+gather "exclusive" information of the manner of their seemingly
+miraculous rescue, but both Ross and Vernon were determined not to
+satisfy outside curiosity.  They even kept the story of how the white
+flag fluttered down from the signalling mast of U75 from their
+immediate friends.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It will take a long time for us to get a reply," objected Vernon.  "By
+the time the letters hang about at the G.P.O., before they are sent to
+the fleet, a week will elapse, and before we get a reply bang goes a
+whole fortnight.  Let's get hold of a Navy List and see what the
+qualifications are."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A careful perusal of the regulations resulted in a setback.  Midshipmen
+in the R.N.R., they found, had to be between 16 and 18 years of age,
+and must either have passed through a course of instruction for two
+years on board an "approved" training ship, or else one year on board a
+first-class British merchant ship.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"That's put the hat on it," declared Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"One minute," interposed Vernon.  "Why not write to Admiral Garboard?
+He's an old shipmate of my governor's, and I know he's a bit of a pot
+up at Whitehall, although he's on the Retired List."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"He was with my pater in the old <I>Rhodaphlare</I> on the China station,"
+added Ross.  "We'll try; the wheeze might work."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Accordingly Vernon wrote to the Admiral, who lived about twenty miles
+from Killigwent Hall.  Promptly came Sir Peter Garboard's reply:
+</P>
+
+<BR>
+
+<P CLASS="noindent">
+"TRELANGKERRICK,"<BR>
+<SPAN STYLE="margin-left: 1em">CORNWALL.</SPAN><BR>
+</P>
+
+<P CLASS="noindent">
+"DEAR VERNON,
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"In reply to your letter I am sorry that I cannot help you in the
+matter to which you refer, unless you and your friend can produce
+sufficient evidences of qualifications for the desired posts.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"On principle I object to influence in any shape or form.  Entry into
+any branch of the Service should, like promotion, depend solely upon
+the aptitude and ability of a candidate.  This has been my standpoint
+throughout the whole of my career, and I see no reason why I should now
+depart from it.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"If, however, you think you have strong reasons for pressing your
+claims, and you care to see me, we will go more fully into the matter.
+</P>
+
+<P CLASS="noindent">
+"Believe me,<BR>
+"Yours faithfully,<BR>
+<SPAN STYLE="margin-left: 1em">"PETER GARBOARD."</SPAN><BR>
+</P>
+
+<BR>
+
+<P>
+"Not so dusty," commented Ross.  "He does leave us a loophole, although
+I'm afraid we'll have to blow our own trumpets.  I vote we cycle over
+at once.  We'll catch him in just before lunch."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Better wait until after he's had his grub," said Vernon.  "That's
+always the time to get a man in a good humour."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We'll risk that," declared young Trefusis.  "Come on."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was a very hilly twenty miles run across the moors to
+Trelangkerrick.  Starting at ten in the morning it took the lads two
+hours and a quarter, in the face of a strong south-westerly breeze, to
+cover the distance.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Half-way up the drive, they saw the Admiral and a companion emerging
+from a path leading from the kennels.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hulloa!" exclaimed Sir Peter cordially, as he recognized Vernon Haye.
+"So you haven't marked time in coming to see me.  This is young
+Trefusis, I presume?  Glad to meet you.  Knew your father very well
+back in the 'eighties.  Hope to renew the acquaintance soon, you know.
+If it hadn't been for the war&mdash;&mdash;"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Admiral Garboard had taken Trelangkerrick only since the declaration of
+hostilities; consequently he had had no opportunity of meeting Admiral
+Trefusis, who, since July of the previous year, had been continuously
+"somewhere in the North Sea".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Cecil, my boy," he continued, addressing his companion, a tall,
+sunburnt man, in shooting garb although his clean-shaven features and
+slightly rolling gait proclaimed him to be a sailor.  "Let me introduce
+the sons of two of my old shipmates to you.  Ross Trefusis and Vernon
+Haye&mdash;my nephew, Cecil Bourne.  You'll stay to lunch, of course.
+Cecil's on three days' leave.  He's not satisfied with hunting German
+submarines, but must needs go after my rabbits."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+They walked towards the house, Ross and Bourne leading, and the Admiral
+and Vernon bringing up the rear.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We'll discuss this little matter after lunch, my boy," remarked the
+Admiral.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The meal proceeded without a hitch, the Admiral in his breezy way
+relating anecdote after anecdote of the Service in the good old days.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"By the by," he remarked, "what's this yarn I hear about your
+neighbour, Dr. Ramblethorne?  There's a report that a warrant has been
+issued for his arrest."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"For espionage, I believe," replied Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Bless my soul!  Is that a fact?  One doesn't know whom to trust in
+these days.  No details, I suppose.  A decent fellow, too, from what I
+saw of him.  No, I don't think you've met him, Cecil, at least not
+here.  By the by, you might tell the boys about your little adventure
+up-Channel in the <I>Tremendous</I>."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross and Vernon turned very red in the face, but as they sat with their
+backs to the window the change of colour passed unnoticed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Oh, that submarine business!" remarked Lieutenant Bourne modestly.
+"Just an ordinary occurrence, don't you know, except for one thing.  I
+was officer of the watch at the time.  We spotted a strafed
+unterseeboot flying a white flag.  Have to be jolly careful, you see.
+Either give the thing a wide berth, and wireless the destroyers to take
+possession of the prize, or else cut the brute in two.  Anyhow,
+something funny did happen.  There were two fellows in mufti standing
+close to the skipper on the submarine's deck.  Goodness only knows why
+they did it, but I saw one of them&mdash;&mdash;"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Cut the halliards and let the white flag down," interposed Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+There was dead silence in the room.  Only intense excitement was
+responsible for young Haye's lapse of manners.  The words had slipped
+from him almost unconsciously.  Ross barked his shin as a gentle
+reminder.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"By Jove!  How did you know that?" demanded Bourne.  "Shouldn't have
+thought that the yarn had had time to travel very far.  Hope I haven't
+been boring you?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Vernon took his courage in his hands.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It was Ross who cut the halliards," he announced.  "We were both on
+board, and jumped overboard just in time, and got hold of a lifebuoy
+dropped from the <I>Tremendous</I> as she passed."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"By Jove!" ejaculated the Lieutenant.  "I am surprised.  I wondered
+whether you were picked up.  It was a jolly plucky action.  But how did
+you get on board the unterseeboot?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Aye, out with it!" added the Admiral.  "I heard that you were missing,
+of course, and also of your return.  Truth to tell, I thought when I
+got your letter that the pair of you had been acting the goat, and had
+run away to sea and had thought better of it."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We didn't run, sir, we were carried," explained Ross.  "And Dr.
+Ramblethorne was responsible for it."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Admiral Sir Peter Garboard was not satisfied until he had heard the
+complete story of his young friends' adventures.  When they had
+finished he turned to his nephew.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Young Haye and his chum came to see me on a private matter," he
+remarked, "but I don't think they will object to your hearing what we
+have to say."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Are you quite sure you won't?" asked Bourne, addressing the lads.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Both Trefusis and Haye are supposed to be going in for Sandhurst,"
+continued Sir Peter.  "Although, candidly speaking, I don't see why a
+naval man should want to put his son in the Army."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"In my case it is only following a family precedent," said Ross.  "For
+generations back the eldest son has alternately been in the Navy and
+Army."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"And in my case it is the force of circumstances," added Vernon.  "When
+I was of the age to be sent to Osborne I was a puny little chap.  The
+doctor wouldn't pass me."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You've altered a bit since then, I can see," remarked Bourne.  "You
+look as strong as a young horse now."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes, I've grown out of my early ailments, I think," said Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Pity the doctor hadn't passed you," said Sir Peter bluntly.  "Ten or
+eleven is too young an age for any medical man to express a final
+opinion upon.  I remember a fellow in the Service who was nearly blind
+on one eye and almost as deaf as a post.  He got through the
+medical&mdash;influence, I expect.  Anyway the Navy was none the worse for
+it.  You'll remember him by name, Cecil: he was my secretary on the
+China Station.  Funny thing about him was that he couldn't see to read
+red figures unless he looked through a green glass.  Do you know that
+when I received your letter I imagined that your temporary
+disappearance had something to do with your running away to sea?"
+reiterated the Admiral.  "The idea, I believe, comes to most boys
+almost as a matter of course; something like measles, in fact."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Well, now we've had a taste of submarine work, we feel that it is high
+time we had a hand at helping to collar the German unterseebooten,"
+explained Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I think it could be arranged," remarked the Admiral.  "You haven't had
+actual experience, of course&mdash;&mdash;"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Eh!" exclaimed Bourne.  "By Jove, Uncle, I should say they had!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"From a strictly professional standpoint, I ought to have said, only
+you didn't give me time," added Sir Peter.  "I'll write off to the
+Admiralty to-night and see if I can get you both into the R.N.R.  You
+are too young to receive commissions as Sub-lieutenants, but no doubt
+you can be taken on as midshipmen.  Stringent regulations go by the
+board in war-time.  Isn't that so, Cecil?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"They would probably be appointed to an armed liner for patrol duty,"
+observed Bourne.  "There are, I believe, no midshipmen on the trawlers
+and motor-boats in submarine-hunting."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We must take what we can get," said Vernon, "but we would rather&mdash;&mdash;"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes, yes," interrupted the Admiral.  "I know.  You leave that to me."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Accordingly Ross and Vernon "left it to" the genial Sir Peter, with the
+result that within a week they were specially appointed as temporary
+midshipmen to the motor-patrol ship <I>Capella</I>.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap16"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XVI
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+H.M.S. "Capella"
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+With the least possible delay the two chums joined the <I>Capella</I> at
+Southampton.  She was one of an entirely new class of vessel, built for
+the express purpose of ridding the high seas of the presence of the
+modern pirates.  Looking at her as she lay in the Empress Dock, there
+was little about her to attract the eye.  A raised fo'c'sle and poop,
+and a low superstructure abaft the funnel, two stumpy masts and
+grey-coloured "wall" sides, gave her the appearance of a trawler.  It
+was only when one had an opportunity of seeing her in dry dock, where
+her graceful under-body, with its fine "entry" and clean run aft, was
+visible, that any idea of her speed could be arrived at.  Further
+details would be undesirable.  Sufficient to add, to quote a Yankee
+journalist who had been given an opportunity of paying a visit to the
+Grand Fleet and inspecting the component units of the greatest armada
+that the world has yet seen, the class to which she belonged were "some
+boats".  The exigencies of the hitherto unprecedented method of
+carrying out the naval side of the Great War had demanded the creation
+of large flotillas of small motor-driven hornets.  In the initial
+stages the want was temporarily supplied through the patriotism of
+owners of private motor-boats.  These craft, good in their way, were
+handicapped by a lack of uniformity.  Nevertheless they served as an
+excellent training-school until the Admiralty with remarkable celerity
+produced the novel type of craft to which the <I>Capella</I> belonged.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Capella</I> carried a large crew in proportion to her size&mdash;four
+officers and twenty-four men.  Her skipper was Stanley Syllenger, who
+held the rank of Lieutenant-Commander, R.N.R.  He was a big, bluff man
+of about thirty-five, a strict disciplinarian, and a stickler for duty.
+He could be very outspoken when he wanted, which was fairly frequently,
+but withal he was of a thoroughly good-natured disposition.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+There were two Sub-lieutenants, R.N.R.  The senior was John Barry, a
+very mild type of young officer.  He usually spoke in a very soft
+voice, except when occasion warranted, when he could bellow in a way
+that would take a stranger entirely by surprise.  It seemed incredible
+that such a bull voice could belong to such a dapper little man as John
+Barry.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The other Sub was Noel Fox&mdash;a tall, deep-chested fellow of twenty,
+boisterous, and full of spirits.  In five crowded years he had gained a
+good knowledge of three oceans, and a nodding acquaintance with the
+remaining two.  Beginning his career on board a five-masted sailing
+ship, he had served in tramps, "intermediates", and mail steamers until
+the outbreak of the war, when he found himself appointed to an armed
+liner that abruptly terminated her existence by trying conclusions with
+a German mine.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Captain Syllenger and Sub-lieutenant Barry were pacing the diminutive
+quarter-deck of the <I>Capella</I> as she lay alongside the quay.  The
+skipper had heard officially that morning of the appointment of two
+temporary midshipmen to the craft under his command.  "Hanged if I can
+understand it, Barry!" he exclaimed in his outspoken manner.  "What's
+the idea of turning the <I>Capella</I> into a nursery, I should like to
+know!  These youngsters are somebody's pigeons, I suppose.  The usual
+yarn.  Influence up topsides does the trick, and we're saddled with two
+raw lubbers."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"There is no mention of their having had previous sea-service, sir?"
+remarked Barry.  "But perhaps they'll turn out fairly smart."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"They will," added the Lieutenant-Commander grimly; "that is, if I have
+anything to do with them for any length of time.  But, by Jove! here
+they are, unless I'm much mistaken."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Looking rather self-conscious in their brand-new uniforms, Ross and
+Vernon doubled down the steeply sloping gangway.  As they came aboard,
+Syllenger noted with professional satisfaction that they both saluted
+the quarter-deck.  The action showed, by one thing at least, they were
+not the greenhorns he expected to receive.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You have had no previous experience, I believe?" he asked, after the
+midshipmen had introduced themselves.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Very little, beyond knocking about in yachts and boats," replied Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"That's something," decided the skipper.  "A fellow who starts his
+career in a small boat has the makings of a good seaman.  It is rare
+indeed that a man who goes straight to sea in a steamship makes a smart
+man in a boat.  If ever you go on patrol duty you'll find your
+experience of value.  By the by, I suppose you know our particular job?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes, sir," replied Ross.  "Hunting submarines."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Ever seen one?" asked Syllenger abruptly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Several of the D and E classes manoeuvring in Plymouth Sound."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"But a German one?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes, sir."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Where?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We've both spent nearly a week on board an unterseeboot, sir."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The skipper sternly regarded the two midshipmen.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Look here," he said.  "If you think you've come on board to gammon me,
+the sooner you get that idea out of your heads the better.  There's no
+room on the <I>Capella</I> for a pair of modern Ananiases."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross said nothing.  From the outside left breast-pocket of his
+"undress" coat he produced a white foolscap envelope, bearing in blue
+the "foul anchor" badge of the Admiralty.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Lieutenant-Commander took the proffered envelope somewhat
+suspiciously.  He more than half expected that it was a letter of
+introduction from a high official at Whitehall, on the strength of
+which the two midshipmen felt inclined to "put on side".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Instead, he found that it contained an autograph letter from the
+Admiralty, thanking the lads for their bravery and presence of mind,
+whereby they materially assisted in the preservation of H.M.S.
+<I>Tremendous</I> and in the destruction of two of the enemy submarines.
+The document finished by congratulating Ross and Vernon on their escape
+from U75, and trusted that their career as midshipmen of the R.N.R.
+would be marked with success.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Syllenger read it through carefully and slowly, deliberately returned
+it to the envelope, and handed it back to Ross.  Then he held out his
+hand.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I'm sorry for what I've said," he declared simply.  "Forget it, if you
+can.  Come and lunch with me at one bell."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Thank you, sir," replied Ross in answer to the invitation; then, after
+a pause, he added: "we didn't want to brag about it, but you made us."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"So I understand," said the skipper.  "I've misjudged the pair of you,
+but the least said about my part of it the better, I fancy."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He hailed a couple of men, instructing them to strike the midshipmen's
+luggage down the companion-ladder.  Ross and Vernon followed, to be
+introduced to their new quarters.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Owing to the <I>Capella's</I> shallow draught, the cabin space was rather
+limited.  The Captain's quarters were a double cabin, comprising a
+state-room and sleeping-room, in a deck-house under the bridge.  The
+two Subs had each a small "dog-box", as they termed it, aft on the
+starboard side.  The engineer had a similar cabin on the port side.
+Adjoining his quarters was another cabin, which had hitherto been used
+as an overflow receptacle for officers' luggage.  This had now been
+cleared out, and hooks provided for the two midshipmen to sling their
+hammocks.  The slinging and unlashing of the hammocks was performed by
+a servant, to whom Ross and Vernon had each to pay ten shillings a
+month for the privilege.  During the day the cabin made a fairly
+comfortable room, although the furniture was Spartan-like in its
+simplicity.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At six bells (11 a.m.) the <I>Capella</I>, having replenished her fuel and
+stores, and made good slight defects, was "tracked" out of the dock.
+An hour later she left Southampton, bound for a rendezvous off Beachy
+Head, near which a U-boat had been reported to have made an
+unsuccessful attack upon a swift merchant vessel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The run down Southampton Water was necessarily performed at
+quarter-speed, for in spite of her light displacement the <I>Capella's</I>
+wash at full speed was almost equal to that of a liner.  Even as it
+was, a long line of white foam lashed itself upon the mudflats several
+minutes after she had passed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+When Calshot Castle was abreast, speed was increased to 30 knots.
+There was an easterly breeze blowing against the ebb-tide, with the
+result that quite a choppy sea was met with outside Southampton Water.
+Like a knife, the sharp cutwater of the <I>Capella</I> cleft the waves,
+sending up showers of white spray; but such was her speed that, before
+the wind could carry the spindrift on deck, the swift vessel was beyond
+the cascade of foam.  She hardly felt the motion of the waves; indeed,
+she was so steady that it was possible to place a pail of water on deck
+without any of the contents being spilt by the "lift" of the ship.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Under the guidance of Noel Fox, the midshipmen made the round of the
+vessel, the Sub explaining everything to them in detail.  Already the
+lads had taken a great fancy to the Sub, and Fox reciprocated the
+sentiment.  He had a way about him that enabled him to give particulars
+of the most intricate mechanism without having to resort to dry,
+parrot-like instruction.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+By the time he had explained the ingenious devices used to entrap the
+German unterseebooten, Ross and Vernon felt inclined to marvel how it
+was they found themselves on board the <I>Capella</I>, since only sheer good
+luck had saved U75 from being doomed during every hour of their brief
+and involuntary detention.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes, we can mop up the German submarines quicker than they can turn
+them out," said the Sub.  "Of course I don't mean to say that a few of
+them won't get a smack at some of our ships for some time to come; but
+all the same we are giving them beans.  From a strictly professional
+point of view we would be sorry if Old Turps abandoned his 'effectual'
+blockade.  Our chances of having a high old game with the
+unterseebooten would be considerably reduced."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"There are still some in the English Channel," hazarded Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes, a few; but have you noticed how those fellows fight shy of Dover?
+They shun it like the plague.  It's horribly unhealthy for them.  D'ye
+know why?  Perhaps you wouldn't have paid much attention to it, but
+some months ago the Admiralty issued a 'Notice to Mariners', stating
+that the Straits of Dover were heavily mined, and that all shipping was
+to pass through the Downs within three miles of the Kentish coast.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"So it's fairly safe to assume that the few stray unterseebooten that
+are still lurking in the Channel have made the passage round the north
+coast of Scotland.  It's only a matter of time before we bag the lot, I
+fancy."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"And our submarines?" enquired Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Have fewer opportunities since the Hun battleships and cruisers have
+such a decided inclination to remain in harbour," rejoined Fox.  "When
+there's a chance, you can bet your bottom dollar that our fellows seize
+it.  Quite recently one of our submarines found herself alone and
+disabled in the Bight of Heligoland.  Undismayed, her
+lieutenant-commander signalled to a passing German trawler, covered her
+with his guns, and made the Hun tow the crippled submarine into British
+waters.  Then he released his involuntary benefactor, but before so
+doing can you guess what he did?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No," replied both lads.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Made the Huns line up on deck and sing the 'Hymn of Hate'.  You can
+imagine the surprise of the trawler's men, who, judging by the
+treatment meted out to our fishermen by the German submarines, expected
+nothing less than imprisonment and the loss of their boat.  But it's
+close on one bell," remarked Fox at length.  "You're messing with the
+skipper to-day, I believe.  He's quite a decent sort when you know him
+properly, but it takes a bit of doing."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A seaman strode up to the bell and gave it a sharp stroke.  Just then a
+messenger hurried from the diminutive "wireless" room abaft the
+chart-house and, leaping down the ladder at a single bound, knocked at
+the door of the Captain's cabin.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Stow those things away, Sparkes," exclaimed Captain Syllenger.  "Lunch
+will have to wait."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He dashed out of his cabin.  On the way to the bridge he passed Fox and
+the two midshipmen.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You'll have to tighten your belts, my lads," he announced.  "We've
+just had a message through.  A strafed unterseeboot has been spotted
+trying to get into Spithead.  If we don't nab her within half an hour,
+I'll eat my hat!"
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap17"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XVII
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+A Double Bag
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+It was a sea-plane, flying at fifteen hundred feet above the Warner and
+The Nab Lightships, that had detected an elongated shadow creeping
+stealthily over the shingly bottom close to the Dean Tail Buoy.  The
+shadow was that of a German unterseeboot, since none of the British
+submarines were known to be in the eastern approaches to Spithead.
+Evidently she had gone out of her course, for instead of being in the
+main channel she was well to the north of it.  More than likely the
+strong east-going tide, which hereabout surges at such a rate that it
+causes the shingle 30 or 40 feet beneath the surface to emit a deep
+rumble, had taken the unterseeboot in its grip.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Promptly the sea-plane wirelessed the news, and quickly a "general
+call" was sent to the patrol vessels in the vicinity.  The <I>Capella</I>
+was one of the craft that picked up the welcome order.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+She was now only seven sea miles distant from the Dean Tail Buoy.
+Within ten minutes of the receipt of the wireless she was on the
+spot&mdash;one of the very first of a regular hornet flotilla bent upon
+adding yet another of Von Tirpitz's pets to the "bag".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For the next quarter of an hour it looked as if a novel kind of marine
+waltz was in progress.  Nearly a score of swift vessels were executing
+fantastic movements at full speed, circling and interchanging positions
+until it seemed as if collisions were impossible to avoid.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Their object was to thoroughly bewilder the already doomed U-boat, for,
+if possible, her capture in a practically intact condition was desired.
+In very deep water, salvage of a sunken submarine was out of the
+question; here, in a comparatively shallow depth, and close to an
+important naval base, to which the prize could be taken with little
+trouble, the opportunity for capture rather than instant destruction
+was too good to be missed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Suddenly a cloud of white smoke shot up from the sea.  Its appearance
+was greeted by hearty cheers from the patrol vessels.  It was a signal
+that the U-boat, in her attempt to find deep water, had floundered
+blindly into the trap.  Over and over again the hunters passed, towing
+non-explosive grapnels, until it was certain that the prey was helpless
+in their toils.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Then, in obedience to an order from the senior officer, the swift
+vessels withdrew for nearly three cables' length from the spot where
+the boat lay.  Two slow but powerfully engined trawlers approached at a
+cable's length abreast, towing the bight of a massive steel hawser
+between.  Doing little more than drift with the tide they crept past
+the submerged U-boat, one on either side of the mark-buoy that
+indicated her position.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Presently the strain on the hawser increased.  It was only by making
+full use of the twin-screws that the trawlers were able to prevent
+themselves from swinging together.  The steel rope stretched until it
+resembled two metal bars which bore silent testimony to the strain.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Just then the two vessels shot ahead.  Although the hawser was still
+intact, it no longer took any strain.  But its work was done.  The
+bight, engaging the conning-tower of the unterseeboot, had turned the
+submarine on its side.  In the space of a few seconds the deadly fumes
+from the capsized batteries had almost painlessly accounted for the
+crew of the U-boat, who themselves had neither pity nor consideration
+for the hapless victims, men, women, and children, massacred against
+all dictates of humanity and convention of civilized warfare.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A bit of work for the dockyard lighters to-morrow," commented
+Sub-lieutenant Barry, as the <I>Capella</I> parted company to resume her run
+up-Channel.  "They'll raise the U-boat, and take her into dry dock,
+before the sulphuric acid has had time to do much damage to her
+mechanism."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I shouldn't be surprised if there were another U-boat knocking
+around," remarked Vernon.  "From our limited experience we know that
+they work either in pairs or threes."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Then the worse for them," rejoined Barry.  "It would be a great wheeze
+to bag two of them in one day.  Desperate diseases need desperate
+remedies, you know."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Therein the Sub voiced the unanimous opinion of the British Navy.  At
+the commencement of the war, the torpedoing of several battleships and
+cruisers by German submarines aroused no enmity within the hearts of
+the British tars.  They realized that a warship is "fair sport" to the
+submarines of the opposing side.  To run the risk of being blown up was
+one of the excitements to undergo in the course of duty.  But when it
+came to torpedoing helpless merchantmen, and jeering at the
+death-struggles of the unfortunate crews, Jack Tar began to regard the
+unterseebooten in the light of pirates and murderers.  The wanton
+destruction of the <I>Lusitania</I>, accompanied by the appalling death-roll
+of non-combatants, women and children, literally sounded the
+death-knell of the crews of von Tirpitz's jolly-Roger-flying
+submarines.  In their methods of "frightfulness" they had overreached
+themselves.  They had sown a wind: they were now reaping a whirlwind
+with a vengeance.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+And now the great silent Navy was paying back von Tirpitz in almost,
+but not quite, his own coin.  While the much-advertised blockade of
+Great Britain was petering out, British submarines were playing havoc
+with German shipping in the Baltic&mdash;a sea which the Teutons regarded as
+being almost their very own.  Yet what a difference marked the methods
+adopted by the humane commanders of our submarines when dealing with
+German mercantile shipping.  A punctilious regard for the safety of the
+crews of overhauled merchantmen won admiration even from the seamen of
+the destroyed vessels.  Humiliation and reproach seemed to haunt the
+white-bearded dotard, whose hands had sought in vain to wrest the
+trident from Britannia's virile grasp.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At about five in the afternoon the <I>Capella</I> arrived at her station off
+Beachy Head, relieving her sister ship the <I>Markab</I>, that, with three
+other motor-driven craft, had been engaged in a vigorous, but for the
+most part uneventful, patrol.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Day and night for a fortnight at a stretch, unless anything unforeseen
+took place, the <I>Capella</I> was to cruise up and down, keeping a smart
+look-out for any sign of an object resembling a hostile periscope.  In
+order to economize her fuel supply her speed was reduced to 10 knots.
+It was then that her bad qualities showed themselves.  With her shallow
+draught and high freeboard she rolled like a barrel, since speed was
+essential to impart steadiness.  The motion was certainly
+disconcerting, although it did not imply that the <I>Capella</I> was
+unseaworthy.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"'Fraid our chances of bagging another U-boat to-day are off," remarked
+Barry to Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was within half an hour of sunset.  The chums had been temporarily
+separated.  It was Vernon's "watch below".  The senior Sub and young
+Trefusis were on the bridge.  In spite of the still-prevailing east
+wind it was a grand evening.  Three miles away, broad on the starboard
+beam, the chalk cliffs known as the Seven Sisters were beginning to be
+tinted by the crimson hues of the western sky.  To seaward, three large
+vessels were in sight.  One, a liner bound down-Channel, was pelting
+along at such a pace with the wind that the smoke from her funnels was
+rising almost perpendicularly.  Forging ahead in the opposite direction
+were two big tramps, the smoke from their funnels, beaten down by the
+strong breeze, trailing across the surface of the water for a couple of
+miles in their wake.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"An object lesson," remarked Barry.  "The arteries of the Empire.  Hang
+it all!  The blockade reminds me of a pigmy treacherously stealing up
+behind a giant and trying to cut his jugular vein.  Instead, he merely
+scratched a comparatively unimportant capillary, and feels mighty sorry
+for himself when the giant turns and scruffs him by the neck."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Leaning over the bridge-rails, the Sub startled his companion by
+bellowing in a voice loud enough to be heard a mile away:
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"On look-outs!  Stand by bow and stern lights!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Capella</I> was making preparations for the night.  Unlike the armed
+merchantmen that are compelled to scour the North Sea, summer and
+winter alike, without showing the faintest glimmer of a lamp, the
+<I>Capella</I> observed the rules and regulations for preventing collision
+at sea.  Her port, starboard, and bow lamps were lighted by
+electricity, but, in order to guard against possible break-down of
+current, oil lamps had also to be trimmed and lighted, ready, should
+occasion serve, to take their places.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was part of Ross's duty to report to the officer of the watch that
+these lamps were in order, and also, at regular intervals, that the
+navigation lights were burning brightly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Presently the Sub prepared to take a cross-bearing.  He was fairly
+certain that the <I>Capella</I> had reached the westernmost limit of her
+patrol-ground.  From that point she was to proceed due south for 10 sea
+miles, and then due east for 20 miles until she fell in with her
+"opposite number".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+While Barry was thus engaged, Ross noticed a sail about 2 miles distant
+on the starboard quarter.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"By Jove!" he muttered as he brought his glass to bear upon the
+stranger.  "That's a funny rig."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The craft was a "two-sticker".  She was square-rigged on the foremast,
+carrying fore-topsail and fore-course.  No jibs were set; neither, as
+far as he could see, was any sail set on the mainmast.  The vessel's
+sides were painted green with a broad red band.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Even as he kept the craft under observation she starboarded her helm,
+shaping a course that would converge upon that of the rearmost of the
+two tramps.  By so doing she exposed a considerable portion of her
+broadside.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross gave an exclamation of astonishment.  Above the green sides
+appeared what was undoubtedly the conning-tower and housed periscope of
+a submarine.  "Submarine on the starboard quarter, sir!" he reported.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What!" exclaimed Barry, levelling his telescope.  "By Jove, yes!  What
+luck!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The unterseeboot had, of course, noticed the <I>Capella</I>, and had
+mistaken her for a trawler.  She realized that she ran a risk in case
+the latter might be armed, but, trusting to her disguise, she hoped to
+get within torpedo range of the tramp&mdash;a vessel of over 3000 tons&mdash;sink
+her, and make her escape in the confusion that was bound to ensue.  On
+the other hand, her Kapitan had good reasons for thinking that the
+supposed trawler was not one of the armed patrol, since they usually
+worked in company.  By rigging canvas bulwarks and setting sail upon
+dummy masts, he was able to approach with little fear of detection.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Action!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Quickly the <I>Capella's</I> crew were at their stations.  The quick-firers
+were loaded, and their screens lowered so as not to impede their arc of
+fire.  Until these preparations were complete the vessel still held on
+her course.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Then Captain Syllenger, who had come on deck, telegraphed for full
+speed ahead.  Like a racehorse the <I>Capella</I> leapt forward.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A double, converging line of white foam marked the track of a torpedo
+from the doomed U-boat.  By a slight alteration of helm the <I>Capella</I>
+avoided it.  The action was hardly necessary: it was merely a matter of
+precaution, since the <I>Capella's</I> peculiarities of construction made
+her practically immune from torpedo attack.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Captain Syllenger had no intention of ramming his opponent.  Ramming
+with a lightly built vessel, such as the <I>Capella</I>, would only be
+employed as a last resource.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At an almost point-blank range of 400 yards both bow guns were fired
+simultaneously.  There was no need for another shot.  One of the
+projectiles, hitting the U-boat at the base of the conning-tower, tore
+a jagged hole a couple of feet in diameter.  The other shell hit her
+about 10 feet from the bows, and, with an erratic peculiarity that such
+missiles have after the first impact, was deflected downward, expending
+the full force of its explosive charge in the submarine's bow
+torpedo-room.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In a moment the luckless U-boat was done for.  A huge column of smoke
+marked the spot where she had disappeared like a stone, while flying
+pieces of metal hurtled far and wide through the air.  Several of the
+fragments clattered upon the <I>Capella's</I> deck as she swung round to
+avoid any possibility of fouling debris.  Of the crew not a man was to
+be seen.  Those who had not been killed by the shell-fire had been
+wiped out by the explosion of their own torpedoes.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We've pulled off a double event to-day, after all," remarked
+Sub-lieutenant Fox as he disappeared down the companion-ladder to
+resume his interrupted "watch below".  "Barry has got his wish."
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap18"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XVIII
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+The Smoke-signals
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+For the next ten days nothing occurred beyond the ordinary routine.
+Even Ross and Vernon, to whom everything was at first a novelty, began
+to feel the irksomeness of the constant and vigilant patrol.  No
+hostile submarines made their appearance; there were not even any
+reports, true or otherwise, that they had been sighted.  It was the
+same all along the English Channel&mdash;"nothin' doing".  It seemed as if
+the unterseebooten had finally given up these waters as a "bad egg".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Yet it would be most injudicious for the naval authorities to relax
+their watchfulness.  Areas of strategic importance must still be
+closely guarded, since it was just possible that the wily Teuton would
+refrain from submarine warfare in the Channel until the patrol-boats'
+crews were lulled into a sense of false optimism.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The only break in the monotony was the occasional and welcome
+appearance of a motor-boat from Shoreham, bringing off fresh supplies,
+newspapers and letters for the patrol vessels.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Amongst Ross's correspondence was a letter from his father.  Admiral
+Trefusis gave no indication of what he was doing, merely a brief
+statement that he was still "somewhere in the North Sea".  He
+congratulated his son upon his escape, and mentioned that he had heard
+from the captain of H.M.S. <I>Tremendous</I> with reference to his son's
+action in warning the battleship.  But although the Admiral did not
+express himself very enthusiastically on paper, he was as pleased as
+only a proud father can be at his boy's display of gallantry and
+resource.  "Under the circumstances," he wrote, "I think you did right
+in temporarily abandoning your preparation for Sandhurst.  No doubt you
+will acquit yourself in your present position as a Trefusis should do.
+I was certainly surprised to hear about that fellow Ramblethorne.  He
+always appeared to be a really decent man.  It only shows how careful
+one has to be when dealing with a highly organized enemy."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Amongst Vernon's batch of correspondence was a letter from
+Detective-inspector Hawke.  It was couched in semi-official language, a
+survival of days long ago when the Inspector was a budding constable
+and had to submit countless written reports to his superiors.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+There was, he wrote, no definite news concerning Ramblethorne,
+otherwise von Hauptwald.  The local police had taken up the case, and,
+assisted by the military, were still scouring the country.  As usual,
+there were inaccurate and misleading reports from various parts of the
+country.  It was generally accepted that the spy was being hidden by
+some of his compatriots who, by indulgence of the British Government,
+were still at large in the country, or else that he had succeeded in
+getting away on board a neutral ship.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The inquest on von Ruhle had taken place, with the anticipated result,
+a verdict of <I>felo de se</I> being returned by the jury.  No evidence had
+been submitted as to the dead man's real occupation.  Under the name of
+Cornelius Vanderhuit his body was handed over to the authorities for
+interment.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+But the case did not end there.  It remained for the competent
+Authorities to decide the steps to be taken with reference to the
+papers that had been found in von Ruhle's possession.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I am keeping von Ruhle's 'malacca' as a memento," concluded Hawke.
+"It may help me to discriminate between it and a portable metal tripod,
+and save me from being placed under arrest by the military.
+Fortunately, upon the last occasion, I did not meet with my Waterloo."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"The old chap feels a bit sore about it, I can see," remarked Ross.
+"He's written a good deal more than he evidently intended.  However, he
+looks like 'making good' this time."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It's a pity Ramblethorne slipped through the detectives' fingers,"
+said Vernon, as he prepared to go on deck.  "That fellow's bound to
+cause trouble until he's laid by the heels."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was Noel Fox's "trick".  The Sub was standing on the bridge with his
+eye glued to his telescope.  A mile or so inland, on the summit of the
+South Downs where they approach Beachy Head, three columns of smoke
+were rising in the still air.  There was nothing extraordinary in that.
+It might be a farmer burning rubbish on his fields; but what attracted
+the Sub's attention was the remarkable and systematic changes in the
+density of the smoke.  At one moment the two outside pillars were
+heavy, the centre one being little more than a thin haze; at another
+the conditions would be reversed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Fox decided to take action.  Rapidly the <I>Capella</I> closed with the
+shore, until she was within signalling distance of a coast-guard
+station.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The station in question was not manned by coast-guards.  Not considered
+important, its complement was depleted at the outbreak of hostilities,
+most of the men joining the large armoured cruisers.  A chief officer
+and a boatman alone remained.  These were at a later period augmented
+by a party of Sea Scouts.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As soon as the <I>Capella</I> had "made her number", a signaller took up his
+position on the roof of the chart-house.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Fires burning one mile inland to north-west of coast-guard station,"
+he semaphored.  "Suspect smoke-signals.  Investigate and report."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Keeping his telescope bearing on shore, Vernon watched the result of
+the signal.  Promptly half a dozen Scouts, mounted on bicycles, set off
+to the position indicated.  Their progress was hidden by an intervening
+clump of trees, but in less than a quarter of an hour they returned.
+By this time the smoke had disappeared.  One of their number worked the
+semaphore attached to the station.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Fires made with damp straw.  Found old blankets apparently used to
+stifle smoke.  Saw large car stationary; made towards Lewes on
+approach; number known; have informed police."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Smart youngsters!" exclaimed Captain Syllenger.  "They've helped to
+nip some little plan in the bud.  We'll have to be jolly careful for
+the next few days, I expect.  Did you make a note of the fog-signals,
+Mr. Fox?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I did, sir," replied the Sub, producing a leaf of a notebook covered
+with an unintelligible number of lines.  "Each of these strokes
+represents a column of smoke according to its position."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I can make nothing of it," remarked Syllenger.  "At any rate I'll send
+your result to the Admiralty with the utmost dispatch.  Take her in,
+Mr. Fox, and bring up where you find the two-fathom mark."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Capella</I> headed nearer towards the shore, a leads-man sounding
+until the required depth was found.  One of the boats was lowered,
+manned, and rowed to the coast-guard station, Sub-lieutenant Barry
+being in charge, with Ross as his immediate subordinate.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I want this to be forwarded to the Admiralty with the least possible
+delay," he announced, addressing the chief officer.  "How long do you
+think it will take to get through?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Too late for the eleven something train from Brighton, sir," was the
+reply.  "There's a gentleman in the village who has a big car.  He's a
+member of the Volunteer Training Corps.  No doubt he'll take it as far
+as Lewes.  Why, sir, here's the gent himself!  Mr. Hyde's his name."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The newcomer was a sparely built man of below medium height.  He looked
+about thirty years of age.  In reality he was nearly fifty.  Having
+vainly attempted to obtain a commission in the R.N.R. and the Army, he
+had joined the V.T.C. in the hope that, perhaps, some day his services
+might be utilized in a very practical form.  Now his chance was at hand.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He had strolled down to the beach on noticing a boat putting off from
+the patrol vessel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Lewes?  Certainly," he replied in answer to Barry's question.  "I
+doubt whether you'll save much.  Why not let me take the message right
+to the Admiralty?  I'd like to do it, 'pon my word I would."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Sub hesitated.  Perhaps the stranger might be all right; but he
+might be all wrong.  One had to be very careful in these times.  Yet
+the offer was a tempting one.  If possible, it was most desirable to be
+able to decipher the transcription of these mysterious columns of smoke.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I say, Trefusis," he said, "you've had a fairly long time afloat; what
+do you say to a run up to town?  I'm sure this gentleman would make no
+objection to giving you a seat in his car."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"With the greatest pleasure," declared Mr. Hyde.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Thanks!" rejoined Barry.  "Of course the honour of delivering the
+letter will be yours, sir.  Mr. Trefusis accompanies you merely as a
+passenger.  We'll stand by to pick you up, Trefusis.  I'll make it all
+right with the skipper."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Sub accompanied Mr. Hyde and the midshipman to the garage, which
+was about four minutes' walk from the coast-guard station.  While the
+man was getting out the car (he was his own chauffeur), Barry seized
+the opportunity of telling Ross to be on his guard, in case anything
+suspicious occurred.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+With a terrific bound the powerful car started on its sixty-mile
+journey.  Between the sea and Lewes the needle of the speed-indicator
+never fell below 40 miles an hour, until at times the car was running
+at 60.  Village after village was passed at almost break-neck speed.
+In vain, sleepy rural constables sought to hold up the reckless driver.
+Discretion was the better part of valour, so they stood aside and
+attempted to note the number on the identification plate of the car.
+Again in vain.  All they could see and swallow was a cloud of white,
+chalky dust that hung thickly on the sultry air long after the car was
+out of sight and hearing.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The hills around East Grinstead it surmounted at 40 miles an hour,
+dashing down the inclines at the speed of an express train, and
+swerving time after time to avoid lumbering farm wagons.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At Croydon Mr. Hyde wisely slowed down.  He had covered 49 miles in
+exactly fifty-five minutes, but twenty-eight minutes later the car drew
+up under the Admiralty Arch.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Room 445 is the one I want," he explained to Ross.  "I know my way
+about here, you know.  I've several relations at the Admiralty.  Come
+along: the car won't hurt where she is."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Your pass, sir," demanded a Metropolitan policeman who, with a naval
+pensioned petty officer, was stationed at the door.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Haven't one," replied Mr. Hyde.  "Urgent business&mdash;see?" and he
+produced the envelope, bearing the words "On His Majesty's Service", in
+which was enclosed Captain Syllenger's communication.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The policeman was the essence of imperturbable dignity.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No use, sir; you must have a pass.  They are obtainable across the
+road there."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It will mean at least twenty minutes' delay," muttered the motorist
+savagely, as he turned away.  "Come on, Mr. Trefusis, let's try our
+luck across the way."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As Ross descended the short flight of stone steps leading from the
+lobby to the street, he nearly cannoned into a couple of naval officers
+who were about to enter the building.  Suddenly remembering that he was
+in uniform, the midshipman brought his right hand smartly to the peak
+of his cap.  As he did so, he recognized that one of the naval men was
+his father.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The recognition was mutual.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hullo, pater!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hullo, Ross!  What brings you here?  Duty, eh?  It's the same in my
+case.  Sorry I can't have you to lunch, but must catch the first train
+north.  This is the first time I've come up to town since the war
+started.  In any case I'm not sorry that I am not stopping the night
+here.  Judging by reports, it's a jolly sight too dangerous for me.
+Don't fancy being run over by a taxi in a dark main thoroughfare.  Give
+me the North Sea any day.  Well, I must be moving.  Can't keep My Lords
+waiting, you know.  Good-bye, Ross!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was Admiral Paul Trefusis' way.  Whenever he had any business on
+hand that kept him from his ship, he invariably spoke in short, jerky
+sentences.  Ross knew his parent's little mannerism.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"One moment, pater," he exclaimed.  "We're in an awful hurry too&mdash;&mdash;"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Don't look like it," growled the Admiral good-naturedly.  "You were
+ambling out like an old shellback.  Always execute orders at the
+double: that's my advice to budding midshipmen.  Well, what is it?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As briefly as possible, Ross told his parent of the rebuff Mr. Hyde and
+he had received, and of the matter that brought them at 50 miles an
+hour from a remote Sussex coast-guard station.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Making a hurried excuse to his companion, the Admiral skipped up the
+steps into the lobby, Ross and his fellow-traveller following closely.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The policeman naturally asked for no pass from a Flag officer in
+uniform, but he was on the point of stopping his companions when the
+messenger recognized the Admiral as his former captain.  His apologies
+surprised even the stolid policeman.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Don't apologize for doing your duty, my man," remarked Admiral
+Trefusis.  "Hope you're fit.  Must have a yarn with you when I've more
+time.  Come along, Ross."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Having seen Mr. Hyde and Ross safely to the outside of the door of Room
+445, the Admiral abruptly took his departure.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In reply to a knock the door was opened by a very tired-looking clerk,
+who was bravely bearing up under the strain of having to work ninety
+hours a week, including Sundays.  Having explained his business, Mr.
+Hyde was shown into the presence of an official whose talent was little
+short of miraculous.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A dozen precise and pointed questions put him in full possession of all
+the facts bearing upon the document that he required.  He touched an
+electric bell.  An assistant hurried to his desk.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Bring me the papers on the von Ruhle case," he ordered in an undertone.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In less than half an hour the transcription was completed, although the
+<I>Capella's</I> officer of the watch had not taken down the actual
+commencement of the smoke-signal.  Then, having "pressed" the paper in
+order to obtain a duplicate copy, the official placed it in an
+envelope, which he secured with an imposing wax seal.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No mistake about it, the war has bucked the civilian staff at the
+Admiralty," observed Mr. Hyde to Ross as they gained the street.  "I
+can remember a time when all you had to do was to mention someone's
+name, and you had practically a free entry.  Your particular pal could
+always contrive to have an hour's yarn with you, and perhaps an
+interval for refreshment.  They know what working at high pressure
+means now."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Hyde was more cautious on the return journey.  He was well within the
+limit that he had set himself.  An hour and forty minutes later, the
+car drew up outside the coast-guard station.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Captain Syllenger presents his compliments, Mr. Hyde, and requests
+your company on board," said Sub-lieutenant Barry when the <I>Capella's</I>
+boat arrived to take off the midshipman.  "Ton my word, you haven't
+been long.  We didn't expect you back before six o'clock."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Having received his guest, Captain Syllenger led the way to his cabin,
+Barry and Ross being included in the party.  The skipper's face glowed
+with satisfaction when he had opened the envelope, for the signal as
+decoded was as follows:
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"(words missing) closely patrolled.  Unable to provide stores here.
+Will attempt removal of (word missing) from Station 123 on Friday
+night.  Will signal from Station 125 at 1 a.m. on Saturday if possible.
+Transports leaving by Needles Channel at daybreak."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Following this was an explanatory note.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Station 123 is stated to be in Keyhaven Marshes.  Station 125 one mile
+west of white house at Milford-on-Sea."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Humph!" ejaculated Captain Syllenger.  "It looks as if there's trouble
+in store for some gentlemen of marked Teutonic sympathies.  I only hope
+we'll have a chance of being off Station 125."
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap19"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XIX
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+That Friday Night
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+Three hours later H.M.S. <I>Capella</I> received the following order by
+wireless:&mdash;
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Await relief by <I>Taurus</I>, then proceed to Rendezvous Y, Portsmouth
+Command.  <I>Capella</I> to be temporarily attached to Western Inner Patrol."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The meaning of the message was plain to all on board.  The <I>Capella</I>
+was to proceed to Rendezvous Y, which according to Admiralty
+instructions was off Yarmouth, Isle of Wight, where a flotilla of small
+craft was patrolling day and night, as a precautionary measure in the
+unlikely event of any hostile craft forcing the formidable defences of
+the western entrance to the Solent.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At eight on the following morning the <I>Taurus</I> arrived on the station,
+and with the least possible delay the <I>Capella</I> made for the west'ard.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Only one incident marked the run.  A few miles from the Royal Sovereign
+Lightship, the <I>Capella</I> sighted a number of submarines running on the
+surface.  They were on Particular Service, and although opportunities
+for torpedoing a hostile surface craft were very remote, the submarines
+were constantly rendering yeoman service by keeping the approaches to
+the German North Sea ports under close observation.  On rare occasions,
+when a German light-cruiser or destroyer did venture beyond the
+protection of the mine-fields and guns of the land-batteries, British
+submarines were not backward in seizing their chance of letting loose
+"tinfish" against their quarry.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Having arrived off Yarmouth, Captain Syllenger reported himself to the
+senior officer.  He came back beaming.  The <I>Capella</I> was to take part
+in combined sea and land operations for the capture of the German
+agents, who were supplying petrol to one of the submarines, and also
+for the capture of the U-boat.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The eventful Friday evening came at last.  The <I>Capella</I>, in company
+with four first-class torpedo-boats, was to be ready at a signal from
+Hurst to make a dash through the North Channel.  A fleet of armed
+trawlers from the Poole base was to operate farther out to sea, in
+order to cut off the U-boat's retreat should she be lucky enough to
+escape the attentions of the <I>Capella</I> and her consorts.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At ten o'clock the east-going tidal stream began to set through the
+Needles Channel.  Half an hour later it ran with a velocity exceeding
+five knots.  The <I>Capella</I>, moving at a rate equal to that of the tide,
+kept about half a mile from the Isle of Wight shore, with the white,
+occulting light of the Needles just visible to the north of Cliff End
+Fort.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was a perfectly calm night, overcast, but with no wind.  A dull
+rumble, rising and falling in volume, could be heard from the direction
+of the open sea.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Breakers on the Shingles&mdash;a large bank on the starboard hand of the
+Needles Channel," explained Barry in answer to the midshipmen's enquiry.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Then it means that bad weather is approaching," said Ross, who had had
+plenty of opportunities of observing the phenomenon of "ground swells"
+on the North Cornish coast.  "If it's like this, the U-boat won't be
+able to make direct communication with the shore."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The appearance of Captain Syllenger on the bridge put an end to
+conversation.  The officers, by the aid of telescopes and binoculars,
+kept the Hampshire shore under close observation.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+To the naked eye nothing was visible but a dark bank of trees.  Not a
+light was to be seen, although there were several houses in the
+vicinity.  The position of Lymington, in time of peace discernible by
+reason of a strong blaze of light, could only be determined by the
+feeble glow of the high red light marking the course up the river.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It's nearly midnight," observed the skipper.  "If our friends the
+Germans are going to shift their supplies from here to Milford, they'll
+have to be pretty sharp.  Seems to me like a case of 'nuthin' doing'."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Hardly were the words out of his mouth, when the silence was broken by
+a peremptory hail.  The sound travelled clearly across the water,
+although the person shouting must have been a mile and a half away.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Then came the jumbled noise of men's voices, quickly followed by two
+rifle-shots.  The voices then died away, and, as far as the listeners
+on the <I>Capella</I> could hear, all was quiet.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"That's soon over, whatever it was, sir," remarked Barry.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hurst calling up, sir," announced a signalman, as a light blinked
+rapidly from the fort guarding the Hampshire side of the narrow
+channel.  It was the order to proceed at full speed to the position
+previously decided upon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Although the torpedo-boats were speedy craft, the <I>Capella</I> left them
+behind "hands down".  Fortunately there were no search-lights to baffle
+her quartermaster, for those of both Hurst and the batteries on the
+Isle of Wight shore had been previously switched off.  Since the Needle
+Channel was closed to all mercantile shipping, the <I>Capella</I> could, and
+did, without risk, extinguish her navigation lights.  Only the
+phosphorescent spray from her sharp cutwater marked her position.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Suddenly she ported helm, just in time to avoid a collision with a long
+dark shape that proved to be an unterseeboot in the act of diving.  Her
+commander had detected the pulsations of the <I>Capella</I> motors, but he
+was too late.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Round spun the patrol vessel.  From her quarter, a long length of
+something that resembled an exaggerated string of sausages was paid
+out.  At the rate that the <I>Capella</I> was circling, it was impossible
+for the U-boat to escape from her toils.  Dive to a safe depth she
+could not, since the maximum depth was but 5 3/4 fathoms.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The last of the "sausages", to which was attached stout flexible wire,
+disappeared beneath the water.  Then a jerk upon the wire announced the
+gratifying fact that the fugitive submarine had fouled the string of
+sausages, which was in reality a number of gun-cotton charges, primed
+and connected to a powerful battery by means of an insulated wire.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Sub-lieutenant Fox, who was standing by the firing-key, needed no
+orders.  His fingers pressed the ebonite disc.  A hundred yards astern
+of the <I>Capella</I> a column of water was flying high in the air, followed
+by a tremendous roar.  For one minute the vessel rocked violently in
+the agitated waters, then, circling, she made for the spot under which
+the explosion had occurred.  With a splash a mark-buoy was dropped
+overboard to indicate the position of the shattered U-boat.  By this
+time the torpedo-boats had arrived on the scene.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A deuce of a commotion on shore, Barry," exclaimed the skipper.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I should be surprised if there were not, sir," replied the Sub.  "The
+racket was enough to smash every window within a couple of miles of the
+beach.  They're signalling, sir."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"German submarine's boat rowing off.  Intercept her," was the signal
+spelt out by the long and short flashes.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"More work," remarked Barry.  "It's like looking for a needle in a
+bottle of hay.  Shall I order the searchlight to be run, sir?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Very good," replied Captain Syllenger.  "But before you do so you
+might signal to Hurst, and request that all available search-light be
+brought to bear in this direction."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Soon the hitherto pitch-dark sea was flooded in a blaze of light.
+Giant beams from the Isle of Wight shore joined with those of Hurst
+Castle to sweep slowly across the waves, supplementing the twin rays
+projected from the two search-lights on the <I>Capella's</I> bridge.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was indeed a brilliant spectacle.  The <I>Capella</I> and the
+torpedo-boats seemed outlined in silver.  Along the shore as far as
+Hengistbury Head, the low line of cliffs was thrown into strong relief
+against the dark background of sky.  The crest of every wave seemed as
+if made of delicate filigree work.  Nothing afloat could hope to escape
+detection within the radius of action of the concentrated millions of
+candle-power search-lights.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Less than a mile away, and about the same distance from shore, a small
+black object bobbed buoyantly upon the waves.  It was the ill-fated
+U-boat's canvas dinghy, apparently empty.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Down bore the <I>Capella</I>, her search-lights fixed upon the object of her
+search.  The boat was not deserted.  Lying at full length on the bottom
+boards were two men, who had adopted that position, in the vain hope of
+escaping detection.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As the patrol vessel approached, they sat up and raised dolorous cries
+of "Mercy, Englishmen!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Chuck it, Fritz!" shouted one of the British seamen.  "You won't get
+hurt.  You ain't in a strafed submarine now, you know."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Silence!" ordered the skipper.  "Stand by there.  Get that boat
+aboard.  See they don't sling anything overboard."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+There was precious little that the German seamen could throw overboard,
+for when the canvas boat was placed on the Capellus deck it was found
+to contain only a pair of oars and two crutches.  What the German
+sailors hoped to do had they escaped detection was a matter for
+conjecture, for without a compass, food, and water, and in a frail
+cockle-shell with every indication of bad weather approaching, certain
+death stared them in the face.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Finding themselves well treated, the Germans grew quite communicative.
+They freely admitted that they expected to obtain a considerable
+quantity of petrol from their agents ashore.  They did not know their
+names, or if they did they professed complete ignorance on the point.
+Their craft, numbered for some vague reason U7, was built at Altona,
+and completed only a fortnight previously.  In addition to her normal
+crew of twenty-eight officers and men, she carried five officers and
+ten men for instructional purposes.  She was one of four that had come
+round Cape Wrath and the West and South coasts of Ireland, rather than
+risk the hazardous passage through the Straits of Dover, or the almost
+equally dangerous North Channel between Scotland and Ireland.  Two of
+the five were missing; the other was supposed to be in the
+neighbourhood of Cape Ushant.  U7's particular mission was to intercept
+transports that were known to be leaving Southampton for the French
+coast.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The men admitted that they had been tricked.  A light had been flashed
+seaward, and although the signal was not strictly in accordance with
+the prearranged plan, it was sufficiently accurate to delude the U7's
+Lieutenant-Commander.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The German officer had shown considerable skill and audacity in closing
+with the shore so close to the numerous and powerful batteries.  He
+dwelt upon the almost absolute certainty of the gunners devoting their
+attention solely to the Needles Channel, and since it was a little past
+the time of dead low water the intervening Shingles Bank, which in
+places rears itself 20 feet above the sea, would afford an efficient
+screen from the search-lights.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+But he had reckoned without the patrol vessels.  Barely had the
+U-boat's collapsible rowed a hundred yards from her parent when the
+<I>Capella</I> raced up, and promptly put another hostile submarine to her
+credit.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Early next morning, the <I>Capella</I> having returned to her station off
+Yarmouth to await orders, Vernon Haye went ashore in charge of the
+whaler in order to pick up mails and secure fresh provisions.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Arriving alongside the little stone quay, he left a boat-keeper in
+charge and proceeded towards the post office, while the coxswain and
+the rest of the men went in search of the much-desired commodities in
+the shape of fresh butter and milk.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Just as Vernon was about to enter the post office, he nearly collided
+with a very sleepy-looking subaltern in the uniform of the Royal
+Garrison Artillery.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"By Jove, Barraclough!" he exclaimed.  "I didn't expect to see you
+here."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Barraclough was an Upper Sixth man at the same school as Haye, but had
+left four terms previously.  On the outbreak of war he had applied for,
+and had obtained, a commission, and had been stationed, somewhat to his
+disappointment, at Hurst Castle.  Beyond a few false alarms and a
+liberal experience in target practice, his existence at that isolated
+fortress bordered on the monotonous.  He was simply on thorns to be
+able to proceed to the Front; the probability was that he would have to
+"do his bit" for his country at a spot within 20 miles of his home
+until the termination of the war.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Bless my soul, Haye!" he rejoined.  "Whoever would have thought to see
+you here, and in naval get-up.  How long have you been in the Service,
+and what ship are you on?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Only a few weeks; and I'm on the <I>Capella</I> with Trefusis."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Trefusis, eh?  Well, he's a lucky boy to have an Admiral for a father.
+And the <I>Capella</I>?  Then you were in last night's affair?  I heard they
+bagged the submarine."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Rather!" declared Vernon proudly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Barraclough stifled a prodigious yawn.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Jolly glad to hear it.  'Scuse me, but I'm beastly tired.  Had a night
+of it after those spies across yonder.  Didn't turn in till three, and
+at six I had to cross from Hurst to Vic.&mdash;that's Fort Victoria, you
+know&mdash;on duty."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Did you collar them?" asked the midshipman eagerly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The subaltern yawned again.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No," he drawled.  "Worse luck, we didn't; but we had some fun.  You
+know we were warned to watch Keyhaven marshes&mdash;and a dreary spot it is.
+Worse than the most dismal flats on the Essex coast, which is saying a
+lot.  Well, before I tell you what happened, I ought to describe the
+place.  It's a marsh, with patches of dry ground thickly covered with
+furze, that extends from Keyhaven to Lymington River&mdash;about four miles.
+It is separated from the sea&mdash;or rather mud-flats, covered at high
+tide&mdash;by a low bank on which is an apology for a footpath.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Our orders were to post a squad at a certain point where the spies
+were supposed to have hidden a quantity of petrol.  The place in
+question was close to a rifle-butt.  Men were detailed to guard all
+roads leading to the marsh, and to allow all traffic, whether
+motor-cars, carts, or pedestrians, to pass unchallenged.  The sentries
+were on no account to show themselves, except to hold up everything and
+everyone coming <I>from</I> the marsh.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Other men were told off to watch the three available roads between
+Keyhaven and Milford, where the submarine was expected to send ashore
+for her stores, so you see the U-boat didn't stand much chance of
+getting what she wanted.  She copped something she didn't expect.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"As soon as it was dark, my squad left Hurst by motor-boat and landed
+near the toll-house at Keyhaven.  It was almost dead low water, you
+know, or we might have been able to save ourselves a long tramp&mdash;you
+couldn't call it a march.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We followed the wretched footpath, slipping on the slimy mud, and
+either tumbling over each other or else side-slipping into the morass,
+which was a jolly sight worse.  To make a long story short, we took up
+our position, which was in the middle of a circular clump of furze
+within 50 yards of the butts, at ten o'clock.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"There we stuck for nearly two mortal hours, and not so much as a
+chance of having a cigarette.  Of course the men were frightfully keen,
+and it took me all my time to stop them from chin-wagging.  Some of
+them began to get jumpy, swearing they saw all manner of men and things.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I had just looked at my watch&mdash;luminous face, thank goodness&mdash;when my
+sergeant whispered to me that someone was approaching.  It was then
+close on twelve.  He was right.  There were three men ambling
+cautiously along the sea-wall.  They were talking softly.  Once one of
+them stopped, bent under the lee of a furze bush and lit a cigarette,
+which seemed a rummy thing for a spy to do unless it was a prearranged
+signal.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We let them come on until they got within 20 yards, then up popped my
+sergeant.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"'Halt, who goes there?' he shouted, loud enough to be heard a couple
+of miles away.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Bless me if the three fellows hadn't the cheek to answer in exactly
+the same words, although they didn't sound particularly cheerful over
+the job; and, instead of halting, one of them came on, holding a stick
+above his head.  The others didn't seem very keen to follow him, but
+began jabbering away as hard as they could.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"So I gave orders for a couple of shots to be fired over their heads,
+just to let them know what to expect when they deliberately ignore a
+challenge.  But instead of 'hands up' they bolted, with our men after
+them.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Then I had good reason to bless that blessed marsh, for between us and
+the rifle-butt was a deep ditch filled with water, and a nice wire
+fence on the other side.  Half a dozen of us, myself included, were
+floundering up to our waists; the others were lucky enough to avoid the
+ditch by making straight for the path.  But we had the fellows all
+right."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"The spies?" asked Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Barraclough yawned, and then laughed mirthlessly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Nuthin' doing," he replied.  "They were three members of a local
+defence corps engaged in patrolling the marshes.  Goodness only knows
+what for, for they hadn't any weapon with them except walking-sticks.
+Perhaps 'twas as well, though, for they might have let rip in their
+excitement.  When a man's nerves are all upset it's not safe for him to
+have his finger on the trigger of a rifle, you know."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"But the spies?" asked Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Not a sign of 'em," replied the subaltern.  "If they were anywhere
+about, they must have sheered off pretty quickly when they heard the
+racket.  An hour later an orderly brought us word to return to the
+fort, so we guessed that something had taken place between a
+patrol-ship and the submarine.  But I must be on the move.  Regards to
+Trefusis.  If you've a chance to get ashore on the other side, look me
+up."
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap20"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XX
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+To the Rescue
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+Twelve hours later found H.M.S. <I>Capella</I> back on her station off
+Beachy Head.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The long-threatened gale had burst with great violence upon the South
+coast.  Long crested breakers surged towards the chalky cliffs,
+thundering with terrific force against the sheer face of the rocks.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Seaward, as far as the eye could reach, was nothing but a confused
+tumble of foam, backed by a lowering bank of ragged and sombre clouds.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Capella</I> and her consorts had to "stick it".  Without orders they
+dare not seek shelter in Newhaven harbour.  All they could do was to
+forge slowly ahead, keeping bows on to the furious seas.  In spite of
+her shallow draught, the <I>Capella</I> was an excellent sea boat, although
+inclined to be "jumpy".  Frequently green waves broke over the fo'c'sle
+and surged aft as far as the deck-house under the bridge; but with
+unfailing regularity the stanch vessel would shake herself clear of the
+tons of water that had invaded her deck, to be ready to receive the
+next contribution from the hand of King Neptune.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Nevertheless, while the gale lasted it was a time of discomfort.  One
+thing for which the crew were thankful was the fact that it was still
+September, and the gale was not one of those wintry varieties which are
+so trying to the hardy patrollers of the North Sea.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Everything had to be battened down.  'Tween-decks the air was stifling,
+and reeked of fumes from the motors.  It was impossible for a man to
+stand unsupported.  Anything that had not been securely lashed would be
+sure to be flung across the deck by the erratic motion.  No hot meals
+were obtainable.  Officers and crew had to eat as best they might,
+without the use of articles of civilization such as plates and similar
+things.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross and Vernon saw very little of each other during the gale, except
+for a brief interval during the changes of the watch on deck.  Each
+enjoyed his "trick" on deck, as he crouched behind the bulging
+storm-dodgers and faced the howling wind and the stinging spray.  It
+was greatly to be preferred to being below, cooped up in an atmosphere
+which resembled that of an underground scullery on washing-day, with
+the odours of petrol and lubricating oil thrown in as extras.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"One thing we've to be thankful for," remarked Barry, "and that is that
+it's a sou'wester.  It minimizes the chance of being blown up by a
+derelict mine."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"How is that?" asked Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A sou'easter's the brute for that.  Brings with it dozens of German
+mines that have broken adrift from the Belgian coast.  When I was
+stationed at Great Yarmouth we had the same game in easterly gales.  It
+was nothing unusual to find twenty of the brutes lying ashore; and on
+several occasions they have exploded on coming into contact with the
+rocks, and then, especially at night, everyone thought that the Germans
+had at last ventured to risk 'The Day'.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I remember one that came ashore a few miles from Lowestoft.  It was a
+whopper, of a different type from the rest.  An Engineer officer
+brought a dozen young subalterns down to see it and give them an
+object-lesson.  He talked for the best part of an hour, explaining its
+construction, and laying particular stress upon the need of the
+greatest caution when handling it.  Finally he proceeded to explode it
+electrically.  The circuit of the battery was tested and found to be in
+perfect order, and the wires were then connected with the detonator of
+the mine, after the tube containing the fulminate of mercury had been
+removed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"The whole crowd took cover.  The circuit was completed, but the mine
+didn't budge.  They tried three times, and finally came to the
+conclusion that the thing was a dud.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Then a squad of soldiers took pot-shots at it until it was fairly
+riddled with bullet holes, but still the blessed thing wouldn't
+explode.  Eventually it was decided to remove the mine to a laboratory
+for examination, and a team of mules was requisitioned to drag it off
+the beach.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"One of the mules suddenly took it into his head to be a little bit
+premature, for he lashed out, broke away from the traces, and pelted
+down the beach.  When the brute came to the place where the mine lay,
+he found that the tackle which the men had already rove to shift it was
+in his way.  Possibly the sight of a rope upset him, for he backed and
+lashed out with his hind legs&mdash;and up went the mine with a terrific
+bang.  They never found any of the pieces of the mule."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At length, as is invariably the case, the gale blew itself out, and,
+although the sea still ran high, the absence of broken water made it
+possible for the hatchways to be kept open.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The behaviour of the <I>Capella</I> and her consorts was a matter for
+congratulation.  They had stood the test remarkably well, and had
+proved themselves good all-weather craft, provided that they could be
+kept head to wind.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A week later the <I>Capella</I> returned to Southampton to replenish her
+stores, and after three days in port she received orders to proceed to
+the French coast and patrol off Cape Levi, where the presence of a
+hostile submarine had been reported.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+This intelligence was serious.  It meant that, once again, an
+unterseeboot had made its way into the English Channel, and was lying
+on the track of the British transports and hospital ships running
+between Southampton and Rouen.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It took the <I>Capella</I> two hours only to run from The Nab to within
+sight of the French coast.  Even then her motors were not running at
+the maximum number of revolutions.  Extreme speed was only resorted to
+when actually engaged in submarine hunting.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As the vessel closed with the grey cliffs of Normandy, Ross suddenly
+shouted: "Submarine on the port bow!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Less than two cables' length away could be discerned the twin
+periscopes and a portion of the conning-tower.  The submarine was not
+forging ahead; it was simply stationary, except for a slight movement
+caused by the action of the waves.  It certainly was not a British
+craft.  It might be French.  The odds were that it was German, since
+submarines belonging to the allied nations were not in the habit of
+keeping awash, unless in the presence of an enemy.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Quickly the guns, which were already cleared for action, were trained
+upon the visible part of the submarine; but as she made no attempt to
+move, Captain Syllenger refrained from giving the order to open fire.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Thrice the <I>Capella</I> circled round the mysterious craft, at the same
+time gradually closing, since she had nothing to fear from the
+discharge of a torpedo.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I believe she's abandoned, sir," said Barry.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Capella</I> stopped.  Preparations were being made for the lowering
+of a boat, when one of the seamen shouted:
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It's a dud, sir; a blessed decoy-bird!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The man was right.  Upon investigation, the submarine was found to be
+nothing more than a couple of barrels covered with painted canvas.  Two
+thick poles passing vertically through them, and weighted at the
+lowermost ends to give the necessary stability, served as periscopes.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"There's a real submarine knocking about, I'll swear," said the
+skipper.  "Put a shot into those barrels, Morgan."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+One shell was sufficient.  Little more than a hundred chips floating on
+the surface was left of the decoy.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Capella</I> was about to resume her course when a warning cry was
+heard:
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Torpedo coming, sir!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+From a point bearing half a mile on the vessel's port quarter, the
+track of the on-coming torpedo was clearly discernible.  The <I>Capella</I>,
+being without way, would undoubtedly have fallen a victim had it not
+been for her light draught, for before she could forge ahead the
+missile passed under her keel.  Its track could be followed as far as
+the eye could reach, which showed that it was a modern weapon propelled
+with superheated air and having a range of about five miles.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Straight for the source of the missile, tore the British craft, but her
+effort to grapple with the unterseeboot was in vain.  The submarine had
+dived immediately.  No sounds betrayed her presence in the vicinity.
+Had the U-boat been moving, the churning of her propellers would have
+been distinctly audible.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"She's got away, worse luck," growled Sub-lieutenant Fox.  "I wonder
+how she did it?  It's too deep for her to sound, and she can't be
+moving under her own power."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We'll have her right enough," rejoined Barry, the optimist.  "A light
+haze and a calm sea is what we want.  We'll run her down in less than a
+week, you mark my words."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Four days passed.  The <I>Capella</I> kept her station almost without
+incident.  Ship after ship, deeply laden with troops and munitions,
+entered the sand-banked estuary of the Seine, having been escorted thus
+far by destroyers.  Ship after ship, more lightly burdened, left the
+river, homeward bound.  Amongst them were hospital ships, clearly
+distinguishable by their broad green bands and conspicuous red crosses
+on both bows and quarters.  A big action had taken place "somewhere in
+France", and the passing of the Red Cross vessels was the aftermath of
+a dearly-bought victory.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Yet nothing occurred to threaten the constant stream of shipping.  It
+seemed reasonable to surmise that either the U-boat had met with an
+accident or else that she had transferred her energies to another area.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Meanwhile Ross and Vernon had been working hard, improving their
+seamanship.  Under the instruction of the two sub-lieutenants they were
+making rapid progress in navigation; they could fix their position by
+the use of a sextant, were able to use the semaphore, and, generally,
+competent to carry out the duties required as midshipmen of the watch.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Captain Syllenger had long before overcome his prejudices against the
+sons of Flag Officers&mdash;at least in their case&mdash;and even expressed his
+willingness to grant them each a certificate of proficiency, should
+they wish to transfer to one of the cruisers of the Royal Navy.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At length the <I>Capella</I> received orders for recall to her station off
+Beachy Head.  She was to put into Havre to revictual that day, leaving
+at 9 a.m. on the morrow.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The lads were heartily glad when the <I>Capella</I> left the malodorous
+<I>bassin à flotte</I>.  The irksomeness of lying in the harbour at Le Havre
+palled upon them, even after a few hours.  They yearned for the open
+sea almost from the time their ship made fast alongside the grimy quay.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Forty minutes after leaving French waters, the <I>Capella</I> sighted a
+large cargo-boat steaming northwards.  She was high in ballast and
+rolling like a barrel.  On bringing glasses to bear upon her, the
+<I>Capella's</I> officers found that she was the <I>Orontabella</I>, one of the
+vessels chartered by the British Government and fitted as a
+horse-transport ship.  She was doing 16 knots to the <I>Capella's</I> 34,
+and when first sighted was nearly five miles off.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Suddenly a low rumble was heard by the crew of the patrol-vessel.
+Telescopes and binoculars that had just been laid aside were again
+brought into action, and it was seen that the transport was sinking
+rapidly by the stern.  She had been torpedoed under the starboard
+quarter.  The terrific impact of the explosion had torn a large hole,
+besides shattering the rudder and one of the propellers, while all her
+boats in davits were rendered useless by the concussion.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was a matter of but a few moments before she made her final plunge.
+Already signals were fluttering from her stumpy masts&mdash;the well-known
+N.C. (in distress; want immediate assistance) and A.R. (boats are stove
+in).
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Captain Syllenger gave a quick glance astern.  There were other
+vessels, but low down on the horizon.  To expect succour from them was
+for the present out of the question.  He had a double task: to attempt
+to destroy the aggressor, and to rescue the transport's crew.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Prepare to lower boats!" he shouted.  "A midshipman and a couple of
+hands in each.  Guns' crews stand by!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Clang, chang, went the engine-room telegraph.  Like a greyhound, the
+<I>Capella</I> increased her speed, until she was within a quarter of a mile
+of the foundering vessel.  Then reversing engines, she almost lost way
+at less than a cable's length from the transport.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+By this time Ross and Vernon were in their respective boats.  Before
+way was off the ship the falls were paid out and the disengaging gear
+cast off.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Give way, men," ordered Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+His scanty crew, for more men could not well be spared, "gave way" with
+a will, gaining a couple of lengths before his chum was able to push
+off.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+With hardly a pause the <I>Capella</I> dashed off, quickly increasing her
+pace to full speed ahead, in her quest for the U-boat that had launched
+the deadly torpedo.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Orontabella's</I> stern was now under water.  She had a pronounced
+list to starboard.  Dense volumes of smoke and steam, pouring from her
+funnels and hatchways, showed that the water had already invaded her
+boiler-room.  Above the hiss of the scalding vapour and the rush of
+escaping air, could be heard the terrified neighing of a dozen or more
+wounded horses, for whom no escape was possible.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Clustering on the fo'c'sle were about twenty or thirty men, the
+officers and crew who had survived the explosion; for the death-roll,
+especially in the engine-room and stokehold, was very high, men being
+overwhelmed by the inrush of water before they could scramble up the
+steep ladder and through the narrow hatchway.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The waiting men showed no signs of panic.  Those who could swim had not
+troubled to don their cork life-belts, but were calmly engaged in
+lashing their life-saving devices round the shoulders of their less
+fortunate comrades.
+</P>
+
+<A NAME="img-192"></A>
+<H4>
+[Illustration: THE SINKING OF THE &quot;ORONTABELLA&quot; (missing from book)]
+</H4>
+
+<P>
+Ross ordered his men to back towards the foundering vessel.  He
+realized that at any moment the transport might plunge suddenly, and
+the danger of being dragged down by the suction was a thing he had to
+avoid.  There was also a risk of the boat being swamped by the men as
+they clambered on board.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Jump!" he shouted.  "Not too many at a time."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Three men accepted the invitation: two good swimmers and a non-swimmer.
+The former, grasping their struggling companion by the shoulders,
+struck out without much difficulty and reached Ross's boat, where they
+were quickly hauled into safety.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Setting the rescued men to take an oar each, for there were several to
+spare lying on the thwarts, Ross took the whaler closer in, since he
+had now more means of propulsion at his command.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Four more followed, and were picked up by Vernon's men.  Meanwhile the
+bows of the <I>Orontabella</I> were rising high out of the water, as the
+stern sank correspondingly deeper, until those of the officers and crew
+who still remained on board had to cling desperately to the rails to
+prevent themselves slipping into the maelstrom that surged over the
+submerged part of the sinking ship.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Suddenly the vessel dived.  Where a few seconds previously a towering
+mass of black and red plating rose high above the boats, there hung a
+cloud of smoke, steam, and spray, while all around the water was
+thrashed white with foam.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Give way, men!" shouted Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The rowers were too late.  Before the boat could pull clear of the
+scene of disaster, a vicious, crested wave, so hollow that the lean
+quarters of the whaler were unable to rise to it, poured into the frail
+craft.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The next instant Ross and his crew were struggling in the confusion of
+the broiling sea.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Vernon, although farther from the spot, narrowly escaped the fate of
+his chum.  It was surprising what a terrific commotion the
+<I>Orontabella</I> caused at the last.  For some minutes he could see
+nothing beyond the tips of the blades of the oars.  Everything else was
+enveloped in smoke, steam, and spray.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Gradually the waves subsided and the wind dispersed the pall of vapour.
+The sea was dotted with the heads of swimmers.  Ross's boat, with her
+stem and stern-posts just visible above the surface, was waterlogged,
+yet retained sufficient buoyancy to support half a dozen men.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Here, indeed, was a pretty pickle.  At the very most, Vernon's boat
+would hold fifteen or sixteen men.  The <I>Capella</I> was almost out of
+sight.  The whole attention of her officers and crew would be centred
+upon the U-boat.  So long as there was any indication of the latter's
+whereabouts, the patrol-vessel would cling tenaciously to her quest.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+There was very little left floating from the sunken ship.  A few
+gratings, handspikes, a couple of breakers, and fragments of the
+shattered boats, but nothing substantial enough to support a man above
+water; and in mid-Channel, although it was only September, the sea was
+too cold to enable the swimmers to keep afloat very long without almost
+certain danger of cramp.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Vernon looked around for his chum.  He saw him sharing an oar with one
+of the crew.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Come on, my lads!" shouted Ross encouragingly.  "We'll hike her up.
+Half a dozen of you who have life-belts come round this side, and when
+I say 'All together!' lift for all you're worth."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The men obeyed as quickly as they could in the circumstances.  Finding
+that they could easily keep afloat, the non-swimmers had regained their
+confidence.  Piloted by those who could swim, the men ranged themselves
+along one gunwale of the waterlogged whaler.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"All ready?" asked Ross, whose knowledge of how to empty a waterlogged
+Canadian canoe prompted him to try a large, heavy boat.  "Together!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Up rose the boat's gunwale as high as the men's arms could reach, but
+with a dull swish the whaler resumed its former position.  In lifting
+one side the other had dropped deeply beneath the surface, and the
+attempt to shake out the water had ended in failure.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Now then," ordered Vernon, taking his turn to direct operations.  "All
+swimmers get overboard for a few minutes.  Those with life-belts get on
+board, and take off your belts."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In five minutes a dozen cork life-belts were available.  Manoeuvring
+his boat alongside the waterlogged whaler, Vernon gave directions for
+the belts to be lashed underneath the thwarts, so that they were
+completely submerged.  Then taking the whaler's painter he hove taut
+until, added to the lifting powers of the cork and the upward strain on
+the ropes, the gunwale rose a good three inches above the water.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+This done, one of the <I>Capella's</I> men, armed with a baler, began
+throwing out the water from the whaler.  In another five minutes the
+boat showed sufficient buoyancy to allow two more hands to clamber on
+board.  They, too, baled vigorously, with the result that once more the
+whaler was free from water.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Between the two boats, all the survivors of the <I>Orontabella</I> were
+easily accommodated; but when at length the midshipmen looked for the
+<I>Capella</I>, the patrol-boat was nowhere to be seen.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap21"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XXI
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+Adrift in the Channel
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+"She'll be back for us soon," declared Vernon optimistically,
+addressing his chum, for the two boats were within twenty feet of each
+other.  "Can you see any signs of her now?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross stood upright in the stern-sheets and, shading his eyes with his
+hand, gave a careful look in the direction where the <I>Capella</I> was
+supposed to be.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No," he answered.  "And I cannot see any signs of the other vessels we
+saw some time ago.  We'd better let the men rest on their oars."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Unknown to the two midshipmen, they had for the last hour and a half
+been in the grip of the strong west-going tide that surges along the
+French coast.  In that interval they had been carried out of the course
+of the vessels they had sighted, and were some four or six miles from
+the spot where the <I>Orontabella</I> had sunk.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Another hour passed.  The men who had been in the water took the
+opportunity of drying their clothing in the hot sunshine.  They treated
+their misfortune lightly, making very little reference to the loss of
+their vessel.  One would have thought that being torpedoed was almost
+an everyday occurrence.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As the minutes slipped by, it began to occur to Ross and his chum that
+the <I>Capella</I> had missed them entirely.  In another few hours night
+would be coming on, and the prospect of spending ten hours of darkness
+in a couple of open boats in mid-Channel was not at all alluring.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Each boat was equipped with compass, lead-line, signal-book, lamp, box
+of biscuits, and beaker of water.  None of these articles belonging to
+Ross's boat had suffered, in spite of their being immersed, except the
+lamp, for the provisions were in watertight boxes.  Masts and sails
+were not in the boats, having been left on board the <I>Capella</I> when the
+rescuers put off hurriedly on their errand of mercy.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What's the best thing to be done, skipper?" asked Ross, addressing the
+master of the <I>Orontabella</I>.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Well, sir, since you ask me," was the reply, "I'd shape a course due
+north.  We'd be in the track of craft making up and down Channel before
+it gets dark.  If we don't fall in with any vessel, we can carry on.
+'Taint so very far to land, considering the number of hands we've got
+in the boats."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Quickly the available oars were manned, the men being told off in
+relays to row for half an hour at a time, while the skipper of the
+torpedoed boat relieved Ross at the yoke-lines.  The mate, who had been
+picked up by the other boat, was also able to give Vernon a spell.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At six o'clock, a biscuit and a small quantity of water were served out
+to each man, and preparations were made for the approaching night.
+Vernon's boat, which possessed the only lantern that would burn, was to
+take the lead as soon as darkness set in, the light enabling the whaler
+to keep in touch with her consort.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Jolly funny where the <I>Capella's</I> got to," remarked Ross to the
+skipper.  "With her speed she could search a couple of hundred square
+miles by this time."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"'Spose she wasn't torpedoed?" asked the <I>Orontabella's</I> master.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No jolly fear!" replied the midshipman decidedly.  "She's
+torpedo-proof.  We've had plenty of them fired at us, but never the
+least danger of being hit."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It's a good thing the sea's calm," continued the skipper.  "We're
+doing a good four knots.  Twelve hours at the very most ought to bring
+us in sight of the Wight, but we've dropped a long way to lee'ard.
+P'raps it's as well, for it's no joke to be in the thick of the
+cross-Channel traffic at night, with only a tuppenny dip to light us.
+Good heavens!  What's that?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Less than fifty yards from the boat a pole-like object, throwing off a
+double feather of spray, was forging through the water.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A periscope, sir!" shouted half a dozen voices.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross did not require to be told that.  With considerable misgivings, he
+saw the metal shaft rise higher and higher out of the water; then the
+tip of an ensign-staff, followed almost simultaneously by the snout and
+conning-tower of a large German submarine.  Finally the unterseeboot
+rose to the surface, revealing her entire length, which was not less
+than three hundred feet.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+She slowed down.  The aperture in her conning-tower opened and a couple
+of officers appeared.  From hatchways fore and aft, seamen clad in grey
+fearnought coats came tumbling on deck, greeting the British with jibes
+and laughter.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"So you getting on, Englishmen!" exclaimed a leutnant.  "Still it is
+long vay to land, hein?  An' where vos der <I>Capella</I>?  Suppose I tell
+you: we her haf sent to der bottom.  Goot night, ver' goot night.  Our
+ver' kind regards to Jellicoe."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The U-boat forged ahead, then, getting way, made off at high speed.  In
+a quarter of an hour she was out of sight.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I suppose those fellows were telling the truth, old man," called out
+Ross, addressing his chum.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"'Fraid so," replied Vernon.  "They had her name pat, so it looks as if
+the poor old ship's done for.  But, I say, what a whopper of a
+submarine!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"One of the new type, I should fancy," said the skipper of the
+<I>Orontabella</I>.  "I shouldn't be surprised if she were a mine-layer as
+well."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Darkness fell upon the scene.  The men rowed doggedly, Vernon setting
+the course by the simple expedient of keeping the Pole Star in line
+with the boat's stem.  It saved the strain of peering into the compass
+bowl, and in any case the boats were bound to hit the English coast,
+unless they were swamped or run down.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Throughout the long night the steady progress was maintained.  It was
+horribly cold.  Most of the men were lightly clad in imperfectly dried
+garments.  Both Ross and Vernon were glad when the officers of the
+<I>Orontabella</I> relieved them, since they could take turn at the oars and
+derive a certain amount of warmth from the exertion.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Day dawned at last, a brilliant pink sky that betokened bad weather
+before the day was out.  Away on the starboard bow could be discerned a
+grey cliff surmounted by dark hills.  It was the Isle of Wight, distant
+about six miles off.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+With the appearance of the sun the wind freshened, and soon developed
+into a strong breeze dead in their teeth.  Spray began to fly over the
+bows, soon to be followed by green seas, that necessitated constant
+baling.  It was quite evident that every yard of that six miles meant
+desperate work, with the chances of being swamped before the boat
+reached land.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The men, weakened by hunger and exposure, stuck gamely to their task,
+yet after another half an hour's hard pulling the boats seemed no
+nearer their object.  They were barely holding their own against the
+wind and waves.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What's to be done now?" asked Ross, consulting the experienced
+skipper.  Although the midshipman was in charge, he was not above
+asking the advice of a man who had been to sea almost as many years as
+the lad had been days.  "We're hardly making headway, and the sea's
+beating up fast."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"And the men are almost done up," added the skipper.  "It's bound to be
+worse before it gets better.  I would suggest that we ride to a
+sea-anchor, and trust to luck to be picked up."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The men quickly got to work.  A triangle was composed of six oars in
+pairs lashed together, two of the boat's gratings being secured between
+the ash spars.  To the apex the anchor was made fast, in order to make
+the sea-anchor float in a vertical position, its weight compensated by
+the use of the now empty water-beaker as a float.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Secured by three spans of equal length, which in turn were bent to the
+boat's painter, the sea-anchor was dropped overboard.  For some
+distance the whaler drifted to leeward, until held by the strain of the
+painter she rode head to wind, and in comparative safety in the wake of
+the floating breakwater.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Vernon's boat then came close alongside.  Her painter was caught and
+secured, allowing her to ride astern.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The crews were then at liberty to rest, with the knowledge that their
+drift was little more than half a knot.  Yet every two hours they would
+be drifting a mile farther from shore, unless their plight were
+observed by passing vessels.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+By this time the sea was running high.  At one moment the whaler would
+be tossing high upon the rounded crest of a wave, with the other boat
+deep in the trough.  At the next, nothing was to be seen from the
+whaler save an incline of green water and a canopy of dark-grey sky.
+On either side the crests were white with foam, yet, thanks to the
+sea-anchor, hardly a drop of water was taken in over the boats'
+gunwales.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The men sat in silence, turning their backs to the keen wind.  A few
+who had tobacco smoked.  Those who had not were glad to chew the small
+quantity given them by their more fortunate comrades.  As for Ross and
+Vernon, they were glad to doze, lying on the damp bottom-boards with
+their heads pillowed on their arms.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross was almost asleep when he was aroused by one of the men announcing
+that a vessel was in sight.  At the prospect of rescue, all hands were
+alert.  The man was right, for, as the whaler rose on the crests of the
+waves, a dark, grey shape could be discerned through the mirk at a
+distance of about a couple of miles.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Quickly the shape resolved itself into a large four-funnelled cruiser
+pelting down-Channel at full speed.  Unless she altered her course she
+would pass within a hundred yards of the boats.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Lash a shirt to the boat-hook, lads!" ordered Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A few moments of intense anxiety followed.  Then a groan of
+disappointment rose from the men as the cruiser ported helm.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+She was then a couple of miles to windward.  The smoke from her funnels
+drifted around the boats, making it impossible for the derelict men to
+see what she was doing, until the evil-smelling haze dispersed, showing
+the cruiser less than two cables' length away and bearing down towards
+them.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+From her after bridge a seaman was semaphoring vigorously.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Will slow down to windward of you," read the message.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Oars, lads!" ordered Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The bowman of each boat promptly cut the painter.  With renewed spirit
+the rowers bent to their work, and soon the boats were alongside and
+under the lee of H.M.S. <I>Oxford</I>, armoured cruiser of the County class.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+By the aid of bowlines the rescued men were quickly hauled over the
+side.  Without delay the <I>Capella's</I> boats were cut adrift, and the
+cruiser proceeded on her way.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap22"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XXII
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+An Unexpected Capture
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+"I can see no possibility of landing you at present," said the officer
+of the watch, after Ross had reported the events that had led up to the
+rescue of the two boats.  "We're under sealed orders.  We have to make
+for a certain rendezvous at full speed.  When we arrive we shall know
+where we are bound for&mdash;until then we are quite in the dark.  We'll
+wireless, however, and let the Commander-in-Chief at Portsmouth know
+that you are safe."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Have you any news of the <I>Capella</I>?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes; she was mined while in pursuit of a submarine.  It is a dickens
+of a puzzle to know why, for our sweepers were over there early that
+morning and never found a single mine.  Whatever it was, it was not so
+powerful as they generally are, for the <I>Capella</I> was able to make for
+shore and run aground within a few miles of Barfleur.  All hands were
+saved, luckily, but I'm afraid this gale will do for her entirely.
+It's blowing great guns."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Then those fellows on the unterseeboot were wrong," remarked Vernon.
+"They said she had gone down with all hands.  We believe that the
+submarine is a mine-layer, and perhaps it was one of her mines that the
+old <I>Capella</I> bumped against."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Let's hope the patrol-vessels will settle her," rejoined the officer
+of the watch.  "But you must be awfully knocked up.  I'll introduce you
+to your new messmates, and they'll give you a shake-down in the
+steerage flat.  The <I>Orontabella's</I> officers can mess with the
+'warrants', and the men will be berthed for'ard."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Lieutenant stepped to the top of the ladder from the navigation
+bridge.  A couple of midshipmen were standing on the superstructure,
+watching with professional interest the splicing of a six-inch hawser.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Mr. Sefton!" sang out the officer of the watch.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The midshipman ran up the ladder and saluted.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Your messmates for the time being," continued the Lieutenant, after he
+had formally introduced Trefusis and Haye.  "They've had a pretty rough
+time, and they are jolly peckish, I know."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Midshipman Sefton led the two chums below, and piloted them into a very
+long room on the main deck.  It was plainly, nay scantily furnished,
+and appeared at first sight to be utterly cheerless.  Possibly the idea
+was heightened by the fact that frequently the scuttles were obscured
+by the seas that slapped viciously against the cruiser's sides.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"This is the gun-room," explained Sefton apologetically.  "We've had to
+clear it out pretty thoroughly, you know.  No knick-knacks or
+pretty-pretties in war time.  Sorry the other fellows aren't here.
+We're four one-stripers, three midshipmen R.N., and five midshipmen
+R.N.R.&mdash;a jolly lively crowd of us, I can assure you."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He touched a bell.  A messman appeared.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Jones," ordered the midshipman, "a good square meal for two, and jolly
+well look sharp about it."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You've got to be dead nuts on that chap if you want anything done in a
+hurry," explained Sefton after the man had cleared off.  "It's the only
+way to check slackness.  No doubt he gets his own back by giving us
+plum-duff without troubling to extract the cockroaches; but we manage
+to thrive on it.  By the by, I'll tell my servant to sling a couple of
+hammocks for you.  There'll be no need to turn out before dinner."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Sefton hastened below to acquaint the marine who, for the sum of ten
+shillings a month, acted as the budding Nelson's factotum to make the
+necessary preparations for his new chums.  By the time he returned, a
+substantial lunch had been set before Trefusis and Haye.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I say, you fellows," remarked the midshipman; "I notice that
+Eccles&mdash;that's the officer of the watch, you know&mdash;was greasing his jaw
+tackle a good bit.  Did he mention where we are bound for?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Nothing definite," replied Vernon.  "He said that the ship was under
+sealed orders."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Then it's no use hazarding a guess," decided Sefton.  "It might be
+anywhere from China to Peru.  In any case, it's a change from what
+we've been doing&mdash;knocking about in the North Sea, waiting for an
+appointment which the Germans flatly decline to keep.  Four months
+solid, and I've never seen a gun discharged except at target practice."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+During the progress of the meal young Sefton was a little inclined to
+patronize his guests.  Perhaps he did it unconsciously.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"My governor's a post-captain," he observed in the course of
+conversation.  "What's yours?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Only an Admiral," replied Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Is he, by Jove!" exclaimed Sefton.  "Then why the deuce are you a
+'with but after'?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A what?" asked Trefusis, somewhat mystified.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"An R.N.R. man ranks with, but after, an R.N. fellow with equal rank,"
+explained the midshipman.  "It's a fact: look it up in the King's
+Regulations.  But, I say, do you play footer?  We're in a match.
+Gun-room versus Ward-room, coming off this week.  If you play, I'll get
+Cranbury&mdash;he's president of our mess&mdash;to put you in the team."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The meal over, Ross and Vernon were taken to the steerage flat, an
+electrically lighted space out of which opened the cabin of the junior
+officers.  At the after end of the flat, a marine sentry paced day and
+night, his post extending from the stern torpedo-tube to the gun-room
+door on the port side, and to the armoured door on the starboard side.
+Amongst his varied and multitudinous duties, particularly strict orders
+were given him not to allow anyone to put their hands on the
+paintwork&mdash;one of the standing orders dating from the prehistoric days
+before the war, when "spit and polish" were regarded as being
+absolutely essential to the efficiency of H.M. ships.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At three bells in the second dog-watch, the <I>Oxford</I> having arrived at
+the rendezvous, the sealed orders were opened.  It was then found that,
+in company with the <I>Guildford</I> and the <I>Launceston</I>, the cruiser had
+to proceed to Halifax, Nova Scotia, to escort a contingent of Canadian
+troops to Liverpool.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+This was but one of the manifold odd jobs performed by the British Navy
+in connection with the war&mdash;necessary, but without any prospect of
+excitement.  The trip was regarded as a picnic, after weeks of
+monotonous patrol duty, for when 800 miles west of Ireland there was
+little likelihood of falling in with any hostile submarine, while other
+German craft had been swept off the board months previously.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+On the third day out the football match came off.  Ross and Vernon were
+included in the gun-room team, and never before had they participated
+in a rugger match in such strange circumstances.  The <I>Oxford</I> was
+pitching slightly in the long Atlantic swell.  The "ground" was the
+port side of the quarter-deck, nets being rigged up to prevent the ball
+getting very much in touch with the sea.  The fun was fast and furious,
+the referee being inclined to tolerance; and before half-time half the
+players were off the field owing to minor injuries, ranging from the
+smashing of the Assistant Paymaster's eyeglasses to the laying out of
+the portly Engineer-Commander.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Suddenly the <I>Oxford</I> turned 8 degrees to starboard.  The alteration of
+course resulted in a break in the game.  Something out of the usual had
+occurred for the cruiser, which was the leading vessel in line ahead,
+to break out of station.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A bugle sharply sounded the "G"&mdash;officers' call.  For'ard the bosn's
+mates' pipes were turning up the hands.  The Captain, Commander, and
+officer of the watch were on the fore-bridge looking steadily at a dark
+cloud of smoke showing beyond the horizon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was a ship on fire.  The alert officer of the watch had noticed the
+smoke, which was much too dense to be caused by the vessel's furnaces.
+On reporting the matter to the captain, the latter immediately ordered
+the <I>Oxford</I> to be steered in that direction.  As senior officer, he
+gave orders for the other cruisers to stand on that course.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"She's quite a small packet, I should imagine," remarked one of the
+Subs.  "At any rate she's not fitted with wireless."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In half an hour the cruiser was sufficiently near to see clearly the
+distressed vessel.  She was a cargo-boat of about two thousand tons.
+Amidships, flames were mounting fiercely from her hatches.  She had
+stopped her engines, and was preparing to lower boats.  Aft, she flew
+the Stars and Stripes, upside down as a signal of distress.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The ship was doomed.  Fanned by the light breeze, the flames were
+rapidly spreading.  Her cargo undoubtedly consisted of highly
+inflammable material, since it blazed freely, while the smoke smelt
+strongly of burnt oil.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Oxford</I> stopped at four cables' length to windward of the burning
+ship.  She could do nothing beyond rescuing the crew on board.  There
+was no necessity to lower her boats, since the cargo-boat obviously had
+enough for all hands.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At length the boats of the unfortunate ship were lowered.  There was no
+undue haste.  Men deliberately threw their bundles into the arms of
+their waiting comrades before they swarmed down the falls.  The captain
+was the last to leave, a bulge under his coat betraying the fact that
+he had taken the ship's papers with him.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Nothing of an explosive nature in her cargo," said Ross to his chum.
+"Otherwise they would have sheered off a bit quicker.  My word, how she
+does burn!  Isn't it a grand sight?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes," admitted Vernon.  "It's lucky there's help at hand.  Knocking
+about in the boats in mid-Atlantic must be ten times as bad as in the
+English Channel."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I beg to differ," remarked one of the Subs who was standing by.
+"There's not so much shipping, I'll admit, but the waves are longer and
+more regular in mid-ocean.  It's marvellous what an open boat can do
+when she's put to it, except in very broken water."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The boats were now approaching the <I>Oxford</I>.  A monkey-ladder had been
+lowered to enable the men to surmount the lofty side of the cruiser,
+while the sailors, always ready to lend a hand in cases of distress,
+were swarming down to the net-shelves in readiness to receive the
+personal belongings of the American seamen.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Look!" whispered Vernon.  "Isn't that chap like our old pal
+Ramblethorne?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He pointed to a tall, bronzed man clad in canvas jumper and trousers,
+and wearing a grey slouched hat.  He was sitting in the stern-sheets of
+the second boat, with his shoulders hunched and his face half-averted.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Like him?" echoed Ross.  "By Jove, it's he, right enough!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Trefusis was right.  Von Hauptwald, alias Ramblethorne, had succeeded
+in evading the hue and cry after his escape on Harley Bank, and had
+continued to remain hidden in the house of a naturalized German in
+Cheshire until the search for him had somewhat relaxed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He then managed to ship as a fireman on board a vessel bound for
+Montreal, knowing that his chances of getting out of Great Britain
+would be greater if he made for a Dominion port rather than one in the
+United States.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At Montreal he promptly deserted, made his way across the border, and
+thence to New York.  Here he picked up with a German-American
+shipowner, who readily agreed to help him back to Germany.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A cargo-boat, the <I>Tehuantepec Girl</I>, was loading with a cargo
+consisting of cotton, ready-made clothing, and leather equipment.
+Nominally her destination was Leith.  Her manifest and bill of lading
+were made out to that effect, but secretly her skipper had instructions
+to make for Stockholm.  If he were overhauled and taken into Lerwick by
+a British patrol-boat, well and good.  The owners must be compensated
+by the British Government, even if the <I>Tehuantepec Girl</I> was miles out
+of her course for Leith.  On the other hand, if the boat succeeded in
+reaching the Baltic, she would be conveniently "captured", by previous
+arrangement, by a German cruiser or destroyer and taken into Kiel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Unfortunately the fact of keeping secret the real destination of the
+<I>Tehuantepec Girl</I> led to her undoing.  A German dock-hand, who was
+really in the pay of the Teutonic Government, had placed an infernal
+machine in the cargo, setting it to explode two days after leaving New
+York.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In less than a quarter of an hour after the discovery of the outbreak,
+the fire had taken such a firm hold that all attempts to subdue it were
+hopeless.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+And now von Hauptwald, in the disguise of a Yankee deck-hand, was being
+rowed towards a craft which he would have given almost anything to
+avoid&mdash;a British cruiser.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Still, he was not dismayed.  The chances of detection were absurdly
+small.  None of the <I>Tehuantepec Girl's</I> crew knew his true personality
+except the captain, and he was to be handsomely rewarded as soon as the
+spy was safe in German territory.  On the other hand, there might be
+one amongst the 655 forming the complement of the <I>Oxford</I> who might
+recognize the one-time doctor who had lived at Devonport.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Let's get out of his way," suggested Vernon.  "We'll inform the
+Commander, and he will order him to be put under arrest."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I'm not going to budge," declared Ross.  "If he sees us, what can he
+do?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I'm not afraid of him," protested Haye.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Very well, then; let's stop where we are.  He's got to know sooner or
+later."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The first boat had already delivered her human cargo Upon the cruiser's
+quarter-deck.  As each man's name was taken down by the master-at-arms
+he was sent forward.  The first mate remained in conversation with the
+Commander until the arrival of the <I>Tehuantepec Girl's</I> skipper.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Von Hauptwald was one of the last men to come aboard.  As he swung
+himself over the rail he gave a swift glance at the group of officers.
+His eye caught that of Ross Trefusis.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For a moment the spy thought that he was mistaken, but a second glimpse
+confirmed his suspicions.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Steady on there!" shouted the Commander.  "What the deuce are you up
+to?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Von Hauptwald had broken into a run across the quarter-deck.  With a
+bound he cleared the stanchion-rails, and plunged head foremost into
+the sea.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He had realized that to remain on the cruiser meant arrest and ultimate
+death as a dangerous spy.  Better by far to be drowned without further
+delay than to experience all the horrors of lying under sentence of
+death.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He had acted spontaneously, yet there was method in his madness.  By
+running across to the other side of the ship there was little chance of
+the boats being able to pick him up ere he sank for the last time.  Not
+until he rose to the surface did he realize his difficulty.  He was a
+strong swimmer, and the natural instinct to strike out overpowered his
+determination to sink.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+There was a rush of officers and men to the ship's side to see what was
+taking place.  With two exceptions, they thought that the supposed
+seaman had suddenly lost his reason.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Two seamen, one a brawny specimen, the other a red-haired
+middle-weight, dived after the would-be suicide.  Others were on the
+point of following when the Commander restrained them.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Away sea-boat!" was the order.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Oxford</I> was now forging slowly through the water.  During the
+rescue of the <I>Tehuantepec Girl's</I> people, she had drifted rather too
+close to the burning ship to be safe, should an explosion occur.
+Already von Hauptwald was fifty yards astern, with the two seamen
+swimming towards him with powerful strokes.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+His efforts to drown were a failure.  He simply couldn't keep his head
+under.  His attempts to swallow quantities of salt water only increased
+the instinctive motion of the limbs to keep himself afloat.  Bitterly
+he regretted that he had not picked up some heavy metal object during
+his career across the cruiser's quarterdeck.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The approach of his would-be rescuers made him realize the necessity of
+self-destruction.  At the encouraging shout of "Cheer up, old mate,
+you're safe!" spluttered by the leading seaman, he dived, pressing his
+chest with both hands in the hope that he would be able to expel the
+air from his lungs.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A horny hand gripped him by the arm.  He felt himself being drawn to
+the surface.  As his head appeared, he swung round and dealt the seaman
+a powerful blow with his fist.  The man, taken completely by surprise,
+relaxed his grip.  Von Hauptwald's blow had almost broken his shoulder.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Be careful, Ginger!" he shouted to his mate.  "He's fair balmy.  Mind
+he don't plug you."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The second seaman swam in a circle just beyond reach of the spy's arm.
+His attempt to get behind the German failed, for the simple reason that
+von Hauptwald gave no opportunity for an attack in the rear.  The other
+sailor, floating on his back and rubbing his injured arm, was content
+to shout advice and await developments.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The red-haired man was not deficient in courage, but he did not at all
+relish the idea of tackling single-handed a powerfully built
+maniac&mdash;for such he took the spy to be.  He wisely awaited the approach
+of the <I>Oxford's</I> sea-boat, which, manned by four rowers who were
+encouraged by Midshipman Setley, was being urged rapidly towards the
+scene.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Way enough!" shouted the middy.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The bowman boated his oar and leant over the bows.  As he did so von
+Hauptwald avoided his grip, and, seizing the boat's keel, brought his
+head in violent contact with the elm planking.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Then it was that Ginger saw his chance and took it.  Grabbing the
+German by the legs, he hung on like grim death, shouting to his
+comrades to "tackle the lubber".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Within an ace of capsizing the boat, von Hauptwald was hauled on board.
+He fought desperately.  For a moment it seemed as if he would more than
+hold his own against the four seamen, until one of them, seizing a
+stretcher, dealt the spy a crack on the head that laid him senseless
+across the thwarts.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Couldn't help it, sir," exclaimed the man apologetically.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You did perfectly right, Dickenson," said the midshipman.  "He's
+properly mad.  Come on, you men, are you going to bathe for the rest of
+the day?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The victim of von Hauptwald's attack had to be assisted into the boat,
+which, on making the ship, was quickly hoisted and secured.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Meanwhile the <I>Tehuantepec Girl</I> was on the point of sinking.  From
+stem to stern she was a roaring furnace.  Mingled with the roar of the
+flames could be heard the hiss of water coming in contact with the
+red-hot plates, while ever and anon came the crash of metal as the deck
+beams gave way and fell into the hold.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Suddenly she parted amidships.  The flames died out, overpowered by the
+inrush of water.  A thick column of smoke and steam arose as the bow
+and stem [Transcriber's note: stern?] portions floated apart.  Then
+with the roar of escaping air the remains of the Yankee cargo-boat
+disappeared, to find a resting-place 7000 fathoms deep on the bed of
+the Atlantic.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap23"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XXIII
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+Mined
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+"So that accounts for the fellow's behaviour," remarked the Captain of
+the <I>Oxford</I>, after Ross and Vernon had communicated their discovery to
+the Commander, who in turn reported the news to the skipper.  "The
+doctor says he is out of danger, eh?  From a medical point of view, no
+doubt.  Put him in the cells, Master-at-arms.  We'll take good care not
+to land him at Halifax."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Upon arriving at the Nova Scotian port, whither the <I>Oxford's</I> consorts
+had preceded her, the officers and crew of the <I>Tehuantepec Girl</I> were
+landed.  Forty-eight hours elapsed before the transports were ready to
+leave, and thus Ross and Vernon, with most of the officers of the
+cruisers, had an opportunity of a "spell ashore".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+On the homeward run nothing untoward occurred, except that, instead of
+proceeding to Liverpool, the cruisers and their convoy were suddenly
+ordered by wireless to make for the Clyde.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Off the Pladda Light the transports were met by a flotilla of
+destroyers, while the cruisers were ordered to proceed via Cape Wrath
+to rejoin the fleet at Rosyth.  Without slackening speed the three
+cruisers flung about, and steered a course immediately opposed to the
+one they had previously been following.  Experience had told them that
+speed was one of the essentials to safety, even when in land-locked
+waters such as the Firth of Clyde.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You don't look like leaving us in a hurry," remarked Midshipman
+Sefton, when he communicated the latest change of plans to Trefusis and
+his chum.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We don't mind in the slightest," Ross hastened to assure him.  "It's
+jolly comfortable on board the <I>Oxford</I>."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Wait until we're ordered straight away for patrol work," said Sefton.
+"It's more than likely that we may be pushed off to the Norwegian coast
+without having so much as a sniff at Rosyth.  We'll just about hit the
+equinoctial gales, and in those latitudes they get ice and snow pretty
+early in the autumn.  But, by the by, I heard the doctor tell the
+Commander that your pal, von Hauptwald, is in a pretty state of funk."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I shouldn't wonder," replied Ross.  "A court-martial will make it
+pretty hot for him."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It's hardly that," said Sefton.  "The fellow's absolutely crazy with
+fear.  He's been imploring the master-at-arms and the sentry on the
+cells to ask the skipper to shift him above the water-line.  It's only
+since the ship arrived in home waters, so it seems as if he's in mortal
+dread of being cooped up below and the <I>Oxford</I> being mined or
+torpedoed."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"And what did the Captain say?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Merely told the M.A.A. to carry on.  Since the cells are below the
+water-line, and the King's Regulations say that prisoners are to be
+placed in cells, that ends the matter."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Passing through the Little Minch, and continually steering an erratic
+course in order to baffle any unterseebooten, should they be operating
+off the West coast of Scotland, the <I>Oxford</I> rounded Cape Wrath.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In spite of a rapidly falling glass the weather still remained fine,
+although the heavy swell encountered off the coast of Sutherland and
+Caithness betokened, in conjunction with the barometer, a gale at no
+distant date.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"This will be you fellows' last night on board," remarked Farnworth,
+one of the Acting Sub-lieutenants, as Ross and Vernon prepared to turn
+into their hammocks after a strenuous sing-song in the gun-room mess.
+"We'll be at Rosyth before noon to-morrow.  'Fraid it's been a bit tame
+after the <I>Capella</I>.  Beyond that affair of the <I>Tehuantepec Girl</I>
+there hasn't been much doing.  The small fry get all the excitement,
+I'm sorry to say.  These armoured cruisers seem to be neither fish,
+fowl, nor good red herring in these times."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It seemed to Ross that he had been asleep only a few minutes when he
+was suddenly awakened by a terrific crash, followed by a concussion
+that shook the cruiser from stem to stern.  His hammock rolled so
+violently that he promptly fell out on the floor of the flat.  Before
+he could rise, the occupant of the next hammock tried his level best to
+thrust his toes into Trefusis' mouth.  The rest of the midshipmen, who
+were watch below, were either thrown from their hammocks or had leapt
+hurriedly from them.  The electric lights were out.  The shock had
+either shattered the carbon threads or had broken the wires.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Torpedoed!" exclaimed a junior midshipman.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Dry up!" ordered Sefton sternly.  "On deck all of you; there's the
+'Action' bugle&mdash;no, it's 'Collision Stations'."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Just then a light appeared.  The sentry in the steerage flat had lit
+one of the bulkhead lamps, which are always in readiness for use in the
+event of a break-down in the electric current.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The cruiser was listing perceptibly to starboard.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+She was in danger of turning turtle and foundering, but even in the
+face of death not one of the handful of young officers showed the
+faintest sign of fear.  If in their inmost minds the lads were a little
+timorous, they bravely kept their feelings to themselves.  They were
+part and parcel of a British warship's complement.  They had a
+reputation to maintain&mdash;the reputation of a Navy dating back for
+centuries.  It was in safe keeping, for the <I>Oxford's</I> midshipmen were
+made of the right stuff.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A few made a hasty dive into their sea-chests to make sure of some
+precious article.  Others scrambled into their thick coats, bantering
+each other as they did so.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Overhead, the noise of hundreds of feet could be heard as the men
+doubled aft to the quarter-deck.  Above the tumult rose the shrill
+pipes of the bos'n's mates' whistles, and the hoarse shouts of "On
+deck, every mother's son of you!" bawled by a leather-lunged petty
+officer.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We don't want to leave you, but we fear that we must go," parodied one
+of the midshipmen, giving a farewell glimpse into the gun-room that had
+been his home for the last fifteen months.  "Come on, you fellows,
+who's going to enter for the long-distance swimming race?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Up the ladder swept the throng of youthful humanity, followed by the
+sentry, who had received orders to abandon his post.  On the half-deck,
+the gun-room officers met the swarm of senior officers issuing from
+their cabins, mostly clad in pyjamas and uniform caps.  The
+Gunnery-lieutenant was afterwards heard to declare solemnly that he had
+seen the Paymaster issuing from the ship's office with the ledger on
+his head, while under his left arm he held his cap.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Let's stick together, old man!" exclaimed Ross as the chums gained the
+quarter-deck.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The first hurried rush aft had now given place to strict discipline.
+The men were falling in as calmly as if mustered for divisions.  Some
+were blowing up their pneumatic swimming-collars, others helping to
+adjust a comrade's life-belt.  A few were joking and talking, none of
+the officers gainsaying them.  By virtue of an unwritten law the men
+were allowed to smoke, and the odour of strong tobacco wafted across
+the broad quarterdeck.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Got a fag, Lofty?" Vernon overheard a burly stoker ask his neighbour.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No; I don't smoke, mate," replied the man.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You will soon," replied the stoker, and a roar of merriment rose from
+the lips of the men within hearing.  They thought the retort was a
+smart bit of humour, and, when at length the implied nature of the
+man's words dawned upon him, even Vernon had to smile.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+From the after bridge, search-lights were playing upon the waves.  The
+light quick-firers were manned ready to deal with any visible foe.  On
+the navigation bridge the Captain, with the officer of the watch, was
+pacing calmly up and down the slightly inclined structure.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Presently he was joined by two dark forms&mdash;the Commander and the
+carpenter.  A bugle sounded the "Still".  A hush fell upon the swarm of
+humanity, the silence being broken only by the hiss of escaping steam,
+and the rush of water under the action of the powerful Downton pumps.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"My lads!" shouted the skipper.  "The old ship is holding out.  We'll
+get her into dock yet.  Pipe down!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Oxford</I> had not been struck by a torpedo.  Examination showed that
+she had bumped against a mine, with the result that the fore
+compartments were flooded.  Fortunately the transverse bulkhead and
+watertight doors withstood the strain of the terrific inrush of water.
+Although well down by the bows the cruiser was in no immediate danger.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The watch below disappeared from sight; those of the officers who were
+not on duty retired to their cabins, yet few of them slept again that
+night.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As Ross and his chum were about to leave the quarterdeck, the Commander
+strode by.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Pass the word for the master-at-arms," he ordered.  "Master-at-arms
+went below, sir, to release the prisoners," reported a petty officer.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"By Jove!" whispered Ross.  "I'd clean forgotten Ramblethorne.  I
+wonder how he liked the business?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Let's wait," suggested Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+They took up their position on the leeward side of the after 7.5-inch
+gun-shield.  Here they were sheltered from the wind and out of sight of
+the alert Commander, although they could hear what was being said.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Master-at-arms is in the sick-bay, sir," reported the messenger as he
+came up at the double.  "He's nearly done for, trying to get to the
+prisoners.  The ship's corporal managed to release the two ordinary
+seamen, but the spy's done in, sir&mdash;I mean he's drownded."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Almost immediately following the explosion, the master-at-arms had
+hurried to the cells.  The flat was in darkness.  The sentry on No. 6
+post, in charge of the prisoners, was lying stunned on the floor of the
+passage.  Water was surging aft.  Already it was up to the knees of the
+master-at-arms as he plunged through the gloom towards his goal.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The three prisoners were shouting in mad panic.  They realized their
+awful peril.  Caged like rats in a trap, they felt certain that the
+cruiser was foundering, and that they would be carried down in a living
+tomb until the pressure of water burst open the comparatively strong
+steel walls of the cell.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At length the chief of the ship's police forced the door of the
+nearmost cell.  By sheer good luck he inserted the key into the lock
+without having to fumble for the opening.  The prisoner, a young seaman
+who had broken out of the ship at Halifax, was too terrified to know
+his way to safety.  He clutched at the master-at-arms, following him to
+the next cell.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The water was now waist-deep.  In trying to find the keyhole the
+master-at-arms dropped the keys.  It took some minutes to find them&mdash;a
+loss of valuable time.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The noise of the inrushing water was deafening.  For all the petty
+officer knew, the ship might be about to make her last plunge.  Yet his
+duty lay before him.  At the risk of his life the prisoners must be set
+free.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A light appeared upon the scene.  A ship's corporal, bearing a lantern,
+descended to the flat with the laudable intention, of assisting his
+superior.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The door of the second cell flew open, but a rush of water on the
+flood, under the movement of the stricken vessel surged and swept the
+master-at-arms off his feet.  His forehead came in violent contact with
+the steel frame of the door, and, rendered senseless, he dropped
+inertly upon the flooded floor of the passage.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Pull yourselves together, men!" exclaimed the corporal to the two
+prisoners.  "You're all right.  Bear a hand here."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Together they carried the unconscious master-at-arms out of the flat.
+The corporal returned to liberate the occupier of the third cell&mdash;von
+Hauptwald.  But once again the keys were missing, having slipped from
+the insensible man's hand.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The water in the confined space was now shoulder-deep.  The corporal
+could hear the stout bulkhead groaning under the pressure.  Fixing the
+lantern on a bracket he dived, groping with both hands for the keys.
+At length he found them, and threw open the door of the cell.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Out you come!" he shouted.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+There was no reply.  Von Hauptwald had ceased to shout for some
+minutes.  The silence was ominous.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A movement of the badly stricken ship sent the water well over the
+corporal's head.  He was swept off his feet.  It was time for him to
+get back to safety.  He had done all he could.  The spy was dead.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap24"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XXIV
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+"Shrap"
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+It was late in the afternoon when the <I>Oxford</I> arrived, under her own
+steam, at Rosyth.  Although the dry docks were in use, accommodation
+was quickly found for the damaged cruiser by the simple expedient of
+floating out a battleship that was being cleaned and recoated with
+anti-fouling composition.  Since speed is an absolute necessity for
+efficiency in war-time, it was the practice to dock all the ships of
+the battle-cruiser and armoured cruiser class in rotation, the margin
+of safety being sufficient to allow this to be done without impairing
+the strength of the squadrons.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+By the aid of powerful arc-lamps the dockyard hands took the crippled
+<I>Oxford</I> into dock, and, the caisson having been replaced, the water
+was quickly pumped out.  The damage done was found, on examination, to
+be limited to a space extending 30 feet from the bows.  The actual
+aperture caused by the explosion measured 6 feet by 30 inches, but the
+adjacent plates had been buckled and the bolts "started" under the
+violent concussion.  Well it was that the armoured bulkhead had
+withstood the strain, otherwise nothing could have saved the ship.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+There was no delay in setting to work.  Almost before the last of the
+water had been pumped out of the dock, stagings were built up round the
+bows, and scores of shipwrights set to work to rebuild the damaged
+portion of the hull.  Under normal conditions the work would have taken
+a couple of months, but, by working day and night, the efficient
+dockyard staff hoped to effect repairs within nine days.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Since the commencement of the greatest war the world has ever yet seen,
+it was the custom to allow the officers and crews of torpedoed or mined
+ships&mdash;if they were fortunate enough to be numbered amongst the
+survivors&mdash;seven days' leave.  A rest on shore was necessary for the
+crews to recover from the mental shock, for it was found that although
+the men might escape from physical injury and appear bright and
+cheerful immediately after the occurrence, the reaction was most marked
+at about forty-eight hours afterwards.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross and Vernon, although not borne in the books of the <I>Oxford</I>,
+received permission to go on leave.  Since Haye's father was somewhere
+in the North Sea, and he had no near relatives, he gladly accepted
+Ross's offer to sample again the hospitality of Killigwent Hall.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was late when their train arrived at King's Cross; so much so that
+the lads realized it would be useless to attempt to catch the Cornwall
+express that would land them at St. Bedal just before midnight.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I vote we have an evening in town," suggested Vernon.  "Let's go to a
+theatre.  It seems ages since I was inside a music hall, or even a
+picture palace."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"All right," agreed Ross.  "We'll have a jolly good square meal before
+we go.  I know of a decent little hotel just off the Strand."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The two midshipmen took the Underground as far as Charing Cross.  As
+they emerged from the station they renewed their acquaintance with the
+metropolis in war-time.  The streets were plunged in almost Stygian
+darkness.  Omnibuses and taxicabs crawled painfully through the gloom;
+pedestrians were cannoning into each other at every step.  The only
+relief to the blackness were the two search-lights from the Admiralty
+Arch that swung like gigantic pendulums across the dark and misty sky.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Let's get out of it," exclaimed Ross, as he just managed to save
+himself from being run down by a motor-car.  "It's a jolly sight more
+dangerous than keeping the middle watch on the old <I>Capella</I>."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Five minutes later they were sitting down to an ample dinner, provided
+at a cost that proved pretty conclusively the futility of the German
+submarine blockade.  In the well-lighted room there was little to
+suggest that business was not proceeding "as usual", except perhaps the
+predominance of khaki-clad officers.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A string band was discoursing the latest operatic music, the diners
+were laughing and chattering.  Within, the gaiety and light-heartedness
+contrasted violently with the dismal gloom inflicted upon the
+metropolis as a result of precautions adopted by the triple authorities
+responsible for its defence against air-craft.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Presently the band finished one item on the programme.  The comparative
+silence that followed was almost immediately interrupted by a series of
+sharp reports, punctuated by a deeper crash.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Zepps!" exclaimed a dozen voices.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Instantly there was a rush&mdash;not for the deep cellars underneath the
+building, but for the open street.  The white faces of a few of the
+guests showed that they had, perhaps, a little anxiety, but for the
+most part an excitable curiosity took possession of the crowd.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Come on!" exclaimed Ross to his chum.  "Let's see the fun.  We haven't
+had a chance of seeing a real Zepp before."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The lad's words voiced the thoughts of nine-tenths of the dwellers of
+the metropolis who were within sight of the would-be Terror of the Air.
+Useless, indeed, were the official warnings as to the right thing to be
+done when the Zeppelins came.  One man, however, drew a respirator from
+a hand-bag and proceeded to don it, until a roar of laughter from the
+stream of people issuing from the hotel caused him somewhat
+shamefacedly to replace the useless article.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Into the street the lads elbowed their way.  The progress through the
+long corridor of the hotel reminded them of a football scrum.  It was
+not the blind rush of panic; merely a desire to lose nothing of the
+"fun".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A couple of thousand feet overhead, a silvery-grey, bluff-pointed
+cylinder was moving with apparent slowness.  Half a dozen search-lights
+concentrated their beams upon it.  All around were rings of smoke,
+marking the bursting shells from the anti-aircraft guns; yet,
+apparently untouched by the hail of bullets, the giant gas-bag passed
+on, hurling out death and destruction upon the greatest city on
+earth&mdash;a city that, until the present war, had only once heard the
+thunder of hostile guns.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Breathlessly the lads watched the progress of the huge Zeppelin,
+momentarily expecting it to collapse and come tumbling, a tangled mass
+of flaming wreckage, to the ground.  Viewed from below, it seemed
+impossible for the airship to escape the bursting shells.  The air was
+rent by the crash of falling bombs and the sharp reports of the
+"anti's", while in the distance could be heard the clatter of broken
+glass.  The explosive bombs wrought havoc upon the homes of harmless
+Londoners.  Flames, too, were springing up, throwing a lurid glare upon
+the sky.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Yet, unless actually within radius of the German explosives, the
+populace was remarkably calm.  Men, women, and children watched the
+Zeppelin, much in the same way as if they were witnessing a Brock's
+display at the Crystal Palace.  Once again German frightfulness had
+failed&mdash;and failed badly&mdash;to attain its desired end.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hurrah!  She's got it properly in the neck," shouted an excited
+special constable, as the Zeppelin gave a sudden lurch and began to
+drop at an acute angle.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+But the next instant the silvery envelope was hidden in a cloud of
+dense black smoke.  Seconds passed, but no shattered wreckage streamed
+earthwards.  When the vapour dispersed, the Zeppelin was nowhere to be
+seen.  Under cover of the smoke-cloud she had dropped a large quantity
+of ballast, and had soared skyward to a great altitude.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Gradually, like the rumble of a passing thunderstorm, the reports of
+the distant anti-aircraft guns died away.  The Zepps had taken
+themselves off, leaving half a dozen fires and hundreds of more or less
+damaged buildings to impress upon the strafed English that insularity
+is no longer a protection from the cowardly night-raiders of the air.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"The show's over," declared Ross.  "I vote we turn in.  By Jove,
+there'll be a rush to the recruiting offices to-morrow!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Requesting to be called at eight, the two midshipmen entered the lift
+and were whisked up to their room.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What's that noise?" asked Vernon, pausing in the midst of unpacking
+his portmanteau.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Something in the corridor," replied Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I don't think so.  It's something or someone under my bed.  Lock the
+door, old man; no, don't ring, if it's a burglar we'll tackle him."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Haye knelt by the bedside, Ross standing behind him ready to grapple
+with the intruder.  Cautiously Vernon lifted the valance.  As he did so
+he quickly withdrew his hand, which had come in contact with something
+warm and moist.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Dash it all!" he exclaimed.  "It's a dog.  Come out, sir!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He was right.  The animal gave a low whine, but made no attempt to
+budge.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Mind the brute doesn't fix you," cautioned Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No fear," replied his chum confidently.  "All dogs take to me.  Come
+along, old boy."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Again he groped with his hand.  His fingers touched the long, silky
+hair on the animal's neck.  Slowly he drew the creature from its place
+of concealment.  It was a sheep-dog pup, of about four months.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Pretty-looking dog," exclaimed Vernon.  "I wonder how it came here?
+Suppose it was frightened at the racket.  It looks terrified out of its
+wits.  Good dog!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The pup fixed its large brown eyes upon Vernon's face, and attempted to
+wag its stumpy tail.  As it did so the lads discovered that its hind
+quarters were tinged with blood.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Oh, you poor little beggar!" said Vernon sympathetically.  "However
+did you get that?  I say, Ross, fill that basin with water."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Better send for the boots," suggested Trefusis.  "He'll take it to a
+vet.'s, or perhaps he'll know whose dog it is."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Not much chance of finding a vet. at this time of night," objected
+Vernon.  "Even the chemist will be busy with minor casualties.  No, I
+won't worry the management.  I've doctored dogs before now."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He began bathing the matted hair.  The flow of blood had ceased, but
+upon examining the wound he found that it was a small circular incision.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He felt the spot.  The pup, hitherto patient, uttered a low moan.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"There's something hard there," reported Vernon.  "It's only a little
+way under the skin.  We'll have it out.  Hold his head, old man.  Don't
+let him yelp; keep your hand over his muzzle.  I'm afraid I must hurt
+the poor little beggar a bit."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Using the little blade of a knife, Haye adroitly probed the wound.
+Soft-hearted as he was, the action seemed to hurt him more than the
+patient; but his efforts were rewarded by the extraction of a small
+steel ball.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A shrapnel bullet!" exclaimed Ross.  "That accounts for the poor
+little brute being in such a terrible funk.  Give him a drink of water.
+He'll be better now.  We can bandage the wound with our handkerchiefs."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Five minutes later the dumb patient, his hind quarters swathed in
+elaborate bandages, was lying contentedly upon the hearth-rug, his
+stumpy tail, protruding between the folds of linen, wagging, as he
+tried to express his gratitude in doggy fashion.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Now what's to be done?" enquired Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Let him stop until morning," replied Vernon decisively.  "There might
+be a row if the hotel people know that there's a dog in the bedroom.
+The owner can't be much of a chap if he doesn't make enquiries."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Perhaps he hasn't missed the dog," suggested Ross; "or it's just
+likely he isn't stopping at the hotel.  Well, here goes.  I'm turning
+in."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ten minutes later both midshipmen were fast asleep.  They had no middle
+watch to keep, and as for Zeppelins, they were merely a passing show.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At daylight Vernon was awakened by something licking his face.  The
+pup, having shown his contempt for bandages by biting them to ribbons,
+was standing on his hind legs and licking his benefactor's nose, while
+his tail was wagging with the rapidity of the flag of an expert
+signaller.  The hardy little animal had made light of his wound.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Having dressed, the midshipman made enquiries of the waiter, but
+without satisfactory results.  No one in the hotel had a dog.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I'll report him to the police," decided Vernon.  "Ten to one the owner
+won't claim him.  At any rate I'll stick to him.  He's awfully fond of
+me already."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+After breakfast Vernon sent the obliging waiter to purchase a collar,
+for the sheep-dog was wearing none.  Sticking closely to Vernon's
+heels, the pup followed his new master to the police station, where an
+inspector took down a number of particulars.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Very good, sir; that's all I want.  I don't fancy you'll hear any more
+about it."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What are you going to call him?" asked Ross, as the chums were seated
+in a first-class carriage, with the dog at Vernon's feet, on their way
+to Cornwall.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Zepp," replied Vernon promptly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Not patriotic," objected Ross with a laugh.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I think so," rejoined his chum.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Why?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Because, like last night's Zeppelin, he turned tail when he had a
+shrapnel bullet in his stern."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"That's all very well," said Ross, "but you can't explain all that to
+everyone.  Why not call him Shrapnel?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"All right.  'Shrap' for short," agreed Vernon.  "Good boy, Shrap!  Wag
+your tail, you little rascal."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+And Shrap obeyed promptly.  Evidently the choice of a name reminiscent
+of bodily injury troubled him not one jot.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap25"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XXV
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+Off the Belgian Coast
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+"A chance of seeing something exciting at last!" exclaimed Ross.  "Of
+course we've not had altogether a dull time, but this ought to be
+absolutely 'it'."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Two months had elapsed since the lads saw a hostile air-ship over
+London.  Now they were about to see what a fleet of heavily armed
+British ships could do&mdash;not against a practically defenceless town, but
+against the strongly fortified German batteries on the Belgian coast.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Trefusis and Haye were on board the <I>Capella</I>, lying in the outer
+harbour at Dover.  It was not the <I>Capella</I> that had come off
+second-best in an encounter with a floating mine, but another, similar
+in almost every respect to the lost patrol-boat.  She was manned, too,
+by the same officers and crew&mdash;with one exception.  Sub-lieutenant John
+Barry had obtained his promotion, and had been appointed to H.M.S.
+<I>Hunbilker</I> in command.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+What the <I>Hunbilker</I> was, no one on board the <I>Capella</I> knew.  The
+Admiralty publications at their disposal were blank as far as that ship
+was concerned.  Speculation ran high: some of the officers expressing
+their opinion that Barry's command was a subsidized cargo-boat; others
+that she was one of the mosquito flotilla that had been evolved out of
+modern naval requirements.  All were wrong, as they had yet to learn
+something more of the type of vessel flying the White Ensign that was
+helping to sweep the seas of the Black Cross of Germany.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Well, old boy, how do you think you will like the racket?" asked
+Vernon, stooping to pat the massive head of a healthy-looking
+sheep-dog.  Shrap had been allowed, by the Captain's permission, to
+join the <I>Capella</I> as a mascot&mdash;the pet of both officers and crew, and
+of Vernon Haye in particular.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Shrap winked knowingly, then trotted off to a secluded part of the
+chart-room, where, under a locker, he had hidden the remains of what,
+half an hour previously, had been Sub-lieutenant Fox's shaving-brush.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Capella</I> was by no means the only craft rolling sluggishly in the
+vast artificial harbour.  There were seven motor patrol-vessels,
+specially detailed for the forthcoming operations as tenders to the
+sea-planes.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A strong array of monitors, craft of ugly but utilitarian design,
+low-lying, and mounting two 14-inch guns, had assembled for the purpose
+of making it hot for the Hun on the morrow.  Only light-draughted craft
+were to be employed in the attack, since they could approach within
+very effective range of their guns, and at the same time stand little
+chance of being torpedoed by a handful of unterseebooten that had been
+transported in sections to Zeebrugge and there fitted for service.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+According to the Admiral's plan, the monitors were to approach Ostend
+just after daybreak.  In the offing a number of empty transports were
+to assemble, protected by a powerful flotilla of destroyers.  The
+appearance of these transports would be taken by the Germans as an
+indication of an attempted landing of a British force, and troops would
+be hurriedly massed to repel the threatened invasion.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The monitors were thereupon to fire a certain number of rounds, then,
+followed in a parallel course by the transports, make for Zeebrugge.
+Alternate visits to both the Belgian ports in German hands were to be
+made throughout the day, thereby wearing out the German troops in
+fruitless marching and counter-marching, and at the same time diverting
+a strong body of men from a section of the trenches upon which the
+British troops were to deliver a sudden and unexpected assault.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At four in the morning the monitors began to leave Dover Harbour.
+Thanks to the stringent military precautions taken in the
+town&mdash;precautions that could with decided advantage be imitated
+elsewhere&mdash;the presence of spies was almost, if not quite, a matter of
+impossibility.  Unheralded by the Kaiser's agents, the small yet
+powerful vessels cleared the entrance to the breakwater and headed for
+the Belgian coast.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+An hour later a masthead lamp blinked from the <I>Vega</I>&mdash;the senior
+officer's ship of the patrol flotilla.  Then, in line ahead, the swift
+motor craft slipped quietly out of the harbour to overtake their slower
+consorts.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Capella</I>, like the rest of her sister ships, was cleared for
+action.  Stanchion-rails were unshipped; everything likely to splinter
+was sent below.  In the wake of the armoured protection, sandbags were
+placed to reinforce the steel plating.  Although the patrol-vessels
+were not to take part in the bombardment, they had to be prepared in
+case a forlorn hope in the shape of a few German torpedo-boats might
+attempt a sudden onslaught.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As attendants upon the sea-planes, too, it was possible that the
+patrol-boats would have to approach within range of the garrison
+artillery, especially in the event of one of the aerial craft being
+disabled and falling into the sea, on its return from "spotting" the
+hits of the monitors' guns.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Dawn had not yet broken when the monitors, followed at two miles'
+distance by the motor patrol, came in sight of the search-lights on the
+low-lying Belgian coast.  Beyond the limit of direct rays, yet within
+range of their monster guns, the monitors were safe from detection.
+All that was wanting was the presence of the sea-planes, for whose work
+daylight was essential.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Slowly a pale light spread on the north-eastern horizon.  The short
+wintry day was breaking.  The sea was calm.  The air was piercingly
+cold.  A thin coating of frost covered the <I>Capella's</I> deck.  Ross and
+his chum were heartily glad of their thick pilot-coats, mufflers, and
+woollen "mitts", as they sheltered behind the breast-work erected on
+the bridge.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Captain Syllenger slowly paced the bridge, frequently glancing at the
+clock in the chart-room, since it was almost a matter of impossibility
+to consult his watch, owing to his generous accumulation of clothing.
+It was now nearly eight o'clock, but as yet there were no signs of the
+expected sea-planes.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Just then the dull morning light was pierced by a brilliant flash from
+one of the monitors.  The watchers on the <I>Capella's</I> bridge could see
+the low-lying hull give a decided jerk in a sternward direction under
+the reaction of the enormous projectile.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Long before the shell reached its objective, other 14-inch guns added
+their quota, and the air was rent with the flashes of the ordnance and
+the ear-splitting detonations following the discharge.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"By Jove!" exclaimed Sub-lieutenant Fox, who with his brother officers
+had had telescopes levelled upon the faintly outlined sand dunes.
+"There are the sea-planes!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He was right.  Flying at a great height the air-squadron had passed
+over the warships, and had taken up their observation stations without
+being seen or heard by anyone on board the patrol-vessels immediately
+over the German batteries, they were cutting "figure eights" and
+describing seemingly erratic circles, while the observers, coolly
+wirelessing the results of the monitors' shells, hardly heeded the
+furious fire directed upon them by the hostile anti-aircraft guns.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+On a point extending for nearly three miles, the shore was torn by the
+terrific explosive shells.  Clouds of sand, and yellow smoke mingled
+marked the scene of destruction, as battery after battery was spotted
+and promptly put out of action.  Across the dunes could be seen swarms
+of ant-like figures&mdash;German troops flying for shelter from the
+devastating fire of the British guns.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+But the action was by no means a one-sided one.  Guns, large and small,
+replied; the heavier ordnance vigorously at first, and then gradually
+slackening down as the lyddite shells sought out the fixed
+emplacements.  The lighter guns, mounted on armoured motor-cars, gave
+more trouble, since, after every shot, each piece was moved a hundred
+yards or more.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For several minutes the lads watched the unusual spectacle through the
+binoculars.  Then something resembling a concentrated tornado screeched
+above their heads.  Instinctively they ducked, the glasses falling from
+their hands.  Ten seconds later Ross ventured to look up.  Vernon was
+still holding his hands over his face.  Then slowly he, too, opened his
+eyes.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The lads smiled sadly at each other, picked up their binoculars, and
+somewhat shamefacedly resumed their former positions.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was their baptism of heavy gun-fire.  A 42-centimetre shell had
+ricochetted and leapt full twenty feet above their heads.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Captain Syllenger was standing a few paces from them.  Luckily, thought
+Ross, the skipper's back was turned, and he had not noticed the action
+of his young subordinates.  But Trefusis was wrong.  The Captain had
+seen them.  Out of consideration, for he remembered his own sensations
+when first under fire, he affected not to notice the temporary panic
+that had overtaken the midshipmen.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Capella</I> was now running at half speed, in a direction parallel to
+the shore.  All around, the sea was torn by the falling projectiles,
+most of which were sufficiently large to send her to the bottom like a
+stone.  Yet, beyond the wounding of her wireless operator, the loss of
+her signalling-mast, and the shattering of one of her boats, she came
+off lightly.  Although not the object of the hostile guns, she narrowly
+escaped several ricochets, until, at a signal from the senior officer,
+the patrol-vessels withdrew to a safer distance.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+One of the monitors, too, was slowly steaming seawards, well down by
+the bows and smoke issuing from her fo'c'sle, while her single funnel
+was riddled like a sieve.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Sea-plane returning, sir!" announced Sub-lieutenant Fox.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Flying at an altitude of about a thousand feet, one of the aerial
+scouts was making towards the line of patrol-vessels.  She was flying
+steadily; her motor was purring rhythmically; a trail of thin bluish
+smoke from her exhaust belied the suggestion of an overheated engine.
+Yet something must have taken place for her to have quitted her
+observation station.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Promptly Captain Syllenger gave orders for the <I>Capella's</I> motors to
+stop, then "Easy astern" until way was off the ship.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Making a graceful volplane, the sea-plane alighted with a faint splash
+upon the surface of the water, and "taxied" to leeward of the
+motionless vessel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The sea-plane was a "two-seater".  The rearmost or observer's seat was
+unoccupied.  In the foremost was a young Flight-Sub-lieutenant heavily
+clad, and his clean-shaven face almost hidden by an airman's helmet.
+For the first time, the officers on the bridge of the <I>Capella</I> noticed
+that the light steel plating was holed in many places, while the planes
+bore testimony to the accuracy of the enemy's shrapnel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A casualty!" sang out the Flying officer.  "My pilot's been hit.  Can
+you take him on board?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Two of the <I>Capella's</I> crew swarmed over the side and gained the
+nearmost float, whence they clambered upon the body of the sea-plane.
+At the same time, one of the davits from which the <I>Capella's</I>
+shattered boat had hung was slung outboard.  By dint of careful
+manoeuvring, the sea-plane was brought alongside with her main planes
+practically parallel to the side of the ship.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The injured man was lying on the floor of the fuselage.  A canvas band
+was strapped round his waist, and, supported by the two seamen, he was
+gently hoisted on board the ship by means of the davit tackle.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Flight-Sub swung himself over the side of the <I>Capella</I> and
+ascended the bridge.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Got it hot at fifteen hundred feet," he explained.  "My pilot was
+winged.  Hit twice, I believe.  Luckily the old bird kept fairly steady
+until I could clamber into the pilot's seat and take control.  Rough
+luck, too.  We were just doing a useful bit of spotting.  I suppose,
+sir, there's no one on board who can handle a 'plane?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I'm afraid not," replied Captain Syllenger.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Rough luck!" exclaimed the Sub despondently.  Then, brightening up, he
+asked:
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Can you lend me a 'wireless' man?  I could take on the pilot's job."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Our man's knocked out," said the skipper.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"That's done it!" exclaimed the Sub.  "There's a particularly tough
+battery that I wanted to see knocked out.  No. 5 was almost on it when
+we got it hot."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross was thinking rapidly and deeply.  He knew the Morse code well.  He
+had dabbled in wireless telegraphy at school.  Perhaps&mdash;&mdash;
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He felt that it was almost too impertinent to offer his services, yet
+the matter was urgent.  It was dangerous, too, most dangerous; but the
+midshipman had learnt to place duty before personal consideration.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Well?" asked Captain Syllenger as Trefusis stepped up and saluted
+smartly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I'll go if I can be of any assistance, sir," said Ross.  "I can Morse
+and use a buzzer, and I have a knowledge of wireless."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Carry on, then," replied Captain Syllenger.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Good man!" exclaimed the Flight-Sub-lieutenant.  "Can you stick
+heights?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I've done a lot of cliff climbing&mdash;I am a Cornishman, you know," said
+Trefusis.  "I haven't had a chance of flying before."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You have now!" added the Flight-Sub.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap26"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XXVI
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+Disabled in Mid-air
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+Ross climbed agilely into the observer's seat, and, at his flying
+companion's suggestion, buckled a broad leather strap round his waist.
+At his right hand was the wireless transmitter, together with a pair of
+prismatic glasses and map.  The latter was held in a transparent
+celluloid case, while the glasses were secured by a cord sufficiently
+long to enable the observer to use them in any direction.  Everything
+was attached to the sea-plane so that in the event of the machine
+having to "loop the loop" nothing would be lost.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Sub, who for the present was to act as pilot, took his place in the
+forward part of the body.  Giving a few preliminary touches to the
+mechanism, he announced that everything was in order.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The self-starter was released and the motor fired, causing the twin
+propellers to buzz smoothly and powerfully.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross waved his hand to his chum as the sea-plane glided away from the
+<I>Capella</I>, and from that moment his whole attention was centred upon
+the work on which he was engaged.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For nearly a hundred yards the sea-plane "taxied", rising lightly over
+the waves; then almost imperceptibly it glided upwards with an even
+motion.  Ross could hardly believe he was flying until he saw the sea
+apparently receding from him.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"All right?" asked the Sub through the telephone that formed the only
+audible means of communication between pilot and observer.  "Not
+feeling giddy?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Not a bit," replied Ross.  Without experiencing the faintest sensation
+of vertigo, he found himself able to lean over the side of the chassis
+and look down at the scene two thousand feet beneath him.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The sea-plane was rising in a direction diverging obliquely with the
+coast.  She was, in fact, almost over the line of empty transports that
+looked little bigger than a fleet of toy boats.  Farther away could be
+discerned the <I>Capella</I> and her consorts, moving with apparent slowness
+upon a perfectly calm sea, for at that altitude the waves were merged
+into a flat surface.  Small splashes of white&mdash;the spray thrown up by
+falling shells&mdash;could be seen all around the patrol-vessels, which, in
+obedience to a signal, had now taken up a position rather nearer to the
+monitors.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Presently the Flight-Sub, having gained the desired altitude, moved the
+steering-plane ever so slightly.  Quickly the machine answered her
+helm, swinging round until she pointed towards the land.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Three minutes later Ross found himself immediately above the British
+monitors.  The sea-plane was now pitching slightly in the disturbed
+air, for the concussion of the heavy weapons was distinctly felt even
+at seven hundred yards above the bombarding ships.  Although the roar
+of the concerted cannonade was deafening, Ross heard not a sound of it.
+To all intents, as far as he was concerned, the guns might have been
+fired with silencers attached to their muzzles.  The whirr of the
+sea-plane's motor and the rush of air past his ears out-voiced every
+other sound.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Five miles beyond the line of monitors, could be discerned the Belgian
+coast, composed for the most part of undulating sand-dunes dotted with
+clusters of buildings.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As the sea-plane approached the land Ross could, with the aid of his
+binoculars, distinguish other objects&mdash;wavy lines, dotted with ant-like
+figures bunched together round something that looked like stumps of a
+lead pencil.  The lines were the German trenches, the "ants"
+grey-coated artillerymen, and the "stumps" the heavy howitzers.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"That's our pigeon!" spoke the Flight-Sub through the telephone.  "The
+battery a hundred yards to the north of that ruined church tower.  Our
+fellows haven't knocked it out yet.  Wireless them; fifty yards over."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross sent the desired information.  The sea-plane, having flown over
+its objective, turned, describing an elongated figure eight.  As she
+swung round, Ross noticed a mushroom-like cloud of white smoke a short
+distance beneath, and to the left of the fuselage.  Then another a
+hundred feet immediately in front.  At each "mushroom" the sea-plane
+curtsied.  Something zipped close to the lad's ear.  A wire snapped,
+the severed portions circling themselves into erratic spirals.  A
+fragment of fabric from one of the main planes flew past him, like a
+scrap of tissue-paper in the grip of a boisterous wind.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Then Ross tumbled to it.  Those silent mushrooms of smoke were shrapnel
+shells bursting unpleasantly close.  For a moment, the young observer
+felt himself seized by an almost irresistible impulse to take refuge
+under the coaming surrounding his seat.  He uttered an involuntary
+exclamation of unwelcome surprise.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What's up?" asked a voice in his ear.  It was the Flight-Sub, to whom
+the telephone had transmitted Ross's exclamation.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Nothing," replied the lad.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Thought so," was the laconic reply.  "Don't worry."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Reasoning with himself, Ross came to the decision that the advice was
+thoroughly sound.  Worrying would not help him in the least; neither
+would cowering inside the frail body of the sea-plane.  Twice within a
+very short space of time he had experienced a sensation of "funk".
+Twice he was surprised to find how quickly he recovered; for, at the
+next shot from the monitor for which he was "spotting", he found that
+the sensation of "cold feet" had given place to one of exhilaration
+when he was able to record a "direct hit".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+By this time the initial operations were terminating.  The German fire
+had almost ceased to be troublesome.  Most of the big howitzers and
+long-range guns had been knocked out.  A few were still firing, but
+very erratically.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At a signal from the senior officer, the monitors drew out of range,
+and steaming at the maximum speed&mdash;a bare 11 knots&mdash;kept a course
+parallel with the shore, accompanied by the patrol-vessels and
+transports.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Well above effective shrapnel range, the squadron of sea-planes headed
+for Zeebrugge.  A number of aviatiks, which were flying over the German
+new sea base, hurriedly turned tail.  Previous experience had taught
+them that naval air-craft could hit hard, in addition to carrying out
+observation work.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+There were, however, plenty of evidences that the Germans were rushing
+up thousands of troops in order to deal with the supposed landing in
+force.  Train after train made towards the town, crammed with soldiers.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The sea-planes let the trains pass unhindered.  It was not their
+purpose to stop Germans from pouring into Zeebrugge.  Once the troops
+were there, then would be the time to cut their lines of communication.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Again the monitors opened fire.  Their reception was hotter than it had
+been in the neighbourhood of Ostend, for, in spite of frequent and
+destructive molestation, the Germans had succeeded in throwing up
+numerous heavily armed and cleverly concealed batteries.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At almost extreme range the British ships maintained a rapid high-angle
+fire.  In a few minutes fires had broken out in several places.
+Fifteen-hundred-pound shells dropped in the canal basin, blowing to
+atoms several submarines that were in the process of fitting out.  The
+harbour works were swept by the huge projectiles.  The long curved
+breakwater suffered heavily.  Huge gaps appeared in the solid masonry.
+Everything lying afloat in the enclosed water was either set on fire or
+sunk.  In an hour the havoc wrought at Zeebrugge had wiped out the work
+of months.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross had little time to notice the work of destruction.  His particular
+business was to observe the fire directed upon a large redoubt to the
+north-east of the town.  The first shell from the monitor fell short,
+blowing an enormous crater in the grass-grown dunes.  The second fell
+beyond, completely demolishing a house.  The third dropped fairly in
+the centre of the redoubt, causing a terrific explosion that was not
+due solely to the lyddite bursting-charge.  The magazine had exploded.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Skywards rushed an enormous cloud of black and yellow smoke.  Caught by
+the blast of the violently displaced air the sea-plane rocked, then
+began dropping like a stone.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For the moment Ross imagined that the end had come.  He was no longer
+afraid.  A sensation of intense curiosity as to what the machine and
+its occupants would look like seemed to obsess his mind.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Then, with a jerk that reminded the midshipman of the sudden starting
+of a lift, the sea-plane "flattened out" and began to climb out of the
+enveloping cloud of smoke.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Flight-Sub turned his head and grinned broadly.  His manner could
+not do otherwise than inspire confidence.  Although not a pilot, he was
+master of the frail machine.  Side-slips and nose-dives troubled him
+but little, provided he was flying at a safe altitude.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A jolly good wipe-out!" he exclaimed.  "There won't be many Bosches
+left within half a mile of that battery, I'm thinking.  Now watch when
+the next shot lands: that will give you the objective."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A sharp buzzing in the receiver attached to Ross's flying helmet
+announced that the monitor was "calling up" her observer.  Quickly the
+lad seized the pencil, and gave the signal that he was ready to take
+down the message.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Morse signal, when translated into writing, was as follows:&mdash;
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Register Position 47."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Good!" exclaimed the Plight-Sub when Ross had telephoned him the
+message.  He consulted his map, which was similar to the one at the
+observer's disposal "Position 47: that's a railway junction."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In the course of their work of fortifying Zeebrugge, the Huns had
+constructed a double-track railway, passing within a few yards of the
+Dutch frontier for several miles before heading straight for the new
+submarine base.  Two miles from Zeebrugge the line joined the existing
+railway, the junction being recorded on British airmen's maps as
+Position 47.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The time was now ripe for the monitor which had successfully demolished
+the redoubt to attempt a similar exploit, namely, to destroy the
+junction.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The sea-plane's appearance was the signal for a furious fire from the
+numerous anti-aircraft guns mounted in the vicinity of the station.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At six thousand feet the risk of being hit was small, while the height
+did not prevent the observer making a fairly accurate register of the
+hits.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was a very long range, but the monitor's 14-inch guns did excellent
+work.  Seven shells sufficed to reduce the station to a heap of ruins
+and blow whole sections of the line to atoms.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Again came a wireless order:
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Sea-plane to proceed to Zwilhuit.  Attempt destruction of bridge
+across canal."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Once more the Flight-Sub smiled.  This was work that suited him
+immensely.  For the nonce "spotting" was finished with.  The sea-plane
+had to drop her cargo of bombs upon an important strategic position.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"All right!" exclaimed the Flying officer.  "Keep a cool head.  When I
+give the word, press that pedal under your right foot.  Bend down and
+you'll find a safety pin just above the floor.  Remove it, but be jolly
+careful not to touch the pedal until I give the word."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Underneath the fuselage were six bombs hanging from an inclined steel
+rod.  These were released by means of a rachet operated by the pedal to
+which the Flight-Sub had alluded.  To prevent a premature release the
+pedal was "locked" by a safety device.  When this was removed, each
+depression of the pedal would result in the liberation of a potent
+missile of destruction.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The sea-plane was not alone on her errand.  In her wake flew two more,
+for the actual bombardment had now ceased, and the air-craft were at
+liberty to engage upon a raid several miles inland.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Huns had not constructed their strategic railway close to the Dutch
+frontier without a cunning reason.  Extreme care had to be exercised by
+British airmen, since it was an easy matter for a bomb to drop across
+the border.  Nothing would please the Germans better, for at once there
+would be a case of violation of Dutch territory.  On the other hand,
+the Huns had no scruple in mounting a battery of anti-aircraft guns,
+training them in such a manner that the earthward flight of spent
+shrapnel would assuredly fall upon the Dutch village of Venterloos,
+which was separated from Zwilhuit by a distance of less than four
+hundred yards.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In twenty minutes the sea-plane's objective came in sight: a broad line
+of railway crossing a canal by means of a steel bridge.  It was evident
+that the Germans meant this base to be a permanent one, for the bridge
+was of massive construction, strong enough to bear the transport of the
+heavy 42-centimetre guns, and yet sufficiently high above the waterway
+to admit the passage of large lighters with towering deck-cargoes.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Stand by!" cautioned the Flight-Sub.  "Keep cool.  Do as well as you
+have already done, and everything will go like greased lightning."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Volplaning at an acute angle, the sea-plane swooped down upon her
+quarry.  Shrapnel shells burst over, in front, behind, and underneath
+her.  It seemed impossible that such a frail object could escape
+destruction.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At five hundred feet the Flight-Sub checked her downward course.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Now!" he ordered.  "And again!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Two puffs of white smoke marked the points of explosion of the powerful
+bombs.  One had fallen fifty yards short of the bridge; the other had
+burst almost at the junction of the railway lines.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Round spun the sea-plane.  As she turned Ross could discern the second
+of the aerial raiders gliding down, while the third was still at a
+great altitude.  Before the one in which Ross was flying could again
+soar over its target the second sea-plane had dropped three of her
+missiles.  All fell close to the bridge.  The work of demolition was
+accomplished, for when the smoke and dust cleared away the substantial
+fabric had been precipitated, a mass of twisted steel, into the canal.
+</P>
+
+<A NAME="img-247"></A>
+<CENTER>
+<IMG CLASS="imgcenter" SRC="images/img-247.jpg" ALT="&quot;THE WORK OF DEMOLITION WAS ACCOMPLISHED&quot;" BORDER="2" WIDTH="409" HEIGHT="633">
+<H4 CLASS="h4center" STYLE="width: 450px">
+&quot;THE WORK OF DEMOLITION WAS ACCOMPLISHED&quot;
+</H4>
+</CENTER>
+
+<P>
+"Two more on the station and then we've finished," exclaimed the
+Flight-Sub.  "Ready?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Ay, ay!" replied Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He turned his head to watch the progress of the other sea-planes.  One
+was still maintaining a terrific altitude, and showed no signs of
+making a volplane.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The other was nowhere to be seen.  Perhaps it was as well that the
+midshipman had not noticed what had befallen her, for a few seconds
+previously a shrapnel shell had burst close underneath the chassis.
+The explosion had communicated itself to the remaining bombs, with the
+result that utter annihilation had overtaken the plucky British airmen
+in the moment of their triumph.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross's companion had witnessed the catastrophe.  More, his trained eye
+had discerned half a dozen small specks in the western sky.  Quickly he
+brought his binoculars to bear upon them.  No mistake now; the specks
+revealed themselves as German aviatiks intent upon cutting off the
+retreat of the two remaining British air-craft.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Not until Ross had dropped the remaining bombs did his companion speak.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We've a bit of a shooting match on," he announced.  "Get that rifle
+ready.  It's under the coaming on your right hand.  Sight at three
+hundred yards, and let rip when I give the word."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross took up the weapon almost as a matter of course.  After the
+excitement of bomb-dropping and being shelled by shrapnel, the approach
+of a fleet of Zeppelins would hardly disturb his equanimity.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Already the third sea-plane, having gained a favourable altitude, was
+making straight for her numerous opponents.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Flight-Sub now began to speed his machine up, climbing in short
+spirals, so as to gain what was equivalent to the "weather-gauge" in
+the sea battles of Nelson's days.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross unslipped the rifle.  Mechanically he set the back-sight, and
+jerked open the bolt-action to assure himself that the magazine was
+charged.  As he did so he became aware that the cartridges were bent
+and buckled.  A piece of shrapnel, passing through the side of the
+fuselage, had lodged in the magazine of the rifle.  In addition,
+although it was possible to withdraw the bolt, the striking-pin had
+jammed.  As a weapon the rifle was useless.  By stopping the shrapnel
+bullet the rifle had saved Ross from a serious and perhaps mortal wound.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The midshipman was on the point of reporting the disablement of the
+weapon, when the motor gave vent to a peculiar cough and abruptly
+stopped.  Unknown to the pilot the petrol-tank had been pierced almost
+at its lowest point.  The remaining petrol had been used up during the
+spiraling process.  The sea-plane was now at an altitude of three
+thousand feet; propulsion, except under the force of gravity, was no
+longer possible.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Flight-Sub was quick to act.  Before the hitherto climbing
+air-craft began diving tail downwards, he regulated the elevating
+planes, and a long volplane ensued.  The sea-plane was bound to come to
+earth, but it was not on hostile soil that the airman hoped to alight.
+His goal was the ground beyond the seemingly endless line of barbed
+wire that marked the frontier between Belgium and Holland.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The anti-aircraft guns had now opened fire, blazing furiously away at
+the rapidly descending sea-plane.  The rapidity of her descent saved
+her, for, before the time-fuses could be altered to suit the
+ever-varying range, the air-craft was well below the bursting-point of
+the missiles.  Nothing but a direct hit&mdash;a most difficult matter&mdash;could
+harm her now.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At a thousand feet she passed the border-line.  Still the Archibalds
+barked.  Ross could see the Dutch frontier guards bolting for shelter
+as the hall of bullets fell on neutral ground.  Not until the sea-plane
+was well over the boundary did the guns reluctantly cease fire.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The earth appeared to leap up and meet the descending machine.  It
+looked as if a terrific smash were inevitable.  A sea-plane alighting
+upon solid ground has a thousand chances against her, for, being
+unprovided with landing wheels, she is not adapted to withstand
+successfully the impact with the earth.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Cool and collected, the Flight-Sub "flattened her out" to a nicety.  At
+forty miles an hour the floats struck the ground.  For twenty yards the
+sea-plane skidded, then with a rending crash the floats and a network
+of struts and tension-wires gave way under the abnormal strain.  The
+next instant Ross found himself sprawling on the sandy soil, the sudden
+jerk tearing his securing-belt from its fastenings.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He sat up.  A multitude of dazzling lights seemed to flash before his
+eyes.  He was dimly aware of a tangle of wreckage, out of which a
+practically undamaged plane rose at an oblique angle, lumbering the
+ground quite twenty yards from where he found himself.  Men were
+hastening towards the wrecked sea-plane from all directions, but, thank
+Heaven, they did not wear the uniform of the Hun.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+With his head still whirling, Ross was supported by two Dutch soldiers,
+while a third poured a quantity of raw spirits down his throat.  Blood
+was streaming from a gash on his forehead, and his knees, grazed and
+discoloured, were visible through rents in his trousers.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Of what happened during the next quarter of an hour, the midshipman had
+but a very hazy idea.  The men had laid him on the ground, propping him
+against a large stone.  He felt horribly sick.  The pain across his
+chest, caused by the strain upon the leather belt, was acute&mdash;far worse
+than the wound on his forehead which the kindly soldiers were bathing
+with handkerchiefs dipped in water.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The men were talking excitedly.  He could not understand what they were
+saying.  He felt inclined to tell them to shut up.  They irritated him
+beyond measure; if only they would go away and leave him in peace he
+would be deeply grateful.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Suddenly it dawned upon him that he had been in an awful smash.  The
+wrecked sea-plane had not hitherto led the train of his thoughts to the
+subject of the accident.  Now he realized his position.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Where's my companion?" he asked,  "Is he knocked out?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Do not yourself fret," said a voice that sounded far away.  "He is
+hurt, but badly not at all.  We him have carried away.  I am a doctor.
+You quiet must be, and zen recovery rapide will be."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The doctor&mdash;a Dutch army surgeon&mdash;ran his hands lightly over the lad's
+limbs.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Goot!" he ejaculated.  "Nodings broken is."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He gave directions to the men in attendance.  A stretcher was laid on
+the ground beside the lad.  Two men lifted him gently upon it.  Even as
+they did so, Ross gave a low groan and passed into merciful oblivion.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap27"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XXVII
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+Not on Parole
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+"Ver' goot.  I understan' you no give parole?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No, sir," replied the Flight-Sub firmly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"An' you, mynheer?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I am in the same boat, sir," replied Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The camp-commandant smiled&mdash;a hearty smile, bordering on a laugh.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Goot, I understan' also," he reiterated.  Then, shaking a podgy little
+finger, he added: "Same boat, ah?  English idiomatic expression?  Ver'
+well, it is so; but if you make escape, do not let me you catch.  Zat
+is all."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A week had elapsed since the involuntary descent of the sea-plane.
+Both officers were making rapid progress towards recovery, for, in
+spite of the violence of the impact, neither of them had received
+anything worse than contusions and bruises.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+After three days in hospital at Utrecht, the interned aviators were
+transferred to a small concentration camp at the village of Koedijk, a
+short distance from Alkmaar.  A few miles to the westward, and beyond
+an expanse of sand dunes, was the North Sea.  The temptation to refuse
+to give their parole was not to be wondered at, with the call of the
+sea so near at hand.  It was, indeed, rather remarkable that the two
+officers had not been sent to the large internment camp at Groningen,
+where so many of the ill-fated Naval Brigade languished, if not in
+captivity, in a state of enforced and tedious detention.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We'll have to be doubly careful now," remarked the Flight-Sub.  "The
+mere fact that we have declined to give our parole will put the
+commandant on his guard.  Our best plan will be to mark time for a bit."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Marking time is always an unsatisfactory business," protested the
+energetic Ross.  "Nothing rusts a fellow like inaction.  It wouldn't be
+much of a task to tunnel our way out."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Flight-Sub shook his head.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Tunnelling's not much good in this water-logged country," he declared.
+"We are not water-rats.  Patience, my festive: where there's a will
+there's a way."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Their quarters consisted of a long, two-storied building.  The only
+other occupants beside the guards, were three British Naval officers
+rescued from a mined trawler that had managed to reach Dutch waters
+before foundering.  Two of them had broken legs; the third was down
+with double pneumonia, the legacy of many a cold, stormy night in the
+North Sea.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Surrounding the house was a high brick wall, on which had been recently
+placed a triple row of barbed wire.  At the entrance, an archway about
+ten feet in height, stood a wooden sentry-box, where a soldier with
+rifle and fixed bayonet kept guard in the leisurely manner of the
+stolid Dutch menfolk.  One could imagine him, a picturesque figure in
+baggy trousers and coat of fantastic cut, smoking his pipe on the quay
+at Volendam.  The blue uniform did not form a fitting mantle for his
+corpulent form.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The sentry was one of a type.  The rest of the guards&mdash;middle-aged men
+called up on mobilization&mdash;were much of the same build and demeanour.
+Their innate love of gossiping tempted them to be on most friendly
+terms with the interned officers.  One and all were violently
+pro-British.  They had reason to dread the German menace, for they were
+level-headed enough to realize that, with the Central Powers
+triumphant, the independence of Holland would be a thing of the past.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Adjoining the grounds were the quarters occupied by interned seamen, to
+the number of about sixty.  They were strictly guarded; a formidable
+double fence of barbed wire, between which armed sentries patrolled,
+enclosed the premises.  For discipline, the men were under the orders
+of their own petty officers.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Jolly good luck to you!" exclaimed one of the wounded officers, to
+whom the two new-comers confided their intention of escaping.  "If we
+three weren't crocked we should have been across the ditch by this
+time."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He pointed seawards as he spoke.  From the upper windows of the
+building the sunlit sea could be seen.  Beyond the "ditch", as he
+termed it, was England and freedom.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It's no use trying to break out," he continued.  "German spies as
+thick as blackberries along the coast.  The most benevolent-looking
+mynheer might, as likely as not, be a kultured Hun.  You have to be
+smuggled out.  Try your blandishments on old Katje."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Old who?" asked the Flight-Sub.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Katje, the old vrouw who calls for the washing.  She comes every
+Tuesday and Friday with a cart drawn by dogs, and a basket big enough
+to stow the pair of you.  You'll want plenty of palm oil.  There are
+the sentries to be squared, and the fellow who provides you with a suit
+of 'mufti'.  Wilson, our Lieutenant-Commander, got clear about a month
+ago.  He made his way to Ymuiden."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Wasn't there a row about it?" asked Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Naturally," replied the wounded officer.  "We had a pretty strenuous
+time after it&mdash;certain privileges withdrawn and all that sort of thing.
+However, when we heard that Wilson had succeeded in making his way to
+England we didn't mind that, and things have now recovered their normal
+appearance."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+On the following Tuesday, Ross and his companion anxiously awaited the
+arrival of Vrouw Katje.  At length the old lady&mdash;she was nearly
+eighty&mdash;drove up in style, shouting shrilly to her dogs from her perch
+on top of an enormous wicker hamper.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"More washing for you, Katje," announced one of the crippled officers.
+"Two more of my countrymen.  They will be very pleased to see you."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Without further ado, Katje ascended the stairs and hammered violently
+upon the door of the sitting-room.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Her knowledge of English was good, for earlier in life she was the wife
+of the skipper of a bolter that made regular voyages to Hole Haven at
+the mouth of the Thames, where a large eel trade was in the hands of
+the Dutch fishermen.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Very well; but I must ask permission of the Commandant," replied
+Katje, in perfect good faith, when the Flight-Sub had broached the
+subject of being conveyed from the internment camp.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No, no," protested the young officer in alarm; "that won't do."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Why not?" persisted the washerwoman.  "Mynheer the Commandant is very
+kind."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Undoubtedly," replied the Flight-Sub.  "But we would much rather that
+you wait until we are away from the place before you ask him.  See,
+here are five English sovereigns.  They are yours once you get us
+clear."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The vrouw shook her head.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I do not care to," she replied firmly; then without a pause she
+continued: "My son-in-law, Jan van Beverwijk, will.  I am sure he will.
+Next Friday he will come instead of me.  He is mate of a steamship that
+takes the bulbs from Holland to England.  He returns to-morrow, and
+sails on Saturday from Ymuiden."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"That sounds excellent," commented the Flight-Sub.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It is excellent," agreed Katje.  "It will cost you each twenty English
+sovereigns."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"But we haven't ten between us."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The vrouw smiled till her weather-beaten face was one mass of deep
+wrinkles.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You English have a proverb about a road," she remarked.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"'It's a long lane that has no turning?'" quoted the officer; but Katje
+shook her head.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"'Where there's a will there's a way'," suggested Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Ah!  That is it.  I knew it was something about a road or a lane.
+Way, you call it.  Very well; by next Friday you will find a way."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Artful old baggage!" exclaimed the Flight-Sub when Katje had taken her
+departure.  "She's mighty keen on the rhino.  We'll have to have a whip
+round, Trefusis, and give a note of hand."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Their brothers in adversity willingly responded to the call, and before
+the eventful Friday a sum in English and Dutch coinage, equivalent to
+forty pounds, was ready to be handed to Jan van Beverwijk.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I wouldn't pay cash on the nail if I were you," suggested the crippled
+officer who had been so useful in advising them before.  "Half down,
+and the rest when you land in England.  Jan might object, but he'll
+give in.  No Dutchman of his standing would shut his eyes to twenty in
+hard cash."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At eight o'clock on Friday morning Katje's dog-team romped up; but,
+instead of the old vrouw, a lean, leather-faced man with a long coat
+reaching to his heels and a flat-topped peak cap strode beside the cart.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At the gate he stopped, and spoke at considerable length with the
+sentry.  There was hardly any expression on the faces of the two men as
+they talked.  Whether the soldier fell in with the suggestion, Ross,
+who was anxiously watching from the window, could not decide.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Presently Jan stooped to fasten the strap of one of his <I>klompen</I>, or
+wooden shoes; then shouting to the dogs he came towards the house.
+Before he had gone very far, the sentry bent and picked up something
+that was lying on the spot where Jan had been attending to his footgear.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Palm oil!" remarked the Flight-Sub laconically.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Heavy wash to-day," was Jan's greeting as he deposited his heavy
+basket in the corridor.  "Spot cash, down on the nail."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Your knowledge of English is remarkable," said the Flight-Sub affably.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It has to be," rejoined the Dutchman stolidly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We have only twenty pounds," declared the Sub.  "That we will give you
+as soon as we are on board and in English waters.  The balance Mr.
+Brown will give you on your return, on receipt of a note from us to the
+effect that we are safely home."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It cannot be done," said Jan.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Then the deal's off," remarked the Flight-Sub coolly; but he
+ostentatiously poured the coins from his right hand into his left
+before returning them to his pocket.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Dutchman capitulated.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Very good," he said.  "I can trust an English Naval officer, although
+many a time have I been done in London.  Get in, one of you."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"But the other?" enquired the Sub.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I am strong, but I am not a Hercules," replied the Dutchman with a
+shrug of his shoulders.  "One I can carry to the cart.  To-day is a
+heavy wash, so I must return for a second load.  You twig?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"In you get, Trefusis," ordered his companion, in a tone that would
+brook no refusal.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+By dint of hunching his shoulders and bending his knees, Ross managed
+to get into the basket.  The lid was shut, and Jan, assisted by the
+Sub, lifted the heavy load on to his shoulders.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Jolting over the cobble-stones, the cart proceeded at a rapid pace for
+nearly a quarter of an hour.  Then Jan called to the dogs to stop.  The
+lid was thrown back and Ross told to get out.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He found himself outside a small cottage by the side of a canal.  Katje
+was on her knees washing a bundle of clothes; the operation assisted,
+with disastrous results to the interned officers' effects, by means of
+two large stones with which she pounded the saturated garments.
+Without even turning her head to watch the midshipman's exit from the
+basket, she proceeded vigorously with her task.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Jan led him into the cottage and pointed to a heap of clothes.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Put these on you," he said.  "I will now go for your friend."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Before the Flight-Sub rejoined him, Ross was rigged out as a Dutch
+youth, in voluminous trousers, long coat, stock, tall cylindrical hat,
+green stockings, and wooden shoes.  His companion had to look twice
+before he recognized him.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Now you come with me to Mynheer Guit," said Jan.  "He is a bulb
+merchant, and lives just outside Ymuiden.  You will then go on board a
+barge that brings the boxes of bulbs from Mynheer Guit's warehouse to
+the ship.  I will be with you.  The men in the barge will say nothing.
+Before to-night you will be safe on board the <I>Hoorn</I>."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Jan was as good as his word.  That night the fugitives slept
+comfortably in the cabin of the mate of the steamship <I>Hoorn</I>; and at
+tide-time, early on Saturday morning while it was still dark, the
+vessel glided between the breakwater of Ymuiden, and shaped a course
+for the mouth of the Thames.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap28"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XXVIII
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+Almost Recaptured
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+"What's that light, Jan?" asked the Flight-Sub.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Hoorn</I> was now well beyond the three-mile limit.  Ross and his
+fellow-passenger were standing aft, sheltering from the keen
+south-westerly wind.  The mate of the vessel was with them, the skipper
+being on the bridge.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Those lights?" corrected Jan.  "They have been visible all the time.
+They are the two white leading-lights to Ymuiden harbour."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"No, I don't mean those," said the Flight-Sub.  "Away to the south'ard,
+quite a mile from the harbour.  See, it's showing again."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+From the dunes a white light blinked thrice and then disappeared.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I do not know," answered Jan gravely.  He thought for a moment and
+then said: "Half a mo'.  I will speak to the skipper."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hanged if I like it," muttered the Flight-Sub.  "I say, Trefusis, that
+light blinking away looks very fishy.  It would mean a fifty-pound fine
+in England; but here, apparently, it is not objected to."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The skipper and the mate were talking rapidly.  Both men were leaning
+over the after side of the bridge-rails, with their eyes fixed upon the
+dark shore from which the mysterious light flickered at regular
+intervals.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Light on the port bow," reported the helmsman.  Both of the <I>Hoorn's</I>
+officers turned just in time to catch sight of a steady white light
+before it disappeared.  Whatever its meaning, it was remarkable that
+from that moment the shore light ceased to blink.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Put out our navigation lamps, Jan," said the skipper.  "Someone has
+betrayed your English friends.  Nevertheless I will do all in my power
+to aid them.  We'll steer south-west for an hour.  Perhaps we may
+outwit yon craft, whatever she may be, before dawn."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross and his companion were quick to note the alteration of helm.  They
+knew, too, that the removal of the steaming-lights was for the purpose
+of baffling what must be, to a dead certainty, a German craft&mdash;a
+submarine, or perhaps a torpedo-boat, since the latter frequently
+ventured out of Borkum and crept stealthily towards the Schelde,
+keeping close to the Dutch territorial waters in order to avoid being
+snapped by the vigilant British destroyer flotilla.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Slowly the wintry day dawned.  Anxiously the British officers scanned
+the horizon.  The low-lying Dutch coast was now invisible.  All around
+was a waste of grey, tumbling waves, unbroken by a sail of any
+description.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Hoorn</I> was ploughing her way at a modest ten knots.  Short, beamy,
+and deep-draughted, she was pitching heavily, sending a frothy bow wave
+far to leeward each time she dipped her nose into the steep seas.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I'd give a fiver for the sight of a good old White Ensign at the
+present moment," remarked the Flight-Sub anxiously.  "Good heavens,
+what's that?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ten seconds later he laughed mirthlessly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Nerves going to blazes," he muttered.  "A bit of wreckage gave me the
+jumps.  By Jove, don't we look a pair of comical objects?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+They had discarded their grotesque head-dress.  Ross had a woollen
+muffler wrapped round his head, while his companion had been given the
+loan of a red stocking-cap, but they still retained the weird garb in
+which they had made their journey down the ship canal.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Suddenly Ross gripped his companion's arm and pointed with his right
+hand to a spar-like object projecting a few feet, close to the waves,
+at less than a cable's length on the port quarter.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A periscope!" ejaculated the Flight-Sub.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Let's hope it's one of our own submarines," said Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We'll soon find out," added his companion.  "It's forging ahead.
+Whatever it is, they've got us under observation."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Jan, who was now on the bridge, had his attention called to the
+disconcerting fact.  He beckoned to his two passengers.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You had better go below and stow yourselves away," he suggested.  "We
+will be boarded before long."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Not I," replied the Flight-Sub.  "They've marked us already.  If they
+do take us they won't have to dig us out of a coal-bunker."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The submarine was emerging.  At a pace that more than held its own with
+the <I>Hoorn</I>, she shook herself clear of the water, although green seas
+were breaking across the flat deck as far aft as the conning-tower.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Then muffled forms clambered through the hatchway; a young,
+yellow-bearded officer appeared on the navigation platform and hailed
+the <I>Hoorn</I> in Dutch to heave to instantly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Even then the tough old Dutch skipper was not going to give in without
+a protest.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"For what reason?" he shouted back.  "This is a Netherlands ship."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"That I do not doubt," rejoined the officer of the submarine.  "But you
+have two Englishmen on board who have broken their parole&mdash;&mdash;"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You lie!" interrupted the skipper vehemently.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Not a word more!" exclaimed the German fiercely.  "Heave to, or we
+sink you!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Reluctantly the "old man" gave the order to stop the engines.  Jan,
+sliding down the bridge ladder, communicated to the British officers
+the text of the conversation.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Some rascal of a German spy has betrayed you," he added.  "If I could
+lay my hands upon him&mdash;&mdash;"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+There was a look on the Dutchman's face which showed that his anger was
+genuine.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"All right, Jan," said the Flight-Sub.  "It's the fortune of war."
+</P>
+
+<HR ALIGN="center" WIDTH="60%">
+
+<P>
+"Deucedly rotten morning," remarked Sub-lieutenant Fox as he greeted
+the officer of the watch, whom he was about to relieve.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Eccles, the Lieutenant, who had been on the <I>Capella's</I> bridge for four
+long and dreary hours, merely nodded sleepily.  He was thinking, with
+feelings of satisfaction, of the hot coffee and fragrant bacon and eggs
+awaiting him below.  Three minutes had to elapse before eight bells.
+Wearily he rubbed his salt-rimmed eyelids with a heavily gloved hand.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"<I>Taurus</I> wirelessed twenty minutes ago," he reported, as the two
+officers entered the chart-room.  "She was then at the extreme limit of
+her northerly course.  You ought to sight her very shortly.  Here's our
+course"&mdash;he indicated the pencilled line on the chart.  "Nothing to
+report: there never is when I'm officer of the watch.  It's this
+infernal monotony that plays havoc with a fellow's nerves."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Noel Fox nodded sympathetically.  Although the <I>Capella</I> had been only
+six days on her new station&mdash;keeping a watch on the Dutch coast between
+the Texel and the North Hinder Lightship&mdash;he, too, was mightily "fed
+up" with the task of "treading on the tail of Germany's coat".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Not so much as the periscope of a hostile submarine had been sighted.
+The German torpedo-boats that occasionally sneaked southwards from
+Borkum were taking an enforced holiday.  Perhaps it was in sympathy
+with the "High Seas Fleet" skulking in the Kiel Canal.  In any case,
+the six motor craft of the <I>Capella</I> class had a full share of wintry
+conditions in the North Sea without any compensating adventures to
+mitigate the monotony.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As Eccles descended from the bridge, a great-coated muffled-up figure,
+followed by a large dog, swung himself up the ladder.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Morning, Haye," was Noel Fox's salutation, as he stooped to pat Shrap,
+the chartered libertine of the <I>Capella</I>.  "Dash it all, it is cold!
+Makes a fellow wish he were a sheep-dog.  Here, Shrap, off you go and
+get your whiskers trimmed.  I can see Tomkins waiting for you."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The dog needed no second order.  Every morning just after eight bells
+Shrap would be taken over by the watch below.  Every man took a delight
+in combing the animal's long hair, until Shrap's coat was the pride of
+the <I>Capella's</I> crew and the envy of the rest of the flotilla, whose
+mascots never aspired to be more than a tame rat, parrot, or canary.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Sail on the port bow, sir," bawled the look-out.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Sub and the midshipman promptly levelled their telescopes.  A small
+cargo-steamer was pitching and rolling as she forged slowly ahead on a
+westerly course.  Although she was fairly discernible against the pale
+grey of the eastern sky, it could be taken for granted that from the
+Dutchman's bridge the neutral-grey-painted <I>Capella</I> would be
+practically invisible.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"She's slowing down," declared Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What on earth for?" enquired the Sub.  "She couldn't possibly have
+spotted us.  Starboard your helm, quartermaster.  Good!  Keep her at
+that.  We'll get her to make her number, if nothing else."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Again Noel Fox levelled his telescope.  Then he thrust it into a rack
+on the side of the chart-room, and bellowed:
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Turn up, both watches.  Action stations.  Submarine ahead."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+His quick glance had discerned the after part of a large unterseeboot
+as she ranged alongside the Dutchman, whose high sides screened most of
+the submarine from the <I>Capella</I>, and conversely prevented the Germans
+clustered amidships from noticing the approach of the swift British
+patrol-vessel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For the next few minutes, all was bustle and orderly confusion on board
+the <I>Capella</I>.  Taking three steps at a time, Captain Syllenger gained
+the bridge, closely followed by Eccles, to whom the sudden interruption
+of a hearty breakfast came as a welcome call.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At a terrific pace the sleuth-hound of the sea tore towards the
+<I>Hoorn</I>, for such she was.  Rounding under her squat counter, and
+reversing engines, the <I>Capella</I> brought up within fifty yards of the
+submarine before the astonished Germans could realize their precarious
+plight.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Surrender, or I sink you!" roared Captain Syllenger.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The grim muzzles of the <I>Capella's</I> 4.7's, trained at a point-blank
+range, were a conclusive argument.  Without waiting for orders, the
+majority of the unterseeboot's crew held up their arms.  For a brief
+instant did her Kapitan hesitate.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Me surrender," he replied.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Very good; I accept your surrender," replied the <I>Capella's</I> skipper.
+"But understand, any attempt to open the sea-cocks will mean that no
+quarter will be given.  Order all hands below, and leave the hatchways
+open.  You will oblige me by proceeding on board His Majesty's ship
+<I>Capella</I>."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+By this time the <I>Hoorn</I> was forging ahead, since she was in danger of
+drifting down upon the captured submarine.  In the excitement of the
+capture, no one on board noticed two grotesquely garbed men on the
+<I>Hoorn</I> whose antics resembled those of a pair of demented creatures;
+nor was the presence of a couple of dejected German leutnants and five
+seamen, stranded on board the Dutchman, observed, as the Huns
+frantically besought the obdurate skipper of the <I>Hoorn</I> to steam as
+hard as he could towards the Dutch coast.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was Vernon Haye's duty to take the cutter and board the prize.  It
+was a hazardous piece of work, for the sea was now fairly high, and
+breaking under the effect of tide against wind; but, with the exception
+of a broken top-strake, the boat managed to lie sufficiently close
+alongside the submarine to enable the midshipman and five seamen to
+board.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Already the German crew were below.  Hatches were lowered and secured,
+with the exception of the one in the after side of the conning-tower.
+This could be left open without fear of the submarine being swamped,
+while, to prevent the captured crew closing it and making an attempt to
+dive, the steel cover was removed from its hinges and secured on deck.
+The Black Cross flag was hauled down and rehoisted under the White
+Ensign, and preparations were made to take the prize in tow.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was some time before a grass rope, to which a stout wire hawser was
+bent, could be veered from the <I>Capella's</I> quarter and taken on board
+the submarine, but eventually the hawser was made fast.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Now, sir," said Vernon, addressing the German Kapitan.  "Will you
+please step into that boat?  Where are the other officers?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"In that ship," replied the Hun sullenly, as he pointed towards the
+<I>Hoorn</I>.  "They will not welcome you, but there are others who will."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Not knowing what the German meant, Vernon indicated that he should get
+on board the cutter.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"There are two German officers on board that vessel, air," reported the
+midshipman, as the boat came alongside the <I>Capella</I>.  "Am I to bring
+them off?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Captain Syllenger hesitated before replying.  It was a knotty problem.
+To remove by force the subjects of a hostile nation from a neutral ship
+was contrary to international law.  However much the Germans violated
+the "right of search", it was not Great Britain's policy to engage upon
+reprisals.  Holland, although a third-rate Power, had to be treated
+with due courtesy.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It's all the same in the long run," replied Captain Syllenger.  "Board
+that vessel, Mr. Haye, and see what those fellows are doing there.  If
+the Dutch skipper objects to their presence on his hooker, then bundle
+them into the boat.  If, on the other hand, he protests against their
+removal, let them remain.  They will be collared as soon as the ship
+enters our three-mile limit."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Hoorn</I> had once more come to a dead stop, at two cables' length
+from the British patrol-vessel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As the <I>Capella's</I> cutter came alongside, Vernon agilely scrambled up
+the "monkey ladder" and gained the deck.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hulloa, old man!" exclaimed a well-known voice.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Vernon looked at the speaker.  He knew the voice, but for a moment he
+failed to recognize in the oddly garbed youth his chum Ross Trefusis.
+Then he grinned broadly.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"My word!" he exclaimed.  "You do cut a pretty figure."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Had they been of any nationality but British, the lads would have
+fallen on each other's necks and perhaps kissed each other.  Instead,
+they stood a yard apart and laughed&mdash;but their mutual joy was none the
+less genuine.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"So you've come to fetch the German Leutnant and his boat's crew," said
+Ross, after Haye had been introduced to the Flight-Sub.  "He's
+somewhere below.  You'll recognize him right enough."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Eh?" asked Vernon incredulously.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Rather!" declared Ross emphatically.  "You'd never guess.  It's our
+old pal, Hermann Rix, late of U75.  No wonder he's tearing his hair,
+for he must have broken his parole.  He knew me directly he came over
+the side, and didn't forget to rub it in.  You should have seen his
+face when, in the midst of his beastly gibes, the old <I>Capella</I> came
+snorting up."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+With Jan acting as interpreter, Vernon put his case before the Dutch
+skipper, who seemed only too delighted at the way events had turned.
+His satisfaction at getting rid of his Hunnish visitors was evident, in
+spite of the stolidity of his manners.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I want no pirates on board the <I>Hoorn</I>," he said.  "Take them and
+welcome!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+While the Flight-Sub and Ross were "squaring up" with the good-hearted
+Jan, Vernon rounded up Ober-leutnant Rix and his boat's crew.  Finding
+that their protests to the Dutch skipper were of no avail, they
+sullenly gave in.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Look here," said Ross, taking his chum aside.  "I don't want to crow
+over that fellow.  It isn't cricket.  You might take him to the
+<I>Capella</I> and come back for us.  You'll have a pretty good load as it
+is."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Two British officers, escaped from an internment camp, on board the
+<I>Hoorn</I>, sir," reported Vernon, as he delivered his cargo of German
+prisoners on board the <I>Capella</I>.  "They would like to be taken off."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Carry on, then," replied Captain Syllenger.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+As the cutter returned from her second trip to the <I>Hoorn</I>, the
+<I>Capella's</I> crew awaited with undisguised curiosity the arrival of the
+men who had contrived to escape from irksome detention in a neutral
+country.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Presently Shrap, who was sitting up on the quarterdeck, gave a bark of
+delight.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Good old Shrap!" said Ross.  "He knew me in spite of my rig-out."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Blow me, if it ain't Mr. Trefusis!" exclaimed one of the men.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The next instant the first of three hearty cheers burst from the
+throats of the crew, with whom Ross was a great favourite.  The
+Dutchmen, too, joined in, to the accompaniment of a prolonged blast
+upon the <I>Hoorn's</I> siren as she resumed her interrupted voyage.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It's like being home again," declared Ross, after Captain Syllenger
+and the other officers had congratulated him.  "But, I say, can anyone
+lend me a decent suit of togs?"
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap29"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XXIX
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+Bound for the Baltic
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+A fortnight had elapsed since the day on which H.M.S. <I>Capella</I> towed
+the captured unterseeboot into Harwich harbour.  Since then she had
+been attached to a base on the East coast of Scotland, her sphere of
+usefulness in the English Channel being a thing of the past.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The German blockade had fizzled out like a damp squib.  Absolutely
+afraid to risk the remaining boats in operations that would certainly
+end in their being unceremoniously conveyed to Davy Jones's locker, the
+German Admiralty had dispatched them to the Mediterranean, where, under
+the Austrian flag, they attempted, at first with a certain degree of
+success, to terrorize merchantmen by their "frightfulness".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+So the <I>Capella</I> had been ordered to Cromarty Firth, pending the
+completion of arrangements for sending a fleet of swift destroyers and
+patrol-boats to operate in conjunction with the British submarines in
+the Baltic.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Almost the first duty Ross had to undertake upon arrival was to draw
+money for the ship's company from the Paymaster's office at Invergordon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Accompanied by six seamen, wearing their side-arms and carrying three
+canvas bags, the midshipman landed, and proceeded to the office.
+Leaving the escort "standing easy", Ross entered the building and found
+himself confronted by a door on which was painted the words,
+"Accountant Officer".  Underneath was a piece of cardboard on which was
+written: "Don't knock&mdash;walk in".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The midshipman accepted the invitation and entered.  It was a large
+room.  Against one wall were three knee-hole desks, at which were
+seated naval "writers"&mdash;petty officers detached for clerical work.  Two
+more were bending over a large tray, studiously engaged in "putting the
+money up", or placing wages in the compartments of the tray in order to
+facilitate the forthcoming payment to the civilian workers attached to
+the establishment.  At a large desk was an officer, with his head
+almost touching a litter of papers.  His back was turned, but Ross
+could see by the gold-and-white band that he was an Assistant Paymaster.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Hearing footsteps behind him, the A.P. broke into a torrent of abuse:
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Of all the scatter-brained idiots that act the giddy goat, this
+strafed lunatic takes the proverbial ship's biscuit!" he exclaimed.
+"Just look here, Carruthers; did you ever see such a piece of arrant
+tomfoolery&mdash;&mdash;"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He turned his head, and saw it was not Carruthers.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Sorry," he said apologetically.  "Thought it was someone else.  You
+must have imagined that I was off my head.  It's a wonder I'm not.
+Look at this: here am I up to my eyes in work, and I get this sort of
+thing fired at me."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross looked at the tendered document.  It was headed: "Queries in the
+Store Ledger", and the gem to which the harassed A.P. had referred was
+as follows:&mdash;
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"4 oz. tin-tacks.  Please say if these are synonymous with 'tacks
+tinned'."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The midshipman laughed.  The A.P. glared.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Some rotten idiot drawing five hundred a year evidently doesn't
+realize it's war-time," he growled.  "Now, what can I do for you?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At length the midshipman received the necessary coin.  He was about to
+leave the officer when he found himself face to face with John Barry,
+now a Lieutenant-Commander, R.N.R.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Bless my soul, Trefusis!" exclaimed Barry cordially.  "I am glad to
+see you.  I heard the new <I>Capella</I> was ordered round.  How's everyone?
+Thanks, I'm top-hole.  In a deuce of a hurry!  Look here, come on board
+and see me to-night.  The <I>Hunbilker</I> is lying off Cromarty.  Can you
+manage it?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I think so," replied Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Very good; bring Haye with you.  I'll send a boat at seven bells."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Captain Syllenger readily gave the midshipmen permission.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It looks as if it might blow a bit before very long," he added.  "If
+so, remain on board until morning.  It's no joke making a five-mile
+trip in a steamboat on a pitch-dark night with a sea running."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The lads were delighted at the prospect of the visit.  They were both
+awfully keen on John Barry; besides, they were rather anxious to see
+what sort of command he had.  The ship's name was enough to excite
+their curiosity.  She had evidently arrived later than the <I>Capella</I>,
+for there was no sign of a craft bearing that name when the
+patrol-vessel passed Cromarty on the previous afternoon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Punctually at seven bells a grey motor-boat dashed up alongside the
+<I>Capella's</I> gangway.  Shrap, whose instinct told him that his young
+master was leaving the ship, anticipated him by making a prodigious
+bound from the side into the waiting boat, alighting upon the shoulders
+of the coxswain, much to that worthy's astonishment.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Never mind, sir," replied the man, in answer to Vernon's apologies.
+"I've a dog myself at home, very much like this one."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Let him come with us," suggested Ross.  "He'll kick up an awful row if
+you don't."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+So Shrap, coiled up in the stern-sheets, had his way.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Having received the midshipmen, the boat turned and threshed its way in
+the teeth of a strong easterly breeze.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes, sir, that's the <I>Hunbilker</I>," replied the coxswain in answer to
+Vernon's query, as a large grey shape loomed through the twilight.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"By Jove!" ejaculated Ross, absolutely taken aback.  "She's a whopper.
+Old Barry's got a battleship.  If she isn't a sister ship to the
+<I>Tremendous</I>, I'm a&mdash;&mdash;"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Fortunately for him, Ross refrained from saying what he might be, for
+as things turned out he was wrong.  The <I>Hunbilker</I> commenced her
+career as a 6000-ton merchantman, but no one would recognize her as
+such.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In all probability, but for the war, she would have ended her career as
+such.  But the Navy required her for a certain purpose, and loyally the
+old tramp stepped into the breach.  When, after a lapse of nine weeks,
+she emerged from the repairing basin, her disguise was complete.  She
+looked to be what she was not.  It is, therefore, no cause for
+wonderment that the two midshipmen were deceived by the enormous
+outlines of what appeared to be a formidable unit of the British Navy.
+The <I>Hunbilker</I> was, in short, a maritime ass in lion's skin, but her
+role was none the less a responsible one.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I was rather doubtful whether you would turn up," remarked Barry.
+"The glass is dropping like billy-ho, and there's a brute of a sea
+tumbling in."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"We need not return to-night," announced Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"That's capital," rejoined the Lieutenant-Commander.  "I'll get the
+hands to hoist in the boat and trice the accommodation-ladder up.  We
+roll like a barrel in a sea-way."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"You've got a big command this time, sir," said Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Barry smiled.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes," he replied.  "Plenty of room, but the lighting 'tween decks is
+rotten.  All artificial, you know, except the little we get in through
+the quarter-deck skylights.  I'm expecting young Jolly; he's the A. P.
+you saw ashore at Invergordon.  Not a bad sort of youngster when he's
+clear of his work.  Would you like to look round before we go below?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Of course the Germans know all about our dummy battleships," continued
+Barry as he led the way.  "They jeered at the scheme in the papers as
+far back as last November twelvemonth."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Then what's the object?" asked Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It muddles them up.  They can't distinguish the <I>Tremendous</I> from this
+packet, especially in hazy weather.  They've got to guess which is the
+substance and which is the shadow.  From actual results we know now
+that the costly experiment has more than justified the expenditure."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Lieutenant-Commander and his young guests continued to talk shop
+until it was time to go below.  From that moment, conversation drifted
+into other channels of more or less personal interest.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Presently a loud whistle was heard from without.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"That's Jolly," declared the Lieutenant-Commander.  "It's the last boat
+to-night, I fancy."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A few minutes later the A. P., having divested himself of his dripping
+oilies and sou'wester, was ushered into the cabin.  Separated from his
+duties as Accountant Officer, he was much the same as other men.  Ross
+could hardly believe that the jovial officer&mdash;for he did not now belie
+his name&mdash;was the same explosive man who had figuratively lost his head
+over four ounces of "tacks tinned".
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Dinner over, the four officers drew their chairs close to the fire and
+yarned incessantly.  Even the laboured rolling of the ship, the howling
+of the wind overhead, and the <I>chouf chouf</I> of the waves as they
+slapped against the sides, failed to remind them that they were afloat
+and in an exposed anchorage.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Heard from your sister recently?" enquired Barry, addressing the A. P.
+He tried to ask the question in a natural tone of voice, but the
+midshipmen were quick to perceive a deepening of the tan in the
+Lieutenant-Commander's weather-beaten face.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Had a letter only this morning," replied Jolly; "a fairly long one,
+too.  I suppose things have quieted down a bit after the rush.  My
+sister's a double one, you know," he added, turning to Ross and his
+chum.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"A what?" asked Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"She's my sister, and she's a nursing sister at a naval hospital,"
+explained the A.P.  "There's a very quaint little bit.  I must read it
+to you."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He produced an envelope from his pocket.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"'You remember Marjory May?'" he read.  "'She's had her wish.  She
+joined here as a probationer, on the day after that terrible destroyer
+affair.  We had most of the cases.  One of the patients was a stoker,
+who had been knocked about by a shell exploding in a bunker (whatever
+that is&mdash;it sounds like golf).  Marjorie had her first task&mdash;to wash
+him before the doctor could operate.  I went to see how she was
+progressing, and found the poor girl on the verge of tears.  'Oh,
+sister!' she exclaimed; 'I've been scrubbing him for ten minutes, and I
+can't get him clean!'  It was rather dull in the ward, so I switched on
+the light.  Then I saw the cause of Marjory's distress.  The poor
+stoker was a half-caste."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"By Jove!" ejaculated the A.P. as a particularly savage gust laid the
+ship well over.  "It isn't half blowing!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Yes, my festive friend," agreed Barry; "it is!  Fortunately you are
+not due back to-night.  If you were it wouldn't signify, for I wouldn't
+order a boat away on a night like this.  To-morrow, if it hasn't
+moderated&mdash;and the worst is yet to come&mdash;we'll weigh and stand up the
+Firth into smoother water."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+There was a pause in the conversation.  The din without was now
+terrific.  One of the worst of the winter gales was approaching its
+climax&mdash;a furious nor'easter.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Come in!" shouted Barry as a knock was heard at the cabin door.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Wireless message, sir," announced one of the ship's boys.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Very good," replied the Lieutenant-Commander.  Then, after the
+messenger had backed out, he started to his feet.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I say, you fellows!" he exclaimed.  "Here's a pretty kettle of fish:
+'Flag to <I>Hunbilker</I>: Proceed to sea at once.  Rendezvous Lat. 5° E.,
+Long. 57° 30' N.'  That means, whether you like it or whether you
+don't, you're bound for the Baltic."
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<A NAME="chap30"></A>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+CHAPTER XXX
+</H3>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+The Affair off Kiel
+</H3>
+
+<P>
+Clad in their oilskins over their greatcoats, the two midshipmen
+accompanied Barry to the bridge.  The A. P., on second thoughts,
+decided to remain below.  He had a rooted objection to getting his
+glasses smothered in spray if it could be avoided.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Steam had been raised a week ago, when the <I>Hunbilker</I> left Newcastle
+for Cromarty, so there was no delay on that account.  Already the steam
+capstan was clanking dolorously as fathom after fathom of chain crept
+with seeming reluctance through the hawse-pipe.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was a night.  Towering seas, sweeping in from the exposed Moray
+Firth, surged madly into the more sheltered inlet where the dummy
+battleship strained at her cable.  The air was thick with sleet.
+Overhead, black clouds scudded rapidly across the moon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Even though the ship was partly under the lee of the projecting ground,
+the midshipmen knew that it would be hopeless to attempt to lower a
+boat.  For good or ill they were bound to remain on board.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Suppose it's all right," remarked Ross.  "We may get a chance of doing
+something, far more so than if we were on board the <I>Capella</I>, now this
+submarine blockade fiasco is finished.  At any rate it's not our fault
+we're here."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"But our good fortune," added Vernon.  "Evidently there's a big affair
+coming off, though I can't quite see what this vessel's going to do in
+it."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+For fifteen hours of darkness the <I>Hunbilker</I> plodded steadily onwards.
+No lights were shown, yet it was a known fact that at least thirty
+vessels of various types were converging upon the rendezvous.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Captain Barry never once quitted the bridge.  Although his lofty post
+was constantly deluged by clouds of icy spray, and the weather side of
+the bridge-rail canvas was inches deep in sleet, he braved the elements
+through watch and watch, snatching a hasty meal of cocoa (which was
+cold by the time it reached him) and biscuits under the lee of the
+chart-house.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Day dawned at last.  Ross and Vernon, who had gone below to snatch a
+few hours' sleep, came on deck to find the <I>Hunbilker</I> at the
+rendezvous.  She lay in the midst of a fleet.  There were the great
+battle-cruisers, Dreadnoughts and their replicas, light cruisers, and a
+galaxy of torpedo-boats&mdash;the latter swept from stem to stern by the
+waves.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Without any appreciable weakening of the Grand Fleet, this maritime
+force had been assembled for particular service&mdash;presumably in the
+Baltic, although no orders to that effect had yet been received.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+All that short January day the fleet steamed slowly eastward, while
+signal flags fluttered incessantly.  No hostile submarine put in an
+appearance.  Either the Germans feared the swift destroyers that
+encircled the large vessels, or else they were in ignorance of the
+presence of the British within four hours' steaming of their shores.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was not until night that the <I>Hunbilker</I> received her orders.  She
+had to proceed in advance of the destroyers, and under cover of
+darkness pass through the Great Belt.  Having done so, she was to be
+run aground on a shoal between the Danish island of Laaland and the
+Prussian island of Fehmern, the latter being within forty miles of the
+stronghold of the German Navy at Kiel.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Then she was to await developments.  If attacked by submarines, the
+British destroyers would dash in; but what the British Admiral fondly
+hoped was that the hostile battleships or armoured cruisers would not
+be able to resist the temptation of sallying forth from Kiel to give
+the supposed Dreadnought her <I>coup de grâce</I>.  In this case our
+submarines would "chip in", and possibly the battle-cruisers might
+score with their deadly and accurate long-range salvoes.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It's not so risky as it looks," commented Barry as he explained the
+tactics to the midshipmen.  "You see, they can torpedo us as much as
+they like, and blow the dummy sides of the ship to bits piecemeal.  We
+can't sink, since we'll be hard aground.  We can't take fire&mdash;at least,
+it would be quite a job to get any part of her to burn without being
+able to keep the flames under control.  Gunnery, of course, puts a
+different aspect on the subject.  If the enemy start shelling us with
+their heavy guns, then the sooner we abandon ship and clear out the
+better, and leave our big cruisers to mop up the Huns."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Grey dawn was breaking when the <I>Hunbilker</I>, having made the passage
+through the Great Belt, ran gently aground at the spot indicated in the
+Admiral's orders.  Away in the sou'west, a glare in the sky that was
+rapidly fading with the growing morn indicated the search-lights of the
+Kiel defences.  Eastwards, two huge grey shapes loomed ghost-like in
+the half-light.  Whether they were British cruisers or decoys, or even
+German battleships, Ross could not determine.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Hunbilker</I> lay with a slight list to starboard.  All around her
+the sea was covered with drifting ice.  An utter stillness brooded over
+everything.  The silence was in keeping with the scene of desolation.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Suddenly the deafening blast of the <I>Hunbilker's</I> siren rent the air.
+It was the prearranged signal that she was in readiness; it was also
+her challenge to the Kiel-tied German fleet.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ten minutes later a lurid flash, followed by a dull booming noise, came
+from the nearmost of the two vessels Ross had previously noticed.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Either mine or torpedo," remarked Barry casually.  "It doesn't
+signify.  They won't sink her in a hurry."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"What is she, sir?" asked Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Our opposite number, the <I>Snark</I>," replied the Lieutenant-Commander.
+"See, she's steaming northwards, without any apparent injury.  It will
+be our turn before very long."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At frequent intervals the siren shrieked, as if calling to the rest of
+the squadron for assistance.  Then out of the rising mist, for with the
+break of day a thin pall of vapour rose from the ice-flecked water,
+leapt two German torpedo-boats.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Port side, all hands!" roared Barry.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Officers and crew put the greatest possible distance between them and
+the side of the ship exposed to the hostile craft.  Without slackening
+speed, the torpedo-boats described a sharp curve.  Their officers must
+have wondered why they were not greeted by the stranded battleship's
+quick-firers.  As they turned, two gleaming objects flopped
+ungracefully from their decks and disappeared with a splash beneath the
+surface.  Each boat had fired a torpedo from her broadside tubes.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+From the place where the midshipmen stood, they were not able to follow
+the track of the formidable missiles; but they had not long to wait.
+Both torpedoes struck almost simultaneously&mdash;one abreast of the for'ard
+dummy turret, the other fifty feet farther aft.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+High in the air rose a column of water mingled with fragments of iron
+plating; while in their place of hiding the two lads were smothered
+with cork-dust and blackened cotton that had been blown from the space
+betwixt the outer and inner hulls.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"It's lucky for us that they didn't use their quick-firers," remarked
+Barry.  "They would have pulverized us before our destroyers romped up.
+By Jove, Haye, that dog of yours looks as though he likes it!  Hulloa!
+There you are!"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The Lieutenant-Commander pointed to the southward.  A rift in the mist
+disclosed a two-masted, two-funnelled armoured cruiser about two miles
+off.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"The <I>Prinz Heinrich</I> or the <I>Fürst Bismarck</I>," declared Barry.  "We've
+turned 'em out.  Hope to goodness our little lot will be in time to
+snap them up.  Unless I'm much mistaken, there are two more astern of
+her."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Almost as he spoke, a spurt of flame rent the dull sky.  Then, to the
+accompaniment of a vivid flash and an ear-splitting detonation, a
+5.9-inch shell burst against the for'ard dummy turret of the
+<I>Hunbilker</I>.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+When the smoke had cleared away, guns, turret, and conning-tower,
+together with a portion of the bridge, had vanished.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"All hands abandon ship!" ordered Barry, as a salvo of light
+projectiles flew round, over, and through the decoy.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was quite time.  Several men had been hit, since there was nothing
+to afford complete protection from the hail of shells.  The difficulty
+was to find a boat that was seaworthy, since these suffered almost at
+once from the flying fragments of metal.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hurrah, sir!" shouted one of the men.  "There are our destroyers."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He was right.  Seven British destroyers were tearing through the water,
+intent upon giving the Germans the punishment that they had boasted to
+inflict upon the strafed Englishmen&mdash;a hussar stroke.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Instantly the galling fire ceased.  The German cruiser had all her work
+cut out to endeavour to beat off her wasp-like antagonists.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The <I>Hunbilker</I> was doomed.  In spite of elaborate precautions against
+fire, she was burning furiously.  Her fo'c'sle was a mass of flames,
+generated by the intense heat of the first shell that had struck her.
+Smaller fires, too, had started in other parts of the ship.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+But help was at hand.  One of the covering destroyers had witnessed her
+plight.  Adroitly manoeuvring, she came right alongside the burning
+ship.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Jump, men!" shouted Barry.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+There was no time to be lost.  The danger of the flames communicating
+with the shells and war-heads on the destroyer's deck was to be taken
+into consideration.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Come on, old man!" exclaimed Ross, as his chum looked anxiously about
+him.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Where's Shrap?" asked Vernon.  "He was here a minute ago."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+In the confusion, occasioned by the rush of men to leap upon the
+destroyer, the dog had vanished.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Without a word Vernon ran towards the companion leading to the
+half-deck.  Above the roar of the flames and the hissing of steam, he
+had heard the well-known bark of his pet.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Silly ass!" muttered Ross; but he, too, followed his chum.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Wreaths of thin smoke were issuing from the companion as Ross gained
+the head of the ladder.  Putting his muffler round his mouth, he groped
+his way down.  'Tween decks the air was full of smoke.  He could hear
+Shrap's insistent bark, and Vernon's voice as, amidst fits of coughing,
+he called to his canine companion.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Whatever is the matter with the brute?" thought Ross, as he fought his
+way along the half-deck.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+A gaping hole in the ship's side admitted sufficient light to enable
+him to discern his comrade backing from one of the cabins.  Shrap was
+preceding him, while Vernon was dragging something limp and heavy.  It
+was the body of the luckless A. P.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Without a word, for the atmosphere was hot and choky, Ross bore a hand.
+Stumbling and slipping, the two lads bore their burden to the
+companion, and by dint of much exertion carried Jolly on deck.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Is he dead?" asked Ross, after he had refilled his lungs with less
+smoke-laden air.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I don't think so," said Vernon.  "It was good old Shrap that found
+him."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The A. P. was below when the salvo from the German cruiser struck the
+ship.  He had gone to the cabin temporarily allotted to him to obtain
+some small but cherished belonging.  A fragment from one of the shells
+had inflicted a nasty scalp wound, stretching him senseless upon the
+floor.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Had it not been for the sheep-dog, whose sagacity made him recognize
+that Jolly was a friend of his master's, the A. P. would have ended his
+career in the burning hull of the <I>Hunbilker</I>.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Hurry up!" exclaimed Ross.  "Let's get him aboard the destroyer."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Between them they carried the insensible officer across the
+quarter-deck, but as they reached the side abreast the wreckage of the
+superstructure they came to an abrupt halt.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The destroyer had sheered off and was out of sight.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Now what's to be done?" asked Vernon, aghast at the latest turn of
+fortune.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+They laid the A. P. on the deck and looked over the side.  Still made
+fast to the falls was a whaler, with her keel ten feet above water.
+When the order had been given to abandon ship, the boat had been
+lowered, but the appearance of the destroyer had done away with the
+necessity of having to make use of her.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Lower away!" ordered Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Checking the descent by taking a turn round the cleats, the lads
+allowed the whaler to reach the water.  To their satisfaction they
+found that she leaked but very little.  Oars and crutches were already
+on board, together with mast and sail.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Down you get," said Ross.  "Let go the after disengaging gear, then
+stand by.  I'll let Jolly down to you."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Vernon quickly swarmed down the falls, while his chum carried the A.P.
+to the now empty davit.  Taking a few turns with his strong muffler
+round the chest of the unconscious man, Ross engaged the hook of the
+lower block, and slowly lowered him into Vernon's arms.  Shrap followed
+in a similar manner, since the drop was too great for him to leap
+without risk of limb.  Then Ross climbed down and gained the boat.  He
+was not a minute too soon, for the flames were drawing nearer and the
+heat was becoming almost unbearable.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Placing Jolly in the stern-sheets, the lads stepped the mast and
+hoisted sail.  Nothing else was in sight, although the rumble of heavy
+firing was still audible.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I'll steer north," declared Ross, who had taken the helm, while Vernon
+attended to the A.P.'s ugly wound.  "If we are not picked up by one of
+our own boats, we are almost bound to hit one of the Danish islands."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+There was but little wind.  What there was, blew from a couple of
+points abaft the beam, so that the little craft was able to lie
+comfortably upon her course.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+At length Jolly opened his eyes.  Somewhat to his companions' amusement
+his first words were:
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Dash it all!  Where did I leave my glasses?  Hulloa!  I've been
+plugged.  Where am I?"
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He attempted to sit up, but promptly subsided upon the gratings in the
+stern-sheets, and in a very short time he began to talk incoherently,
+and finally dropped off into a fitful slumber.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+The fog had now increased in density, so that it was no longer possible
+to see more than a hundred yards ahead.  Several vessels moving at high
+speed passed within hailing distance, but no reply came to the lads'
+shouts.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"There's a hail!" exclaimed Vernon.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Again came the sound of a human voice.  It was a call for aid, and was
+uttered in German.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Steady!" cautioned Vernon, as Ross put the helm down.  "We don't want
+to run alongside a cargo of Huns."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"There's only one, I should imagine," replied his chum.  "At any rate
+we'll have a look.  If there are too many, we'll sheer off."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Guided by the repeated calls for assistance, the midshipmen came in
+sight of a disabled boat.  It had been holed, and was kept afloat only
+by some of its air-tanks which had escaped damage.  The gunwales,
+jagged by shell-fire, were showing only a few inches above the water.
+The stern was almost awash, but the bows rose sufficiently high for the
+forefoot to be seen.  Crouching on the for'ard thwart was a German
+officer.  He was bareheaded.  The collar of his greatcoat was turned
+up.  His face was blanched by the intense cold.  As the whaler
+approached and he saw that it was a British one, he held up his hands
+in token of surrender.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Dropping to leeward, Ross luffed smartly.  The whaler lost way almost
+alongside the waterlogged boat.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Awkwardly the German clambered over the gunwale, for his limbs were
+numbed.  Then, as soon as he was safely on board, he drew a revolver
+from the pocket of his greatcoat and fired twice in quick succession.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross saw his chum throw up his arms and pitch across the centre thwart.
+The next instant he felt a stinging pain in his shoulder, as if it were
+pierced by a red-hot needle.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"The brute has plugged me!" was the thought that flashed through his
+mind, as he subsided heavily upon the grating by the side of the A. P.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+He was still conscious, although everything seemed misty.  Up to a
+certain point he remembered exactly what happened, for with a sudden
+spring Shrap flew at the treacherous Teuton's throat.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Again and again the German fired, wildly and in the air, for the
+sheep-dog had him fixed in his unyielding jaws, shaking the fellow like
+a rat.  Unable to move a limb, Ross remained conscious until the issue
+was decided and victory rested with the devoted Shrap; then his head
+dropped upon his chest and everything became a blank.
+</P>
+
+<HR ALIGN="center" WIDTH="60%">
+
+<P>
+Ross Trefusis recovered consciousness to find himself in hospital on
+the East coast.  In the next cot was Jolly, cutting a sorry figure with
+his head swathed in surgical bandages.  Vernon was in an adjoining
+ward, making a promising recovery from the wound caused by the cowardly
+German's bullet that had passed between his ribs, fortunately just
+missing his lungs.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+It was not until a week later that Ross heard of the manner of his
+rescue.  The whaler had been picked up by a destroyer.  In it they
+found the three wounded British officers, and a dead German with his
+throat fearfully lacerated.  Not only had Shrap saved the situation,
+but he had helped still further to save his master's life, for it was
+owing to the warmth of the dog's body that Vernon was saved from death
+by exposure.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+One of the first of visitors to Ross's bedside was John Barry, now
+Commander Barry, R.N.R., D.S.O.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"And how did the scrap come off?" asked Ross.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Fairly well," replied the Commander.  "We bagged a cruiser and a
+couple of destroyers.  The old <I>Hunbilker</I> justified her existence, you
+see."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"I'm afraid Haye and I are out of the running," remarked Ross
+disconsolately.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Not a bit of it," replied Barry in his breezy way.  "Not a bit of it.
+You'll both be as fit as fiddles in a couple of months.  The Navy's
+pushing on with the job all right, Ross, but it's slow and sure.
+You'll be at it again long before the end."
+</P>
+
+<P>
+Ross gave a sigh of satisfaction.
+</P>
+
+<P>
+"Sounds promising, sir, doesn't it?" he exclaimed.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR>
+
+<H3 ALIGN="center">
+By PERCY F. WESTERMAN
+</H3>
+
+<P CLASS="noindent">
+"No boy alive will be able to peruse Mr. Westerman's pages without a
+quickening of his pulses."&mdash;Outlook.
+</P>
+
+<BR>
+
+<P CLASS="noindent">
+With Beatty off Jutland.  A Romance of the Great Sea Fight.
+</P>
+
+<P CLASS="noindent">
+The Submarine Hunters.  A Story of Naval Patrol Work.
+</P>
+
+<P CLASS="noindent">
+A Lively Bit of the Front.  A Tale of the New Zealand Rifles on the
+Western Front.
+</P>
+
+<P CLASS="noindent">
+A Sub and a Submarine.  The Story of H.M. Submarine R19 in the Great
+War.
+</P>
+
+<P CLASS="noindent">
+Under the White Ensign.  A Naval Story of the Great War.  "No one can
+tell sea stories like Percy F. Westerman."&mdash;Outlook.
+</P>
+
+<P CLASS="noindent">
+The Dispatch-Riders: The Adventures of Two British Motor-cyclists with
+the Belgian Forces.  "No boy will find a dull page in Mr. Westerman's
+story."&mdash;Bookman.
+</P>
+
+<P CLASS="noindent">
+The Sea-girt Fortress: A Story of Heligoland.  "Mr. Westerman has
+provided a story of breathless excitement, and boys of all ages will
+read it with avidity."&mdash;Athenaeum.
+</P>
+
+<P CLASS="noindent">
+Rounding up the Raider: A Naval Story of the Great War.
+</P>
+
+<P CLASS="noindent">
+The Fight for Constantinople: A Tale of the Gallipoli Peninsula.
+"Breathless adventures crowd into this thrilling story....  It teems
+with enthralling episodes and vivid word-pictures."&mdash;British Weekly.
+"The reader sits absolutely spellbound to the end of the
+story."&mdash;Sheffield Daily Telegraph.
+</P>
+
+<P CLASS="noindent">
+Captured at Tripoli: A Tale of Adventure.
+</P>
+
+<P CLASS="noindent">
+"We cannot imagine a better gift-book than this to put into the hands
+of the youthful book-lover, either as a prize or
+present."&mdash;Schoolmaster.
+</P>
+
+<P CLASS="noindent">
+The Quest of the "Golden Hope": A Seventeenth-century Story of
+Adventure.  "The boy who is not satisfied with this crowded story must
+be peculiarly hard to please."&mdash;Liverpool Courier.
+</P>
+
+<P CLASS="noindent">
+A Lad of Grit: A Story of Restoration Times.  "The tale is well
+written, and has a good deal of variety in the scenes and
+persons."&mdash;Globe.
+</P>
+
+<BR><BR><BR><BR>
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+<pre>
+
+
+
+
+
+End of Project Gutenberg's The Submarine Hunters, by Percy F. Westerman
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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Submarine Hunters, by Percy F. Westerman
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Submarine Hunters
+       A Story of the Naval Patrol Work in the Great War
+
+Author: Percy F. Westerman
+
+Illustrator: E. S. Hodgson
+
+Release Date: March 17, 2013 [EBook #26641]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SUBMARINE HUNTERS ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Al Haines
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration: Cover art]
+
+
+[Frontispiece: "THE BLACK CROSS FLAG WAS HAULED DOWN,
+  AND REHOISTED UNDER THE WHITE ENSIGN"]
+
+
+
+
+
+
+The Submarine Hunters
+
+
+  A Story of Naval Patrol
+  Work in the Great War
+
+
+BY
+
+PERCY F. WESTERMAN
+
+
+
+  Author of
+
+  "Rounding Up the Raider"
+  "The Dispatch-Riders"
+  "The Fight for Constantinople"
+  &c. &c.
+
+
+
+_Illustrated by E. S. Hodgson_
+
+
+
+
+BLACKIE AND SON LIMITED
+
+LONDON GLASGOW AND BOMBAY
+
+1918
+
+
+
+
+Contents
+
+
+   CHAP.
+
+      I.  THE MYSTERIOUS MEETING ON ST. MENA'S ISLAND
+     II.  THE TABLES TURNED
+    III.  KIDNAPPED
+     IV.  THE AWAKENING
+      V.  ABOARD U75
+     VI.  THE TRAMP
+    VII.  ON THE BED OF THE SEA
+   VIII.  BALKED BY A SEA-PLANE
+     IX.  THE LANDING AT PORT TREHERNE
+      X.  A TREACHEROUS PLOT
+     XI.  PREPARATIONS
+    XII.  THE WHITE FLAG--AND AFTERWARDS
+   XIII.  THE ARM OF THE LAW
+    XIV.  A FRUITLESS QUEST
+     XV.  THE ADMIRAL WORKS THE ORACLE
+    XVI.  H.M.S. "CAPELLA"
+   XVII.  A DOUBLE BAG
+  XVIII.  THE SMOKE-SIGNALS
+    XIX.  THAT FRIDAY NIGHT
+     XX.  TO THE RESCUE
+    XXI.  ADRIFT IN THE CHANNEL
+   XXII.  AN UNEXPECTED CAPTURE
+  XXIII.  MINED
+   XXIV.  "SHRAP"
+    XXV.  OFF THE BELGIAN COAST
+   XXVI.  DISABLED IN MID-AIR
+  XXVII.  NOT ON PAROLE
+ XXVIII.  ALMOST RECAPTURED
+   XXIX.  BOUND FOR THE BALTIC
+    XXX.  THE AFFAIR OFF KIEL
+
+
+
+
+Illustrations
+
+
+"THE BLACK CROSS FLAG WAS HAULED DOWN AND
+  RE-HOISTED UNDER THE WHITE ENSIGN" . . . . . . . . . _Frontispiece_
+
+THE INTERVIEW WITH THE GERMAN CAPTAIN (missing from book)
+
+"'D'YE KEN YON?' ASKED THE BRITISH SKIPPER, AS HE
+  EYED THE PODGY GERMAN LEUTNANT WITH CONTEMPT"
+
+"THE 'TREMENDOUS' WAS HEADING STRAIGHT FOR THE DOOMED SUBMARINE"
+
+THE SINKING OF THE "ORONTABELLA" (missing from book)
+
+"THE WORK OF DEMOLITION WAS ACCOMPLISHED"
+
+
+
+
+THE SUBMARINE HUNTERS
+
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+The Mysterious Meeting on St. Mena's Island
+
+"We've made a proper mess of things this time!" ejaculated Ross
+Trefusis--"or rather I have."
+
+"It can't be helped," rejoined his chum, Vernon Haye.  "We've done our
+level best to get her off.  How long is it before the tide floats her?"
+
+"A matter of seven or eight hours, worse luck.  You see, it was only
+half ebb when we landed."
+
+Ross bent down to remove a streak of bluish-grey mud from his ankle.
+
+"I wish we'd taken the rowing-boat instead of this heavy old tub," he
+continued.  "We'll be pretty peckish before we get back to the Hall,
+and dinner's at seven-thirty."
+
+Vernon laughed.
+
+"It wouldn't be the first time I've had to go without grub," he
+remarked.  "If you don't mind, I don't."
+
+"Then it's no use standing here," said Ross.  "Let's get on our shoes
+and go for a stroll."
+
+Vernon Haye was a broad-shouldered lad of fifteen, with clear-cut
+features and dark hair.  His companion was of about the same age, but a
+good two inches taller.  His complexion was florid, his hair of an
+auburn tint that narrowly escaped coming within the category of red or
+ginger.  His features were full and rounded.  In short, he was a
+typical Cornish youth.
+
+Ross's father, Admiral Paul Trefusis, lived at Killigwent Hall, a
+large, rambling, sixteenth-century house, standing within a mile of the
+sea on the North Cornish coast.
+
+Both lads went to the same public school, but owing to the fact that
+Vernon's father, Captain Haye, was on active service with the Grand
+Fleet, young Haye was spending the summer holidays with his chum at
+Killigwent Hall.
+
+That afternoon the lads had taken a small sailing-boat and had made for
+St. Mena's Island, a small rocky piece of land lying about a mile off
+shore, and nearly five miles from Killigwent Cove.  The island was
+roughly three-quarters of a mile in length, and four hundred yards wide
+in the broadest part.  The north and west sides were precipitous, but
+on the side nearest to the mainland the ground sloped gradually, and
+was indented by several narrow tidal coves.
+
+The glamour of romance lay thickly around that rocky pile.  Centuries
+ago it was the abode of a hermit, who, amongst his various self-imposed
+tasks, had built a chapel on the summit, from the tower of which a wood
+fire was kindled nightly to warn mariners of the treacherous reefs in
+the vicinity of the island.
+
+In course of time, St. Mena's Island became the haunt of wreckers and
+smugglers.  The chapel, in spite of its massive construction, fell a
+victim to the ravages of wind and weather, but still served as a
+convenient shelter for the lawless Cornishmen who profited by the
+misfortunes of honest seamen.  Immune from interference, by reason of
+the superstitious awe in which the island was held by the country-folk,
+the smugglers and wreckers thrived exceedingly until late in the
+eighteenth century, when stern measures were taken to suppress their
+misdeeds.  From that time St. Mena's Island was deserted, except for
+the casual visits of tourists and summer visitors from the neighbouring
+towns of Padstow and Newquay, and countless numbers of sea-birds that
+take up their abode in crannies in the almost inaccessible cliffs.
+
+Ross Trefusis was right in taking the blame of their misfortunes upon
+himself.  He knew better, but, neglecting to take ordinary precautions,
+he had allowed the boat to be left high and dry by the falling tide.
+Upon returning to the cove the lads had found the heavy craft lying on
+its bilge in the stiff bluish clay, with a ridge of jagged rocks
+cutting her off from the sea.
+
+"Perhaps," suggested Vernon, "some other boat will put off to the
+island, and we can get them to put us ashore."
+
+"Hardly likely," was the reply.  "Anyway, we'll keep a look-out.  Which
+would you prefer to do--explore the Smugglers' Cave and Dead Man's
+Cave, or climb up to the ruins?"
+
+"The ruins," decided young Haye eagerly.  "I like fooling about old
+ruins, and I've already seen the caves.  Besides, we can see if there
+are any boats about.  It's almost like being shipwrecked on a desert
+island."
+
+"Hard lines if we were," commented Ross.  "Suppose we take an inventory
+of our possessions?  Let the see: one pocket-knife, a silver watch that
+has refused duty, a notebook and pencil, and five shillings and three
+halfpence.  What have you to add to the common stock?"
+
+"A knife, a pocket compass, my watch--which does go; it's now
+five-and-twenty to four--and sixteen shillings and eightpence in paper
+money and hard coin."
+
+"Not a morsel of grub between the pair of us, then," declared Ross.
+"Outlook beastly unpromising.  Faced with starvation unless we make up
+our minds to knock over some gulls.  They are horribly fishy to eat, I
+believe, and we've nothing to make a fire."
+
+"It makes you pine for the flesh-pots of Kllligwent Hall, old man,"
+exclaimed Vernon laughingly.  "Never mind, let's make a move.  I vote
+we get rid of these sweaters.  It is frightfully hot."
+
+Stripping off their woollen garments, and placing them for safety under
+a gorse bush, the two lads made their way up the steep ascent to the
+ruins, till, hot and well-nigh breathless in spite of being "in
+training", they reached the summit of the island.
+
+"What a jolly view!" exclaimed Vernon, turning and taking in the
+panorama of rocky coast-line, an expanse of jagged, frowning, brownish
+cliffs topped by the brilliant green of the Cornish moorland.
+
+"Not bad," agreed Ross complaisantly, for the view was no stranger to
+him.  "See that cliff shaped like the head and shoulders of a bearded
+man?  That's Hidden Money Cove that I was speaking to you about last
+night.  We'll go there next week, all being well.  You see, there's not
+a sail in sight, so our chances of getting back to dinner are very
+remote.  What's more, unless I'm very much mistaken, there's a
+rain-storm coming.  See that dark cloud working up against the wind?"
+
+"Yes," assented Haye.  "What of it?  A little rain won't hurt."
+
+"It's the after effect," said Ross.  "It's quite possible it may blow
+hard before night, in which case we're done for.  I've known it
+impossible to approach Killigwent Cove for a week at a time."
+
+Vernon whistled.
+
+"Sounds lively," he remarked.
+
+"Of course that is in the winter," his chum hastened to remind him.
+"These summer gales don't last very long, but we'll be feeling precious
+hungry by the time we get home, I guess."
+
+"Look here," said Vernon after a while.  "I vote we get those sweaters.
+We don't want to be soaked."
+
+"Very well," assented Ross.  "But there's no great hurry."
+
+Having retrieved the sweaters, the chums leisurely retraced their way
+to the ruins.  For half an hour or more they wandered around the
+remains, descending into the dark crypt, and running considerable risk
+in climbing to the summit of the tower.  Since the spiral stone steps
+had vanished long ago, the only means of getting to the top was by
+climbing the gnarled stem of the ivy which grew profusely on the face
+of the building.  The tower was roofless, a low, partly demolished
+parapet encircling it on three sides, while a couple of weather-worn
+oak-beams supporting a few planks formed a kind of platform where the
+roof formerly existed.
+
+"Think it's safe?" asked Vernon anxiously, as his chum, having got
+astride the parapet, was about to lower himself upon the decrepit
+woodwork.
+
+"I've done it scores of times," said Ross confidently.  "That's right,
+I'll guide your foot.  Now let go."
+
+"By Jove!" suddenly exclaimed Haye; "there's a fellow coming towards
+the ruin.  How on earth did he get here?"
+
+"Goodness only knows," said Trefusis inconsequently.  "He may have
+landed in Main Beach Cove.  Anyhow, he's at perfect liberty to do so.
+I suppose he's interested in ruins."
+
+"Let's drop a bit of stone and give him a shock when he gets here,"
+suggested Vernon.  "We'll apologize afterwards.  Ten to one he'll give
+us a passage back."
+
+"I'm not so keen on dropping chunks of stone," objected Ross.  "I vote
+we lie low for a bit at any rate, and see what he's up to."
+
+"Why, do you think he's a spy?" asked his companion.  Trefusis grunted
+scoffingly.
+
+"Spy?" he repeated.  "What object would a spy have on St. Mena's
+Island?  This part of Cornwall is well outside the military area.
+There's nothing in the fortification line for miles.  No, it's not
+that.  But _cave_, here he comes."
+
+The lads crouched behind the crumbling parapet, and by means of
+conveniently placed gaps in the masonry watched the stranger's approach.
+
+There was nothing about the man's appearance to suggest that he was
+anything but an ordinary holiday-maker.  He was slightly above average
+height, rather heavily built, and inclined to flabbiness.  His
+complexion was undoubtedly florid, although his face and hands were
+tanned a deep brown.
+
+He was dressed in a light-grey lounge suit, with a straw hat and brown
+shoes, while in his right hand he carried a thick Malacca cane.
+
+The exertion of climbing up the hill on which the ruined chapel stood
+apparently told upon him, for he was considerably out of breath when he
+passed under the ivy-clad arch.  Here he stopped to wipe his face with
+a handkerchief, and while doing so dropped his cane.
+
+It fell upon the stones with a dull thud.
+
+At the same time the stranger gave vent to an exclamation that
+certainly was not English.
+
+The lads exchanged glances.  Here was the beginning of a mystery.  The
+heaviest Malacca cane would not have made that dull metallic sound in
+falling, while it was evident by the careful examination the stranger
+made of the retrieved article that he was more than considerate for its
+appearance.
+
+The man made no attempt to explore the ruins.  The weather-worn fane
+had no attractions for him.  It was apparently only a rendezvous, as
+far as he was concerned, for at frequent intervals he would walk
+stealthily through the archway, and look attentively down the hill
+leading to the coves on the side facing the mainland.
+
+It had now begun to rain--big drops that were the precursors of a heavy
+shower.  The lads, in their exposed position on the tower, paid scant
+heed.  Their interest and attention were centred upon the anxiously
+awaiting stranger fifty feet beneath them.
+
+Presently Ross happened to glance towards the stretch of water that
+separated St. Mena's Island from the mainland.  A boat was approaching.
+Already it was more than half-way across.  It was a rowing-boat,
+containing only one person.  What object would anyone have in rowing
+across on a wet afternoon like this? wondered the lad.
+
+Just then the stranger began rubbing his hands with ill-concealed
+satisfaction.  Although he had been frequently on the look-out, he had
+evidently only just caught sight of the approaching boat.
+
+The lads watched the little craft till it was hidden by the intervening
+high ground, but already Ross felt certain that it was making for Main
+Beach Cove.
+
+There were three landing-places on St. Mena's Island--Half Tide Cove,
+where the lads had left their stranded boat; Main Beach Cove, a little
+to the north-east; and Deadman's Cove, farther away.  Of these, only
+Main Beach was available between one hour on either side of low water.
+The fact that the boat was making for it, and had already successfully
+skirted the submerged reef lying off it, proved that its occupant had
+local knowledge.
+
+Some considerable time elapsed between the temporary disappearance of
+the boat and the appearance of the new-comer; but at length he came
+into view, walking rapidly up the steep incline without showing
+anything of the physical strain that the first stranger had betrayed.
+
+Suddenly Ross Trefusis recognized the man.  He almost felt inclined to
+laugh at his suspicions.  It was Dr. Ramblethorne, the medical
+practitioner at St. Bedal--a town of considerable importance about
+seven miles from Killigwent Hall.  The doctor was a frequent guest of
+Admiral Trefusis, and was generally considered a good, all-round
+sportsman.  He was about thirty years of age, over six feet in height,
+of sinewy frame and of great muscular power.  He was the wildest
+motorist in that part of Cornwall, as the endorsements on his driver's
+licence testified.  A keen golfer, good shot, and fisherman, he was
+also a botanist; and that, perhaps, thought Ross, might account for his
+presence on St. Mena's Island, although it was difficult to reconcile
+the fact that Ramblethorne had an appointment with a stranger at this
+desolate spot.  If a joint botanic expedition had been fixed up, why
+had not the two men met on the mainland?
+
+The unknown made no attempt to advance to meet the doctor.  Instead, he
+remained within the ruins until Ramblethorne entered.
+
+Their greeting was a surprise even to the lads, for the doctor, holding
+out his hand, exclaimed in German:
+
+"Well met, von Ruhle!  Let us hope that your arrangements will prove
+satisfactory."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+The Tables Turned
+
+Both Ross Trefusis and Vernon Haye understood and could speak German.
+Ross was especially good in his knowledge of the language of the modern
+Hun, for in his early youth he had been inflicted with a German
+governess.  Since German is one of the subjects for Sandhurst--for
+which both lads were preparing--their knowledge had been considerably
+improved under the cast-iron rule of a native professor.
+
+"Eminently satisfactory," replied von Ruhle.  "We will go into details
+later.  You had no difficulty in coming here, I hope?"
+
+"None whatever."
+
+"No suspicions?" asked von Ruhle anxiously.
+
+Ramblethorne smiled.
+
+"My dear von Ruhle," he replied.  "A medical practitioner is above
+suspicion.  He is free to go anywhere at any hour of the day or night
+without question.  No man would suspect----"
+
+"You are clever, von Hauptwald----"
+
+"Ssh!" interrupted the doctor.  "Call me Ramblethorne, if you please.
+Of course there is no danger here, but at other times and in other
+places you might incautiously give the show away.  You had a good
+passage?"
+
+"Excellent," replied von Ruhle.  "I am getting well-known to the
+strafed English custom-house officers at Queenboro' and Harwich.  They
+recognize me by my stick, I believe, but they little know that it is a
+new one every time.  What do you think of this?  I have brought it as a
+specimen for you to see.  Just fancy! every time I cross to Holland
+twenty kilogrammes of good copper are on their way to the Fatherland.
+By this time Herr Stabb of Essen is well acquainted with my Malacca
+canes."
+
+"A good weight to carry about," remarked Ramblethorne, wielding the
+disguised bar of copper.  "I wonder you troubled."
+
+"Mein Gott!  I could not leave it," declared von Ruhle.  "Someone might
+take a fancy to it, and then the secret would be out.  But tell me:
+have you succeeded in getting that commission you spoke of?"
+
+"I am still living in hopes," replied Ramblethorne.  "Of course I could
+have obtained a post of temporary surgeon in the British Navy, but it
+wasn't good enough.  It's no fun running the risk of being torpedoed by
+our own Submarines.  The English Army offers a wider scope.  Believe
+me, I am worth more than a division to the Emperor.  I'll get a
+commission, never you fear, for I have heaps of influence.  Then, of
+course, I will do my utmost to fight against a terrible epidemic that
+will mysteriously break out amongst the troops."
+
+Ramblethorne, otherwise von Hauptwald, threw back his shoulders and
+laughed uproariously.
+
+"Careful!" hissed his companion.  "You will be heard over the whole
+island."
+
+"What matters?  There is not another soul in sight besides ourselves.
+How much petrol have you?"
+
+"Fifty two-gallon tins.  I expect some more by boat to-morrow.  It's
+safely stored in a cave on the side of the creek.  It is a nuisance it
+is raining.  I do not fancy a night's work in weather like this.
+Himmel, what's that?"
+
+Accidentally Vernon's foot had dislodged a small piece of stone.
+
+"Nerves, my dear von Ruhle," said Ramblethorne, with his usual
+good-natured smile.  "A bit of masonry has fallen from the tower.  See,
+the floor is covered with similar pieces."
+
+"If anyone should be up there----" suggested von Ruhle, pointing to the
+top of the tower.
+
+The lads could feel their hearts thumping against their ribs.  Through
+a small crack in the planking they could see the eyes of the two
+Germans directed upwards.
+
+"Impossible; there are no steps," declared Ramblethorne.  "Besides,
+what object would anyone have in ascending a tower on a day like this?
+I fully appreciate the danger of being overheard, of course.  We've
+said enough to find ourselves faced by a firing-party in the Tower of
+London, my friend."
+
+"Don't!" expostulated von Ruhle, closing his eyes as if to shut out the
+unpleasant mental vision.  Then: "You have the signalling apparatus, I
+hope?"
+
+"Trust me for that, von Ruhle," replied his companion, tapping his
+breast-pocket.  "All we have to do is to wait until yonder lighthouse
+exposes its light.  Really the ways of these English pass
+understanding.  They rigorously forbid the showing of lights in private
+houses on shore, imagining that our agents would be so foolish as to
+start blinking with a lamp; yet they allow these lighthouses to work as
+usual, and obligingly enable us to communicate to our hearts' content."
+
+Von Hauptwald was not far wrong in his remarks, for the instrument he
+had enabled him to flash a message to a confederate without having to
+be in possession of a lamp.  The flash was obtained from any distant
+and visible light by means of a complicated system of mirrors.  The
+reflected rays could then be projected in any desired direction so as
+to be quite invisible except on a certain bearing.  It was one of the
+carefully-thought-out plans adopted by the German Government to permit
+its spies to communicate with their submarines without running any
+great risk of detection.
+
+"It's two hours to sunset," remarked the doctor; "three before we
+commence operations.  I would suggest that we adjourn to the cave and
+partake of refreshment.  You see, I have not omitted to make suitable
+provision."
+
+"Very good!" agreed von Ruhle; "but I only wish I had a waterproof.
+The rain is most annoying."
+
+Arm-in-arm the two men left the building, and presently disappeared
+from view behind a slight rise in the ground.
+
+"I say!" exclaimed Ross; "we've tumbled on something this time.  Fancy
+Ramblethorne a rotten German spy.  I always thought he was a rattling
+good chap."
+
+"Evidently he isn't," rejoined Vernon.  "But the point is: what do you
+propose to do?  It's beastly wet here."
+
+"It is, now I come to think of it," agreed his chum.  "The fact is,
+that until you mentioned it I was hardly aware that it was raining.
+We'll discuss this knotty point."
+
+"I vote we make tracks for the boat," suggested Haye.  "The tide must
+be rising by this time.  We can then slip off and raise the alarm."
+
+Ross shook his head.
+
+"No go," he decided.  "We might get nabbed ourselves.  Besides, who
+would be able to lay these chaps by the heels?  There's only that
+motor-boat chap at Penydwick Cove, and he's precious little use.  There
+are no soldiers nearer than at St. Bedal.  I propose we hang on here.
+There's a snug, sheltered hole in these ruins, just big enough for us
+to lie hidden.  Then we stand a good chance of hearing more of the
+conversation between those beggars."
+
+"Three hours more, remember."
+
+"Yes, I know.  In the meanwhile we might slip down to Main Beach Cove.
+There's plenty of cover amongst the rocks."
+
+"What for?" asked Vernon.
+
+"To see what these fellows are up to.  I'm rather anxious to renew my
+slight acquaintance with friend Copperstick.  By Jove, what a cute move
+to get contraband metal into Germany!"
+
+"Not much at a time.  It shows how hard up the Germans must be for
+copper when it pays a fellow to carry over about half a hundredweight
+at a time."
+
+"Well, let's get a move on," said Ross.  "Be careful how you descend.
+The ivy will be fairly slippery with the wet."
+
+Cautiously the two lads descended, reaching the ground without mishap.
+
+"Our sweaters!" exclaimed Vernon.
+
+"Dash it all!  Yes," agreed his companion.  "I had forgotten all about
+them."
+
+The sweaters, carefully rolled up, had been placed for security in one
+corner of the chapel.  Unless anyone actually came close to the spot,
+they were hidden from sight.
+
+"Neither of those fellows stood about here, I think," remarked Ross as
+the chums retrieved and donned the additional clothing.  "It's jolly
+lucky, or they would have smelt a rat."
+
+Trefusis and his companion went out into the rain, walking rapidly
+towards a slight mound capped by a few irregularly shaped stones.  It
+was behind this rise of ground that the two spies had gone.  Up to this
+point, Ross argued, there was little need for caution; beyond, it would
+be necessary to keep well under cover until they reached Main Beach.
+
+"'Ware the skyline," cautioned Ross as the chums approached the hillock.
+
+"Ay; 'ware the skyline," said a deep voice mockingly, "It's bad
+strategy."
+
+Turning, the lads made the disconcerting discovery that Ramblethorne
+and von Ruhle were within five yards of their would-be trackers.
+
+Ross realized that he and his chum had been badly outmanoeuvred.
+Evidently the Germans suspected that they had been overheard, and
+ostentatiously leaving the ruins for Main Beach Cove, they had made a
+detour from the hillock, and had waited until Ross and Vernon had
+emerged from the chapel.  Then, taking advantage of the wet grass that
+effectually deadened the sound of their footsteps, they had turned the
+tables on their shadowers.
+
+So completely taken aback were the two lads that they stood stock-still
+as if rooted to the earth.
+
+"Not a nice evening to be out, Trefusis," continued the doctor.  "What
+brings you on St. Mena's Island at this late hour of the day?"
+
+"Our boat was left high and dry by the tide, so we had to wait and take
+shelter," replied Ross.
+
+"And so you chose a place where there was no shelter," remarked
+Ramblethorne.  "Idiotic thing to do--very idiotic.  Now tell me: what
+were you doing on the top of the tower?"
+
+Ross did not hesitate in his reply.  Perhaps it would have been better
+had he done so, for he had never betrayed his knowledge of German to
+the doctor on any of their previous meetings, and it would have been
+judicious to keep up the deception.
+
+"What were we doing?  Listening to your precious schemes," he retorted
+boldly.  "Now we know all about you, and it will be our duty to report
+you as spies to the authorities.  We are expecting a search-party from
+Killigwent Hall at any moment, you see."
+
+"So that's the line of defence you propose to adopt, eh?" sneered
+Ramblethorne.  "Well, look out!"
+
+With a sudden spring the athletic man flung himself upon Ross, while
+von Ruhle with equal promptitude made a rush to secure Vernon.
+
+Strong and active though he was, Ross was no match for his huge and
+powerful antagonist.  Knowing that flight was impossible, the lad
+feinted, and aimed a blow with his left straight for the doctor's chin.
+This Ramblethorne parried easily, and grasping the lad's wrist, held it
+as in a vice, and in such a manner that rendered fruitless any attempt
+on Trefusis' part to make use of his right arm.
+
+Having thus secured his opponent, Ramblethorne watched the result of
+the encounter between his fellow-spy and young Haye.
+
+Von Ruhle had opened the attack by brandishing his heavy stick, and
+calling upon Vernon to surrender.
+
+Haye returned the compliment by closing, and dealing the German such a
+terrific blow upon the chest that von Ruhle recoiled quite a couple of
+yards.  The lad's onslaught had only missed the German's solar plexus
+by a few inches; had it not, the chances were that von Ruhle would have
+lost all interest in life for the next quarter of an hour.
+
+But instead of following up his initial success Vernon, seeing Ross
+helpless in the doctor's grip, rushed to his chum's aid.  For a few
+seconds he feinted, striving to find an opening, while Ramblethorne,
+dragging his captive with him, pivoted in order to keep his front
+towards his new antagonist.
+
+Those few seconds were Vernon's undoing.
+
+Quickly recovering himself, von Ruhle sprang forward with the agility
+of a panther.  The imitation Malacca cane descended with a dull thud
+upon the lad's head, and like a felled ox Vernon fell inertly upon the
+sodden grass.
+
+"Hold him--so," exclaimed Ramblethorne, handing Ross over to the
+custody of von Ruhle.  Then drawing a small hypodermic syringe from a
+case, the former inserted the needle into the lad's forearm.
+
+Five seconds later Ross Trefusis lay unconscious beside his companion
+in misfortune.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+Kidnapped
+
+"I thought you had killed him, von Ruhle," said the doctor, bending
+over Vernon and making a cursory examination of the unconscious lad.
+
+"I thought I had," was the unconcerned reply.  "Dead men tell no tales."
+
+"There I beg to differ," protested Ramblethorne.  "Corpses have a nasty
+way of turning up at inopportune moments.  These youngsters are worth
+more to us alive than dead."
+
+"How so?"
+
+"One is a son of Admiral Trefusis; his companion is, I believe, also a
+son of a distinguished English naval officer."
+
+"Well, and what of it?" asked von Ruhle.
+
+"Hostages," replied the doctor briefly.  "Later I will explain.
+Meanwhile we'll carry them to the cave.  It's farther than back to the
+ruins; but perhaps, as young Trefusis said, there may be a
+search-party, and the ruins would be one of the first objects of
+investigation."
+
+Although, with the exception of periodical visits abroad, Dr.
+Ramblethorne had lived in England all his life and was a fully
+qualified medical man, he was a highly trusted and talented agent of
+the German Secret Service.  Months before the outbreak of war, he had
+been ordered to report upon the defences of Devonport, and in order to
+do this he had bought a practice on the outskirts of Plymouth.  Upon
+the commencement of hostilities, he was detailed to keep under
+observation the military preparations of the Duchy of Cornwall, and
+also to take necessary steps for communicating with German submarines
+that, under von Tirpitz's prearranged scheme, were to operate in the
+Bristol Channel.  Von Ruhle was one of the few subordinates he actually
+knew.  There were others with whom he communicated only through an
+intermediary, and who knew him only by a number.
+
+Von Ruhle was almost as mentally clever as his superior.
+Ostentatiously he was an Englishman.  Sometimes he posed as a mining
+engineer; at others as a commercial traveller; as an accredited
+representative of the British Red Cross Society he was in the habit of
+making frequent journeys to Holland, presumably in connection with work
+at Groningen Internment Camp.  At the present time, his activities were
+centred upon the formation of a secret petrol depot for the supply of
+fuel to unterseebooten operating in the Bristol Channel and off the
+south coast of Ireland.
+
+A couple of slight incidents had served to put the cautious
+Ramblethorne on his guard during his interview with von Ruhle in the
+ruined chapel.
+
+Although he verbally deprecated his subordinate's alarm when the lads
+accidentally dislodged a stone from the tower, it was merely to disarm
+possible eavesdroppers of any suspicion that their presence was
+suspected.
+
+The ability to control his feelings was one of the super-spy's chief
+assets.  Suspicion once aroused, he proceeded without the faintest sign
+to investigate his surroundings.  His keen eye soon lighted upon the
+lads' sweaters.  Then it was that an adjournment was suggested to Main
+Beach Cove.
+
+This was simply and solely a "blind", for on gaining the cover of the
+boulder-strewn hillock the doctor communicated his suspicions to his
+companion.  The pair then crouched behind the rocks, whence they were
+able to command a view of the tower.
+
+It was not long before their enterprise met with success.  They saw
+Trefusis and his chum cautiously descend by means of the ivy; then,
+directly the lads set out upon their ill-starred tracking expedition,
+the Germans, as before related, succeeded in outflanking them and
+effecting their capture.
+
+"Time!" announced Ramblethorne, consulting his watch.
+
+"Are these safe?" asked von Ruhle, stirring Vernon's unconscious form
+with his foot.
+
+"Quite; though, perhaps, to make sure I will give this youngster a
+slight injection.  Pity you hadn't held him with the double arm-lock
+instead of cracking him over the head.  Herr Kapitan Schwalbe won't
+want to be troubled with a passenger with a swollen head."
+
+Leaving their senseless victims in the cave, the two Germans again
+ascended the hill to St. Mena's Chapel.  As they breasted the summit,
+they could see the fixed white light of Black Bull Head showing
+momentarily brighter and brighter against the rapidly failing daylight.
+
+Setting a prismatic compass in position upon the sill of one of the
+glazeless windows, Ramblethorne took a careful bearing in a seaward
+direction.  This done, he pointed the projector of the signalling
+apparatus in precisely the same direction, and threw a waterproofed
+cloth over the instrument.
+
+"Too early yet, von Ruhle," he remarked.  "Nevertheless it is advisable
+to fix our bearings while twilight lasts.  A light might spell
+disaster."
+
+"A deucedly unpleasant night for such a task," grumbled von Ruhle.
+
+"On the contrary, it is just the very thing," replied the doctor.  "It
+is not thick enough to be dangerous, but the rain is just sufficient to
+assist in the screening of U75.  Do not think of your personal comfort,
+my dear von Ruhle, when urgent work for the Fatherland has to be
+undertaken."
+
+For another half-hour the two men paced the grass-grown stones.  Their
+choice of St. Mena's Island as a secret signalling station was an
+excellent one.  It was isolated, and, being slightly greater in
+elevation than the cliffs of the mainland in the immediate vicinity,
+would effectually screen any ray of light sent landwards from the
+expected German submarine.  Thus all danger of the narrow gleam of
+reflected light being detected by the none too smart members of the
+coast patrol was entirely obviated.
+
+"Time!" exclaimed the doctor, consulting the luminous face of his watch.
+
+Dexterously, and without disturbing the position of the instrument, von
+Ruhle whipped off the covering.  Although there were no visible signs
+that anything was taking place, both men knew that a beam of light,
+reflected from the distant lighthouse on Black Bull Head, was being
+directed seawards.
+
+In silence the two men peered through the driving rain, von Ruhle
+making use of a pair of powerful night-glasses.
+
+Suddenly, after an interval of almost five minutes, a faint pin-prick
+of light flickered from the surface of the sea.
+
+Instantly Ramblethorne stepped a dozen paces to the right.
+
+"I can see nothing from here," he announced in a low voice.  "Can you?"
+
+"Yes," replied his companion.
+
+"Good: that's friend Schwalbe."
+
+The doctor was right.  From the deck of the unterseeboot a signalling
+apparatus similar to that employed by the spies was in use.  By an
+ingenious automatic arrangement it projected a beam of light, derived
+from the same sources as that on St. Mena's Island, rigidly in a fixed
+direction, regardless of the "lift" of the submarine under the action
+of the waves.
+
+For several minutes a rapid exchange of signals was maintained; then
+the two spies, folding up their apparatus, walked rapidly towards Main
+Beach Cove.
+
+They had not long to wait before the faint sound of oars was borne to
+their ears.
+
+"Himmel!  They have arrived already," exclaimed von Ruhle.
+
+"So it appears," replied Ramblethorne dryly.  "I pride myself that I
+have exceptionally good eyesight, but I fail to see her.  The neutral
+colour of the submarine is indeed excellent for night work."
+
+They descended the sandy and shingly beach until further progress was
+barred by the lapping wavelets of the rising tide.
+
+Through the mirk loomed up the outlines of a canvas collapsible boat
+crowded with men.  At two lengths from the shore the rowers laid on
+their oars.  One of the men gave vent to a low whistle resembling the
+call of a curlew.
+
+"All clear," replied Ramblethorne.
+
+The boat's keel rasped on the shingle.  A cloaked figure in the
+stern-sheets made his way for'ard and leapt ashore.
+
+"Herr von Hauptwald?" he asked.
+
+"The same," replied the doctor.  "And Kapitan Schwalbe?"
+
+"The captain is still on board," replied the officer.  "It is hard to
+resist the opportunity of getting ashore after being cooped up there
+for more than a fortnight.  But the petrol?"
+
+"We have not so much as we hoped to obtain," replied von Ruhle.
+
+The Leutnant muttered an oath.
+
+"And how is business?" asked Ramblethorne, with a view of distracting
+the officer's thoughts from the shortage of fuel.
+
+The Leutnant muttered another oath.
+
+"Bad!" he replied savagely.  "Only one wretched little tramp steamer,
+which we fell in with about twenty miles from the Stacks.  She gave us
+a run for our money, but we had her at last.  Even then she tried to
+ram us.  One has to be most cautious also.  These accursed English have
+been far too active with their new-fangled contrivances.  We called up
+U71 early this morning.  She replied.  Again at noon we called her, but
+there was no reply.  U70 we have lost all touch with since Monday, yet
+she was under orders to assist in the blockade of the Bristol Channel
+until we, as senior unterseeboot, gave instructions to return to
+Wilhelmshaven."
+
+"Lost, I suppose," remarked Ramblethorne.
+
+The Leutnant had walked to a distance of nearly ten yards from his men,
+who were drawn up in military order awaiting their officer's commands.
+
+He lowered his voice.
+
+"Although I am sorry to say it," he declared, "I am afraid she has gone
+too.  Our losses are not only serious--they are appalling.  Submarine
+work is now a continual nightmare.  We do our duty, but before long, if
+we are sufficiently fortunate to escape the toils that these English
+cast about us, we shall all be physical wrecks."
+
+The man's agitation increased as he spoke.  Obviously he was labouring
+under a severe strain.
+
+"And this petrol?" he asked anxiously.  "What quantity?"
+
+Ramblethorne told him.
+
+"Not enough," declared the Leutnant.  "Himmel, it is not enough to get
+us round Cape Wrath.  On board we have only sufficient for six hours'
+surface running, while our batteries are not far short of running down.
+You had better see the captain and explain."
+
+Leaving von Ruhle to direct the seamen to the secret petrol store in
+the cave, Ramblethorne accompanied the Leutnant to the submarine.
+
+The U75 was one of the latest type of Germany's submarines.  Over three
+hundred feet in length, there was little about her in common with the
+accepted idea of under-water craft.  Her deck ran in one continuous
+sweep for almost her entire length, and rose nearly six feet above the
+surface.  The visible part of her sides was perpendicular, the bulging
+sections being entirely beneath the surface.  Her conning-tower was
+surrounded by a platform as long as the navigation-bridge of a modern
+destroyer.  The two periscopes were "housed", but two slender
+"wireless" masts gave the boat the appearance of a swift torpedo craft.
+
+Acknowledging a salute from a burly quartermaster, Ramblethorne gained
+the deck, and was escorted aft by the Leutnant.  Pacing the tapering
+platform was a broad-shouldered, fair-haired man of about thirty,
+although a carefully trimmed blonde beard made him look much older.
+
+He lacked the natural elastic stride of the British naval officer.  His
+movements resembled those of a thoroughly drilled soldier, yet ever and
+anon he would glance furtively in the direction of the open sea as if
+in constant dread of sudden and unknown peril.
+
+"Greetings, Herr von Hauptwald!" he exclaimed, when the Leutnant had
+formally introduced his visitor.  "You are well known to me by repute,
+but I doubt whether we have met before."
+
+"I fancy so," rejoined the doctor.  "Do you not remember that little
+affair in the Strauer Platz?  Ah, I thought you would!  But to come to
+the point.  We have been unable to obtain the requisite quantity of
+petrol."
+
+"Somehow I thought it," replied Kapitan Schwalbe.  "How much have you?"
+
+Ramblethorne told him.
+
+"Enough, with what we have left on board, for only eight hundred miles
+run.  It will not take us home, and we are under orders not to leave
+these waters before Friday next.  We have been let down badly."
+
+"I know that it is useless to express regrets," said Ramblethorne
+boldly.  "I can only hope that other means of supplying the requisite
+fuel will be forthcoming.  But here is another matter.  We have had to
+secure two English lads, both sons of distinguished naval officers.
+Unfortunately they overheard a conversation between von Ruhle and
+myself.  In the interests of the Secret Service it is absolutely
+necessary that they are kept out of the way for at least a couple of
+months.  I am averse to doing them personal injury."
+
+"Then what do you wish?" asked Kapitan Schwalbe.
+
+"Take them on board with you.  If possible, land them at a German port.
+If this be possible, you will realize that we have a strong tool to
+work with."
+
+"I fail to understand," said the Kapitan of U75.
+
+"They could be made good use of as hostages," resumed Ramblethorne.
+"If these English persist in talking about reprisals, we can hint
+that--well, it is unnecessary to go into details."
+
+"I see," remarked Kapitan Schwalbe.  "But if it is impossible to land
+them?"
+
+"Then you must put them on board the first outward-bound tramp steamer
+you fall in with--provided she is bound for South American ports, or
+anywhere that will mean a long voyage."
+
+"Very well," assented the submarine officer.  "I quite understand your
+anxiety to get them out of the way."
+
+"Temporarily, mind," added Ramblethorne.
+
+"Precisely.  Herr Rix," he exclaimed, addressing the Leutnant.  "Take
+four men and go ashore.  Von Ruhle will tell you where these English
+boys are; have them brought on board."
+
+"One moment," interrupted Ramblethorne.  "They came to the island in a
+boat.  There is nothing unusual in that, I admit, but the fact remains
+that the boat is still lying in the cove next to this.  You might order
+the men to set the boat adrift."
+
+"Water-logged, and with sails set and the main-sheet made fast.
+Another deplorable accident.  Ach!  It shall be so."
+
+Half an hour later Ross Trefusis and Vernon Haye, still unconscious
+under the action of the anaesthetic injection, were brought on board
+U75 and passed below.  Their boat, lying on its beam-ends, was drifting
+slowly in the direction of Black Bull Head.  Ramblethorne and von
+Ruhle, their work for the present done, were already on the way to the
+mainland.
+
+Meanwhile, alarmed at the non-appearance of the young heir to
+Killigwent Hall and his guest, a party had set off to search St. Mena's
+Island.
+
+Just as the boat's keel grounded on the beach of Half Tide Cove, the
+German submarine slipped quietly through the blurr of misty rain, and
+under cover of darkness headed towards the mouth of Bristol Channel.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+The Awakening
+
+"Dash it all!  What am I doing here?" muttered Ross Trevor drowsily, as
+he opened his eyes.
+
+For the moment he quite imagined that he was in his dormitory at
+school, and that by an oversight the rest of his chums had left him in
+bed.  The suggestion was strengthened by the sound of gurgling water,
+as if the bathroom tap were running.  Then he became aware that
+everything was pitching up and down.  Once before he had experienced a
+similar sensation--when he had had a violent headache following a
+slight touch of sunstroke.
+
+It puzzled him, too, that he was almost in darkness.  Somewhere
+without, and partly screened by some projection, an electric light was
+burning.  The reflected rays were just sufficient to enable him to take
+stock of his surroundings.
+
+No, he was not back in the school dormitory.  True, he had a headache,
+but that would not account for the actual motion.  He fumbled, his
+fingers came in contact with a curved board that served to prevent the
+occupant of the bed--or, rather, bunk--from falling on the floor.
+
+Almost mechanically he rolled out, and stood supporting himself by
+grasping the ledge of the bunk.  The swaying, due partly to dizziness
+and partly to an unaccountable see-saw motion, would have thrown him to
+the floor but for the assistance afforded by the side of the bunk.
+
+Gradually he became aware that there was a similar sleeping-place
+immediately beneath the one he had been occupying.  Someone was lying
+there, breathing heavily.  There was sufficient light for Ross to
+recognize him.  It was his chum Vernon.
+
+Just then a bell clanged noisily.  The sound of running water was
+outvoiced by the loud din of machinery in motion.  A wave of hot air
+that reminded the lad of the atmosphere of a Tube station wafted past
+him.  The whole fabric trembled under the powerful pulsations of the
+mechanism.
+
+With his legs trembling through sheer physical weakness, Ross hung on
+grimly.  He wanted to shout, but no sound came from his parched tongue.
+He was bewildered.  It seemed as if he were in the throes of a terrible
+nightmare, and that he would awake on finding himself falling into a
+bottomless abyss.
+
+The reflected light was obscured as a broad-shouldered man made his way
+along the narrow corridor in which the bunks were placed.  As he did so
+he caught sight of the lad.  Without a word he seized Ross in his arms,
+not roughly, but nevertheless unceremoniously, and lifted him back into
+the bunk.  There was something so peremptory in the action that Ross
+lay still and closed his eyes.  All his will power seemed to have
+deserted him.
+
+"Make a dash for it, old man!" exclaimed a muffled voice that Trefusis
+hardly recognized as his chum's.  "Make a dash for it.  Don't let them
+collar us."
+
+It was Vernon rambling in his sleep.  The words were sufficient to give
+Ross a key to the hitherto baffling problem.
+
+Like a flash he recalled the episode of their adventure on St. Mena's
+Island.  He remembered himself being held in the grasp of the powerful
+Ramblethorne until unconsciousness overcame him.  He was still a
+prisoner, but with the qualifying knowledge that he was not alone.
+Vernon Haye was sharing his captivity, wherever it might be.
+
+"We're afloat then," he muttered.  "What has happened?"
+
+Moistening his lips, Ross leant over the side of the bunk and called
+his chum by name.  His voice sounded strangely unfamiliar.  He could
+only just hear himself above the clamorous noise of the engines.
+
+It was not long before another man appeared at the end of the corridor.
+As he did so he switched on a lamp almost above the lad's head.  For a
+few seconds Ross was temporarily blinded by the sudden transition from
+artificial twilight to the intense brilliancy of electric light.
+
+"So!  You are now awake, hein?" asked a guttural voice.  "How you vos
+feel?"
+
+"Rotten!" replied Ross emphatically.  His reply was brief and to the
+point.  It summed up his sensations during the last ten minutes.
+
+The man laughed.
+
+"So you look.  You better soon will be.  You know where you now vos?"
+
+"On board a ship," answered the lad.  He was still hoping against hope
+that his questioner was anything but a German.  There was a small
+chance that he had by some means been picked up at sea by a Dutch or a
+Swedish vessel.
+
+The man's announcement "put the lid on" that possibility.
+
+"Sheep--goot!" he chuckled.  "German unterseeboot--vot you vos call
+submarine.  No danger to you boys if you yourselves behave.  Much to
+see--ach! plenty much."
+
+The lad's eyes had now become more accustomed to the light.  He could
+see that his visitor was a broad-shouldered, muscular man of average
+height, florid-featured, and with light-yellow hair and a fair
+moustache.  He was dressed in a uniform that was apparently a bad copy
+of that worn by executive officers of the British Navy.  On the breast
+of his coat he wore an Iron Cross.
+
+"Me Hermann Rix, Ober-leutnant of unterseeboot," he announced.  "Der
+Kapitan send me to see how you get better.  Goot!  I tell seaman to
+bring food quick.  In one hour you go on deck.  Den you feel all well."
+
+The German Leutnant bent and peered into the lower cot.
+
+"Fat head," he remarked seriously.  "Bad knock, but he get well soon."
+
+With that the officer went away, leaving the light switched on.
+
+Scrambling out of his bunk, Ross approached his chum.  Vernon was now
+sleeping quietly.  His face, however, was flushed, while it was quite
+evident that he had received a fairly heavy blow across the skull, for
+the top of his head was swollen to a considerable extent.
+
+Before Ross had finished his examination a sailor entered, bearing a
+tray on which were three slices of rye bread, some tinned beef, and a
+bottle of Rhenish wine.
+
+"Sprechen Sie deutsch?" he asked.
+
+For an instant Trefusis hesitated before replying.  To profess
+ignorance of the German language would be an immense advantage while on
+board the submarine, provided he could control his facial expressions
+and listen without betraying himself.  Then, on the other hand, he
+reflected that Ramblethorne, the spy, might have been instrumental in
+getting him into this predicament.  More than likely the Captain of the
+submarine had been informed of the fact that his unconscious passengers
+were well acquainted with the tongue-twisting language of the
+Fatherland.
+
+"Here is food for you," said the man, placing the tray on the floor.
+"You had better take hold of the bottle before it upsets.  We are
+rolling a bit.  When your friend open his eyes, call me.  I am in
+yonder compartment.  It would be well for you to dress.  I will bring
+your clothes to you very soon."
+
+Ross made a sorry meal.  The food was not at all appetizing.  His
+throat was in no condition to enable him to swallow easily.  A feeling
+of nausea, due either to the motion, the hot, confined air, or the
+after effects of the stupefying injection--perhaps a little of all
+three--was still present.
+
+He was actually on board a German submarine--one of Tirpitz's
+twentieth-century pirates.  He racked his brains to find a reason.
+With its limited accommodation an unterseeboot seemed the last type of
+craft that would receive a pair of prisoners--and
+non-combatants--within its steel-clad hull.  It must have been at
+Ramblethorne's instigation; yet why had not the spy knocked the pair of
+luckless eavesdroppers over the head and tumbled them into the sea?  It
+seemed by far the easiest solution; yet, in spite of that, Ross and
+Vernon were being carried to an unknown destination in one of the
+"mystery-craft" of the Imperial German Navy.
+
+The reappearance of the seaman bearing Ross's clothes cut short the
+latter's unsolved meditations.  Without a word the man laid the neatly
+folded garments on the bunk--a pair of flannel trousers, cricket shirt,
+underclothes, and the sweater that had been the cause of the lads'
+undoing; but in place of his shoes a pair of half-boots, reeking with
+tallow, had been provided.
+
+Ross proceeded to dress.  As he did so a voice that he hardly
+recognized asked:
+
+"Hulloa, Trefusis, where are we?"
+
+It was Haye.  His companion was now awake, but hardly conscious of his
+surroundings.
+
+"Better?" asked Ross laconically.  He could not at that moment bring
+himself to answer the question.
+
+"Didn't know that I was ill," remonstrated Vernon.  Then, after a vain
+attempt to raise his head--perhaps fortunately, since the bottom of
+Ross's cot was within a few inches of his face--he added:
+
+"Dash it all!  I remember.  That beastly German gave me a crack over
+the head with his copper walking-stick.  Where are we?"
+
+"In a rotten hole, old man.  We're in a German submarine, bound
+goodness knows where."
+
+"Where are my clothes?" asked Haye, this time successfully getting out
+of his bunk.  "Since you have yours, there seems to be no reason why I
+shouldn't have mine.  Hang it!  What's the matter with me?
+Everything's spinning round like a top."
+
+Mindful of the seaman's words, and with a docility that would have
+surprised him in different circumstances, Ross staggered along the
+corridor.  The passage was about thirty feet in length.  On one side
+the metal wall was flat, on the other it had a pronounced curve.
+Against it were six bunks arranged in pairs.  Four were used as
+stowing-places for baggage, the remaining ones had been given up to the
+two prisoners.  The roof was almost hidden by numerous pipes, most of
+them running fore and aft, while a few branched off through the walls.
+The flat bulkhead evidently formed one of the walls of the engine-room,
+for, as the lad placed his hand against it to steady himself, he could
+feel a distinct tremor, quite different from the vibration under his
+feet.  The floor was of steel, with a raised chequer pattern in order
+to give a better grip to one's feet.  At frequent intervals there were
+circular places, similar to those covering the coal-shoots in the
+pavement of residential thoroughfares.  Walls, ceiling, and floor were
+covered with beads of moisture, but whether from condensation or
+leakage Ross could not decide.
+
+At the end of the corridor or alley-way was a steel water-tight door,
+running in gun-metal grooves packed with india-rubber.  The door was
+closed.
+
+Seizing the lever that served as a handle, Trefusis tried to turn it,
+but without success.  Failing that, he kicked the steelwork with his
+heavy half-boots, yet no response came to his appeal.
+
+"The fellow told me to call," he muttered airily.  "What did he want to
+play the fool for?"
+
+Retracing his steps, Ross went to the other end of the alley-way.
+There was barely room to pass his companion as he did so.  The place
+from which he had previously seen the reflected light was now shut off
+by a door similarly constructed to the one that he had vainly attempted
+to open.  He was locked in a steel tomb that was itself a metal box
+within a metal box--a water-tight compartment of the submarine.
+
+"They might just as well have switched off the light while they were
+about it," he exclaimed bitterly; then at the next instant he wildly
+regretted his words.  The idea of being imprisoned in that cheerless
+compartment without a light of any description appalled him.
+
+Almost frantically he returned to the door that had previously baffled
+him.  As he did so he became aware that the submarine was tilting
+longitudinally.  Since he was unaware of the direction of the craft,
+and which was the bow or stern, he was unable to judge whether the
+unterseeboot was diving, or ascending to the surface.
+
+The incline became so great that he had to grasp the door-lever for
+support.  Turning his head, he saw that Vernon was hanging on grimly to
+the partition between the tiers of bunks.
+
+Then, as the vessel regained an even keel, silently and smoothly the
+door slid back in its grooves, revealing a small space barely six feet
+in length and five in breadth, and separated from the rest of the
+vessel by a closed water-tight panel.  Part of the compartment was
+occupied by a bend, at which the seaman to whom he had previously
+spoken was busily engaged in mending a rent in an oilskin coat.
+
+"My friend is now awake," announced Ross.
+
+The man laid aside his work.
+
+"Good!" he replied.  "He is just in time.  I will bring him his food
+and his clothes.  After that you will both go on deck for fresh air
+before you are interviewed by Herr Kapitan Schwalbe.  See that door?
+Beyond that you must not pass without permission.  It is forbidden.  If
+you do so, you will not have another opportunity in a hurry."
+
+"What are they going to do with us?" asked Ross.
+
+The sailor shook his head.
+
+"It is forbidden to ask questions," he said sternly.  "Whatever is
+necessary that you should know will be told you."
+
+He turned his back upon his questioner, signifying in a plain manner
+that it was useless for Trefusis to say more.  Taking the hint the lad
+returned to his chum, wondering deeply at the fate that had thrown them
+into the hands of the enemy.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+Aboard U75
+
+Like Ross, Vernon Haye made a poor meal.  He had barely finished when a
+petty officer appeared and curtly ordered the lads to follow him.
+Since he did so in German it was fairly certain that Trefusis'
+admission had been communicated to both officers and crew.
+
+Staggering, they passed along the alley-way into a broad subdivision
+that extended completely athwartships.  It was one of the two broadside
+torpedo-rooms, and contained two tubes of slightly greater diameter
+than the British 21-inch.  In "launching-trays" by the side of the
+tubes were eight torpedoes with their deadly war-heads attached.  Both
+transverse bulkheads were almost hidden by indicators, voice-tubes, and
+pipes for transmitting the compressed air from the air-flasks to the
+torpedo-tubes.
+
+Passing through another water-tight door the prisoners found themselves
+in yet another compartment.  On one side was an "air-lock", with its
+complement of life-saving helmets; on the other was an oval-shaped door
+forming means of communication with the small room built against the
+curved sides of the submarine.  Ross guessed, and rightly as it
+afterwards transpired, that the door led into a space that could be
+flooded at will, and which in turn enabled a diver to operate from the
+U-boat while submerged.
+
+Confronting the lads was an almost perpendicular steel ladder
+communicating with the conning-tower.  Their guide was about to ascend
+when a stern voice exclaimed in German:
+
+"Not that, you idiotic clodhopper!  Have you lost your reason?  The
+forward hatchway, don't you know?"
+
+"Pardon, Herr Leutnant," said the petty officer, abjectly apologetic,
+and, backing down the ladder, he passed through another door entering
+into an alley-way between the officers' cabins.  Here was the bowl of a
+supplementary periscope, so that a vision of what was taking place
+could be obtained without going into the conning-tower.
+
+The alley-way terminated at another broadside torpedo-room, the pairs
+of tubes pointing in the opposite direction to those the lads had just
+seen.
+
+Beyond were the living-quarters of the crew, kept spotlessly clean and
+tidy, yet Spartan-like in their simplicity.  Two of the men were sound
+asleep in their bunks.  Three more, who were playing cards at a plain
+deal table, glanced up from their game as the British lads passed by;
+but their interest was of brief duration, and stolidly they resumed
+their play.
+
+Stooping down to avoid a large metal trough--the "house" for the
+for'ard 105-millimetre disappearing gun--Ross and his chum arrived at
+the ladder by which they were to gain the open air.
+
+The hatch-cover was thrown back.  For the first time during their
+captivity they made the discovery that it was night.  Looking upwards,
+they could see a rectangle of dark sky twinkling with stars that, with
+the slight motion of the submarine, appeared to sway to and fro.
+
+The cool night breeze fanned their heated foreheads as they gained the
+deck.  For some time, coming suddenly from the glare of the
+electrically lighted interior, their eyes were blinded.  They could see
+nothing but an indistinct blurr of star-lit, gently heaving water.
+
+Gradually the sense of vision returned.  They found themselves on the
+fore-deck of the unterseeboot.  They had made up their minds to see a
+turtle-back deck with a narrow level platform in the centre; instead
+they found that the deck was almost flat and, in nautical parlance,
+flush, save where it was broken by the elongated conning-tower topped
+by the twin periscopes and slender wireless mast.
+
+Lying on the deck in all conceivable attitudes were most of the
+U-boat's crew, taking advantage of a brief spell on the surface to
+breathe deeply of the ozone-laden atmosphere.
+
+Not a light was visible on board.  Even the hatchway by which the lads
+had gained the deck was constructed to trap any stray beam from the
+brilliant glare below.
+
+Miles away, and low down upon the horizon, a white light blinked
+solemnly; then after a brief interval it was succeeded by a red gleam.
+This in turn was followed by white again.
+
+Trefusis, with a sailor's inborn instinct, began to count the
+intervals.  Although having no means of consulting the only
+time-recording watch in the possession of the two captives, he had a
+fair idea of counting seconds.  At fourteen from the disappearance of
+the red light the white appeared.  An almost identical space of time
+occurred before the red reappeared.
+
+"It's the Wolf Light," mentally ejaculated the lad.
+
+His next step was to fix the bearing of the lighthouse.  This he did by
+looking for the Great Bear, and then, following the Pointers, the North
+Star.
+
+"Phew!" he muttered softly.  "Nor'-nor'-west.  This brute of a
+submarine is right in the chops of the Channel--the main highway for
+vessels making for London and the south coast ports."
+
+"What's that?" asked Vernon, who heard his chum speaking, but had
+failed to grasp the significance of his words.
+
+"Nothing," replied Ross almost in a whisper.  "I'll tell you later."
+
+The cool air had revived both lads wonderfully.  They had been left to
+their own devices, for the petty officer had gone aft.  Those of the
+crew who were on deck seemed as apathetic as the men below concerning
+the presence of the kidnapped youths.  They looked like men utterly
+worn out by fatigue and nervous strain.
+
+Grasping the flexible wire hand-rail Ross continued his survey of the
+horizon, all of which was visible except a small portion obscured by
+the rise of the conning-tower.  The air was remarkably clear.  Taking
+into consideration the refraction of the atmosphere, the navigation
+lamps of a vessel shown at twenty feet above the sea would be visible
+from the low-lying deck of the submarine at a distance of six to seven
+miles.
+
+But there were no signs of any vessels in the vicinity.  The German
+submarine rolled lazily in complete isolation, waiting, like a snake in
+the grass, for its prey.
+
+"Herr Kapitan would see you," exclaimed the guttural voice of the petty
+officer.  "Come aft.  Remember, when you are addressed, to remove your
+caps."
+
+The man led the way, making no attempt to avoid the recumbent limbs and
+bodies of the crew who impeded his passage.  Treading with discretion
+Ross and Vernon followed till, after skirting the base of the
+conning-tower, they found themselves in the presence of
+Lieutenant-Commander Schwalbe, the Kapitan of U75.
+
+Schwalbe was sitting in a small arm-chair which had been brought from
+his cabin.  He was smoking a cigar.  At his elbow stood his satellite,
+Hermann Rix, who was also smoking.  This luxury was denied the crew,
+the officers being permitted to smoke only when the submarine was
+running awash or resting on the surface.
+
+[Illustration: THE INTERVIEW WITH THE GERMAN CAPTAIN (missing from
+book)]
+
+"So you have recovered from your little involuntary rest," exclaimed
+Schwalbe in excellent English.  He was a remarkably good linguist, for
+previous to the outbreak of the war he had been the skipper of a
+North-German-Lloyd boat.  By sheer good luck he had reached a home port
+the day after the momentous declaration of hostilities, having narrowly
+escaped capture by a British destroyer.
+
+Owing to the great expansion of the German submarine service, and its
+equally rapid reduction at the hands of the British Navy, the supply of
+specially trained officers of the Imperial Navy for this branch had run
+out.  More had been transferred from the pent-up High Seas Fleet, while
+others had been absorbed from the now useless German Mercantile Marine,
+and hastily put through a course of instruction.  Schwalbe was one of
+these, and after less than two months' hazardous work in the capacity
+of Unter-leutnant found himself in command of U75, one of the "last
+words" of von Tirpitz's piratical fleet.
+
+Neither Ross nor Vernon replied.  They could form no suitable answer.
+It was no doubt very considerate on the part of the Kapitan to enquire
+after their healths, but somehow the lads felt that the skipper of U75
+was responsible for their presence on board.
+
+"Come, come," continued Schwalbe.  "Don't be sulky."
+
+"We are not," expostulated Ross.
+
+"I'm glad to hear it," rejoined the Kapitan, with a grin that had the
+effect of letting his cigar fall to the deck.  He stooped to retrieve
+it, but, suddenly remembering that it was beneath his dignity, changed
+his mind and kicked the glowing stump on one side.  Having taken
+another from a gun-metal case, he lit it with a device that merely
+smouldered instead of giving a bright light.
+
+"It is as well we understand each other," he continued.  "Do you know
+why you are on board U75?"
+
+"No, sir," replied Ross.
+
+"Neither do I," rejoined Schwalbe with astonishing candour.  "I wish I
+had not been honoured with your company."
+
+"The remedy is in your hands then, sir," said Trefusis.  "You can land
+us the next time you put in at St. Mena's Island for petrol, or else
+put us on board the first fishing craft we fall in with."
+
+"I beg to differ," was the rejoinder.  "Unfortunately you are on board,
+and you must make the best of it, I understand from my friend--shall I
+say Dr. Ramblethorne--that you are both very inquisitive.
+Inquisitiveness is a bad trait in ones so young.  You see, it has got
+you into trouble.  The doctor has strong reasons for getting me to take
+care of you for some considerable time, so you will have an opportunity
+of seeing how we Germans make war.  No half-measures, mark you.  It is
+useless to make war with a velvet glove.  You English people call us
+pirates, I believe?"
+
+"It certainly looks like piracy when German submarines sink harmless
+merchantmen without warning," declared Vernon.
+
+"For my part I have never sent a merchant vessel to the bottom without
+warning," said Schwalbe.  "As a seaman I regret having to sink any ship
+of commerce.  As an officer of the German Navy I have to obey orders
+unquestionably.  Nevertheless I have always given the crews of British
+ships a chance of escape, and have never sunk any vessel until the men
+are safely in the boats, unless she attempts to show fight or to run
+away."
+
+"Would you blame a skipper for trying to save his ship?" asked Ross.
+
+"You do not understand," exclaimed Schwalbe.  "We are at war.  A
+blockade has been declared upon the British Islands.  If, after full
+warning, merchantmen persist in taking the risk, it is their look-out,
+not mine.  However, to return to a more personal matter: having been
+saddled with you, I must endure your presence.  You will be well fed,
+as far as the resources at our command will allow.  You will be free to
+go wherever you wish on board, with the exception of the conning-tower,
+motor- and torpedo-rooms.  I am not ungrateful, for my brother, who had
+the misfortune to be in the _Ariadne_, was captured by your fleet.  He
+is being well treated somewhere in England.  Hence I give privileges to
+the son of Admiral Trefusis and the son of Commander Haye so long as
+they are my compulsory guests.  But bear in mind: you will be watched.
+Should you commit any fault, however slight, you will pay dearly for
+it.  If you are foolish enough to attempt any act of treachery, death
+will be the penalty.  Have I made myself perfectly clear?"
+
+"Yes, sir," replied both lads.
+
+"Very well.  Is there anything you would like me to do within the
+bounds of reason?"
+
+"Could we communicate with our parents?" asked Ross.
+
+"No," replied Schwalbe decisively.  "There are strong objections.  And,
+while I am on the subject, should you fall in with the crews of
+destroyed ships you are strictly forbidden to communicate with them
+either by word or gesture.  That will be a punishable offence of the
+second degree.  Anything more?"
+
+"My friend has had a nasty knock on the head," said Trefusis.  "Have
+you a doctor on board?"
+
+Again Kapitan Schwalbe smiled broadly.
+
+"No," he replied.  "There is no need.  Cases of illness must wait till
+we return to port.  The only injuries we are likely to sustain would
+put us beyond all medical aid.  But several of the men are fairly
+skilled in rough surgery, so I will----"
+
+"Vessel on the port bow, sir; she's showing no lights," announced a
+voice.
+
+"All hands to stations!" ordered the skipper.
+
+"Down below with you!" hissed the petty officer, who during the
+interview had stood rigidly at attention at two paces to the rear of
+his charges.
+
+Already the hitherto recumbent men were alert.  Quickly, yet in order,
+they disappeared down the fore hatchway, and amongst them were Ross and
+Vernon.
+
+The officers had taken their places inside the shelter of the
+conning-tower.  Everything was battened down from within, and with a
+gentle purr the electric motors were set in motion, while at the same
+time water ballast was admitted into the trimming-tanks.
+
+Swift and stealthy had been their preparations, but the presence of the
+submarine was betrayed by the phosphorescent swirl of the water caused
+by the churning of the twin propellers as she slipped beneath the
+surface.
+
+Twenty seconds later a swift vessel that looked suspiciously like a
+trawler, although her speed belied her, tore over the place where U75
+had disappeared.  Bare inches only separated the top of the latter's
+conning-tower from the massive keel plates of the craft that had all
+but accomplished its mission.
+
+The watch-dogs of the British Navy were at work.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+The Tramp
+
+Like a startled hare the unterseeboot fled for shelter.  Not until she
+reached a depth of fifteen fathoms did she check her diagonally
+downward course.  At intervals a dull booming, audible above the rattle
+of the motors, proclaimed the unpleasant fact that her antagonist was
+circling around the spot marked by the phosphorescent swirl and the
+iridescence of escaped oil, and was firing explosive grapnels in the
+hope of ripping open the U-boat's hull.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe, looking very grey in the artificial light, was
+standing behind the quartermaster.  His hands were clenched in
+momentary apprehension.  Beads of perspiration stood out upon his
+forehead.  He was experiencing a foretaste of the torment of the lost.
+
+As a submarine officer of the Imperial German Navy he was a failure.
+Only sheer luck had hitherto saved him from the fate that had overtaken
+scores of his brother officers in that branch of the service.  Skilled
+as he was in the handling of a huge liner, he lacked the iron nerve
+that is essential to the man who has to risk his life in a steel box
+that, in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred, offers no means of escape
+in the event of a catastrophe.
+
+Yet he had to do his duty, notwithstanding his utter distaste for
+submarine work.  He had had no option.  The officers of the British
+Navy volunteer for submarine duties; those of the German Navy are
+simply told off whether they want to or not.
+
+The nerve-racking work was beginning to tell upon him.  His orders
+condemned him to a forlorn hope, for the English Channel was known to
+be a death-trap for the under-sea blockaders.  The sight of a trawler
+filled him with feelings akin to terror.  The possibility, nay
+probability, of a merchantman carrying guns made him approach his
+intended prey with the utmost caution; yet, as he had remarked to Ross
+Trefusis, he had never torpedoed any vessel flying the red ensign
+without giving her warning.
+
+But it was not chivalry that prompted Schwalbe to act with
+consideration.  Had he been untrammelled he would have sent his prey to
+the bottom without compunction, for he had all the brutal instincts of
+the kultured Hun.  It was a superstitious fear that held his
+frightfulness in check--a presentiment based upon the Mosaic Law, an
+eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.
+
+Having placed a considerable distance between him and his attacker,
+Kapitan Schwalbe ordered the electric motors to be stopped.  The
+ballast tanks were "blown", and cautiously U75 rose to the surface.
+
+It was the best course open to her.  The depth of the water was much
+too great to allow her to rest on the bed of the sea.  On the other
+hand, in order to keep submerged, the motors would have to be in
+motion.  No one knew better than Schwalbe that the British patrol-boats
+would be in a position to locate with uncanny certitude the presence of
+their quarry, unless the strictest silence were maintained by the
+fugitive.
+
+So, ready to dive at the first alarm, U75 floated awash until such
+times as were considered favourable for getting under way.  Decidedly
+this part of the English Channel was, for the time being at least,
+unhealthy; and Kapitan Schwalbe resolved to make for the Bristol
+Channel, where the dangers of being destroyed by modern mosquitoes were
+more remote.
+
+Meanwhile Ross and Vernon had been sent back to the quarters in the
+alley-way, by the side of the motor-room.  Not knowing the reason for
+the U-boat's sudden submergence, and consequently unaware of the danger
+that threatened her, they formed the erroneous impression that the
+submarine was about to attack.
+
+"The old fellow gave us a pretty straight tip," remarked Vernon, when
+the chums found themselves alone.  "All the same, I vote we get out of
+it at the first opportunity, favourable or otherwise."
+
+"'Ssh," whispered Ross.  "Someone might be listening.  I don't see how
+you propose to clear out, though."
+
+"We were on deck just now."
+
+"We were," agreed Trefusis.
+
+"It was fairly dark.  All the men up for'ard were lying down.  It would
+have been an easy matter to have dived overboard and swum for it, if we
+hadn't been twenty miles or more from land."
+
+"There was a bright look-out kept, all the same," objected Ross.  "And
+I wouldn't mind saying that if the submarine were closer inshore,
+getting a supply of petrol, for example, we should be closely watched.
+All the same, I'm with you if we get the ghost of a chance.  But it's a
+rummy affair altogether.  Fancy that chap knowing our names and the
+rank of our respective fathers."
+
+"Ramblethorne must have told him that," said Vernon.
+
+"I suppose so; but for what reason?  By Jove, if we get out of this
+mess all right, we'll have something to talk about--having been
+prisoners on a German submarine!"
+
+The lads were not allowed on deck again that night.  Acting upon Haye's
+suggestion they "turned in", and slept fitfully until awakened by the
+noise of the watch being relieved.
+
+The seaman, Hans Koppe, brought them their breakfast.  The meal
+consisted of fish, coffee, and the usual black bread.  By this time the
+captives had practically recovered from the effects of the injection.
+Haye's head was still painful, although the headache had left him.
+
+They ate with avidity, owing possibly to the atmosphere of the confined
+space, which was highly charged with oxygen.
+
+"What is the Captain's name?" asked Ross, when the man came to remove
+the breakfast things.
+
+The sailor told him.
+
+"Where are we now?" enquired Vernon.
+
+The man winked solemnly.
+
+"Afloat," he replied.  "Be content with that."
+
+Just then there were unmistakable signs of activity on the part of the
+submarine crew.  Several men hurried along the alley-way, each with a
+set purpose.  They paid little heed to the Englanders as they passed.
+
+At their heels came Herr Rix, the Leutnant of the submarine.  He was
+beaming affably.
+
+"Goot mornings!" he exclaimed.  "You come mit me, den I show you how we
+blockade."
+
+He led the way to the compartment in which the bowl of the
+supplementary periscope was placed.  It was now broad daylight, and
+consequently the bowl showed a distinct image.  A junior officer was
+standing by, but on seeing Rix approach he saluted and moved aside.
+
+"Look!" exclaimed the Leutnant.
+
+Both lads peered into the bowl.  On its dull sides, an expanse of sea
+and sky was portrayed.  Beyond that they could see nothing, until Rix
+called their attention to a small dark object.
+
+"Englische sheep!" he declared.  "Now you vos watch."
+
+He touched a metal stud.  Instantly an arrangement of telescopic lenses
+came into play within the tube of the periscope, with the result that a
+small portion of the view was greatly magnified upon the object card.
+It revealed a tramp of about nine hundred tons.  She had a single
+funnel painted black, with two broad red bands; two stumpy masts, with
+derricks, and a lofty bridge and chart-house abaft the funnel.  She was
+wall-sided.  Her rusty hull was originally painted black.  Here and
+there were squares of red lead, showing that her crew had been engaged
+in trying to smarten her up before she reached port.  Aft, frayed and
+dirty with the smoke that poured from her funnel, floated the red
+ensign.
+
+The submarine began to rise.  Although she tilted abruptly, the image
+of the tramp steamer still remained upon the object bowl.  By an
+ingenious arrangement, the lenses were constructed to compensate for
+any deviation of the tube of the periscope from the vertical.  The lads
+could see the bows of the U-boat shaking clear of the water, throwing
+cascades of foam off on either side as the passing craft forged ahead
+at at least eighteen knots.
+
+Now, for the first time, the skipper of the tramp saw the danger.  He
+was a short, thick-set man, with white hair and an iron-grey moustache,
+and a face the colour of mahogany.  For an instant he grasped the
+bridge-rails and looked towards the submarine, then gesticulated
+violently to the man at the wheel.
+
+The spikes ran through the helmsman's hands, as he rapidly revolved the
+wheel actuating the steam steering-gear.  The tramp swung hard to port,
+with the idea of baffling the momentarily expected torpedo.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe acted up to his principles.  In any case he was loath
+to use a torpedo upon a comparatively small vessel.  In response to an
+order, half a dozen of the submarine's crew swarmed on deck, three
+going for'ard and three aft.  Within forty-five seconds the two
+disappearing guns were raised from the water-tight "houses".
+
+Ross, Vernon, and the German Leutnant remained gazing into the bowl of
+the periscope.  The vision so absorbed the attention of the two lads
+that they hardly heeded the presence of Herr Rix, who occasionally
+emitted grunts of satisfaction or annoyance as the scene was enacted.
+
+The bow gun spat viciously.  The range was but three hundred yards.
+The missile passed a few feet in front of the tramp's bows, and,
+throwing up a shower of spray that burst inboard on the British
+vessel's fo'c'sle, ricochetted a mile or so away.
+
+The tramp's skipper showed his mettle.  Round swung the vessel, listing
+heavily as she did so.  By this time the call for more steam had been
+responded to, and dense clouds of black smoke belched from her funnel,
+mingled with puffs of white vapour as the siren bleated loudly for aid.
+
+Running awash, U75 had a great advantage of speed; overtaking her prey
+she was able to send half a dozen shells into the lofty target
+presented as she slid by.
+
+Holes gaped in the thin plating close to the waterline.  A shell,
+passing completely through the funnel, demolished the siren.  Being
+without wireless, the tramp was now without means of long-distance
+signalling.
+
+Another missile hit the chart-house and, exploding, swept the frail
+structure overboard in a thousand fragments.  The old skipper, hit by a
+splinter of wood, fell inertly upon the bridge; but the next instant he
+staggered to his feet, bawling to the crew to get the hand-steering
+gear connected.
+
+"He's down again!" exclaimed Ross breathlessly, as the brave old man
+dropped upon the shattered planking of the bridge.  "Hurrah!  He's
+still alive."
+
+The skipper had deliberately taken cover behind the slender shelter
+afforded by the metal side-light boards.  By the frantic movement of
+his arm, it was evident that he was exhorting his men to "stick it"
+like Britons.
+
+The hail of shells continued.  Already fire had broken out on board in
+several places.  A sliver of metal sheered through the ensign staff.
+Without hesitation one of the crew rushed off, retrieved the
+weather-worn bunting, and made his way to the mainmast.
+
+Slowly and deliberately he re-hoisted the ensign until it fluttered
+proudly from the truck, then with apparent unconcern the man
+disappeared below.
+
+By this time the tramp was again under control, with a course shaped
+for land, which lay about ten miles to the S.S.E.  It was, however, a
+foregone conclusion that unless help were speedily forthcoming the
+vessel was doomed.
+
+The tramp began to heel, almost imperceptibly at first, then with
+increasing speed.  She had received her _coup de grace_.
+
+Still the engines were kept going full speed ahead.  The dauntless
+skipper remained on the bridge, with a look of grim resolution on his
+weather-beaten features.
+
+Slowly the vessel's way diminished.  Her bow-wave, owing to the
+gradually increasing draught, was greater, but less sharp than before.
+In a few minutes the water would be pouring over her fore-deck.
+
+Seeing that their work was completed, the pirates ceased fire, the
+guns' crews standing with folded arms and stolidly watching the tramp
+as she struggled in her death-throes.
+
+Presently a vast cloud of steam issued from her engine-room.  The
+inrush of water had damped her furnaces.  The engineer and firemen,
+their faces black with coal-dust and streaming with moisture, hurried
+on deck.
+
+For another quarter of a mile the doomed vessel carried way, then came
+to a sudden stop.  As she did so she gave a quick list to starboard,
+until only a few inches of bulwark amidships showed above the waves.
+
+Then, and only then, did the skipper give orders for the boats to be
+lowered.  In an orderly manner the crew manned the falls, and the task
+of abandoning the ship began.
+
+Without undue haste, the crew dropped into the waiting boats, each man
+with a bundle containing his scanty personal effects wrapped up in a
+handkerchief.  The Captain was the last to leave.  He did so
+reluctantly, his left hand tightly grasping the ship's papers.
+
+Having rowed a safe distance from the foundering vessel, the men rested
+on their oars, and waited in silence for the end.  It was not long in
+coming.
+
+The tramp was heeling more and more, and slightly down by the bows.
+Suddenly she almost righted; then, amid a smother of foam as the
+compressed air burst open her hatches, she flung her stern high in the
+air.
+
+Even then she seemed in no hurry.  The after part from the mainmast
+remained in view, the now motionless propeller being well clear of the
+water.
+
+For quite a minute she remained thus, then with a quick yet almost
+gentle movement slid under the waves.  The last seen of her was the
+weather-worn red ensign still fluttering from the truck.
+
+The periscope's bowl showed nothing but an expanse of sea and sky, and
+the two boats rising buoyantly to the waves.
+
+A grim chuckle brought Ross and Vernon back to their surroundings.
+Herr Rix was rubbing his hands and grunting with evident satisfaction.
+
+"Goot!" he ejaculated.  "Now, how you like dat?  Now you see how we
+German make blockade, hein?"
+
+"A brave deed," replied Ross scornfully, and, gripping Vernon by the
+arm, led him back to their uncomfortable quarters in the alley-way.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+On the Bed of the Sea
+
+For the next twenty-four hours nothing exciting occurred.  The U-boat
+kept to the surface as much as possible, running under her petrol
+motors at fifteen knots.  To exceed that pace would mean too great a
+consumption of fuel, and already the vessel was short of petrol.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe was prone to act on the side of extreme caution.
+Having sunk one vessel, he would not tackle another in the same
+vicinity.  He invariably put at least a hundred miles between him and
+the scene of his latest ignominious exploit before attempting another
+act of kultur.
+
+Three times during that twenty-four hours he dived: twice on sighting
+what were unquestionably Bristol Channel pilot-boats, and on the third
+occasion when a Penzance lugger under motor-power (for it was a dead
+calm) crossed his track.
+
+All this time a regular stream of shipping was passing up and down the
+Bristol Channel, as unconcernedly as in the piping days of peace.  To
+anyone but a bumptious German, the sight would have told its own tale;
+for the British Mercantile Marine, used to danger and difficulties, was
+not to be deterred by the "frightfulness" of von Tirpitz's blockade.
+On the contrary, the possibility of falling in with a hostile submarine
+gave an unwonted spice to the everyday routine of the toilers of the
+sea.
+
+After breakfast on the following morning Ross and Vernon were told to
+go on deck.  The sea was still calm, and the submarine, now running
+awash at full speed, was cleaving the water with practically dry decks.
+
+The lads soon realized what was in progress.  A couple of miles away
+was a large ocean cargo-boat, outward bound, and U75 was in pursuit.
+
+Trefusis and his chum were not allowed for'ard, where the quick-firer
+was already in position for opening fire.  They were ordered abaft the
+conning-tower, the hatch of which was open.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe's head and shoulders could be seen projecting above
+the opening.  On the raised grating surrounding the conning-tower,
+stood a boyish-looking Unter-leutnant.  Hermann Rix was nowhere to be
+seen.  Apparently his duties compelled him to remain below.
+
+Presently the quick-firer barked, and a projectile struck the water
+about a hundred yards from the starboard side of the pursued vessel.
+With the discharge of the gun, a sailor hoisted the black cross ensign
+of Germany from a small flagstaff aft, while a signal in the
+International Code ordering the British vessel to heave to instantly
+fluttered from the light mast immediately abaft the conning-tower.
+
+The only response from the chase was the hoisting of the red ensign,
+for previously she had shown no colours.  Slowly, defiantly, the
+bunting was hauled close up, and ironically "dipped" three times.
+
+Again and again the submarine's bow-chaser fired.  The shells were well
+aimed as regards direction, but all fell short.  Imperceptibly the
+merchantman had increased distance.
+
+"Look at the fools!" Ross heard the Kapitan remark, as he kept his
+binoculars focused on his intended prey.  "They are trying to snapshot
+us.  Are all Englishmen so blind to peril?"
+
+"Are you sure they haven't a couple of quick-firers mounted aft, sir?"
+asked the Unter-leutnant.  "There are several men gathered round
+something on the poop."
+
+"Himmel, I hope not!" ejaculated Schwalbe.  "But no; had they any guns
+they would have opened fire before now.  What is the matter with our
+gun-layer?  It is about time he got a shell home."
+
+The Unter-leutnant lowered himself on the foredeck, and shouted angrily
+at the seaman whose duty it was to "lay" the bow-chasers.  The man
+again bent over the sights.
+
+This time the shell pitched ahead of the chase, but slightly to port.
+Some of the spray thrown up by the projectile fell on board.
+
+"Is that the best you can do, you brainless idiot?" shouted Schwalbe
+wrathfully.  Now that he was in pursuit he was loath to be baffled, but
+at the same time he realized that the submarine was using a lot of
+precious fuel and a prodigious amount of ammunition without any
+definite result.
+
+In the midst of his torrent of abuse directed upon the luckless
+gun-layer, Kapitan Schwalbe suddenly stopped.  Gripping the rim of the
+oval hatchway he gazed, horror-stricken, at two objects bobbing in the
+water directly in the path of the submarine.  Then, recovering his
+voice, he shouted to the quartermaster to port helm.
+
+The fellow obeyed promptly, but it was too late.  Practically
+simultaneously, two barrels swung round and crashed alongside the
+submarine's hull.
+
+Officers and men, expecting momentarily to find themselves blown into
+the air, stood stock-still.  Then, as nothing so disastrous occurred,
+Schwalbe gave orders for easy astern.
+
+The barrels, connected by a span of grass rope, had been thrown
+overboard from the pursued vessel, in the hope that the submarine would
+foul her propellers in the tangle of line.  Once a blade picked up that
+trailing rope, the latter would coil round the boss as tightly as a
+band of flexible steel.
+
+The plan all but succeeded; only the metal guards protecting the
+propellers saved them from being hopelessly jammed.  Yet the attempt
+was attended with good results as far as the British ship was
+concerned, for by the time U75 had lost way and had cautiously backed
+away from the obstruction, the swift cargo-vessel had gained a distance
+that put her beyond all chance of being overhauled.
+
+Infuriated by his failure, Kapitan Schwalbe went aft and descended into
+his cabin.  He was hardly conscious of the presence of his two
+involuntary guests as he passed.  He was thinking of the fate that had
+consigned him to a perilous and uncongenial task.  Without doubt the
+vessel he had been pursuing was equipped with wireless, and by this
+time a number of those dreaded hornets would be tearing towards the
+spot.  To add to his discomfiture it was reported to him that the
+reserve of fuel on board had seriously dwindled.  In order to remain
+effective it was necessary that U75 should replenish her tanks before
+another forty-eight hours had passed.
+
+According to his customary tactics, Schwalbe ordered the submarine to
+dive to sixty feet.  At that depth she would be safe from any
+possibility of being rammed.  Provided she could avoid the under-water
+obstructions with which the British naval authorities had sown the bed
+of the sea at almost every point likely to be frequented by lurking
+hostile submarines, she was in no actual danger.
+
+Gaining his diminutive cabin, Schwalbe by sheer force of habit
+consulted the aneroid.  The mercury was falling rapidly.  Since he last
+looked, barely two hours previously, it had dropped 764 to 734
+millimetres, or an inch and two-tenths.  That meant that the
+anti-cyclone was rapidly breaking up, and that a severe gale was
+approaching with considerable swiftness.
+
+U75 must submerge and seek shelter.  It was impossible for her to keep
+at a uniform depth unless she maintained steerage-way; that meant a
+great demand upon her storage batteries.  She could not remain on the
+bottom of the sea in a heavy gale, owing to the constant "pumping" or
+up-and-down movements caused by the varying pressure of passing waves,
+unless she sought a sheltered roadstead--and sheltered roadsteads were
+generally mined, or guarded by some ingenious device that had already
+accounted for several of U75's consorts.
+
+Producing a chart of the Bristol Channel, Schwalbe unfolded and spread
+it upon a table.  Then, in conjunction with a translation of the latest
+British Admiralty guide to the west coast of England, he proceeded to
+select what he hoped would be a snug shelter during the coming storm.
+
+"Herr Rix!" he shouted.  "I'll make for this anchorage.  There's every
+indication of a strong blow from the nor'-east."
+
+"This" was Helwick Channel, a deep, almost blind passage between the
+Glamorgan coast and an outlying submerged reef known as the East and
+West Helwick.  In fine weather it was a short cut for traders plying
+between Llanelly and Swansea.  In bad weather it was a place to be
+avoided, as far as sailing vessels were concerned.  Sheltered by the
+bold outlines of Worm's Head, it ought to prove an ideal lurking-place
+until the gale had blown itself out, for there was little danger of the
+place being used as an anchorage, since vessels preferred to give the
+rock-bound coast a wide berth.  On this account, it was also highly
+probable that the Helwick channel had not been safe-guarded by the
+British naval authorities.
+
+Just before sunset, U75, having made the passage unobserved, brought up
+in twelve fathoms of water, resting evenly on the firm, hard sands at
+the bottom.
+
+Ross and his chum turned in early.  There was nothing for them to do.
+They held aloof from the crew; there were no books to entertain them,
+no games to amuse them.  The submarine was now motionless, sufficient
+water ballast having been taken in to allow her to settle firmly upon
+the bottom; but, in order to be prepared, the anchor was let go.  Thus
+not the slightest movement of the hull was apparent.  The rest, after
+hours of erratic movement on the oily swell, was a welcome one.
+
+The lads had set their joint watch by the submarine's time, which,
+being mid-European standard, was one hour fast of Greenwich.
+
+For several hours they slept soundly and undisturbed.  Suddenly they
+were both awakened by the muffled tramp of men in heavy sea-boots.  The
+solitary light in the alley-way was switched off; the water-tight doors
+were firmly closed.  Already the air in the confined space was stifling.
+
+"What has happened?" asked Vernon anxiously, for the vessel, instead of
+resting immovably upon the bed of the channel, was now rolling
+sluggishly.  Yet she could not be under way, for the motors were silent.
+
+Springing from his bunk, Ross felt for the switch of the electric
+light.  It was already down, yet the flow of current was interrupted.
+
+"Let's find out," he said.  "Come along."
+
+The lads, before turning in, had carefully laid out their clothes, so
+as to be ready to slip into them at a moment's notice, yet it was a
+matter of considerable difficulty to dress in the dark.
+
+"The door's closed," announced Ross as the lads groped their way to the
+end of the alley-way.
+
+"I believe the submarine's holed," suggested Haye.
+
+"No; she wouldn't lift as she's doing.  Besides, the crew are moving
+about.  Let's bang on the door with our boots."
+
+For several minutes they hammered, but without result.  The air, never
+very fresh, was now almost unbearable, owing to lack of ventilation.
+The imprisoned youths began to get desperate.
+
+Then, without warning, the door slid back.  The alley-way was flooded
+with brilliant light.
+
+"Make haste!" shouted a voice which the lads recognized as that of Hans
+Koppe.  At the same time he grasped Ross by the shoulder and literally
+dragged him across the steel threshold.  Vernon followed quickly, but
+barely had he gained the compartment beyond than the massive steel door
+shot back again.
+
+"Didn't you hear the order all hands for'ard?" asked Hans, not
+unkindly, for the white faces of the English lads told their own tale.
+
+"No," replied Ross.  "Besides, we are not included in the 'hands', are
+we?"
+
+"You'll have to bear the consequences if you don't obey," rejoined
+Koppe.  "I'm supposed to be looking after you, but how was I to know
+you hadn't turned out?  Fortunately for you, I heard your knocking, and
+asked Herr Kapitan to open the doors.  He was angry, but did so."
+
+"What has happened then?" asked Trefusis, for the seaman seemed in a
+communicative mood.
+
+"A shift of wind.  It's blowing great guns up aloft, and there's a
+terrific tumble into this channel.  We've dragged, or, rather, swung
+round our anchor."
+
+"But we are safe enough?" asked Vernon.
+
+"Yes, safe," replied Hans.  "Too safe; we cannot break out our anchor.
+They are sending a diver to see what is amiss."
+
+Evidently the diving arrangements on board were not considered to be of
+a confidential nature, for Hans led the way to the compartment under
+the fore-hatch, without the lads being sent back by the significant
+word "verboten".
+
+A man was preparing for a submarine walk.  He was already dressed in an
+india-rubber suit, with leaden weights attached to his chest, back, and
+boots.  Two others were standing by, ready to place the helmet over his
+head, when Leutnant Rix had finished giving him minute directions.
+
+The officer spoke rapidly and in a low tone.  Ross could not catch all
+he said, but the words "gefaehrliche Stroemungen" (dangerous currents)
+and "Der Wendepunkt der Flut" (slack water) and "Drei Viertel funf" (a
+quarter to five) occurred frequently.
+
+Vernon glanced at his watch.  It was then a minute after four.
+Apparently Rix was impressing upon the man that he must clear the
+anchor at slack water, which occurred at a quarter to five.
+
+The two attendants then proceeded to place the diver's helmet on his
+head.  The lads noticed that it had neither air-tube nor telephone
+wire.  Nor was there a life-line attached to his waist.  Fresh air was
+obtained from a metal case strapped to his back.  The man was able to
+work independently, and without having to rely upon his air supply from
+the submarine.
+
+The oval door in the diving-chamber was thrown open.  The diver
+entered, and the water-tight panel was quickly replaced.  One of the
+seamen thrust over a short lever, and immediately water rushed into the
+small compartment.  As soon as the space was filled the diver was able
+to open a similar door in the outer plating of the submarine, and thus
+gain the bed of the sea.
+
+Presently Leutnant Rix turned, and saw for the first time that Ross and
+Vernon were discreetly standing in the background.
+
+"Go away.  It is forbidden!" he shouted angrily.
+
+They obeyed promptly, retreating to the space allotted to the crew,
+since it was neither desirable nor possible to return to their bunks.
+
+For some minutes the luckless Hans Koppe was subjected to a severe
+dressing-down by his hot-headed officer, and when at length the seaman
+rejoined the lads he was in no humour to resume conversation.
+
+Slowly the minutes sped.  The submarine was still rolling sluggishly,
+in spite of the fact that more water had been admitted into the ballast
+tanks.
+
+The men were talking seriously amongst themselves.  From scraps of
+conversation that drifted to the lads' ears, it was evident that they
+had grave doubts concerning the ability of the diver to perform his
+task, and even of his chances of regaining the submarine, owing to the
+violent disturbances of the water.
+
+Presently the motion of the anchored submarine became more acute.  A
+weird grating sound--the noise made by the hull rasping over the bed of
+the sea--was distinctly audible.
+
+One of the seamen produced a pocket compass.  His startled exclamation
+brought other members of the crew around him.  The magnetic needle was
+apparently describing a semicircle.  U75 was swinging round her anchor.
+
+Just then a bell tinkled, and a disc oscillated on the indicator board
+on the bulkhead.  Instantly the two men who had been told off as
+attendants upon the diver hurried aft, while their companions crowded
+expectantly around the door.
+
+The two men came back, staggering under the weight of the diver.  They
+had already removed his head-dress and leaden weights.  Water dropped
+from his rubber suit.  His face was livid, his eyes wide open and
+rolling.  One of his bare hands was streaked with blood that flowed
+sullenly from a cut in his numbed flesh.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe and Leutnant Rix followed him into the crew-space.  It
+was not through feelings of compassion that they had come for'ard.  It
+was acute anxiety to hear the diver's report.
+
+The luckless man was laid upon the mess-table.  His attendants divested
+him of his diving-suit, and rubbed his body with rough towels.  A petty
+officer poured half a glass of brandy down his throat.
+
+"What is amiss?" Kapitan Schwalbe kept on repeating.
+
+With a great effort the diver sat up.
+
+"An anchor, sir," he gasped feebly.  "An anchor--an English naval
+pattern one--has been dropped right over ours.  A very big one."
+
+Then his eyes closed, and he fell back unconscious.
+
+"Gott in Himmel!" ejaculated Rix.  "We are trapped!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+Balked by a Sea-plane
+
+"How so?" demanded Kapitan Schwalbe.  "If we keep quiet, the
+cruiser--for cruiser she must be, judging by the fellow's
+description--will weigh and proceed."
+
+"When she does weigh we are undone," said Rix despondently.  "We are
+swinging round our anchor.  For all we know, our cable has taken a turn
+round hers.  As soon as they heave up their anchor, our anchor and
+cable will be brought up with it, and then the game is up.  Either the
+strain will overcome our dead weight and we will be hauled to the
+surface, or else they'll lower one of their brutal explosive charges."
+
+"The situation is serious," admitted Schwalbe in a low tone, for his
+Leutnant's words had produced a demoralizing effect upon the men.  "How
+much cable have we inboard?"
+
+Rix repeated the question.  A petty officer doubled forward to consult
+the cable indicator.  U75's anchor, when under way, was housed in a
+trough on the under side of the submarine's forefoot.  The cable was
+automatically ranged in a compartment between the inner and outer
+skins, the space being always filled with water.  The inboard end of
+the cable was not shackled; but to prevent its being able to take
+charge and run out, an indicator was placed on the bulkhead nearest to
+the cable tier.  The amount of chain let go was regulated by a
+compressor, which was actuated from within the hull by means of levers
+and cranks, watertight glands being provided to prevent any leakage
+into the interior of the submarine.
+
+"Seventy-five fathoms," reported the petty officer.  "When we commenced
+to swing we paid out the length we had taken on board when we hove
+short."
+
+"We must sacrifice the lot, Herr Rix," decided Kapitan Schwalbe.
+"There is no time to lose.  Storm or no storm, we must slip and run for
+it."
+
+It was U75's only chance, but it left her with only a small stockless
+kedge-anchor and chain, insufficient to withstand a heavy strain.
+
+The compressor was released.  With a loud rumble, for every sound was
+magnified within the confined space, the rest of the cable was allowed
+to take charge.  It did so promptly, the end of the chain giving the
+hull a defiant smack as it did so.  U75, no longer held by her anchor,
+began to drift with the tide, scraping dismally over the bed of Helwich
+Channel.
+
+Schwalbe was now back at his post in the conning-tower.  He dare not
+take the submarine to the surface until he had put a safe distance
+between him and the anchored British warship.  Nor did he care to order
+the ballast tanks to be blown.  Rather than allow the "pumping" of the
+seas to hammer the submerged craft upon the hard sand, he preferred to
+take the risk of letting her drag.
+
+Fortunately the tide set evenly along the bed of the channel.  A
+cross-current would have set the submarine upon the jagged rocks of the
+hidden West Helwick Ridge.  Nevertheless there was always the danger of
+being hurled violently against a detached rock, or of fouling a live
+mine if by chance the British had laid obstructions in the channel.
+
+Both Ross and Vernon knew the danger, but, manfully concealing their
+misgivings, they watched the faces of those of the crew who were "watch
+below".  Most of the men were Frisians, broad-shouldered,
+blonde-featured, and generally devoid of fear.  Yet the ceaseless
+strain upon the nerves had already begun to tell.  As hardy fishermen,
+they would not have hesitated to launch their open boats in a storm to
+go to the rescue of a hapless vessel aground on the grim sand-banks of
+the Frisian shore.  As the conscript crew of the submarine, compelled
+to keep within the limits of a steel box that almost momentarily
+threatened to be their tomb, their natural bravery was quenched.
+
+Many of them sat upon their lockers, stolid-faced men who had already
+tasted of the bitterness of death.  Others showed unmistakable signs of
+excitement, bordering on frenzy.  They dreaded their life of modern
+piracy.  The idea of sinking hapless merchantmen was repugnant to them,
+for they understood the brotherhood of the sea.  It would be different
+if they were called upon to attack an armed British ship of war.  They
+had no option but to obey their junker officers, who in turn were
+compelled to accept the misguided orders of the arch-pirate, von
+Tirpitz.
+
+They were disheartened, too, for reports, in spite of the vigilance of
+the officers to conceal them, had reached them of the losses inflicted
+upon other unterseebooten.  Occasionally they heard of a submarine crew
+being saved, but generally it was a case of total loss of all on board,
+by some hitherto unknown means, at the hands of the British Navy.
+
+A hand touched Ross lightly on the shoulder.  Turning, he saw Hans
+Koppe standing in a darkened corner of the compartment.
+
+"Can you tell me this, mein herr?" asked the seaman in a low tone.  "Is
+it true that the English give no quarter to German seamen in
+submarines?"
+
+"I shouldn't think that they would refuse to do so," replied Trefusis.
+"Of course, I can quite understand that an opportunity doesn't often
+occur; but I've heard of several instances in which your U-boats have
+surrendered, and the crews have been treated exactly the same as other
+prisoners of war."
+
+"I have heard differently," said Hans, "but I hope it's a mistake.  I
+have a feeling that we won't see Wilhelmshaven again.  And I have a
+wife and six children at Flensburg.  Our Kapitan, too, expects that we
+might be denied quarter, because we have sunk your merchantmen.
+Believe me, I regret having done so, but we have orders.  Do you know
+why Kapitan Schwalbe took you on board?"
+
+"Because a certain German agent wanted us out of the way, I suppose,"
+replied Ross.
+
+"Perhaps," admitted Hans Koppe.  "But in the event of our being
+captured he thinks that his good treatment of you will be in his
+favour.  We are, I do not mind telling you, in a very tight corner.
+Our fuel supply is almost run out.  We cannot hope to return home by
+way of the Straits of Dover.  Not one of our submarines has tried that
+passage of late without meeting with disaster--at least, so I heard der
+Kapitan tell der Leutnant.  Ach!  It is deplorable, this war."
+
+The rapid ringing of a gong was the signal for the watch below to turn
+out.  A peculiar hissing noise proclaimed the fact that the ballast
+tanks were being emptied.  U75 no longer grated over the bottom; her
+motors were running almost dead slow.
+
+Although submerged, the submarine was "pumping" violently.  Seasoned
+men were prostrate with sea-sickness.  The air, in spite of chemical
+purifiers, was becoming almost intolerable.  Everything movable was
+being thrown about in utter disorder, while to add to the discomfort of
+the crew the covering-plates of one of the lubricating-oil tanks had
+been strained, and at every jerk jets of viscous fluid would squirt
+through the fracture and trickle sullenly over the floor of the
+crew-space.
+
+Since the watertight doors were still closed, Ross and Vernon were
+unable to get back to their bunks.  Feeling thoroughly wretched, they
+were glad to accept Hans Koppe's offer to lie down on a long locker.
+
+At noon, U75 came to the surface.  The storm, being short forecasted,
+had quickly blown itself out, but the waves still ran high.
+
+It was a prearranged plan on the part of the three U-boats operating in
+the English and Bristol Channels to communicate with each other by
+wireless at noon and at midnight.  U75's wireless had a range of about
+180 miles, and although it could be "jammed", the call could not be
+tapped by vessels other than the one for which it was intended.  To
+make doubly sure, the messages were sent in code.
+
+For nearly ten minutes U75 "made her number" without eliciting any
+reply.  Perhaps it was well that Kapitan Schwalbe did not know what had
+happened to her consorts.  U74 was at that moment lying on her side at
+the bottom of a Welsh harbour, her crew poisoned by the chlorine fumes
+from her batteries--the result of a rash curiosity on the part of her
+Lieutenant-Commander to investigate the approaches to the anchorage.
+As for U77, she was flying blindly for safety, with a couple of
+destroyers hard on her track, and a naval sea-plane overhead to direct
+them in their search.
+
+Foiled in her efforts to get in touch with her consorts, U75 remained
+awash.  The heave of the sea made it most difficult for her to use her
+periscope with certainty, for she had chosen a bad pitch on her
+ascent--the furious "overfalls" or "tide-rips" to the west of Lundy
+Island.
+
+"We'll pay another visit to St. Mena's Island, Herr Rix," decided
+Kapitan Schwalbe, after the two officers had discussed the sinister
+matter of their futile attempt to make use of the wireless.  "To-night
+at nine o'clock ought to suit.  If we cannot get von Ruhle to see our
+signals--for my own part, I doubt whether he is in these parts--we'll
+have to do our best to get ashore.  Meanwhile, keep a bright look-out.
+If we see any likely vessel coming this way, we'll try our luck once
+more."
+
+"Message just received, mein herr," announced the wireless operator.
+
+"From whom?" enquired Kapitan Schwalbe eagerly.  He was devoutly hoping
+that either U74 or U77 had been able to "call up".
+
+"I cannot say, sir," replied the man as he handed a code message to his
+superior.
+
+Decoded, the "wireless" was as follows:
+
+"Station 41 to unterseebooten.  Two hundred gallons of fuel available
+here.  Will be on the look-out for signals at 1 a.m."
+
+The message was a "general call" for a secret petrol depot to any
+German submarine operating in the vicinity.  Reference to the list of
+stations showed that "41" was at Port Treherne, a remote cove on the
+North Cornish coast about fifty miles from St. Mena's Island.
+
+"I suppose it's safe," remarked Rix.
+
+"With due precautions--yes," rejoined Kapitan Schwalbe.  "At any rate,
+petrol we must have.  Where's the chart?  Ah, there we are!  It looks a
+fairly easy place to approach, don't you think?  The only danger from a
+navigation point is apparently this ledge of rocks--Lost Chance Reef,
+it's called.  What unpleasant names these Englishmen give to their
+coasts!"
+
+At that moment the Unter-leutnant, who happened to be at the
+conning-tower periscope, reported that a large vessel was bearing down
+towards them.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe hurried to the conning-tower.  The object depicted was
+that of a modern tank-vessel about four hundred feet in length.  She
+was low in the water, showing that she was well laden.  In place of
+masts she had four stumpy poles supporting derricks.  Right aft was the
+single funnel.  The navigation bridge was well for'ard, connected with
+another bridge just in front of the funnel by a long slender gangway.
+
+"An oil-tank homeward bound!" exclaimed Kapitan Schwalbe.  "Just what
+we want to fall in with.  All being well, there will be no necessity to
+visit either Port Treherne or St. Mena's Island.  Ach!  When we have
+taken what we require we will set fire to the ship, and the English
+will have a splendid view of a maritime bonfire."
+
+The crew were ordered to their stations, the ballast tanks "blown", and
+U75 rose to the surface instead of "running awash", since the Kapitan
+had resolved to stop the tank by gun-fire.
+
+Even then the waves were running so high that the guns' crews were
+almost constantly up to their knees in water.
+
+Somewhat to the surprise of the submarine's officers and crew, the
+tank-steamer made no attempt to escape.  The firing of a shot across
+her bows and the display of the black cross ensign were enough to cause
+the skipper to reverse her engines.
+
+In less than five minutes, the oil-vessel was rolling in the trough of
+the sea and drifting slowly to leeward.  Yet it was a somewhat
+remarkable circumstance that no attempt was made to lower the red
+ensign that was proudly displayed at the stern.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe, with his intimate knowledge of navigation, knew that
+the only way possible to board the prize was to run to leeward of her,
+and let the hull of the large vessel serve as a breakwater.  He also
+knew that the submarine would have to be constantly under way during
+the boarding operations, otherwise the tank-vessel, offering
+considerable resistance to the wind, would drift down upon U75, whose
+leeway was almost unappreciable.
+
+"Send a boat, and lower your accommodation ladder," ordered Kapitan
+Schwalbe, who, as the submarine ranged up half a cable's length to
+leeward of the tank-vessel, had left the shelter of the conning-tower
+and was standing on the platform in its wake.
+
+"Aye, aye," was the prompt response.
+
+"Board her, Herr Rix," said the Leutnant's superior officer.  "Bring
+back her papers with you.  Order them to pump heavy oil both to
+windward and leeward.  We will then be able to run close alongside and
+receive her hoses."
+
+A boat containing two seamen and an apprentice was lowered from the
+tank's quarter and rowed to the submarine.  Into it dropped Leutnant
+Rix and half a dozen armed men.  With them they took two incendiary
+bombs fitted with time-fuses.
+
+Rix smiled grimly as he gained the oil-steamer's deck.  The captain and
+first mate were at the head of the accommodation ladder to receive him.
+Most of the crew were already mustering on deck, each with a bundle
+containing his private effects.
+
+"You prize to German boat," announced the Leutnant.  "Make you no
+trouble and we you will not harm.  First we will haf much
+oil--petroleum, is it not?  Order your engineer to get steam to
+donkey-engine, and your men--the--the----  Hein!  Ach, I haf it--the
+hoses to get ready.  When we fill up, then twenty minutes we give you
+to clear out.  You onderstan'?"
+
+"Perfectly," replied the British skipper, a tall, raw-boned Scot, as he
+eyed the podgy German Leutnant with grim contempt.  "But d'ye ken yon?"
+
+[Illustration: "'D'YE KEN YON?' ASKED THE BRITISH SKIPPER, AS HE EYED
+THE PODGY GERMAN LEUTNANT WITH CONTEMPT"]
+
+He pointed skywards.  Less than five hundred feet up, yet sufficiently
+far from the tank-vessel to enable the latter to screen her from the
+unterseeboot, was a large naval sea-plane.  It was to deaden the noise
+of her motors that the ship's steam-pipe was continually blowing off
+steam from the time that U75 made her peremptory demand.
+
+The eyes of the Leutnant and his six men followed the direction
+indicated by the British skipper's outstretched hand.
+
+At that instant the sea-plane was visible above the towering sides of
+the British vessel.
+
+U75 was still forging slowly ahead.  In a trice Kapitan Schwalbe
+decided how to act.  Ordering the men on deck to their diving stations,
+he dropped agilely into the conning-tower and gave the word for the
+helm to be ported.
+
+Thus, while the quick-firers were being housed, the submarine had drawn
+close under the oil-tank's quarter.  Here she was comparatively safe
+from the sea-plane, as the latter could not drop any bombs without risk
+of exploding the highly inflammable cargo of the British vessel.
+
+In ten seconds the sea-plane was over and beyond her quarry.  She had
+then to turn and circle overhead, awaiting the chance of shattering her
+enemy as she dived.
+
+U75 was already disappearing beneath the waves.
+
+She dived at a very oblique angle, steeper than she had ever done
+before.
+
+Ross and Vernon, unaware of what was taking place, thought for a moment
+that the submarine was plunging headlong to the bed of the Bristol
+Channel.  They had to cling desperately to the nearest object to hand
+to prevent themselves from sliding violently against a transverse
+bulkhead.
+
+Even as they clung they heard two muffled detonations in quick
+succession, followed by a distinct quiver of the submarine's hull--a
+movement that bore a marked difference to the vibrations under the
+pulsations of the motors.
+
+The sea-plane had dropped two bombs, both of which very nearly attained
+their object.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe did not bring the submarine to a horizontal position
+until she had reached a depth of fifteen fathoms.  At that depth he was
+safe, both from explosives dropped from the sea-plane and also from
+observation.  The water being still agitated, made it impossible for
+the observer on the biplane to follow the movements of a dark shadow
+fathoms deep.  For once, the rough seas had been kind to U75; but the
+fact remained that she was still badly in want of fuel, while his last
+attempt had resulted in the loss of an officer and six men, who could
+not well be spared.
+
+Although the sea-plane had failed to achieve her object by pulverizing
+the U-boat's hull, the moral and material result was none the less
+effective.
+
+The explosion of the bombs had started several of U75's plates.
+Numerous jets of water were spurting through the seams, the inrush
+requiring all the mechanical appliances at the command of the modern
+pirate to keep the leaks under control, while the badly-jarred nerves
+of Kapitan Schwalbe and his crew warned them of the grave risks they
+ran in attempting to try conclusions with even an apparently harmless
+craft displaying the Red Ensign of Britain's Mercantile Marine.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+The Landing at Port Treherne
+
+"I wonder if they'll let us go on deck," remarked Vernon Haye.  "If so,
+I vote we have a shot at getting ashore.  What sort of show is Port
+Treherne?"
+
+"I know it fairly well," replied Ross.  "It's the most forsaken crib
+you are ever likely to meet along the coast.  It's a deep gully in the
+cliffs.  There's only one small landing-place--a flat rock.  Years ago
+there used to be a tramway down to the rock, and they shipped copper
+ore by means of derricks into lighters, which were towed across in fine
+weather to Swansea.  But the mine closed down, the village is now
+deserted, and I don't believe there are any fishermen there.  They say
+that the stream that flows into the port is still heavily charged with
+mundic.  At all events the water is of a bright-red colour for several
+hundred yards from shore, and no fish will stick that."
+
+It was close on the midnight following the disastrous attempt on the
+part of U75 to capture the oil-tank.  The submarine was running awash,
+proceeding very slowly and cautiously towards Port Treherne--Station 41
+of the secret petrol depots established by German agents along the
+coast of the British Islands.
+
+The lads had been informed of the destination of the submarine, but had
+not been told why.  Nevertheless it was an easy conjecture that U75 was
+going there to pick up stores that she had been unable to obtain in
+sufficient quantities at St. Mena's Island.
+
+The Unter-leutnant was in charge of the submarine.  Kapitan Schwalbe
+had taken the advantage of the opportunity of a few hours' sleep.
+Under-officered and undermanned, the strain on the personnel was a
+severe one.  It was only on rare occasions that Schwalbe could in
+future descend from his post in the conning-tower.
+
+At midnight, according to custom, the submarine called up her consorts
+by wireless.  Judging by the previous attempt it seemed a useless task,
+but to the Operator's surprise he received a reply from U77, which was
+then lying off the Scillies.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe, aroused from his sleep, eagerly awaited the decoding
+of the message.  It was to the effect that the commander of U77 had
+received information that H.M.S. _Tremendous_, one of the earlier
+Dreadnoughts, was leaving Gibraltar for Rosyth.  The _Tremendous_, he
+knew, had been engaged in the Dardanelles operations.  U77 therefore
+suggested that the two unterseebooten should meet at a rendezvous off
+The Lizard, and attempt a _coup de main_, the success of which would go
+towards atoning for the blunders and losses sustained by the German
+submarines in their endeavour to blockade the British Isles.
+
+"Good!" exclaimed Kapitan Schwalbe.  "Tell them that I purpose to
+rendezvous twenty kilometres S.W. by W. of The Lizard, on Thursday at
+10 p.m.  I am now about to take in fuel.  Will communicate again at
+noon to-morrow.  Ask them if they have picked up a wireless from U74."
+
+Some time elapsed before the message could be coded by the sender and
+translated by the receiving submarine.  When the reply confirming the
+rendezvous was received, a message was added to the effect that U77 had
+heard nothing of U74 for three days.  It was presumed, however, that
+she was now on her way back to Wilhelmshaven, and was already out of
+wireless range.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe knew better.  As senior officer of the three
+submarines detached to operate in these waters, he was aware that U74
+would not have left her station without orders from him.  That part of
+the message had been sent merely as a "blind", so that the crews of the
+remaining unterseebooten should not be discouraged.  It was safe to
+conclude, decided Kapitan Schwalbe, that another of the blockaders had
+gone to the bottom for the last time.
+
+It was close on one o'clock when the "wirelessing" terminated.  U75,
+which had hitherto been running awash, was now trimmed for surface work.
+
+Most of the crew went on deck.  Amongst them were Ross and Vernon, no
+one offering any objection.
+
+The sea was no longer rough.  A long oily swell took the place of the
+white-crested wave.  The night was dark.  Only a few stars were
+visible.  Away to the S.E., the black outlines of the Cornish coast
+reared themselves like an enormous wall against the gloomy sky.
+
+Suddenly Vernon touched his chum's elbow, as a faint pin-prick of light
+glimmered twice.  It was the shore agent's signal that the coast was
+clear.
+
+Barely carrying steerage-way, U75 stood in towards the as yet invisible
+Port Treherne.  Already her crew had brought the collapsible canvas
+boat from below, "man-handling" it through the fore hatch.  The men,
+having opened it out and shipped the felt-lined and well-greased
+rowlocks, stood by to launch it.
+
+Gradually the towering cliffs enclosing the creek became
+distinguishable against the loftier background of gaunt hills.  Into
+the gap the submarine crept with the utmost caution, until it seemed as
+if she were on the point of running her nose against the sheer face of
+the granite wall.  The water bubbled slightly as her motors were
+reversed; then, turning in her own length, she brought up, with her
+bows pointing seawards.
+
+Three of the crew grasped the canvas boat and pushed it gently into the
+water on the port side.  One of them clambered in and shipped the oars
+in the row-locks.
+
+The two lads were cautiously scanning the shores of the inlet.  Ross
+could sniff the unmistakable Cornish air.  The call of home seemed
+irresistible.  It looked a comparatively easy matter to slip quietly
+over the starboard side, and swim with noiseless strokes towards the
+weed-covered rocks that showed six feet or more above the sea.  It was
+half ebb-tide; there was little or no drift out of the cove.  Under the
+shadow of those dark cliffs detection seemed almost impossible, unless
+the submarine went to the risky expedient of switching on her
+search-light.
+
+They moved stealthily towards the light wire railing on the starboard
+side just abaft the conning-tower.  Everything seemed in their favour.
+Kapitan Schwalbe and the Unter-leutnant were on the navigation
+platform, peering through their night-glasses towards the flat rock
+that served as a landing-place.  Two of the seamen were engaged in
+coiling down a hand-lead line; the rest of the men on deck were
+devoting their attention to the now departing canvas boat.
+
+"Not so fast, my friends," exclaimed a low deep voice, which the lads
+recognized as that of Kapitan Schwalbe.  "Remember I have a pistol
+ready to hand."
+
+"How in the name of goodness did he know what we were up to?" thought
+Ross.
+
+The chums stood stock-still.  They felt much like children found out in
+some petty escapade.
+
+"Koppe!  Where are you?" asked the Kapitan in a loud whisper.
+
+"Here, sir," replied the seaman.
+
+"I hold you responsible for these Englishmen.  Now they are trying to
+give us the slip.  Take them below.  But hold on.  Secure them to a
+stanchion.  Chain them up, and bring me the key."
+
+The seaman approached the lads almost apologetically, and led them to
+the port side just for'ard of the conning-tower.  A light steel chain
+was hitched round Ross's right ankle and Vernon's left, and deftly
+padlocked round one of the uprights supporting the hand-rail.
+
+"It is of no use trying any of your pranks here," commented Kapitan
+Schwalbe, still in a low tone.  "You are only looking for trouble."
+
+For several moments all was still, save for the screech of a benighted
+gull.  Overhead a meteor passed swiftly across the sky, throwing a pale
+gleam upon-the lurking submarine.
+
+"Wer da?"
+
+The words, although uttered in an undertone, travelled distinctly over
+the placid waters of the cove.
+
+The sailor in the boat muttered some inaudible reply.  The listeners in
+the submarine could detect the sound of his oars as he laid them across
+the thwarts.  Then, after further conversation, could be heard the
+rumble of metal as the tins of petrol were rapidly placed in the boat.
+
+"How many are there?" asked Kapitan Schwalbe eagerly as the men
+returned with the first load.
+
+"Forty here, Herr Kapitan.  Altogether there are over two hundred."
+
+"Then be sharp and whip them on board.  Was there any communication for
+me?"
+
+"A bundle of English newspapers, sir, and this letter."
+
+The man drew the documents from the inside of his jumper and passed
+them to a seaman, who in turn handed them to the skipper.
+
+"I may have to land, sir," continued the seaman.  "The rest of the cans
+are in a cove at some distance from the landing-place.  Can Max go with
+me to mind the boat?  There is a slight ground-swell at times, and she
+might have a hole through her canvas if she is allowed to grind against
+the rocks."
+
+Receiving an affirmative reply, the man told his comrade to get on
+board, and once more the boat vanished into the darkness.
+
+Another twenty minutes elapsed, then came the sounds of muffled
+footsteps, and of volatile spirit surging inside the petrol cans.  Then
+one of the men must have slipped, for there was a slight scuffling,
+followed by the loud crash of a can clattering over the rocks.
+
+"'Alt!  Who goes there?" shouted a hoarse and unmistakably English
+voice.
+
+"Freund," promptly replied the German sailor.
+
+It would have been far wiser on his part if he had waited for his
+fellow-worker, the German agent, to reply, since his knowledge and
+pronunciation of English were almost perfect.  But unfortunately it was
+the spy who had fallen, and, half-winded by coming in contact with one
+of the tins, was gasping for breath and at the same time rubbing a
+barked shin.
+
+"Not good enough for me, old sport," rejoined the challenger, and
+without further ado he let loose "five rounds rapid".
+
+A loud yell announced that one of the bullets had at least taken
+effect.  It was the prostrate spy who received a dose of nickel through
+the fleshy part of his thigh.
+
+The seaman, dropping his cans, fled for his life.  Recklessly he leapt
+from the landing-place into the canvas boat, which his comrade had been
+keeping at oar's length from the shore.  The sudden impetus was too
+much for the frail craft.  She capsized, and, being only
+single-skinned, sank like a stone.
+
+Already men, members of a picket, were hastening to the sentry's
+support, their progress marked by a lantern held by a stout and sleepy
+sergeant.
+
+By this time U75 was making for the open sea.  Kapitan Schwalbe was
+cursing loudly; not because the luckless agent had been hit--it was his
+fault for not making sure of his ground; not so much on account of the
+loss of two more men, nor of the sinking of the only boat belonging to
+the submarine.  His anger was aroused at the knowledge that once again
+his efforts to obtain fuel had been balked.  The quantity contained in
+forty tins was a mere fraction of the amount he required in order to
+carry out his ambitious programme.  Bitterly he realized that, like
+those of transgressors, the ways of modern pirates are hard.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+
+A Treacherous Plot
+
+A ragged volley of musketry followed the departing submarine.  One
+bullet mushroomed itself against the steel conning-tower; another
+zipped through one of the guard-rails.  The rest either flew harmlessly
+overhead or ricochetted from the surface of the placid water.
+
+Nevertheless the firing was a signal for the crew to hasten below.
+Kapitan Schwalbe and the Unter-leutnant disappeared with ignominious
+speed within the conning-tower.  The men, bending low, bolted for the
+fore hatch.  In twenty seconds the deck of U75 was deserted save for
+Ross and Vernon, who, padlocked to the stanchion, were unable to move
+six inches in either direction.  They were only partly screened by the
+rise of the conning-tower.  A sharp splinter from the bullet that had
+splayed against the steel wall cut cleanly through Vernon's coat sleeve
+and inflicted a slight gash in the lad's forearm, yet in the excitement
+he hardly noticed it.
+
+"I say, old man," exclaimed Ross, as a wave slapping against the
+submarine's bow threw a shower of spray over the two prisoners.  "What
+will happen if they submerge?  It seems to me as if old Schwalbe has
+forgotten us."
+
+"He would have dived before this if he intended so doing," replied
+Haye.  "Ten to one he's going to pay us out for attempting to take
+French, or rather German, leave.  It's jolly cold and mighty
+uncomfortable, but we'll keep a stiff upper lip and show him what we
+are made of."
+
+"With all due deference to you, old chap," rejoined Trefusis, his teeth
+chattering as the keen wind played upon his saturated garments, "I
+would far rather be without this badge of German kultur."  He indicated
+the chain that encircled his ankle.  "I don't think that you can hold a
+brief for Kapitan Schwalbe.  I am not so sure about it that he is not
+going to dive."
+
+U75 dipped as he spoke, submerging her fore deck almost to the base of
+the conning-tower.  Then, with a double cascade of water pouring from
+her, she shook herself free, throwing her bows high above the surface.
+
+A man, gripping the stanchion-rail as he made his way knee-deep in
+water, came towards the two prisoners.  It was Hans Koppe.  He had
+obtained the Kapitan's permission to release his charges from their
+uncomfortable position.
+
+"Hold on tightly as you go aft," he cautioned.  "There is hot coffee
+waiting for you below."
+
+It was impracticable to descend by means of the fore hatch.  That means
+of communication had already been closed and battened down, owing to
+the constant flow of water over the bows.  Even the after hatch, in
+spite of the protection afforded by the conning-tower and the raised
+coaming, was admitting water into the interior of the submarine.
+
+Cold, exhausted, and hungry, the lads were glad to be able to eat and
+drink, discard their wringing-wet garments, and turn in.  Without
+waking they slept solidly for ten hours.  It was one in the afternoon
+when they turned out.  U75 was rounding Land's End.  She was submerged,
+steering a compass course, but frequently showing her periscope to
+ascertain her whereabouts.  Already the Longships Lighthouse was broad
+on the port beam.
+
+It was a tedious, discomforting run from Land's End to The Lizard.  The
+Mounts Bay fishing fleets were out, a circumstance that compelled the
+submarine to keep below the surface.  Kapitan Schwalbe knew that once
+the alert skippers of these boats sighted even the tip of the
+periscope, the news of the presence of a hostile submarine would be
+quickly sent to the naval authorities at Devonport.  The necessity for
+secrecy also prevented him from making use of the wireless: not that
+the message would be deciphered, but because the origin of the message
+could be fixed with comparative certainty by any of the British
+wireless stations that "picked up" her call.
+
+The approaches to Plymouth Sound, too, gave Kapitan Schwalbe a bad
+time.  Far beyond the Eddystone, and from Looe Island to Bigbury Bay,
+armed trawlers and torpedo-boats patrolled incessantly, their movements
+aided by sea-planes.  It was almost a matter of impossibility for a
+hostile submarine to approach Plymouth Sound by daylight, since the
+aeroplanes were able to discern any sinister object moving under the
+comparatively shallow and clear waters between Rame Head and Stoke
+Point; while at night the precautions taken were of such an elaborate
+and efficient description as to seal the fate of any submarine rash
+enough to run her head into a noose.
+
+Accordingly U75 gave the Eddystone a wide berth, shaping a course to
+pass twenty miles to the south'ard of the far-famed lighthouse.  Here
+she was in the thick of the Channel traffic, a stream of mercantile
+ships passing up and down as unconcernedly as if such a thing as a
+German submarine did not exist.
+
+Although there were plenty of opportunities, Kapitan Schwalbe made no
+attempt to molest the ships.  For one thing, experience had taught him
+that the British merchant skipper possessed a bull-dog tenacity, and a
+courage not to be daunted by the sight of a hostile periscope appearing
+from nowhere in the midst of a waste of water.  For another, he was now
+on the look-out for more important game--his chance to retrieve his
+already vanishing prestige.
+
+However, one of the merchant vessels served him a good purpose,
+although unknown to her.  Marking a large ocean tramp bound up-Channel,
+U75 dived deeply, so as to be free from any danger of being hit by her
+forefoot.
+
+With the noise of the tramp's propeller to guide her, U75 followed,
+unsuspected, in her wake as she made for the Lizard Light.
+
+Arriving safely at the rendezvous, Kapitan Schwalbe waited until it was
+dark, and then cautiously brought the submarine awash.  Punctually at
+ten o'clock a feeble violet light blinked through the night.  It was
+U77's call to her consort.
+
+"What's the game, I wonder?" asked Vernon, as a hail in German was
+borne faintly to their ears.
+
+The chums had turned in.  There was nothing else for them to do, since
+they had been ordered to leave the quarters allotted to the crew.  As
+there was no furniture of any description in the alley-way that had
+been made their sleeping compartment, they had climbed into their
+bunks.  Here they could maintain an almost uninterrupted conversation.
+
+"Hist!" exclaimed Ross warningly.  He had been lying with his ear
+almost touching one of the many voice-tubes that led from the
+conning-tower to various parts of the submarine.  Quite by accident, he
+discovered that the pipes formed an excellent conductor of sound in a
+manner that had not been intended.
+
+"What are you doing?" asked Haye curiously.
+
+"Jam your ear against the centre one of these three pipes," said his
+chum.
+
+Vernon did so.  It required very little movement on his part, since the
+bunks were rather narrow.  The same voice-tube that Ross was "tapping"
+ran vertically past Haye's bunk, which was immediately underneath the
+one Trefusis had appropriated from the time when he had been laid upon
+it under the influence of the injection.
+
+This particular pipe formed a means of vocal communication between the
+conning-tower and Kapitan Schwalbe's cabin.  For some reason the
+whistle had been removed from the cabin end, and consequently sounds
+from the Kapitan's quarters were conveyed with tolerable clearness.
+
+There were two men engaged in conversation.  One was Kapitan Schwalbe;
+the other, who spoke in a lower key, and so rapidly that Ross had great
+difficulty in mentally translating his words, was the
+Lieutenant-Commander of U77.  He had been put aboard U75 only a few
+minutes previously.
+
+"My dear von Hoffner," Kapitan Schwalbe was saying.  "Your plan is all
+very well as far as you are concerned; but where do we come in?
+Understand that while we are on the surface our risks are increased
+ten-fold.  Suppose, for instance, the battleship does not notice, or
+affects not to notice, the white flag?"
+
+"She will, right enough," assured the Lieutenant-Commander of U77.
+"These English are such fools that in their anxiety to observe the
+rules of warfare" (here von Hoffner laughed sardonically) "they play
+into our hands.  More than a twelvemonth of war has not taught them
+that the hitherto recognized observances of war are no longer binding.
+This is not a petty squabble between two nations.  It is a struggle for
+existence; consequently it is where our frightfulness scores."
+
+"It hasn't up to the present, according to my experience," objected
+Kapitan Schwalbe gloomily.  "These Englishmen simply won't be
+frightened.  But to return once more to the point: what steps do you
+propose to take to minimize my risk?"
+
+"There must be risk, of course," remarked von Hoffner.  "According to
+latest reports, it seems pretty certain that we cannot hope to
+intercept the _Tremendous_ during the hours of darkness.  Consequently
+we have to make use of a ruse.  Directly I spot her I dive, keeping as
+much as possible close to her track, say three hundred metres off."
+
+"Yes, you dive," commented Schwalbe caustically.  "That is quite
+feasible.  But what of U75?"
+
+"She will keep on the surface almost exactly in the indicated path of
+the battleship.  You will strike your ensign and hoist a large white
+flag in its place.  It will mean scrapping your best tablecloth, mein
+herr.  With the wind in its present quarter the flag will blow athwart
+the battleship's course, so there is no risk of it not being seen.  You
+and your crew will, of course, form up aft.  That will give more colour
+to the deception."
+
+"Perhaps it will work," said Kapitan Schwalbe.
+
+"Perhaps?  Of course it will," declared von Hoffher sanguinely.  "Then
+the rest is child's play.  Directly the _Tremendous_ slows down--it's
+the speed of these battleships that has caused us to miss hitherto--I
+will let loose two torpedoes.  There will be no bungling, I assure you.
+I'll take good care to hit her close to the magazine, and there will be
+no opportunity for her to use her quick-firers.
+
+"By the by, I've two English boys on board," said the Kapitan of U75.
+In a few words he related the circumstances in which they were made
+prisoners.  "I suppose they ought to line up on deck with the hands?"
+
+"Certainly," replied von Hoffher, with one of his cold-blooded
+sniggers.  "It will heighten the illusion.  It will do them good to see
+what one of our unterseebooten can do.  But it is highly important that
+there be no survivors from the torpedoed battleship.  The ruse is a
+grand one, and can be employed over and over again, provided that the
+secret does not leak out.  After all, I don't think I would bring these
+English youths on deck."
+
+"They are safe enough," protested Schwalbe.  "If we return to
+Wilhelmshaven, they will be locked up in safe custody until the end of
+the war.  If we do not, then I fancy there will be no survivors from
+U75 as well as from the English battleship _Tremendous_."
+
+The two treacherous officers conversed in a similar strain for several
+minutes longer.  Then came the sound of glasses being clinked as an
+accompaniment to a boastful toast.  Talking boisterously, the two
+officers left the cabin, and presently the lads heard the sound of oars
+as von Hoffner was rowed back to his command.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+Preparations
+
+"The brutes!" ejaculated Vernon savagely.  He was violently excited.
+Perspiration was pouring off his face at the thought of the almost
+unparalleled act of wanton treachery that was about to be enacted.  "If
+we could only prevent them!"
+
+"I can't see how," rejoined Ross gloomily.  "We cannot give an alarm.
+If we could control the valves for half a minute, I'd sink this blessed
+craft with all on board, myself included, for good and all.  But it is
+no use talking of the impossibly heroic."
+
+"I have a plan," announced Vernon, after thinking deeply for a few
+minutes.
+
+"Well, out with it!"
+
+"We have to pass through one of the broadside torpedo-rooms as we go on
+deck.  We could each snatch a spanner and give the war-heads a terrific
+blow.  You'll remember that there are half a dozen torpedoes in the
+cages against the bulkhead.  It would mean certain death for us, but it
+would save nearly a thousand lives."
+
+Ross shook his head.
+
+"There's no certainty of success," he objected.  "Those torpedoes are
+very much like our own Whiteheads.  The striker in the head is
+protected against accidental discharge by a small propeller.  Until the
+torpedo travels a certain distance through the water--sufficient for
+the resistance against the blades to cause the safety device to
+unthread and leave the striker free to hit the primer--the danger of
+premature explosion is almost negligible.  We shouldn't have time to
+revolve the safety blades enough, and I'm pretty certain that even a
+heavy blow on the war-head itself would not explode the charge."
+
+"Then I'm done," said Vernon dejectedly.  "Think of something, old
+man--something that will hold water."
+
+Silence ensued for nearly ten minutes, broken only by the tapping of
+the waves against the sides of the submarine, and the gentle purr of
+the dynamos for supplying light to the interior of the vessel.
+
+Suddenly Ross leapt out of his bunk.  He dared not trust himself to
+speak above a whisper for fear of being overheard.
+
+"Dash it all, old man!" exclaimed Vernon, when his chum had confided
+his plans; "it ought to work.  If it doesn't, nothing else will.  I'm
+on it, happen what may!"
+
+"We'll want our knives for the job," continued Ross.  "Yours will open
+easily, I hope?  Good!  Sharp?  We'll run no risks.  A sharp blade is
+absolutely necessary."
+
+They drew the knives and whetted the blades upon the soles of their
+boots.  At Vernon's suggestion they kept open the big blades, making a
+hole through the lining of their pockets in order to keep the knives in
+a horizontal position and ready to hand.
+
+"Now let's turn in properly," suggested the practical Ross.  "We want
+to be fairly fresh for the job in front of us."
+
+Soon after sunrise on the morrow all hands were mustered aft on deck,
+Ross and Vernon included.  It was a bright morning.  The sun had risen
+seemingly out of the sea, or in nautical parlance it was a "low dawn".
+There was a chilliness in the air that made the lads wish that they had
+been wearing overcoats.
+
+They looked in vain for U75's consort.  The unterseeboot that was to
+deal the coward's blow was not to be seen.  Her presence was to be kept
+a secret from the crew of the decoy.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe, accompanied by his Unter-leutnant, made his way aft.
+He looked pale and care-worn.  He had lost his military manner.  His
+gait suggested that of a man recovering from a long illness.
+
+"My men," he exclaimed, "circumstances over which I have no control
+make it necessary to bring our cruise to a speedy termination.  U75 is
+no longer in a state of efficiency, either for offence or flight.  It
+therefore remains for us to save our lives by surrendering to the first
+English ship of war that we fall in with.  It is a humiliating and
+distasteful step to take, but there is no option."
+
+The crew heard this lying speech in silence.  They hardly knew what to
+make of it.  The majority mentally decided that it was better to be
+imprisoned in England than to rot on the bed of the sea.  Kapitan
+Schwalbe had no faith in his men's histrionic abilities; he was also
+afraid that they would oppose the scheme that he himself had deprecated
+as being too risky.
+
+Hiding their indignation, Ross and his chum saw the Kapitan hand a
+petty officer a white flag.  The man took it, and lashed short pieces
+of cord to two adjacent corners.
+
+Hans Koppe sidled up to his charges.
+
+"You will soon be free," he remarked.  "Ach! but you do not seem
+overjoyed.  You English are indeed a queer race."
+
+Receiving no reply, the man went below to follow the example of his
+comrades, who were getting together their personal belongings.  Many of
+them thought of the times when they had seen non-belligerents do
+likewise.  It was the boot on the other foot with a vengeance.
+
+Ross gave another glance across the horizon.  Nothing was in sight.
+Gripping his chum's arm, he led him for'ard.  U75 was motionless.  The
+deck was deserted.  A quartermaster stood on the navigation platform in
+front of the conning-tower.  Kapitan Schwalbe and his Unter-leutnant
+had likewise vanished.
+
+As Ross passed the conning-tower, he pulled out his knife and deftly
+severed the lashings of a couple of buoys secured to the hand-rail.  It
+was the first act of the lad's plan of operations.
+
+"Vessel on the port bow, sir!" shouted the quartermaster.
+
+Kapitan Schwalbe was on deck in a trice, closely followed by his
+subordinate.  For a few moments, he kept his binoculars focused upon
+the indistinct grey object, then three miles off.
+
+"It is the _Tremendous_," he announced in an undertone to the
+Unter-leutnant.  "Another ten minutes will see the business through."
+
+He spoke with confidence, but it was a confidence inspired by a liberal
+dose of brandy.  He felt that he had already passed the Rubicon.  There
+could be no turning back.
+
+A whistle trilled shrilly.  At the signal the men again doubled aft,
+and joined up in a double line.
+
+"Where are the English boys?" enquired Kapitan Schwalbe.
+
+"Coming," replied Ross.  For the first time on board he omitted to add
+the word "sir".  His omission was deliberate.  Utter contempt for the
+German captain consumed him.  Schwalbe, too, noticed the manner in
+which he had replied.  He smiled grimly, imagining that now the lads
+thought themselves about to be free they could afford to be curt.
+
+As the chums passed the lifebuoys, they deftly heaved them overboard.
+They fell with hardly a splash, dropping close to the side of the
+motionless submarine.
+
+No one noticed the act.  The attention of the crew was centred upon a
+little ceremony that was taking place.  Bareheaded, the men stood at
+attention.  Their voices broke into the song of "Die Wacht am Rhein" as
+the emblem of German sea-power was slowly lowered from the ensign staff.
+
+The men sang sonorously and in perfect cadence.  They firmly believed
+that it was their last tribute as free men to their Fatherland.  As the
+last bar terminated, the petty officer smartly hoisted the white flag.
+For an instant it hung limply, confined by one of the halliards; then
+like a square of stretched canvas it blew out in the steady breeze--a
+modern counterpart of the kiss of Judas.
+
+And standing just behind the Kapitan, within arm's reach of the ensign
+staff, were Ross Trefusis and Vernon Haye.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+The White Flag--and Afterwards
+
+H.M.S. _Tremendous_, super-Dreadnought of 24,000 tons displacement, and
+mounting ten 13.5-inch guns as her principal armament, was tearing
+up-Channel at 21 knots.
+
+She looked far different from the spick-and-span battleship which had
+left Portsmouth only six weeks previously.
+
+Her armoured sides still showed unmistakable traces of the impact of
+Turkish shells.  Her grey paint was blotched, blistered, and stained.
+Her after funnel had plates of sheet-iron riveted to it to hide a
+gaping hole large enough to drive a stage-coach through.  Her guns were
+worn out by sheer hard work.  It was mainly on this account that she
+was homeward bound: to have the gigantic weapons "re-lined" in order
+that she might again take her place as an effective unit of the Grand
+Fleet.
+
+The middle watch was about to relieve the morning watch.  The mess
+decks were a seething mass of humanity.  In spite of the apparent
+confusion everyone was in high good humour, for another few hours
+(D.V.) would find H.M.S. _Tremendous_ at Pompey--as Portsmouth has from
+time immemorial been termed by the Navy.
+
+On the fire-control platform sleepy-eyed officers were awaiting their
+reliefs.  Around the 12-pounders, the muzzles of which grinned
+menacingly from apparently haphazard positions in the superstructure,
+men were grouped, ready at the first alarm to train the weapons upon a
+possible foe.  Day after day ceaseless vigilance was maintained.  One
+and all realized that a moment's negligence might result in destruction
+by one of the most horrible creations of modern science.
+
+"Submarine on the starboard bow, sir!"
+
+For an instant all was tense silence.  Then a bugle blared, followed by
+the clear trills of the bos'n's mates' pipes and the hurried tramp of
+men's feet.
+
+The officer of the watch brought his telescope to bear ahead.  He was a
+junior lieutenant, Bourne by name, and in receipt of a private income
+of eight hundred a year.  On that sum he might have lived the life of a
+man of leisure, but he vastly preferred a strenuous life as a
+commissioned officer in the Royal Navy.  Not once had he regretted his
+choice, and upon the outbreak of war he was ready to execute a hornpipe
+of sheer delight at the prospect of "being in the big scrap".
+
+"She's flying the white flag, by Jove!" he ejaculated.  "Funny,
+deucedly funny!"
+
+He had to act, and act promptly, for a battleship travelling at 21
+knots does not give a man time to think for any length of time.
+Already a messenger had been despatched to inform the "skipper", but
+before the captain could gain the navigation bridge (more than likely
+he was in his bath) the _Tremendous_ would have covered the intervening
+distance.
+
+The quartermaster looked enquiringly at the Lieutenant.  Bourne stepped
+hastily to the engine-room telegraph indicator, half inclined to ring
+down for "half-speed", or even "stop both engines".
+
+He stopped abruptly.
+
+"Steady on your helm, quartermaster."
+
+"Steady it is, sir," replied the petty officer.
+
+The telegraph indicator remained untouched.  With undiminished speed
+H.M.S.  _Tremendous_ held on, under the propelling force of turbine
+engines of 30,000 indicated horse-power.
+
+A midshipman, standing by the side of the officer of the watch, had
+been keeping the submarine under observation by means of his telescope.
+
+"By Jove, sir!" he exclaimed.  "There's something wrong there.  The
+white flag's down, and two fellows in mufti have leapt overboard."
+
+"Torpedo on the port bow, sir!" sang out half a dozen lusty voices in
+chorus.
+
+"Hard-a-port, quartermaster!" ordered Bourne.
+
+The spokes of the steam steering-gear revolved quicker than they had
+ever done before.  Listing heavily to port, the _Tremendous_ turned
+with a rapidity that belied her huge bulk and apparent unhandiness.  A
+double track of ever-diverging foam marked the progress of the deadly
+missile.  Another followed almost in its wake, both torpedoes
+travelling at the speed of an express train.
+
+For four seconds all on board who watched these messages of death stood
+with bated breath.  Then a general roar of relief went up as the two
+"tinfish" glided harmlessly past the ship, the nearest at a distance of
+less than twenty feet, and parallel to the new course of the battleship.
+
+Half a dozen quick-firers spat viciously.  A 6-inch, two of which for
+some obscure reason the designers had placed on the main deck abreast
+of the after 15-inch guns, added to the din.  A chaos of smoke, flame,
+and spray marked the spot beneath which U77 had lurked to launch her
+cowardly and treacherous bolt.
+
+"That's blinded her, at least," thought Bourne.
+
+He knew that even if the hidden submarine had escaped injury, a minute
+at least would elapse before she could be conned into a position to
+discharge another torpedo.  That minute would be enough for his purpose.
+
+"Starboard!" he ordered.  "Ram her, quartermaster!"
+
+Round swung the 24,000 tons of dead weight, steadied, and bore down
+upon the motionless U75.  Cries of terror burst from the doomed crew,
+many of whom leapt overboard in a vain attempt to swim clear of the
+vengeful leviathan.
+
+Bourne gripped the guard-rail, half expecting to be thrown violently by
+the force of the impact.  He was mistaken.
+
+With hardly a tremor the bows of the _Tremendous_ crashed into the
+unterseeboot, hitting her just abaft the conning-tower.  The bow
+portion sank like a stone.  The after part reared itself high in the
+air, revealing the curiously shaped stern, the two propellers, and the
+complication of rudders.  Then, before the cloud of smoke and spray had
+time to drift inboard, the _Tremendous_ was over and beyond the
+ever-widening circle of iridescent oil that marked the ocean grave of
+yet another of the would-be blockaders of Britain's shores.
+
+Even in the midst of his great responsibility Bourne's keen eye
+discerned two heads bobbing up and down in the water.  The midshipman
+noticed them too.
+
+"They are those fellows who hauled down the white flag, sir," he
+exclaimed.  "They are quite youngsters, too, and we daren't stop."
+
+"No, we dare not," agreed the Lieutenant.  For aught he knew, another
+unterseeboot might be in the vicinity, reserving her torpedoes in the
+hope that the battleship would slow down to investigate.  "Pass the
+word to the sentry to let go the Kisbie.  It's the best we can do."
+
+With a splash the patent lifebuoy was dropped from the cage at the
+extremity of the navigation-bridge.  It bobbed up again under the
+battleship's quarter, emitting a dense cloud of calcium smoke as it did
+so.  By the time the marine had dropped the Kisbie the ship was a
+quarter of a mile away from the two swimmers.
+
+"It's the best we can do," repeated Bourne as he closed the eyepiece of
+his telescope.  "They may fetch it, they are swimming strongly."
+
+"Well done, Mr. Bourne!" exclaimed a deep voice.
+
+Turning, the Lieutenant faced the Captain standing beside him.
+
+"A smart manoeuvre!" continued the skipper approvingly.  "We can now
+only carry on; but we'll wireless the Commander-in-Chief Devonport, and
+report that there are survivors from the rammed submarine.  He'll have
+a destroyer patrol on the spot within an hour, and I hope it won't be
+too late."
+
+Bourne stepped to the extremity of the bridge and glanced astern.  His
+effort to distinguish the heads of the two swimmers was fruitless, for
+a thin haze, the smoke from the ship's funnel, spread far in her wake,
+completely obliterating the spot where Ross Trefusis and Vernon Haye
+were swimming for dear life.
+
+
+It will be necessary to set back the hands of the clock in order to
+follow the fortunes of Ross and his chum.
+
+"Is she slowing down?" whispered Vernon anxiously, as they stood on the
+deck of U75 awaiting the approach of the _Tremendous_.
+
+"I don't think so," replied Ross.  "But now's our time."
+
+The attention of Schwalbe and his crew was centred upon the battleship;
+the Kapitan momentarily expecting to see the huge vessel reel under the
+impact of the terrible torpedo, while the men began to entertain grave
+doubts as to whether the British ship would accept their token of
+surrender.  The fact that the super-Dreadnought showed no signs of
+slowing down revived Kapitan Schwalbe's doubts.  Knowing the difficulty
+of hitting, even at a comparatively short range, a swiftly moving
+target, he began to wonder whether he did the right thing in falling in
+with von Hoffner's diabolical plan.
+
+His hurried thoughts were suddenly interrupted by some light object
+enveloping his head and shoulders.  Before he could tear the fabric
+away he heard two distinct splashes, followed by shouts of astonishment
+from the crew; for with one clean sweep with his knife Ross had severed
+the halliards of the ensign staff.
+
+The lads dived deep, swimming the while with long, powerful strokes,
+for both were accomplished in the art of natation.  They were longer in
+coming to the surface than they anticipated, owing to the weight of
+their half-boots, which they had been unable to remove without risk of
+causing suspicion.
+
+When at length their heads emerged almost simultaneously, they found
+themselves nearly fifteen yards from the doomed U75.
+
+"Strike out!" spluttered Ross.  "Get as far away from her as you can.
+Never mind about old Schwalbe.  He can't hurt us."
+
+Ross was right, for however much the Kapitan wanted to wreak his
+vengeance upon his former prisoners, he was unable to do so.  In his
+role as that of an officer waiting to surrender, the possession of a
+revolver would tend to "give the show away".  He had left his pistol in
+his cabin--an example that his Unter-leutnant had followed.  And now
+his attention was directed upon the British battleship.
+
+Meanwhile, the lads, swimming strongly, saw the _Tremendous_ heel as
+she ported helm.  For a minute, not knowing how a ship behaves when the
+helm is suddenly put hard over, they thought that the treacherous
+unterseeboot had successfully carried out her cold-blooded plan.  Yet
+no explosion occurred, and the battleship recovered her normal trim.
+
+With their eyes only a few inches above the surface, the lads could see
+nothing of the track of the torpedoes.  They had no indication that
+they had been fired until the _Tremendous_ let fly with her 12-pounders.
+
+"I think we've saved her," said Vernon.  "Now there'll be trouble for
+us.  Schwalbe will certainly have a shot at recapturing us after the
+battleship has cleared off.  Why doesn't she settle U75, I wonder?"
+
+The lads both expressed astonishment that the motionless unterseeboot
+had escaped the attention of the super-Dreadnought's quick-firers.  It
+seemed as if the latter were ignoring U75 altogether and was sheering
+off at full speed.
+
+Suddenly Ross gave a whoop of delight, which ended in his swallowing a
+mouthful of salt water.  The _Tremendous_ was turning once more, and
+heading straight for the doomed submarine.
+
+[Illustration: "THE _TREMENDOUS_ WAS HEADING STRAIGHT FOR THE DOOMED
+SUBMARINE"]
+
+Mentally Ross compared the on-coming battleship with an express train,
+as shown on a cinematograph screen, in the act of approaching the
+audience.  At one moment the ship was visible from her water-line to
+the truck of her top-mast; at the next her bulk had suddenly expanded
+and seemed to fill the complete field of vision.  It looked as if the
+two lads, in spite of the distance they had put between themselves and
+the motionless submarine, would yet be in the way of the vengeful
+battleship, whose extreme beam was not less than ninety feet.
+
+Yet neither of the two chums made the slightest effort to swim farther
+away.  Mechanically treading water, they waited and watched.
+
+They could see the terror-stricken attitudes of the crew of the doomed
+U75.  They heard the shouts of consternation as the massive steel bows
+bore down upon her.  Then, in a second it seemed, there was a hideous
+crash that outvoiced the yells and shouts of despair as the
+unterseeboot was rent in twain.
+
+Of what happened during the next minute the lads had but a very hazy
+idea.  Caught by the irresistible bow wave as the _Tremendous_ tore
+past, they were hurled aside like feathers and buried a couple of
+fathoms down under the breaking, foaming mass of water.  Vaguely they
+heard the whirring of the four propellers--very near, it seemed; then,
+caught by an eddy caused by the cavitation in the wake of the monstrous
+vessel, they were separated and flung to the surface, half-breathless
+and dazed.
+
+Ross opened his eyes.  The _Tremendous_ had already covered nearly a
+quarter of a mile.  Twenty yards away he saw his chum's head, as
+Vernon, puffing like a grampus, was striking out towards him.
+
+Where the submarine had dived for the last time was an ever-widening
+circle of oil.  Those of the German crew who had not been carried down
+by the sinking unterseeboot were too shaken by the concussion to make
+any great effort to save their lives.  Attempting to keep afloat in
+that oil-covered water added to their difficulties, for whenever the
+head of a swimmer disappeared he did not rise again.
+
+"Kick off your boots, old man," exclaimed Ross.
+
+"Where are the lifebuoys?" asked Vernon as he carried out his friend's
+advice.
+
+One buoy had disappeared; the other was supporting a seaman, the only
+survivor of the crew.
+
+"A case of finding's are keeping's," announced Ross.  "We can't sling
+him out of it.  It might support two people.  We could take turns at
+hanging on."
+
+"Stop!" exclaimed Vernon as Ross began to strike out towards the buoy.
+"There'll be trouble if we get mixed up in that oil.  It's much lighter
+than water.  I doubt whether we could swim in it.  Do you think the
+_Tremendous_ will put back?"
+
+"Not likely," replied Trefusis.
+
+He looked in the direction of the fast-vanishing battleship, half
+hoping that she would slow down and lower a boat.  As he did so,
+something caught his eye: a cloud of grey smoke apparently issuing from
+the sea.
+
+"What's that?" he asked, pointing in that direction.
+
+"Torpedo, perhaps; one that has finished her run," suggested Vernon;
+but his chum waved aside the explanation.
+
+"If U77 did fire a torpedo, you can bet your bottom dollar it wasn't
+one with a dummy head!" he said.  "Only practice torpedoes send up a
+calcium light when their compressed air has given out.  By Jove, I
+believe it's one of those patent buoys!  Let's make for it."
+
+The lads swam strongly, making powerful and comparatively slow
+breast-strokes.  The water was warm.  They were in no immediate danger
+of cramp.
+
+As they skirted the patch of oil they noticed that the seaman holding
+on to the buoy had turned round.  His face was now in their direction.
+The man was Hans Koppe.
+
+"Are you all right, Hans?" shouted Ross.
+
+"Yes, mein herr," replied the man.  "I've found a buoy."
+
+"Thanks to us," thought Trefusis; then raising his voice: "You had
+better kick out and get clear of the oil," he advised.  "We are making
+for yonder buoy."
+
+By the time the swimmers reached the Kisbie the emission of calcium
+smoke had ceased.  They found that not only did the buoy support them
+both, but that it was so constructed as to allow them to maintain a
+sitting position without having to hold on with both hands.  Glad of a
+seat they waited, watching the approach of Hans Koppe, and also looking
+for the undesired reappearance of U77.
+
+"Ach!  My wife and children!" exclaimed Hans Koppe disconsolately, as
+he brought his lifebuoy close alongside.  "I shall never see them
+again."
+
+"Cheer up, Hans!" replied Vernon.  "At any moment U77 might come to the
+surface and take you on board.  We don't mind, so long as they let us
+alone.  We've had enough of your unterseebooten."
+
+"U77?" gasped the German incredulously.  "How do you know that?"
+
+Briefly Haye related the story of the ill-fated Kapitan Schwalbe's
+treachery.  As he proceeded Han's face bore a surprised expression that
+presently changed to one of fear.
+
+"If we are picked up by an English ship," he remarked, "they will shoot
+me for abuse of the white flag.  And I am innocent.  Ach! my poor wife."
+
+"They won't," replied Ross reassuringly.  "We can swear that you knew
+nothing about it."
+
+The minutes passed slowly.  There was no sign of U77.  Little did the
+three survivors know that she lay within a quarter of a mile of her
+consort, on the bed of the English Channel--to add to the
+ever-increasing roll of unterseebooten that were fated never to enter a
+German port again.
+
+The sun rose higher and higher, its rays gathering strength as it did
+so.  The heads of the three survivors were exposed to the solar heat;
+their bodies and limbs were numbed by prolonged immersion.  The desire
+for conversation had long since passed.  Almost exhausted they hung to
+their supports, listless and torpid.  A few sea-gulls, struck with the
+silence of the three men, hovered overhead, and swooped with shrill
+cries to settle on the water within close distance of what appeared to
+be a possible meal.  One bolder than the rest perched upon Trefusis'
+head.
+
+Raising his arm, Ross dealt the bird a furious blow.  It missed, but
+had the effect of scattering the gulls.  Apathetically the lad watched
+them as they flew off.  As he did so he caught sight of three vessels
+being driven at high speed.
+
+"Hurrah!" he exclaimed feebly.  "The destroyers, old man; we are saved!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII
+
+The Arm of the Law
+
+"Hulloa!  What the deuce have we got here?" enquired Commander Devereux
+of H.M. torpedo-boat destroyer _Yealm_, as three dripping figures were
+transferred from the destroyer's dinghy to the deck.  "One strafed Hun,
+right enough; but who are these fellows in mufti?"
+
+"Can't say, sir," replied the coxswain.  "They sort o' collapsed
+directly we got 'em into the boat."
+
+"Then take them below," continued Devereux.  "I say, Fanshawe, there's
+a job for you at last, my festive sawbones."
+
+Fanshawe, lately a young country practitioner with a scattered "panel"
+connection, had but recently entered the Navy as a surgical probationer
+R.N.V.R.  He joined purely through patriotic motives, having sacrificed
+a fairly substantial income in order to do so.  Up to the present his
+work had been almost a sinecure.  The _Yealm_ had not had the faintest
+chance of taking part in an engagement.  Her crew--to use Fanshawe's
+own words--were "that beastly healthy, don't you know", that, out of
+sheer anxiety to do something, he was learning navigation from the
+Sub-lieutenant.
+
+The medico undertook his first important professional task on board the
+_Yealm_ with great alacrity, and it was not long before Ross and Vernon
+were in a fit state to be questioned.  Hans Koppe was in a bad plight.
+So utterly shaken were his nerves that he seemed on the point of
+collapse.
+
+"So you are the son of Admiral Trefusis," said the
+Lieutenant-Commander.  "I can't say that I know him personally,
+although I know of him.  But how did you get on board the submarine?"
+
+Ross explained.  He felt hurt at having to do so.  The
+Lieutenant-Commander's ignorance of the disappearance of the two chums
+from St. Mena's Island "took all the wind out of his sails".  In
+pre-War days the principal papers would have devoted at least half a
+column to the supposed deaths by drowning, off the Cornish coast, of
+two well-connected youths.  Nowadays editors had neither space nor
+inclination to devote to such a comparatively trivial matter.
+Consequently Devereux could be exonerated of all lack of knowledge of
+the supposed accident.  Yet his interest grew as Ross proceeded with
+his narrative.
+
+"Look here," he remarked.  "We've got to dodge around for a few hours
+in case your pal U77 does put in an appearance.  But I'll wireless the
+Admiral and ask for a telegram to be sent to your homes, to let your
+people know you are still alive and kicking."
+
+"Better not, sir," objected Ross.
+
+Devereux looked curiously at the lad.
+
+"And why not?" he asked.
+
+"Well, you see," explained Trefusis, "a telegram is not such a
+confidential matter as one would like it to be, especially in a remote
+country district."
+
+"It's good news though," remarked the Lieutenant-Commander.
+
+"Yes," admitted Ross; "but it is absolutely necessary to keep it dark
+for a while.  A few hours won't make very much difference one way or
+the other to my people, but it would make a thumping lot to our friend
+Dr. Ramblethorne, otherwise von Hauptwald.  If he were to hear that we
+were alive, he'd do a bunk.  The same with that other spy, von Ruhle.
+They must be arrested promptly, and within a few hours of each other,
+in case one of them scents trouble and clears out."
+
+"I see your point," admitted Devereux.  "I won't send a wireless at
+present.  You must be feeling peckish.  I'll get my steward to bring
+you in some grub.  Excuse me, I must be off again.  We've a lot to
+attend to, you know."
+
+The Lieutenant-Commander went on deck to conduct operations.  He was
+temporarily senior officer, and it fell to him to issue orders to his
+two consorts relating to the investigation of the scene of the
+battleship's exploit.
+
+For two hours the three destroyers cruised over the spot where the two
+submarines were supposed to have sunk.  At length wreckage was found by
+means of grapnels.  It was, of course, much too deep to send a diver
+down to report; but the spot was buoyed, and served as a base while
+sweeping operations were proceeded with in the hope of locating the
+hull of the second unterseeboot.  In a very short space of time two
+operations undertaken for the purpose of destroying the sunken
+submarine were highly satisfactorily carried out.  The first resulted
+in the release of a small quantity of buoyant wreckage, amongst which
+was the flagstaff of U75.  The second brought to the surface a quantity
+of oil, showing that a submarine had been sunk there, but the injuries
+she previously received had not been sufficient to liberate the
+contents of the heavy oil-tanks.  The explosive charge had completed
+the destruction of U77.
+
+Just before five in the afternoon, the _Yealm_ and her consorts passed
+the eastern arm of the breakwater in Plymouth Sound and brought up in
+the Hamoaze.  Ross and Vernon, arrayed in borrowed clothes and
+accompanied by Lieutenant-Commander Devereux, lost no time in going
+ashore and proceeding to the offices of the Commander-in-Chief.
+
+"You are acting with remarkable discretion," observed the Admiral, when
+Ross reiterated his desire not to communicate with his home until the
+spies were safely under lock and key.  "Fortunately there ought to be
+no undue delay, as we have two expert Scotland Yard men investigating a
+case in the Dockyard.  I'll telephone to the Superintendent of Police,
+and get him to send the officers here at once."
+
+Within ten minutes the officers were ushered into the
+Commander-in-Chief's presence.  Ross and Vernon looked at them with
+considerable curiosity.  It had not before fallen to their lot to come
+into contact with two real representatives of the famous Scotland Yard.
+Yet there was little about the appearance to occasion comment.  They
+were not in any way disguised.  The taller of the two, who was
+introduced as Detective-Inspector Ferret, was about forty years of age.
+His closely cut hair was dark-brown, with a plentiful sprinkling of
+grey hairs.  He wore a beard trimmed naval or "torpedo" fashion, with a
+moustache.  He was dressed in a grey lounge suit, with dark-brown boots
+and a golfing cap.  There was nothing of a piercing nature about his
+eyes, which were of a deep-grey tint.  He seemed to be perpetually
+beaming; the lines on his face gave one that impression.
+
+His companion, Detective Hawke, was a short, thick-set man of about
+thirty-five.  He was clean-shaven.  His features were ruddy and heavy.
+There was a bulldog look about his jaw that proclaimed him to be a
+tough customer.  His rough, brown, Harris-tweed suit and bowler hat
+gave him the appearance of a prosperous yeoman rather than a successful
+tracker of criminals.
+
+"Now, young gentlemen," began Mr. Hawke briskly, after the
+introductions had been made, "we'll get to business.  With your
+permission, sir" (addressing the Admiral), "I will ask Mr. Trefusis to
+give me his version of the affair.  To save time, I feel certain that
+Mr. Haye will have no objection to going with my colleague and telling
+him his story.  That, I must explain, is the best way to eliminate any
+discrepancies.  We prefer to make a fair start, and then all ought to
+go well."
+
+During the next hour Detective-inspector Hawke was very busy.  He made
+no written notes.  He relied solely upon his marvellous retentive
+memory, and it was not long before he was in full possession of the
+facts of the case.
+
+His next step was to telephone to St. Bedal.  From the police there, he
+learnt that Dr. Ramblethorne was medical officer to the 4th battalion
+of a west-country regiment, but that he was temporarily detailed to act
+on the recruiting staff at Wellington.
+
+Hawke thereupon telegraphed to Harwich.  The Customs officers there
+informed him that the Harwich-Flushing boat service had been suspended
+for nearly a week, owing to the discovery of a hostile mine-field off
+the Dutch coast.  Sailings were to be resumed that night.  A man who
+gave himself out to be a Dutchman, but who answered to the description
+of von Ruhle, had applied that morning for a permit to leave the
+country by the night boat.  His berth had been booked under the name of
+Cornelius Vanderhuit.
+
+"Which one ought we to nab first?" asked Ferret.  "We'll have to be
+very sharp, or one of them, finding that he is no longer in
+communication with his accomplice, would smell a rat and clear out."
+
+"Under normal conditions I would reply, 'Collar the principal first',"
+replied Hawke.  "It is evident that Ramblethorne, _alias_ von
+Hauptwald, is the master-spy.  Directly he's laid by the heels, the
+whole of the organization immediately under his control goes by the
+board.  But there's this Harwich business.  Von Ruhle crosses the North
+Sea to-night, unless otherwise prevented.  We comprise the otherwise, I
+hope."
+
+"Then it would mean catching the midday express to Waterloo," remarked
+Ferret.
+
+"Could we go with you?" asked Ross.
+
+The police officers looked rather astonished at the cool request.  Like
+most professional men, they scouted the idea of amateur assistance when
+the main issue was at stake.
+
+"Perhaps it wouldn't be a bad idea," remarked Hawke.  "You have already
+shown great discretion in the matter.  Most fellows would have made a
+bee-line to the nearest telegraph office and given the whole show away.
+The only difficulty is--I suppose, by the way, you are not feeling too
+done up after your trying experiences?--the only difficulty is, I was
+remarking, that von Ruhle might spot you.  Look here, Ferret; suppose
+you take these young gentlemen, and proceed to Harwich by an ordinary
+train?  Keep well out of sight when you arrive at Parkeston Quay, but
+keep a sharp eye on the boat.  I'll travel from Liverpool Street by the
+boat train, and see if I can pick out our quarry amongst the
+passengers."
+
+It was a tedious journey from Plymouth to Harwich.  Arriving at
+Waterloo, Ferret took the lads to a quiet hotel and ordered lunch;
+while Hawke, excusing himself, called in at "the Yard" to report his
+new case to the Chief, and to wait for the Great Eastern boat train.
+
+The weather had changed completely during the run from the West, for
+when Ferret and the two lads arrived at Parkeston Quay it was raining
+heavily, accompanied by half a gale of wind from the east'ard.
+
+"We've a long wait," commented Ferret.  "Fortunately I know several of
+the Customs officials very well.  I'll get them to let you take shelter
+in their shed.  It's almost opposite the berth where the steamer
+generally makes fast.  You'll be able to watch everyone who goes up the
+gangway.  I'll go on board and speak to the steward.  I don't suppose
+we'll spot friend von Ruhle until the boat train arrives, and by that
+time perhaps Hawke will have marked his man."
+
+Undoubtedly, the wisest course would have been to send other officers
+to Wellington to arrest Dr. Ramblethorne; but Hawke was out for
+"kudos".  Only a short while ago he had let a wanted man slip through
+his fingers, and had been rapped over the knuckles for it.  With the
+professional assistance of Ferret, he hoped to carry out a double
+_coup_ and arrest both German Secret Service agents, thereby recovering
+his lost prestige.
+
+Arriving at Liverpool Street he took his ticket, and spent the time
+until the departure of the boat train in walking up and down the
+platform.  He had the knack of observing without being observed.  He
+would look at a man in quite a casual way; there was no gleam of
+intelligence in his eyes as he did so, but little escaped his notice.
+An hour or two later he could accurately describe his appearance,
+dress, and mannerisms.
+
+A minute before the train started, a man answering von Ruhle's
+description hurried down the platform.  He carried a new cane under his
+left arm.  In his right hand he held an attache case with the initials
+C. V.
+
+Hawke waited until he had entered a carriage, then strolled to the
+other end of the corridor coaches and took his seat.  He knew that the
+run was supposed to be a non-stop one.
+
+The train started.  The detective took his time.  He waited for nearly
+twenty minutes before he made his way along the corridor, and entered
+the smoking-compartment occupied by the suspect.
+
+Presently Hawke made a commonplace remark.  The stranger replied
+stiffly and in rather a deep voice, with a slight foreign accent.
+
+"An assumed voice," soliloquized the detective; but undaunted by the
+chilliness of his reception he again made some remark about the weather.
+
+Before the train ran through Witham station, conversation was
+proceeding briskly.  Hawke assumed the role of a commercial traveller,
+and volunteered the information that his brother had just returned from
+the Front.
+
+The stranger showed no hesitation in discussing the war.  Emboldened,
+the detective tackled the subject of East Coast defences and the futile
+German blockade.
+
+"He's giving me absolutely false information," he thought.  "Perhaps
+he's trying to throw me off the scent.  I'll put a few questions that
+no one but an ignoramus would ask in good faith.  If he's trying to
+bluff me, I'll beat him at that game."
+
+Presently his fellow-passenger excused himself and, without removing
+his luggage, went into the corridor.  As soon as he was out of sight
+Hawke took hold of the cane that the stranger had left in the rack.
+With a grunt of satisfaction he found that it was certainly not a
+Malacca, but made of metal.
+
+The train began to slow down.  Lifting the blind, Hawke looked out of
+the window.  He could just discern a fairly big town, completely in
+darkness.
+
+"Manningtree Junction," said Hawke to himself.  "Something on the line,
+I suppose.  H'm, we're stopping."
+
+With a jerk the train pulled up at the station.  The platform was
+almost deserted, for no train was due at that time to stop there.  A
+door slammed.  Again the detective pulled aside the blind.  He was just
+in time to see his fellow-traveller, accompanied by the guard,
+disappear into the station waiting-room.
+
+"He's tumbled to it!" exclaimed Hawke.  "He's making off.  He's tipped
+the guard to set him down.  I'm after him!"
+
+He made his way swiftly and stealthily down the platform, and with a
+quick movement threw open the waiting-room door.
+
+The sudden transition from the semi-darkness of the platform to the
+brilliantly lighted interior of the room temporarily dazzled his eyes.
+Dimly he was aware that the place was occupied by khaki-clad soldiers
+struggling into their equipment, and that in their midst was the guard
+and the man of whom he was in search.
+
+"At any rate there is plenty of assistance," thought Hawke as he
+advanced to tap the suspect on the shoulder; but before he could attain
+his object a deep, stern voice exclaimed:
+
+"Arrest him, men!"
+
+The next instant Detective-inspector Hawke was seized by half a dozen
+muscular hands.
+
+"What's this tomfoolery?" he demanded angrily.  "I'm a Scotland Yard
+officer, and----"
+
+A roar of laughter burst from the Tommies.  Even the subaltern in
+command smiled broadly.
+
+The stranger spoke again.
+
+"Take him to the guard-room.  He is arrested under the Defence of the
+Realm Act for attempting to elicit information prejudicial to the
+welfare of the State.  I won't detain the train any longer, guard,
+although I'll ask you to drop my gear on the platform."
+
+Still protesting vehemently but ineffectually, the detective was
+unceremoniously hustled into an ante-room, used since the outbreak of
+the war as a guard-room for the military in charge of the line.  The
+door was locked upon him.  He heard the train rumble out of the station.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV
+
+A Fruitless Quest
+
+From their places of concealment Ross and Vernon watched the boat train
+run alongside the steamer.  At last the weary vigil was a thing of the
+past.  All fatigue was forgotten at the prospect of witnessing the
+capture of one of the active members of the German spy system at work
+in this country.
+
+For a quarter of an hour everything was in a state of bustle.  There
+was a continuous stream of passengers and porters, the latter bending
+under the weight of trunks and boxes as they hurried up the steeply
+sloping gangway.
+
+At length the throng thinned.  As yet there was no sign either of von
+Ruhle or of Detective-inspector Hawke.
+
+A man with his coat collar turned up ran through the driving rain and
+entered the shed.  It was Ferret.
+
+"Something's gone wrong," he declared.  "I've just had a telephone
+message from my colleague.  I'm off to the post-office.  If you want me
+during the next ten minutes you'll find me there."
+
+Hawke had at length managed to get a word with his former
+fellow-traveller, who happened to be a staff-officer of the Eastern
+command.  The detective had been under a misapprehension.  The officer
+had good reason for ordering his arrest; but the comedy threatened to
+take a serious development.  Even when the detective showed his
+credentials the officer was not satisfied.  He proposed telegraphing to
+Scotland Yard, but Hawke, mindful of a former failure, induced him not
+to do so.  The detective, who had occasion to contrast unfavourably the
+summary powers of arrest under the Defence of the Realm Act with those
+allowed by the Civil Power, was eventually allowed to communicate with
+his brother officer at Parkeston Quay.  And then the military
+authorities required a considerable amount of convincing.  It looked as
+if Detective-inspector Hawke would have to remain under arrest until
+next morning.
+
+While Ferret was losing time and patience in his efforts to release his
+confrere, Ross and Vernon noticed a man hurrying along the quay.  He
+was short and thick-set.  He wore a long mackintosh, the collar of
+which was turned up and helped, with the peak of his cap, to hide his
+features.
+
+Suddenly the man's foot tripped over a ring-bolt.  He cursed under his
+breath, but sufficiently loudly for the lads to overhear.
+
+Ross gripped his companion's arm.  The fellow was swearing in German.
+
+"Von Ruhle!" he whispered.  He made a movement as if to issue from his
+place of concealment, but Haye restrained him.
+
+"Hold on!" he cautioned in a low voice.
+
+The man paused on the gangway.  A partly shaded electric light threw a
+glare upon his face.  He wore a heavy beard and moustache.
+
+"You're wrong," whispered Vernon.
+
+"He's a German, anyhow," persisted Trefusis.
+
+The man still hesitated.  Then he hailed a seaman.
+
+"Where is the post office?" he asked.  "I wish to telegraph.  Is there
+time before the boat sails?"
+
+Receiving an affirmative reply the man hurried off.
+
+"Come on!" exclaimed Ross.
+
+Neither of the lads had now any doubts as to the man's identity.  The
+beard and moustache were false, but the voice was the same--von Ruhle's.
+
+Keeping close to the wall of the line of sheds, the lads followed the
+spy at a distance of about fifty feet.  More than once von Ruhle
+glanced furtively over his shoulder, as if suspecting that he was being
+tracked.
+
+Presently a man, reeling along the quay, approached.  The spy made no
+effort to avoid him.  As the inebriated one rolled past he whispered a
+few words.  The effect was instantaneous.  Instead of continuing his
+way towards the post office, von Ruhle turned and made off abruptly in
+the direction of the gate of the Company's premises.
+
+"An accomplice," whispered Vernon.  "He's been warned."
+
+They had to wait until the man who had feigned drunkenness had
+disappeared.  By this time the German had gained a considerable
+distance.  To get the assistance of the detective was out of the
+question.
+
+"Come on!" exclaimed Ross, breaking into a run.
+
+Concealment was no longer necessary.  Should occasion arise, there
+would be plenty of help forthcoming, for there were several dock
+policemen and soldiers on duty close at hand.
+
+Von Ruhle had increased his pace into a brisk walk when he heard the
+noise of his pursuers.  Then he, too, began to run.
+
+"Stop him!" shouted Trefusis, calling to a group of uniformed men
+standing in front of an abattoir.
+
+Turning, the German made towards the quay-side.  He was no match in
+speed for his youthful pursuers; but he gained the water's edge before
+Ross headed him off.
+
+"Give in, von Ruhle!" he challenged.
+
+The spy recognized the voice of the British lad whom he imagined to be
+miles away, on board an unterseeboot.
+
+With a quick movement, the spy plucked a leather case from his coat
+pocket and hurled it over the edge of the quay, then, throwing up his
+arms, he dropped lifeless upon the rain-sodden ground.
+
+Rapidly a crowd collected.  Amongst them was Detective-inspector
+Ferret, who, having finished his conversation with his luckless
+confrere, was leaving the post office when he heard the commotion.
+
+"Well, what's all this?" he asked brusquely.  He bent over the body of
+the spy and flashed a pocket-lamp upon his face.  "It's our man," he
+continued, addressing the lads in an undertone.  This remark was
+needless, since they were already certain upon that point.  "He's done
+us out of a job.  Heart disease?  No fear: it's poison.  Don't wait
+here.  Your work in this direction is done.  I have still a few
+unpleasant tasks to perform.  Cut off to the hotel and await me there.
+I may be an hour."
+
+"One moment," protested Vernon.  "We saw von Ruhle heave something over
+the quay.  It might float; if so, there might be a chance to pick it up
+by means of a boat.  The tide is almost slack.  If it has sunk it will
+be a diver's task to recover it."
+
+"'Something' is always unsatisfactory," remarked Ferret reprovingly.
+"Was it large, small, heavy, or light?"
+
+"He was so jolly quick that I could hardly see it," replied Haye.  "I
+should think it was about the size of a cigar-case."
+
+Directing two policemen to remove and take charge of the body, the
+Detective-inspector accompanied the lads to the edge of the quay.  It
+was dead low water.  There was hardly sufficient current coming down
+the Stour to swing the anchored craft against the wind.  Then the
+investigators made a discovery.  Although there was a good depth of
+water at the greater extent of the quay, at this spot the mud was
+uncovered at the base of the wall, while almost at their feet was a
+flight of stone steps.
+
+Ferret descended cautiously and switched on the light of the torch.
+Almost within arm's length, and partly buried in the slime, was the
+object which the spy had thrown away.
+
+As the detective hooked at it with his stick a hoarse voice shouted:
+
+"Ahoy there!  What are you doing with that light?"
+
+Apparently from nowhere a boat ploughed through the mud until its bows
+were within a couple of feet of the steps.  The next instant Ferret and
+his companions were covered by a revolver.
+
+It was a naval guard-boat, the watchful eye of the officer in charge
+having discovered what he took to be surreptitious signalling.
+Explanations followed, and were accepted.  Ferret, holding the
+recovered prize, ascended the steps, followed by Ross and Vernon, while
+the boat backed noiselessly away.  It was but one more example of the
+ceaseless vigilance of the great, silent Navy.
+
+Almost dead-beat, Trefusis and his chum made their way to the hotel,
+had supper, and went straight to bed.  Ferret, they decided, could wait
+until morning.
+
+At 6 a.m. Hawke, having secured his release, arrived at Parkeston,
+having engaged a motor-car to bring him from Manningtree.  Already his
+vindictiveness towards the military had vanished.  He had taken a
+sensible view of the situation.  He had played and lost, and the staff
+officer was justified in the circumstances.  As for the soldiers, they
+had to obey orders.
+
+Nevertheless he was chagrined when he heard his confrere's report.  It
+was galling to think that their spy had outwitted him by taking his own
+life.  The whole energies of the two detectives must, for the present,
+be concentrated upon the capture of the master-spy, Von Hauptwald,
+otherwise Dr. Ramblethorne.
+
+Ross and Vernon met Hawke again at breakfast.  He was now quite
+cheerful.
+
+"You managed to get hold of von Ruhle so well," he remarked, "that I
+think you really ought to bear a hand with friend Ramblethorne,--that
+is, unless you've had enough of man-hunting?"
+
+"We'll do our best," said Ross.  "It's our duty."
+
+"When do you start?" asked Vernon.
+
+"Almost at once," he declared.  "Ramblethorne might be alarmed if no
+telegram arrives from his fellow-spy.  Again, the man who communicated
+with von Ruhle on the quay last night might have given Ramblethorne
+warning.  It's not at all surprising to me, since what you told us, Mr.
+Trefusis, that there has been an alarming outbreak of enteric at St.
+Bedal camp."
+
+He turned over several pages of a complex timetable.
+
+"Here we are," he announced.  "We must get to Paddington in time to
+catch the 10.20 for Wellington.  One thing, young gentlemen, you'll be
+nearly home.  Ferret has arranged about the inquest on von Ruhle.  Your
+evidence will be taken down in writing, and in that case you won't have
+to put in an appearance at that grim farce."
+
+Hawke spoke feelingly and from experience.  In his opinion, based upon
+circumstantial evidence, "crowner's quests" were a form of legal
+absurdity.
+
+The train journey to Liverpool Street was undertaken almost in silence,
+as far as the four travellers were concerned.  Hawke buried himself in
+his paper; Ferret was poring over some document found in von Ruhle's
+pocket-book, trying to unravel the complex code that, if deciphered,
+would be of the utmost importance to the country.  Ross and Vernon,
+still feeling tired, tried to make up for arrears of sleep.
+
+Taking a taxi across London, they were just in time to catch the Great
+Western express, which would take them to Taunton.  Arriving at that
+place, they changed into a slow train that eventually landed them at
+the little Somersetshire town nestling under the Black Down Hills.
+
+Without delay the party proceeded to the regimental depot.  Enquiries
+for Captain Ramblethorne, R.A.M.C., only resulted in looks of
+perplexity.  He was unknown to the authorities.
+
+"But we heard from St. Bedal that Captain Ramblethorne was ordered to
+Wellington for recruiting duties," persisted Hawke.
+
+The orderly-room clerk smiled sadly.
+
+"Are you quite sure that it was this Wellington?" he asked.  "We've had
+similar mistakes before."
+
+Detective-inspector Hawke felt like kicking himself.  He, too, was
+aware of the existence of the Shropshire Wellington, but, without
+giving the possibility any consideration, he had rashly jumped to the
+conclusion that the place to which Ramblethorne had been appointed was
+the one nearest to St. Bedal.
+
+Sorrowfully the four marched out of the office.  More delay ensued
+while a wire was dispatched to St. Bedal, asking for further details.
+
+It took two hours before the reply came.  "Regret not to have added
+Salop to Captain Ramblethorne's address.--C.O."
+
+"It's a long lane that has no turning," observed Ferret as they made
+for the railway station.
+
+Hawke bit his lip.  He knew that had the spy been warned promptly he
+might be out of the country by this time.
+
+It was dark when, after a tedious journey, the four travellers alighted
+at Wellington, Salop.  Here, guarded enquiries elicited the information
+that Captain Ramblethorne had gone to Bridgnorth to examine men "roped
+in" at a recruiting meeting.  He had left for Bridgnorth two hours
+previously.
+
+"There are no trains to-night," announced Hawke.  "We'll have to get a
+car."
+
+Ten minutes later, Ross and his companions were speeding over the
+horribly rough and hilly road between Wellington and Bridgnorth.  Past
+ironworks and coal-fields, over or under a network of railway lines,
+the car tore; then, leaving the mining district behind, it entered the
+picturesque valley of the Severn, where the road skirts a range of
+towering limestone crags.
+
+In spite of their fatigue, the lads could not restrain an exclamation
+of surprise and delight as the town of Bridgnorth, bathed in moonlight,
+appeared in sight--a cluster of houses perched upon a bold rock, and
+dominated by the scanty ruins of the old castle.  At the foot of the
+cliff the Severn meandered placidly.  In the midst of the greatest war
+the world has ever known, Bridgnorth appeared to retain all the
+characteristics of complete peace.
+
+The recruiting office was closed for the night.  With unerring instinct
+the detective made for the principal hotel.  Here they found that
+Captain Ramblethorne had engaged a room, but the manager showed them a
+telegram that had just reached him.
+
+"Took wrong train cancel room arriving to-morrow morning Ramblethorne."
+
+"A blind," mentally ejaculated Ferret.  "He has been warned."
+
+The telegram had been dispatched from Shrewsbury.  Ferret was again at
+fault, for the mistake was a genuine one.  It so happened that the two
+trains left Wellington at precisely the same time, the one for
+Bridgnorth starting from a side platform.  Before he realized his
+mistake Ramblethorne found himself well on the way to Shrewsbury, for
+the train stopped at no intermediate station.
+
+"Shrewsbury, as hard as you can go!" ordered Hawke, addressing the
+chauffeur.
+
+At a pace averaging fifty miles an hour the powerful car bounded over
+the road.  Without mishap it gained the outskirts of the county town of
+Shropshire, when an involuntary halt occurred.
+
+It was on the English Bridge, a comparatively narrow structure crossing
+the Severn.  A belated drover was driving a herd of refractory cattle
+into the town when a motor-bicycle whizzed down the hill.
+
+The cattle stampeded.  With a jerk that almost threw Ferret and Vernon
+from the seat, the car brought up.  At the same time the motor-bicycle
+slowed down, and dexterously avoiding a huge bullock, glided past the
+stationary car.
+
+The moonbeams shone directly upon the rider's face as Ross thrust his
+head out of the window.  The motor-cyclist was Ramblethorne the spy.
+
+The recognition was mutual.  The spy, cool and collected, gave no sign
+of recognition.  The next moment he was travelling "all out" along the
+Much Wenlock road.
+
+"That's Ramblethorne!" exclaimed Ross excitedly.
+
+"Botheration take him!" ejaculated Ferret.  "Are we to get no rest
+to-night?"
+
+He opened the window in front of him.  Hawke was sitting with the
+chauffeur.  Quickly the detectives arrived at their decision.
+
+"After that chap!" exclaimed Hawke, addressing the chauffeur; "that
+motor-cyclist who has just passed.  Ten pounds if you overhaul and stop
+him."
+
+It was the bright moonlight that had tempted Ramblethorne to go for a
+midnight ride.  He was a keen out-of-door man.  He could handle almost
+any make of car or motor-cycle with the utmost skill.  Finding himself
+at Shrewsbury, he hired a motor-cycle from an agent, intending to have
+a run along the road following the banks of the Severn as far as
+Ironbridge.  It was his practice, whenever in a strange place, speedily
+to become conversant with the locality.  It was, in fact, part of his
+training as a spy.
+
+Ramblethorne was somewhat taken aback when he saw Ross's face in the
+moonlight, although he betrayed no sign of surprise.  In an instant he
+realized that, by some means, young Trefusis had escaped from U75;
+more, he was with a party of men evidently hard on his track.
+
+Quickly he made up his mind.  His career as a medical officer to the
+British Service was ended.  He could no longer hope to serve the German
+Government in that direction.  Before morning a hue and cry would be
+raised.
+
+As he swung along the broad, level road he thought out his plans.  He
+would ride as hard as he could until his supply of petrol gave out--a
+matter of about seventy or eighty miles.  Then he would abandon and
+hide the motor-cycle, and make his way on foot to the Essex coast.
+There, he had means to get on board a nominally British fishing-boat,
+which would run him over to a Dutch port.
+
+Although the motor-cycle was travelling at close on forty miles an
+hour, Ramblethorne glanced back over his shoulder.  He hardly expected
+to be pursued.  If the car had turned to attempt to overhaul him, it
+would almost to a certainty take the wider of the two fork roads--that
+leading to Wellington.
+
+Disagreeably surprised, the spy saw the two powerful head-lights of the
+car less than a mile behind him.
+
+The chauffeur of the pursuing vehicle had set his heart on winning the
+promised guerdon.  "All out" the car bounded along the road, leaving in
+its trail a dense cloud of dust that slowly dispersed in the moon-lit
+air.
+
+Hanging on desperately to the sides of the swaying car, Ferret and the
+two lads knelt upon the front seat of the coupe and peered through the
+dust-flecked glass at the solitary motor-cyclist in front.  They were
+gaining--rapidly at first, but now the gap between lessened almost
+imperceptibly.
+
+At that tremendous rate, the bursting of a tyre would result in
+complete disaster, yet not one thought did the pursuers give to the
+danger they were running.  Their sole attention was centred upon the
+spy.
+
+A sharp bend close to the village of Cressage enabled the car to get
+within fifty yards of the motor-cyclist.  Hawke drew a revolver from
+his pocket.  The chauffeur noticed the action out of the corner of his
+eye.  Purposely he toyed with the sensitive steering-wheel, causing the
+car to swerve erratically.
+
+"Put it up, sir!" he exclaimed, shouting in order to make himself heard
+above the roar of the wind over the screen.  "If you bring him down
+we'll smash up on top of him before we can pull up.  We'll have him on
+Harley Bank right enough."
+
+A sharp run down through the village of Harley brought the car within
+sight of a very steep hill, up which the road wound like a silver
+thread against the black slope.  This was Harley Bank, one of the
+steepest of many stiff Shropshire hills, its gradient averaging one in
+seven.
+
+Up mounted the motor-cycle.  Ramblethorne was attempting to take it on
+high gear.
+
+The chauffeur of the car took no risks.  He promptly dropped into
+second gear, with the result that the gap between them increased to
+nearly a hundred yards.  Then the motor-cycle began to falter.  Perhaps
+Ramblethorne was not thoroughly acquainted with the mechanism of the
+two-speed.  By the time he got the friction-clutch into action the car
+had more than regained the lost distance--and the fugitive had not yet
+reached the stiffest part of the hill.
+
+"Head him off--jam him up against that bank!" ordered Hawke.
+
+"What for, sir?" asked the chauffeur.  He had no objection to taking
+part in a midnight chase, but his sense of prudence told him that it
+was not advisable to deliberately smash up another vehicle.
+
+"He's a spy," replied Hawke.  "Don't hesitate.  I will take all risks."
+
+Fifteen seconds later the near front wheel of the car was abreast of
+Ramblethorne's back wheel.  Hawke leant sideways with the intention of
+gripping the motor-cyclist by the collar, since the relative speeds
+were practically the same.  At the same moment the car edged a little
+closer to the left-hand side of the road.
+
+Ramblethorne realized the danger.  A collision would with almost
+certainty result in his receiving a broken neck; capture meant
+ignominious death at the hands of a firing-party.  There was yet a
+third alternative--a dash for safety.
+
+He threw out the clutch and applied both brakes, at the same time
+bringing the motor-cycle on to the grassy bank.  He alighted on all
+fours, but almost immediately regained his feet.  The car was already
+twenty yards on ahead and still in gear.
+
+He grasped his cycle by the handle-bars and raised it from its
+recumbent position.  One look showed that the glancing impact had bent
+the front forks.  The machine was no longer rideable.  Without
+hesitation he sprang up the bank.  As he did so he heard the footfalls
+of his pursuers.
+
+"Be steady!" cautioned Ferret, as Ross and Vernon alighted from the
+car.  "He may be armed.  We're the people to take the brunt of it--not
+you."
+
+They were now within a few feet of the summit of the road, which at
+this spot ran through the hill by means of a cutting.  Close by were
+three excavations.  Someone had evidently attempted to commence
+quarrying there, but had abandoned the undertaking.  As far as the
+detective could conclude, these pits formed the only possible
+hiding-place in the vicinity.
+
+"Hist!" exclaimed Hawke, holding up one hand to enjoin silence.
+
+All was still.  No sound of stealthily retreating footsteps reached
+their ears.  Hawke knelt down and placed one ear to the ground.
+
+"Someone breathing pretty hard," he whispered.  "He can't be very far
+away; in one of these holes most likely.  Perhaps he's hurt himself."
+
+An investigation of the first possible hiding-place produced no result.
+At the second Ross heard a long-drawn sigh, emanating from a patch of
+bushes and tall grass.
+
+"Here you are!" he exclaimed.
+
+The place was in shadow, yet he could discern some dark object lying at
+full length in the midst of the grass.
+
+In a trice the two detectives threw themselves upon their prey.  For an
+instant the man struggled wildly.  Ross and his chum joined in the
+fray, each hanging on desperately to his plunging legs.  Ignominiously
+he was dragged from his place of concealment into the bright moonlight.
+
+Ferret was the first to give a gasp of astonishment.  Their victim was
+not Ramblethorne the spy, but a powerfully built tramp, who, finding
+himself released, began to expostulate with alarming vehemence.
+
+"Stop that!" exclaimed Hawke authoritatively.  "We are police officers.
+If you don't behave we'll take you in charge for sleeping out without
+visible means."
+
+The fellow, cowed into silence, slunk away.
+
+"Confound it!" ejaculated Ferret.  "We've let Ramblethorne slip away
+under our very noses.  He'll be clear by this time."
+
+"I'm afraid so," agreed Hawke ruefully; then turning to the chauffeur
+he told him to drive into the nearest village, which happened to be
+Much Wenlock.
+
+Here Ross and Vernon were able to secure a room at an inn, while the
+Scotland Yard men were busy at the little police station, getting a
+description of the spy issued through the countryside.
+
+Next morning the lads set out on their return journey to Killigwent
+Hall.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV
+
+The Admiral Works the Oracle
+
+"Look here, old man; what do you say about having a shot for the Naval
+Reserve?" asked Ross.  "In ordinary circs I would be prepared to go
+through Sandhurst, but this isn't ordinary circs.  Before we pass out,
+the war will be over perhaps."
+
+"I'd rather like to see something of the fun," agreed Vernon.
+
+"As if we hadn't already," added his chum.  "But I know what you mean.
+Instead of being cooped up in an unterseeboot and hunted by our
+fellows, we want to have a hand in rounding up the German submarines.
+I vote we write to our respective governors about it."
+
+This conversation occurred two days after the lads' return to
+Killigwent Hall.  They had been given up as lost, and their unexpected
+return had caused unbounded rejoicings.  Pressmen thronged the Hall to
+gather "exclusive" information of the manner of their seemingly
+miraculous rescue, but both Ross and Vernon were determined not to
+satisfy outside curiosity.  They even kept the story of how the white
+flag fluttered down from the signalling mast of U75 from their
+immediate friends.
+
+"It will take a long time for us to get a reply," objected Vernon.  "By
+the time the letters hang about at the G.P.O., before they are sent to
+the fleet, a week will elapse, and before we get a reply bang goes a
+whole fortnight.  Let's get hold of a Navy List and see what the
+qualifications are."
+
+A careful perusal of the regulations resulted in a setback.  Midshipmen
+in the R.N.R., they found, had to be between 16 and 18 years of age,
+and must either have passed through a course of instruction for two
+years on board an "approved" training ship, or else one year on board a
+first-class British merchant ship.
+
+"That's put the hat on it," declared Ross.
+
+"One minute," interposed Vernon.  "Why not write to Admiral Garboard?
+He's an old shipmate of my governor's, and I know he's a bit of a pot
+up at Whitehall, although he's on the Retired List."
+
+"He was with my pater in the old _Rhodaphlare_ on the China station,"
+added Ross.  "We'll try; the wheeze might work."
+
+Accordingly Vernon wrote to the Admiral, who lived about twenty miles
+from Killigwent Hall.  Promptly came Sir Peter Garboard's reply:
+
+
+"TRELANGKERRICK,"
+  CORNWALL.
+
+"DEAR VERNON,
+
+"In reply to your letter I am sorry that I cannot help you in the
+matter to which you refer, unless you and your friend can produce
+sufficient evidences of qualifications for the desired posts.
+
+"On principle I object to influence in any shape or form.  Entry into
+any branch of the Service should, like promotion, depend solely upon
+the aptitude and ability of a candidate.  This has been my standpoint
+throughout the whole of my career, and I see no reason why I should now
+depart from it.
+
+"If, however, you think you have strong reasons for pressing your
+claims, and you care to see me, we will go more fully into the matter.
+
+"Believe me,
+  "Yours faithfully,
+    "PETER GARBOARD."
+
+
+"Not so dusty," commented Ross.  "He does leave us a loophole, although
+I'm afraid we'll have to blow our own trumpets.  I vote we cycle over
+at once.  We'll catch him in just before lunch."
+
+"Better wait until after he's had his grub," said Vernon.  "That's
+always the time to get a man in a good humour."
+
+"We'll risk that," declared young Trefusis.  "Come on."
+
+It was a very hilly twenty miles run across the moors to
+Trelangkerrick.  Starting at ten in the morning it took the lads two
+hours and a quarter, in the face of a strong south-westerly breeze, to
+cover the distance.
+
+Half-way up the drive, they saw the Admiral and a companion emerging
+from a path leading from the kennels.
+
+"Hulloa!" exclaimed Sir Peter cordially, as he recognized Vernon Haye.
+"So you haven't marked time in coming to see me.  This is young
+Trefusis, I presume?  Glad to meet you.  Knew your father very well
+back in the 'eighties.  Hope to renew the acquaintance soon, you know.
+If it hadn't been for the war----"
+
+Admiral Garboard had taken Trelangkerrick only since the declaration of
+hostilities; consequently he had had no opportunity of meeting Admiral
+Trefusis, who, since July of the previous year, had been continuously
+"somewhere in the North Sea".
+
+"Cecil, my boy," he continued, addressing his companion, a tall,
+sunburnt man, in shooting garb although his clean-shaven features and
+slightly rolling gait proclaimed him to be a sailor.  "Let me introduce
+the sons of two of my old shipmates to you.  Ross Trefusis and Vernon
+Haye--my nephew, Cecil Bourne.  You'll stay to lunch, of course.
+Cecil's on three days' leave.  He's not satisfied with hunting German
+submarines, but must needs go after my rabbits."
+
+They walked towards the house, Ross and Bourne leading, and the Admiral
+and Vernon bringing up the rear.
+
+"We'll discuss this little matter after lunch, my boy," remarked the
+Admiral.
+
+The meal proceeded without a hitch, the Admiral in his breezy way
+relating anecdote after anecdote of the Service in the good old days.
+
+"By the by," he remarked, "what's this yarn I hear about your
+neighbour, Dr. Ramblethorne?  There's a report that a warrant has been
+issued for his arrest."
+
+"For espionage, I believe," replied Vernon.
+
+"Bless my soul!  Is that a fact?  One doesn't know whom to trust in
+these days.  No details, I suppose.  A decent fellow, too, from what I
+saw of him.  No, I don't think you've met him, Cecil, at least not
+here.  By the by, you might tell the boys about your little adventure
+up-Channel in the _Tremendous_."
+
+Ross and Vernon turned very red in the face, but as they sat with their
+backs to the window the change of colour passed unnoticed.
+
+"Oh, that submarine business!" remarked Lieutenant Bourne modestly.
+"Just an ordinary occurrence, don't you know, except for one thing.  I
+was officer of the watch at the time.  We spotted a strafed
+unterseeboot flying a white flag.  Have to be jolly careful, you see.
+Either give the thing a wide berth, and wireless the destroyers to take
+possession of the prize, or else cut the brute in two.  Anyhow,
+something funny did happen.  There were two fellows in mufti standing
+close to the skipper on the submarine's deck.  Goodness only knows why
+they did it, but I saw one of them----"
+
+"Cut the halliards and let the white flag down," interposed Vernon.
+
+There was dead silence in the room.  Only intense excitement was
+responsible for young Haye's lapse of manners.  The words had slipped
+from him almost unconsciously.  Ross barked his shin as a gentle
+reminder.
+
+"By Jove!  How did you know that?" demanded Bourne.  "Shouldn't have
+thought that the yarn had had time to travel very far.  Hope I haven't
+been boring you?"
+
+Vernon took his courage in his hands.
+
+"It was Ross who cut the halliards," he announced.  "We were both on
+board, and jumped overboard just in time, and got hold of a lifebuoy
+dropped from the _Tremendous_ as she passed."
+
+"By Jove!" ejaculated the Lieutenant.  "I am surprised.  I wondered
+whether you were picked up.  It was a jolly plucky action.  But how did
+you get on board the unterseeboot?"
+
+"Aye, out with it!" added the Admiral.  "I heard that you were missing,
+of course, and also of your return.  Truth to tell, I thought when I
+got your letter that the pair of you had been acting the goat, and had
+run away to sea and had thought better of it."
+
+"We didn't run, sir, we were carried," explained Ross.  "And Dr.
+Ramblethorne was responsible for it."
+
+Admiral Sir Peter Garboard was not satisfied until he had heard the
+complete story of his young friends' adventures.  When they had
+finished he turned to his nephew.
+
+"Young Haye and his chum came to see me on a private matter," he
+remarked, "but I don't think they will object to your hearing what we
+have to say."
+
+"Are you quite sure you won't?" asked Bourne, addressing the lads.
+
+"Both Trefusis and Haye are supposed to be going in for Sandhurst,"
+continued Sir Peter.  "Although, candidly speaking, I don't see why a
+naval man should want to put his son in the Army."
+
+"In my case it is only following a family precedent," said Ross.  "For
+generations back the eldest son has alternately been in the Navy and
+Army."
+
+"And in my case it is the force of circumstances," added Vernon.  "When
+I was of the age to be sent to Osborne I was a puny little chap.  The
+doctor wouldn't pass me."
+
+"You've altered a bit since then, I can see," remarked Bourne.  "You
+look as strong as a young horse now."
+
+"Yes, I've grown out of my early ailments, I think," said Vernon.
+
+"Pity the doctor hadn't passed you," said Sir Peter bluntly.  "Ten or
+eleven is too young an age for any medical man to express a final
+opinion upon.  I remember a fellow in the Service who was nearly blind
+on one eye and almost as deaf as a post.  He got through the
+medical--influence, I expect.  Anyway the Navy was none the worse for
+it.  You'll remember him by name, Cecil: he was my secretary on the
+China Station.  Funny thing about him was that he couldn't see to read
+red figures unless he looked through a green glass.  Do you know that
+when I received your letter I imagined that your temporary
+disappearance had something to do with your running away to sea?"
+reiterated the Admiral.  "The idea, I believe, comes to most boys
+almost as a matter of course; something like measles, in fact."
+
+"Well, now we've had a taste of submarine work, we feel that it is high
+time we had a hand at helping to collar the German unterseebooten,"
+explained Ross.
+
+"I think it could be arranged," remarked the Admiral.  "You haven't had
+actual experience, of course----"
+
+"Eh!" exclaimed Bourne.  "By Jove, Uncle, I should say they had!"
+
+"From a strictly professional standpoint, I ought to have said, only
+you didn't give me time," added Sir Peter.  "I'll write off to the
+Admiralty to-night and see if I can get you both into the R.N.R.  You
+are too young to receive commissions as Sub-lieutenants, but no doubt
+you can be taken on as midshipmen.  Stringent regulations go by the
+board in war-time.  Isn't that so, Cecil?"
+
+"They would probably be appointed to an armed liner for patrol duty,"
+observed Bourne.  "There are, I believe, no midshipmen on the trawlers
+and motor-boats in submarine-hunting."
+
+"We must take what we can get," said Vernon, "but we would rather----"
+
+"Yes, yes," interrupted the Admiral.  "I know.  You leave that to me."
+
+Accordingly Ross and Vernon "left it to" the genial Sir Peter, with the
+result that within a week they were specially appointed as temporary
+midshipmen to the motor-patrol ship _Capella_.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI
+
+H.M.S. "Capella"
+
+With the least possible delay the two chums joined the _Capella_ at
+Southampton.  She was one of an entirely new class of vessel, built for
+the express purpose of ridding the high seas of the presence of the
+modern pirates.  Looking at her as she lay in the Empress Dock, there
+was little about her to attract the eye.  A raised fo'c'sle and poop,
+and a low superstructure abaft the funnel, two stumpy masts and
+grey-coloured "wall" sides, gave her the appearance of a trawler.  It
+was only when one had an opportunity of seeing her in dry dock, where
+her graceful under-body, with its fine "entry" and clean run aft, was
+visible, that any idea of her speed could be arrived at.  Further
+details would be undesirable.  Sufficient to add, to quote a Yankee
+journalist who had been given an opportunity of paying a visit to the
+Grand Fleet and inspecting the component units of the greatest armada
+that the world has yet seen, the class to which she belonged were "some
+boats".  The exigencies of the hitherto unprecedented method of
+carrying out the naval side of the Great War had demanded the creation
+of large flotillas of small motor-driven hornets.  In the initial
+stages the want was temporarily supplied through the patriotism of
+owners of private motor-boats.  These craft, good in their way, were
+handicapped by a lack of uniformity.  Nevertheless they served as an
+excellent training-school until the Admiralty with remarkable celerity
+produced the novel type of craft to which the _Capella_ belonged.
+
+The _Capella_ carried a large crew in proportion to her size--four
+officers and twenty-four men.  Her skipper was Stanley Syllenger, who
+held the rank of Lieutenant-Commander, R.N.R.  He was a big, bluff man
+of about thirty-five, a strict disciplinarian, and a stickler for duty.
+He could be very outspoken when he wanted, which was fairly frequently,
+but withal he was of a thoroughly good-natured disposition.
+
+There were two Sub-lieutenants, R.N.R.  The senior was John Barry, a
+very mild type of young officer.  He usually spoke in a very soft
+voice, except when occasion warranted, when he could bellow in a way
+that would take a stranger entirely by surprise.  It seemed incredible
+that such a bull voice could belong to such a dapper little man as John
+Barry.
+
+The other Sub was Noel Fox--a tall, deep-chested fellow of twenty,
+boisterous, and full of spirits.  In five crowded years he had gained a
+good knowledge of three oceans, and a nodding acquaintance with the
+remaining two.  Beginning his career on board a five-masted sailing
+ship, he had served in tramps, "intermediates", and mail steamers until
+the outbreak of the war, when he found himself appointed to an armed
+liner that abruptly terminated her existence by trying conclusions with
+a German mine.
+
+Captain Syllenger and Sub-lieutenant Barry were pacing the diminutive
+quarter-deck of the _Capella_ as she lay alongside the quay.  The
+skipper had heard officially that morning of the appointment of two
+temporary midshipmen to the craft under his command.  "Hanged if I can
+understand it, Barry!" he exclaimed in his outspoken manner.  "What's
+the idea of turning the _Capella_ into a nursery, I should like to
+know!  These youngsters are somebody's pigeons, I suppose.  The usual
+yarn.  Influence up topsides does the trick, and we're saddled with two
+raw lubbers."
+
+"There is no mention of their having had previous sea-service, sir?"
+remarked Barry.  "But perhaps they'll turn out fairly smart."
+
+"They will," added the Lieutenant-Commander grimly; "that is, if I have
+anything to do with them for any length of time.  But, by Jove! here
+they are, unless I'm much mistaken."
+
+Looking rather self-conscious in their brand-new uniforms, Ross and
+Vernon doubled down the steeply sloping gangway.  As they came aboard,
+Syllenger noted with professional satisfaction that they both saluted
+the quarter-deck.  The action showed, by one thing at least, they were
+not the greenhorns he expected to receive.
+
+"You have had no previous experience, I believe?" he asked, after the
+midshipmen had introduced themselves.
+
+"Very little, beyond knocking about in yachts and boats," replied Ross.
+
+"That's something," decided the skipper.  "A fellow who starts his
+career in a small boat has the makings of a good seaman.  It is rare
+indeed that a man who goes straight to sea in a steamship makes a smart
+man in a boat.  If ever you go on patrol duty you'll find your
+experience of value.  By the by, I suppose you know our particular job?"
+
+"Yes, sir," replied Ross.  "Hunting submarines."
+
+"Ever seen one?" asked Syllenger abruptly.
+
+"Several of the D and E classes manoeuvring in Plymouth Sound."
+
+"But a German one?"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"Where?"
+
+"We've both spent nearly a week on board an unterseeboot, sir."
+
+The skipper sternly regarded the two midshipmen.
+
+"Look here," he said.  "If you think you've come on board to gammon me,
+the sooner you get that idea out of your heads the better.  There's no
+room on the _Capella_ for a pair of modern Ananiases."
+
+Ross said nothing.  From the outside left breast-pocket of his
+"undress" coat he produced a white foolscap envelope, bearing in blue
+the "foul anchor" badge of the Admiralty.
+
+The Lieutenant-Commander took the proffered envelope somewhat
+suspiciously.  He more than half expected that it was a letter of
+introduction from a high official at Whitehall, on the strength of
+which the two midshipmen felt inclined to "put on side".
+
+Instead, he found that it contained an autograph letter from the
+Admiralty, thanking the lads for their bravery and presence of mind,
+whereby they materially assisted in the preservation of H.M.S.
+_Tremendous_ and in the destruction of two of the enemy submarines.
+The document finished by congratulating Ross and Vernon on their escape
+from U75, and trusted that their career as midshipmen of the R.N.R.
+would be marked with success.
+
+Syllenger read it through carefully and slowly, deliberately returned
+it to the envelope, and handed it back to Ross.  Then he held out his
+hand.
+
+"I'm sorry for what I've said," he declared simply.  "Forget it, if you
+can.  Come and lunch with me at one bell."
+
+"Thank you, sir," replied Ross in answer to the invitation; then, after
+a pause, he added: "we didn't want to brag about it, but you made us."
+
+"So I understand," said the skipper.  "I've misjudged the pair of you,
+but the least said about my part of it the better, I fancy."
+
+He hailed a couple of men, instructing them to strike the midshipmen's
+luggage down the companion-ladder.  Ross and Vernon followed, to be
+introduced to their new quarters.
+
+Owing to the _Capella's_ shallow draught, the cabin space was rather
+limited.  The Captain's quarters were a double cabin, comprising a
+state-room and sleeping-room, in a deck-house under the bridge.  The
+two Subs had each a small "dog-box", as they termed it, aft on the
+starboard side.  The engineer had a similar cabin on the port side.
+Adjoining his quarters was another cabin, which had hitherto been used
+as an overflow receptacle for officers' luggage.  This had now been
+cleared out, and hooks provided for the two midshipmen to sling their
+hammocks.  The slinging and unlashing of the hammocks was performed by
+a servant, to whom Ross and Vernon had each to pay ten shillings a
+month for the privilege.  During the day the cabin made a fairly
+comfortable room, although the furniture was Spartan-like in its
+simplicity.
+
+At six bells (11 a.m.) the _Capella_, having replenished her fuel and
+stores, and made good slight defects, was "tracked" out of the dock.
+An hour later she left Southampton, bound for a rendezvous off Beachy
+Head, near which a U-boat had been reported to have made an
+unsuccessful attack upon a swift merchant vessel.
+
+The run down Southampton Water was necessarily performed at
+quarter-speed, for in spite of her light displacement the _Capella's_
+wash at full speed was almost equal to that of a liner.  Even as it
+was, a long line of white foam lashed itself upon the mudflats several
+minutes after she had passed.
+
+When Calshot Castle was abreast, speed was increased to 30 knots.
+There was an easterly breeze blowing against the ebb-tide, with the
+result that quite a choppy sea was met with outside Southampton Water.
+Like a knife, the sharp cutwater of the _Capella_ cleft the waves,
+sending up showers of white spray; but such was her speed that, before
+the wind could carry the spindrift on deck, the swift vessel was beyond
+the cascade of foam.  She hardly felt the motion of the waves; indeed,
+she was so steady that it was possible to place a pail of water on deck
+without any of the contents being spilt by the "lift" of the ship.
+
+Under the guidance of Noel Fox, the midshipmen made the round of the
+vessel, the Sub explaining everything to them in detail.  Already the
+lads had taken a great fancy to the Sub, and Fox reciprocated the
+sentiment.  He had a way about him that enabled him to give particulars
+of the most intricate mechanism without having to resort to dry,
+parrot-like instruction.
+
+By the time he had explained the ingenious devices used to entrap the
+German unterseebooten, Ross and Vernon felt inclined to marvel how it
+was they found themselves on board the _Capella_, since only sheer good
+luck had saved U75 from being doomed during every hour of their brief
+and involuntary detention.
+
+"Yes, we can mop up the German submarines quicker than they can turn
+them out," said the Sub.  "Of course I don't mean to say that a few of
+them won't get a smack at some of our ships for some time to come; but
+all the same we are giving them beans.  From a strictly professional
+point of view we would be sorry if Old Turps abandoned his 'effectual'
+blockade.  Our chances of having a high old game with the
+unterseebooten would be considerably reduced."
+
+"There are still some in the English Channel," hazarded Vernon.
+
+"Yes, a few; but have you noticed how those fellows fight shy of Dover?
+They shun it like the plague.  It's horribly unhealthy for them.  D'ye
+know why?  Perhaps you wouldn't have paid much attention to it, but
+some months ago the Admiralty issued a 'Notice to Mariners', stating
+that the Straits of Dover were heavily mined, and that all shipping was
+to pass through the Downs within three miles of the Kentish coast.
+
+"So it's fairly safe to assume that the few stray unterseebooten that
+are still lurking in the Channel have made the passage round the north
+coast of Scotland.  It's only a matter of time before we bag the lot, I
+fancy."
+
+"And our submarines?" enquired Ross.
+
+"Have fewer opportunities since the Hun battleships and cruisers have
+such a decided inclination to remain in harbour," rejoined Fox.  "When
+there's a chance, you can bet your bottom dollar that our fellows seize
+it.  Quite recently one of our submarines found herself alone and
+disabled in the Bight of Heligoland.  Undismayed, her
+lieutenant-commander signalled to a passing German trawler, covered her
+with his guns, and made the Hun tow the crippled submarine into British
+waters.  Then he released his involuntary benefactor, but before so
+doing can you guess what he did?"
+
+"No," replied both lads.
+
+"Made the Huns line up on deck and sing the 'Hymn of Hate'.  You can
+imagine the surprise of the trawler's men, who, judging by the
+treatment meted out to our fishermen by the German submarines, expected
+nothing less than imprisonment and the loss of their boat.  But it's
+close on one bell," remarked Fox at length.  "You're messing with the
+skipper to-day, I believe.  He's quite a decent sort when you know him
+properly, but it takes a bit of doing."
+
+A seaman strode up to the bell and gave it a sharp stroke.  Just then a
+messenger hurried from the diminutive "wireless" room abaft the
+chart-house and, leaping down the ladder at a single bound, knocked at
+the door of the Captain's cabin.
+
+"Stow those things away, Sparkes," exclaimed Captain Syllenger.  "Lunch
+will have to wait."
+
+He dashed out of his cabin.  On the way to the bridge he passed Fox and
+the two midshipmen.
+
+"You'll have to tighten your belts, my lads," he announced.  "We've
+just had a message through.  A strafed unterseeboot has been spotted
+trying to get into Spithead.  If we don't nab her within half an hour,
+I'll eat my hat!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII
+
+A Double Bag
+
+It was a sea-plane, flying at fifteen hundred feet above the Warner and
+The Nab Lightships, that had detected an elongated shadow creeping
+stealthily over the shingly bottom close to the Dean Tail Buoy.  The
+shadow was that of a German unterseeboot, since none of the British
+submarines were known to be in the eastern approaches to Spithead.
+Evidently she had gone out of her course, for instead of being in the
+main channel she was well to the north of it.  More than likely the
+strong east-going tide, which hereabout surges at such a rate that it
+causes the shingle 30 or 40 feet beneath the surface to emit a deep
+rumble, had taken the unterseeboot in its grip.
+
+Promptly the sea-plane wirelessed the news, and quickly a "general
+call" was sent to the patrol vessels in the vicinity.  The _Capella_
+was one of the craft that picked up the welcome order.
+
+She was now only seven sea miles distant from the Dean Tail Buoy.
+Within ten minutes of the receipt of the wireless she was on the
+spot--one of the very first of a regular hornet flotilla bent upon
+adding yet another of Von Tirpitz's pets to the "bag".
+
+For the next quarter of an hour it looked as if a novel kind of marine
+waltz was in progress.  Nearly a score of swift vessels were executing
+fantastic movements at full speed, circling and interchanging positions
+until it seemed as if collisions were impossible to avoid.
+
+Their object was to thoroughly bewilder the already doomed U-boat, for,
+if possible, her capture in a practically intact condition was desired.
+In very deep water, salvage of a sunken submarine was out of the
+question; here, in a comparatively shallow depth, and close to an
+important naval base, to which the prize could be taken with little
+trouble, the opportunity for capture rather than instant destruction
+was too good to be missed.
+
+Suddenly a cloud of white smoke shot up from the sea.  Its appearance
+was greeted by hearty cheers from the patrol vessels.  It was a signal
+that the U-boat, in her attempt to find deep water, had floundered
+blindly into the trap.  Over and over again the hunters passed, towing
+non-explosive grapnels, until it was certain that the prey was helpless
+in their toils.
+
+Then, in obedience to an order from the senior officer, the swift
+vessels withdrew for nearly three cables' length from the spot where
+the boat lay.  Two slow but powerfully engined trawlers approached at a
+cable's length abreast, towing the bight of a massive steel hawser
+between.  Doing little more than drift with the tide they crept past
+the submerged U-boat, one on either side of the mark-buoy that
+indicated her position.
+
+Presently the strain on the hawser increased.  It was only by making
+full use of the twin-screws that the trawlers were able to prevent
+themselves from swinging together.  The steel rope stretched until it
+resembled two metal bars which bore silent testimony to the strain.
+
+Just then the two vessels shot ahead.  Although the hawser was still
+intact, it no longer took any strain.  But its work was done.  The
+bight, engaging the conning-tower of the unterseeboot, had turned the
+submarine on its side.  In the space of a few seconds the deadly fumes
+from the capsized batteries had almost painlessly accounted for the
+crew of the U-boat, who themselves had neither pity nor consideration
+for the hapless victims, men, women, and children, massacred against
+all dictates of humanity and convention of civilized warfare.
+
+"A bit of work for the dockyard lighters to-morrow," commented
+Sub-lieutenant Barry, as the _Capella_ parted company to resume her run
+up-Channel.  "They'll raise the U-boat, and take her into dry dock,
+before the sulphuric acid has had time to do much damage to her
+mechanism."
+
+"I shouldn't be surprised if there were another U-boat knocking
+around," remarked Vernon.  "From our limited experience we know that
+they work either in pairs or threes."
+
+"Then the worse for them," rejoined Barry.  "It would be a great wheeze
+to bag two of them in one day.  Desperate diseases need desperate
+remedies, you know."
+
+Therein the Sub voiced the unanimous opinion of the British Navy.  At
+the commencement of the war, the torpedoing of several battleships and
+cruisers by German submarines aroused no enmity within the hearts of
+the British tars.  They realized that a warship is "fair sport" to the
+submarines of the opposing side.  To run the risk of being blown up was
+one of the excitements to undergo in the course of duty.  But when it
+came to torpedoing helpless merchantmen, and jeering at the
+death-struggles of the unfortunate crews, Jack Tar began to regard the
+unterseebooten in the light of pirates and murderers.  The wanton
+destruction of the _Lusitania_, accompanied by the appalling death-roll
+of non-combatants, women and children, literally sounded the
+death-knell of the crews of von Tirpitz's jolly-Roger-flying
+submarines.  In their methods of "frightfulness" they had overreached
+themselves.  They had sown a wind: they were now reaping a whirlwind
+with a vengeance.
+
+And now the great silent Navy was paying back von Tirpitz in almost,
+but not quite, his own coin.  While the much-advertised blockade of
+Great Britain was petering out, British submarines were playing havoc
+with German shipping in the Baltic--a sea which the Teutons regarded as
+being almost their very own.  Yet what a difference marked the methods
+adopted by the humane commanders of our submarines when dealing with
+German mercantile shipping.  A punctilious regard for the safety of the
+crews of overhauled merchantmen won admiration even from the seamen of
+the destroyed vessels.  Humiliation and reproach seemed to haunt the
+white-bearded dotard, whose hands had sought in vain to wrest the
+trident from Britannia's virile grasp.
+
+At about five in the afternoon the _Capella_ arrived at her station off
+Beachy Head, relieving her sister ship the _Markab_, that, with three
+other motor-driven craft, had been engaged in a vigorous, but for the
+most part uneventful, patrol.
+
+Day and night for a fortnight at a stretch, unless anything unforeseen
+took place, the _Capella_ was to cruise up and down, keeping a smart
+look-out for any sign of an object resembling a hostile periscope.  In
+order to economize her fuel supply her speed was reduced to 10 knots.
+It was then that her bad qualities showed themselves.  With her shallow
+draught and high freeboard she rolled like a barrel, since speed was
+essential to impart steadiness.  The motion was certainly
+disconcerting, although it did not imply that the _Capella_ was
+unseaworthy.
+
+"'Fraid our chances of bagging another U-boat to-day are off," remarked
+Barry to Ross.
+
+It was within half an hour of sunset.  The chums had been temporarily
+separated.  It was Vernon's "watch below".  The senior Sub and young
+Trefusis were on the bridge.  In spite of the still-prevailing east
+wind it was a grand evening.  Three miles away, broad on the starboard
+beam, the chalk cliffs known as the Seven Sisters were beginning to be
+tinted by the crimson hues of the western sky.  To seaward, three large
+vessels were in sight.  One, a liner bound down-Channel, was pelting
+along at such a pace with the wind that the smoke from her funnels was
+rising almost perpendicularly.  Forging ahead in the opposite direction
+were two big tramps, the smoke from their funnels, beaten down by the
+strong breeze, trailing across the surface of the water for a couple of
+miles in their wake.
+
+"An object lesson," remarked Barry.  "The arteries of the Empire.  Hang
+it all!  The blockade reminds me of a pigmy treacherously stealing up
+behind a giant and trying to cut his jugular vein.  Instead, he merely
+scratched a comparatively unimportant capillary, and feels mighty sorry
+for himself when the giant turns and scruffs him by the neck."
+
+Leaning over the bridge-rails, the Sub startled his companion by
+bellowing in a voice loud enough to be heard a mile away:
+
+"On look-outs!  Stand by bow and stern lights!"
+
+The _Capella_ was making preparations for the night.  Unlike the armed
+merchantmen that are compelled to scour the North Sea, summer and
+winter alike, without showing the faintest glimmer of a lamp, the
+_Capella_ observed the rules and regulations for preventing collision
+at sea.  Her port, starboard, and bow lamps were lighted by
+electricity, but, in order to guard against possible break-down of
+current, oil lamps had also to be trimmed and lighted, ready, should
+occasion serve, to take their places.
+
+It was part of Ross's duty to report to the officer of the watch that
+these lamps were in order, and also, at regular intervals, that the
+navigation lights were burning brightly.
+
+Presently the Sub prepared to take a cross-bearing.  He was fairly
+certain that the _Capella_ had reached the westernmost limit of her
+patrol-ground.  From that point she was to proceed due south for 10 sea
+miles, and then due east for 20 miles until she fell in with her
+"opposite number".
+
+While Barry was thus engaged, Ross noticed a sail about 2 miles distant
+on the starboard quarter.
+
+"By Jove!" he muttered as he brought his glass to bear upon the
+stranger.  "That's a funny rig."
+
+The craft was a "two-sticker".  She was square-rigged on the foremast,
+carrying fore-topsail and fore-course.  No jibs were set; neither, as
+far as he could see, was any sail set on the mainmast.  The vessel's
+sides were painted green with a broad red band.
+
+Even as he kept the craft under observation she starboarded her helm,
+shaping a course that would converge upon that of the rearmost of the
+two tramps.  By so doing she exposed a considerable portion of her
+broadside.
+
+Ross gave an exclamation of astonishment.  Above the green sides
+appeared what was undoubtedly the conning-tower and housed periscope of
+a submarine.  "Submarine on the starboard quarter, sir!" he reported.
+
+"What!" exclaimed Barry, levelling his telescope.  "By Jove, yes!  What
+luck!"
+
+The unterseeboot had, of course, noticed the _Capella_, and had
+mistaken her for a trawler.  She realized that she ran a risk in case
+the latter might be armed, but, trusting to her disguise, she hoped to
+get within torpedo range of the tramp--a vessel of over 3000 tons--sink
+her, and make her escape in the confusion that was bound to ensue.  On
+the other hand, her Kapitan had good reasons for thinking that the
+supposed trawler was not one of the armed patrol, since they usually
+worked in company.  By rigging canvas bulwarks and setting sail upon
+dummy masts, he was able to approach with little fear of detection.
+
+"Action!"
+
+Quickly the _Capella's_ crew were at their stations.  The quick-firers
+were loaded, and their screens lowered so as not to impede their arc of
+fire.  Until these preparations were complete the vessel still held on
+her course.
+
+Then Captain Syllenger, who had come on deck, telegraphed for full
+speed ahead.  Like a racehorse the _Capella_ leapt forward.
+
+A double, converging line of white foam marked the track of a torpedo
+from the doomed U-boat.  By a slight alteration of helm the _Capella_
+avoided it.  The action was hardly necessary: it was merely a matter of
+precaution, since the _Capella's_ peculiarities of construction made
+her practically immune from torpedo attack.
+
+Captain Syllenger had no intention of ramming his opponent.  Ramming
+with a lightly built vessel, such as the _Capella_, would only be
+employed as a last resource.
+
+At an almost point-blank range of 400 yards both bow guns were fired
+simultaneously.  There was no need for another shot.  One of the
+projectiles, hitting the U-boat at the base of the conning-tower, tore
+a jagged hole a couple of feet in diameter.  The other shell hit her
+about 10 feet from the bows, and, with an erratic peculiarity that such
+missiles have after the first impact, was deflected downward, expending
+the full force of its explosive charge in the submarine's bow
+torpedo-room.
+
+In a moment the luckless U-boat was done for.  A huge column of smoke
+marked the spot where she had disappeared like a stone, while flying
+pieces of metal hurtled far and wide through the air.  Several of the
+fragments clattered upon the _Capella's_ deck as she swung round to
+avoid any possibility of fouling debris.  Of the crew not a man was to
+be seen.  Those who had not been killed by the shell-fire had been
+wiped out by the explosion of their own torpedoes.
+
+"We've pulled off a double event to-day, after all," remarked
+Sub-lieutenant Fox as he disappeared down the companion-ladder to
+resume his interrupted "watch below".  "Barry has got his wish."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII
+
+The Smoke-signals
+
+For the next ten days nothing occurred beyond the ordinary routine.
+Even Ross and Vernon, to whom everything was at first a novelty, began
+to feel the irksomeness of the constant and vigilant patrol.  No
+hostile submarines made their appearance; there were not even any
+reports, true or otherwise, that they had been sighted.  It was the
+same all along the English Channel--"nothin' doing".  It seemed as if
+the unterseebooten had finally given up these waters as a "bad egg".
+
+Yet it would be most injudicious for the naval authorities to relax
+their watchfulness.  Areas of strategic importance must still be
+closely guarded, since it was just possible that the wily Teuton would
+refrain from submarine warfare in the Channel until the patrol-boats'
+crews were lulled into a sense of false optimism.
+
+The only break in the monotony was the occasional and welcome
+appearance of a motor-boat from Shoreham, bringing off fresh supplies,
+newspapers and letters for the patrol vessels.
+
+Amongst Ross's correspondence was a letter from his father.  Admiral
+Trefusis gave no indication of what he was doing, merely a brief
+statement that he was still "somewhere in the North Sea".  He
+congratulated his son upon his escape, and mentioned that he had heard
+from the captain of H.M.S. _Tremendous_ with reference to his son's
+action in warning the battleship.  But although the Admiral did not
+express himself very enthusiastically on paper, he was as pleased as
+only a proud father can be at his boy's display of gallantry and
+resource.  "Under the circumstances," he wrote, "I think you did right
+in temporarily abandoning your preparation for Sandhurst.  No doubt you
+will acquit yourself in your present position as a Trefusis should do.
+I was certainly surprised to hear about that fellow Ramblethorne.  He
+always appeared to be a really decent man.  It only shows how careful
+one has to be when dealing with a highly organized enemy."
+
+Amongst Vernon's batch of correspondence was a letter from
+Detective-inspector Hawke.  It was couched in semi-official language, a
+survival of days long ago when the Inspector was a budding constable
+and had to submit countless written reports to his superiors.
+
+There was, he wrote, no definite news concerning Ramblethorne,
+otherwise von Hauptwald.  The local police had taken up the case, and,
+assisted by the military, were still scouring the country.  As usual,
+there were inaccurate and misleading reports from various parts of the
+country.  It was generally accepted that the spy was being hidden by
+some of his compatriots who, by indulgence of the British Government,
+were still at large in the country, or else that he had succeeded in
+getting away on board a neutral ship.
+
+The inquest on von Ruhle had taken place, with the anticipated result,
+a verdict of _felo de se_ being returned by the jury.  No evidence had
+been submitted as to the dead man's real occupation.  Under the name of
+Cornelius Vanderhuit his body was handed over to the authorities for
+interment.
+
+But the case did not end there.  It remained for the competent
+Authorities to decide the steps to be taken with reference to the
+papers that had been found in von Ruhle's possession.
+
+"I am keeping von Ruhle's 'malacca' as a memento," concluded Hawke.
+"It may help me to discriminate between it and a portable metal tripod,
+and save me from being placed under arrest by the military.
+Fortunately, upon the last occasion, I did not meet with my Waterloo."
+
+"The old chap feels a bit sore about it, I can see," remarked Ross.
+"He's written a good deal more than he evidently intended.  However, he
+looks like 'making good' this time."
+
+"It's a pity Ramblethorne slipped through the detectives' fingers,"
+said Vernon, as he prepared to go on deck.  "That fellow's bound to
+cause trouble until he's laid by the heels."
+
+It was Noel Fox's "trick".  The Sub was standing on the bridge with his
+eye glued to his telescope.  A mile or so inland, on the summit of the
+South Downs where they approach Beachy Head, three columns of smoke
+were rising in the still air.  There was nothing extraordinary in that.
+It might be a farmer burning rubbish on his fields; but what attracted
+the Sub's attention was the remarkable and systematic changes in the
+density of the smoke.  At one moment the two outside pillars were
+heavy, the centre one being little more than a thin haze; at another
+the conditions would be reversed.
+
+Fox decided to take action.  Rapidly the _Capella_ closed with the
+shore, until she was within signalling distance of a coast-guard
+station.
+
+The station in question was not manned by coast-guards.  Not considered
+important, its complement was depleted at the outbreak of hostilities,
+most of the men joining the large armoured cruisers.  A chief officer
+and a boatman alone remained.  These were at a later period augmented
+by a party of Sea Scouts.
+
+As soon as the _Capella_ had "made her number", a signaller took up his
+position on the roof of the chart-house.
+
+"Fires burning one mile inland to north-west of coast-guard station,"
+he semaphored.  "Suspect smoke-signals.  Investigate and report."
+
+Keeping his telescope bearing on shore, Vernon watched the result of
+the signal.  Promptly half a dozen Scouts, mounted on bicycles, set off
+to the position indicated.  Their progress was hidden by an intervening
+clump of trees, but in less than a quarter of an hour they returned.
+By this time the smoke had disappeared.  One of their number worked the
+semaphore attached to the station.
+
+"Fires made with damp straw.  Found old blankets apparently used to
+stifle smoke.  Saw large car stationary; made towards Lewes on
+approach; number known; have informed police."
+
+"Smart youngsters!" exclaimed Captain Syllenger.  "They've helped to
+nip some little plan in the bud.  We'll have to be jolly careful for
+the next few days, I expect.  Did you make a note of the fog-signals,
+Mr. Fox?"
+
+"I did, sir," replied the Sub, producing a leaf of a notebook covered
+with an unintelligible number of lines.  "Each of these strokes
+represents a column of smoke according to its position."
+
+"I can make nothing of it," remarked Syllenger.  "At any rate I'll send
+your result to the Admiralty with the utmost dispatch.  Take her in,
+Mr. Fox, and bring up where you find the two-fathom mark."
+
+The _Capella_ headed nearer towards the shore, a leads-man sounding
+until the required depth was found.  One of the boats was lowered,
+manned, and rowed to the coast-guard station, Sub-lieutenant Barry
+being in charge, with Ross as his immediate subordinate.
+
+"I want this to be forwarded to the Admiralty with the least possible
+delay," he announced, addressing the chief officer.  "How long do you
+think it will take to get through?"
+
+"Too late for the eleven something train from Brighton, sir," was the
+reply.  "There's a gentleman in the village who has a big car.  He's a
+member of the Volunteer Training Corps.  No doubt he'll take it as far
+as Lewes.  Why, sir, here's the gent himself!  Mr. Hyde's his name."
+
+The newcomer was a sparely built man of below medium height.  He looked
+about thirty years of age.  In reality he was nearly fifty.  Having
+vainly attempted to obtain a commission in the R.N.R. and the Army, he
+had joined the V.T.C. in the hope that, perhaps, some day his services
+might be utilized in a very practical form.  Now his chance was at hand.
+
+He had strolled down to the beach on noticing a boat putting off from
+the patrol vessel.
+
+"Lewes?  Certainly," he replied in answer to Barry's question.  "I
+doubt whether you'll save much.  Why not let me take the message right
+to the Admiralty?  I'd like to do it, 'pon my word I would."
+
+The Sub hesitated.  Perhaps the stranger might be all right; but he
+might be all wrong.  One had to be very careful in these times.  Yet
+the offer was a tempting one.  If possible, it was most desirable to be
+able to decipher the transcription of these mysterious columns of smoke.
+
+"I say, Trefusis," he said, "you've had a fairly long time afloat; what
+do you say to a run up to town?  I'm sure this gentleman would make no
+objection to giving you a seat in his car."
+
+"With the greatest pleasure," declared Mr. Hyde.
+
+"Thanks!" rejoined Barry.  "Of course the honour of delivering the
+letter will be yours, sir.  Mr. Trefusis accompanies you merely as a
+passenger.  We'll stand by to pick you up, Trefusis.  I'll make it all
+right with the skipper."
+
+The Sub accompanied Mr. Hyde and the midshipman to the garage, which
+was about four minutes' walk from the coast-guard station.  While the
+man was getting out the car (he was his own chauffeur), Barry seized
+the opportunity of telling Ross to be on his guard, in case anything
+suspicious occurred.
+
+With a terrific bound the powerful car started on its sixty-mile
+journey.  Between the sea and Lewes the needle of the speed-indicator
+never fell below 40 miles an hour, until at times the car was running
+at 60.  Village after village was passed at almost break-neck speed.
+In vain, sleepy rural constables sought to hold up the reckless driver.
+Discretion was the better part of valour, so they stood aside and
+attempted to note the number on the identification plate of the car.
+Again in vain.  All they could see and swallow was a cloud of white,
+chalky dust that hung thickly on the sultry air long after the car was
+out of sight and hearing.
+
+The hills around East Grinstead it surmounted at 40 miles an hour,
+dashing down the inclines at the speed of an express train, and
+swerving time after time to avoid lumbering farm wagons.
+
+At Croydon Mr. Hyde wisely slowed down.  He had covered 49 miles in
+exactly fifty-five minutes, but twenty-eight minutes later the car drew
+up under the Admiralty Arch.
+
+"Room 445 is the one I want," he explained to Ross.  "I know my way
+about here, you know.  I've several relations at the Admiralty.  Come
+along: the car won't hurt where she is."
+
+"Your pass, sir," demanded a Metropolitan policeman who, with a naval
+pensioned petty officer, was stationed at the door.
+
+"Haven't one," replied Mr. Hyde.  "Urgent business--see?" and he
+produced the envelope, bearing the words "On His Majesty's Service", in
+which was enclosed Captain Syllenger's communication.
+
+The policeman was the essence of imperturbable dignity.
+
+"No use, sir; you must have a pass.  They are obtainable across the
+road there."
+
+"It will mean at least twenty minutes' delay," muttered the motorist
+savagely, as he turned away.  "Come on, Mr. Trefusis, let's try our
+luck across the way."
+
+As Ross descended the short flight of stone steps leading from the
+lobby to the street, he nearly cannoned into a couple of naval officers
+who were about to enter the building.  Suddenly remembering that he was
+in uniform, the midshipman brought his right hand smartly to the peak
+of his cap.  As he did so, he recognized that one of the naval men was
+his father.
+
+The recognition was mutual.
+
+"Hullo, pater!"
+
+"Hullo, Ross!  What brings you here?  Duty, eh?  It's the same in my
+case.  Sorry I can't have you to lunch, but must catch the first train
+north.  This is the first time I've come up to town since the war
+started.  In any case I'm not sorry that I am not stopping the night
+here.  Judging by reports, it's a jolly sight too dangerous for me.
+Don't fancy being run over by a taxi in a dark main thoroughfare.  Give
+me the North Sea any day.  Well, I must be moving.  Can't keep My Lords
+waiting, you know.  Good-bye, Ross!"
+
+It was Admiral Paul Trefusis' way.  Whenever he had any business on
+hand that kept him from his ship, he invariably spoke in short, jerky
+sentences.  Ross knew his parent's little mannerism.
+
+"One moment, pater," he exclaimed.  "We're in an awful hurry too----"
+
+"Don't look like it," growled the Admiral good-naturedly.  "You were
+ambling out like an old shellback.  Always execute orders at the
+double: that's my advice to budding midshipmen.  Well, what is it?"
+
+As briefly as possible, Ross told his parent of the rebuff Mr. Hyde and
+he had received, and of the matter that brought them at 50 miles an
+hour from a remote Sussex coast-guard station.
+
+Making a hurried excuse to his companion, the Admiral skipped up the
+steps into the lobby, Ross and his fellow-traveller following closely.
+
+The policeman naturally asked for no pass from a Flag officer in
+uniform, but he was on the point of stopping his companions when the
+messenger recognized the Admiral as his former captain.  His apologies
+surprised even the stolid policeman.
+
+"Don't apologize for doing your duty, my man," remarked Admiral
+Trefusis.  "Hope you're fit.  Must have a yarn with you when I've more
+time.  Come along, Ross."
+
+Having seen Mr. Hyde and Ross safely to the outside of the door of Room
+445, the Admiral abruptly took his departure.
+
+In reply to a knock the door was opened by a very tired-looking clerk,
+who was bravely bearing up under the strain of having to work ninety
+hours a week, including Sundays.  Having explained his business, Mr.
+Hyde was shown into the presence of an official whose talent was little
+short of miraculous.
+
+A dozen precise and pointed questions put him in full possession of all
+the facts bearing upon the document that he required.  He touched an
+electric bell.  An assistant hurried to his desk.
+
+"Bring me the papers on the von Ruhle case," he ordered in an undertone.
+
+In less than half an hour the transcription was completed, although the
+_Capella's_ officer of the watch had not taken down the actual
+commencement of the smoke-signal.  Then, having "pressed" the paper in
+order to obtain a duplicate copy, the official placed it in an
+envelope, which he secured with an imposing wax seal.
+
+"No mistake about it, the war has bucked the civilian staff at the
+Admiralty," observed Mr. Hyde to Ross as they gained the street.  "I
+can remember a time when all you had to do was to mention someone's
+name, and you had practically a free entry.  Your particular pal could
+always contrive to have an hour's yarn with you, and perhaps an
+interval for refreshment.  They know what working at high pressure
+means now."
+
+Hyde was more cautious on the return journey.  He was well within the
+limit that he had set himself.  An hour and forty minutes later, the
+car drew up outside the coast-guard station.
+
+"Captain Syllenger presents his compliments, Mr. Hyde, and requests
+your company on board," said Sub-lieutenant Barry when the _Capella's_
+boat arrived to take off the midshipman.  "Ton my word, you haven't
+been long.  We didn't expect you back before six o'clock."
+
+Having received his guest, Captain Syllenger led the way to his cabin,
+Barry and Ross being included in the party.  The skipper's face glowed
+with satisfaction when he had opened the envelope, for the signal as
+decoded was as follows:
+
+"(words missing) closely patrolled.  Unable to provide stores here.
+Will attempt removal of (word missing) from Station 123 on Friday
+night.  Will signal from Station 125 at 1 a.m. on Saturday if possible.
+Transports leaving by Needles Channel at daybreak."
+
+Following this was an explanatory note.
+
+"Station 123 is stated to be in Keyhaven Marshes.  Station 125 one mile
+west of white house at Milford-on-Sea."
+
+"Humph!" ejaculated Captain Syllenger.  "It looks as if there's trouble
+in store for some gentlemen of marked Teutonic sympathies.  I only hope
+we'll have a chance of being off Station 125."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX
+
+That Friday Night
+
+Three hours later H.M.S. _Capella_ received the following order by
+wireless:--
+
+"Await relief by _Taurus_, then proceed to Rendezvous Y, Portsmouth
+Command.  _Capella_ to be temporarily attached to Western Inner Patrol."
+
+The meaning of the message was plain to all on board.  The _Capella_
+was to proceed to Rendezvous Y, which according to Admiralty
+instructions was off Yarmouth, Isle of Wight, where a flotilla of small
+craft was patrolling day and night, as a precautionary measure in the
+unlikely event of any hostile craft forcing the formidable defences of
+the western entrance to the Solent.
+
+At eight on the following morning the _Taurus_ arrived on the station,
+and with the least possible delay the _Capella_ made for the west'ard.
+
+Only one incident marked the run.  A few miles from the Royal Sovereign
+Lightship, the _Capella_ sighted a number of submarines running on the
+surface.  They were on Particular Service, and although opportunities
+for torpedoing a hostile surface craft were very remote, the submarines
+were constantly rendering yeoman service by keeping the approaches to
+the German North Sea ports under close observation.  On rare occasions,
+when a German light-cruiser or destroyer did venture beyond the
+protection of the mine-fields and guns of the land-batteries, British
+submarines were not backward in seizing their chance of letting loose
+"tinfish" against their quarry.
+
+Having arrived off Yarmouth, Captain Syllenger reported himself to the
+senior officer.  He came back beaming.  The _Capella_ was to take part
+in combined sea and land operations for the capture of the German
+agents, who were supplying petrol to one of the submarines, and also
+for the capture of the U-boat.
+
+The eventful Friday evening came at last.  The _Capella_, in company
+with four first-class torpedo-boats, was to be ready at a signal from
+Hurst to make a dash through the North Channel.  A fleet of armed
+trawlers from the Poole base was to operate farther out to sea, in
+order to cut off the U-boat's retreat should she be lucky enough to
+escape the attentions of the _Capella_ and her consorts.
+
+At ten o'clock the east-going tidal stream began to set through the
+Needles Channel.  Half an hour later it ran with a velocity exceeding
+five knots.  The _Capella_, moving at a rate equal to that of the tide,
+kept about half a mile from the Isle of Wight shore, with the white,
+occulting light of the Needles just visible to the north of Cliff End
+Fort.
+
+It was a perfectly calm night, overcast, but with no wind.  A dull
+rumble, rising and falling in volume, could be heard from the direction
+of the open sea.
+
+"Breakers on the Shingles--a large bank on the starboard hand of the
+Needles Channel," explained Barry in answer to the midshipmen's enquiry.
+
+"Then it means that bad weather is approaching," said Ross, who had had
+plenty of opportunities of observing the phenomenon of "ground swells"
+on the North Cornish coast.  "If it's like this, the U-boat won't be
+able to make direct communication with the shore."
+
+The appearance of Captain Syllenger on the bridge put an end to
+conversation.  The officers, by the aid of telescopes and binoculars,
+kept the Hampshire shore under close observation.
+
+To the naked eye nothing was visible but a dark bank of trees.  Not a
+light was to be seen, although there were several houses in the
+vicinity.  The position of Lymington, in time of peace discernible by
+reason of a strong blaze of light, could only be determined by the
+feeble glow of the high red light marking the course up the river.
+
+"It's nearly midnight," observed the skipper.  "If our friends the
+Germans are going to shift their supplies from here to Milford, they'll
+have to be pretty sharp.  Seems to me like a case of 'nuthin' doing'."
+
+Hardly were the words out of his mouth, when the silence was broken by
+a peremptory hail.  The sound travelled clearly across the water,
+although the person shouting must have been a mile and a half away.
+
+Then came the jumbled noise of men's voices, quickly followed by two
+rifle-shots.  The voices then died away, and, as far as the listeners
+on the _Capella_ could hear, all was quiet.
+
+"That's soon over, whatever it was, sir," remarked Barry.
+
+"Hurst calling up, sir," announced a signalman, as a light blinked
+rapidly from the fort guarding the Hampshire side of the narrow
+channel.  It was the order to proceed at full speed to the position
+previously decided upon.
+
+Although the torpedo-boats were speedy craft, the _Capella_ left them
+behind "hands down".  Fortunately there were no search-lights to baffle
+her quartermaster, for those of both Hurst and the batteries on the
+Isle of Wight shore had been previously switched off.  Since the Needle
+Channel was closed to all mercantile shipping, the _Capella_ could, and
+did, without risk, extinguish her navigation lights.  Only the
+phosphorescent spray from her sharp cutwater marked her position.
+
+Suddenly she ported helm, just in time to avoid a collision with a long
+dark shape that proved to be an unterseeboot in the act of diving.  Her
+commander had detected the pulsations of the _Capella_ motors, but he
+was too late.
+
+Round spun the patrol vessel.  From her quarter, a long length of
+something that resembled an exaggerated string of sausages was paid
+out.  At the rate that the _Capella_ was circling, it was impossible
+for the U-boat to escape from her toils.  Dive to a safe depth she
+could not, since the maximum depth was but 5 3/4 fathoms.
+
+The last of the "sausages", to which was attached stout flexible wire,
+disappeared beneath the water.  Then a jerk upon the wire announced the
+gratifying fact that the fugitive submarine had fouled the string of
+sausages, which was in reality a number of gun-cotton charges, primed
+and connected to a powerful battery by means of an insulated wire.
+
+Sub-lieutenant Fox, who was standing by the firing-key, needed no
+orders.  His fingers pressed the ebonite disc.  A hundred yards astern
+of the _Capella_ a column of water was flying high in the air, followed
+by a tremendous roar.  For one minute the vessel rocked violently in
+the agitated waters, then, circling, she made for the spot under which
+the explosion had occurred.  With a splash a mark-buoy was dropped
+overboard to indicate the position of the shattered U-boat.  By this
+time the torpedo-boats had arrived on the scene.
+
+"A deuce of a commotion on shore, Barry," exclaimed the skipper.
+
+"I should be surprised if there were not, sir," replied the Sub.  "The
+racket was enough to smash every window within a couple of miles of the
+beach.  They're signalling, sir."
+
+"German submarine's boat rowing off.  Intercept her," was the signal
+spelt out by the long and short flashes.
+
+"More work," remarked Barry.  "It's like looking for a needle in a
+bottle of hay.  Shall I order the searchlight to be run, sir?"
+
+"Very good," replied Captain Syllenger.  "But before you do so you
+might signal to Hurst, and request that all available search-light be
+brought to bear in this direction."
+
+Soon the hitherto pitch-dark sea was flooded in a blaze of light.
+Giant beams from the Isle of Wight shore joined with those of Hurst
+Castle to sweep slowly across the waves, supplementing the twin rays
+projected from the two search-lights on the _Capella's_ bridge.
+
+It was indeed a brilliant spectacle.  The _Capella_ and the
+torpedo-boats seemed outlined in silver.  Along the shore as far as
+Hengistbury Head, the low line of cliffs was thrown into strong relief
+against the dark background of sky.  The crest of every wave seemed as
+if made of delicate filigree work.  Nothing afloat could hope to escape
+detection within the radius of action of the concentrated millions of
+candle-power search-lights.
+
+Less than a mile away, and about the same distance from shore, a small
+black object bobbed buoyantly upon the waves.  It was the ill-fated
+U-boat's canvas dinghy, apparently empty.
+
+Down bore the _Capella_, her search-lights fixed upon the object of her
+search.  The boat was not deserted.  Lying at full length on the bottom
+boards were two men, who had adopted that position, in the vain hope of
+escaping detection.
+
+As the patrol vessel approached, they sat up and raised dolorous cries
+of "Mercy, Englishmen!"
+
+"Chuck it, Fritz!" shouted one of the British seamen.  "You won't get
+hurt.  You ain't in a strafed submarine now, you know."
+
+"Silence!" ordered the skipper.  "Stand by there.  Get that boat
+aboard.  See they don't sling anything overboard."
+
+There was precious little that the German seamen could throw overboard,
+for when the canvas boat was placed on the Capellus deck it was found
+to contain only a pair of oars and two crutches.  What the German
+sailors hoped to do had they escaped detection was a matter for
+conjecture, for without a compass, food, and water, and in a frail
+cockle-shell with every indication of bad weather approaching, certain
+death stared them in the face.
+
+Finding themselves well treated, the Germans grew quite communicative.
+They freely admitted that they expected to obtain a considerable
+quantity of petrol from their agents ashore.  They did not know their
+names, or if they did they professed complete ignorance on the point.
+Their craft, numbered for some vague reason U7, was built at Altona,
+and completed only a fortnight previously.  In addition to her normal
+crew of twenty-eight officers and men, she carried five officers and
+ten men for instructional purposes.  She was one of four that had come
+round Cape Wrath and the West and South coasts of Ireland, rather than
+risk the hazardous passage through the Straits of Dover, or the almost
+equally dangerous North Channel between Scotland and Ireland.  Two of
+the five were missing; the other was supposed to be in the
+neighbourhood of Cape Ushant.  U7's particular mission was to intercept
+transports that were known to be leaving Southampton for the French
+coast.
+
+The men admitted that they had been tricked.  A light had been flashed
+seaward, and although the signal was not strictly in accordance with
+the prearranged plan, it was sufficiently accurate to delude the U7's
+Lieutenant-Commander.
+
+The German officer had shown considerable skill and audacity in closing
+with the shore so close to the numerous and powerful batteries.  He
+dwelt upon the almost absolute certainty of the gunners devoting their
+attention solely to the Needles Channel, and since it was a little past
+the time of dead low water the intervening Shingles Bank, which in
+places rears itself 20 feet above the sea, would afford an efficient
+screen from the search-lights.
+
+But he had reckoned without the patrol vessels.  Barely had the
+U-boat's collapsible rowed a hundred yards from her parent when the
+_Capella_ raced up, and promptly put another hostile submarine to her
+credit.
+
+Early next morning, the _Capella_ having returned to her station off
+Yarmouth to await orders, Vernon Haye went ashore in charge of the
+whaler in order to pick up mails and secure fresh provisions.
+
+Arriving alongside the little stone quay, he left a boat-keeper in
+charge and proceeded towards the post office, while the coxswain and
+the rest of the men went in search of the much-desired commodities in
+the shape of fresh butter and milk.
+
+Just as Vernon was about to enter the post office, he nearly collided
+with a very sleepy-looking subaltern in the uniform of the Royal
+Garrison Artillery.
+
+"By Jove, Barraclough!" he exclaimed.  "I didn't expect to see you
+here."
+
+Barraclough was an Upper Sixth man at the same school as Haye, but had
+left four terms previously.  On the outbreak of war he had applied for,
+and had obtained, a commission, and had been stationed, somewhat to his
+disappointment, at Hurst Castle.  Beyond a few false alarms and a
+liberal experience in target practice, his existence at that isolated
+fortress bordered on the monotonous.  He was simply on thorns to be
+able to proceed to the Front; the probability was that he would have to
+"do his bit" for his country at a spot within 20 miles of his home
+until the termination of the war.
+
+"Bless my soul, Haye!" he rejoined.  "Whoever would have thought to see
+you here, and in naval get-up.  How long have you been in the Service,
+and what ship are you on?"
+
+"Only a few weeks; and I'm on the _Capella_ with Trefusis."
+
+"Trefusis, eh?  Well, he's a lucky boy to have an Admiral for a father.
+And the _Capella_?  Then you were in last night's affair?  I heard they
+bagged the submarine."
+
+"Rather!" declared Vernon proudly.
+
+Barraclough stifled a prodigious yawn.
+
+"Jolly glad to hear it.  'Scuse me, but I'm beastly tired.  Had a night
+of it after those spies across yonder.  Didn't turn in till three, and
+at six I had to cross from Hurst to Vic.--that's Fort Victoria, you
+know--on duty."
+
+"Did you collar them?" asked the midshipman eagerly.
+
+The subaltern yawned again.
+
+"No," he drawled.  "Worse luck, we didn't; but we had some fun.  You
+know we were warned to watch Keyhaven marshes--and a dreary spot it is.
+Worse than the most dismal flats on the Essex coast, which is saying a
+lot.  Well, before I tell you what happened, I ought to describe the
+place.  It's a marsh, with patches of dry ground thickly covered with
+furze, that extends from Keyhaven to Lymington River--about four miles.
+It is separated from the sea--or rather mud-flats, covered at high
+tide--by a low bank on which is an apology for a footpath.
+
+"Our orders were to post a squad at a certain point where the spies
+were supposed to have hidden a quantity of petrol.  The place in
+question was close to a rifle-butt.  Men were detailed to guard all
+roads leading to the marsh, and to allow all traffic, whether
+motor-cars, carts, or pedestrians, to pass unchallenged.  The sentries
+were on no account to show themselves, except to hold up everything and
+everyone coming _from_ the marsh.
+
+"Other men were told off to watch the three available roads between
+Keyhaven and Milford, where the submarine was expected to send ashore
+for her stores, so you see the U-boat didn't stand much chance of
+getting what she wanted.  She copped something she didn't expect.
+
+"As soon as it was dark, my squad left Hurst by motor-boat and landed
+near the toll-house at Keyhaven.  It was almost dead low water, you
+know, or we might have been able to save ourselves a long tramp--you
+couldn't call it a march.
+
+"We followed the wretched footpath, slipping on the slimy mud, and
+either tumbling over each other or else side-slipping into the morass,
+which was a jolly sight worse.  To make a long story short, we took up
+our position, which was in the middle of a circular clump of furze
+within 50 yards of the butts, at ten o'clock.
+
+"There we stuck for nearly two mortal hours, and not so much as a
+chance of having a cigarette.  Of course the men were frightfully keen,
+and it took me all my time to stop them from chin-wagging.  Some of
+them began to get jumpy, swearing they saw all manner of men and things.
+
+"I had just looked at my watch--luminous face, thank goodness--when my
+sergeant whispered to me that someone was approaching.  It was then
+close on twelve.  He was right.  There were three men ambling
+cautiously along the sea-wall.  They were talking softly.  Once one of
+them stopped, bent under the lee of a furze bush and lit a cigarette,
+which seemed a rummy thing for a spy to do unless it was a prearranged
+signal.
+
+"We let them come on until they got within 20 yards, then up popped my
+sergeant.
+
+"'Halt, who goes there?' he shouted, loud enough to be heard a couple
+of miles away.
+
+"Bless me if the three fellows hadn't the cheek to answer in exactly
+the same words, although they didn't sound particularly cheerful over
+the job; and, instead of halting, one of them came on, holding a stick
+above his head.  The others didn't seem very keen to follow him, but
+began jabbering away as hard as they could.
+
+"So I gave orders for a couple of shots to be fired over their heads,
+just to let them know what to expect when they deliberately ignore a
+challenge.  But instead of 'hands up' they bolted, with our men after
+them.
+
+"Then I had good reason to bless that blessed marsh, for between us and
+the rifle-butt was a deep ditch filled with water, and a nice wire
+fence on the other side.  Half a dozen of us, myself included, were
+floundering up to our waists; the others were lucky enough to avoid the
+ditch by making straight for the path.  But we had the fellows all
+right."
+
+"The spies?" asked Vernon.
+
+Barraclough yawned, and then laughed mirthlessly.
+
+"Nuthin' doing," he replied.  "They were three members of a local
+defence corps engaged in patrolling the marshes.  Goodness only knows
+what for, for they hadn't any weapon with them except walking-sticks.
+Perhaps 'twas as well, though, for they might have let rip in their
+excitement.  When a man's nerves are all upset it's not safe for him to
+have his finger on the trigger of a rifle, you know."
+
+"But the spies?" asked Vernon.
+
+"Not a sign of 'em," replied the subaltern.  "If they were anywhere
+about, they must have sheered off pretty quickly when they heard the
+racket.  An hour later an orderly brought us word to return to the
+fort, so we guessed that something had taken place between a
+patrol-ship and the submarine.  But I must be on the move.  Regards to
+Trefusis.  If you've a chance to get ashore on the other side, look me
+up."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX
+
+To the Rescue
+
+Twelve hours later found H.M.S. _Capella_ back on her station off
+Beachy Head.
+
+The long-threatened gale had burst with great violence upon the South
+coast.  Long crested breakers surged towards the chalky cliffs,
+thundering with terrific force against the sheer face of the rocks.
+
+Seaward, as far as the eye could reach, was nothing but a confused
+tumble of foam, backed by a lowering bank of ragged and sombre clouds.
+
+The _Capella_ and her consorts had to "stick it".  Without orders they
+dare not seek shelter in Newhaven harbour.  All they could do was to
+forge slowly ahead, keeping bows on to the furious seas.  In spite of
+her shallow draught, the _Capella_ was an excellent sea boat, although
+inclined to be "jumpy".  Frequently green waves broke over the fo'c'sle
+and surged aft as far as the deck-house under the bridge; but with
+unfailing regularity the stanch vessel would shake herself clear of the
+tons of water that had invaded her deck, to be ready to receive the
+next contribution from the hand of King Neptune.
+
+Nevertheless, while the gale lasted it was a time of discomfort.  One
+thing for which the crew were thankful was the fact that it was still
+September, and the gale was not one of those wintry varieties which are
+so trying to the hardy patrollers of the North Sea.
+
+Everything had to be battened down.  'Tween-decks the air was stifling,
+and reeked of fumes from the motors.  It was impossible for a man to
+stand unsupported.  Anything that had not been securely lashed would be
+sure to be flung across the deck by the erratic motion.  No hot meals
+were obtainable.  Officers and crew had to eat as best they might,
+without the use of articles of civilization such as plates and similar
+things.
+
+Ross and Vernon saw very little of each other during the gale, except
+for a brief interval during the changes of the watch on deck.  Each
+enjoyed his "trick" on deck, as he crouched behind the bulging
+storm-dodgers and faced the howling wind and the stinging spray.  It
+was greatly to be preferred to being below, cooped up in an atmosphere
+which resembled that of an underground scullery on washing-day, with
+the odours of petrol and lubricating oil thrown in as extras.
+
+"One thing we've to be thankful for," remarked Barry, "and that is that
+it's a sou'wester.  It minimizes the chance of being blown up by a
+derelict mine."
+
+"How is that?" asked Ross.
+
+"A sou'easter's the brute for that.  Brings with it dozens of German
+mines that have broken adrift from the Belgian coast.  When I was
+stationed at Great Yarmouth we had the same game in easterly gales.  It
+was nothing unusual to find twenty of the brutes lying ashore; and on
+several occasions they have exploded on coming into contact with the
+rocks, and then, especially at night, everyone thought that the Germans
+had at last ventured to risk 'The Day'.
+
+"I remember one that came ashore a few miles from Lowestoft.  It was a
+whopper, of a different type from the rest.  An Engineer officer
+brought a dozen young subalterns down to see it and give them an
+object-lesson.  He talked for the best part of an hour, explaining its
+construction, and laying particular stress upon the need of the
+greatest caution when handling it.  Finally he proceeded to explode it
+electrically.  The circuit of the battery was tested and found to be in
+perfect order, and the wires were then connected with the detonator of
+the mine, after the tube containing the fulminate of mercury had been
+removed.
+
+"The whole crowd took cover.  The circuit was completed, but the mine
+didn't budge.  They tried three times, and finally came to the
+conclusion that the thing was a dud.
+
+"Then a squad of soldiers took pot-shots at it until it was fairly
+riddled with bullet holes, but still the blessed thing wouldn't
+explode.  Eventually it was decided to remove the mine to a laboratory
+for examination, and a team of mules was requisitioned to drag it off
+the beach.
+
+"One of the mules suddenly took it into his head to be a little bit
+premature, for he lashed out, broke away from the traces, and pelted
+down the beach.  When the brute came to the place where the mine lay,
+he found that the tackle which the men had already rove to shift it was
+in his way.  Possibly the sight of a rope upset him, for he backed and
+lashed out with his hind legs--and up went the mine with a terrific
+bang.  They never found any of the pieces of the mule."
+
+At length, as is invariably the case, the gale blew itself out, and,
+although the sea still ran high, the absence of broken water made it
+possible for the hatchways to be kept open.
+
+The behaviour of the _Capella_ and her consorts was a matter for
+congratulation.  They had stood the test remarkably well, and had
+proved themselves good all-weather craft, provided that they could be
+kept head to wind.
+
+A week later the _Capella_ returned to Southampton to replenish her
+stores, and after three days in port she received orders to proceed to
+the French coast and patrol off Cape Levi, where the presence of a
+hostile submarine had been reported.
+
+This intelligence was serious.  It meant that, once again, an
+unterseeboot had made its way into the English Channel, and was lying
+on the track of the British transports and hospital ships running
+between Southampton and Rouen.
+
+It took the _Capella_ two hours only to run from The Nab to within
+sight of the French coast.  Even then her motors were not running at
+the maximum number of revolutions.  Extreme speed was only resorted to
+when actually engaged in submarine hunting.
+
+As the vessel closed with the grey cliffs of Normandy, Ross suddenly
+shouted: "Submarine on the port bow!"
+
+Less than two cables' length away could be discerned the twin
+periscopes and a portion of the conning-tower.  The submarine was not
+forging ahead; it was simply stationary, except for a slight movement
+caused by the action of the waves.  It certainly was not a British
+craft.  It might be French.  The odds were that it was German, since
+submarines belonging to the allied nations were not in the habit of
+keeping awash, unless in the presence of an enemy.
+
+Quickly the guns, which were already cleared for action, were trained
+upon the visible part of the submarine; but as she made no attempt to
+move, Captain Syllenger refrained from giving the order to open fire.
+
+Thrice the _Capella_ circled round the mysterious craft, at the same
+time gradually closing, since she had nothing to fear from the
+discharge of a torpedo.
+
+"I believe she's abandoned, sir," said Barry.
+
+The _Capella_ stopped.  Preparations were being made for the lowering
+of a boat, when one of the seamen shouted:
+
+"It's a dud, sir; a blessed decoy-bird!"
+
+The man was right.  Upon investigation, the submarine was found to be
+nothing more than a couple of barrels covered with painted canvas.  Two
+thick poles passing vertically through them, and weighted at the
+lowermost ends to give the necessary stability, served as periscopes.
+
+"There's a real submarine knocking about, I'll swear," said the
+skipper.  "Put a shot into those barrels, Morgan."
+
+One shell was sufficient.  Little more than a hundred chips floating on
+the surface was left of the decoy.
+
+The _Capella_ was about to resume her course when a warning cry was
+heard:
+
+"Torpedo coming, sir!"
+
+From a point bearing half a mile on the vessel's port quarter, the
+track of the on-coming torpedo was clearly discernible.  The _Capella_,
+being without way, would undoubtedly have fallen a victim had it not
+been for her light draught, for before she could forge ahead the
+missile passed under her keel.  Its track could be followed as far as
+the eye could reach, which showed that it was a modern weapon propelled
+with superheated air and having a range of about five miles.
+
+Straight for the source of the missile, tore the British craft, but her
+effort to grapple with the unterseeboot was in vain.  The submarine had
+dived immediately.  No sounds betrayed her presence in the vicinity.
+Had the U-boat been moving, the churning of her propellers would have
+been distinctly audible.
+
+"She's got away, worse luck," growled Sub-lieutenant Fox.  "I wonder
+how she did it?  It's too deep for her to sound, and she can't be
+moving under her own power."
+
+"We'll have her right enough," rejoined Barry, the optimist.  "A light
+haze and a calm sea is what we want.  We'll run her down in less than a
+week, you mark my words."
+
+Four days passed.  The _Capella_ kept her station almost without
+incident.  Ship after ship, deeply laden with troops and munitions,
+entered the sand-banked estuary of the Seine, having been escorted thus
+far by destroyers.  Ship after ship, more lightly burdened, left the
+river, homeward bound.  Amongst them were hospital ships, clearly
+distinguishable by their broad green bands and conspicuous red crosses
+on both bows and quarters.  A big action had taken place "somewhere in
+France", and the passing of the Red Cross vessels was the aftermath of
+a dearly-bought victory.
+
+Yet nothing occurred to threaten the constant stream of shipping.  It
+seemed reasonable to surmise that either the U-boat had met with an
+accident or else that she had transferred her energies to another area.
+
+Meanwhile Ross and Vernon had been working hard, improving their
+seamanship.  Under the instruction of the two sub-lieutenants they were
+making rapid progress in navigation; they could fix their position by
+the use of a sextant, were able to use the semaphore, and, generally,
+competent to carry out the duties required as midshipmen of the watch.
+
+Captain Syllenger had long before overcome his prejudices against the
+sons of Flag Officers--at least in their case--and even expressed his
+willingness to grant them each a certificate of proficiency, should
+they wish to transfer to one of the cruisers of the Royal Navy.
+
+At length the _Capella_ received orders for recall to her station off
+Beachy Head.  She was to put into Havre to revictual that day, leaving
+at 9 a.m. on the morrow.
+
+The lads were heartily glad when the _Capella_ left the malodorous
+_bassin a flotte_.  The irksomeness of lying in the harbour at Le Havre
+palled upon them, even after a few hours.  They yearned for the open
+sea almost from the time their ship made fast alongside the grimy quay.
+
+Forty minutes after leaving French waters, the _Capella_ sighted a
+large cargo-boat steaming northwards.  She was high in ballast and
+rolling like a barrel.  On bringing glasses to bear upon her, the
+_Capella's_ officers found that she was the _Orontabella_, one of the
+vessels chartered by the British Government and fitted as a
+horse-transport ship.  She was doing 16 knots to the _Capella's_ 34,
+and when first sighted was nearly five miles off.
+
+Suddenly a low rumble was heard by the crew of the patrol-vessel.
+Telescopes and binoculars that had just been laid aside were again
+brought into action, and it was seen that the transport was sinking
+rapidly by the stern.  She had been torpedoed under the starboard
+quarter.  The terrific impact of the explosion had torn a large hole,
+besides shattering the rudder and one of the propellers, while all her
+boats in davits were rendered useless by the concussion.
+
+It was a matter of but a few moments before she made her final plunge.
+Already signals were fluttering from her stumpy masts--the well-known
+N.C. (in distress; want immediate assistance) and A.R. (boats are stove
+in).
+
+Captain Syllenger gave a quick glance astern.  There were other
+vessels, but low down on the horizon.  To expect succour from them was
+for the present out of the question.  He had a double task: to attempt
+to destroy the aggressor, and to rescue the transport's crew.
+
+"Prepare to lower boats!" he shouted.  "A midshipman and a couple of
+hands in each.  Guns' crews stand by!"
+
+Clang, chang, went the engine-room telegraph.  Like a greyhound, the
+_Capella_ increased her speed, until she was within a quarter of a mile
+of the foundering vessel.  Then reversing engines, she almost lost way
+at less than a cable's length from the transport.
+
+By this time Ross and Vernon were in their respective boats.  Before
+way was off the ship the falls were paid out and the disengaging gear
+cast off.
+
+"Give way, men," ordered Ross.
+
+His scanty crew, for more men could not well be spared, "gave way" with
+a will, gaining a couple of lengths before his chum was able to push
+off.
+
+With hardly a pause the _Capella_ dashed off, quickly increasing her
+pace to full speed ahead, in her quest for the U-boat that had launched
+the deadly torpedo.
+
+The _Orontabella's_ stern was now under water.  She had a pronounced
+list to starboard.  Dense volumes of smoke and steam, pouring from her
+funnels and hatchways, showed that the water had already invaded her
+boiler-room.  Above the hiss of the scalding vapour and the rush of
+escaping air, could be heard the terrified neighing of a dozen or more
+wounded horses, for whom no escape was possible.
+
+Clustering on the fo'c'sle were about twenty or thirty men, the
+officers and crew who had survived the explosion; for the death-roll,
+especially in the engine-room and stokehold, was very high, men being
+overwhelmed by the inrush of water before they could scramble up the
+steep ladder and through the narrow hatchway.
+
+The waiting men showed no signs of panic.  Those who could swim had not
+troubled to don their cork life-belts, but were calmly engaged in
+lashing their life-saving devices round the shoulders of their less
+fortunate comrades.
+
+[Illustration: THE SINKING OF THE "ORONTABELLA" (missing from book)]
+
+Ross ordered his men to back towards the foundering vessel.  He
+realized that at any moment the transport might plunge suddenly, and
+the danger of being dragged down by the suction was a thing he had to
+avoid.  There was also a risk of the boat being swamped by the men as
+they clambered on board.
+
+"Jump!" he shouted.  "Not too many at a time."
+
+Three men accepted the invitation: two good swimmers and a non-swimmer.
+The former, grasping their struggling companion by the shoulders,
+struck out without much difficulty and reached Ross's boat, where they
+were quickly hauled into safety.
+
+Setting the rescued men to take an oar each, for there were several to
+spare lying on the thwarts, Ross took the whaler closer in, since he
+had now more means of propulsion at his command.
+
+Four more followed, and were picked up by Vernon's men.  Meanwhile the
+bows of the _Orontabella_ were rising high out of the water, as the
+stern sank correspondingly deeper, until those of the officers and crew
+who still remained on board had to cling desperately to the rails to
+prevent themselves slipping into the maelstrom that surged over the
+submerged part of the sinking ship.
+
+Suddenly the vessel dived.  Where a few seconds previously a towering
+mass of black and red plating rose high above the boats, there hung a
+cloud of smoke, steam, and spray, while all around the water was
+thrashed white with foam.
+
+"Give way, men!" shouted Ross.
+
+The rowers were too late.  Before the boat could pull clear of the
+scene of disaster, a vicious, crested wave, so hollow that the lean
+quarters of the whaler were unable to rise to it, poured into the frail
+craft.
+
+The next instant Ross and his crew were struggling in the confusion of
+the broiling sea.
+
+Vernon, although farther from the spot, narrowly escaped the fate of
+his chum.  It was surprising what a terrific commotion the
+_Orontabella_ caused at the last.  For some minutes he could see
+nothing beyond the tips of the blades of the oars.  Everything else was
+enveloped in smoke, steam, and spray.
+
+Gradually the waves subsided and the wind dispersed the pall of vapour.
+The sea was dotted with the heads of swimmers.  Ross's boat, with her
+stem and stern-posts just visible above the surface, was waterlogged,
+yet retained sufficient buoyancy to support half a dozen men.
+
+Here, indeed, was a pretty pickle.  At the very most, Vernon's boat
+would hold fifteen or sixteen men.  The _Capella_ was almost out of
+sight.  The whole attention of her officers and crew would be centred
+upon the U-boat.  So long as there was any indication of the latter's
+whereabouts, the patrol-vessel would cling tenaciously to her quest.
+
+There was very little left floating from the sunken ship.  A few
+gratings, handspikes, a couple of breakers, and fragments of the
+shattered boats, but nothing substantial enough to support a man above
+water; and in mid-Channel, although it was only September, the sea was
+too cold to enable the swimmers to keep afloat very long without almost
+certain danger of cramp.
+
+Vernon looked around for his chum.  He saw him sharing an oar with one
+of the crew.
+
+"Come on, my lads!" shouted Ross encouragingly.  "We'll hike her up.
+Half a dozen of you who have life-belts come round this side, and when
+I say 'All together!' lift for all you're worth."
+
+The men obeyed as quickly as they could in the circumstances.  Finding
+that they could easily keep afloat, the non-swimmers had regained their
+confidence.  Piloted by those who could swim, the men ranged themselves
+along one gunwale of the waterlogged whaler.
+
+"All ready?" asked Ross, whose knowledge of how to empty a waterlogged
+Canadian canoe prompted him to try a large, heavy boat.  "Together!"
+
+Up rose the boat's gunwale as high as the men's arms could reach, but
+with a dull swish the whaler resumed its former position.  In lifting
+one side the other had dropped deeply beneath the surface, and the
+attempt to shake out the water had ended in failure.
+
+"Now then," ordered Vernon, taking his turn to direct operations.  "All
+swimmers get overboard for a few minutes.  Those with life-belts get on
+board, and take off your belts."
+
+In five minutes a dozen cork life-belts were available.  Manoeuvring
+his boat alongside the waterlogged whaler, Vernon gave directions for
+the belts to be lashed underneath the thwarts, so that they were
+completely submerged.  Then taking the whaler's painter he hove taut
+until, added to the lifting powers of the cork and the upward strain on
+the ropes, the gunwale rose a good three inches above the water.
+
+This done, one of the _Capella's_ men, armed with a baler, began
+throwing out the water from the whaler.  In another five minutes the
+boat showed sufficient buoyancy to allow two more hands to clamber on
+board.  They, too, baled vigorously, with the result that once more the
+whaler was free from water.
+
+Between the two boats, all the survivors of the _Orontabella_ were
+easily accommodated; but when at length the midshipmen looked for the
+_Capella_, the patrol-boat was nowhere to be seen.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI
+
+Adrift in the Channel
+
+"She'll be back for us soon," declared Vernon optimistically,
+addressing his chum, for the two boats were within twenty feet of each
+other.  "Can you see any signs of her now?"
+
+Ross stood upright in the stern-sheets and, shading his eyes with his
+hand, gave a careful look in the direction where the _Capella_ was
+supposed to be.
+
+"No," he answered.  "And I cannot see any signs of the other vessels we
+saw some time ago.  We'd better let the men rest on their oars."
+
+Unknown to the two midshipmen, they had for the last hour and a half
+been in the grip of the strong west-going tide that surges along the
+French coast.  In that interval they had been carried out of the course
+of the vessels they had sighted, and were some four or six miles from
+the spot where the _Orontabella_ had sunk.
+
+Another hour passed.  The men who had been in the water took the
+opportunity of drying their clothing in the hot sunshine.  They treated
+their misfortune lightly, making very little reference to the loss of
+their vessel.  One would have thought that being torpedoed was almost
+an everyday occurrence.
+
+As the minutes slipped by, it began to occur to Ross and his chum that
+the _Capella_ had missed them entirely.  In another few hours night
+would be coming on, and the prospect of spending ten hours of darkness
+in a couple of open boats in mid-Channel was not at all alluring.
+
+Each boat was equipped with compass, lead-line, signal-book, lamp, box
+of biscuits, and beaker of water.  None of these articles belonging to
+Ross's boat had suffered, in spite of their being immersed, except the
+lamp, for the provisions were in watertight boxes.  Masts and sails
+were not in the boats, having been left on board the _Capella_ when the
+rescuers put off hurriedly on their errand of mercy.
+
+"What's the best thing to be done, skipper?" asked Ross, addressing the
+master of the _Orontabella_.
+
+"Well, sir, since you ask me," was the reply, "I'd shape a course due
+north.  We'd be in the track of craft making up and down Channel before
+it gets dark.  If we don't fall in with any vessel, we can carry on.
+'Taint so very far to land, considering the number of hands we've got
+in the boats."
+
+Quickly the available oars were manned, the men being told off in
+relays to row for half an hour at a time, while the skipper of the
+torpedoed boat relieved Ross at the yoke-lines.  The mate, who had been
+picked up by the other boat, was also able to give Vernon a spell.
+
+At six o'clock, a biscuit and a small quantity of water were served out
+to each man, and preparations were made for the approaching night.
+Vernon's boat, which possessed the only lantern that would burn, was to
+take the lead as soon as darkness set in, the light enabling the whaler
+to keep in touch with her consort.
+
+"Jolly funny where the _Capella's_ got to," remarked Ross to the
+skipper.  "With her speed she could search a couple of hundred square
+miles by this time."
+
+"'Spose she wasn't torpedoed?" asked the _Orontabella's_ master.
+
+"No jolly fear!" replied the midshipman decidedly.  "She's
+torpedo-proof.  We've had plenty of them fired at us, but never the
+least danger of being hit."
+
+"It's a good thing the sea's calm," continued the skipper.  "We're
+doing a good four knots.  Twelve hours at the very most ought to bring
+us in sight of the Wight, but we've dropped a long way to lee'ard.
+P'raps it's as well, for it's no joke to be in the thick of the
+cross-Channel traffic at night, with only a tuppenny dip to light us.
+Good heavens!  What's that?"
+
+Less than fifty yards from the boat a pole-like object, throwing off a
+double feather of spray, was forging through the water.
+
+"A periscope, sir!" shouted half a dozen voices.
+
+Ross did not require to be told that.  With considerable misgivings, he
+saw the metal shaft rise higher and higher out of the water; then the
+tip of an ensign-staff, followed almost simultaneously by the snout and
+conning-tower of a large German submarine.  Finally the unterseeboot
+rose to the surface, revealing her entire length, which was not less
+than three hundred feet.
+
+She slowed down.  The aperture in her conning-tower opened and a couple
+of officers appeared.  From hatchways fore and aft, seamen clad in grey
+fearnought coats came tumbling on deck, greeting the British with jibes
+and laughter.
+
+"So you getting on, Englishmen!" exclaimed a leutnant.  "Still it is
+long vay to land, hein?  An' where vos der _Capella_?  Suppose I tell
+you: we her haf sent to der bottom.  Goot night, ver' goot night.  Our
+ver' kind regards to Jellicoe."
+
+The U-boat forged ahead, then, getting way, made off at high speed.  In
+a quarter of an hour she was out of sight.
+
+"I suppose those fellows were telling the truth, old man," called out
+Ross, addressing his chum.
+
+"'Fraid so," replied Vernon.  "They had her name pat, so it looks as if
+the poor old ship's done for.  But, I say, what a whopper of a
+submarine!"
+
+"One of the new type, I should fancy," said the skipper of the
+_Orontabella_.  "I shouldn't be surprised if she were a mine-layer as
+well."
+
+Darkness fell upon the scene.  The men rowed doggedly, Vernon setting
+the course by the simple expedient of keeping the Pole Star in line
+with the boat's stem.  It saved the strain of peering into the compass
+bowl, and in any case the boats were bound to hit the English coast,
+unless they were swamped or run down.
+
+Throughout the long night the steady progress was maintained.  It was
+horribly cold.  Most of the men were lightly clad in imperfectly dried
+garments.  Both Ross and Vernon were glad when the officers of the
+_Orontabella_ relieved them, since they could take turn at the oars and
+derive a certain amount of warmth from the exertion.
+
+Day dawned at last, a brilliant pink sky that betokened bad weather
+before the day was out.  Away on the starboard bow could be discerned a
+grey cliff surmounted by dark hills.  It was the Isle of Wight, distant
+about six miles off.
+
+With the appearance of the sun the wind freshened, and soon developed
+into a strong breeze dead in their teeth.  Spray began to fly over the
+bows, soon to be followed by green seas, that necessitated constant
+baling.  It was quite evident that every yard of that six miles meant
+desperate work, with the chances of being swamped before the boat
+reached land.
+
+The men, weakened by hunger and exposure, stuck gamely to their task,
+yet after another half an hour's hard pulling the boats seemed no
+nearer their object.  They were barely holding their own against the
+wind and waves.
+
+"What's to be done now?" asked Ross, consulting the experienced
+skipper.  Although the midshipman was in charge, he was not above
+asking the advice of a man who had been to sea almost as many years as
+the lad had been days.  "We're hardly making headway, and the sea's
+beating up fast."
+
+"And the men are almost done up," added the skipper.  "It's bound to be
+worse before it gets better.  I would suggest that we ride to a
+sea-anchor, and trust to luck to be picked up."
+
+The men quickly got to work.  A triangle was composed of six oars in
+pairs lashed together, two of the boat's gratings being secured between
+the ash spars.  To the apex the anchor was made fast, in order to make
+the sea-anchor float in a vertical position, its weight compensated by
+the use of the now empty water-beaker as a float.
+
+Secured by three spans of equal length, which in turn were bent to the
+boat's painter, the sea-anchor was dropped overboard.  For some
+distance the whaler drifted to leeward, until held by the strain of the
+painter she rode head to wind, and in comparative safety in the wake of
+the floating breakwater.
+
+Vernon's boat then came close alongside.  Her painter was caught and
+secured, allowing her to ride astern.
+
+The crews were then at liberty to rest, with the knowledge that their
+drift was little more than half a knot.  Yet every two hours they would
+be drifting a mile farther from shore, unless their plight were
+observed by passing vessels.
+
+By this time the sea was running high.  At one moment the whaler would
+be tossing high upon the rounded crest of a wave, with the other boat
+deep in the trough.  At the next, nothing was to be seen from the
+whaler save an incline of green water and a canopy of dark-grey sky.
+On either side the crests were white with foam, yet, thanks to the
+sea-anchor, hardly a drop of water was taken in over the boats'
+gunwales.
+
+The men sat in silence, turning their backs to the keen wind.  A few
+who had tobacco smoked.  Those who had not were glad to chew the small
+quantity given them by their more fortunate comrades.  As for Ross and
+Vernon, they were glad to doze, lying on the damp bottom-boards with
+their heads pillowed on their arms.
+
+Ross was almost asleep when he was aroused by one of the men announcing
+that a vessel was in sight.  At the prospect of rescue, all hands were
+alert.  The man was right, for, as the whaler rose on the crests of the
+waves, a dark, grey shape could be discerned through the mirk at a
+distance of about a couple of miles.
+
+Quickly the shape resolved itself into a large four-funnelled cruiser
+pelting down-Channel at full speed.  Unless she altered her course she
+would pass within a hundred yards of the boats.
+
+"Lash a shirt to the boat-hook, lads!" ordered Ross.
+
+A few moments of intense anxiety followed.  Then a groan of
+disappointment rose from the men as the cruiser ported helm.
+
+She was then a couple of miles to windward.  The smoke from her funnels
+drifted around the boats, making it impossible for the derelict men to
+see what she was doing, until the evil-smelling haze dispersed, showing
+the cruiser less than two cables' length away and bearing down towards
+them.
+
+From her after bridge a seaman was semaphoring vigorously.
+
+"Will slow down to windward of you," read the message.
+
+"Oars, lads!" ordered Ross.
+
+The bowman of each boat promptly cut the painter.  With renewed spirit
+the rowers bent to their work, and soon the boats were alongside and
+under the lee of H.M.S. _Oxford_, armoured cruiser of the County class.
+
+By the aid of bowlines the rescued men were quickly hauled over the
+side.  Without delay the _Capella's_ boats were cut adrift, and the
+cruiser proceeded on her way.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII
+
+An Unexpected Capture
+
+"I can see no possibility of landing you at present," said the officer
+of the watch, after Ross had reported the events that had led up to the
+rescue of the two boats.  "We're under sealed orders.  We have to make
+for a certain rendezvous at full speed.  When we arrive we shall know
+where we are bound for--until then we are quite in the dark.  We'll
+wireless, however, and let the Commander-in-Chief at Portsmouth know
+that you are safe."
+
+"Have you any news of the _Capella_?"
+
+"Yes; she was mined while in pursuit of a submarine.  It is a dickens
+of a puzzle to know why, for our sweepers were over there early that
+morning and never found a single mine.  Whatever it was, it was not so
+powerful as they generally are, for the _Capella_ was able to make for
+shore and run aground within a few miles of Barfleur.  All hands were
+saved, luckily, but I'm afraid this gale will do for her entirely.
+It's blowing great guns."
+
+"Then those fellows on the unterseeboot were wrong," remarked Vernon.
+"They said she had gone down with all hands.  We believe that the
+submarine is a mine-layer, and perhaps it was one of her mines that the
+old _Capella_ bumped against."
+
+"Let's hope the patrol-vessels will settle her," rejoined the officer
+of the watch.  "But you must be awfully knocked up.  I'll introduce you
+to your new messmates, and they'll give you a shake-down in the
+steerage flat.  The _Orontabella's_ officers can mess with the
+'warrants', and the men will be berthed for'ard."
+
+The Lieutenant stepped to the top of the ladder from the navigation
+bridge.  A couple of midshipmen were standing on the superstructure,
+watching with professional interest the splicing of a six-inch hawser.
+
+"Mr. Sefton!" sang out the officer of the watch.
+
+The midshipman ran up the ladder and saluted.
+
+"Your messmates for the time being," continued the Lieutenant, after he
+had formally introduced Trefusis and Haye.  "They've had a pretty rough
+time, and they are jolly peckish, I know."
+
+Midshipman Sefton led the two chums below, and piloted them into a very
+long room on the main deck.  It was plainly, nay scantily furnished,
+and appeared at first sight to be utterly cheerless.  Possibly the idea
+was heightened by the fact that frequently the scuttles were obscured
+by the seas that slapped viciously against the cruiser's sides.
+
+"This is the gun-room," explained Sefton apologetically.  "We've had to
+clear it out pretty thoroughly, you know.  No knick-knacks or
+pretty-pretties in war time.  Sorry the other fellows aren't here.
+We're four one-stripers, three midshipmen R.N., and five midshipmen
+R.N.R.--a jolly lively crowd of us, I can assure you."
+
+He touched a bell.  A messman appeared.
+
+"Jones," ordered the midshipman, "a good square meal for two, and jolly
+well look sharp about it."
+
+"You've got to be dead nuts on that chap if you want anything done in a
+hurry," explained Sefton after the man had cleared off.  "It's the only
+way to check slackness.  No doubt he gets his own back by giving us
+plum-duff without troubling to extract the cockroaches; but we manage
+to thrive on it.  By the by, I'll tell my servant to sling a couple of
+hammocks for you.  There'll be no need to turn out before dinner."
+
+Sefton hastened below to acquaint the marine who, for the sum of ten
+shillings a month, acted as the budding Nelson's factotum to make the
+necessary preparations for his new chums.  By the time he returned, a
+substantial lunch had been set before Trefusis and Haye.
+
+"I say, you fellows," remarked the midshipman; "I notice that
+Eccles--that's the officer of the watch, you know--was greasing his jaw
+tackle a good bit.  Did he mention where we are bound for?"
+
+"Nothing definite," replied Vernon.  "He said that the ship was under
+sealed orders."
+
+"Then it's no use hazarding a guess," decided Sefton.  "It might be
+anywhere from China to Peru.  In any case, it's a change from what
+we've been doing--knocking about in the North Sea, waiting for an
+appointment which the Germans flatly decline to keep.  Four months
+solid, and I've never seen a gun discharged except at target practice."
+
+During the progress of the meal young Sefton was a little inclined to
+patronize his guests.  Perhaps he did it unconsciously.
+
+"My governor's a post-captain," he observed in the course of
+conversation.  "What's yours?"
+
+"Only an Admiral," replied Ross.
+
+"Is he, by Jove!" exclaimed Sefton.  "Then why the deuce are you a
+'with but after'?"
+
+"A what?" asked Trefusis, somewhat mystified.
+
+"An R.N.R. man ranks with, but after, an R.N. fellow with equal rank,"
+explained the midshipman.  "It's a fact: look it up in the King's
+Regulations.  But, I say, do you play footer?  We're in a match.
+Gun-room versus Ward-room, coming off this week.  If you play, I'll get
+Cranbury--he's president of our mess--to put you in the team."
+
+The meal over, Ross and Vernon were taken to the steerage flat, an
+electrically lighted space out of which opened the cabin of the junior
+officers.  At the after end of the flat, a marine sentry paced day and
+night, his post extending from the stern torpedo-tube to the gun-room
+door on the port side, and to the armoured door on the starboard side.
+Amongst his varied and multitudinous duties, particularly strict orders
+were given him not to allow anyone to put their hands on the
+paintwork--one of the standing orders dating from the prehistoric days
+before the war, when "spit and polish" were regarded as being
+absolutely essential to the efficiency of H.M. ships.
+
+At three bells in the second dog-watch, the _Oxford_ having arrived at
+the rendezvous, the sealed orders were opened.  It was then found that,
+in company with the _Guildford_ and the _Launceston_, the cruiser had
+to proceed to Halifax, Nova Scotia, to escort a contingent of Canadian
+troops to Liverpool.
+
+This was but one of the manifold odd jobs performed by the British Navy
+in connection with the war--necessary, but without any prospect of
+excitement.  The trip was regarded as a picnic, after weeks of
+monotonous patrol duty, for when 800 miles west of Ireland there was
+little likelihood of falling in with any hostile submarine, while other
+German craft had been swept off the board months previously.
+
+On the third day out the football match came off.  Ross and Vernon were
+included in the gun-room team, and never before had they participated
+in a rugger match in such strange circumstances.  The _Oxford_ was
+pitching slightly in the long Atlantic swell.  The "ground" was the
+port side of the quarter-deck, nets being rigged up to prevent the ball
+getting very much in touch with the sea.  The fun was fast and furious,
+the referee being inclined to tolerance; and before half-time half the
+players were off the field owing to minor injuries, ranging from the
+smashing of the Assistant Paymaster's eyeglasses to the laying out of
+the portly Engineer-Commander.
+
+Suddenly the _Oxford_ turned 8 degrees to starboard.  The alteration of
+course resulted in a break in the game.  Something out of the usual had
+occurred for the cruiser, which was the leading vessel in line ahead,
+to break out of station.
+
+A bugle sharply sounded the "G"--officers' call.  For'ard the bosn's
+mates' pipes were turning up the hands.  The Captain, Commander, and
+officer of the watch were on the fore-bridge looking steadily at a dark
+cloud of smoke showing beyond the horizon.
+
+It was a ship on fire.  The alert officer of the watch had noticed the
+smoke, which was much too dense to be caused by the vessel's furnaces.
+On reporting the matter to the captain, the latter immediately ordered
+the _Oxford_ to be steered in that direction.  As senior officer, he
+gave orders for the other cruisers to stand on that course.
+
+"She's quite a small packet, I should imagine," remarked one of the
+Subs.  "At any rate she's not fitted with wireless."
+
+In half an hour the cruiser was sufficiently near to see clearly the
+distressed vessel.  She was a cargo-boat of about two thousand tons.
+Amidships, flames were mounting fiercely from her hatches.  She had
+stopped her engines, and was preparing to lower boats.  Aft, she flew
+the Stars and Stripes, upside down as a signal of distress.
+
+The ship was doomed.  Fanned by the light breeze, the flames were
+rapidly spreading.  Her cargo undoubtedly consisted of highly
+inflammable material, since it blazed freely, while the smoke smelt
+strongly of burnt oil.
+
+The _Oxford_ stopped at four cables' length to windward of the burning
+ship.  She could do nothing beyond rescuing the crew on board.  There
+was no necessity to lower her boats, since the cargo-boat obviously had
+enough for all hands.
+
+At length the boats of the unfortunate ship were lowered.  There was no
+undue haste.  Men deliberately threw their bundles into the arms of
+their waiting comrades before they swarmed down the falls.  The captain
+was the last to leave, a bulge under his coat betraying the fact that
+he had taken the ship's papers with him.
+
+"Nothing of an explosive nature in her cargo," said Ross to his chum.
+"Otherwise they would have sheered off a bit quicker.  My word, how she
+does burn!  Isn't it a grand sight?"
+
+"Yes," admitted Vernon.  "It's lucky there's help at hand.  Knocking
+about in the boats in mid-Atlantic must be ten times as bad as in the
+English Channel."
+
+"I beg to differ," remarked one of the Subs who was standing by.
+"There's not so much shipping, I'll admit, but the waves are longer and
+more regular in mid-ocean.  It's marvellous what an open boat can do
+when she's put to it, except in very broken water."
+
+The boats were now approaching the _Oxford_.  A monkey-ladder had been
+lowered to enable the men to surmount the lofty side of the cruiser,
+while the sailors, always ready to lend a hand in cases of distress,
+were swarming down to the net-shelves in readiness to receive the
+personal belongings of the American seamen.
+
+"Look!" whispered Vernon.  "Isn't that chap like our old pal
+Ramblethorne?"
+
+He pointed to a tall, bronzed man clad in canvas jumper and trousers,
+and wearing a grey slouched hat.  He was sitting in the stern-sheets of
+the second boat, with his shoulders hunched and his face half-averted.
+
+"Like him?" echoed Ross.  "By Jove, it's he, right enough!"
+
+Trefusis was right.  Von Hauptwald, alias Ramblethorne, had succeeded
+in evading the hue and cry after his escape on Harley Bank, and had
+continued to remain hidden in the house of a naturalized German in
+Cheshire until the search for him had somewhat relaxed.
+
+He then managed to ship as a fireman on board a vessel bound for
+Montreal, knowing that his chances of getting out of Great Britain
+would be greater if he made for a Dominion port rather than one in the
+United States.
+
+At Montreal he promptly deserted, made his way across the border, and
+thence to New York.  Here he picked up with a German-American
+shipowner, who readily agreed to help him back to Germany.
+
+A cargo-boat, the _Tehuantepec Girl_, was loading with a cargo
+consisting of cotton, ready-made clothing, and leather equipment.
+Nominally her destination was Leith.  Her manifest and bill of lading
+were made out to that effect, but secretly her skipper had instructions
+to make for Stockholm.  If he were overhauled and taken into Lerwick by
+a British patrol-boat, well and good.  The owners must be compensated
+by the British Government, even if the _Tehuantepec Girl_ was miles out
+of her course for Leith.  On the other hand, if the boat succeeded in
+reaching the Baltic, she would be conveniently "captured", by previous
+arrangement, by a German cruiser or destroyer and taken into Kiel.
+
+Unfortunately the fact of keeping secret the real destination of the
+_Tehuantepec Girl_ led to her undoing.  A German dock-hand, who was
+really in the pay of the Teutonic Government, had placed an infernal
+machine in the cargo, setting it to explode two days after leaving New
+York.
+
+In less than a quarter of an hour after the discovery of the outbreak,
+the fire had taken such a firm hold that all attempts to subdue it were
+hopeless.
+
+And now von Hauptwald, in the disguise of a Yankee deck-hand, was being
+rowed towards a craft which he would have given almost anything to
+avoid--a British cruiser.
+
+Still, he was not dismayed.  The chances of detection were absurdly
+small.  None of the _Tehuantepec Girl's_ crew knew his true personality
+except the captain, and he was to be handsomely rewarded as soon as the
+spy was safe in German territory.  On the other hand, there might be
+one amongst the 655 forming the complement of the _Oxford_ who might
+recognize the one-time doctor who had lived at Devonport.
+
+"Let's get out of his way," suggested Vernon.  "We'll inform the
+Commander, and he will order him to be put under arrest."
+
+"I'm not going to budge," declared Ross.  "If he sees us, what can he
+do?"
+
+"I'm not afraid of him," protested Haye.
+
+"Very well, then; let's stop where we are.  He's got to know sooner or
+later."
+
+The first boat had already delivered her human cargo Upon the cruiser's
+quarter-deck.  As each man's name was taken down by the master-at-arms
+he was sent forward.  The first mate remained in conversation with the
+Commander until the arrival of the _Tehuantepec Girl's_ skipper.
+
+Von Hauptwald was one of the last men to come aboard.  As he swung
+himself over the rail he gave a swift glance at the group of officers.
+His eye caught that of Ross Trefusis.
+
+For a moment the spy thought that he was mistaken, but a second glimpse
+confirmed his suspicions.
+
+"Steady on there!" shouted the Commander.  "What the deuce are you up
+to?"
+
+Von Hauptwald had broken into a run across the quarter-deck.  With a
+bound he cleared the stanchion-rails, and plunged head foremost into
+the sea.
+
+He had realized that to remain on the cruiser meant arrest and ultimate
+death as a dangerous spy.  Better by far to be drowned without further
+delay than to experience all the horrors of lying under sentence of
+death.
+
+He had acted spontaneously, yet there was method in his madness.  By
+running across to the other side of the ship there was little chance of
+the boats being able to pick him up ere he sank for the last time.  Not
+until he rose to the surface did he realize his difficulty.  He was a
+strong swimmer, and the natural instinct to strike out overpowered his
+determination to sink.
+
+There was a rush of officers and men to the ship's side to see what was
+taking place.  With two exceptions, they thought that the supposed
+seaman had suddenly lost his reason.
+
+Two seamen, one a brawny specimen, the other a red-haired
+middle-weight, dived after the would-be suicide.  Others were on the
+point of following when the Commander restrained them.
+
+"Away sea-boat!" was the order.
+
+The _Oxford_ was now forging slowly through the water.  During the
+rescue of the _Tehuantepec Girl's_ people, she had drifted rather too
+close to the burning ship to be safe, should an explosion occur.
+Already von Hauptwald was fifty yards astern, with the two seamen
+swimming towards him with powerful strokes.
+
+His efforts to drown were a failure.  He simply couldn't keep his head
+under.  His attempts to swallow quantities of salt water only increased
+the instinctive motion of the limbs to keep himself afloat.  Bitterly
+he regretted that he had not picked up some heavy metal object during
+his career across the cruiser's quarterdeck.
+
+The approach of his would-be rescuers made him realize the necessity of
+self-destruction.  At the encouraging shout of "Cheer up, old mate,
+you're safe!" spluttered by the leading seaman, he dived, pressing his
+chest with both hands in the hope that he would be able to expel the
+air from his lungs.
+
+A horny hand gripped him by the arm.  He felt himself being drawn to
+the surface.  As his head appeared, he swung round and dealt the seaman
+a powerful blow with his fist.  The man, taken completely by surprise,
+relaxed his grip.  Von Hauptwald's blow had almost broken his shoulder.
+
+"Be careful, Ginger!" he shouted to his mate.  "He's fair balmy.  Mind
+he don't plug you."
+
+The second seaman swam in a circle just beyond reach of the spy's arm.
+His attempt to get behind the German failed, for the simple reason that
+von Hauptwald gave no opportunity for an attack in the rear.  The other
+sailor, floating on his back and rubbing his injured arm, was content
+to shout advice and await developments.
+
+The red-haired man was not deficient in courage, but he did not at all
+relish the idea of tackling single-handed a powerfully built
+maniac--for such he took the spy to be.  He wisely awaited the approach
+of the _Oxford's_ sea-boat, which, manned by four rowers who were
+encouraged by Midshipman Setley, was being urged rapidly towards the
+scene.
+
+"Way enough!" shouted the middy.
+
+The bowman boated his oar and leant over the bows.  As he did so von
+Hauptwald avoided his grip, and, seizing the boat's keel, brought his
+head in violent contact with the elm planking.
+
+Then it was that Ginger saw his chance and took it.  Grabbing the
+German by the legs, he hung on like grim death, shouting to his
+comrades to "tackle the lubber".
+
+Within an ace of capsizing the boat, von Hauptwald was hauled on board.
+He fought desperately.  For a moment it seemed as if he would more than
+hold his own against the four seamen, until one of them, seizing a
+stretcher, dealt the spy a crack on the head that laid him senseless
+across the thwarts.
+
+"Couldn't help it, sir," exclaimed the man apologetically.
+
+"You did perfectly right, Dickenson," said the midshipman.  "He's
+properly mad.  Come on, you men, are you going to bathe for the rest of
+the day?"
+
+The victim of von Hauptwald's attack had to be assisted into the boat,
+which, on making the ship, was quickly hoisted and secured.
+
+Meanwhile the _Tehuantepec Girl_ was on the point of sinking.  From
+stem to stern she was a roaring furnace.  Mingled with the roar of the
+flames could be heard the hiss of water coming in contact with the
+red-hot plates, while ever and anon came the crash of metal as the deck
+beams gave way and fell into the hold.
+
+Suddenly she parted amidships.  The flames died out, overpowered by the
+inrush of water.  A thick column of smoke and steam arose as the bow
+and stem [Transcriber's note: stern?] portions floated apart.  Then
+with the roar of escaping air the remains of the Yankee cargo-boat
+disappeared, to find a resting-place 7000 fathoms deep on the bed of
+the Atlantic.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII
+
+Mined
+
+"So that accounts for the fellow's behaviour," remarked the Captain of
+the _Oxford_, after Ross and Vernon had communicated their discovery to
+the Commander, who in turn reported the news to the skipper.  "The
+doctor says he is out of danger, eh?  From a medical point of view, no
+doubt.  Put him in the cells, Master-at-arms.  We'll take good care not
+to land him at Halifax."
+
+Upon arriving at the Nova Scotian port, whither the _Oxford's_ consorts
+had preceded her, the officers and crew of the _Tehuantepec Girl_ were
+landed.  Forty-eight hours elapsed before the transports were ready to
+leave, and thus Ross and Vernon, with most of the officers of the
+cruisers, had an opportunity of a "spell ashore".
+
+On the homeward run nothing untoward occurred, except that, instead of
+proceeding to Liverpool, the cruisers and their convoy were suddenly
+ordered by wireless to make for the Clyde.
+
+Off the Pladda Light the transports were met by a flotilla of
+destroyers, while the cruisers were ordered to proceed via Cape Wrath
+to rejoin the fleet at Rosyth.  Without slackening speed the three
+cruisers flung about, and steered a course immediately opposed to the
+one they had previously been following.  Experience had told them that
+speed was one of the essentials to safety, even when in land-locked
+waters such as the Firth of Clyde.
+
+"You don't look like leaving us in a hurry," remarked Midshipman
+Sefton, when he communicated the latest change of plans to Trefusis and
+his chum.
+
+"We don't mind in the slightest," Ross hastened to assure him.  "It's
+jolly comfortable on board the _Oxford_."
+
+"Wait until we're ordered straight away for patrol work," said Sefton.
+"It's more than likely that we may be pushed off to the Norwegian coast
+without having so much as a sniff at Rosyth.  We'll just about hit the
+equinoctial gales, and in those latitudes they get ice and snow pretty
+early in the autumn.  But, by the by, I heard the doctor tell the
+Commander that your pal, von Hauptwald, is in a pretty state of funk."
+
+"I shouldn't wonder," replied Ross.  "A court-martial will make it
+pretty hot for him."
+
+"It's hardly that," said Sefton.  "The fellow's absolutely crazy with
+fear.  He's been imploring the master-at-arms and the sentry on the
+cells to ask the skipper to shift him above the water-line.  It's only
+since the ship arrived in home waters, so it seems as if he's in mortal
+dread of being cooped up below and the _Oxford_ being mined or
+torpedoed."
+
+"And what did the Captain say?"
+
+"Merely told the M.A.A. to carry on.  Since the cells are below the
+water-line, and the King's Regulations say that prisoners are to be
+placed in cells, that ends the matter."
+
+Passing through the Little Minch, and continually steering an erratic
+course in order to baffle any unterseebooten, should they be operating
+off the West coast of Scotland, the _Oxford_ rounded Cape Wrath.
+
+In spite of a rapidly falling glass the weather still remained fine,
+although the heavy swell encountered off the coast of Sutherland and
+Caithness betokened, in conjunction with the barometer, a gale at no
+distant date.
+
+"This will be you fellows' last night on board," remarked Farnworth,
+one of the Acting Sub-lieutenants, as Ross and Vernon prepared to turn
+into their hammocks after a strenuous sing-song in the gun-room mess.
+"We'll be at Rosyth before noon to-morrow.  'Fraid it's been a bit tame
+after the _Capella_.  Beyond that affair of the _Tehuantepec Girl_
+there hasn't been much doing.  The small fry get all the excitement,
+I'm sorry to say.  These armoured cruisers seem to be neither fish,
+fowl, nor good red herring in these times."
+
+It seemed to Ross that he had been asleep only a few minutes when he
+was suddenly awakened by a terrific crash, followed by a concussion
+that shook the cruiser from stem to stern.  His hammock rolled so
+violently that he promptly fell out on the floor of the flat.  Before
+he could rise, the occupant of the next hammock tried his level best to
+thrust his toes into Trefusis' mouth.  The rest of the midshipmen, who
+were watch below, were either thrown from their hammocks or had leapt
+hurriedly from them.  The electric lights were out.  The shock had
+either shattered the carbon threads or had broken the wires.
+
+"Torpedoed!" exclaimed a junior midshipman.
+
+"Dry up!" ordered Sefton sternly.  "On deck all of you; there's the
+'Action' bugle--no, it's 'Collision Stations'."
+
+Just then a light appeared.  The sentry in the steerage flat had lit
+one of the bulkhead lamps, which are always in readiness for use in the
+event of a break-down in the electric current.
+
+The cruiser was listing perceptibly to starboard.
+
+She was in danger of turning turtle and foundering, but even in the
+face of death not one of the handful of young officers showed the
+faintest sign of fear.  If in their inmost minds the lads were a little
+timorous, they bravely kept their feelings to themselves.  They were
+part and parcel of a British warship's complement.  They had a
+reputation to maintain--the reputation of a Navy dating back for
+centuries.  It was in safe keeping, for the _Oxford's_ midshipmen were
+made of the right stuff.
+
+A few made a hasty dive into their sea-chests to make sure of some
+precious article.  Others scrambled into their thick coats, bantering
+each other as they did so.
+
+Overhead, the noise of hundreds of feet could be heard as the men
+doubled aft to the quarter-deck.  Above the tumult rose the shrill
+pipes of the bos'n's mates' whistles, and the hoarse shouts of "On
+deck, every mother's son of you!" bawled by a leather-lunged petty
+officer.
+
+"We don't want to leave you, but we fear that we must go," parodied one
+of the midshipmen, giving a farewell glimpse into the gun-room that had
+been his home for the last fifteen months.  "Come on, you fellows,
+who's going to enter for the long-distance swimming race?"
+
+Up the ladder swept the throng of youthful humanity, followed by the
+sentry, who had received orders to abandon his post.  On the half-deck,
+the gun-room officers met the swarm of senior officers issuing from
+their cabins, mostly clad in pyjamas and uniform caps.  The
+Gunnery-lieutenant was afterwards heard to declare solemnly that he had
+seen the Paymaster issuing from the ship's office with the ledger on
+his head, while under his left arm he held his cap.
+
+"Let's stick together, old man!" exclaimed Ross as the chums gained the
+quarter-deck.
+
+The first hurried rush aft had now given place to strict discipline.
+The men were falling in as calmly as if mustered for divisions.  Some
+were blowing up their pneumatic swimming-collars, others helping to
+adjust a comrade's life-belt.  A few were joking and talking, none of
+the officers gainsaying them.  By virtue of an unwritten law the men
+were allowed to smoke, and the odour of strong tobacco wafted across
+the broad quarterdeck.
+
+"Got a fag, Lofty?" Vernon overheard a burly stoker ask his neighbour.
+
+"No; I don't smoke, mate," replied the man.
+
+"You will soon," replied the stoker, and a roar of merriment rose from
+the lips of the men within hearing.  They thought the retort was a
+smart bit of humour, and, when at length the implied nature of the
+man's words dawned upon him, even Vernon had to smile.
+
+From the after bridge, search-lights were playing upon the waves.  The
+light quick-firers were manned ready to deal with any visible foe.  On
+the navigation bridge the Captain, with the officer of the watch, was
+pacing calmly up and down the slightly inclined structure.
+
+Presently he was joined by two dark forms--the Commander and the
+carpenter.  A bugle sounded the "Still".  A hush fell upon the swarm of
+humanity, the silence being broken only by the hiss of escaping steam,
+and the rush of water under the action of the powerful Downton pumps.
+
+"My lads!" shouted the skipper.  "The old ship is holding out.  We'll
+get her into dock yet.  Pipe down!"
+
+The _Oxford_ had not been struck by a torpedo.  Examination showed that
+she had bumped against a mine, with the result that the fore
+compartments were flooded.  Fortunately the transverse bulkhead and
+watertight doors withstood the strain of the terrific inrush of water.
+Although well down by the bows the cruiser was in no immediate danger.
+
+The watch below disappeared from sight; those of the officers who were
+not on duty retired to their cabins, yet few of them slept again that
+night.
+
+As Ross and his chum were about to leave the quarterdeck, the Commander
+strode by.
+
+
+"Pass the word for the master-at-arms," he ordered.  "Master-at-arms
+went below, sir, to release the prisoners," reported a petty officer.
+
+"By Jove!" whispered Ross.  "I'd clean forgotten Ramblethorne.  I
+wonder how he liked the business?"
+
+"Let's wait," suggested Vernon.
+
+They took up their position on the leeward side of the after 7.5-inch
+gun-shield.  Here they were sheltered from the wind and out of sight of
+the alert Commander, although they could hear what was being said.
+
+"Master-at-arms is in the sick-bay, sir," reported the messenger as he
+came up at the double.  "He's nearly done for, trying to get to the
+prisoners.  The ship's corporal managed to release the two ordinary
+seamen, but the spy's done in, sir--I mean he's drownded."
+
+Almost immediately following the explosion, the master-at-arms had
+hurried to the cells.  The flat was in darkness.  The sentry on No. 6
+post, in charge of the prisoners, was lying stunned on the floor of the
+passage.  Water was surging aft.  Already it was up to the knees of the
+master-at-arms as he plunged through the gloom towards his goal.
+
+The three prisoners were shouting in mad panic.  They realized their
+awful peril.  Caged like rats in a trap, they felt certain that the
+cruiser was foundering, and that they would be carried down in a living
+tomb until the pressure of water burst open the comparatively strong
+steel walls of the cell.
+
+At length the chief of the ship's police forced the door of the
+nearmost cell.  By sheer good luck he inserted the key into the lock
+without having to fumble for the opening.  The prisoner, a young seaman
+who had broken out of the ship at Halifax, was too terrified to know
+his way to safety.  He clutched at the master-at-arms, following him to
+the next cell.
+
+The water was now waist-deep.  In trying to find the keyhole the
+master-at-arms dropped the keys.  It took some minutes to find them--a
+loss of valuable time.
+
+The noise of the inrushing water was deafening.  For all the petty
+officer knew, the ship might be about to make her last plunge.  Yet his
+duty lay before him.  At the risk of his life the prisoners must be set
+free.
+
+A light appeared upon the scene.  A ship's corporal, bearing a lantern,
+descended to the flat with the laudable intention, of assisting his
+superior.
+
+The door of the second cell flew open, but a rush of water on the
+flood, under the movement of the stricken vessel surged and swept the
+master-at-arms off his feet.  His forehead came in violent contact with
+the steel frame of the door, and, rendered senseless, he dropped
+inertly upon the flooded floor of the passage.
+
+"Pull yourselves together, men!" exclaimed the corporal to the two
+prisoners.  "You're all right.  Bear a hand here."
+
+Together they carried the unconscious master-at-arms out of the flat.
+The corporal returned to liberate the occupier of the third cell--von
+Hauptwald.  But once again the keys were missing, having slipped from
+the insensible man's hand.
+
+The water in the confined space was now shoulder-deep.  The corporal
+could hear the stout bulkhead groaning under the pressure.  Fixing the
+lantern on a bracket he dived, groping with both hands for the keys.
+At length he found them, and threw open the door of the cell.
+
+"Out you come!" he shouted.
+
+There was no reply.  Von Hauptwald had ceased to shout for some
+minutes.  The silence was ominous.
+
+A movement of the badly stricken ship sent the water well over the
+corporal's head.  He was swept off his feet.  It was time for him to
+get back to safety.  He had done all he could.  The spy was dead.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV
+
+"Shrap"
+
+It was late in the afternoon when the _Oxford_ arrived, under her own
+steam, at Rosyth.  Although the dry docks were in use, accommodation
+was quickly found for the damaged cruiser by the simple expedient of
+floating out a battleship that was being cleaned and recoated with
+anti-fouling composition.  Since speed is an absolute necessity for
+efficiency in war-time, it was the practice to dock all the ships of
+the battle-cruiser and armoured cruiser class in rotation, the margin
+of safety being sufficient to allow this to be done without impairing
+the strength of the squadrons.
+
+By the aid of powerful arc-lamps the dockyard hands took the crippled
+_Oxford_ into dock, and, the caisson having been replaced, the water
+was quickly pumped out.  The damage done was found, on examination, to
+be limited to a space extending 30 feet from the bows.  The actual
+aperture caused by the explosion measured 6 feet by 30 inches, but the
+adjacent plates had been buckled and the bolts "started" under the
+violent concussion.  Well it was that the armoured bulkhead had
+withstood the strain, otherwise nothing could have saved the ship.
+
+There was no delay in setting to work.  Almost before the last of the
+water had been pumped out of the dock, stagings were built up round the
+bows, and scores of shipwrights set to work to rebuild the damaged
+portion of the hull.  Under normal conditions the work would have taken
+a couple of months, but, by working day and night, the efficient
+dockyard staff hoped to effect repairs within nine days.
+
+Since the commencement of the greatest war the world has ever yet seen,
+it was the custom to allow the officers and crews of torpedoed or mined
+ships--if they were fortunate enough to be numbered amongst the
+survivors--seven days' leave.  A rest on shore was necessary for the
+crews to recover from the mental shock, for it was found that although
+the men might escape from physical injury and appear bright and
+cheerful immediately after the occurrence, the reaction was most marked
+at about forty-eight hours afterwards.
+
+Ross and Vernon, although not borne in the books of the _Oxford_,
+received permission to go on leave.  Since Haye's father was somewhere
+in the North Sea, and he had no near relatives, he gladly accepted
+Ross's offer to sample again the hospitality of Killigwent Hall.
+
+It was late when their train arrived at King's Cross; so much so that
+the lads realized it would be useless to attempt to catch the Cornwall
+express that would land them at St. Bedal just before midnight.
+
+"I vote we have an evening in town," suggested Vernon.  "Let's go to a
+theatre.  It seems ages since I was inside a music hall, or even a
+picture palace."
+
+"All right," agreed Ross.  "We'll have a jolly good square meal before
+we go.  I know of a decent little hotel just off the Strand."
+
+The two midshipmen took the Underground as far as Charing Cross.  As
+they emerged from the station they renewed their acquaintance with the
+metropolis in war-time.  The streets were plunged in almost Stygian
+darkness.  Omnibuses and taxicabs crawled painfully through the gloom;
+pedestrians were cannoning into each other at every step.  The only
+relief to the blackness were the two search-lights from the Admiralty
+Arch that swung like gigantic pendulums across the dark and misty sky.
+
+"Let's get out of it," exclaimed Ross, as he just managed to save
+himself from being run down by a motor-car.  "It's a jolly sight more
+dangerous than keeping the middle watch on the old _Capella_."
+
+Five minutes later they were sitting down to an ample dinner, provided
+at a cost that proved pretty conclusively the futility of the German
+submarine blockade.  In the well-lighted room there was little to
+suggest that business was not proceeding "as usual", except perhaps the
+predominance of khaki-clad officers.
+
+A string band was discoursing the latest operatic music, the diners
+were laughing and chattering.  Within, the gaiety and light-heartedness
+contrasted violently with the dismal gloom inflicted upon the
+metropolis as a result of precautions adopted by the triple authorities
+responsible for its defence against air-craft.
+
+Presently the band finished one item on the programme.  The comparative
+silence that followed was almost immediately interrupted by a series of
+sharp reports, punctuated by a deeper crash.
+
+"Zepps!" exclaimed a dozen voices.
+
+Instantly there was a rush--not for the deep cellars underneath the
+building, but for the open street.  The white faces of a few of the
+guests showed that they had, perhaps, a little anxiety, but for the
+most part an excitable curiosity took possession of the crowd.
+
+"Come on!" exclaimed Ross to his chum.  "Let's see the fun.  We haven't
+had a chance of seeing a real Zepp before."
+
+The lad's words voiced the thoughts of nine-tenths of the dwellers of
+the metropolis who were within sight of the would-be Terror of the Air.
+Useless, indeed, were the official warnings as to the right thing to be
+done when the Zeppelins came.  One man, however, drew a respirator from
+a hand-bag and proceeded to don it, until a roar of laughter from the
+stream of people issuing from the hotel caused him somewhat
+shamefacedly to replace the useless article.
+
+Into the street the lads elbowed their way.  The progress through the
+long corridor of the hotel reminded them of a football scrum.  It was
+not the blind rush of panic; merely a desire to lose nothing of the
+"fun".
+
+A couple of thousand feet overhead, a silvery-grey, bluff-pointed
+cylinder was moving with apparent slowness.  Half a dozen search-lights
+concentrated their beams upon it.  All around were rings of smoke,
+marking the bursting shells from the anti-aircraft guns; yet,
+apparently untouched by the hail of bullets, the giant gas-bag passed
+on, hurling out death and destruction upon the greatest city on
+earth--a city that, until the present war, had only once heard the
+thunder of hostile guns.
+
+Breathlessly the lads watched the progress of the huge Zeppelin,
+momentarily expecting it to collapse and come tumbling, a tangled mass
+of flaming wreckage, to the ground.  Viewed from below, it seemed
+impossible for the airship to escape the bursting shells.  The air was
+rent by the crash of falling bombs and the sharp reports of the
+"anti's", while in the distance could be heard the clatter of broken
+glass.  The explosive bombs wrought havoc upon the homes of harmless
+Londoners.  Flames, too, were springing up, throwing a lurid glare upon
+the sky.
+
+Yet, unless actually within radius of the German explosives, the
+populace was remarkably calm.  Men, women, and children watched the
+Zeppelin, much in the same way as if they were witnessing a Brock's
+display at the Crystal Palace.  Once again German frightfulness had
+failed--and failed badly--to attain its desired end.
+
+"Hurrah!  She's got it properly in the neck," shouted an excited
+special constable, as the Zeppelin gave a sudden lurch and began to
+drop at an acute angle.
+
+But the next instant the silvery envelope was hidden in a cloud of
+dense black smoke.  Seconds passed, but no shattered wreckage streamed
+earthwards.  When the vapour dispersed, the Zeppelin was nowhere to be
+seen.  Under cover of the smoke-cloud she had dropped a large quantity
+of ballast, and had soared skyward to a great altitude.
+
+Gradually, like the rumble of a passing thunderstorm, the reports of
+the distant anti-aircraft guns died away.  The Zepps had taken
+themselves off, leaving half a dozen fires and hundreds of more or less
+damaged buildings to impress upon the strafed English that insularity
+is no longer a protection from the cowardly night-raiders of the air.
+
+"The show's over," declared Ross.  "I vote we turn in.  By Jove,
+there'll be a rush to the recruiting offices to-morrow!"
+
+Requesting to be called at eight, the two midshipmen entered the lift
+and were whisked up to their room.
+
+"What's that noise?" asked Vernon, pausing in the midst of unpacking
+his portmanteau.
+
+"Something in the corridor," replied Ross.
+
+"I don't think so.  It's something or someone under my bed.  Lock the
+door, old man; no, don't ring, if it's a burglar we'll tackle him."
+
+Haye knelt by the bedside, Ross standing behind him ready to grapple
+with the intruder.  Cautiously Vernon lifted the valance.  As he did so
+he quickly withdrew his hand, which had come in contact with something
+warm and moist.
+
+"Dash it all!" he exclaimed.  "It's a dog.  Come out, sir!"
+
+He was right.  The animal gave a low whine, but made no attempt to
+budge.
+
+"Mind the brute doesn't fix you," cautioned Ross.
+
+"No fear," replied his chum confidently.  "All dogs take to me.  Come
+along, old boy."
+
+Again he groped with his hand.  His fingers touched the long, silky
+hair on the animal's neck.  Slowly he drew the creature from its place
+of concealment.  It was a sheep-dog pup, of about four months.
+
+"Pretty-looking dog," exclaimed Vernon.  "I wonder how it came here?
+Suppose it was frightened at the racket.  It looks terrified out of its
+wits.  Good dog!"
+
+The pup fixed its large brown eyes upon Vernon's face, and attempted to
+wag its stumpy tail.  As it did so the lads discovered that its hind
+quarters were tinged with blood.
+
+"Oh, you poor little beggar!" said Vernon sympathetically.  "However
+did you get that?  I say, Ross, fill that basin with water."
+
+"Better send for the boots," suggested Trefusis.  "He'll take it to a
+vet.'s, or perhaps he'll know whose dog it is."
+
+"Not much chance of finding a vet. at this time of night," objected
+Vernon.  "Even the chemist will be busy with minor casualties.  No, I
+won't worry the management.  I've doctored dogs before now."
+
+He began bathing the matted hair.  The flow of blood had ceased, but
+upon examining the wound he found that it was a small circular incision.
+
+He felt the spot.  The pup, hitherto patient, uttered a low moan.
+
+"There's something hard there," reported Vernon.  "It's only a little
+way under the skin.  We'll have it out.  Hold his head, old man.  Don't
+let him yelp; keep your hand over his muzzle.  I'm afraid I must hurt
+the poor little beggar a bit."
+
+Using the little blade of a knife, Haye adroitly probed the wound.
+Soft-hearted as he was, the action seemed to hurt him more than the
+patient; but his efforts were rewarded by the extraction of a small
+steel ball.
+
+"A shrapnel bullet!" exclaimed Ross.  "That accounts for the poor
+little brute being in such a terrible funk.  Give him a drink of water.
+He'll be better now.  We can bandage the wound with our handkerchiefs."
+
+Five minutes later the dumb patient, his hind quarters swathed in
+elaborate bandages, was lying contentedly upon the hearth-rug, his
+stumpy tail, protruding between the folds of linen, wagging, as he
+tried to express his gratitude in doggy fashion.
+
+"Now what's to be done?" enquired Ross.
+
+"Let him stop until morning," replied Vernon decisively.  "There might
+be a row if the hotel people know that there's a dog in the bedroom.
+The owner can't be much of a chap if he doesn't make enquiries."
+
+"Perhaps he hasn't missed the dog," suggested Ross; "or it's just
+likely he isn't stopping at the hotel.  Well, here goes.  I'm turning
+in."
+
+Ten minutes later both midshipmen were fast asleep.  They had no middle
+watch to keep, and as for Zeppelins, they were merely a passing show.
+
+At daylight Vernon was awakened by something licking his face.  The
+pup, having shown his contempt for bandages by biting them to ribbons,
+was standing on his hind legs and licking his benefactor's nose, while
+his tail was wagging with the rapidity of the flag of an expert
+signaller.  The hardy little animal had made light of his wound.
+
+Having dressed, the midshipman made enquiries of the waiter, but
+without satisfactory results.  No one in the hotel had a dog.
+
+"I'll report him to the police," decided Vernon.  "Ten to one the owner
+won't claim him.  At any rate I'll stick to him.  He's awfully fond of
+me already."
+
+After breakfast Vernon sent the obliging waiter to purchase a collar,
+for the sheep-dog was wearing none.  Sticking closely to Vernon's
+heels, the pup followed his new master to the police station, where an
+inspector took down a number of particulars.
+
+"Very good, sir; that's all I want.  I don't fancy you'll hear any more
+about it."
+
+"What are you going to call him?" asked Ross, as the chums were seated
+in a first-class carriage, with the dog at Vernon's feet, on their way
+to Cornwall.
+
+"Zepp," replied Vernon promptly.
+
+"Not patriotic," objected Ross with a laugh.
+
+"I think so," rejoined his chum.
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because, like last night's Zeppelin, he turned tail when he had a
+shrapnel bullet in his stern."
+
+"That's all very well," said Ross, "but you can't explain all that to
+everyone.  Why not call him Shrapnel?"
+
+"All right.  'Shrap' for short," agreed Vernon.  "Good boy, Shrap!  Wag
+your tail, you little rascal."
+
+And Shrap obeyed promptly.  Evidently the choice of a name reminiscent
+of bodily injury troubled him not one jot.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV
+
+Off the Belgian Coast
+
+"A chance of seeing something exciting at last!" exclaimed Ross.  "Of
+course we've not had altogether a dull time, but this ought to be
+absolutely 'it'."
+
+Two months had elapsed since the lads saw a hostile air-ship over
+London.  Now they were about to see what a fleet of heavily armed
+British ships could do--not against a practically defenceless town, but
+against the strongly fortified German batteries on the Belgian coast.
+
+Trefusis and Haye were on board the _Capella_, lying in the outer
+harbour at Dover.  It was not the _Capella_ that had come off
+second-best in an encounter with a floating mine, but another, similar
+in almost every respect to the lost patrol-boat.  She was manned, too,
+by the same officers and crew--with one exception.  Sub-lieutenant John
+Barry had obtained his promotion, and had been appointed to H.M.S.
+_Hunbilker_ in command.
+
+What the _Hunbilker_ was, no one on board the _Capella_ knew.  The
+Admiralty publications at their disposal were blank as far as that ship
+was concerned.  Speculation ran high: some of the officers expressing
+their opinion that Barry's command was a subsidized cargo-boat; others
+that she was one of the mosquito flotilla that had been evolved out of
+modern naval requirements.  All were wrong, as they had yet to learn
+something more of the type of vessel flying the White Ensign that was
+helping to sweep the seas of the Black Cross of Germany.
+
+"Well, old boy, how do you think you will like the racket?" asked
+Vernon, stooping to pat the massive head of a healthy-looking
+sheep-dog.  Shrap had been allowed, by the Captain's permission, to
+join the _Capella_ as a mascot--the pet of both officers and crew, and
+of Vernon Haye in particular.
+
+Shrap winked knowingly, then trotted off to a secluded part of the
+chart-room, where, under a locker, he had hidden the remains of what,
+half an hour previously, had been Sub-lieutenant Fox's shaving-brush.
+
+The _Capella_ was by no means the only craft rolling sluggishly in the
+vast artificial harbour.  There were seven motor patrol-vessels,
+specially detailed for the forthcoming operations as tenders to the
+sea-planes.
+
+A strong array of monitors, craft of ugly but utilitarian design,
+low-lying, and mounting two 14-inch guns, had assembled for the purpose
+of making it hot for the Hun on the morrow.  Only light-draughted craft
+were to be employed in the attack, since they could approach within
+very effective range of their guns, and at the same time stand little
+chance of being torpedoed by a handful of unterseebooten that had been
+transported in sections to Zeebrugge and there fitted for service.
+
+According to the Admiral's plan, the monitors were to approach Ostend
+just after daybreak.  In the offing a number of empty transports were
+to assemble, protected by a powerful flotilla of destroyers.  The
+appearance of these transports would be taken by the Germans as an
+indication of an attempted landing of a British force, and troops would
+be hurriedly massed to repel the threatened invasion.
+
+The monitors were thereupon to fire a certain number of rounds, then,
+followed in a parallel course by the transports, make for Zeebrugge.
+Alternate visits to both the Belgian ports in German hands were to be
+made throughout the day, thereby wearing out the German troops in
+fruitless marching and counter-marching, and at the same time diverting
+a strong body of men from a section of the trenches upon which the
+British troops were to deliver a sudden and unexpected assault.
+
+At four in the morning the monitors began to leave Dover Harbour.
+Thanks to the stringent military precautions taken in the
+town--precautions that could with decided advantage be imitated
+elsewhere--the presence of spies was almost, if not quite, a matter of
+impossibility.  Unheralded by the Kaiser's agents, the small yet
+powerful vessels cleared the entrance to the breakwater and headed for
+the Belgian coast.
+
+An hour later a masthead lamp blinked from the _Vega_--the senior
+officer's ship of the patrol flotilla.  Then, in line ahead, the swift
+motor craft slipped quietly out of the harbour to overtake their slower
+consorts.
+
+The _Capella_, like the rest of her sister ships, was cleared for
+action.  Stanchion-rails were unshipped; everything likely to splinter
+was sent below.  In the wake of the armoured protection, sandbags were
+placed to reinforce the steel plating.  Although the patrol-vessels
+were not to take part in the bombardment, they had to be prepared in
+case a forlorn hope in the shape of a few German torpedo-boats might
+attempt a sudden onslaught.
+
+As attendants upon the sea-planes, too, it was possible that the
+patrol-boats would have to approach within range of the garrison
+artillery, especially in the event of one of the aerial craft being
+disabled and falling into the sea, on its return from "spotting" the
+hits of the monitors' guns.
+
+Dawn had not yet broken when the monitors, followed at two miles'
+distance by the motor patrol, came in sight of the search-lights on the
+low-lying Belgian coast.  Beyond the limit of direct rays, yet within
+range of their monster guns, the monitors were safe from detection.
+All that was wanting was the presence of the sea-planes, for whose work
+daylight was essential.
+
+Slowly a pale light spread on the north-eastern horizon.  The short
+wintry day was breaking.  The sea was calm.  The air was piercingly
+cold.  A thin coating of frost covered the _Capella's_ deck.  Ross and
+his chum were heartily glad of their thick pilot-coats, mufflers, and
+woollen "mitts", as they sheltered behind the breast-work erected on
+the bridge.
+
+Captain Syllenger slowly paced the bridge, frequently glancing at the
+clock in the chart-room, since it was almost a matter of impossibility
+to consult his watch, owing to his generous accumulation of clothing.
+It was now nearly eight o'clock, but as yet there were no signs of the
+expected sea-planes.
+
+Just then the dull morning light was pierced by a brilliant flash from
+one of the monitors.  The watchers on the _Capella's_ bridge could see
+the low-lying hull give a decided jerk in a sternward direction under
+the reaction of the enormous projectile.
+
+Long before the shell reached its objective, other 14-inch guns added
+their quota, and the air was rent with the flashes of the ordnance and
+the ear-splitting detonations following the discharge.
+
+"By Jove!" exclaimed Sub-lieutenant Fox, who with his brother officers
+had had telescopes levelled upon the faintly outlined sand dunes.
+"There are the sea-planes!"
+
+He was right.  Flying at a great height the air-squadron had passed
+over the warships, and had taken up their observation stations without
+being seen or heard by anyone on board the patrol-vessels immediately
+over the German batteries, they were cutting "figure eights" and
+describing seemingly erratic circles, while the observers, coolly
+wirelessing the results of the monitors' shells, hardly heeded the
+furious fire directed upon them by the hostile anti-aircraft guns.
+
+On a point extending for nearly three miles, the shore was torn by the
+terrific explosive shells.  Clouds of sand, and yellow smoke mingled
+marked the scene of destruction, as battery after battery was spotted
+and promptly put out of action.  Across the dunes could be seen swarms
+of ant-like figures--German troops flying for shelter from the
+devastating fire of the British guns.
+
+But the action was by no means a one-sided one.  Guns, large and small,
+replied; the heavier ordnance vigorously at first, and then gradually
+slackening down as the lyddite shells sought out the fixed
+emplacements.  The lighter guns, mounted on armoured motor-cars, gave
+more trouble, since, after every shot, each piece was moved a hundred
+yards or more.
+
+For several minutes the lads watched the unusual spectacle through the
+binoculars.  Then something resembling a concentrated tornado screeched
+above their heads.  Instinctively they ducked, the glasses falling from
+their hands.  Ten seconds later Ross ventured to look up.  Vernon was
+still holding his hands over his face.  Then slowly he, too, opened his
+eyes.
+
+The lads smiled sadly at each other, picked up their binoculars, and
+somewhat shamefacedly resumed their former positions.
+
+It was their baptism of heavy gun-fire.  A 42-centimetre shell had
+ricochetted and leapt full twenty feet above their heads.
+
+Captain Syllenger was standing a few paces from them.  Luckily, thought
+Ross, the skipper's back was turned, and he had not noticed the action
+of his young subordinates.  But Trefusis was wrong.  The Captain had
+seen them.  Out of consideration, for he remembered his own sensations
+when first under fire, he affected not to notice the temporary panic
+that had overtaken the midshipmen.
+
+The _Capella_ was now running at half speed, in a direction parallel to
+the shore.  All around, the sea was torn by the falling projectiles,
+most of which were sufficiently large to send her to the bottom like a
+stone.  Yet, beyond the wounding of her wireless operator, the loss of
+her signalling-mast, and the shattering of one of her boats, she came
+off lightly.  Although not the object of the hostile guns, she narrowly
+escaped several ricochets, until, at a signal from the senior officer,
+the patrol-vessels withdrew to a safer distance.
+
+One of the monitors, too, was slowly steaming seawards, well down by
+the bows and smoke issuing from her fo'c'sle, while her single funnel
+was riddled like a sieve.
+
+"Sea-plane returning, sir!" announced Sub-lieutenant Fox.
+
+Flying at an altitude of about a thousand feet, one of the aerial
+scouts was making towards the line of patrol-vessels.  She was flying
+steadily; her motor was purring rhythmically; a trail of thin bluish
+smoke from her exhaust belied the suggestion of an overheated engine.
+Yet something must have taken place for her to have quitted her
+observation station.
+
+Promptly Captain Syllenger gave orders for the _Capella's_ motors to
+stop, then "Easy astern" until way was off the ship.
+
+Making a graceful volplane, the sea-plane alighted with a faint splash
+upon the surface of the water, and "taxied" to leeward of the
+motionless vessel.
+
+The sea-plane was a "two-seater".  The rearmost or observer's seat was
+unoccupied.  In the foremost was a young Flight-Sub-lieutenant heavily
+clad, and his clean-shaven face almost hidden by an airman's helmet.
+For the first time, the officers on the bridge of the _Capella_ noticed
+that the light steel plating was holed in many places, while the planes
+bore testimony to the accuracy of the enemy's shrapnel.
+
+"A casualty!" sang out the Flying officer.  "My pilot's been hit.  Can
+you take him on board?"
+
+Two of the _Capella's_ crew swarmed over the side and gained the
+nearmost float, whence they clambered upon the body of the sea-plane.
+At the same time, one of the davits from which the _Capella's_
+shattered boat had hung was slung outboard.  By dint of careful
+manoeuvring, the sea-plane was brought alongside with her main planes
+practically parallel to the side of the ship.
+
+The injured man was lying on the floor of the fuselage.  A canvas band
+was strapped round his waist, and, supported by the two seamen, he was
+gently hoisted on board the ship by means of the davit tackle.
+
+The Flight-Sub swung himself over the side of the _Capella_ and
+ascended the bridge.
+
+"Got it hot at fifteen hundred feet," he explained.  "My pilot was
+winged.  Hit twice, I believe.  Luckily the old bird kept fairly steady
+until I could clamber into the pilot's seat and take control.  Rough
+luck, too.  We were just doing a useful bit of spotting.  I suppose,
+sir, there's no one on board who can handle a 'plane?"
+
+"I'm afraid not," replied Captain Syllenger.
+
+"Rough luck!" exclaimed the Sub despondently.  Then, brightening up, he
+asked:
+
+"Can you lend me a 'wireless' man?  I could take on the pilot's job."
+
+"Our man's knocked out," said the skipper.
+
+"That's done it!" exclaimed the Sub.  "There's a particularly tough
+battery that I wanted to see knocked out.  No. 5 was almost on it when
+we got it hot."
+
+Ross was thinking rapidly and deeply.  He knew the Morse code well.  He
+had dabbled in wireless telegraphy at school.  Perhaps----
+
+He felt that it was almost too impertinent to offer his services, yet
+the matter was urgent.  It was dangerous, too, most dangerous; but the
+midshipman had learnt to place duty before personal consideration.
+
+"Well?" asked Captain Syllenger as Trefusis stepped up and saluted
+smartly.
+
+"I'll go if I can be of any assistance, sir," said Ross.  "I can Morse
+and use a buzzer, and I have a knowledge of wireless."
+
+"Carry on, then," replied Captain Syllenger.
+
+"Good man!" exclaimed the Flight-Sub-lieutenant.  "Can you stick
+heights?"
+
+"I've done a lot of cliff climbing--I am a Cornishman, you know," said
+Trefusis.  "I haven't had a chance of flying before."
+
+"You have now!" added the Flight-Sub.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVI
+
+Disabled in Mid-air
+
+Ross climbed agilely into the observer's seat, and, at his flying
+companion's suggestion, buckled a broad leather strap round his waist.
+At his right hand was the wireless transmitter, together with a pair of
+prismatic glasses and map.  The latter was held in a transparent
+celluloid case, while the glasses were secured by a cord sufficiently
+long to enable the observer to use them in any direction.  Everything
+was attached to the sea-plane so that in the event of the machine
+having to "loop the loop" nothing would be lost.
+
+The Sub, who for the present was to act as pilot, took his place in the
+forward part of the body.  Giving a few preliminary touches to the
+mechanism, he announced that everything was in order.
+
+The self-starter was released and the motor fired, causing the twin
+propellers to buzz smoothly and powerfully.
+
+Ross waved his hand to his chum as the sea-plane glided away from the
+_Capella_, and from that moment his whole attention was centred upon
+the work on which he was engaged.
+
+For nearly a hundred yards the sea-plane "taxied", rising lightly over
+the waves; then almost imperceptibly it glided upwards with an even
+motion.  Ross could hardly believe he was flying until he saw the sea
+apparently receding from him.
+
+"All right?" asked the Sub through the telephone that formed the only
+audible means of communication between pilot and observer.  "Not
+feeling giddy?"
+
+"Not a bit," replied Ross.  Without experiencing the faintest sensation
+of vertigo, he found himself able to lean over the side of the chassis
+and look down at the scene two thousand feet beneath him.
+
+The sea-plane was rising in a direction diverging obliquely with the
+coast.  She was, in fact, almost over the line of empty transports that
+looked little bigger than a fleet of toy boats.  Farther away could be
+discerned the _Capella_ and her consorts, moving with apparent slowness
+upon a perfectly calm sea, for at that altitude the waves were merged
+into a flat surface.  Small splashes of white--the spray thrown up by
+falling shells--could be seen all around the patrol-vessels, which, in
+obedience to a signal, had now taken up a position rather nearer to the
+monitors.
+
+Presently the Flight-Sub, having gained the desired altitude, moved the
+steering-plane ever so slightly.  Quickly the machine answered her
+helm, swinging round until she pointed towards the land.
+
+Three minutes later Ross found himself immediately above the British
+monitors.  The sea-plane was now pitching slightly in the disturbed
+air, for the concussion of the heavy weapons was distinctly felt even
+at seven hundred yards above the bombarding ships.  Although the roar
+of the concerted cannonade was deafening, Ross heard not a sound of it.
+To all intents, as far as he was concerned, the guns might have been
+fired with silencers attached to their muzzles.  The whirr of the
+sea-plane's motor and the rush of air past his ears out-voiced every
+other sound.
+
+Five miles beyond the line of monitors, could be discerned the Belgian
+coast, composed for the most part of undulating sand-dunes dotted with
+clusters of buildings.
+
+As the sea-plane approached the land Ross could, with the aid of his
+binoculars, distinguish other objects--wavy lines, dotted with ant-like
+figures bunched together round something that looked like stumps of a
+lead pencil.  The lines were the German trenches, the "ants"
+grey-coated artillerymen, and the "stumps" the heavy howitzers.
+
+"That's our pigeon!" spoke the Flight-Sub through the telephone.  "The
+battery a hundred yards to the north of that ruined church tower.  Our
+fellows haven't knocked it out yet.  Wireless them; fifty yards over."
+
+Ross sent the desired information.  The sea-plane, having flown over
+its objective, turned, describing an elongated figure eight.  As she
+swung round, Ross noticed a mushroom-like cloud of white smoke a short
+distance beneath, and to the left of the fuselage.  Then another a
+hundred feet immediately in front.  At each "mushroom" the sea-plane
+curtsied.  Something zipped close to the lad's ear.  A wire snapped,
+the severed portions circling themselves into erratic spirals.  A
+fragment of fabric from one of the main planes flew past him, like a
+scrap of tissue-paper in the grip of a boisterous wind.
+
+Then Ross tumbled to it.  Those silent mushrooms of smoke were shrapnel
+shells bursting unpleasantly close.  For a moment, the young observer
+felt himself seized by an almost irresistible impulse to take refuge
+under the coaming surrounding his seat.  He uttered an involuntary
+exclamation of unwelcome surprise.
+
+"What's up?" asked a voice in his ear.  It was the Flight-Sub, to whom
+the telephone had transmitted Ross's exclamation.
+
+"Nothing," replied the lad.
+
+"Thought so," was the laconic reply.  "Don't worry."
+
+Reasoning with himself, Ross came to the decision that the advice was
+thoroughly sound.  Worrying would not help him in the least; neither
+would cowering inside the frail body of the sea-plane.  Twice within a
+very short space of time he had experienced a sensation of "funk".
+Twice he was surprised to find how quickly he recovered; for, at the
+next shot from the monitor for which he was "spotting", he found that
+the sensation of "cold feet" had given place to one of exhilaration
+when he was able to record a "direct hit".
+
+By this time the initial operations were terminating.  The German fire
+had almost ceased to be troublesome.  Most of the big howitzers and
+long-range guns had been knocked out.  A few were still firing, but
+very erratically.
+
+At a signal from the senior officer, the monitors drew out of range,
+and steaming at the maximum speed--a bare 11 knots--kept a course
+parallel with the shore, accompanied by the patrol-vessels and
+transports.
+
+Well above effective shrapnel range, the squadron of sea-planes headed
+for Zeebrugge.  A number of aviatiks, which were flying over the German
+new sea base, hurriedly turned tail.  Previous experience had taught
+them that naval air-craft could hit hard, in addition to carrying out
+observation work.
+
+There were, however, plenty of evidences that the Germans were rushing
+up thousands of troops in order to deal with the supposed landing in
+force.  Train after train made towards the town, crammed with soldiers.
+
+The sea-planes let the trains pass unhindered.  It was not their
+purpose to stop Germans from pouring into Zeebrugge.  Once the troops
+were there, then would be the time to cut their lines of communication.
+
+Again the monitors opened fire.  Their reception was hotter than it had
+been in the neighbourhood of Ostend, for, in spite of frequent and
+destructive molestation, the Germans had succeeded in throwing up
+numerous heavily armed and cleverly concealed batteries.
+
+At almost extreme range the British ships maintained a rapid high-angle
+fire.  In a few minutes fires had broken out in several places.
+Fifteen-hundred-pound shells dropped in the canal basin, blowing to
+atoms several submarines that were in the process of fitting out.  The
+harbour works were swept by the huge projectiles.  The long curved
+breakwater suffered heavily.  Huge gaps appeared in the solid masonry.
+Everything lying afloat in the enclosed water was either set on fire or
+sunk.  In an hour the havoc wrought at Zeebrugge had wiped out the work
+of months.
+
+Ross had little time to notice the work of destruction.  His particular
+business was to observe the fire directed upon a large redoubt to the
+north-east of the town.  The first shell from the monitor fell short,
+blowing an enormous crater in the grass-grown dunes.  The second fell
+beyond, completely demolishing a house.  The third dropped fairly in
+the centre of the redoubt, causing a terrific explosion that was not
+due solely to the lyddite bursting-charge.  The magazine had exploded.
+
+Skywards rushed an enormous cloud of black and yellow smoke.  Caught by
+the blast of the violently displaced air the sea-plane rocked, then
+began dropping like a stone.
+
+For the moment Ross imagined that the end had come.  He was no longer
+afraid.  A sensation of intense curiosity as to what the machine and
+its occupants would look like seemed to obsess his mind.
+
+Then, with a jerk that reminded the midshipman of the sudden starting
+of a lift, the sea-plane "flattened out" and began to climb out of the
+enveloping cloud of smoke.
+
+The Flight-Sub turned his head and grinned broadly.  His manner could
+not do otherwise than inspire confidence.  Although not a pilot, he was
+master of the frail machine.  Side-slips and nose-dives troubled him
+but little, provided he was flying at a safe altitude.
+
+"A jolly good wipe-out!" he exclaimed.  "There won't be many Bosches
+left within half a mile of that battery, I'm thinking.  Now watch when
+the next shot lands: that will give you the objective."
+
+A sharp buzzing in the receiver attached to Ross's flying helmet
+announced that the monitor was "calling up" her observer.  Quickly the
+lad seized the pencil, and gave the signal that he was ready to take
+down the message.
+
+The Morse signal, when translated into writing, was as follows:--
+
+"Register Position 47."
+
+"Good!" exclaimed the Plight-Sub when Ross had telephoned him the
+message.  He consulted his map, which was similar to the one at the
+observer's disposal "Position 47: that's a railway junction."
+
+In the course of their work of fortifying Zeebrugge, the Huns had
+constructed a double-track railway, passing within a few yards of the
+Dutch frontier for several miles before heading straight for the new
+submarine base.  Two miles from Zeebrugge the line joined the existing
+railway, the junction being recorded on British airmen's maps as
+Position 47.
+
+The time was now ripe for the monitor which had successfully demolished
+the redoubt to attempt a similar exploit, namely, to destroy the
+junction.
+
+The sea-plane's appearance was the signal for a furious fire from the
+numerous anti-aircraft guns mounted in the vicinity of the station.
+
+At six thousand feet the risk of being hit was small, while the height
+did not prevent the observer making a fairly accurate register of the
+hits.
+
+It was a very long range, but the monitor's 14-inch guns did excellent
+work.  Seven shells sufficed to reduce the station to a heap of ruins
+and blow whole sections of the line to atoms.
+
+Again came a wireless order:
+
+"Sea-plane to proceed to Zwilhuit.  Attempt destruction of bridge
+across canal."
+
+Once more the Flight-Sub smiled.  This was work that suited him
+immensely.  For the nonce "spotting" was finished with.  The sea-plane
+had to drop her cargo of bombs upon an important strategic position.
+
+"All right!" exclaimed the Flying officer.  "Keep a cool head.  When I
+give the word, press that pedal under your right foot.  Bend down and
+you'll find a safety pin just above the floor.  Remove it, but be jolly
+careful not to touch the pedal until I give the word."
+
+Underneath the fuselage were six bombs hanging from an inclined steel
+rod.  These were released by means of a rachet operated by the pedal to
+which the Flight-Sub had alluded.  To prevent a premature release the
+pedal was "locked" by a safety device.  When this was removed, each
+depression of the pedal would result in the liberation of a potent
+missile of destruction.
+
+The sea-plane was not alone on her errand.  In her wake flew two more,
+for the actual bombardment had now ceased, and the air-craft were at
+liberty to engage upon a raid several miles inland.
+
+The Huns had not constructed their strategic railway close to the Dutch
+frontier without a cunning reason.  Extreme care had to be exercised by
+British airmen, since it was an easy matter for a bomb to drop across
+the border.  Nothing would please the Germans better, for at once there
+would be a case of violation of Dutch territory.  On the other hand,
+the Huns had no scruple in mounting a battery of anti-aircraft guns,
+training them in such a manner that the earthward flight of spent
+shrapnel would assuredly fall upon the Dutch village of Venterloos,
+which was separated from Zwilhuit by a distance of less than four
+hundred yards.
+
+In twenty minutes the sea-plane's objective came in sight: a broad line
+of railway crossing a canal by means of a steel bridge.  It was evident
+that the Germans meant this base to be a permanent one, for the bridge
+was of massive construction, strong enough to bear the transport of the
+heavy 42-centimetre guns, and yet sufficiently high above the waterway
+to admit the passage of large lighters with towering deck-cargoes.
+
+"Stand by!" cautioned the Flight-Sub.  "Keep cool.  Do as well as you
+have already done, and everything will go like greased lightning."
+
+Volplaning at an acute angle, the sea-plane swooped down upon her
+quarry.  Shrapnel shells burst over, in front, behind, and underneath
+her.  It seemed impossible that such a frail object could escape
+destruction.
+
+At five hundred feet the Flight-Sub checked her downward course.
+
+"Now!" he ordered.  "And again!"
+
+Two puffs of white smoke marked the points of explosion of the powerful
+bombs.  One had fallen fifty yards short of the bridge; the other had
+burst almost at the junction of the railway lines.
+
+Round spun the sea-plane.  As she turned Ross could discern the second
+of the aerial raiders gliding down, while the third was still at a
+great altitude.  Before the one in which Ross was flying could again
+soar over its target the second sea-plane had dropped three of her
+missiles.  All fell close to the bridge.  The work of demolition was
+accomplished, for when the smoke and dust cleared away the substantial
+fabric had been precipitated, a mass of twisted steel, into the canal.
+
+[Illustration: "THE WORK OF DEMOLITION WAS ACCOMPLISHED"]
+
+"Two more on the station and then we've finished," exclaimed the
+Flight-Sub.  "Ready?"
+
+"Ay, ay!" replied Ross.
+
+He turned his head to watch the progress of the other sea-planes.  One
+was still maintaining a terrific altitude, and showed no signs of
+making a volplane.
+
+The other was nowhere to be seen.  Perhaps it was as well that the
+midshipman had not noticed what had befallen her, for a few seconds
+previously a shrapnel shell had burst close underneath the chassis.
+The explosion had communicated itself to the remaining bombs, with the
+result that utter annihilation had overtaken the plucky British airmen
+in the moment of their triumph.
+
+Ross's companion had witnessed the catastrophe.  More, his trained eye
+had discerned half a dozen small specks in the western sky.  Quickly he
+brought his binoculars to bear upon them.  No mistake now; the specks
+revealed themselves as German aviatiks intent upon cutting off the
+retreat of the two remaining British air-craft.
+
+Not until Ross had dropped the remaining bombs did his companion speak.
+
+"We've a bit of a shooting match on," he announced.  "Get that rifle
+ready.  It's under the coaming on your right hand.  Sight at three
+hundred yards, and let rip when I give the word."
+
+Ross took up the weapon almost as a matter of course.  After the
+excitement of bomb-dropping and being shelled by shrapnel, the approach
+of a fleet of Zeppelins would hardly disturb his equanimity.
+
+Already the third sea-plane, having gained a favourable altitude, was
+making straight for her numerous opponents.
+
+The Flight-Sub now began to speed his machine up, climbing in short
+spirals, so as to gain what was equivalent to the "weather-gauge" in
+the sea battles of Nelson's days.
+
+Ross unslipped the rifle.  Mechanically he set the back-sight, and
+jerked open the bolt-action to assure himself that the magazine was
+charged.  As he did so he became aware that the cartridges were bent
+and buckled.  A piece of shrapnel, passing through the side of the
+fuselage, had lodged in the magazine of the rifle.  In addition,
+although it was possible to withdraw the bolt, the striking-pin had
+jammed.  As a weapon the rifle was useless.  By stopping the shrapnel
+bullet the rifle had saved Ross from a serious and perhaps mortal wound.
+
+The midshipman was on the point of reporting the disablement of the
+weapon, when the motor gave vent to a peculiar cough and abruptly
+stopped.  Unknown to the pilot the petrol-tank had been pierced almost
+at its lowest point.  The remaining petrol had been used up during the
+spiraling process.  The sea-plane was now at an altitude of three
+thousand feet; propulsion, except under the force of gravity, was no
+longer possible.
+
+The Flight-Sub was quick to act.  Before the hitherto climbing
+air-craft began diving tail downwards, he regulated the elevating
+planes, and a long volplane ensued.  The sea-plane was bound to come to
+earth, but it was not on hostile soil that the airman hoped to alight.
+His goal was the ground beyond the seemingly endless line of barbed
+wire that marked the frontier between Belgium and Holland.
+
+The anti-aircraft guns had now opened fire, blazing furiously away at
+the rapidly descending sea-plane.  The rapidity of her descent saved
+her, for, before the time-fuses could be altered to suit the
+ever-varying range, the air-craft was well below the bursting-point of
+the missiles.  Nothing but a direct hit--a most difficult matter--could
+harm her now.
+
+At a thousand feet she passed the border-line.  Still the Archibalds
+barked.  Ross could see the Dutch frontier guards bolting for shelter
+as the hall of bullets fell on neutral ground.  Not until the sea-plane
+was well over the boundary did the guns reluctantly cease fire.
+
+The earth appeared to leap up and meet the descending machine.  It
+looked as if a terrific smash were inevitable.  A sea-plane alighting
+upon solid ground has a thousand chances against her, for, being
+unprovided with landing wheels, she is not adapted to withstand
+successfully the impact with the earth.
+
+Cool and collected, the Flight-Sub "flattened her out" to a nicety.  At
+forty miles an hour the floats struck the ground.  For twenty yards the
+sea-plane skidded, then with a rending crash the floats and a network
+of struts and tension-wires gave way under the abnormal strain.  The
+next instant Ross found himself sprawling on the sandy soil, the sudden
+jerk tearing his securing-belt from its fastenings.
+
+He sat up.  A multitude of dazzling lights seemed to flash before his
+eyes.  He was dimly aware of a tangle of wreckage, out of which a
+practically undamaged plane rose at an oblique angle, lumbering the
+ground quite twenty yards from where he found himself.  Men were
+hastening towards the wrecked sea-plane from all directions, but, thank
+Heaven, they did not wear the uniform of the Hun.
+
+With his head still whirling, Ross was supported by two Dutch soldiers,
+while a third poured a quantity of raw spirits down his throat.  Blood
+was streaming from a gash on his forehead, and his knees, grazed and
+discoloured, were visible through rents in his trousers.
+
+Of what happened during the next quarter of an hour, the midshipman had
+but a very hazy idea.  The men had laid him on the ground, propping him
+against a large stone.  He felt horribly sick.  The pain across his
+chest, caused by the strain upon the leather belt, was acute--far worse
+than the wound on his forehead which the kindly soldiers were bathing
+with handkerchiefs dipped in water.
+
+The men were talking excitedly.  He could not understand what they were
+saying.  He felt inclined to tell them to shut up.  They irritated him
+beyond measure; if only they would go away and leave him in peace he
+would be deeply grateful.
+
+Suddenly it dawned upon him that he had been in an awful smash.  The
+wrecked sea-plane had not hitherto led the train of his thoughts to the
+subject of the accident.  Now he realized his position.
+
+"Where's my companion?" he asked,  "Is he knocked out?"
+
+"Do not yourself fret," said a voice that sounded far away.  "He is
+hurt, but badly not at all.  We him have carried away.  I am a doctor.
+You quiet must be, and zen recovery rapide will be."
+
+The doctor--a Dutch army surgeon--ran his hands lightly over the lad's
+limbs.
+
+"Goot!" he ejaculated.  "Nodings broken is."
+
+He gave directions to the men in attendance.  A stretcher was laid on
+the ground beside the lad.  Two men lifted him gently upon it.  Even as
+they did so, Ross gave a low groan and passed into merciful oblivion.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVII
+
+Not on Parole
+
+"Ver' goot.  I understan' you no give parole?"
+
+"No, sir," replied the Flight-Sub firmly.
+
+"An' you, mynheer?"
+
+"I am in the same boat, sir," replied Ross.
+
+The camp-commandant smiled--a hearty smile, bordering on a laugh.
+
+"Goot, I understan' also," he reiterated.  Then, shaking a podgy little
+finger, he added: "Same boat, ah?  English idiomatic expression?  Ver'
+well, it is so; but if you make escape, do not let me you catch.  Zat
+is all."
+
+A week had elapsed since the involuntary descent of the sea-plane.
+Both officers were making rapid progress towards recovery, for, in
+spite of the violence of the impact, neither of them had received
+anything worse than contusions and bruises.
+
+After three days in hospital at Utrecht, the interned aviators were
+transferred to a small concentration camp at the village of Koedijk, a
+short distance from Alkmaar.  A few miles to the westward, and beyond
+an expanse of sand dunes, was the North Sea.  The temptation to refuse
+to give their parole was not to be wondered at, with the call of the
+sea so near at hand.  It was, indeed, rather remarkable that the two
+officers had not been sent to the large internment camp at Groningen,
+where so many of the ill-fated Naval Brigade languished, if not in
+captivity, in a state of enforced and tedious detention.
+
+"We'll have to be doubly careful now," remarked the Flight-Sub.  "The
+mere fact that we have declined to give our parole will put the
+commandant on his guard.  Our best plan will be to mark time for a bit."
+
+"Marking time is always an unsatisfactory business," protested the
+energetic Ross.  "Nothing rusts a fellow like inaction.  It wouldn't be
+much of a task to tunnel our way out."
+
+The Flight-Sub shook his head.
+
+"Tunnelling's not much good in this water-logged country," he declared.
+"We are not water-rats.  Patience, my festive: where there's a will
+there's a way."
+
+Their quarters consisted of a long, two-storied building.  The only
+other occupants beside the guards, were three British Naval officers
+rescued from a mined trawler that had managed to reach Dutch waters
+before foundering.  Two of them had broken legs; the third was down
+with double pneumonia, the legacy of many a cold, stormy night in the
+North Sea.
+
+Surrounding the house was a high brick wall, on which had been recently
+placed a triple row of barbed wire.  At the entrance, an archway about
+ten feet in height, stood a wooden sentry-box, where a soldier with
+rifle and fixed bayonet kept guard in the leisurely manner of the
+stolid Dutch menfolk.  One could imagine him, a picturesque figure in
+baggy trousers and coat of fantastic cut, smoking his pipe on the quay
+at Volendam.  The blue uniform did not form a fitting mantle for his
+corpulent form.
+
+The sentry was one of a type.  The rest of the guards--middle-aged men
+called up on mobilization--were much of the same build and demeanour.
+Their innate love of gossiping tempted them to be on most friendly
+terms with the interned officers.  One and all were violently
+pro-British.  They had reason to dread the German menace, for they were
+level-headed enough to realize that, with the Central Powers
+triumphant, the independence of Holland would be a thing of the past.
+
+Adjoining the grounds were the quarters occupied by interned seamen, to
+the number of about sixty.  They were strictly guarded; a formidable
+double fence of barbed wire, between which armed sentries patrolled,
+enclosed the premises.  For discipline, the men were under the orders
+of their own petty officers.
+
+"Jolly good luck to you!" exclaimed one of the wounded officers, to
+whom the two new-comers confided their intention of escaping.  "If we
+three weren't crocked we should have been across the ditch by this
+time."
+
+He pointed seawards as he spoke.  From the upper windows of the
+building the sunlit sea could be seen.  Beyond the "ditch", as he
+termed it, was England and freedom.
+
+"It's no use trying to break out," he continued.  "German spies as
+thick as blackberries along the coast.  The most benevolent-looking
+mynheer might, as likely as not, be a kultured Hun.  You have to be
+smuggled out.  Try your blandishments on old Katje."
+
+"Old who?" asked the Flight-Sub.
+
+"Katje, the old vrouw who calls for the washing.  She comes every
+Tuesday and Friday with a cart drawn by dogs, and a basket big enough
+to stow the pair of you.  You'll want plenty of palm oil.  There are
+the sentries to be squared, and the fellow who provides you with a suit
+of 'mufti'.  Wilson, our Lieutenant-Commander, got clear about a month
+ago.  He made his way to Ymuiden."
+
+"Wasn't there a row about it?" asked Ross.
+
+"Naturally," replied the wounded officer.  "We had a pretty strenuous
+time after it--certain privileges withdrawn and all that sort of thing.
+However, when we heard that Wilson had succeeded in making his way to
+England we didn't mind that, and things have now recovered their normal
+appearance."
+
+On the following Tuesday, Ross and his companion anxiously awaited the
+arrival of Vrouw Katje.  At length the old lady--she was nearly
+eighty--drove up in style, shouting shrilly to her dogs from her perch
+on top of an enormous wicker hamper.
+
+"More washing for you, Katje," announced one of the crippled officers.
+"Two more of my countrymen.  They will be very pleased to see you."
+
+Without further ado, Katje ascended the stairs and hammered violently
+upon the door of the sitting-room.
+
+Her knowledge of English was good, for earlier in life she was the wife
+of the skipper of a bolter that made regular voyages to Hole Haven at
+the mouth of the Thames, where a large eel trade was in the hands of
+the Dutch fishermen.
+
+"Very well; but I must ask permission of the Commandant," replied
+Katje, in perfect good faith, when the Flight-Sub had broached the
+subject of being conveyed from the internment camp.
+
+"No, no," protested the young officer in alarm; "that won't do."
+
+"Why not?" persisted the washerwoman.  "Mynheer the Commandant is very
+kind."
+
+"Undoubtedly," replied the Flight-Sub.  "But we would much rather that
+you wait until we are away from the place before you ask him.  See,
+here are five English sovereigns.  They are yours once you get us
+clear."
+
+The vrouw shook her head.
+
+"I do not care to," she replied firmly; then without a pause she
+continued: "My son-in-law, Jan van Beverwijk, will.  I am sure he will.
+Next Friday he will come instead of me.  He is mate of a steamship that
+takes the bulbs from Holland to England.  He returns to-morrow, and
+sails on Saturday from Ymuiden."
+
+"That sounds excellent," commented the Flight-Sub.
+
+"It is excellent," agreed Katje.  "It will cost you each twenty English
+sovereigns."
+
+"But we haven't ten between us."
+
+The vrouw smiled till her weather-beaten face was one mass of deep
+wrinkles.
+
+"You English have a proverb about a road," she remarked.
+
+"'It's a long lane that has no turning?'" quoted the officer; but Katje
+shook her head.
+
+"'Where there's a will there's a way'," suggested Ross.
+
+"Ah!  That is it.  I knew it was something about a road or a lane.
+Way, you call it.  Very well; by next Friday you will find a way."
+
+"Artful old baggage!" exclaimed the Flight-Sub when Katje had taken her
+departure.  "She's mighty keen on the rhino.  We'll have to have a whip
+round, Trefusis, and give a note of hand."
+
+Their brothers in adversity willingly responded to the call, and before
+the eventful Friday a sum in English and Dutch coinage, equivalent to
+forty pounds, was ready to be handed to Jan van Beverwijk.
+
+"I wouldn't pay cash on the nail if I were you," suggested the crippled
+officer who had been so useful in advising them before.  "Half down,
+and the rest when you land in England.  Jan might object, but he'll
+give in.  No Dutchman of his standing would shut his eyes to twenty in
+hard cash."
+
+At eight o'clock on Friday morning Katje's dog-team romped up; but,
+instead of the old vrouw, a lean, leather-faced man with a long coat
+reaching to his heels and a flat-topped peak cap strode beside the cart.
+
+At the gate he stopped, and spoke at considerable length with the
+sentry.  There was hardly any expression on the faces of the two men as
+they talked.  Whether the soldier fell in with the suggestion, Ross,
+who was anxiously watching from the window, could not decide.
+
+Presently Jan stooped to fasten the strap of one of his _klompen_, or
+wooden shoes; then shouting to the dogs he came towards the house.
+Before he had gone very far, the sentry bent and picked up something
+that was lying on the spot where Jan had been attending to his footgear.
+
+"Palm oil!" remarked the Flight-Sub laconically.
+
+"Heavy wash to-day," was Jan's greeting as he deposited his heavy
+basket in the corridor.  "Spot cash, down on the nail."
+
+"Your knowledge of English is remarkable," said the Flight-Sub affably.
+
+"It has to be," rejoined the Dutchman stolidly.
+
+"We have only twenty pounds," declared the Sub.  "That we will give you
+as soon as we are on board and in English waters.  The balance Mr.
+Brown will give you on your return, on receipt of a note from us to the
+effect that we are safely home."
+
+"It cannot be done," said Jan.
+
+"Then the deal's off," remarked the Flight-Sub coolly; but he
+ostentatiously poured the coins from his right hand into his left
+before returning them to his pocket.
+
+The Dutchman capitulated.
+
+"Very good," he said.  "I can trust an English Naval officer, although
+many a time have I been done in London.  Get in, one of you."
+
+"But the other?" enquired the Sub.
+
+"I am strong, but I am not a Hercules," replied the Dutchman with a
+shrug of his shoulders.  "One I can carry to the cart.  To-day is a
+heavy wash, so I must return for a second load.  You twig?"
+
+"In you get, Trefusis," ordered his companion, in a tone that would
+brook no refusal.
+
+By dint of hunching his shoulders and bending his knees, Ross managed
+to get into the basket.  The lid was shut, and Jan, assisted by the
+Sub, lifted the heavy load on to his shoulders.
+
+Jolting over the cobble-stones, the cart proceeded at a rapid pace for
+nearly a quarter of an hour.  Then Jan called to the dogs to stop.  The
+lid was thrown back and Ross told to get out.
+
+He found himself outside a small cottage by the side of a canal.  Katje
+was on her knees washing a bundle of clothes; the operation assisted,
+with disastrous results to the interned officers' effects, by means of
+two large stones with which she pounded the saturated garments.
+Without even turning her head to watch the midshipman's exit from the
+basket, she proceeded vigorously with her task.
+
+Jan led him into the cottage and pointed to a heap of clothes.
+
+"Put these on you," he said.  "I will now go for your friend."
+
+Before the Flight-Sub rejoined him, Ross was rigged out as a Dutch
+youth, in voluminous trousers, long coat, stock, tall cylindrical hat,
+green stockings, and wooden shoes.  His companion had to look twice
+before he recognized him.
+
+"Now you come with me to Mynheer Guit," said Jan.  "He is a bulb
+merchant, and lives just outside Ymuiden.  You will then go on board a
+barge that brings the boxes of bulbs from Mynheer Guit's warehouse to
+the ship.  I will be with you.  The men in the barge will say nothing.
+Before to-night you will be safe on board the _Hoorn_."
+
+Jan was as good as his word.  That night the fugitives slept
+comfortably in the cabin of the mate of the steamship _Hoorn_; and at
+tide-time, early on Saturday morning while it was still dark, the
+vessel glided between the breakwater of Ymuiden, and shaped a course
+for the mouth of the Thames.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVIII
+
+Almost Recaptured
+
+"What's that light, Jan?" asked the Flight-Sub.
+
+The _Hoorn_ was now well beyond the three-mile limit.  Ross and his
+fellow-passenger were standing aft, sheltering from the keen
+south-westerly wind.  The mate of the vessel was with them, the skipper
+being on the bridge.
+
+"Those lights?" corrected Jan.  "They have been visible all the time.
+They are the two white leading-lights to Ymuiden harbour."
+
+"No, I don't mean those," said the Flight-Sub.  "Away to the south'ard,
+quite a mile from the harbour.  See, it's showing again."
+
+From the dunes a white light blinked thrice and then disappeared.
+
+"I do not know," answered Jan gravely.  He thought for a moment and
+then said: "Half a mo'.  I will speak to the skipper."
+
+"Hanged if I like it," muttered the Flight-Sub.  "I say, Trefusis, that
+light blinking away looks very fishy.  It would mean a fifty-pound fine
+in England; but here, apparently, it is not objected to."
+
+The skipper and the mate were talking rapidly.  Both men were leaning
+over the after side of the bridge-rails, with their eyes fixed upon the
+dark shore from which the mysterious light flickered at regular
+intervals.
+
+"Light on the port bow," reported the helmsman.  Both of the _Hoorn's_
+officers turned just in time to catch sight of a steady white light
+before it disappeared.  Whatever its meaning, it was remarkable that
+from that moment the shore light ceased to blink.
+
+"Put out our navigation lamps, Jan," said the skipper.  "Someone has
+betrayed your English friends.  Nevertheless I will do all in my power
+to aid them.  We'll steer south-west for an hour.  Perhaps we may
+outwit yon craft, whatever she may be, before dawn."
+
+Ross and his companion were quick to note the alteration of helm.  They
+knew, too, that the removal of the steaming-lights was for the purpose
+of baffling what must be, to a dead certainty, a German craft--a
+submarine, or perhaps a torpedo-boat, since the latter frequently
+ventured out of Borkum and crept stealthily towards the Schelde,
+keeping close to the Dutch territorial waters in order to avoid being
+snapped by the vigilant British destroyer flotilla.
+
+Slowly the wintry day dawned.  Anxiously the British officers scanned
+the horizon.  The low-lying Dutch coast was now invisible.  All around
+was a waste of grey, tumbling waves, unbroken by a sail of any
+description.
+
+The _Hoorn_ was ploughing her way at a modest ten knots.  Short, beamy,
+and deep-draughted, she was pitching heavily, sending a frothy bow wave
+far to leeward each time she dipped her nose into the steep seas.
+
+"I'd give a fiver for the sight of a good old White Ensign at the
+present moment," remarked the Flight-Sub anxiously.  "Good heavens,
+what's that?"
+
+Ten seconds later he laughed mirthlessly.
+
+"Nerves going to blazes," he muttered.  "A bit of wreckage gave me the
+jumps.  By Jove, don't we look a pair of comical objects?"
+
+They had discarded their grotesque head-dress.  Ross had a woollen
+muffler wrapped round his head, while his companion had been given the
+loan of a red stocking-cap, but they still retained the weird garb in
+which they had made their journey down the ship canal.
+
+Suddenly Ross gripped his companion's arm and pointed with his right
+hand to a spar-like object projecting a few feet, close to the waves,
+at less than a cable's length on the port quarter.
+
+"A periscope!" ejaculated the Flight-Sub.
+
+"Let's hope it's one of our own submarines," said Ross.
+
+"We'll soon find out," added his companion.  "It's forging ahead.
+Whatever it is, they've got us under observation."
+
+Jan, who was now on the bridge, had his attention called to the
+disconcerting fact.  He beckoned to his two passengers.
+
+"You had better go below and stow yourselves away," he suggested.  "We
+will be boarded before long."
+
+"Not I," replied the Flight-Sub.  "They've marked us already.  If they
+do take us they won't have to dig us out of a coal-bunker."
+
+The submarine was emerging.  At a pace that more than held its own with
+the _Hoorn_, she shook herself clear of the water, although green seas
+were breaking across the flat deck as far aft as the conning-tower.
+
+Then muffled forms clambered through the hatchway; a young,
+yellow-bearded officer appeared on the navigation platform and hailed
+the _Hoorn_ in Dutch to heave to instantly.
+
+Even then the tough old Dutch skipper was not going to give in without
+a protest.
+
+"For what reason?" he shouted back.  "This is a Netherlands ship."
+
+"That I do not doubt," rejoined the officer of the submarine.  "But you
+have two Englishmen on board who have broken their parole----"
+
+"You lie!" interrupted the skipper vehemently.
+
+"Not a word more!" exclaimed the German fiercely.  "Heave to, or we
+sink you!"
+
+Reluctantly the "old man" gave the order to stop the engines.  Jan,
+sliding down the bridge ladder, communicated to the British officers
+the text of the conversation.
+
+"Some rascal of a German spy has betrayed you," he added.  "If I could
+lay my hands upon him----"
+
+There was a look on the Dutchman's face which showed that his anger was
+genuine.
+
+"All right, Jan," said the Flight-Sub.  "It's the fortune of war."
+
+      *      *      *      *      *
+
+"Deucedly rotten morning," remarked Sub-lieutenant Fox as he greeted
+the officer of the watch, whom he was about to relieve.
+
+Eccles, the Lieutenant, who had been on the _Capella's_ bridge for four
+long and dreary hours, merely nodded sleepily.  He was thinking, with
+feelings of satisfaction, of the hot coffee and fragrant bacon and eggs
+awaiting him below.  Three minutes had to elapse before eight bells.
+Wearily he rubbed his salt-rimmed eyelids with a heavily gloved hand.
+
+"_Taurus_ wirelessed twenty minutes ago," he reported, as the two
+officers entered the chart-room.  "She was then at the extreme limit of
+her northerly course.  You ought to sight her very shortly.  Here's our
+course"--he indicated the pencilled line on the chart.  "Nothing to
+report: there never is when I'm officer of the watch.  It's this
+infernal monotony that plays havoc with a fellow's nerves."
+
+Noel Fox nodded sympathetically.  Although the _Capella_ had been only
+six days on her new station--keeping a watch on the Dutch coast between
+the Texel and the North Hinder Lightship--he, too, was mightily "fed
+up" with the task of "treading on the tail of Germany's coat".
+
+Not so much as the periscope of a hostile submarine had been sighted.
+The German torpedo-boats that occasionally sneaked southwards from
+Borkum were taking an enforced holiday.  Perhaps it was in sympathy
+with the "High Seas Fleet" skulking in the Kiel Canal.  In any case,
+the six motor craft of the _Capella_ class had a full share of wintry
+conditions in the North Sea without any compensating adventures to
+mitigate the monotony.
+
+As Eccles descended from the bridge, a great-coated muffled-up figure,
+followed by a large dog, swung himself up the ladder.
+
+"Morning, Haye," was Noel Fox's salutation, as he stooped to pat Shrap,
+the chartered libertine of the _Capella_.  "Dash it all, it is cold!
+Makes a fellow wish he were a sheep-dog.  Here, Shrap, off you go and
+get your whiskers trimmed.  I can see Tomkins waiting for you."
+
+The dog needed no second order.  Every morning just after eight bells
+Shrap would be taken over by the watch below.  Every man took a delight
+in combing the animal's long hair, until Shrap's coat was the pride of
+the _Capella's_ crew and the envy of the rest of the flotilla, whose
+mascots never aspired to be more than a tame rat, parrot, or canary.
+
+"Sail on the port bow, sir," bawled the look-out.
+
+The Sub and the midshipman promptly levelled their telescopes.  A small
+cargo-steamer was pitching and rolling as she forged slowly ahead on a
+westerly course.  Although she was fairly discernible against the pale
+grey of the eastern sky, it could be taken for granted that from the
+Dutchman's bridge the neutral-grey-painted _Capella_ would be
+practically invisible.
+
+"She's slowing down," declared Vernon.
+
+"What on earth for?" enquired the Sub.  "She couldn't possibly have
+spotted us.  Starboard your helm, quartermaster.  Good!  Keep her at
+that.  We'll get her to make her number, if nothing else."
+
+Again Noel Fox levelled his telescope.  Then he thrust it into a rack
+on the side of the chart-room, and bellowed:
+
+"Turn up, both watches.  Action stations.  Submarine ahead."
+
+His quick glance had discerned the after part of a large unterseeboot
+as she ranged alongside the Dutchman, whose high sides screened most of
+the submarine from the _Capella_, and conversely prevented the Germans
+clustered amidships from noticing the approach of the swift British
+patrol-vessel.
+
+For the next few minutes, all was bustle and orderly confusion on board
+the _Capella_.  Taking three steps at a time, Captain Syllenger gained
+the bridge, closely followed by Eccles, to whom the sudden interruption
+of a hearty breakfast came as a welcome call.
+
+At a terrific pace the sleuth-hound of the sea tore towards the
+_Hoorn_, for such she was.  Rounding under her squat counter, and
+reversing engines, the _Capella_ brought up within fifty yards of the
+submarine before the astonished Germans could realize their precarious
+plight.
+
+"Surrender, or I sink you!" roared Captain Syllenger.
+
+The grim muzzles of the _Capella's_ 4.7's, trained at a point-blank
+range, were a conclusive argument.  Without waiting for orders, the
+majority of the unterseeboot's crew held up their arms.  For a brief
+instant did her Kapitan hesitate.
+
+"Me surrender," he replied.
+
+"Very good; I accept your surrender," replied the _Capella's_ skipper.
+"But understand, any attempt to open the sea-cocks will mean that no
+quarter will be given.  Order all hands below, and leave the hatchways
+open.  You will oblige me by proceeding on board His Majesty's ship
+_Capella_."
+
+By this time the _Hoorn_ was forging ahead, since she was in danger of
+drifting down upon the captured submarine.  In the excitement of the
+capture, no one on board noticed two grotesquely garbed men on the
+_Hoorn_ whose antics resembled those of a pair of demented creatures;
+nor was the presence of a couple of dejected German leutnants and five
+seamen, stranded on board the Dutchman, observed, as the Huns
+frantically besought the obdurate skipper of the _Hoorn_ to steam as
+hard as he could towards the Dutch coast.
+
+It was Vernon Haye's duty to take the cutter and board the prize.  It
+was a hazardous piece of work, for the sea was now fairly high, and
+breaking under the effect of tide against wind; but, with the exception
+of a broken top-strake, the boat managed to lie sufficiently close
+alongside the submarine to enable the midshipman and five seamen to
+board.
+
+Already the German crew were below.  Hatches were lowered and secured,
+with the exception of the one in the after side of the conning-tower.
+This could be left open without fear of the submarine being swamped,
+while, to prevent the captured crew closing it and making an attempt to
+dive, the steel cover was removed from its hinges and secured on deck.
+The Black Cross flag was hauled down and rehoisted under the White
+Ensign, and preparations were made to take the prize in tow.
+
+It was some time before a grass rope, to which a stout wire hawser was
+bent, could be veered from the _Capella's_ quarter and taken on board
+the submarine, but eventually the hawser was made fast.
+
+"Now, sir," said Vernon, addressing the German Kapitan.  "Will you
+please step into that boat?  Where are the other officers?"
+
+"In that ship," replied the Hun sullenly, as he pointed towards the
+_Hoorn_.  "They will not welcome you, but there are others who will."
+
+Not knowing what the German meant, Vernon indicated that he should get
+on board the cutter.
+
+"There are two German officers on board that vessel, air," reported the
+midshipman, as the boat came alongside the _Capella_.  "Am I to bring
+them off?"
+
+Captain Syllenger hesitated before replying.  It was a knotty problem.
+To remove by force the subjects of a hostile nation from a neutral ship
+was contrary to international law.  However much the Germans violated
+the "right of search", it was not Great Britain's policy to engage upon
+reprisals.  Holland, although a third-rate Power, had to be treated
+with due courtesy.
+
+"It's all the same in the long run," replied Captain Syllenger.  "Board
+that vessel, Mr. Haye, and see what those fellows are doing there.  If
+the Dutch skipper objects to their presence on his hooker, then bundle
+them into the boat.  If, on the other hand, he protests against their
+removal, let them remain.  They will be collared as soon as the ship
+enters our three-mile limit."
+
+The _Hoorn_ had once more come to a dead stop, at two cables' length
+from the British patrol-vessel.
+
+As the _Capella's_ cutter came alongside, Vernon agilely scrambled up
+the "monkey ladder" and gained the deck.
+
+"Hulloa, old man!" exclaimed a well-known voice.
+
+Vernon looked at the speaker.  He knew the voice, but for a moment he
+failed to recognize in the oddly garbed youth his chum Ross Trefusis.
+Then he grinned broadly.
+
+"My word!" he exclaimed.  "You do cut a pretty figure."
+
+Had they been of any nationality but British, the lads would have
+fallen on each other's necks and perhaps kissed each other.  Instead,
+they stood a yard apart and laughed--but their mutual joy was none the
+less genuine.
+
+"So you've come to fetch the German Leutnant and his boat's crew," said
+Ross, after Haye had been introduced to the Flight-Sub.  "He's
+somewhere below.  You'll recognize him right enough."
+
+"Eh?" asked Vernon incredulously.
+
+"Rather!" declared Ross emphatically.  "You'd never guess.  It's our
+old pal, Hermann Rix, late of U75.  No wonder he's tearing his hair,
+for he must have broken his parole.  He knew me directly he came over
+the side, and didn't forget to rub it in.  You should have seen his
+face when, in the midst of his beastly gibes, the old _Capella_ came
+snorting up."
+
+With Jan acting as interpreter, Vernon put his case before the Dutch
+skipper, who seemed only too delighted at the way events had turned.
+His satisfaction at getting rid of his Hunnish visitors was evident, in
+spite of the stolidity of his manners.
+
+"I want no pirates on board the _Hoorn_," he said.  "Take them and
+welcome!"
+
+While the Flight-Sub and Ross were "squaring up" with the good-hearted
+Jan, Vernon rounded up Ober-leutnant Rix and his boat's crew.  Finding
+that their protests to the Dutch skipper were of no avail, they
+sullenly gave in.
+
+"Look here," said Ross, taking his chum aside.  "I don't want to crow
+over that fellow.  It isn't cricket.  You might take him to the
+_Capella_ and come back for us.  You'll have a pretty good load as it
+is."
+
+"Two British officers, escaped from an internment camp, on board the
+_Hoorn_, sir," reported Vernon, as he delivered his cargo of German
+prisoners on board the _Capella_.  "They would like to be taken off."
+
+"Carry on, then," replied Captain Syllenger.
+
+As the cutter returned from her second trip to the _Hoorn_, the
+_Capella's_ crew awaited with undisguised curiosity the arrival of the
+men who had contrived to escape from irksome detention in a neutral
+country.
+
+Presently Shrap, who was sitting up on the quarterdeck, gave a bark of
+delight.
+
+"Good old Shrap!" said Ross.  "He knew me in spite of my rig-out."
+
+"Blow me, if it ain't Mr. Trefusis!" exclaimed one of the men.
+
+The next instant the first of three hearty cheers burst from the
+throats of the crew, with whom Ross was a great favourite.  The
+Dutchmen, too, joined in, to the accompaniment of a prolonged blast
+upon the _Hoorn's_ siren as she resumed her interrupted voyage.
+
+"It's like being home again," declared Ross, after Captain Syllenger
+and the other officers had congratulated him.  "But, I say, can anyone
+lend me a decent suit of togs?"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIX
+
+Bound for the Baltic
+
+A fortnight had elapsed since the day on which H.M.S. _Capella_ towed
+the captured unterseeboot into Harwich harbour.  Since then she had
+been attached to a base on the East coast of Scotland, her sphere of
+usefulness in the English Channel being a thing of the past.
+
+The German blockade had fizzled out like a damp squib.  Absolutely
+afraid to risk the remaining boats in operations that would certainly
+end in their being unceremoniously conveyed to Davy Jones's locker, the
+German Admiralty had dispatched them to the Mediterranean, where, under
+the Austrian flag, they attempted, at first with a certain degree of
+success, to terrorize merchantmen by their "frightfulness".
+
+So the _Capella_ had been ordered to Cromarty Firth, pending the
+completion of arrangements for sending a fleet of swift destroyers and
+patrol-boats to operate in conjunction with the British submarines in
+the Baltic.
+
+Almost the first duty Ross had to undertake upon arrival was to draw
+money for the ship's company from the Paymaster's office at Invergordon.
+
+Accompanied by six seamen, wearing their side-arms and carrying three
+canvas bags, the midshipman landed, and proceeded to the office.
+Leaving the escort "standing easy", Ross entered the building and found
+himself confronted by a door on which was painted the words,
+"Accountant Officer".  Underneath was a piece of cardboard on which was
+written: "Don't knock--walk in".
+
+The midshipman accepted the invitation and entered.  It was a large
+room.  Against one wall were three knee-hole desks, at which were
+seated naval "writers"--petty officers detached for clerical work.  Two
+more were bending over a large tray, studiously engaged in "putting the
+money up", or placing wages in the compartments of the tray in order to
+facilitate the forthcoming payment to the civilian workers attached to
+the establishment.  At a large desk was an officer, with his head
+almost touching a litter of papers.  His back was turned, but Ross
+could see by the gold-and-white band that he was an Assistant Paymaster.
+
+Hearing footsteps behind him, the A.P. broke into a torrent of abuse:
+
+"Of all the scatter-brained idiots that act the giddy goat, this
+strafed lunatic takes the proverbial ship's biscuit!" he exclaimed.
+"Just look here, Carruthers; did you ever see such a piece of arrant
+tomfoolery----"
+
+He turned his head, and saw it was not Carruthers.
+
+"Sorry," he said apologetically.  "Thought it was someone else.  You
+must have imagined that I was off my head.  It's a wonder I'm not.
+Look at this: here am I up to my eyes in work, and I get this sort of
+thing fired at me."
+
+Ross looked at the tendered document.  It was headed: "Queries in the
+Store Ledger", and the gem to which the harassed A.P. had referred was
+as follows:--
+
+"4 oz. tin-tacks.  Please say if these are synonymous with 'tacks
+tinned'."
+
+The midshipman laughed.  The A.P. glared.
+
+"Some rotten idiot drawing five hundred a year evidently doesn't
+realize it's war-time," he growled.  "Now, what can I do for you?"
+
+At length the midshipman received the necessary coin.  He was about to
+leave the officer when he found himself face to face with John Barry,
+now a Lieutenant-Commander, R.N.R.
+
+"Bless my soul, Trefusis!" exclaimed Barry cordially.  "I am glad to
+see you.  I heard the new _Capella_ was ordered round.  How's everyone?
+Thanks, I'm top-hole.  In a deuce of a hurry!  Look here, come on board
+and see me to-night.  The _Hunbilker_ is lying off Cromarty.  Can you
+manage it?"
+
+"I think so," replied Ross.
+
+"Very good; bring Haye with you.  I'll send a boat at seven bells."
+
+Captain Syllenger readily gave the midshipmen permission.
+
+"It looks as if it might blow a bit before very long," he added.  "If
+so, remain on board until morning.  It's no joke making a five-mile
+trip in a steamboat on a pitch-dark night with a sea running."
+
+The lads were delighted at the prospect of the visit.  They were both
+awfully keen on John Barry; besides, they were rather anxious to see
+what sort of command he had.  The ship's name was enough to excite
+their curiosity.  She had evidently arrived later than the _Capella_,
+for there was no sign of a craft bearing that name when the
+patrol-vessel passed Cromarty on the previous afternoon.
+
+Punctually at seven bells a grey motor-boat dashed up alongside the
+_Capella's_ gangway.  Shrap, whose instinct told him that his young
+master was leaving the ship, anticipated him by making a prodigious
+bound from the side into the waiting boat, alighting upon the shoulders
+of the coxswain, much to that worthy's astonishment.
+
+"Never mind, sir," replied the man, in answer to Vernon's apologies.
+"I've a dog myself at home, very much like this one."
+
+"Let him come with us," suggested Ross.  "He'll kick up an awful row if
+you don't."
+
+So Shrap, coiled up in the stern-sheets, had his way.
+
+Having received the midshipmen, the boat turned and threshed its way in
+the teeth of a strong easterly breeze.
+
+"Yes, sir, that's the _Hunbilker_," replied the coxswain in answer to
+Vernon's query, as a large grey shape loomed through the twilight.
+
+"By Jove!" ejaculated Ross, absolutely taken aback.  "She's a whopper.
+Old Barry's got a battleship.  If she isn't a sister ship to the
+_Tremendous_, I'm a----"
+
+Fortunately for him, Ross refrained from saying what he might be, for
+as things turned out he was wrong.  The _Hunbilker_ commenced her
+career as a 6000-ton merchantman, but no one would recognize her as
+such.
+
+In all probability, but for the war, she would have ended her career as
+such.  But the Navy required her for a certain purpose, and loyally the
+old tramp stepped into the breach.  When, after a lapse of nine weeks,
+she emerged from the repairing basin, her disguise was complete.  She
+looked to be what she was not.  It is, therefore, no cause for
+wonderment that the two midshipmen were deceived by the enormous
+outlines of what appeared to be a formidable unit of the British Navy.
+The _Hunbilker_ was, in short, a maritime ass in lion's skin, but her
+role was none the less a responsible one.
+
+"I was rather doubtful whether you would turn up," remarked Barry.
+"The glass is dropping like billy-ho, and there's a brute of a sea
+tumbling in."
+
+"We need not return to-night," announced Ross.
+
+"That's capital," rejoined the Lieutenant-Commander.  "I'll get the
+hands to hoist in the boat and trice the accommodation-ladder up.  We
+roll like a barrel in a sea-way."
+
+"You've got a big command this time, sir," said Vernon.
+
+Barry smiled.
+
+"Yes," he replied.  "Plenty of room, but the lighting 'tween decks is
+rotten.  All artificial, you know, except the little we get in through
+the quarter-deck skylights.  I'm expecting young Jolly; he's the A. P.
+you saw ashore at Invergordon.  Not a bad sort of youngster when he's
+clear of his work.  Would you like to look round before we go below?"
+
+"Of course the Germans know all about our dummy battleships," continued
+Barry as he led the way.  "They jeered at the scheme in the papers as
+far back as last November twelvemonth."
+
+"Then what's the object?" asked Ross.
+
+"It muddles them up.  They can't distinguish the _Tremendous_ from this
+packet, especially in hazy weather.  They've got to guess which is the
+substance and which is the shadow.  From actual results we know now
+that the costly experiment has more than justified the expenditure."
+
+The Lieutenant-Commander and his young guests continued to talk shop
+until it was time to go below.  From that moment, conversation drifted
+into other channels of more or less personal interest.
+
+Presently a loud whistle was heard from without.
+
+"That's Jolly," declared the Lieutenant-Commander.  "It's the last boat
+to-night, I fancy."
+
+A few minutes later the A. P., having divested himself of his dripping
+oilies and sou'wester, was ushered into the cabin.  Separated from his
+duties as Accountant Officer, he was much the same as other men.  Ross
+could hardly believe that the jovial officer--for he did not now belie
+his name--was the same explosive man who had figuratively lost his head
+over four ounces of "tacks tinned".
+
+Dinner over, the four officers drew their chairs close to the fire and
+yarned incessantly.  Even the laboured rolling of the ship, the howling
+of the wind overhead, and the _chouf chouf_ of the waves as they
+slapped against the sides, failed to remind them that they were afloat
+and in an exposed anchorage.
+
+"Heard from your sister recently?" enquired Barry, addressing the A. P.
+He tried to ask the question in a natural tone of voice, but the
+midshipmen were quick to perceive a deepening of the tan in the
+Lieutenant-Commander's weather-beaten face.
+
+"Had a letter only this morning," replied Jolly; "a fairly long one,
+too.  I suppose things have quieted down a bit after the rush.  My
+sister's a double one, you know," he added, turning to Ross and his
+chum.
+
+"A what?" asked Ross.
+
+"She's my sister, and she's a nursing sister at a naval hospital,"
+explained the A.P.  "There's a very quaint little bit.  I must read it
+to you."
+
+He produced an envelope from his pocket.
+
+"'You remember Marjory May?'" he read.  "'She's had her wish.  She
+joined here as a probationer, on the day after that terrible destroyer
+affair.  We had most of the cases.  One of the patients was a stoker,
+who had been knocked about by a shell exploding in a bunker (whatever
+that is--it sounds like golf).  Marjorie had her first task--to wash
+him before the doctor could operate.  I went to see how she was
+progressing, and found the poor girl on the verge of tears.  'Oh,
+sister!' she exclaimed; 'I've been scrubbing him for ten minutes, and I
+can't get him clean!'  It was rather dull in the ward, so I switched on
+the light.  Then I saw the cause of Marjory's distress.  The poor
+stoker was a half-caste."
+
+"By Jove!" ejaculated the A.P. as a particularly savage gust laid the
+ship well over.  "It isn't half blowing!"
+
+"Yes, my festive friend," agreed Barry; "it is!  Fortunately you are
+not due back to-night.  If you were it wouldn't signify, for I wouldn't
+order a boat away on a night like this.  To-morrow, if it hasn't
+moderated--and the worst is yet to come--we'll weigh and stand up the
+Firth into smoother water."
+
+There was a pause in the conversation.  The din without was now
+terrific.  One of the worst of the winter gales was approaching its
+climax--a furious nor'easter.
+
+"Come in!" shouted Barry as a knock was heard at the cabin door.
+
+"Wireless message, sir," announced one of the ship's boys.
+
+"Very good," replied the Lieutenant-Commander.  Then, after the
+messenger had backed out, he started to his feet.
+
+"I say, you fellows!" he exclaimed.  "Here's a pretty kettle of fish:
+'Flag to _Hunbilker_: Proceed to sea at once.  Rendezvous Lat. 5 deg. E.,
+Long. 57 deg. 30' N.'  That means, whether you like it or whether you
+don't, you're bound for the Baltic."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXX
+
+The Affair off Kiel
+
+Clad in their oilskins over their greatcoats, the two midshipmen
+accompanied Barry to the bridge.  The A. P., on second thoughts,
+decided to remain below.  He had a rooted objection to getting his
+glasses smothered in spray if it could be avoided.
+
+Steam had been raised a week ago, when the _Hunbilker_ left Newcastle
+for Cromarty, so there was no delay on that account.  Already the steam
+capstan was clanking dolorously as fathom after fathom of chain crept
+with seeming reluctance through the hawse-pipe.
+
+It was a night.  Towering seas, sweeping in from the exposed Moray
+Firth, surged madly into the more sheltered inlet where the dummy
+battleship strained at her cable.  The air was thick with sleet.
+Overhead, black clouds scudded rapidly across the moon.
+
+Even though the ship was partly under the lee of the projecting ground,
+the midshipmen knew that it would be hopeless to attempt to lower a
+boat.  For good or ill they were bound to remain on board.
+
+"Suppose it's all right," remarked Ross.  "We may get a chance of doing
+something, far more so than if we were on board the _Capella_, now this
+submarine blockade fiasco is finished.  At any rate it's not our fault
+we're here."
+
+"But our good fortune," added Vernon.  "Evidently there's a big affair
+coming off, though I can't quite see what this vessel's going to do in
+it."
+
+For fifteen hours of darkness the _Hunbilker_ plodded steadily onwards.
+No lights were shown, yet it was a known fact that at least thirty
+vessels of various types were converging upon the rendezvous.
+
+Captain Barry never once quitted the bridge.  Although his lofty post
+was constantly deluged by clouds of icy spray, and the weather side of
+the bridge-rail canvas was inches deep in sleet, he braved the elements
+through watch and watch, snatching a hasty meal of cocoa (which was
+cold by the time it reached him) and biscuits under the lee of the
+chart-house.
+
+Day dawned at last.  Ross and Vernon, who had gone below to snatch a
+few hours' sleep, came on deck to find the _Hunbilker_ at the
+rendezvous.  She lay in the midst of a fleet.  There were the great
+battle-cruisers, Dreadnoughts and their replicas, light cruisers, and a
+galaxy of torpedo-boats--the latter swept from stem to stern by the
+waves.
+
+Without any appreciable weakening of the Grand Fleet, this maritime
+force had been assembled for particular service--presumably in the
+Baltic, although no orders to that effect had yet been received.
+
+All that short January day the fleet steamed slowly eastward, while
+signal flags fluttered incessantly.  No hostile submarine put in an
+appearance.  Either the Germans feared the swift destroyers that
+encircled the large vessels, or else they were in ignorance of the
+presence of the British within four hours' steaming of their shores.
+
+It was not until night that the _Hunbilker_ received her orders.  She
+had to proceed in advance of the destroyers, and under cover of
+darkness pass through the Great Belt.  Having done so, she was to be
+run aground on a shoal between the Danish island of Laaland and the
+Prussian island of Fehmern, the latter being within forty miles of the
+stronghold of the German Navy at Kiel.
+
+Then she was to await developments.  If attacked by submarines, the
+British destroyers would dash in; but what the British Admiral fondly
+hoped was that the hostile battleships or armoured cruisers would not
+be able to resist the temptation of sallying forth from Kiel to give
+the supposed Dreadnought her _coup de grace_.  In this case our
+submarines would "chip in", and possibly the battle-cruisers might
+score with their deadly and accurate long-range salvoes.
+
+"It's not so risky as it looks," commented Barry as he explained the
+tactics to the midshipmen.  "You see, they can torpedo us as much as
+they like, and blow the dummy sides of the ship to bits piecemeal.  We
+can't sink, since we'll be hard aground.  We can't take fire--at least,
+it would be quite a job to get any part of her to burn without being
+able to keep the flames under control.  Gunnery, of course, puts a
+different aspect on the subject.  If the enemy start shelling us with
+their heavy guns, then the sooner we abandon ship and clear out the
+better, and leave our big cruisers to mop up the Huns."
+
+Grey dawn was breaking when the _Hunbilker_, having made the passage
+through the Great Belt, ran gently aground at the spot indicated in the
+Admiral's orders.  Away in the sou'west, a glare in the sky that was
+rapidly fading with the growing morn indicated the search-lights of the
+Kiel defences.  Eastwards, two huge grey shapes loomed ghost-like in
+the half-light.  Whether they were British cruisers or decoys, or even
+German battleships, Ross could not determine.
+
+The _Hunbilker_ lay with a slight list to starboard.  All around her
+the sea was covered with drifting ice.  An utter stillness brooded over
+everything.  The silence was in keeping with the scene of desolation.
+
+Suddenly the deafening blast of the _Hunbilker's_ siren rent the air.
+It was the prearranged signal that she was in readiness; it was also
+her challenge to the Kiel-tied German fleet.
+
+Ten minutes later a lurid flash, followed by a dull booming noise, came
+from the nearmost of the two vessels Ross had previously noticed.
+
+"Either mine or torpedo," remarked Barry casually.  "It doesn't
+signify.  They won't sink her in a hurry."
+
+"What is she, sir?" asked Vernon.
+
+"Our opposite number, the _Snark_," replied the Lieutenant-Commander.
+"See, she's steaming northwards, without any apparent injury.  It will
+be our turn before very long."
+
+At frequent intervals the siren shrieked, as if calling to the rest of
+the squadron for assistance.  Then out of the rising mist, for with the
+break of day a thin pall of vapour rose from the ice-flecked water,
+leapt two German torpedo-boats.
+
+"Port side, all hands!" roared Barry.
+
+Officers and crew put the greatest possible distance between them and
+the side of the ship exposed to the hostile craft.  Without slackening
+speed, the torpedo-boats described a sharp curve.  Their officers must
+have wondered why they were not greeted by the stranded battleship's
+quick-firers.  As they turned, two gleaming objects flopped
+ungracefully from their decks and disappeared with a splash beneath the
+surface.  Each boat had fired a torpedo from her broadside tubes.
+
+From the place where the midshipmen stood, they were not able to follow
+the track of the formidable missiles; but they had not long to wait.
+Both torpedoes struck almost simultaneously--one abreast of the for'ard
+dummy turret, the other fifty feet farther aft.
+
+High in the air rose a column of water mingled with fragments of iron
+plating; while in their place of hiding the two lads were smothered
+with cork-dust and blackened cotton that had been blown from the space
+betwixt the outer and inner hulls.
+
+"It's lucky for us that they didn't use their quick-firers," remarked
+Barry.  "They would have pulverized us before our destroyers romped up.
+By Jove, Haye, that dog of yours looks as though he likes it!  Hulloa!
+There you are!"
+
+The Lieutenant-Commander pointed to the southward.  A rift in the mist
+disclosed a two-masted, two-funnelled armoured cruiser about two miles
+off.
+
+"The _Prinz Heinrich_ or the _Fuerst Bismarck_," declared Barry.  "We've
+turned 'em out.  Hope to goodness our little lot will be in time to
+snap them up.  Unless I'm much mistaken, there are two more astern of
+her."
+
+Almost as he spoke, a spurt of flame rent the dull sky.  Then, to the
+accompaniment of a vivid flash and an ear-splitting detonation, a
+5.9-inch shell burst against the for'ard dummy turret of the
+_Hunbilker_.
+
+When the smoke had cleared away, guns, turret, and conning-tower,
+together with a portion of the bridge, had vanished.
+
+"All hands abandon ship!" ordered Barry, as a salvo of light
+projectiles flew round, over, and through the decoy.
+
+It was quite time.  Several men had been hit, since there was nothing
+to afford complete protection from the hail of shells.  The difficulty
+was to find a boat that was seaworthy, since these suffered almost at
+once from the flying fragments of metal.
+
+"Hurrah, sir!" shouted one of the men.  "There are our destroyers."
+
+He was right.  Seven British destroyers were tearing through the water,
+intent upon giving the Germans the punishment that they had boasted to
+inflict upon the strafed Englishmen--a hussar stroke.
+
+Instantly the galling fire ceased.  The German cruiser had all her work
+cut out to endeavour to beat off her wasp-like antagonists.
+
+The _Hunbilker_ was doomed.  In spite of elaborate precautions against
+fire, she was burning furiously.  Her fo'c'sle was a mass of flames,
+generated by the intense heat of the first shell that had struck her.
+Smaller fires, too, had started in other parts of the ship.
+
+But help was at hand.  One of the covering destroyers had witnessed her
+plight.  Adroitly manoeuvring, she came right alongside the burning
+ship.
+
+"Jump, men!" shouted Barry.
+
+There was no time to be lost.  The danger of the flames communicating
+with the shells and war-heads on the destroyer's deck was to be taken
+into consideration.
+
+"Come on, old man!" exclaimed Ross, as his chum looked anxiously about
+him.
+
+"Where's Shrap?" asked Vernon.  "He was here a minute ago."
+
+In the confusion, occasioned by the rush of men to leap upon the
+destroyer, the dog had vanished.
+
+Without a word Vernon ran towards the companion leading to the
+half-deck.  Above the roar of the flames and the hissing of steam, he
+had heard the well-known bark of his pet.
+
+"Silly ass!" muttered Ross; but he, too, followed his chum.
+
+Wreaths of thin smoke were issuing from the companion as Ross gained
+the head of the ladder.  Putting his muffler round his mouth, he groped
+his way down.  'Tween decks the air was full of smoke.  He could hear
+Shrap's insistent bark, and Vernon's voice as, amidst fits of coughing,
+he called to his canine companion.
+
+"Whatever is the matter with the brute?" thought Ross, as he fought his
+way along the half-deck.
+
+A gaping hole in the ship's side admitted sufficient light to enable
+him to discern his comrade backing from one of the cabins.  Shrap was
+preceding him, while Vernon was dragging something limp and heavy.  It
+was the body of the luckless A. P.
+
+Without a word, for the atmosphere was hot and choky, Ross bore a hand.
+Stumbling and slipping, the two lads bore their burden to the
+companion, and by dint of much exertion carried Jolly on deck.
+
+"Is he dead?" asked Ross, after he had refilled his lungs with less
+smoke-laden air.
+
+"I don't think so," said Vernon.  "It was good old Shrap that found
+him."
+
+The A. P. was below when the salvo from the German cruiser struck the
+ship.  He had gone to the cabin temporarily allotted to him to obtain
+some small but cherished belonging.  A fragment from one of the shells
+had inflicted a nasty scalp wound, stretching him senseless upon the
+floor.
+
+Had it not been for the sheep-dog, whose sagacity made him recognize
+that Jolly was a friend of his master's, the A. P. would have ended his
+career in the burning hull of the _Hunbilker_.
+
+"Hurry up!" exclaimed Ross.  "Let's get him aboard the destroyer."
+
+Between them they carried the insensible officer across the
+quarter-deck, but as they reached the side abreast the wreckage of the
+superstructure they came to an abrupt halt.
+
+The destroyer had sheered off and was out of sight.
+
+"Now what's to be done?" asked Vernon, aghast at the latest turn of
+fortune.
+
+They laid the A. P. on the deck and looked over the side.  Still made
+fast to the falls was a whaler, with her keel ten feet above water.
+When the order had been given to abandon ship, the boat had been
+lowered, but the appearance of the destroyer had done away with the
+necessity of having to make use of her.
+
+"Lower away!" ordered Ross.
+
+Checking the descent by taking a turn round the cleats, the lads
+allowed the whaler to reach the water.  To their satisfaction they
+found that she leaked but very little.  Oars and crutches were already
+on board, together with mast and sail.
+
+"Down you get," said Ross.  "Let go the after disengaging gear, then
+stand by.  I'll let Jolly down to you."
+
+Vernon quickly swarmed down the falls, while his chum carried the A.P.
+to the now empty davit.  Taking a few turns with his strong muffler
+round the chest of the unconscious man, Ross engaged the hook of the
+lower block, and slowly lowered him into Vernon's arms.  Shrap followed
+in a similar manner, since the drop was too great for him to leap
+without risk of limb.  Then Ross climbed down and gained the boat.  He
+was not a minute too soon, for the flames were drawing nearer and the
+heat was becoming almost unbearable.
+
+Placing Jolly in the stern-sheets, the lads stepped the mast and
+hoisted sail.  Nothing else was in sight, although the rumble of heavy
+firing was still audible.
+
+"I'll steer north," declared Ross, who had taken the helm, while Vernon
+attended to the A.P.'s ugly wound.  "If we are not picked up by one of
+our own boats, we are almost bound to hit one of the Danish islands."
+
+There was but little wind.  What there was, blew from a couple of
+points abaft the beam, so that the little craft was able to lie
+comfortably upon her course.
+
+At length Jolly opened his eyes.  Somewhat to his companions' amusement
+his first words were:
+
+"Dash it all!  Where did I leave my glasses?  Hulloa!  I've been
+plugged.  Where am I?"
+
+He attempted to sit up, but promptly subsided upon the gratings in the
+stern-sheets, and in a very short time he began to talk incoherently,
+and finally dropped off into a fitful slumber.
+
+The fog had now increased in density, so that it was no longer possible
+to see more than a hundred yards ahead.  Several vessels moving at high
+speed passed within hailing distance, but no reply came to the lads'
+shouts.
+
+"There's a hail!" exclaimed Vernon.
+
+Again came the sound of a human voice.  It was a call for aid, and was
+uttered in German.
+
+"Steady!" cautioned Vernon, as Ross put the helm down.  "We don't want
+to run alongside a cargo of Huns."
+
+"There's only one, I should imagine," replied his chum.  "At any rate
+we'll have a look.  If there are too many, we'll sheer off."
+
+Guided by the repeated calls for assistance, the midshipmen came in
+sight of a disabled boat.  It had been holed, and was kept afloat only
+by some of its air-tanks which had escaped damage.  The gunwales,
+jagged by shell-fire, were showing only a few inches above the water.
+The stern was almost awash, but the bows rose sufficiently high for the
+forefoot to be seen.  Crouching on the for'ard thwart was a German
+officer.  He was bareheaded.  The collar of his greatcoat was turned
+up.  His face was blanched by the intense cold.  As the whaler
+approached and he saw that it was a British one, he held up his hands
+in token of surrender.
+
+Dropping to leeward, Ross luffed smartly.  The whaler lost way almost
+alongside the waterlogged boat.
+
+Awkwardly the German clambered over the gunwale, for his limbs were
+numbed.  Then, as soon as he was safely on board, he drew a revolver
+from the pocket of his greatcoat and fired twice in quick succession.
+
+Ross saw his chum throw up his arms and pitch across the centre thwart.
+The next instant he felt a stinging pain in his shoulder, as if it were
+pierced by a red-hot needle.
+
+"The brute has plugged me!" was the thought that flashed through his
+mind, as he subsided heavily upon the grating by the side of the A. P.
+
+He was still conscious, although everything seemed misty.  Up to a
+certain point he remembered exactly what happened, for with a sudden
+spring Shrap flew at the treacherous Teuton's throat.
+
+Again and again the German fired, wildly and in the air, for the
+sheep-dog had him fixed in his unyielding jaws, shaking the fellow like
+a rat.  Unable to move a limb, Ross remained conscious until the issue
+was decided and victory rested with the devoted Shrap; then his head
+dropped upon his chest and everything became a blank.
+
+      *      *      *      *      *
+
+Ross Trefusis recovered consciousness to find himself in hospital on
+the East coast.  In the next cot was Jolly, cutting a sorry figure with
+his head swathed in surgical bandages.  Vernon was in an adjoining
+ward, making a promising recovery from the wound caused by the cowardly
+German's bullet that had passed between his ribs, fortunately just
+missing his lungs.
+
+It was not until a week later that Ross heard of the manner of his
+rescue.  The whaler had been picked up by a destroyer.  In it they
+found the three wounded British officers, and a dead German with his
+throat fearfully lacerated.  Not only had Shrap saved the situation,
+but he had helped still further to save his master's life, for it was
+owing to the warmth of the dog's body that Vernon was saved from death
+by exposure.
+
+One of the first of visitors to Ross's bedside was John Barry, now
+Commander Barry, R.N.R., D.S.O.
+
+"And how did the scrap come off?" asked Ross.
+
+"Fairly well," replied the Commander.  "We bagged a cruiser and a
+couple of destroyers.  The old _Hunbilker_ justified her existence, you
+see."
+
+"I'm afraid Haye and I are out of the running," remarked Ross
+disconsolately.
+
+"Not a bit of it," replied Barry in his breezy way.  "Not a bit of it.
+You'll both be as fit as fiddles in a couple of months.  The Navy's
+pushing on with the job all right, Ross, but it's slow and sure.
+You'll be at it again long before the end."
+
+Ross gave a sigh of satisfaction.
+
+"Sounds promising, sir, doesn't it?" he exclaimed.
+
+
+
+
+By PERCY F. WESTERMAN
+
+"No boy alive will be able to peruse Mr. Westerman's pages without a
+quickening of his pulses."--Outlook.
+
+
+With Beatty off Jutland.  A Romance of the Great Sea Fight.
+
+The Submarine Hunters.  A Story of Naval Patrol Work.
+
+A Lively Bit of the Front.  A Tale of the New Zealand Rifles on the
+Western Front.
+
+A Sub and a Submarine.  The Story of H.M. Submarine R19 in the Great
+War.
+
+Under the White Ensign.  A Naval Story of the Great War.  "No one can
+tell sea stories like Percy F. Westerman."--Outlook.
+
+The Dispatch-Riders: The Adventures of Two British Motor-cyclists with
+the Belgian Forces.  "No boy will find a dull page in Mr. Westerman's
+story."--Bookman.
+
+The Sea-girt Fortress: A Story of Heligoland.  "Mr. Westerman has
+provided a story of breathless excitement, and boys of all ages will
+read it with avidity."--Athenaeum.
+
+Rounding up the Raider: A Naval Story of the Great War.
+
+The Fight for Constantinople: A Tale of the Gallipoli Peninsula.
+"Breathless adventures crowd into this thrilling story....  It teems
+with enthralling episodes and vivid word-pictures."--British Weekly.
+"The reader sits absolutely spellbound to the end of the
+story."--Sheffield Daily Telegraph.
+
+Captured at Tripoli: A Tale of Adventure.
+
+"We cannot imagine a better gift-book than this to put into the hands
+of the youthful book-lover, either as a prize or
+present."--Schoolmaster.
+
+The Quest of the "Golden Hope": A Seventeenth-century Story of
+Adventure.  "The boy who is not satisfied with this crowded story must
+be peculiarly hard to please."--Liverpool Courier.
+
+A Lad of Grit: A Story of Restoration Times.  "The tale is well
+written, and has a good deal of variety in the scenes and
+persons."--Globe.
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
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+End of Project Gutenberg's The Submarine Hunters, by Percy F. Westerman
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