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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..a3caddc --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #67038 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/67038) diff --git a/old/67038-0.txt b/old/67038-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index e41157a..0000000 --- a/old/67038-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,10694 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Radio Gunner, by Alexander Forbes - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world 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. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: The Radio Gunner - -Author: Alexander Forbes - -Release Date: December 29, 2021 [eBook #67038] - -Language: English - -Produced by: Roger Frank and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at - https://www.pgdp.net (This book was produced from images - made available by the HathiTrust Digital Library.) - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE RADIO GUNNER *** - - - - - - THE RADIO GUNNER - - - - -[Illustration: IN THE LABORATORY] - - - - - THE RADIO GUNNER - - WITH ILLUSTRATIONS - -[Illustration] - - BOSTON AND NEW YORK - HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY - - The Riverside Press Cambridge - 1924 - - - - - COPYRIGHT, 1924, BY HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED - - The Riverside Press - CAMBRIDGE · MASSACHUSETTS - PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. - - - - - “Certainly they give men rewards for doing such things, - but what reward can there be in any gift of Kings or - peoples to match the enduring satisfaction of having done - them, not alone, but with and through and by trusty and - proven companions?” - - Kipling; _Sea Warfare_ - - - - - CONTENTS - - I A Scientist in the Making - II The Storm-Cloud - III The Mobilization - IV Progress in Jeopardy - V The Storm-Center Moves Eastward - VI The Hunt - VII The Fleet Arrives - VIII Dispatching the Secret Messenger - IX The Round-up - X The Power of Suggestion - XI Intrigue and Mischief - XII The Victim - XIII The Show-down - XIV The Battle - XV The Harbor at Sunset - - - - - ILLUSTRATIONS - - In the Laboratory - - And then the thing struck - - “There’s your oil-slick, isn’t it, Captain?” - - Fraser scratched on the ground diagrams illustrative - of the formations - - Drawn by Heman Fay, Jr. - - - - -THE RADIO GUNNER - -CHAPTER I—A SCIENTIST IN THE MAKING - - - 1 - -Early in the twentieth century the annual Memorial Day parade was -passing through a New England town. The sun shone hotly down till the -tarvia of the road felt soft and sticky underfoot. At the head of the -procession the usual brass band led the way with martial music. Every -one in the town was out, the older citizens for the most part standing -reverently with uncovered heads, while the children, in anything but a -solemn mood, tagged along on the flanks of the band. - -Jim Evans, a boy of six years, stood by the sidewalk in front of the -little white house in which he lived, his mother beside him, holding -him by the hand. At the rhythmic crescendo of the approaching music, -his pulse throbbed, and as the band swept by his eyes sparkled with -delight. Then came the aged veterans of the Civil War in their faded -blue uniforms, their grizzled white beards and wrinkled features -giving them a quaintness in the child’s eyes that made him want to -call his mother’s attention. He tugged at her hand and looked up at -her. The look in her face struck wonder to his childish soul; there -were tears in her eyes. He gazed at her in amazement. Tears had always -been to him the expression of childish grievance—nothing more. He had -never seen them shed by a grown-up. To his inquiring mind a mystery -had now presented itself. More than that, deep down within him there -was an awakening of something he had never felt before. His mother -looked down and saw the expression of wonder in the child’s serious -face. Her only answer was a tightening of her grip on his hand and a -quiver of the lip. - -The sound of the beating drum died away down the street; the -procession was gone. The mother and child returned to the little -garden behind the house. Seating herself in a garden chair, she took -him in her lap. - -“Jim,” she said in a low tender voice, “my father would have been -marching with those old men if he had lived. I remember so well when -he said ‘good-bye.’ I was a little girl about as big as you are, and -he picked me up in his arms and kissed me. Then he went away and never -came back. He died fighting bravely for all of us who stayed behind.” - -Thus with the vision of the parade fresh in his eyes and the sound of -martial music still ringing in his ears, and with the wonder of this -new meaning of his mother’s tears stirring his soul, the tradition of -an heroic life and death, the most precious heritage of the mother, -was handed on to Jim, the small boy. In after years he never saw a -Memorial Day parade but the memory of that day rose vividly before -him, and he never forgot what the day stood for. - - 2 - -Eleven years after this incident, one October afternoon, Jim Evans, -now at boarding-school, had gone up into the laboratory in the top of -the schoolhouse to finish an experiment with a new radio hook-up -before putting on his football clothes. He had just become absorbed in -his task when he heard the ringing of a bell which sounded the fire -alarm. Every boy in the school had his duty in the fire brigade -assigned him, and all knew that this summons took precedence over -everything. - -Evans dropped his tools and ran to a window overlooking the school -grounds. From his high position he could see the situation at a -glance. The school grounds comprised a superb grove of stately white -pines, the pride of the neighborhood. Within this grove, by its -western border, was a pond, and north of the pond the grove was -bounded for a short distance at its northwest corner by a small swamp, -choked with dense vegetation, a place frequented by a great variety of -bird life. West of the grove lay a wide expanse of low meadowland -overgrown with tall grass and thick bushes. After weeks of drought the -ground was parched and dry. A strong northwest wind was blowing, and a -brush fire burning in the meadow was sweeping rapidly toward the pine -grove, imminently threatening its destruction. Evans saw the boys dash -into a building and then, emerging with buckets and brooms, start on a -run, led by Sam Mortimer, chief of the fire brigade, to the south side -of the pond. Here lay the greater part of the boundary between the -meadow and the grove, and here it was that the shore of the pond was -most easily approached, for on the north it was lined with the dense -swamp vegetation. Evidently the plan of campaign was to form a bucket -line from the pond along the western edge of the grove to its southern -extremity. Evans could see that no one was detailed to deal with the -fire north of the pond; apparently it was assumed that the natural -moisture there would stop the fire. Now Evans had frequently haunted -this swamp in search of birds, and knew that the drought had reduced -it to a highly inflammable state. After a brief survey of the -situation, he ran downstairs and out toward the grove. By the time he -was out on the grounds the entire school, boys and masters, had -disappeared into the grove to the south of the pond. Evans ran for the -swamp where the smoke told him the fire was already entering the dense -growth of brush. - -Into the thicket he plunged and clawed his way through the tall bushes -till, half-suffocated with smoke, he reached the advancing line of the -fire. Down he went on his hands and knees and began scraping away the -dried leaves from the surface of the mud, now and again jumping to his -feet and uprooting bushes where the density of the growth required it, -then dropping again to his knees and working among the leaves like a -terrier. Thus he made across the path of the fire a swath where the -flames were stopped except in the strongest gusts of wind. Now and -then one of these would blow a burning leaf across the swath and start -the fire anew on the other side. Then Evans would jump back and stamp -out the fresh blaze. Once, when a runaway blaze threatened to spread -too fast to be stopped in this way, he threw himself on it and -smothered it with his body. - -With feverish effort he struggled against the advancing flames, -fearful lest they should get beyond his control in the larger bushes -and trees by the edge of the pond and thus set fire to the entire pine -grove. But now he saw the water of the pond gleaming through the smoke -not far ahead, and redoubled his efforts to carry his swath of bare -earth to the water’s edge. Half-blinded with smoke he dug and clawed -and kicked away the leaves till at last he reached the muddy shore of -the pond, and with vast relief saw the last of the flames expend -themselves in the dried leaves west of the line. - -He turned and walked back over the swath he had made, searching -carefully for embers that might start the fire anew. Only smouldering -embers did he find, and, stamping these out, he returned to the edge -of the pond satisfied that no more danger lay in this quarter. He then -skirted the shore of the pond and came to the south side where the -rest of the boys, having put out the fire in that quarter with their -bucket line, were assembling. - -Evans approached the others, picking the thorns out of his fingers as -he came. - -When Mortimer saw him he said, “Well, Jim, where in thunder have you -been?” - -“In the swamp,” was the answer. - -“What, looking for birds? There’s no fire there, is there?” - -Evans looked at him a second before answering, then said quietly, -“No.” - -“Didn’t you hear the fire bell?” said Mortimer. - -“Yes,” said Evans. - -“That’s a nice example to set the younger boys!” said Mortimer. “How -can we make anything of the fire brigade if the fellows in the -graduating class quit in an emergency like that? You ought to be put -in the jug.” - -The eyes of half a dozen boys standing near were on Evans, but he said -nothing. The fire brigade was formally dismissed, and the boys -repaired to the gymnasium where they dressed for football practice. As -they were dressing, Evans spoke to no one, and no one spoke to him. In -the line-up between the first and second teams, Evans, being one of -the smallest on the squad, played quarterback on the second. Usually -his game was not remarkable; he was criticized for too much -deliberation in the choice of plays. To-day he seemed possessed; he -was all over the field at once, picking up the ball on fumbles, -darting through the line and gaining ground, till Mortimer, captain of -the first eleven, coached his team to watch Evans and stop him. In -spite of all he could do to rally his team, Evans made a touchdown -which resulted in the defeat of the first eleven by the second, a -humiliation it had hitherto been spared. - -As the boys were walking back to the locker building in their reeking -football clothes, the head-master drew Mortimer aside and said to him: -“Didn’t you have your whole fire brigade on the south side of the -pond?” - -“Yes, sir,” said Mortimer. - -“I suppose you thought the swamp on the north side would be too wet to -burn, and the fire would stop there anyway,” said the head-master. - -“Surely.” - -“I should have thought so, too,” said the head-master; “there’s -usually standing water all through there. Fortunately some one who -knew better than you or I went in there and saved the pine grove. I’ve -just been looking over the ground and found that the fire had gone -right into the middle of the swamp to where some one had scraped away -the leaves and stopped it. It was dry as tinder everywhere. Have you -any idea who could have done it?” - -Mortimer was staggered. - -“Jim Evans was in the swamp,” he said. “It must have been he. And I -called him down for not being on the job. Why didn’t he tell me?” - -Mortimer hastened to find Evans and ascertain the truth. - -“Why didn’t you tell me, you great chump?” he said. - -“You seemed to take it for granted that I’d been making a fool of -myself, and I suppose that made me sore. Anyway, I didn’t feel like -going into explanations with those other fellows looking on.” - -“Well, I’m going into explanations just as quick as I can,” said -Mortimer warmly. - -“That’s mighty white of you, Sam,” said Evans, “but don’t make too -much fuss over it.” - -Mortimer lost no time in telling all who had heard his sharp -rebuke—and more too—the truth of the matter. - - 3 - -The next year Evans and Mortimer were freshmen together in college. -The friendship between them was firmly established, but in the larger -number of boys with whom they were thrown the divergence of their -tastes caused them to see less and less of each other. Mortimer was -universally liked and socially prominent. Altogether he was a -distinguished figure in his class. Evans devoted himself assiduously -to scientific study, and in his leisure time his strong love of -outdoor life usually led him away from, rather than toward, the haunts -of men. For this reason, as well as because of his reserved and -retiring disposition, he was socially comparatively obscure, though -respected and beloved by the few with whom he became intimate. - -Few would have supposed that one so obviously a leader as Mortimer -could ever want to lean for support in any exigency of life on one -younger than himself. Yet there were times when he felt depressed or -when his philosophy of life seemed clouded with doubts. At such times -he was apt to stroll over to Evans’s room where the two friends would -have a “heart-to-heart” talk, often lasting well into the night; and -always the clouds of confusion or doubt would disappear. - -The spring following their entrance into college came that great -turning-point in history, when in April, 1917, America entered the -war. Mortimer enrolled in the first Plattsburg Camp where he applied -himself so well to his training for the army that, in spite of being -only twenty years old, he won the commission of first lieutenant. -After many months in a training camp he was promoted to captain and -sent overseas. His company continued in training in France till the -last two months of the war when it was sent into action in the -Argonne. Mortimer served with distinction and won an enviable -citation. - -Evans, being a proficient radio operator, enlisted at once in the navy -and was put through the intensive course for radio electricians, and -then sent abroad on a destroyer. - -When he left his home the parting was not easy. His mother was a -widow, and he her only child; he was all she had. But in the spirit -with which the Spartan mothers gave to their sons the shields they -were to carry into battle, saying as they did so, “Return with it, or -on it,” Jim Evans’s mother bade him Godspeed with a brave smile on her -lips. He had a tradition to live up to, and she thanked God he was -able to do it. - -During the last months of the war the destroyer to which Evans was -attached was among those basing on Queenstown and performing the -arduous duty of meeting the great convoys from the States, far out at -sea, and escorting them through the danger zone to safety. - -The life on these slim fighting ships was a strange one indeed. As -they slid silently out of the harbor past Haulbowline, three, four, or -five in column, they never knew what might be in store for them. Then -as they passed Daunt Rock and, forming their scouting line, plunged -into the head seas that swept their narrow decks, there came the test -of the sailor’s morale. To learn to live and carry on in their cramped -quarters, rolling, pitching, and thrashing about till it seemed as if -neither flesh and blood nor steel could stand it any longer, while the -cold, gray rollers, washing over the ship from stem to stern, chilled -the very soul, was a feat that seemed to call for even more than human -powers of adaptation. - -But it was not always rough and dreary. There were days of sparkling -sunshine and calm seas, days when Evans’s spirit expanded and he -rejoiced in the grandeur of the ocean. And as he became more and more -accustomed to the life, his love of the sea, born at first in his -childhood acquaintance with it on the New England coast, became -deeper, till it was woven into every fiber of his being. - -Soon after the Armistice, Evans went to London on leave. He now wore -the uniform of a Chief Petty Officer, having risen through the -successive grades of radio electrician to chief. In London he met Sam -Mortimer, and they had a happy evening together. Mortimer told of the -days and nights at the front in mud, rain, shell-fire, and gas. - -“How was it on the destroyers?” he asked of Evans. - -“Pretty hard to stick it at first,” was the answer. “In those early -days when we first started bucking the head seas going out to -seventeen degrees west to look for convoys, I’d just want to curl up -in the lee of a stack where I could breathe fresh air and still not be -drenched to the skin with the spray and green seas washing over the -decks. I didn’t care a hang half the time if I made good or not. And I -was just crazy for the sight of the green hills of Ireland and the -spires of Queenstown, the snug berth at the mooring buoy and the -liberty party ashore. Then I waked up to the fact that the messages I -had to copy in those tedious watches in the radio room were very close -to the heart of our naval strategy; handling them mechanically like an -automaton, I was losing a golden opportunity to read the controlling -mind. I began to notice things, and I saw a wonderful evolution going -on. Sailing orders which at first required long messages were later -transmitted in a few brief signals. Every month saw new growth of -efficiency in handling communications and disposing the forces. We -have the British chiefly to thank for that—especially Admiral Bayly. - -“Toward the end I got to feel more like part of the ship; I got so I -didn’t mind, no matter how rough it was, and then the real spirit of -the sea got hold of me. As an old sailor said, life at sea clears the -corruption of the beach right out of your system. I’ve got now so that -when the old ship leaves Corkbeg Light astern and puts her nose into -the Atlantic, I feel that I’m getting back into my native element.” - -“I like the ocean on a nice calm day,” said Mortimer, “but I’d never -feel like that.” - -“What I want to do now more than anything,” said Evans, “is to go for -a good long cruise in my own boat when I can go where I want, turn in -when I want, and get up when I want.” - -“I’ll do that with you when we get home,” said Mortimer. - -“That’s a go,” echoed Evans warmly. “Don’t forget it.” - -“You bet I won’t,” said Mortimer. - - 4 - -Before the end of the winter these two young men were back in college, -finishing the courses they had begun. The summer vacations were for -Mortimer so well occupied with house parties and travel that the -promised cruise was forgotten. - -After college Mortimer studied law. As a student of this profession, -though of average thoroughness, he was more especially characterized -by brilliance; he could take in the “headlines” of a subject quickly -and well. After a short apprenticeship as a lawyer, he turned his -attention to politics in which he made for himself a brilliant and -successful career. - -Evans took up research in physics as his life-work, and after a year -in the great Cavendish Laboratory of Cambridge, England, he found a -place in the physics department of one of the leading American -universities. His researches dealt with the problems of atomic -structure and dynamics, and in this work he was deeply absorbed, -giving little time to anything else, except during his vacations when -he made a point each year of taking a substantial allowance of outdoor -life, usually cruising in a small sailboat along the New England coast -and often as far as Nova Scotia or the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. Thus he -kept the elasticity of youth, and with it an ever-increasing -self-reliance, so that no problem presented to him by wind or tide or -fog could catch him without adequate resource. - -Three years after graduation the class of which Evans and Mortimer -were members held a reunion at their Alma Mater in June. Mortimer, now -as always the leader in his class, was the central figure, usually -surrounded by groups of warm friends chatting about old times and war -times, or discussing questions of the day. Once during the reunion he -contrived to get off in a corner with Evans. - -“What about that cruise we planned in London?” he said. “Six years -have gone by and we don’t seem to have pulled it off yet.” - -“Name your day this summer,” said Evans, “and I’ll take you on.” - -“I’m scheduled for a vacation the first of August. How would that suit -you?” - -“That suits me fine. My boat will be in the harbor; just come to my -laboratory and we’ll go aboard.” - -“That’s a date,” said Mortimer; “don’t forget.” - -On August first Mortimer appeared at the Physics Building and asked -for Evans. A crotchety _diener_ in faded overalls showed him to a room -in the basement far removed from the light of day. Within, the sight -which met his eye was what appeared to be a hopeless snarl of junk. -There was a maze of glass tubing bent into all sorts of bizarre -shapes, some of it covered with crumpled bits of sheet lead or tinfoil -from the wrapping of a cake of chocolate; there were wires leading -every which way with no apparent vestige of order; there were old -wooden packing-boxes serving as supports, rusty nails bent upward for -hooks, nondescript objects tied together with twine or stuck together -with wax. Yet within this crazy jumble were instruments whose -construction required the highest refinement of manual skill that can -be found in all the world. The entire set-up was the culmination of -years of patient planning, designing, and assembling. Crude as it -appeared, it was in reality the key to some of the profoundest secrets -of Nature; and no man on earth save Evans knew how to use it. In the -midst of this strange assortment of matter, Evans sat on an empty -packing-box, his eye glued to the eye-piece of an optical instrument. - -“Well, Jim, are you coming sailing?” - -Before answering, Evans scribbled some figures on a scrap of paper. -Then he turned to Mortimer. - -“Good Lord, Sam, is it the first of August already? I’d clean lost -track of time.” - -“That’s what it is; and there’s a fine sailing breeze.” - -“Sailing breeze or no, I can’t knock off now. I’ve been sweating all -summer to get this experiment going right, and it’s going at last to -the Queen’s taste.” - -“Well, where do I come in? I’ve come all the way from New York to go -cruising with you.” - -“I tell you what,” said Evans, after a moment’s reflection, “you go -down to the harbor and find Jones’s store. Get whatever looks good in -the way of fresh food; I’ve got plenty of canned goods and staple -groceries on board. Get the stuff delivered at Salter’s Landing. I can -finish up this experiment by midnight, and I guess after that it won’t -hurt me to get it out of my system for a while. Go to the movies or -anything you like, and then come here with a taxi about midnight, and -we’ll get aboard as quick as we can.” - -Clearly the man of science could no more be budged till his cherished -experiment had yielded its golden fruit of knowledge than can the moon -be diverted from her course in the skies. No exploration of new -continents, no searching for hidden gold can lure the spirit on with -so strong an appeal as the unknown law of Nature awaiting the crucial -experiment, planned and prepared for months, and then appearing at -last like the light of day when the experiment is done and the -measurements construed with the power of reason. - -Mortimer obeyed, and wandered off to spend the afternoon and evening -on the water-front of the harbor. The next day the two friends sailed -a sparkling sea together in a tiny cruising knockabout—boys once more. - - - - - CHAPTER II - - THE STORM-CLOUD - - -The next act of our story opens in the year 1937. An international -crisis of the most momentous nature had just come to a head in Europe. - -For some years past a group of powerful men in Constantinople, -intriguing diplomatists and financial magnates, had been quietly -developing a scheme for world domination. By a process of peaceful -penetration, aided liberally by the adroit use of secret agents, they -had obtained complete control of the Balkan Peninsula and Asia Minor, -and for the first time in history reaped the harvest of a proper -development of the rich natural resources of these areas. Thus -enriched, the coalition had spread its tentacles all around the -Mediterranean till it held Italy and Spain firmly in its grip; and yet -by respecting the nominal independence of these countries the power -which it had over them was cleverly concealed from the world. - -Much of Russia was entangled in the snare. Being once more promised a -realization of the fools’ dream of communism, the adherents of -Bolshevism were won over into an alliance. By propaganda promising the -dawn of a new day of freedom, the enthusiastic support of the -peasants, long oppressed by the sinister strangle-hold of the Soviets, -was enlisted in behalf of the new combination. - -The old Pan-Islam spirit of the Moslems was vigorously exploited, and -thus a powerful underlying motive force was brought to bear on the -furtherance of the scheme. - -A substantial Turkish navy was built, and with money furnished by the -coalition, Greece, Italy, and Spain were encouraged to build strong -navies, too. No one of these navies was big enough to excite much -suspicion in England or America, and no one but the coalition and its -secret agents knew that these three navies were planned with a view to -forming parts of one great whole. With diabolical cunning the gigantic -plot against the world had been laid, and no exigency had been -overlooked. Then suddenly in the early summer of 1937, the fruits of -this vast intrigue appeared. Italy and Spain found themselves -committed to an alliance with Constantinople with a view to obtaining -complete control of the Mediterranean Sea. Through the work of a body -of spies, unique in preparedness and efficiency, France suddenly found -her Mediterranean fleet paralyzed, and before she could make a move to -defend them, her ships were seized without a blow. With astonishing -rapidity the various navies, thus reinforced, were mobilized and -operated as a coördinated fleet. England had but few ships in the -Mediterranean at the time, and these were soon engaged in battle by -overwhelming numbers, and sunk, after putting up the stiffest -resistance imaginable against fearful odds. Then Malta and Egypt were -attacked and seized. The south coast of France was occupied with an -invading force; all important points on the north coast of Africa were -taken, and the control of the Mediterranean became complete, with the -exception of Gibraltar. - -The British Navy was rushed to the defense of this stronghold, and had -they passed the strait a naval action would have ensued which might -have saved Europe then and there from the specter of the new Byzantine -Empire. But this exigency, like others, had been anticipated. As the -great navy steamed into the straits, supposedly under the protection -of Gibraltar, a vast battery of sixteen-inch guns mounted on railway -cars opened a withering fire from the Spanish shore at Tarifa. Less -than half of the capital ships passed through this barrage, and most -of those, before they were well out of range, ran into a mine-field -stretching across the strait, laid at night some weeks before by enemy -submarines and made ready for action by wire from Tarifa as the fleet -approached. - -A handful of battleships, cruisers, and destroyers escaped the trap, -and bravely faced their fate in the defense of Gibraltar. But the -waiting enemy had now such an overwhelming advantage in numbers that -their doom was sealed. Cut off by land and sea, it was of course only -a matter of time before Gibraltar fell. - -And now England was left with her mighty navy gone, all but the few -ships that were in dry-dock and couldn’t be sent in time, and a few -obsolete vessels purposely left at home. - -All Northern Europe rose to fight the Constantinople Coalition. -England, France, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Poland, and the -Scandinavian nations placed troops in the field. And soon two giant -armies faced each other entrenched in a battle-line extending from the -Pyrenees to the Alps and thence along mountain barriers where such -existed, eastward to the Caspian Sea. In the development of land -warfare, defensive measures had outstripped offensive measures, and -especially strong were the defensive methods used by the Mediterranean -forces. Consequently ground could be gained by the northern armies -only at the cost of prohibitive losses. A military deadlock ensued, -and the problem became one of attrition. In natural resources in the -Eastern Hemisphere the Mediterranean group had slightly the better -situation, but what counted still more was control of the Atlantic -Ocean, and through it, access to the resources of the Western -Hemisphere. - -This control by the Mediterranean Powers being undisputed, virtually -all commerce between North America and Northern Europe was cut off. -The resources of Northern Europe sufficed to maintain the war for the -present, but clearly materials from the Western Hemisphere would in -time be a necessity if the war was to go on. - -Through the summer months America maintained neutrality, although it -was daily becoming clearer to those whose vision extended beyond the -balance-sheet of the current month that, as in 1917, civilization was -at stake, and the sooner America shouldered her share of the fight the -better it would be for all the world, herself included. - -This was the situation when on a warm sunny morning in September one -of America’s newest destroyers crossed Cape Cod Bay at a thirty-knot -speed, and, gliding smoothly into Provincetown Harbor, dropped anchor. -As the chain rattled down, a tall, well-built man in civilian clothes -stood on the bridge beside the skipper and surveyed the harbor. -Presently his eye rested on a small sailboat, ketch-rigged, of some -thirty-six feet over-all length, making toward them about a quarter of -a mile away. - -“I guess that’s my boat, skipper,” said the civilian. - -“Going round the Cape in that, are you? She’s not over-roomy, but she -looks like a good sea boat,” was the answer. - -A boat was lowered; the civilian left the bridge, shook hands with the -skipper, and was soon on his way toward the sailboat which presently -shot up into the wind and, with her sails flapping, gradually lost -headway as the motor-boat from the destroyer came up on her starboard -quarter. The passenger clambered over the side and into the cockpit of -the little ketch, a sailor handed him his suitcase, and with a parting -word of thanks to the crew of the motor-boat he sat down to look about -him. - -At the wheel was a man not over middle height, compact and -strong-looking, with a clear, ruddy complexion, dressed in a pair of -khaki trousers and gray flannel shirt, a striking contrast to the -officers of the destroyer. The new skipper wasted no time in -greetings, but with eyes intent on the movements of the motor-boat -just shoving off, reached for the starboard jib sheet, pulled it in -and held it till the sailboat payed off to port and gathered -steerageway. Then, trimming the jib over, he settled back comfortably -and said, “Well, how are you? Had a nice trip across the Bay, didn’t -you?” - -“Beautiful; those destroyers glide along like a dream. This is a cozy -little boat you’ve got, Jim; where’s your crew?” - -“You’re my crew to-day,” said the skipper. “Lord! I don’t want a crew -killing time about the deck. That’s the advantage of this size and -rig; I can handle her alone, and yet she’s big enough for comfortable -cruising, and safe in any sea there is. I couldn’t afford a crew if I -wanted one; so I’m glad I don’t. Take your valise below and have a -look round, don’t you want to? Take the port bunk, my gear’s on the -starboard.” - -His friend acted on the suggestion and with a landsman’s clumsiness -engineered himself and his valise down the hatch into the coziest, -snuggest little cabin he had ever seen. Presently he returned to the -cockpit. - -“Looks like a nice little place to duck in out of the wet.” - -“It is rather a nice little cabin,” said the skipper. “To tell the -truth, this boat just suits me, and I feel as much at home on her as I -do anywhere in the world. I used to fancy something fast and racy as -my ideal of a sailboat, but as I get older I incline more to this sort -of thing, seaworthy and comfortable, fit to ride out any gale that -blows.” - -“You don’t look so awfully old yet,” said the other. - -“I don’t suppose I do,” said the skipper, “but if I remember rightly -I’m only a year younger than you.” - -“That’s so,” said the other. “I’m forty, and they tell me I look five -years older than I am. But you don’t look any older than you did in -college.” - -“I’m generally supposed to be still in the twenties. I judge that my -sheltered and quiet existence in the laboratory, together with lots of -outdoor life, camping, cruising, etc., has kept me young, while -battling with the storms of a busy world has been ageing you.” - -The skipper of the sailboat was Jim Evans; his passenger, Sam -Mortimer. Through the years since college their friendship had -endured, yet their lives led them so far apart that they seldom came -together. Evans’s career as a scientist had brought him happiness, but -no fame. His reputation for work of the highest quality was known only -to a handful of experts competent to judge. - -Mortimer’s career in politics had, on the other hand, placed him -increasingly in the limelight, till in the spring of 1937 he found -himself shouldering no less a responsibility than that of Secretary of -the Navy, just as the European crisis was coming to a head. His -predecessor had been none too competent, and in consequence his six -months in office had been almost wholly taken up with reorganization -in the Department, and little time had been left him to study the -principles of naval policy, strategy, and tactics. His knowledge of -naval affairs was small, and indeed he knew little of seafaring lore -in any form. In years gone by he had made one or two short cruises in -a small boat with Evans, but since then his recreations had been golf -and tennis, and all his professional attention had been focused on -politics. As yet no action had been taken by the American Government -toward joining in the war, and the public had little idea whether any -was to be expected; but to the Cabinet it was evident that action must -come soon. Now Mortimer was keenly aware that the question of naval -control of the Atlantic Ocean would soon be resting on his shoulders -more directly than on those of any other man living; small wonder, -then, that he felt overwhelmed by the responsibility he saw -approaching. The American Navy was large and powerful, and, reinforced -by such French ships as had been outside the Mediterranean and such -British ships as had escaped disaster, it was about an even match for -the consolidated navy of the Mediterranean Powers. On its efficiency -rested the control of the Atlantic. - -Early in September Secretary Mortimer left Washington for Boston to -spend three days examining the resources of the First Naval District. -He had spent a harassed and busy summer struggling to get the navy -ready for the task which each week made it seem more probable was to -devolve upon it. Every week the consciousness of his inability to see -with an expert’s eye the large problems of naval strategy distressed -him more. His brain was in a whirl, and he felt that he must for one -day at least get off and give himself over to relaxation. - -In this crisis the old desire to see Evans came over him; the sense of -reliance on his friend, though often forgotten, was still there. He -had telegraphed Evans asking if he could spare a day when they might -get off by themselves and have a good talk. Evans had replied, -suggesting a sail round Cape Cod as the most complete escape from the -interruptions which would pursue them were they to remain in the -haunts of men. Evans had his boat at Provincetown, and Mortimer, on -completing his business in Boston, boarded a destroyer at the Navy -Yard in the early morning and joined his friend in time to make a good -start round the Cape. - -The wind was west, and a little beating to windward brought the boat -clear of Provincetown Harbor and around Race Point, where they started -their sheets, then jibed and began the long reach down the Cape, by -Highland Light, keeping close in shore where the sandy and pebbly -beach and the bluffs behind presented a pleasing if somewhat -monotonous picture. - -As these two stanch friends sat chatting together in the cockpit of -the _Petrel_, as Evans called his boat, dropping Highland Light astern -and picking up Nauset, their talk drifted toward the topic that was -harassing Mortimer by day and night. - -“How much have you kept up with navy affairs since you left the -service after the war?” he asked of Evans. - -“Enough to know that the engineering men of the service have made -wonderful strides in development in various fields, especially in -communications, opening possibilities undreamed of in 1918, and that -through the perennial difficulties of personnel, these developments -are not utilized to anything like the extent they might be. To tell -the truth, the navy has always interested me intensely; it has been a -hobby of mine to read Mahan and other standard writers during my spare -time, as well as the Naval Institute Proceedings. I’ve also kept in -touch with some of the radio men I knew in the war who have stayed in -the service, and I have watched with great interest the progress in -radio communication that has taken place.” - -“My God, I wish I had your knowledge of the subject,” said Mortimer. -“Law and politics have taught me some things, but they haven’t taught -me the principles of naval policy and naval operations, and those are -the things I want to know now. - -“I suppose you realize,” he went on, “that we may not be able to stay -out of the European vortex much longer.” - -“On the face of it,” answered Evans, “I should say we were due in it -right now. I haven’t heard the ‘inside dope,’ but I can’t conceive of -our staying out much longer, all things considered.” - -“Well, I trust your discretion enough to say that you have sized it up -about right. There won’t be many weeks more of neutrality; and then a -big load comes on our Department.” - -“I should say it was a clear case,” said Evans, “that the whole game -hung on our navy. While the enemy keep their fleet intact and maintain -the complete control of the Mediterranean, the Northern armies can -never score a decisive victory; and if the Turks are left in control -of the Atlantic the attrition will all come on our side. We must -establish and keep up a steady flow of supplies from both North and -South America to maintain even the present status; and we must destroy -their navy to win the war.” - -Thus the conversation progressed to a discussion of the basic -principles of naval policy and strategy, in which Mortimer, as more -than once before, found himself marveling at Evans’s clearness and -breadth of vision. None of the admirals at the heads of bureaus in -Washington had seemed able to see things in so large a perspective; -none had helped him to grasp the fundamental principles of the problem -before him as this man, trained in science, yet versed in naval -affairs as well. - -The small cabin clock struck two-bells. - -“Let’s have some lunch, Sam,” said Evans. “Take the wheel, steer as -you’re going, due south, while I get the stuff out.” - -He disappeared down the hatch with the nimbleness of a boy in his -teens, and began to prepare a simple lunch over an alcohol stove. As -Mortimer sat at the wheel with the warm wind off the Cape Cod shore -fanning his cheek, he pondered over this simple child of Nature, to -all appearances a college boy on a vacation, whose characterization of -the crisis offered so much food for thought. - -Soon Evans reappeared in the cockpit with an appetizing meal which -they ate in camp style, Evans steering and eating at the same time, -not appreciably to the detriment of either task. Again he left -Mortimer at the wheel while he addressed himself to the task of -cleaning up. When next he came on deck, he found Mortimer manifestly -drowsy and a good two points off the course. The warm shore wind, the -peace and quiet and the relaxation from constant strain, conspired to -overcome him. Evans reached below for a pillow and placed it on the -lee side. - -“Here, stretch out on the cockpit seat and take a good nap,” he said. - -Mortimer relinquished the wheel, and soon was fast asleep. - -When next he waked the afternoon was well advanced. The air felt -rather close and muggy, and so hazy was it that the sun shone dimly, -and the land, only three or four miles away, was scarcely visible. - -“Where are we?” he asked. - -“There’s Chatham nearly abeam,” said Evans. “The barometer’s falling; -I think we may get a squall.” - -“Your boat will stand it, I trust?” - -“She’ll stand it, all right,” said Evans with a laugh. “She’ll stand -anything that blows. The only practical question is whether to take -the short cut between Bearse Shoal and Monomoy. It saves two or three -miles, and if it’s going to be rotten weather it’ll be more -comfortable for old men like us to get into some sheltered water -before dark.” - -“What is there against the short cut?” - -“Well, if it should get thick with rain it would be a little hard to -see where we were, and there are shoals on both sides; also it’s all -so shoal there that a heavy squall from the northeast would kick up an -infernal rip with the tide running the way it will be when we get -there. But then, a rip can’t hurt us unless it’s bad enough to let her -touch bottom in the trough, and it would take a first-class hurricane -to do that.” - -“Well, all I ask is that you avoid a serious shipwreck, for I’ve -responsibilities ahead that I really ought not to sidestep.” - -“You can trust the _Petrel_ to get you through,” said Evans. - -“Not to mention her skipper,” answered Mortimer. - -Still the west wind held and the little boat stood on till Chatham was -on the starboard quarter and no longer visible through the haze. The -air still felt warm and heavy; in the northeast, through the haze, -dark clouds could be dimly seen gathering. Evans trimmed in his sheets -and luffed toward the point of Monomoy. Pollock Rip Slue Lightship was -visible, and on that Evans took a careful bearing and wrote it down, -together with the time. Monomoy could barely be seen as a faint white -line of sand to the westward. No landmark there could be identified, -but Evans noted the bearings of as much of it as he could see, then -studied the chart. He took a look round at the sky, left the wheel, -and glanced at the barometer. - -“Glass is falling fast,” he said. “Take the wheel a minute while I put -on rubber boots and oilers; then you can do the same.” - -He dived below and soon came up dressed in oilskins and sou’wester, -took the wheel, and sent Mortimer down to put on his spare set. -Suddenly a chill wind struck from the northeast; the sails went over -and fetched up on the sheets to starboard. - -“What’s up?” called Mortimer from below. - -“Wind’s shifted; nothing much yet,” answered Evans as he trimmed over -the jib and slacked the main sheet. - -Mortimer came on deck. Evans was looking now at the compass and now at -the clouds in the northeast, already looking murky and ominous. - -“I’m heading for that short cut,” said Evans. “I could still go out -round Pollock Rip, but it would waste a lot of time and we’ll be all -right in here. I know where we are well enough to hit the channel; if -it blows hard the rip will be rather sensational at the shallowest -point, but won’t do us any harm. She’s built so strong that even if -she did touch the sand in the trough of a wave, it wouldn’t hurt her.” - -The wind was now blowing freshly from the northeast and the _Petrel_ -was driving along before it at a good speed. - -“Isn’t it about time to reef?” asked Mortimer. - -“We shan’t need to. That’s the beauty of this rig; you can shorten -sail to your heart’s content without reefing.” - -The clouds grew darker and the wind increased till whitecaps appeared -and dotted the sea, and the little boat sped on before it with -increasing speed. - -“Time to get in the mainsail,” said Evans; “take the wheel; steer -southwest by west, and hold your course as close as you know how.” - -Then he let go the halyards, and running forward with a couple of -stops in his hand, had the sail down and roughly furled in a few -seconds. - -“Now,” he said, taking the wheel again, “she’ll stand a whole lot of -wind this way. Hold the chart for me. This channel isn’t buoyed, and -the chart helps.” - -Even with only the mizzen and jib the _Petrel_ made good speed; and -now with the stiff wind and east-running tide, the whitecaps were -increasing to good-sized breakers. Then the dark clouds to windward -gathered themselves into a huge black knot, black as ink and roughly -funnel-shaped. Like a giant projectile this black mass approached, -coming at an astounding speed. - -“This is going to be a good one,” said Evans. “It’ll be thick in a -minute, I wouldn’t mind seeing a landmark ahead. Ah! there’s Monomoy -Light.” - -Straining his eyes he could barely make out the lighthouse and get an -approximate bearing on it. But Mortimer’s eyes were riveted on the -colossal black storm-cloud whirling through space toward him in a way -that fairly took his breath away. - -“The jib’s all we’ll want when this hits,” said Evans, and in another -second or two he had the mizzen down and a stop around it. - -[Illustration: AND THEN THE THING STRUCK] - -And then the thing struck. So violent was the blow that it seemed as -if the boat might be lifted from the water and carried through space. -The air was full of flying water—sheets of spray blown from the tops -of the waves, while overhead a darkness almost like the night closed -in. Rain came driving horizontally in sheets, and lightning flashed -round half the horizon. It was impossible to see a quarter of a mile. - -Mortimer looked at Evans whose eyes scarcely left the compass, and saw -in his face alertness, steadiness, and strength; and the fear which -such an overwhelming outburst of the fury of the elements had -naturally aroused in him was effectually quelled. - -Almost as quickly as it had come the black cloud blew over, leaving a -sense of dazzling brightness by contrast, although the sky was still -heavily clouded. For three or four minutes the wind blew with almost -unabated fury, the little boat scudding bravely before it under her -jib. Then the wind moderated enough to relax the tension, but still -blew hard enough to make them glad of shortened sail. - -“Eighty miles an hour, I’ll bet, during the height of that,” said -Evans. “All of forty, still.” - -And now the waves had become high and steep and short. - -“We’re getting into that tide rip I spoke of; the water’s getting -shoal. The sand’s so white it looks shoaler than it really is.” - -Mortimer looked ahead and saw through the rain great whitecaps forming -an almost solid line like the breakers on a beach, and in the troughs -of the waves the white sand bottom gleamed alarmingly near. - -“Lord! are we going into that?” he asked. - -“She won’t touch, and the waves can’t hurt her. They may come aboard -now and then, but they’ll drain right out through the cockpit -scuppers. You might close the cabin hatch.” - -The waves grew higher and steeper, and now they were in a mass of -breaking whitecaps. Each wave lifted the little boat up, and with her -nose deep down in the trough, she would dash forward with amazing -speed till the wave broke all around her and she came to a stop in a -smother of foam. Looking back, it often seemed as though the waves, -towering high and curling over the stern, would swamp the boat -completely, but each time the stern rose gracefully, and at most a few -gallons of water would splash into the cockpit. - -“I didn’t suppose any boat could live in this,” said Mortimer. - -“It sometimes surprises me to see how well she rides these things,” -answered Evans. “I’d like to see that lighthouse again to make sure -we’re in the channel. We should in a minute, as the rain’s letting up, -and we’re getting near to it. There it is. We’ll be through most of it -in a minute now.” - -Then, with series of plunges, in each of which it seemed as if she -must drive her bow into the white sand, so close below the surface it -appeared, the _Petrel_ passed through the roaring breakers into the -deeper water beyond, where, rough as it was, it seemed like a haven of -refuge compared with the rip they had come through. - -Mortimer breathed more freely. “I don’t mind saying I felt scared -coming through that,” he said. “I’m glad you know this game as well as -you do.” - -“I’m not sorry to be through it myself,” said Evans. “It was quite -rough enough for a bit. I don’t think I ever saw such an ugly squall, -and I’ve seen some bad ones. Still, as long as I had that bearing on -Monomoy Light we were in no danger. Quarter of a mile out of the -channel, it’s so shoal she might have hit.” - -“What would you have done if you hadn’t got that bearing?” - -“I guess I’d have stood off and waited till it cleared enough to see -the lighthouse, or else beat out round Bearse Shoal, and that would -have been a hell of a rough thrash to windward; still, it wouldn’t -have hurt us any.” - -“It looks to me as if the gods had a way of fighting on your side,” -said Mortimer. “Do you always get away with it when you take a chance -like that?” - -Evans looked serious. “I don’t know as I can claim that,” he said, -“but Fortune has been pretty good to me in her own way. Maybe I was -rather foolish to go through that. It will be smoother from now on; -there’ll be some small rips, but nothing like that one. I think we’d -better make for Hyannis. We could anchor in Chatham Roads, but that -would be exposed if the wind turned southwest. Hyannis is a good -harbor in any wind, and it will be easy getting in after dark with -Bishop and Clerk’s and the harbor range lights to steer by. It’ll be -handier for you in the morning, too. Take her while I hoist the -mizzen; we may as well have that now.” - -In another minute the little boat was speeding on before the gale -under mizzen and jib. The rain had subsided, but a leaden twilight was -closing in. Monomoy appeared as a low white streak of sand on the -starboard beam. Hugging it close, they rounded Monomoy Point and -luffed to clear the north end of Handkerchief Shoal. Evans went below -and lit the running lights, then, starting a fire in the small coal -stove in the galley, put some potatoes and rice on to boil. Then he -came on deck with some pilot biscuit and chocolate, and the two -friends settled down in the snug little cockpit to enjoy their sail -through the shoals in the gathering darkness. - -Soon their talk drifted back to the all-important topic of the coming -crisis. - -“It always seemed to me,” said Evans, “that a navy could conveniently -be likened to a living organism, a man, for instance. A man has -senses—sight, hearing, etc.—which tell him what’s happening about him. -Nerves carry the impressions from the sense organs to the central -station, the brain, where information is sorted into the springs of -action; other nerves carry messages from the brain to the muscles that -work the arms and legs—and incidentally the teeth. Now in the navy -your patrols, scouts, planes, drifters, etc., with their observers and -hydrophones, and all forms of radio receiving apparatus, are the -senses, and I should include under that head, spies. In place of the -muscles, fists, and teeth you have the ships’ engines and the guns, -torpedoes, bombs, and such like. The nervous system is the general -staff which determines policy, the admirals who execute it, and -communications which are the nerves that bring information into the -navy’s brain, and in turn give the word for action. Communications, of -course, comprise flag signals, blinkers, semaphores, couriers, postal -service, telephones, telegraph, radio, and the newer methods, such as -infra-red rays. - -“Now it seems to me the importance of communications hasn’t been -emphasized half enough. The methods available are highly developed, -but their value isn’t clearly enough appreciated. You can hardly find -a finer, keener, better-trained bunch of men anywhere than the -officers of our navy, but the profession has grown so complex and the -duties to be learned so manifold that it takes an exceptional man to -grasp all the possibilities science has developed and to see them in a -proper perspective. The average naval officer takes far more interest -in ordnance and gunnery than he does in communications. The difference -between an athlete and a lummox is not in the muscles, but in the -nervous system which coördinates their action. Provided the muscles -are not atrophied or diseased, they’ll do what the nerves tell ’em to. -Now gunnery is obviously important—so obviously that the personnel -tends to look on it as the whole thing. Of course it must be -efficient, but it has been ever since Sims made it so; it must be kept -up to the mark, but it is a strong tradition in the navy to keep it -so, and I don’t think you’ll have any trouble on that score. It is -intelligence and coördination, and communication in particular that -you must look out for in order to make your fighting strength -effective. Just as the skill and wisdom of the gunnery officer direct -the titanic force of the guns to the point where it is most telling, -so the controlling mind, acting through communications, directs the -force of the entire fleet; that’s the field where the minimum energy -will yield the largest return; put your best efforts in there.” - -“Don’t forget morale,” said Mortimer. - -“Quite right,” said Evans; “morale is more than half the fight; -without it no amount of skill or intelligence will avail; but without -the aid of the mind morale is flung helpless at the mercy of superior -skill in an opponent. I am inclined to assume morale; and I believe it -is a justified assumption, for to stress and foster it is a tradition -well maintained in our service.” - -Evans went on to explain to Mortimer some of the methods of -communication which had been developed: the internal communications in -a ship, the dual use of a single antenna to receive two messages -simultaneously on different wave-lengths, the use of infra-red rays -for secret messages between ships in a fleet, and many other things -which Mortimer had never had time to learn. - -“I wish I could make you Director of Naval Communications,” said -Mortimer. “Unfortunately the rank that goes with that position is rear -admiral. Under the existing regulations the highest rank I could give -you is lieutenant-commander. If you were a captain, I could make you a -temporary rear admiral in order to hold that position, but I don’t -know of any way that it could be done straight from civil life.” - -“If I were you I wouldn’t try to make me an admiral or even a -lieutenant-commander,” answered Evans. “Professional naval officers -are apt to resent having men out of civil life put over them with -superior naval rank. They’d feel that I was ‘striped way up,’ even as -lieutenant-commander, and that I hadn’t earned my rank. I should -encounter friction and difficulties in consequence. I sure want to -help you in any capacity I can, but my suggestion is that you make me -a warrant officer, say radio gunner.” - -“Radio gunner!” exclaimed Mortimer; “that’s a pretty small job for -you. You’d be subordinate to a lot of ensigns just out of Annapolis.” - -“It’s not necessarily such a small job; officers of high rank are apt -to heed the advice of a dependable warrant officer, regarding him as a -technical expert. Often they respect a warrant officer who knows his -business a good deal more than they do ensigns and lieutenants. If he -works his opportunities right, he may put over more than purely -technical ideas. A man who doesn’t use his opportunities right won’t -get very far in warfare though he wears the gold braid of an admiral.” - -The night had closed in dark as pitch, and the wind swept on furiously -from the stormy sky. Evans steered his little boat over the waves, -guided by the familiar lights in the distance. To the south the lights -of a tow of barges and a coasting schooner, threading the ship channel -through the shoals, grew dimmer and finally were lost in the murk. - -The conversation drifted on to the question of the use of scientists -in war. Evans summed up his views on this point as follows: - -“Make free use of scientists, but use them with skill. A scientist in -war, if he hasn’t engineering sense as well as scientific spirit, is -apt to be like a drunken man trying to make a speech; his mind is so -discursive he can never get to the point. In peace the best measure of -a scientist’s merit is the patience with which he can seek truth for -its own sake, and his indifference to the application of his work to -tangible results. In war this point of view is out of season; the -man’s value then depends on his impatience to apply all he knows to -getting results of the most tangible kind. At the dinner hour we sit -down to eat our food and digest it; the dinner hour over, eating -becomes unseasonable, and we must absorb what we have eaten and -utilize it in the performance of the day’s work. - -“In the war with Germany a vast amount of time was wasted by -scientists who couldn’t adapt their points of view to war-time -conditions. They insisted on laying their foundations with the same -painstaking thoroughness and patience with which they would pave the -way to a new theory of light; they kept before them the same ideal of -perfection which the highest standards of peace-time scholarship -demand. The Armistice found them still laying their foundations, and -their efforts all wasted, as far as winning the war was concerned. Of -course it pays to keep some fundamental work going on the chance of -the war lasting a good many years, but there’s such a thing as sense -of proportion about it; and that’s what lots of scientists lack.” - -“How is the non-scientific head of a big department to know whether a -line of research promises to bring results in a finite time or not?” -asked Mortimer. - -“That’s difficult,” said Evans. “The best thing is to have on hand -some men of large caliber whom you can trust to have engineering sense -as well as scientific vision, and make them keep the others in the -paths of reason.” - -Among other things Evans pointed out the great importance of weather -forecasting in naval warfare. - -“It doesn’t take much imagination to see that it might come in handy -to know a little beforehand when something like what hit us to-day is -coming. Imagine trying to carry out some kinds of naval operations -during the worst of that squall. Then the direction of the wind may -affect the visibility in different directions, so as to make it a -decisive factor in a naval action.” - -“Weather prediction is still pretty much a matter of guesswork, isn’t -it?” asked Mortimer. - -“No, there’s a good deal of science to it,” said Evans, “and there’s -more coming to fruition than is generally known. Professor Jeremy is -probably the ablest meteorologist in the world. He has been doing some -wonderful research on the causes of weather changes, and I believe -he’s in a way to reach some very important conclusions before long. -You couldn’t do better than put him in charge of your Naval Weather -Service, with a free hand to do things his own way. He’d have a sense -of proportion, and go at the most practical kind of research which -would in a few months give our navy so much better knowledge of -weather prediction than the enemy as to be a really important military -advantage. Then the trouble would be to make the admirals appreciate -what they had, and use it.” - -They had now crossed the open sheet of water between Monomoy and Point -Gammon, and had passed Bishop and Clerk’s lighthouse a mile to -leeward, till it was already receding on the port quarter. The outline -of Point Gammon showed dimly to windward. Taking a bearing on -Hyannisport Light, Evans luffed and trimmed in the sheets a bit. Soon -they were in the lee of Point Gammon where the water was smoother, and -steering north-northwest picked up the spindle on Great Rock on the -weather bow. Passing this they luffed close on the wind till they -sighted the breakwater to leeward just before they brought the range -lights in line. Inside the breakwater, Evans kept off and steered for -the lights in the cottages that line the harbor shore, while the dark -line of the land ahead loomed nearer and nearer, and its outline grew -more distinct. The riding lights of some of the larger boats at anchor -were now quite distinguishable from the cottage lights beyond. Evans -went forward, cleared the anchor, and hauled down the jib, then -returning to the wheel he picked his way in past some of the larger -vessels to a snug anchorage near a group of Cape Cod catboats. The -gale was still blowing hard and showed no signs of moderating, so he -let go both anchors and gave them a generous allowance of scope. He -made all snug on deck in spite of the darkness, with an alacrity born -of long experience and the most intimate familiarity with every rope -and cleat on his boat; then put up the riding light. With a careful -look around he went aft into the cockpit, saying: - -“Well, we’re all snug here. The holding ground’s good, so it can blow -all it’s a mind to, and we shan’t drag. Let’s go below, get out of -these wet oilers, and have something to eat.” - -The hour was late for supper—a fact which did not militate against -their appetites. In the cabin there was warmth from the little galley -stove where the potatoes and rice were now done. Evans opened a tin of -canned chicken and stirred the contents into the rice. - -“Supper’s ready,” he said, putting some plates and bread on the table. -“This chicken-rice mixture is about the easiest thing to get ready on -a rough day, and it makes a pretty good meal in itself.” - -They fell to like a pair of wolves, and Mortimer declared he had never -found a meal more to his liking. - -After supper Evans tumbled the débris into a big dishpan and began a -hasty but effective dish-washing. - -“Can I help?” asked Mortimer. - -“You can wipe,” answered Evans, and tossed him a dish towel. - -Before turning in, Evans took another look at the weather which still -showed no signs of changing, and then the tired men took to their -bunks, and darkness reigned in the little cabin except for a glimmer -from the riding light through a porthole forward. - -Tired as he was, it was some time before Mortimer fell asleep. The -excitement of the squall and the novelty of his surroundings kept him -awake, listening to the wind shrieking in the rigging. But the gentle -rocking of the boat in her sheltered anchorage lulled him off at last -to a deep sleep. - -Next morning he waked to hear Evans shaking the ashes out of the -galley stove. The wind had moderated and the sky showed signs of -clearing. After a plunge overboard and a good breakfast, Mortimer felt -better than he had for months. Evans rowed him ashore in his dinghy in -time to catch the train, and before they parted it was settled that -Evans should go to Washington in a fortnight’s time and be enrolled as -a radio gunner in the navy. - -Evans took advantage of the northeast wind which was still blowing -strong to make the run to New Bedford. With a single-reefed mainsail, -for comfort in handling, as he was alone, he made the run through -Wood’s Hole and across Buzzard’s Bay in six hours or so, and dropped -anchor in New Bedford Harbor some time before sunset. As he sailed -across the bay he pondered the problem confronting his friend. - -“It’s strange,” he said to himself, “on what capricious things the -great affairs of the world sometimes depend. But Sam will make good, -even if he does seem to know less about the navy than I do. He’s able, -he’s dead in earnest, and he’s open-minded; damn few secretaries have -been more than that.” - -He racked his brains to think how he could help his friend, and in his -mind there grew the framework of a strong organization of engineering -men so mobilized as to place at the disposal of the navy the efficient -use of the best that science could offer. - -At New Bedford he arranged to have his boat hauled out for the winter. - -“I don’t expect to put her in commission next summer,” he said to the -man at the shipyard; “you’d better be prepared to store her for a -second winter.” - - - - - CHAPTER III - - THE MOBILIZATION - - -Early in October, about four weeks after Mortimer’s sail around Cape -Cod with Evans, the United States declared war against the -Constantinople Coalition, otherwise known as “The Mediterranean -Powers.” - -Like a great conflagration, a new wave of idealism swept over the -land. To every one was offered the opportunity to come forward and -give the best that was in him, and few but accepted it gladly. - -Washington became the scene of turmoil. Flocks of people poured in. -The “swivel-chair warrior” reappeared in all his glory, and the -“efficiency expert” added the finishing touch to the orgy of -organization and reorganization in which the War Department became -engulfed. - -In the Navy Department a comparative quiet reigned; the atmosphere was -almost that of an efficiently organized and smoothly running business. -Until two or three days before the declaration of war Secretary -Mortimer was daily in conference for an hour or more with a certain -civilian, but so large was the department and so many were the new -faces that no one noticed him to be the same individual as the warrant -officer, Radio Gunner Evans, who, the day before war was declared, was -assigned to duty in the Radio Division of the Bureau of Engineering. -Here Evans was given a room to himself. On his desk were two -telephones, one connected with the department exchange, the other with -the Secretary’s room by a special wire. Evans had himself completed -the laying of these wires into his own room and made the terminal -connection with the telephone on his desk. No one but he and Mortimer -knew where this line led. - -Nominally Evans’s duty was the direction and supervision of a group of -civilian experts engaged in designing new radio apparatus for -installation on ships and shore stations. He was also frequently seen -at the office of the Director of Naval Communications. - -It behooves the personnel of this office to coöperate cordially with -the personnel of the Bureau of Engineering, since the latter makes the -apparatus for the former to use, though some people don’t understand -this fact. In general, the personnel of the D.N.C. office did not know -why this warrant officer should appear from time to time, and some -said, “Who’s this guy, anyway, and what’s he doing round here?” - -To which query the answer was, as like as not, “Dunno; maybe he’s -using this office as an alibi for dodging his work where he belongs.” - -Before a state of war had existed two days, letters had been received -from Mortimer by half a dozen of the best radio engineers in the -country and a number of eminent investigators in various fields of -physical science, asking them to come to Washington to confer with -him. Within a week nearly all of these men had come, and a -comprehensive plan had been laid for the coöperative work whereby -their brains could be utilized to the best advantage of the navy. At -these conferences Commander Rich, head of the Radio Division of the -Bureau of Engineering, was present, and the impression which he made -on the scientists for his rapid grasp of what was essential in the -great problem before them was such that more than one took occasion to -congratulate Mortimer on having such a man in his organization, -especially on having him in charge of so important a branch of the -service as radio. About this time, also, Professor Jeremy, with rank -of lieutenant-commander, was placed in charge of the naval weather -service, and with a group of able young assistants began to attack his -problem with energy and resource. - -The public mind turned rather to the army than to the navy; to most -people entry into the war meant the sending of troops to reinforce the -armies of Northern Europe in the line of trenches stretching across -the continent; the thought of the happenings on the sea scarcely -figured in their minds. The popular hue and cry was, “Join the Army.” -Congress began agitating the question of conscription for the army. -But the navy needed enormous additions to its personnel. - -Mortimer paid a visit to the Bureau of Engineering and, after -discussing progress with the Bureau Chief and Commander Rich, he -slipped into Evans’s room to discuss matters with him. - -“It looks as if this conscription business might fill up the army and -leave the navy high and dry,” he said. “I don’t think Congress -understands that the main task is up to the navy, and we’ve got to -have men to do it.” - -“People don’t understand that, as a rule,” answered Evans. “They look -at the battle-line across Europe, and think that’s the war. They don’t -understand that the war can be carried on only by means of certain -commodities some of which can be produced only in the Western -Hemisphere; that the vast resources of South America are of vital -importance to whichever side controls them; that the control of the -sea has thus far given the enemy access to these resources and denied -it to our allies; and that the one way to checkmate them is to secure -complete control of the seas for ourselves. Welcome as our army would -be to reinforce those of Northern Europe, even if we got it safely -across, it could do nothing decisive against the present defensive -methods in use along the enemy’s line. No, the game is up to us; -you’re dead right, we’ve got to have our share of the men.” - -“I believe the President could do something about it by executive -action,” said Mortimer. “But I’m not sure if he’s quite alive to the -importance of the navy himself. Military affairs are not his long -suit. If I urge on him the importance of it, the danger is that, -unless I can give him convincing reasons, he may assume that it’s just -the usual thing—each man wants his own particular show to be the -biggest. I want to get the essential points down in convincing and -unanswerable form, and I’d like to have you help me prepare the case.” - -Evans then enumerated the salient points, indicating wherein the -problem devolved upon the navy, while Mortimer questioned him and took -notes. Evans showed how, through the progress of science and invention -during the last twenty years, new methods had become available in -warfare, and how the devilish cunning of the Constantinople plotters -had utilized these and had taken advantage of their maritime control -of the Mediterranean to establish a powerful grip on the south of -France and make their defenses virtually impregnable, new inventions -in offensive warfare having been more than countered by new methods of -defense. He then enumerated the raw materials essential to maintaining -the intricate structure of their military system and showed how a -large percentage of these could be got only from the tropical regions -of the Western Hemisphere—South America, Central America, and the West -Indies. During the summer, when they held undisputed control of the -Atlantic, the enemy had been transporting enormous stores of those -things which they most needed across from Brazil. Now that the -American Navy had entered the field to dispute the control of the -Atlantic, it became a question of naval power which side should keep -its own source of supplies open and cut off that of the opponents. - -The enemy now had control of Portugal, the Azores, Madeira, Teneriffe, -and the Cape Verde Islands, and, with submarine and seaplane bases at -Lisbon and the islands, they were continuing to harass the shipping in -the North Atlantic in defiance of international law. Furthermore, -under protection from these bases they could maintain an almost -uninterrupted flow of commerce with South America, their ships passing -close to the African coast where American surface craft could not -safely attack them. - -During their conversation Evans revealed a knowledge of raw materials, -their places of origin and their uses, at which Mortimer was amazed. - -“I don’t see how you ever learned and remembered all these facts,” he -said. - -“I forget lots of things I hear,” answered Evans, “but these facts are -so relevant to the crisis at hand that I had good reason to remember -them. After all, the facts are open to any one; it’s just a matter of -taking the trouble to put them together and see what they mean.” - -In discussing the submarine situation, Evans urged the importance of -getting possession of the Azores as soon as possible. He believed that -a blow struck with the entire naval strength available would encounter -no very serious opposition from the enemy. - -“My guess is that, much as they want to keep the Azores, they are so -much keener about keeping their navy intact and holding their control -of the Mediterranean that they wouldn’t risk their fleet in a major -naval action for the sake of the islands. Of course, we must first -effect a consolidation of our fleet with what’s left of the British -and French navies, in order to have the maximum strength available.” - -“That’s one of the first things we’ve got to get after,” said -Mortimer. “Well, first of all there’s this matter of personnel to -start right, and I must be about it. Many thanks for these points -you’ve given me; they’ll come in handy.” With that he left the room. - -The next day Evans was called by Mortimer on the telephone connected -directly with the Secretary’s room. The President had listened -attentively to his recital of cogent facts and had been much -impressed. He was almost certain the draft bill would go through, and -had virtually assured Mortimer that the navy would not suffer in the -choice of men. - -Not many days passed before Evans and Mortimer were again closeted -together discussing the coördination of naval effort. The British Navy -was still able, in spite of the disaster, to furnish an appreciable -addition to the force, and, above all, to furnish the wisdom and -indomitable spirit bred of centuries of maritime greatness. -Coöperation with it was now in Mortimer’s mind as a foremost -consideration. To this end he was about to dispatch a commission of -liaison officers to London. On this occasion Evans emphasized -especially the need of a well-organized intelligence service with -agents permeating the enemy’s country. - -“At sea it is universally admitted that by virtue of our great -preponderance of available power, we must take command,” said Evans. -“But in the matter of intelligence service there is none on earth that -can touch the British, and I believe we had better play that game -under their lead. Their organization is marvelous, and the best we can -do is to fit our machinery to theirs. - -“You know, I think there’s something in the temperament of a certain -type of Englishman that fits him extraordinarily well for the -hazardous game of secret service in enemy country. It’s his faculty of -keeping his thoughts and feelings to himself, his impenetrable -exterior, together with his coolness in danger.” - -“Haven’t we plenty of men with those same faculties?” Mortimer asked. - -“It’s rare to find them so well developed in an American. Then, too, -there’s a thoroughness in the education of the British scholar that -helps him grasp new and difficult problems. What I’m driving at is -this:—there ought to be some one in Constantinople who is not only a -damn clever spy, but who also understands what you can do with radio.” - -“You’re trying to combine too much in one man,” said Mortimer. “You -don’t want to have your secret agent for intelligence bother his head -with technical stuff like radio; he should rely on others for that.” - -“Of course he should, as far as handling the apparatus is concerned. -But he must grasp the basic principles, so that he’ll understand the -kind of thing modern apparatus will do for him. - -“Both in regard to secret service and to coördination in general, we -must get together with the British communication experts and come to -an understanding about codes and apparatus. Science has given us such -a wealth of new methods in radio engineering that much depends on a -clear understanding of what your apparatus will do. The British have -developed it along their lines, and we along ours. There should be -consultation to determine the best way of standardizing procedure in -the fleet, and still more important at the moment is to consult with -them as to how recent developments in both countries may be made to -help the business of communicating with our spies.” - -“I wonder if it wouldn’t be a good plan for you to go with the -commission we are sending to England, and confer with their radio men -on the matter of apparatus and communication methods in general,” said -Mortimer. - -“I believe it would,” answered Evans. “I should like to discuss those -points with them, and I should like particularly to see some man in -their intelligence service who understands radio methods, or at least -their possibilities, and who could get into Constantinople; together -we could work out codes and ciphers and other matters of procedure -that would facilitate the transmission of intelligence to us from that -interesting spot.” - -“All right; I’ll send you along with the bunch,” said Mortimer. “I -think the party will be ready to go in four or five days.” - -“I’ve been thinking,” said Evans, still following his previous train -of thought, “that an old friend of mine in England would be the ideal -person for that job; I mean, to undertake to keep us posted from enemy -headquarters. He’s an archaeologist by profession, and the most -versatile man I know. He has spent a lot of time in Greece and Asia -Minor, knows Constantinople and the Balkans like a book; he’s a -wonderful linguist, and the best actor you ever saw. His name is -Heringham. I used to play chess with him when I was studying in the -Cavendish in Cambridge, and I never knew a man who could fool you more -adroitly as to his real plan of campaign. He used to take every kind -of part in student theatricals, from a Buddhist to a buffoon, and to -realize that the same man did them all would tax your powers of belief -to the limit. I don’t think he knows much radio, but he has a good -scientific foundation, and he’s so confoundedly clever that he’d learn -what he needed for that job in no time. I’d give a lot to have him in -Constantinople and to have had a chance to plan things a bit with him -first.” - -“What’s he doing now?” asked Mortimer. - -“Nothing important,” was the answer. “I got a letter from him saying -he offered his services to the army, and was rejected because of his -age and a slight defect in his eyes; he’s forty-one or forty-two. He’s -still living at his rooms in Trinity, trying to make himself useful at -odd jobs.” - -“Do you suppose there’s any way of getting your wish realized?” - -“I don’t know. I’d like to get over there and see what can be done.” - -“I’ll give you letters to any one you want,” said Mortimer. - -“I think I’d better keep away from the mighty men at the top, and have -my business talks with their technical radio men. Send over Barton who -is right-hand man to the Chief of Naval Intelligence, and the real -brains of the Bureau, and tell him how much you want me to dip into -his line of business; he’s no red-tape artist. Between us we may find -a way to the sort of collaboration we want.” - -A few days later a scout cruiser capable of forty knots slipped out of -the Navy Yard at Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and headed south, passing -between the Isles of Shoals and Cape Ann; but when well out of sight -of land she changed her course to east, and sped rapidly out to sea, -making several knots better than her economical cruising speed. On -board of her was a group of liaison officers of high rank. Commander -Barton, of the Bureau of Naval Intelligence, and a number of experts -on naval specialties—ordnance, aircraft, and the like, including Evans -and a certain Lieutenant Brown representing the Director of Naval -Communications. - -The ocean passage lasted four days. Evans spent much of his time in -the radio room at the congenial pastime of discussing problems with -the chief radio electrician and his operators, and helping them tinker -with apparatus. A radio chief likes to discuss his set with any one -who has a genuine interest, and it wasn’t long before the chief and -all the operators were picking up innumerable hints on the newest -engineering developments. The radio officer of the ship was an ensign -named Lindsay, a youngster just out of Annapolis with a sunny -disposition and a wholesome boyishness about him that won Evans’s -heart. He was also free from the conceit of rank which constrains some -ensigns to treat a warrant officer with a forced superiority. He had -little knowledge of radio, and, as is usually the case, relied in -technical matters on the chief radio electrician. He soon found in -Evans one from whom he could learn what he needed to know of radio -methods, without the sense of losing prestige which some officers feel -to be associated with acquiring information from one of subordinate -rank. Before the voyage was over, Lindsay had acquired a new outlook -on the significance of communications and the possibilities which lay -in the various methods a ship may use for picking up and transmitting -information concerning the enemy, such as hydrophones, radio -direction-finders, amplifiers, selective devices to avoid -interference, and secret methods of signaling. With this enlarged -vision there was born in him a new enthusiasm for his task. - -On a cold, gray autumn day the cruiser passed the Lizard, rounded Rame -Head and Penlee Point, and dropped anchor in Plymouth Sound. In -another hour the party was speeding through the mellow green hills of -Devonshire on its way to London. The next day found Evans at the great -National Physical Laboratory at Teddington where some of the best -brains in the world were engaged in coördinated research to solve the -many problems of physical science and technology which the peril of -the Empire had rendered vital. - -More than one physicist whom he had known years before at the -Cavendish Laboratory did he now find serving here as a department -head. One of these, knowing his work in the field of pure science, -expressed surprise at seeing him in a rank below that of -sublieutenant. - -“You shouldn’t be wasting yourself as a gunner,” he said; “you ought -to be directing research.” - -“Well,” answered Evans, “I manage to get a shot at research now and -then, and the kind of duty that comes my way on this job suits me -pretty well, on the whole.” - -Before he had been in London a day, Evans had arranged to see his -friend Heringham in Cambridge. He took an afternoon train thither, and -found dusk gathering in the narrow streets of the ancient town. At the -sight of familiar landmarks, shops, and churches, memories came -flooding over him of the happy winter spent there in his youth, -learning from the world’s greatest masters of pure science. He -recalled the profound debt he owed to the Cavendish for its part in -the moulding of his career, and with the thought a deep gratitude -stirred within him. Crossing the market-place, he came to the old -College buildings, the beauty and dignity of their architecture never -more impressive than now in the twilight. At last he came to the -venerable main gate of Trinity and entered the Great Court, hallowed -by the memory of Newton, Tennyson, and a host of other men of genius, -through centuries the greatest fountain-head of high scholarship and -learning in Anglo-Saxon civilization. He stopped and looked about him, -and the realization of all that this place stood for came over him as -it never had before. Here in these walls of weather-stained and -crumbling stone was the cradle of that intellectual and spiritual -growth which constituted the real world in which he lived and for -which he would gladly die. There arose before his mind a picture of -the calculating and mercenary group in Constantinople, and the cynical -and iconoclastic spirit in which they would wreck the shrines of -Western civilization and learning should they win the fight. He set -his teeth and crossed the court to the stairway leading to Heringham’s -room. - -He knocked at the door and found his friend sitting by a small coal -fire, smoking his pipe and reading the noncommittal news in the daily -paper. Seated together by the fire, these two congenial souls were -soon chatting comfortably on the basis of a natural and inalienable -understanding which existed between them. Evans found, as he expected, -that Heringham possessed an extraordinary knowledge of the leading -characters in the Constantinople conspiracy and how matters stood -among them. - -“You ought to be using this knowledge in some way,” said Evans. - -“How can I?” asked Heringham. “The army rejected me, and here I am.” - -“Could you smuggle yourself into Constantinople without disturbing the -equanimity of these devils you’ve been telling me about?” said Evans. - -Heringham sucked hard at his pipe and stared at the fire. - -“I don’t know that game,” he said at last. “I imagine it takes rather -a lot of experience.” - -“I can’t think of any one who would learn it quicker than you, and -you’ve got a big head start in your knowledge of the country and the -people you would have to deal with,” said Evans. - -Again Heringham thought awhile in silence. “I dare say I could get -there if I had to,” he said musingly, “but then, I don’t see much -prospect of their asking me to.” - -“Oh, well,” said Evans, “you never know what may turn up next.” - -“What’s up?” said Heringham. “Have you got strings on the dear old -things in the War Office that you’re going to pull?” - -“Not that I know of,” said Evans. “But I’ll tell you a little of our -situation. Mortimer, our Secretary of the Navy, happens to be an old -pal of mine; classmates we were, in school and college. He’s a trump, -dead in earnest and a splendid organizer. But his life-work has been -law and politics, and when this job fell on his shoulders he knew no -more of naval affairs than I know of Sanskrit. In spite of this -handicap he’s making good, but he needs a good deal of technical help, -and I’m trying to contribute what I can in the field of -communications.” - -He went on to explain the nature of his present mission to England, -both as to consultation in the matter of radio apparatus in general, -and in particular as to effecting coöperation with the British -Intelligence Service for the transmission of information by radio to -the Allied Navies. - -“Barton, of our Intelligence Bureau, is over here,” he said, “and he -will have access to the men who control things in your Intelligence -Service. He is the only one in our mission who knows that I’m not -concerned simply with radio apparatus. I can talk to him, and he’ll -listen.” - -“Well, old chap,” said Heringham, “I’m at your disposal or his, to -stick my head in the lion’s mouth if it will do any good. Lord knows -I’ve been hating myself to death here, doing an old woman’s odd jobs -when I should be fighting. By Jove, there’s eight o’clock striking; -come over to Hall and we’ll have some dinner.” - -The slow tolling of the College bell came ringing across the court. -Heringham slipped on his academic gown and led the way out into the -Great Court where they joined the converging streams of dons crossing -to the famous Hall where hang the portraits of more great men, past -members of Trinity College, than can be found in any similar place the -world over. At dinner Evans sat between Heringham and an elderly -professor of Greek, with a distinguished face and a white beard. With -this scholar he soon became engaged in a conversation of absorbing -interest, which furnished him useful scraps of information bearing on -the present situation in the Mediterranean, based on the old man’s -intimate knowledge of the Greece of an earlier day. - -After dinner, the dons migrated in procession to the Combination Room -where Evans sat next the Master of Trinity, an eminent mathematician, -who plied him eagerly with questions about the American Navy, as they -sipped their port and coffee. He, at least, was keenly aware that on -this group of ships, and the controlling mind behind it, rested the -future of all. - -Returning at length to Heringham’s room, they poked the smouldering -coals into flame and returned to their talk of the European situation, -and of Heringham’s availability for playing the part which had been -suggested for him. Evans questioned him closely as to his knowledge of -physics. Of radio he knew nothing in detail, but his knowledge of -fundamental principles was good. Their talk engrossed them the best -part of the evening. - -Heringham then went with him to the gate to say the ‘open sesame’ -whereby the night porter was induced to let him out into Trinity -Street, dark, narrow, and deserted save for a lone man who passed on -the opposite sidewalk as Evans came out and started for his hotel. - -Returning next day to London, Evans sought Commander Barton and drew -for him a picture of Heringham’s qualifications which filled that -officer with enthusiasm for the plan of getting him impressed into -service. He had already been in conference with several of the head -men in the British Intelligence Service and was satisfied that there -was a distinct need for just such a person in the heart of the enemy -country. A number of able agents were already there, but they had gone -in before the American Navy had entered the field and become the most -important force for them to collaborate with; moreover, they had not -at their disposal the radio experts who would be needed to find means -of transmitting intelligence to sea. Barton, therefore, took very -kindly to the idea of sending in a man like Heringham who could -previously prepare a concerted plan of action and a system of codes -with representatives of the American Navy, and who could then proceed, -together with an experienced operator, to penetrate to enemy -headquarters there to direct the leakage of information through -whatever channel his ingenuity could discover or devise. - -Three days later, Heringham received an urgent request from a certain -high official to come at once to London for an interview. Proceeding -to the street and number mentioned, he was taken in a taxicab to -another part of the city where he was ushered through innumerable -doors and corridors to a small room where an officer with penetrating -eyes questioned him minutely about his life and activities, and -especially his experience in the Near East. After a searching -examination, this officer finally revealed his own status in the -British Intelligence Service and asked Heringham if he would be -willing to undertake secret service in enemy country, and the upshot -of it was that then and there it was arranged that he should be sent -on the hazardous and responsible mission. - -Busy days followed in which Heringham, besides receiving instruction -as to his duties and methods of procedure from those above him, was -also in frequent conference with Evans and Barton, planning their -general course of action and devising codes. They anticipated that -their main reliance would be placed on smuggling operators into the -crews of enemy transmitting stations and having them superimpose -messages in secret code on the regular traffic of the stations. -Therefore, two experienced radio operators were also selected and -educated in the lore of spies that they might go to Constantinople and -there act as technical advisers to Heringham. - -In these conferences Evans came to realize how sharply his own point -of view, as a physicist, differed from that of Barton, the trained -Intelligence officer. Problems which he saw from a purely intellectual -point of view took on a wholly new aspect when Barton’s ready and -practical wits had been focused on them. Evans felt his own -shortcomings in this strange world of secret service, a world in which -deliberate scientific reasoning was replaced by intuition, -dissembling, and juggling with the caprice of human nature. He felt as -awkward as a country bumpkin in the midst of a group of experts at -flashing repartee. - -In addition to these conferences, Evans devoted all the spare time he -could to instructing Heringham in the essentials of radio science and -engineering, that he should understand more fully what kind of -opportunities might present themselves for juggling with the radio -business of the enemy. - -Advices were sent through the mysterious channels best known to those -who practice the art of secret service, to the agents already in -Constantinople, apprising them of the plan to send Heringham to join -them; in return, valuable suggestions were received from them -concerning conditions in enemy country. - -The adventurous nature of Heringham’s mission took such a hold on -Evans’s imagination that he became absorbed in the planning of it with -the eagerness of a boy building some new castle in the air. It was -only with effort that he turned his attention to what was nominally -his own mission, the consultation with British radio experts on -technical matters. He managed, nevertheless, to confer with the best -men in this field in England, and to compare notes with them on recent -progress. He learned from them what improvements in British apparatus -could, without lost motion, be advantageously incorporated into -American gear, and arrived at an understanding with them on the -standardization of apparatus wherever this was desirable. - -One night, after a late conference with Heringham and Barton, Evans -was walking back to his hotel in the vicinity of Trafalgar Square, -when he met Lindsay. In the darkened street they might not have -recognized each other had they not met close to one of the dim, blue -street lights. It was the first time they had met since their arrival -in England, Lindsay only just having come to London for a few days of -leave. - -“Hullo,” he said to Evans. “Are you having a time doing up old -London?” - -“I’m having a time, all right; but I don’t know that it’s the kind of -time you mean.” - -“Well, whatever kind of time it is, don’t overdo it.” - -As he spoke, Lindsay’s eye followed a figure on the other side of the -street, walking in the same direction that Evans had been going when -they met. Evans, following his glance, saw a man with a businesslike -step walking by. The man turned down the first side street, and as he -turned under the street light at the corner, Evans caught a glimpse of -a sallow face. When the sound of his footsteps had died away, Lindsay -said in a manner that seemed more than half-joking: - -“It looks to me as if you were being shadowed; that man stopped when -you stopped, then crossed the street. What are you up to, anyway?” - -“I don’t believe any one wants to bother about shadowing me,” said -Evans. - -“You’d better let me go along and look after you, or some fellow will -get you with a sandbag while you’re up in the clouds thinking about -wave lengths or frequencies or something.” - -“Come along,” said Evans, “I’ll be glad enough to have you.” - -“I guess I’d better mind my own business,” said Lindsay; “but watch -your step, old man.” - -They parted, and Evans told himself that, of course, Lindsay was -joking. Yet, as he walked on through the lonely streets, he wished his -young friend was still with him. Just before he reached his hotel, he -heard a strangely familiar tread on the pavement a long way behind -him. Looking round as he turned to enter the hotel, he saw dimly in -the darkness a block away the form of a man; and though obviously too -far off to warrant any valid judgment, Evans couldn’t escape the -feeling that it was the same man that he and Lindsay had just noticed. -At the same moment there flashed into his mind an uncomfortable -feeling that it was the same man he had seen on Trinity Street in -Cambridge when he was saying good-night to Heringham after their first -talk. Evans laughed at himself for letting the darkness and the -strange blue street lights make him wax superstitious. Of course it -was all a trick of imagination; no one would waste time shadowing -him—a mere warrant officer. Yet it was with a keen sense of relief -that he found himself safe inside his room at the hotel. - -Very soon after the commission of liaison officers arrived in London, -they were assured by the British authorities in no uncertain terms -that the navy was the keystone of everything. A message was cabled to -Washington which swept away all vestiges of doubt in the President’s -mind that the navy must come first, and which materially facilitated -his adoption of the necessary action giving the navy first claim on -the draft, which had now passed Congress. - -After three weeks of strenuous activity on the part of the entire -commission preparing plans for the consolidation of the naval forces, -they embarked in their scout cruiser at the great Devonport dockyard -where the noise of hammer and riveter, the great heaps of steel -wreckage from repaired ships, and the general atmosphere of -miscellaneous naval activities betokened its great significance as a -naval base. On the high tide the long, slender cruiser glided quietly -out through the narrow channel between Stonehouse and Cremyl, and in -the gathering darkness left Plymouth Sound for the open sea. Four days -later the party landed in New York, and proceeded without delay to -Washington. - - - - - CHAPTER IV - - PROGRESS IN JEOPARDY - - -Immediately after the return of the commission to Washington, a -meeting was held in the Bureau of Engineering, at which those results -of the mission to England which had to do with engineering problems -were reported. - -Admiral Bishop, Chief of the Bureau, presided. He was an elderly -officer of robust build, with a hearty red face and white -side-whiskers. At his right hand sat Commander Rich, head of the Radio -Division of the Bureau, a thin-faced man with an aquiline nose and -dark mobile eyes; his face bespoke an alert mind and quick perception. -He had enrolled in the navy as a radio electrician many years before. -By his ability he had risen through the various grades to warrant -officer, and had been one of those selected from this status for the -course at the Naval Academy. In this way he had risen to his present -rank of commander. Heads of other divisions of the Bureau also sat at -the large table near the center of the room. The three or four -officers who had been sent abroad on engineering problems were present -with their reports. Lieutenant Brown, although attached to the office -of the Director of Naval Communications, and therefore belonging to -the Bureau of Operations, was present, for among those who had been -abroad he was the senior officer concerned with communications. -Various other officers, whose duties dealt with the diverse branches -of engineering, sat in chairs around the walls of the room. Among -these was Lieutenant-Commander Elkins whom Evans had sized up as the -most intelligent and open-minded of all the officers in the Radio -Division of the Bureau. His technical training in radio engineering -was less than that of some of the others, but perhaps by just so much -was he free from prejudice in favor of home-made apparatus. - -Before the meeting Evans had sought Elkins and explained the results -of his investigation of radio methods in England. The British experts -had presented convincing reasons for the universal adoption of some of -their best engineering developments. One improvement in particular, a -new type of vacuum-tube transmitter which they had recently perfected, -far surpassed anything that had yet been seen, and by its efficiency -in eliminating interference it opened such extraordinary possibilities -in the scope of fleet communications that without it the navy would be -lagging sadly behind the more progressive Allies. Adoption of this -transmitter would mean scrapping a great deal of gear now in use, yet -the facts learned in England showed plainly that the navy could not -afford to do otherwise. Elkins saw this, and so did Brown. It was -Brown’s rôle to report on the handling of communications. This problem -was indissolubly linked with that of producing the apparatus, but on -all technical phases of the subject he left it to Evans, with his -superior scientific knowledge, to report their findings to the -meeting. - -As clearly as he was able, Evans described the most important -contributions which the British had made. He warmed to his theme as he -came to their most brilliant feats of invention, especially the new -vacuum-tube transmitter. But at this juncture his enthusiasm met a -check. Admiral Bishop shook his head in disapproval, and remarked that -it would be most unwise to abandon the apparatus which had been so -successfully developed by American talent. One or two of the other -officers nodded acquiescence. Evans was accustomed to the discussion -of problems in physics at meetings of scientists where the quest of -truth was as genuine in the others as in himself. He now started to -argue the case much as he would have done at such a meeting. Too late -he saw his blunder; the opinions of a warrant officer were not to be -set up against those of the Bureau Chief. His insistence had only -served to incense the Admiral. When he saw the effect of his remarks, -he shut up like a clam, and, smarting inwardly with self-reproach -enhanced by the rancor of annoyance at the official complacence of the -Admiral, listened through the rest of the conference. - -Elkins endeavored to argue the case. - -“There’s a chance here to increase the efficiency of our -communications one hundred per cent,” he said, “I believe, sir, we -shall be making a grave mistake if we don’t at least give this -transmitter careful consideration.” - -But Admiral Bishop only shook his head the harder; he had set the -official seal of his disapproval upon the adoption of the British -transmitter, and it was clearly the sense of the conference that -American-made apparatus and American methods were undoubtedly the -best. It is difficult to discard one’s own organization and adopt in -its stead the creation of a foreign nation; and to recognize when a -situation demands that course, requires more imagination and honesty -of mind than most men have. - -As the meeting was breaking up, Commander Rich approached Elkins and -Evans and said, graciously: - -“I admired your report on that British apparatus; clearly it merits -the most careful consideration. But, of course, you must recognize the -difficulties in the way of radical changes involving destruction of -gear already in use, and you will realize the natural reluctance of an -older man like the Admiral to take such a course unless it is -necessary. However, you may be sure I will see to it that all -arguments in favor of the British apparatus are given a fair and -impartial hearing.” - -After Commander Rich and the others had left, Evans continued to -discuss the matter with Elkins and Brown. They tried to view it from -Admiral Bishop’s standpoint. Would it be better, after all, to ignore -the valuable advances made by the British, and to use only the -apparatus of home design, and demand of the British that they adopt -American procedure for the sake of uniformity? Viewing it from every -possible angle, they all agreed that this course would be the height -of folly, for it would materially impair the efficiency of the fleet, -and would also make a very bad impression on the British experts by -using dominance in numbers to force on them the adoption of obviously -inferior methods. The British had been more than willing to adopt such -of the American procedure as was superior to their own. How would they -feel if America failed to reciprocate where common sense clearly -demanded it? This would be an ill omen for friendly coöperation. - -“It’s too important to let slide,” Evans said to himself, “but it -wouldn’t be wise to bother Sam with it, if I can help it. He’s got -enough on his hands, and any insistence on his part that the Bureau -should go against the wish of the Chief might do a lot of harm. It’s -got to be done some other way.” - -Impelled by this feeling, he voiced his sentiments more earnestly than -ever to Elkins. The implied criticism of superiors would have deterred -both men from candor had it been the average lieutenant-commander -talking with the average warrant officer. But when in time of stress -men actuated by the right spirit join in a disinterested effort to -serve a cause, matters of rank and seniority automatically drop out of -the equation. Elkins assured him he would use what influence he had, -but was by no means confident of his ability to do anything with the -Admiral. - -Evans remarked: “It would help a good deal if a demand for it made -itself felt from the D.N.C. office. Engineering supplies the apparatus -and Operations uses it. There are times when Engineering can take the -lead by developing gear which creates new possibilities for -Operations; there are times when Operations can take the lead by -saying to Engineering, ‘We want apparatus that will do so-and-so; can -you make it?’ Now, if Operations, as embodied in the D.N.C. office, -could make just the right request, it might shake things up over here. -Mr. Brown, have you got some live wires in your office?” - -“Yes, a few,” replied Brown; “but I don’t know just how to rouse them -to the kind of action that you want.” - -“That may be rather difficult,” said Evans; “but there’s no knowing -what a little modern telepathy on scientific lines may accomplish.” - -“I took you for a simple-minded scientist,” said Elkins, “but from the -way you talk I begin to think you’re a regular politician.” - -Evans laughed. In the next few days he found business to discuss with -Lieutenant Brown at the D.N.C. office. While he was there, discussions -arose over modern problems of communications in which he was consulted -as technical expert. - -Ten days later, after Elkins had been preparing the ground among some -of the officers in the Bureau of Engineering, they received an -intimation from the Director of Naval Communications that the British -procedure was deemed most suitable for adoption throughout the Allied -fleet, and that it would be desirable to produce, if possible, -apparatus suited to this procedure. These officers asked Elkins if any -information was available bearing on the feasibility of providing -something which would answer these requirements. He said he would find -out, and soon returned with specifications following close to those of -the British transmitter, and estimates furnished by the best available -manufacturers. Armed with this information he took the case to -Commander Rich. This officer expressed a warm appreciation of the -valuable work performed in securing the information and estimates, and -said he would take the matter up with the Admiral. After a conference -with Admiral Bishop, Rich sent for Elkins and told him the Admiral had -been firm in his refusal to abandon the gear then in use and to adopt -in its stead the proposed apparatus. - -“Admiral Bishop is conservative,” said Rich, “but we must remember -that he is a man of great experience, and wiser than we.” - -Evans was dismayed when Elkins told him the news. - -“I don’t like it a bit,” he said. “It seems as if there were something -more than mere conservatism in this.” - -“What do you mean?” - -“I don’t know,” was the reply. - -“Well,” said Elkins, “you know it is devilish hard for an older man to -throw overboard the things he’s used to and take on something entirely -new.” - -“I know,” said Evans, “but this case is so perfectly clear—well, I -don’t know.” - -That evening Evans spent an hour with Mortimer in his private study. -Their talk was concerned chiefly with the broader problems of naval -policy. Evans did not tell him of the trouble over the transmitter, -but merely remarked that the mission to England had been fruitful of -most interesting developments, especially in connection with the radio -problems that concerned both the Director of Naval Communications and -the Bureau of Engineering. - -“When do you expect to visit the Bureau of Engineering again? You’d be -interested to hear something of this from the men at the top,” said -Evans as he was rising to go. - -“I’ll be round Friday morning,” replied Mortimer. - -Evans knew Mortimer’s habits well enough to be quite certain that this -meant about eleven o’clock. - -Next morning he went to the Bureau of Operations and sought Lieutenant -Brown. This officer and his chief, Admiral Fraley, the Director of -Naval Communications, were greatly disturbed by the refusal of the -Bureau of Engineering to furnish the apparatus required for adapting -their procedure to the improved British plan; they hardly knew what to -do about it. Evans now told Brown to tell his chief that he had heard -from some one in the Bureau of Engineering that Friday, a few minutes -before eleven, would be a favorable time for him to see Admiral Bishop -about the question of apparatus. This intimation was duly passed on to -Admiral Fraley. - -Acting on this intimation, Fraley called on Admiral Bishop just before -eleven. He had scarcely opened the subject when Secretary Mortimer was -announced. In spite of a good measure of self-possession, Admiral -Fraley’s face revealed to Mortimer’s keen perception a trace of the -annoyance which he naturally felt at losing his chance to present his -case to Admiral Bishop. He started to withdraw, but Mortimer stopped -him and said, “Don’t let me interrupt your conference.” - -“I can come back some other time,” said Fraley. - -“I’m here to promote, not obstruct, the work of the department,” said -Mortimer. “I’m interested in everything that goes on, and if my -presence doesn’t embarrass your freedom of speech, I’d really rather -have you go on with your business; I’m in no hurry.” - -Admiral Fraley hesitated a moment, then, as it flashed on him that -Mortimer’s presence and interest might offer a rare opportunity of -support from superior brains and authority, he stated his case. He -explained how Lieutenant Brown’s report on British methods made it -seem imperative that certain of their procedures depending on their -new transmitter be adopted, and he further said he understood that -those who had looked into the technical side of the matter were -convinced that it could be done. He wondered what was the difficulty -in the way of supplying the necessary apparatus, and whether there -might not be some way of surmounting it, in view of the great tactical -importance of conformity with the British in this respect. - -Admiral Bishop was nothing if not pompous. He was senior in rank to -Fraley. His round, red face became slightly redder at what appeared to -be the airing of a difference of opinion in the presence of the -Secretary. But with Mortimer’s keen eye upon him, he was aware that -this was no matter to be put off with a display of authority and rank. - -His manner was therefore affable enough as he replied: “In all matters -pertaining to radio apparatus I rely on the judgment of Commander -Rich, who is in charge of that division, and whose wisdom in such -matters is quite unsurpassed. He gave me to understand that he had -inquired into the matter thoroughly and could assure me that the -alleged advantage of the British procedure amounted to practically -nothing, and was certainly not worth making the expensive change -involved in removing vast quantities of material already installed in -the ships and replacing it with something comparatively new and -untried, with which our operators are unfamiliar.” - -Mortimer looked at Admiral Fraley, who appeared perplexed and rather -taken aback. - -“There seems to be a surprising conflict in expert opinion,” remarked -Mortimer, “and this on a matter of some importance. Can’t we call in -the exponents of the conflicting views and come to an understanding -here and now?” - -“I can send for Commander Rich,” said Admiral Bishop. - -“Who are your authorities on the side of the British procedure?” -Mortimer asked of Fraley. - -“Lieutenant Brown of my office reported on the traffic end of the -question,” answered Fraley. “He got his information on the apparatus -chiefly from Lieutenant-Commander Elkins of this Bureau and also from -a radio gunner who obtained most of the data, as I understand it.” - -“Let’s get them all in here and thrash out the problem,” said -Mortimer. - -Thereupon Commander Rich, Elkins, Brown, and Evans were all summoned. -Mortimer was spokesman. - -“I chanced to be present,” he said, “as Admiral Fraley was asking -Admiral Bishop if there was not some way to overcome the obstacles in -the way of supplying the apparatus needed for the adoption of this -British procedure which, from the standpoint of operations, he deems -so important. From what I heard I gathered that there had been some -misunderstanding, and I thought we might clear it right up. Commander -Rich, I understand from Admiral Bishop that you have looked into this -and concluded that it was not of sufficient importance to warrant the -expense of making the necessary changes. Am I right in my -understanding?” - -Evans and Elkins both looked at Commander Rich in surprise. He -appeared perfectly at ease as he replied in a manner which bespoke -deference and conciliation: “Mr. Secretary, if I in any way -underestimated the advantages of the British procedure, I am sure it -was quite unintentional. What I endeavored to do was to sum up the -pros and cons as impartially as I could, and to defer to the superior -judgment of the Admiral, rather than to seek in any way to influence -his decision.” - -“It was my impression,” said Admiral Bishop, “that you favored -adherence to our standard procedure, a course to which I should -naturally incline, to be sure, unless very good reasons for changing -were forthcoming. Perhaps, however, I misunderstood your attitude.” - -The Admiral’s memory was not clear enough to recall that Rich had -reinforced his natural conservatism by intimating, before the meeting -at which the matter was first brought up, that changes were about to -be proposed which it would be unwise even to consider. - -Mortimer then asked for a summary of the case for the proposed -changes. Brown, at the request of Admiral Fraley, explained the -salient points of the communication problem. When he came to the -question of the needed apparatus, he referred Mortimer to Elkins, who -in turn referred him to Evans. In a few words Evans stated the -advantages of the apparatus. - -“What about the expense and difficulty of having it installed?” said -Mortimer. “This seems to have been a seriously deterring -consideration.” - -Evans answered with figures and estimates which decisively disposed of -this difficulty, leaving the case so clear for the proposed changes -that Admiral Bishop could not do otherwise than authorize them. - -Soon after this incident, late one afternoon when the day’s work in -the Bureau of Engineering was done, and almost every one had gone -home, Evans lingered, as he often did, over a knotty engineering -problem. As he was leaving to go, he saw in the corridor a man with a -sallow face going into Commander Rich’s room. He knew Commander Rich -often stayed in his room long after the others had gone, and many -people had business with him; so there was nothing remarkable about -this. But to-night the sight of this man gave him a vague, -uncomfortable feeling, scarcely more than subconscious, that he had -seen him somewhere before. Also in a seemingly haphazard way the -thought and feeling of England stirred in his subconscious mind. But -the guileless physicist was so absorbed in his engineering problem -that these matters never quite reached the arena of his conscious -thoughts. He had so much to think about that he had neither time nor -inclination to heed such capricious freaks of the subconscious, and -the impressions soon passed into the storehouse of forgotten -experience. - -During the winter months following the return of the commission to -Washington, the navy was preparing in a hundred different ways for the -task which lay before it. The draft law having been passed, large -numbers of recruits, the pick of the draft, were assembled at training -stations and rapidly absorbed into the fleet and the various naval -bases on shore. Fortunate they were that the organization into which -they were thus merged was led by such a body of men as the officers of -the United States Navy. Through the long years of indifference on the -part of the majority of their countrymen, these faithful guardians of -the Nation’s frontier, trained at the Naval Academy to a high degree -of professional skill, without which the complex organization of the -fighting ships cannot function, had served with zeal, and against -great odds had kept the fleet ready—kept the colossal machine intact, -so that the hordes of untrained men could be assimilated with the -least possible loss of time and effort. - -Ship and aircraft construction were accelerated by all known means, -and the work of designing and experimenting in every department went -on with ever-increasing efficiency and concentration. In gunnery no -department was neglected; on ships and in training stations drills -with loading machine and dotter were carried on with zeal, and -everywhere the officers saw to it that the high standard of efficiency -in this field was maintained. - -The convoy system had been adopted with the declaration of war, and, -with the aid of light cruisers and destroyers, great quantities of -essential supplies were being poured into Northern Europe, enabling -the Allies to keep up the fight, but by no means to break the -deadlock. Nor were the convoys always able to pass unscathed through -the submarine-infested seas; the toll of ships and cargoes proved a -serious drain on the Allied strength. - -During these months, Evans, dressed in civilian clothes, dined with -Mortimer at his house almost weekly, and after dinner they would sit -alone together in Mortimer’s study, discussing the great problem of -the war, often late into the night. Mortimer would tell of the -deliberations and decisions of the General Staff. Evans would listen -attentively and question him on significant points whose importance -Mortimer himself had sometimes missed. - -Plans for combating the submarine menace were now developing apace. In -spite of the convoy system, serious losses of tonnage kept occurring, -and methods of searching systematically for the undersea pirates were -eagerly sought. The Bureau of Engineering was devoting intensive -effort to testing, perfecting, and installing in new vessels the best -available hydrophones (underwater listening gear) and radio compasses -(direction-finders), the latter both for finding the enemy by his -wireless signals and for making contact with friendly craft when -desired, as well as for purposes of navigation in thick weather. Evans -devoted most of his time to these tasks, taking a hand in the work of -improving methods, and exercising general supervision over the -installation, testing, and calibration of all this sort of gear. As in -1918, a special two weeks’ course was started for instructing radio -operators in the use of the radio compass, a course given in a -laboratory by young radio experts. The operators, as fast as they -finished this course, were sent aboard destroyers and other ships -where the apparatus was installed, with the understanding that they -were fully trained in the use of it. Evans endeavored to enlist the -help of these operators in the work of testing and calibrating the -apparatus; but he found that more than half of them, although -supposedly radio-compass specialists, were utterly useless for the -task. Their teachers, being inexperienced in the psychology of the -student, had failed to impart the essentials, except to those of more -than average intelligence; and, what made matters worse, the -laboratory instruction had not approximated the actual conditions -aboard ship. Even if the principles had been grasped, the operator -found them difficult to apply under conditions so remotely resembling -those of the laboratory. Evidently, to send these men out in charge of -the radio compass aboard ship would mean the failure of the apparatus -in about fifty per cent of the cases in which its use would be -required. - -It was clear that the course should not only be improved, but should -be supplemented by practical instruction aboard ship. Evans conferred -with Lieutenant-Commander Elkins, and suggested to him that a -motor-boat be equipped with a radio compass and that the operators be -taken out on her and given practice in reporting the bearing of a -transmitting station as the motor-boat steered an irregular, zigzag -course. Aside from the advantage of instruction and practice under -actual working conditions, the fitness of a man for radio-compass duty -could thus be readily determined. At first they should practice on a -transmitting station sending signals continuously, and thus -facilitating the readings by giving them plenty of time for their -observations; next, they should assay the more difficult task of -taking bearings when the transmitting station sent only brief -messages. Naval experts have pointed out that the enemy, knowing that -his signals will probably be used to locate him by means of the radio -compass, will make his messages as brief as possible, in order to -render difficult the work of direction-finding; hence the importance -of training the operators by calling on them to take bearings with -messages of ever-increasing brevity. - -Elkins endeavored to arrange through the “usual channels” to have a -motor-boat assigned to the Bureau of Engineering for this important -training duty. But in this he met obstacles. Those who had control of -the available motor-boats were not interested, and did not see the -need of it; furthermore, Commander Rich told him Admiral Bishop felt -that any training of operators beyond what was already provided would -be quite unnecessary. Elkins told Evans the discouraging result of his -effort. - -“What damn nonsense!” said Evans, frowning. “There needs to be a -demand for efficient operators that will make itself felt enough to -shake loose some of the stiff joints of this organization.” Then, -after a pause, “Maybe the demand will come.” - -That evening Mortimer heard the whole story. - -“I guess it will be a simple matter for me to arrange to have a -motor-boat set aside for this work,” he said to Evans. - -“Wouldn’t it be better not to have them get the idea that I have a -‘drag’?” said Evans. “Then, too, sequelæ embarrassing to Elkins might -result if such an order came through just after his request had been -turned down. There’s a better way than that. Isn’t it about time for -you to decide that you want to determine whether the radio-compass -machinery—material and personnel—is up to the important task required -of it? You could order a practical test—a board appointed to make -it—and for samples of the goods, eight or ten operators just through -the compass course, selected at random, aboard a destroyer with the -gear just installed. Let ’em show what they can do with signals sent -from various bearings. Make them come across quick with the test so -that there won’t be time for any one to cheat it by giving the -operators special training. I am confident this test will show that -something is lacking. Then let us have some men along who know a radio -compass when they see it, to show what the gear can do if you -understand it, lest perchance the apparatus be condemned instead of -the poor boobs that are miscalled experts.” - -It seemed altogether natural when a few days later the Secretary of -the Navy appointed a board to conduct a test of the radio compass and -the men assigned to operate it, under the nearest possible approach to -service conditions. Ten operators just from their special course were -to report on board a destroyer whose radio compass had recently been -installed. Three patrol boats were to maneuver about her and each one -in turn was to send signals for one minute. Thus the radio signals -would come from unexpected angles. The operator was to be shut into -the radio-compass shack, so that he couldn’t see the patrol boats, and -was to report the bearing by voice-tube to the bridge as soon as he -had determined it. Then the Bureau of Engineering was to select for -comparison four operators known to be really familiar with the radio -compass, to take bearings on the same patrol boats after the new -operators had completed their test, in order that a fair basis might -be established for judging the operators as prepared by the special -course. - -When this order became known, Elkins was delighted. “Now is our -chance,” he said to Evans, “to have this thing properly tested, and -we’ll know whether those boys need some practical drilling or not.” - -Together they picked the four best men among the radio chiefs who had -been helping with the radio compasses, and made sure that when it came -to their part of the test they would not be found wanting. - -On the appointed day the destroyer steamed out into Chesapeake Bay -accompanied by the three patrol boats. Secretary Mortimer was on -board, for he deemed the experiment important enough to warrant his -personal observation. Admiral Bishop, Commander Rich, and Elkins had -come to represent the Bureau of Engineering, and Elkins had obtained -permission to bring Evans to be sure that the gear was in working -order. - -Commander Rich was almost constantly at Mortimer’s side, talking with -him pleasantly or earnestly as seemed most fitting at the moment. He -spoke of the value of a broad sense of proportion in naval matters. - -“Some people,” he said, “can’t see anything outside their own little -problems. A man in charge of a thing like this radio compass, for -example, is apt to think it’s the most important thing in the whole -navy, and everything else should give way before it. I believe a man -should see the problem as a whole. Now take my case: I’m in charge of -radio, but it would be silly of me to fancy that radio was the most -important thing in the whole organization. I recognize that Admiral -Bishop has a much wider vision, that radio is only one small part of a -colossal machine, and I am ready to defer to the needs of gunnery and -the like when occasion demands.” - -In preparation for the test, Evans had to come up on the bridge to -confer with Elkins. Encountering Commander Rich, he saw in his face a -look of scorn as this keen-looking officer eyed him in his dungarees, -and in the look he fancied he saw, too, something more sinister than -scorn. It haunted him as he returned to the radio compass, but with an -effort he dismissed the thought, convincing himself that it was -probably the result of pique in his own rather sensitive nature. - -Commander Rich, watching Evans swinging himself nimbly up the ladder -to the radio-compass shack, remarked jovially to Mortimer, “Looks to -me like that gunner had a little of that monkey-gland extract you read -about, the way he goes climbing round the ship.” - -And when during the subsequent stages of the test Evans appeared, -Commander Rich was ever ready, if the chance offered, to drop a -sarcastic remark about the “monkey-man.” - -Admiral Bishop had some difficulty engineering his portly form up the -steep ladder leading to the destroyer’s bridge. It would be hard to -find anywhere, on land or sea, a scene more vividly expressive of -human efficiency than is presented by the bridge of a warship -executing a maneuver even of the simplest sort. Officers, signalmen, -and helmsman, alert and intent on the perfect team-work needed to fit -the operation of the ship into the working of the larger machine, the -fleet, execute their orders in a way that testifies to the high -character of their training. Into such a scene came Admiral Bishop -with all his pomp, as the signals were being sent which directed the -patrol boats to their stations. - -When all was ready for the test, the patrol boats circled round the -destroyer at a distance of a mile or so, and first one, then another, -was signaled to send messages. First, the operators just graduated -from the special radio-compass course were tested. Each man was given -three bearings to report, one on each patrol boat. The first operator -to be tested nervously entered the radio-compass house, wondering if -his fate hung on his performance, and fumbled for a while with the -somewhat unfamiliar apparatus. Finally he tuned in the patrol boat -signal, and then, as he twirled the hand-wheel which rotates the coil, -he became confused, and before he could gather his wits he realized -that his minute was up and he had reported no bearing. On his second -and third bearings he made a little progress, but the results were -considerably in error. As he took off the head-phones and stepped out -of the house, he said to the chief radio operator of the destroyer, -“That don’t sound nothing like what they give us to learn on in the -course. It’s all so different I couldn’t make nothing of it.” The next -man, awaiting his turn, heard the remark and profited somewhat by it. -He obtained a rough bearing each time just before his minute was up. -Out of the ten operators tested, only three gave even a respectable -performance. - -Admiral Bishop had but a hazy idea of the nature of the test which was -being made. When he first came on the bridge, he got into conversation -with the skipper of the destroyer, who fortunately had his officers -well enough indoctrinated to operate the ship and carry on the test -without his personal attention. The Admiral, having been on shore duty -for several years, coming once more on shipboard, was reminded of -cruises of long years ago. His talk became one of reminiscence about -the good old days. It was not until the test of the ten operators was -nearly finished that he became aware that it had begun. Commander Rich -then explained to him just how the test was being conducted. - -“You see the patrol boat out there is sending us signals. Down there -in the radio-compass house aft, the operator is taking the bearing he -gets on the signal as it comes in. He reports it to us here on the -bridge by voice-tube. At the same time the navigating officer here is -noting the actual bearing of the patrol boat by eye with the pelorus, -to see whether the radio bearing is right.” - -About this time the last of the ten operators completed his test, and -the results were displayed before Admiral Bishop, revealing clearly -their unsatisfactory performance. - -“Seems to me this radio compass doesn’t show up very well in service -conditions, Mr. Secretary,” said the Admiral. “That’s the way with a -lot of these gadgets; they’re all right on paper and in the -laboratory, but on board ship they don’t cut much figure.” - -“We have still to see the second part of the test,” answered Mortimer. -“The fault may be in the gear or in the operators; I want to find out -which.” - -One of the men picked by the Bureau was then sent into the compass -house. The signal was given for the sending to begin and in twenty -seconds he reported by voice-tube, “Sixty-five.” - -“That looks like business,” said the skipper of the destroyer. “How is -it?” addressing the question to his navigator, who with his eye at the -sighting vane of the pelorus followed the course of the patrol boat. - -“She’s bearing sixty-four,” was the answer. - -“Right to within one degree. Will he do it again?” said the skipper. - -In five successive tests this operator reported the bearings with an -average error of less than one degree, and his reports were delivered -to the bridge with increasing promptness. - -A signal to the patrol boats ordered the time of sending reduced to -thirty seconds. The three remaining picked men then showed what they -could do, and the greatest error was two degrees. On average barely -eighteen seconds elapsed from the time the signals began till the -report was heard on the bridge. - -Admiral Bishop was now following the proceedings with interest and -began to see what an accurate instrument the radio compass was when in -competent hands, but his imagination was not keen enough to envisage -the possibilities which it opened. The skipper of the destroyer was -the first to propose a more spectacular demonstration. - -“Let’s have him steer us to one of the boats,” he said. - -A signal was made to the patrol boat on the port quarter to send -signals continuously till further notice. The operator, when told what -he was to do, listened a moment, revolving the coil and manipulating -the switches, then called to the bridge, “Left rudder.” The officer of -the deck passed the word to the helmsman, and as the ship swung round -till the signaling patrol boat bore dead ahead, the voice from the -radio-compass house called, “Steady as you go.” It looked like -witchcraft, this guidance of the ship by an unseen and sightless power -unerringly toward the source of the silent ether waves. As the patrol -boat bore away to starboard, the operator kept the destroyer following -her with her bow till, bearing down on her at eighteen knots, they -were only a hundred yards from the little boat, when the skipper said, -“Left rudder,” and the destroyer shot past the smaller boat within a -stone’s throw. - -Admiral Bishop, watching this exhibition, grasped for the first time -what it really meant. As the unfailing precision with which the -destroyer tracked her quarry became more and more apparent, his -enthusiasm grew till his eyes fairly sparkled with delight. He shook -hands with Commander Rich and congratulated him heartily on the -splendid equipment which his division had installed in the ships. - -After that it was only natural that, when the report of the test had -been made, a motor-boat equipped with a radio compass should be set -aside for the drilling of operators. And in the wake of this reform -there naturally followed similar methods for the drilling of personnel -in the use of hydrophones of all sorts, and all manner of special -apparatus. - -About a fortnight after this convincing demonstration on Chesapeake -Bay, the _Sheridan_, a brand-new scout cruiser, was steaming back to -the Boston Navy Yard after making her speed trial at Rockland, Maine. -She was the first of a new batch of scout cruisers being rushed to -completion, and in speed and every other important essential for this -type of craft she was the last word. She was, of course, equipped with -a radio compass of the latest model, and before the trip to Rockland -this had been carefully tested and calibrated. In view of the -importance attached to this apparatus since the demonstration on the -Chesapeake, a radio gunner named Long had been sent by the Bureau of -Engineering to stay on board throughout this trip and check the work -of the operators to be sure that both they and the apparatus were -dependable for purposes of navigation. On the way to Rockland, Long -had seized every opportunity of taking bearings on stations along the -coast. The results had delighted the navigator, who saw that in every -case he could depend on the bearings given. - -Now, on the return trip, the navigator had occasion to be especially -glad of the pains Long had taken, for a thick fog shut in soon after -they passed Monhegan Island; every adjunct that could help him in his -important duty of fixing the ship’s position was more than welcome. - -Late in the afternoon the captain, the navigator, and the officer of -the deck stood on the bridge straining their eyes ahead into the -dense, wet fog. - -“Captain,” said the navigator, “I think we’d better get some -radio-compass bearings; my dead-reckoning shows us about ten miles -from Cape Ann, and we don’t want to go much closer without checking -our position.” - -“Very well,” said the captain, “you may instruct the radio room to get -the bearings.” - -A signal was sent out, and in less than five minutes a full report -from the radio room was handed to the officer of the deck on the -bridge. It read as follows: - - Cape Cod reports bearing 338°, Gloucester reports bearing - 73°, Fourth Cliff radio compass temporarily out of - commission; ship’s own radio compass gives bearing of - Boston Navy Yard transmitter 242°. - -With alacrity the navigator plotted on the chart the position thus -given. - -“This shows us five miles south-southeast of our dead-reckoning,” he -said to the captain. - -“Are those bearings dependable?” was the reply. - -“Our radio compass has been giving us bearings accurate to within one -degree without fail ever since we left Boston, and the shore stations -are regularly dependable to within less than that. Besides, we have -here three bearings and they check each other reasonably close, making -the fix practically a certainty.” - -“Have them repeated,” said the skipper. - -“Aye, aye, sir.” - -The message was sent and in three minutes a report was received -corroborating the previous bearings. - -“How do you account for the error in dead-reckoning?” asked the -captain. - -“I don’t know,” said the navigator; “but you remember the seven -destroyers that went aground on the Pacific coast in 1923 because they -ignored the radio-compass bearings and trusted their dead-reckoning.” - -“That’s right,” said the skipper; “we can’t afford to do that. What -about sounding?” - -“That wouldn’t help us much here, the bottom’s too irregular.” - -They looked at the chart together for a minute. - -“Give us a course that will pick up the whistling buoy off Thatcher’s -Island from this last fix,” said the skipper. - -The navigator plotted the course, and the order was given, at which -the ship swung a point and a half to the northward. - -The speed of the ship had already been reduced to fifteen knots which -on a ship in the habit of cruising at twenty-five, and capable of -forty, seemed like a snail’s pace. There was not much more than an -hour of daylight left, and making a landfall in fog and twilight is -nasty business; so the captain was loath to slow down any more. But -the fog shut in thicker till the bow could barely be seen from the -bridge; a hundred yards marked the limit of visibility ahead. At -fifteen knots a hundred yards is traversed in very few seconds; -caution therefore constrained the captain to reduce speed to twelve -knots. The lithe ship seemed to be crawling through the water. - -Forty minutes passed. All eyes looked forward into the thick blanket -of fog which seemed to paralyze the sense of sight. Captain and -navigator paced nervously to and fro, looking now at the chart and -then again into the gray void. The leaden sky began to darken visibly. - -“We’ve gone eight miles since we changed course,” said the navigator; -“we ought to hear that whistle, we could hear it two miles in any -direction.” - -“You’d better get some more bearings,” said the captain. - -At that moment the lookout in the bow shouted, “Surf ahead.” - -The captain sprang to the engine-room telegraph and jerked back the -lever calling for full speed astern. In two seconds, which seemed an -eternity, the whole ship began to shake as the turbines backed water -with all their power. But a seven-thousand-ton ship even at twelve -knots cannot be brought to a standstill instantly, and just as the -breakers ahead became visible to the anxious eyes on the bridge, there -was a hideous, grinding crash and shock. - -To the skipper and navigator it was like the crack of doom—the -death-knell of their careers, for with a horrible sickness in their -hearts they knew they had driven one of Uncle Sam’s finest ships -ashore on an exposed and dangerous coast. The _Sheridan_ was hard -aground on the north end of a reef known as “the Salvages,” just off -the Rockport breakwater, some three miles north of Thatcher’s Island. - -The coolness, self-possession, and resourcefulness which these -officers and those under them showed in handling this disastrous -situation, which confronted them with overwhelming suddenness, was to -their eternal credit and to that of the navy. Fortunately, the sea was -not heavy and no difficulty was found in getting the crew safely off -the ship. Salvage operations were promptly begun, and in a few days -the Sheridan was pulled off the reef and towed to the Navy Yard where -the extensive repairs and rebuilding of her bow were begun. - -When the board of inquiry met to investigate the cause of the -disaster, it was clearly revealed that the navigator’s dead-reckoning -had been correct, that the radio-compass bearings, which showed the -ship to be five miles south-southeast of the dead-reckoning position, -must have been in error, and that trusting these bearings and changing -course to the northward had caused the ship to run aground. - -Mortimer held a conference with Commander Rich. - -“You can’t trust these gadgets,” said Rich, speaking of the radio -compass. “There’s a dangerous tendency among some officers to rely on -a thing like this because it works well once. You see what -happens:—one day it works beautifully, the next day it puts your best -cruiser on the beach. If I were you I wouldn’t waste another dollar -installing such gear; it will be leading to a false sense of security, -and will wreck some more ships.” - -With the wreck of the _Sheridan_ staring Mortimer in the face, -Commander Rich’s logic seemed to him convincing. When Evans heard of -this, he was sorely troubled. - -“See here, Sam,” he said, “this radio compass is a thing that has been -working for twenty years, guiding our ships safely into harbors in -thick weather. Look at the possibilities it has in naval warfare! To -go and scrap it because of one bad fix would be like throwing -overboard all your guns because of one wild shot.” - -“Commander Rich says it’s not dependable and is apt to cause more -wrecks,” said Mortimer; “and Commander Rich is one of the keenest and -wisest men in the navy.” - -“He’s a jackass if he tells you to give up this valuable instrument. -There’s some definite reason why those bearings were wrong, and the -reason ought to be looked for and found.” - -“I don’t like the way you speak of Commander Rich. I count on him in -matters of practical engineering more than on almost any one.” - -Evans was silent a moment, frowning and fingering a paper-weight -restlessly. - -“I wish you’d let me go to Boston myself and examine the _Sheridan’s_ -radio compass, and the one in the shore station at Gloucester that -gave the wrong bearing. I believe I could find out something.” - -“I don’t see that it would do any good,” said Mortimer. “Besides, -you’re needed for your work right here in the Bureau.” - -“I’m doing nothing in the Bureau half so important as getting the -truth on this matter. If I can find out why the apparatus failed and -show how to prevent its failure in future, and thereby restore your -confidence in it, I’ll have done the biggest job for the navy that I -can ever hope to do.” - -“If Commander Rich thinks it worth while to send you there, well and -good,” said Mortimer. - -“Commander Rich would never send me. He has disliked me ever since -that scene we had over the British vacuum-tube transmitter. He’d turn -down a request like that just for the sake of snubbing me, even if he -saw the point in my going, which he wouldn’t. The only way is to have -orders come from some one above him. For God’s sake, Sam, give this -thing a chance. Let me get up there and see what happened.” - -His earnestness startled Mortimer and recalled the deep trust in his -friend that he had always felt, and at last he yielded. It was -arranged that Evans should receive orders which would enable him to -visit the radio compasses around Boston and to go aboard the -_Sheridan_, now being repaired there. - -First Evans visited the station at Fourth Cliff near Scituate, the -station which on the fateful day had been reported out of commission. -He learned that during the entire day of the wreck the operators had -been unable to make the apparatus work. The next morning a careful -examination had revealed a loose connection which had resulted in an -open circuit. It was the kind of thing that might easily result from -undue haste in installing the gear. - -At Gloucester he questioned the operators closely. They could not -account for the error in the bearings they had given to the -_Sheridan_, both of them having proved to be some sixteen degrees off. -The apparatus had been giving accurate bearings for years; they used -it on that day just as they always had, and since that day it had been -tested and recalibrated, and had proved to be in perfect condition and -giving just as accurate bearings as it always had. Evans examined the -apparatus himself with the greatest care. Nothing was amiss; it -certainly was in perfect working order and adjustment. He was -mystified; he could find no possible clue to this sudden and -disastrous lapse. At all events, the gear was working well now, and -the operators on their guard against mistakes. - -On the _Sheridan_ Evans found the radio compass apparently in good -order. But when he had signals sent from a station near by and tested -the gear in actual use, he found the bearings which it indicated -always eight degrees to the right of what they should be. He then -examined the circular scale from which the readings were taken and -found it eight degrees out of alignment with the coil. - -“That’s a rank bit of installation,” he said to the operator in charge -of the apparatus. “I thought you’d been getting good bearings with it -all along the coast before you went aground.” - -“We did,” said the operator. - -“How could you? The scale is eight degrees out.” - -“It must have slipped.” - -Evans took hold of the scale and found it securely fixed in position. -He looked carefully for any possible obstruction which might have -caught on it as the coil was rotated and forced it round on the shaft, -but he found none. - -“I don’t see how it could have slipped; it’s on tight enough,” he -said. - -The operator shrugged his shoulders. - -“Are you sure no one made any adjustments here that day?” Evans asked. - -“I know I didn’t, and I’m pretty sure my mate didn’t, but I’ll ask -him. We were the only ones in here except Gunner Long who came from -the Bureau to see that the gear was working. He was here in the shack -and sent me to get some wire or something from the main radio room an -hour or so before we struck. I was gone only two or three minutes, and -that was the only time I was out of the shack all the forenoon. I -stayed here till the order came to abandon ship and we all got into -the boats.” - -His mate, the other radio-compass operator, was sent for, and -corroborated his story as far as his own watch was concerned. Evans -was baffled. But it was a simple matter to set the apparatus right. He -reset the circular scale in its proper position; and he nearly broke -his screwdriver tightening the set-screw which held it in position, to -be sure it did not “slip” again. - -When he returned to Washington to report on his findings, his task was -not easy. Elkins, with whom he discussed the matter, was entirely -sympathetic. A peculiar combination of circumstances had wrecked the -ship. The one time in years when the Gloucester station failed to give -accurate bearings happened to coincide with an unaccountable slipping -of the scale on the Sheridan’s radio compass. Such a combination of -mishaps was not likely to occur again in a generation. It would be -absurd to abandon anything so obviously useful because of it. Mortimer -was still skeptical, and inclined to follow the advice of Rich, but -Evans drove home his point with such earnestness and force, as they -discussed it by Mortimer’s study fire, backing up his argument with -Elkins’s concurrence, that Mortimer finally said he would allow -installation of the gear to continue for the present. But he -considered it on trial; any more serious failures or disasters, and -the radio compass would be discarded as far as any active use of it in -warfare was concerned. - -One day, soon after his return to Washington from Boston, Evans talked -with Commander Barton of the Bureau of Intelligence about the peculiar -mishap, and his failure to explain just how it occurred. When he -mentioned his investigation of the Gloucester station, and finding the -apparatus there in perfect order, Barton said, “Did you ask them who -had been in the station that day or the day before?” - -“No, I didn’t think of that,” said Evans; “I was looking for trouble -in the apparatus.” - -“I should say that was the first thing to find out,” said Barton. - -That evening Evans did some hard thinking, and went to bed a wiser -man. - -Barton sent one of his best officers to Boston to visit the stations -at Gloucester and Fourth Cliff, and conduct a bit of research along -somewhat different lines from those Evans had followed. What this -officer told Barton on his return he kept to himself. For a long, long -time he did not speak of it to another living soul except Admiral -Rallston, Chief of the Bureau of Naval Intelligence. - -As the winter months wore on, the navy’s main task was escorting the -great convoys across the ocean and thus enabling the armies of -Northern Europe to hold their line. But the navy was preparing for -larger things than escort duty. The enemy submarine base at the Azores -proved to be a constant menace; from it submarines would come out in -force, and sometimes succeed in sinking ships and escaping unharmed -from the depth charges of the escort. - -At Punta Delgada, the capital port of the Azores, the enemy had for -some years been building a giant breakwater to create a harbor far -bigger than that which sheltered American destroyers and submarines in -1918 when this port was in friendly hands. Work was now being rushed -to complete this greater harbor, and with it docking facilities that -would make the base more efficient in the maintenance of extensive -submarine operations. - -The nearest Allied base to the Azores was Berehaven on the Irish -coast, and from here a British airplane carrier went out from time to -time, cruising southwest to within two hundred miles of Punta Delgada, -whence just before dawn she would launch into the air two or three -high-speed aeroplanes equipped only with their machine guns and -cameras of the most perfect type for long-distance photography. When -the first rays of the rising sun struck the harbor and port works of -Punta Delgada, revealing all details through the contrast of light and -shadow, with a brilliance of relief which is lost when the sun is -high, these planes, soaring at an altitude too great for the eyes of -the drowsy watchers, would take their pictures and fly away unseen to -the waiting mother ship. The optical system in these cameras was a -marvel of design, and when the photographs were studied under the lens -in London and Washington, it was not difficult to follow in detail the -work of perfecting the submarine base. - -By the end of the winter this photographic study had revealed that the -breakwater was practically complete, and the docks almost ready for -the opening of more extensive submarine operations; moreover, -coast-defense guns and vast stores of ordnance and engineering -material had been accumulated, and all was in readiness for the -building of powerful defenses which would make the seizure of the port -difficult in the extreme. Now was the time to attack, before the great -coast-defense guns were mounted and ready for use. The American Navy, -which had suffered from the peace-time shortage of personnel, was now -adequately manned and ready for aggressive action. A consolidation -with the British and French ships was effected, and in March the -attempt was made to seize Punta Delgada. The Mediterranean Powers -deemed it unwise to risk their capital ships for the defense of this -point, and kept them safe in the Mediterranean. After a brief -resistance, the Azores fell into the hands of the Allies. The enemy -had done the lion’s share of the work of preparing a first-class base -with the strongest kind of defenses. The materials were there, and it -was a comparatively easy task for the Americans and British to -assemble them after their own pattern. The loss of this valuable base -was extremely annoying to the enemy, but as long as their fleet -remained intact within the shelter of the Mediterranean Sea they felt -secure in their control of the great resources on which they pinned -their faith. - -Following the advantage gained by possession of the Azores, the Allied -forces soon took Madeira and the Canary Islands, both bases being less -strongly defended than the Azores. The Cape Verde Islands thus were -virtually cut off from their base, and surrendered before long without -resistance. - - - - - CHAPTER V - - THE STORM-CENTER MOVES EASTWARD - - -The loss of their island bases seriously hampered the enemy in their -submarine warfare on the great stream of trans-Atlantic shipping. -Submarines were now based on Lisbon and Gibraltar, and while they were -still able to harass the merchant ships of the Allies, the sinkings -were materially reduced, and the prospect of keeping Northern Europe -supplied with the sinews of war became much brighter. Possession of -these bases also enabled the Allies to conduct anti-submarine -operations with destroyers and submarines in a way that had hitherto -been impossible for want of any base near the focus of activity. - -The first time Evans dined with Mortimer after these islands had come -into the possession of the Allies, this important development -naturally led them to talk over the general problem from a new angle. - -“Broadly speaking,” said Evans, “it is in a way a problem of morale -and numbers against resources and wits. We have far better morale and -slightly superior numbers. They command the resources of all Southern -Europe, Egypt, and the East, and they still have pretty free access to -those of South America. In this respect, unless we can cut them off -from South America, they have an appreciable advantage over us. As to -wits, I don’t mean that the Nordic peoples as a whole are inferior to -them, but theirs is the advantage of well-laid plans and a marvelous -centralized control. They’ve been planning this thing for fifteen -years, and they’ve done a devilish good job of it. We have wits, but -ours are not yet coördinated. - -“Specifically, our problem is, first, to sink enough of their subs to -ensure the flow of munitions from the Western Hemisphere to Northern -Europe; that will enable us to maintain our present status; second, to -engage and destroy their fleet, and thus break their control of the -Mediterranean. That will be the hardest thing to do, for they don’t -want to give us a crack at it; they won’t take a chance of battle -unless they can feel sure of most favorable conditions; but if we can -smash their fleet, the game is won.” - -Mortimer listened thoughtfully, nodding his head in acquiescence as -his friend talked; but Evans interrupted himself by saying, “Well, -here I am giving my elders and betters a twopenny talk on the cosmos.” - -“Don’t worry about that,” answered Mortimer; “it helps me to see the -broader issues and clear my head of the mass of administrative detail. -Go to it and give me some more.” - -“Well,” resumed Evans, “as to the submarine problem—we’re in a -position to go after them now. Obviously one of the first things to do -is to put the very best radio compasses we can on shore stations at -Punta Delgada, Madeira, and the Canaries, fitting them with first-rate -amplifiers so that we can pick up subs as soon as they come out of -Lisbon or Gibraltar. Then we can follow their movements by taking -cross-bearings on them every time they use their radio, just as the -British did with the German subs in the old days.” - -“You know, I still have my doubts about this radio-compass business,” -put in Mortimer. “Nothing has been done with it to restore the -confidence of either Commander Rich or myself since the Sheridan -affair. I still consider it on trial, and question the wisdom of -spending much money installing such stuff on the islands.” - -“No one has bothered to tell you what has been done,” said Evans, “but -the fact is that the radio compasses all along the coast are -continuing to give accurate bearings to incoming ships whenever the -weather is thick, just as they have for the past twenty years, and the -skippers for the most part continue to trust them. Anyway, this is a -different issue. It doesn’t involve depending on the bearings for -navigation of our ships; it is a matter of information about the -enemy, and we can’t afford not to use it. The Bureau of Operations is -counting on the use of these shore stations, and recognizes also the -importance of working up coördinated hunting groups of destroyers to -pick up the scent of the sub by crossed radio-compass bearings, and -then, having thus located her roughly, to run her down with -hydrophones. - -“Now the shore stations have the longest range; they’ll spot a sub -nearly a thousand miles away, but since their work is long-distance -triangulation, they’ll place her only roughly. This will serve very -well to tell the destroyers and chasers where to go to look for her, -but by the time the information is transmitted and the hunting craft -have got there, the sub may be too far away from the designated spot -to find her with hydrophones. It is in this intermediate stage that -the radio compasses on the destroyers themselves will come in. These -have less range than the shore stations, but more than the -hydrophones. Cruising in line, the destroyers may, by quick work, get -cross-bearings on a sub sending signals anywhere within fifty miles, -and thus locate her to within a mile. Then there’s a fair chance of -picking her up with the hydrophones or magnetic detectors after she -has submerged; and once that is done there’s a fair chance of covering -her with a pattern of depth bombs, if the team-work is good. - -“Now that sounds all very pretty, here by the fireside. But the pirate -will have sense enough to fear these tactics, and will cut his -messages down perhaps to one or two letters at a time, which won’t -give the boys much chance for accurate bearings, no matter how quick -they are. Then, he too has hydrophones, and when he hears us coming, -he’ll slow down till you can’t hear him unless you’re almost on top of -him. Still, with all these difficulties, it’s worth while playing that -game for all there is in it. It may get us a few subs, if we keep it -up on a big enough scale; even if it doesn’t, it will bother the sub -and cramp her style, and it will give our boys the finest kind of -drill. - -“Now, there’s another matter which the difficulties of hunting with -destroyers brings to my mind. In the war with Germany the chasers used -to run their drifting patrols and hunts with all their listening gear, -and once in a while, probably even less often than they thought, they -picked up the sound of a sub. Then it was ‘up tubes’ and give chase; -then ‘down tubes’ and listen again; a short burst of speed, then a -dead stop, for they couldn’t listen under way. The chases had to be -short, for Fritz could change course and speed, and then, while they -were rushing to where they thought he was, they’d lose him. It was a -sort of a hare and tortoise race, and you remember who won that. Our -chasers to-day are somewhat faster and have much better hydrophones -than those of 1918, but the problem is still much the same. - -“Now, there’s a group of young officers in the Bureau of Engineering -that have studied the history of those chaser maneuvers of 1918, and -have put their heads together and worked out what looks to me like a -real solution of that difficulty. More than one of the chaser captains -of that time have said that, if they could have continued to listen -instead of having to attack, they would have kept track of the sub’s -whereabouts much longer than they could in the intermittent pursuit. -Taking their cue from this fact, these officers have worked out a -scheme which enables the listeners to keep on listening, and then to -delegate other vessels to go to the spot they designate and surround -the sub as a seiner surrounds a school of mackerel—with a string of -nets. Their plan is to develop a fleet of ships like those that laid -the great North Sea mine barrage—ships that will be fast and will have -machinery for laying a net at very high speed. A sub can cut through -an ordinary net and escape, so they have worked out plans for a net -that will give notice if she tries it. It is to be studded with small -telltale bombs just big enough to raise a fountain, but not big enough -to add much to the weight and size of the net. These bombs, each in a -section a hundred yards long, will be exploded by an electrical device -if the sub touches any part of that section. It won’t hurt the sub, -but it will tell you where she is, and you’ll have boats on hand with -depth charges to do the hurting. The point is to establish quickly a -barrier around the sub through which she can’t pass without giving -away her position. - -“These young officers have been fearfully keen on this thing and have -worked out practical plans for machinery that will pay out the net at -a speed of six knots, and the electrical gear for setting off the -bombs. - -“You can’t anchor the net, for the ocean’s too deep out there; it must -be suspended from buoys. It needn’t reach down more than about three -hundred feet, for no sub could dive under it at that depth without -being crushed by water pressure. The tactical scheme is to have these -boats, eight or ten of them, lie in wait at a central point with -groups of drifting listeners scattered all around them, say, twenty -miles away. When a sub is heard and located, the listeners call the -net-layers by radio, and they go to the spot at a thirty-knot speed. -As they approach they soon drown out the sound of the sub, but their -speed and number enables them to surround the area in which she is -known to be, for she won’t have time to go far from where she was last -heard. Paying out their nets, they hem her in and keep the ring of -nets closed round her till the area is raked with trailing wires and -other electromagnetic detectors which will enable the chasers to -concentrate their depth charges with the certainty of a kill.” - -“That sounds like the most constructive—or rather artistically -destructive—proposition I’ve heard yet,” said Mortimer with -enthusiasm. “What are they doing about it? Have they submitted it to -the Bureau Chief?” - -“They’ve tried to, but they couldn’t get much attention paid to it.” - -“Why not?” - -“I’ve tried to find out why, but I can’t quite make it out. On the -face of it the trouble seems to be the usual conservatism and inertia -about taking up anything new. Did you ever read the article Sims wrote -on Military Conservatism?” - -“No,” said Mortimer. - -“Well, in that, he showed how every great advance, such as gunpowder -and steam, met with opposition, and chiefly from the men at the top, -who, being the older men, had quite naturally lost the mental -flexibility of youth. It may be just another case of that. Admiral -Bishop is a conservative old buck. But then I suspect this project has -never come to his attention. I think it’s been stopped lower down, and -I fear there may be jealousy or politics or something else worse than -conservatism involved in this.” - -“Give me the names of the men who have developed the scheme,” said -Mortimer, “and I’ll dig it out. I’ll make old Bishop find out about it -and bring it up before the General Staff. I needn’t tell him how I -heard of it; so nobody will get in trouble.” - -Mortimer lost no time in bringing this matter before Admiral Bishop. -The old man was averse to bothering his head with any new, wild-cat -schemes, but, yielding reluctantly before Mortimer’s insistence, did -secure from the authors of this one an outline of it for consideration -by the General Staff. At the meeting of this body a number of -objections were raised by the more conservative officers. The expense -would be out of all proportion to the prospect of success; nets could -never be paid out fast enough to surround the elusive sub; the thing -had never been done—was unheard of; these new-fangled schemes never -did work, anyway. With his lawyer’s skill, Mortimer questioned them as -to all the difficulties in the way of the project, till he felt that -some of the more progressive members were in favor of it, and the -others weakening. Then, following this advantage, he showed them how -lacking in the convincing quality all the objections had been, and -virtually demanded and finally obtained their acquiescence in putting -the plan into operation, overriding the final objections of Admiral -Bishop in a way that caused this officer to be visibly incensed. - -Engineering talent was set to work on the details of the scheme, -perfecting the net studded with tiny bombs, and the machinery for -paying it out at high speed from the moving ship. This latter being a -purely mechanical problem, there was no lack of inventive skill -available for bringing it to the production stage in record time. -Provision was made for the safe recovering of the nets without -detonating the bombs. Five fast liners, built and building, were taken -over and rearranged for installation of additional boilers and the new -gear. Three new ships were started building, specially designed for -this service. Thus it was estimated that, during the autumn, eight -ships capable of thirty knots would be ready to give this project a -trial. - -Mortimer requested Admiral Bishop to institute an investigation to -find out why this important suggestion had been side-tracked. This -quest proved most confusing; the original copy of the communication -could not be found. Several engineer officers recalled having seen it, -and one said he thought he had turned it over to Commander Rich to get -his opinion. Commander Rich, on the other hand, said he was sure he -had never seen it. In the end it was concluded that the paper had been -pigeon-holed and then lost through the carelessness of some yeoman. - -Mortimer told Evans the result of this investigation. Evans listened -attentively, frowning as the unsatisfactory conclusion was reached. -For some time he sat in silence; then he spoke: - -“Sam, it’s a beastly uncomfortable thing to come to you with a -criticism of my superior officer, but I don’t see how I can -conscientiously dodge it. For some time I’ve been getting uneasy about -Commander Rich, and this thing makes me more so.” - -“What do you mean?” asked Mortimer. - -“I doubt his loyalty.” - -“That’s a pretty serious thing to say. What evidence have you?” - -“Not much, I admit,” said Evans. “But do you recall that business -about the British vacuum-tube transmitter? There seemed to be a -peculiar discrepancy between his point of view as represented by the -Admiral, and that which he himself took in the final show-down.” - -“That was just a misunderstanding,” said Mortimer. “You’re too -suspicious, Jim. Just get that out of your system.” - -“Maybe I am. Just the same, I’d keep my eye on him if I were you.” - -“That’s perfect rot,” said Mortimer. “Rich is one of the ablest and -most dependable men in the service; the more I see of him the better I -like him. You’d better quit suspecting him, and give him a little -loyal support and coöperation yourself.” - -Evans said no more; there seemed nothing more to say. He had a nasty -feeling inside, and a change of subject seemed indicated. - -Another project, made possible by the capture of the Azores, also -engaged the attention of the Navy Department at this time. The -completion of the new breakwater and harbor works at Punta Delgada had -now made this an ideal base for destroyers, chasers, and other -submarine-hunting craft; but even this harbor was not nearly big -enough for the entire fleet of battleships and cruisers. If the fleet -had to lie at anchor outside the harbor there must be some protection -against attack by enemy submarines. Now, unless the place could be -made safe for the entire fleet, its value as a base for anti-submarine -operations was seriously impaired, for if a fleet of chasers set out -from Punta Delgada to hunt in the direction of Gibraltar and no -powerful ships were within call, a detachment of enemy cruisers could -come out and destroy them. Destroyers supported by fast scout cruisers -could sally forth in comparative safety, for their speed would enable -them to retreat under the cover of the coast-defense guns if pursued -by a superior force of the enemy. Submarines, too, could operate from -the Azores in comparative safety, for they could hide at will. But the -large flotillas of chasers now being commissioned and manned, good for -only sixteen knots, would be exposed to grave danger if they operated -far enough from their base to do any good. - -It was at this point that the services of Heringham in Constantinople -became a source of safety and strength. The combined fleet of the -Allies could lie at Brest, and if at any moment, day or night, a force -of enemy ships weighed anchor at Gibraltar, and started out through -the strait, word of it would at once reach the Admiral at Brest, and -in less than two hours the Allied fleet could be under way in search -of them. This arrangement made it possible for chasers and other -patrol craft, too slow to escape from enemy cruisers, to operate in -waters nearer to Brest than to Gibraltar, but outside this area their -helplessness in the face of attack by cruisers rendered their search -for submarines unwise. - -For this reason, as well as because of the strategic position of the -place and the greater ease with which secrecy concerning the -activities of the fleet could be maintained at such an isolated spot, -it was most desirable to develop a base for the whole fleet at the -Azores rather than in French or British waters. A plan was therefore -developed to enclose the entire area between the islands of Saint -Michael’s, Santa Maria, and Formigas, the most easterly group of the -Azores, with a barrier of heavy nets reinforced with mines, and a -system of detecting nets of wires which would at once reveal the -approach of a submarine attempting to break through, and tell the -observer at a central station on shore the very point at which the -approach was made. Thus there would be a sheet of water roughly thirty -miles by sixty, protected from attack by sea, with a fair anchorage -for the entire fleet just south of Saint Michael’s. It was a large -engineering project, but not too large for the end to be gained. This, -it was estimated, would take till the late summer for completion. - -In the mean time, Punta Delgada became the storm-center of all the -patrolling and submarine hunting by swarms of destroyers, submarines, -and seaplanes. Weather stations were established here and in all the -other captured islands, manned by officers trained for this duty by -Professor Jeremy, now holding the rank of commander. - -As the spring wore on and the men on the patrolling craft learned how -large the ocean was and how seldom any trace of a submarine could be -found in its expanse, enthusiasm for the chase gave way to ennui and -discouragement. A little success was sorely needed to put heart into -both officers and men, worn as they were by the tedium of the long, -dreary watches at sea. - -Late in May, Evans and Mortimer motored out into the country some -miles from Washington, and went for a walk together. - -“I think I’m rather wasting time here in Washington,” said Evans. “I -believe I’d find more to do now in the Azores.” - -“I don’t see how we can spare you here, Jim,” answered Mortimer. -“Seems to me we need you in the Bureau to help all these engineering -developments;—not to mention your glittering generalities which I find -rather helpful now and then.” - -“I guess you can get along all right without any ‘glittering -generalities’ from me. As for engineering developments, I find that I -can’t get much of anywhere with Rich in charge of the Radio Division.” - -“Still at odds with your chief? Forget it; buck up, and play the game -with the organization as you find it.” - -“I can’t help it,” said Evans. “There’s no use my trying to work here -in the Bureau with him. He apparently stands for efficiency and -progress; he agrees heartily to every constructive suggestion for -improvement, yet somehow the necessary orders don’t get issued, or, if -issued, don’t go into effect. I keep feeling that my hands are tied. -But in spite of all this we’ve got enough material out to the Azores, -so that if I could get there, I could shape it into what I want, -unhampered by the obstruction that’s hindering me here. I know how it -is from what I saw in 1918. There’s always less red-tape at the scene -of actual warfare than there is in the Bureaus here. I’m sure that if -I can get to Punta Delgada I shall be more nearly on my own, and can -work to better advantage. There are lots of engineering possibilities -there, and I can fix things up to my liking without this officious -interference from above. - -“Besides, it’s at Punta Delgada that the communication storm-center -will be from now on. I feel sure I can be more useful tinkering with -the apparatus in the fleet, and seeing that the boys use it right, -than I can imparting spare calories to a swivel chair here in -Washington. In particular, there are the radio-compass shore stations -that we are installing in the various islands; the regular work of -installation is going on all right, but there’s always a possibility -of their not working as they should, and it’s really a physicist’s job -to take care of that sort of thing. Then the apparatus must be -accurately calibrated, and the personnel taught to use it quickly, and -the machinery for transmitting the intelligence rapidly to -headquarters and thence to the ships that can use it, must be -organized, and organized well. For all that sort of work, I think it’s -time to be moving a good many of your men of engineering ability out -to the Azores where things are going on.” - -“There’s no doubt,” said Mortimer, “that there’ll be plenty of -engineering work to be done out there, and more and more as time goes -on; and I can see the importance of having you as a physicist look -over those radio compasses. But I should like to be able to keep in -touch with you, and frequent messages from a warrant officer in the -fleet to the Secretary would look kind of funny; you might get -uncomfortably snubbed by some one.” - -“I think I can get round that,” said Evans. “I’ll work out a method of -dropping you a hint or a glittering generality now and then without -even ruffling the surface. I learned one or two tricks from those -fellows in London about faking telepathy. We could arrange a flying -trip home if the occasion arose.” - -“Well,” said Mortimer, “you’ve got away with lots of things a warrant -officer’s got no business to, and they haven’t had to court-martial -you yet. Go ahead and fix up your secret code and make your plans, and -let me know when you’re ready to start.” - -A few days later they met again. Evans reported himself ready to leave -for the destroyer flotilla. - -Mortimer said: “I wish you would look over the dramatis personæ in the -fleet and size up who’s who as far as you can, especially when the -main fleet gets out there, which will be some time in August. It’s -hard for me to size them up from my desk in the department. If you are -convinced that there’s anything radically wrong with the men at the -top, give me one of your magic hints and I’ll send for you to come and -tell me about it.” - -They conferred at length over many phases of the great problem, -arriving at a close and harmonious understanding on the main points of -the task confronting the navy. It was arranged that Evans should be -temporarily attached to a new destroyer that was about to sail for -Punta Delgada, and on arrival, be attached to the mother-ship of the -destroyer flotilla, a vessel similar to the old _Melville_ that lay at -Queenstown in 1918, equipped with repair shops and other facilities -for the care of the destroyers. Here he was to be technical assistant -to the radio material officer; and in a letter from the Bureau of -Engineering it was explained that he was to visit the shore stations -and see that everything was installed according to the latest -engineering developments. - -“What about your method of communicating with me?” asked Mortimer. - -“There are two expert radio aides (civilians) in the Bureau of -Engineering, who are highly intelligent and preeminently discreet,” -answered Evans. “Their names are Tompkins and Rand. Keep those men on -the job in the Bureau, and if I have anything to tell you they’ll pass -it on to you.” - -“How will you manage that?” - -“I’ll fix it somehow. All you’ll have to do is to keep those two men -there. If anything happens to either of them, notify the Intelligence -Bureau at once, and tell them to lose no time and spare no pains -probing the matter; then watch your step. If one dies, let the -remaining one choose his successor and teach him the technique.” - -Four days later Evans reported on board a new destroyer setting out to -join the flotilla at Punta Delgada. During the first part of the -journey she assisted a cruiser serving as ocean escort for a great -convoy of merchant ships loaded with munitions and food for the armies -of Northern Europe; but when in mid-ocean, she was detached from the -convoy, and, speeding up to twenty knots, laid her course for Punta -Delgada. - -It was in the middle of a beautiful June afternoon as the destroyer -was gliding over a glassy sea bathed in sunshine, when the lookout -first sighted the cloud-capped mountains of Saint Michael’s. As they -approached and coasted along the southern shore of the island, the -clouds rolled away revealing the soft yet striking outline of the -range clad in semi-tropical verdure. Presently, some miles ahead, they -could discern the town of Punta Delgada shining in the afternoon sun; -then across the breakwater the masts of many ships, destroyers, and -auxiliary craft. The town took shape, scattered over the steep, -sloping hillsides around the old harbor. Nearer they came, and at last -slid smoothly through the opening in the net into the great new -harbor. Before them spread a panorama that might well gladden the eyes -of all on board after nine long days on the barren ocean. Gay-colored -houses in pink, yellow, and white stucco, in brilliant relief of sun -and shadow, breathing an Old-World atmosphere, lined the shore, while -strange and picturesque trees and gardens dotted the slopes receding -to the capricious outline of the green hills beyond. It seemed as if a -magician’s wand had conjured out of the sea a city of a far-off age -and of another world. And in the foreground, tied two by two at -mooring buoys, the long, lean American destroyers spoke of the grim -business of war. - -To Evans, drinking in the picture before him, it was hard to believe -he was not in some strange dream. And being more impressionable than -most men, his mood became that of a child witnessing for the first -time a scene of fairyland artfully displayed on the theatrical stage. - -To make the incongruity of the whole scene complete, a large American -seaplane, returning from patrol, came whirring down out of the sky and -lit on the harbor in a great splash of white foam, then taxied to her -mooring. Rowboats, manned by natives of the town and loaded with -pineapples and other tempting commodities, swarmed around the -destroyer as she tied up to her designated buoy. - -The sunlight on the hills and houses turned golden and then red, and -finally disappeared. A pink sunset faded into twilight, and just -before dark six destroyers cast off from their moorings, slipped out -silently through the opening in the net and headed to sea on a hunting -patrol. - -Early next morning Evans went aboard the mother-ship of the flotilla -and presented his orders at the Flag Office. When they had received -the endorsement of the Chief of Staff, he was instructed to report for -duty to Lieutenant Larabee, the radio material officer, a man of -twenty-eight, whose technical assistant he was to be. - -“Gunner Evans,” said Larabee. “Yes, we had a letter about you from the -Bureau. I understand you have been assisting in some of the newer -engineering developments there, and that you’ve had previous -experience in a physics laboratory.” - -Evans assented. - -“There’s one thing you’ll have to learn on this job,” continued -Larabee; “conditions afloat are very different from those in a -laboratory on shore; a lot that goes there won’t go here.” - -Evans received the advice with thoughtful deference, and as they -discussed the problems before them, he studied with the closest -scrutiny the mentality of the young officer, nearly twelve years his -junior in age, but three grades his senior in rank. Neither in this -conversation nor for long afterward did Larabee discover that Evans -had served many months as a radio operator on a destroyer in the war -zone during the war with Germany twenty years before, nor did he dream -that his age was such as to render this possible. - -In pursuance of the suggestion Evans had made to Mortimer, several men -who had played important parts in the engineering developments at home -were soon transferred to Punta Delgada—not without remonstrance on the -part of those who had come to rely on their efficiency—and were now -absorbed in the increasing organization at this point. In this way -preparation was made to bring the engineering skill of the service -into play at what would soon be the center of all operations. Among -others a chief radio electrician of exceptional skill and -understanding, a man Evans had picked before leaving Washington, to be -his assistant, arrived and reported as he had done, for duty under the -radio material officer. - -On board the mother-ship there was a small radio laboratory or test -shop where experiments with new apparatus could be conducted. Evans -saw its present limitations and future possibilities (provided more -space was available), possibilities of work of the first importance in -the perfection of the technique of communication in all its complex -phases. Larabee, eager to make the radio material service of the -flotilla as good as possible, welcomed the assistance of a handy and -competent radio gunner, and began to put up a strenuous fight for the -needed space. The ordnance officers wanted the space and objected, and -the executive officer backed them up. But at last, spurred on by his -increasing sense of the importance of what he sought, Larabee -succeeded in showing the ordnance officers how they could manage -without the coveted space, and in convincing the executive officer of -his need of it. Then Evans had a free hand to equip the laboratory to -his heart’s content. Cabled requests went out to Washington for new -supplies and apparatus, but during the necessary weeks of waiting -Evans was never at a loss for methods of utilizing such crude -materials as he could pick up in the machine shop or on the -scrap-heap. - -Nor was his time all spent in this laboratory: his duties took him -aboard nearly every ship in the flotilla, where he scrutinized the -condition of the apparatus, questioned the operators, stimulated their -interest, and set them thinking as they had never thought before. Most -of the destroyer skippers noticed an increase in efficiency in the -handling of communications by the men under them, and some patted -themselves lustily on the back for it. It was not long after his -arrival that he had made the round of the radio-compass stations on -shore, not only in the Azores, but also at Madeira and the Canaries. -On these excursions he tested and calibrated each station with a -destroyer circling at a distance of two or three miles, sending -signals; and he spared no pains to satisfy himself that the operators -had a thorough understanding of their duties, and knew full well that -on their vigilance rested large issues. - -But after his first general survey of the flotilla as regards its -efficiency in communications, Evans found time for further research -which this survey had suggested to him; and he was never so happy as -when thus engaged. Sometimes, as a result of an idea either in the -realm of electrical theory or of tactical expediency, the need of -intensive development of new or modified apparatus would appear; then -an engineering research, which in peace-time would require months, was -completed in five or six days. Evans in his dungarees would work day -and night with his skilled assistants, often risking death among wires -charged with a thousand volts or more. No time was spent writing -detailed protocols of experiments. Results were carried in his head -with only occasional notes scribbled on scraps of paper or on the -walls of the test shop. The radio chief who assisted him became fired -with his enthusiasm and worked ungrudgingly for long hours which would -ordinarily make most petty officers grumble loud and long. - -In the warrant officers’ mess Evans was more often the listener than -the speaker. When occasion offered, he would draw out the older men on -the specialties in which they were expert, and often would guide the -conversation into a discussion of coördination, in which each man was -stumped to show how his particular duty fitted into the organization -of the navy as a whole, and thereby was led to see his own function in -a new light, thus acquiring an increased sense of his responsibility. -There was one old boatswain named Jenks nearly sixty years of age, a -veteran of both the Spanish and the German wars, a relic of the old -type of seaman that is all too scarce. Evans delighted in leading him -to open his rich storehouse of experience, and in drawing from him his -old-time navy lore. Jenks in his turn found Evans sympathetic, and -talked with him as he did with few other men, revealing a shrewdness -and wisdom which had often stood him and the navy in good stead. - -To the mess as a whole Evans remained something of an enigma. They saw -him in his room manipulating a slide-rule and jotting down figures on -a scrap of paper, softly humming a tune to himself the while. Few of -them had ever seen a slide-rule, and from his frequent use of it they -inferred that he had had more schooling than most of them; but in -general they found him rather uncommunicative as to his past history. - -For exercise and relaxation Evans frequently went ashore and took a -walk among the hills. On his first shore liberty the sense of foreign -picturesqueness came over him more than ever as he approached the -antique landing in the center of the town, where at the water’s edge -was an array of architecture so different from anything in the -Anglo-Saxon world. On shore he found himself in a strange world -indeed. Strange sights, sounds, and smells greeted him everywhere; -barefooted men were leading donkeys laden with goods about the narrow, -dirty streets. And after flooding his senses with a riot of -impressions of an alien world, it was with a distinct sense of -homecoming that he returned to his quarters aboard the mother-ship of -the flotilla. - -He had not been at Punta Delgada long before he discovered a spot easy -of access, walled off from the town, in which, among the most restful -and soothing surroundings, he could give himself over to relaxation or -thought. This was the ancient Borge garden, created by one of the -Portuguese nobles who flourished on these islands in the far-off days -of their feudal prosperity. Now neglected, overgrown with weeds, this -antiquated paradise reflects its former glory with a stronger appeal -than if it were kept up with a lavish hand, much as the ivy-covered -ruins of England tell their story all the better for their ruined -state. - -In the Borge garden there are trees of the strangest, most fantastic -character—trees with pudgy leaves, trees with shapes one would never -believe could really exist. Here and there are deep grottoes with -giant tree-ferns growing from their depths; zigzag stony paths lead -down into them or through tunnels or over bridges artfully contrived -to conceal as far as possible their artificial nature. Fascinating -glimpses into the depths of tropical greenery are thus given emphasis -by their skillful setting. Surmounting the rest of the garden high up -on the slope is an ancient watch-tower commanding a view of the sea. -Crumbling steps overgrown with weeds lead up the side to its summit. -Beside it stands a majestic and venerable tree, a conifer of the cedar -or cypress group, which must have stood there for centuries casting -its deep shade on the old watch-tower. Framed under its great -lichen-covered branches, the wide expanse of the blue ocean makes the -fairest of pictures—one on which the eye can rest and never tire. - -Evans made friends with the old barefoot gardener who opened the great -gate in the garden wall, and by signs and gestures allayed his -suspicions till the old man admitted him cheerfully whenever he -knocked. - -Here, when his brain was taxed and overwrought, he would seek the -quiet of the garden and give himself over to rest or meditation. -Sometimes he would wander through the depths of the great fern -grottoes, but oftener he would climb to the top of the watch-tower and -sit gazing off over the blue expanse of sea, as perhaps the lookout -had done in other wars of a bygone age. Many a problem in the -borderland of science and strategy which harassed him in the turmoil -of life aboard ship yielded a solution to his mind unfettered and free -as it was when he sat on the watch-tower. - -The Borge garden was inhabited by numerous small birds that sang -melodiously among the trees and shrubs, and so doing enhanced -immeasurably the charm of the place. Evans was no ornithologist, but -he was a lover of all wild life, and especially of birds. He took with -him to the garden liberal stores of crumbs which he scattered on the -ground about him. Little by little the more venturesome of his -feathered friends grew accustomed to his presence, and would light on -the ground beside him, till finally one or two actually came and ate -from his hand. He would talk and whistle to them, and in course of -time, whenever they heard his voice, they would fly to the old tree by -the watch-tower and there await the social feast which he never failed -to bring. He in turn found a deal of cheer in the companionship of his -bird friends. And so it was that when disheartened or exasperated with -inertia and officiousness, the snarls of red-tape in which supply -clerks entangled much-needed gear, or the stupidity and indifference -of radio operators whom he tried to instruct, he found in the little -birds of the garden a solace that made life more livable, and more -than once helped him over the hard places. - - - - - CHAPTER VI - - THE HUNT - - -During June and July, Evans devoted a liberal share of his attention -to the radio-compass problem. He felt that the apparatus was still on -trial. A slight lapse might cause this instrument of untold -possibilities to be lost to the navy because of the _Sheridan_ -disaster and Rich’s subsequent effort to discredit the apparatus in -Mortimer’s eyes. Going frequently aboard the destroyers, he looked -over the apparatus and talked with both the operators and the -officers. With the former he discussed all details of operation; with -the latter, the prospect of using it effectively in the search for -subs; in talking to both groups he made sure that they understood what -was necessary for all hands to know. - -The problem of submarine destruction was even more difficult than in -the war with Germany, for then the German U-boats to reach their -hunting ground must pass through British waters so narrow as to render -the mine barrage feasible and to facilitate a considerable -concentration of anti-submarine craft. Now the submarines emerging -from Gibraltar and Lisbon, both powerfully defended, could far more -easily lose themselves in the broad Atlantic. - -From time to time when they attacked convoys the submarines were sunk -or damaged by the escorting destroyers. But the numbers dealt with in -this way were not nearly enough to give the needed protection to -shipping. The chasers now and then picked up suspicious noises with -their listening gear, but seldom were able to follow them to a -successful issue. - -Hunting squadrons of destroyers, three in each squadron, were going -out and sweeping the seas, but encounters with the enemy were so rare -as to be almost negligible. As of old, the search was long and -tedious. Whole days of seeking in vain for a trace of the enemy were -telling on the men. They were growing stale and losing their -enthusiasm, and so the efficiency of their vigils waned. Encouragement -was sorely needed—something to rouse them with an intimation of the -great role that was theirs should the opportunity come and they use it -right. Especially some signal success was needed to awaken them to -renewed efforts. Both officers and men felt that they were groping in -the dark for the unseen foe. Occasionally they heard him send radio -signals, but usually the bored operators failed to get bearings before -the signals had ceased. No one had ever seen a submarine successfully -tracked down by radio compass and by hydrophone, and therefore the -prospect of this feat was not real to them. - -The radio compasses on the shore stations, with their long range of -operation, were now beginning to get cross bearings on enemy -submarines from time to time, and were making an encouraging beginning -in tracing their movements about the sea. But as yet little had been -done to direct the destroyer squadrons by this method to the fruitful -hunting grounds. It was time for a concerted effort to bring about a -successful hunt which would serve to demonstrate what could be done -with the materials already at hand. - -Evans found technical duties to perform at Communication Headquarters -on shore, as well as in the main radio room of the mother-ship to -which he was attached, and these duties gave him the opportunity to -follow closely the reports that were coming in from the radio-compass -stations on the various islands. In this way he knew as much as any -one in the force about the movements of enemy submarines. He watched -the increasing efficiency with which their movements were revealed, -and at the same time he gradually acquired a familiarity with the -habits of the undersea pirates and the general plan upon which they -operated. - -He studied the personnel on the various hunting groups of destroyers, -and talked with their skippers whenever the opportunity offered. He -was looking for the most promising group with which to give a -demonstration that would wake up the men. If a squadron could once -pick up the scent by radio-compass triangulation and then get the sub -within hydrophone range, there would be a good chance of ending her -career; and even if they only gave her a hard run for her life, a -report of this would do a deal of good to the rest of the flotilla. - -Therefore he searched diligently among the young skippers as they came -and went on their arduous patrols; with each he found business to -discuss, and thereby sized him up. At last he found the man he wanted, -one of the senior skippers in the flotilla, a man named Fraser, with -the rank of commander. He was a tall, well-built, fair-haired man, -clear-eyed and alert, with a magnetic personality. Wholesome and -vigorous, with a boyish enthusiasm and a genuine frankness about him, -he at once inspired in Evans a strong liking, and, more than that, a -confidence that he was a real man. He saw at once that Fraser was in -earnest, and open-mindedly seeking any and every means that human -ingenuity could devise to get the enemy. Fraser took Evans for what he -was, regardless of rank, and eagerly discussed with him the problem of -utilizing all the gear on his ship to the best advantage. Evans did -not take long to discern that, besides the charm which had attracted -him, Fraser had a mind of unusual quality, clear and strong, well -trained in his profession, but untrammeled by the fetters of -tradition; a mind that could grasp quickly, think straight, and see -with the vision that comes only with imagination—a quality without -which no man can be a truly great naval or military leader. Evans -found plenty of lines of approach to Fraser through questions of the -fitness of the radio gear for the various tasks required in the -team-work of the hunting squadron. Through such channels he led the -conversation into a discussion of all the possibilities that might -arise in the pursuit and attack of a submarine, a discussion which was -mutually profitable. They naturally spoke the same language; far fewer -words sufficed to convey ideas to each other than was the case with -most of the skippers. Each caught the other’s meaning with a minimum -of explanation, and each knew that the other had caught his. Chatting -together in the radio room they picked up the trail of an imaginary -submarine by radio compass and maneuvered to get her within range of -the hydrophones and magnetic detectors. - -“I wish you’d go out with us on patrol,” said Fraser, “and see to it -that all this gear is being handled right. You could help us by seeing -that the boys understand their duties and are making the most of these -things.” - -“There’s nothing I’d like better,” said Evans. - -“I’ll get Larabee to let you come. It won’t be hard to arrange.” - -This was what Evans wanted. He proceeded to interest Fraser in the -work that the radio-compass shore stations were doing in reporting the -movements of enemy submarines. Fraser had not appreciated the extent -to which this had become possible. - -“I tell you what we’ll do,” said the Commander; “we’ll choose a time -when they’ve got a hot scent of some subs coming within striking -distance, and then we’ll go to it.” - -Soon thereafter Evans and Fraser met more than once at Communication -Headquarters and looked over the radio-compass reports together. -Before long Fraser was making the same generalizations concerning the -habits of the enemy at which Evans had arrived. And as in the ensuing -days, they watched the reports, Evans visited the three destroyers in -Fraser’s squadron and made sure that men and material were up to -standard in every detail, from the radio sets to the hydrophones and -the internal communications on each ship. He drilled the radio-compass -operators in taking bearings on dummy signals, drilling them so hard, -with ever shorter and shorter messages, that soon they could give him -a fairly good bearing even on the briefest signals. - -Before many days of waiting had passed, reports came in from the radio -compasses at the Grand Canary, Madeira, and the station at the eastern -end of Saint Michael’s, showing that two submarines were proceeding on -a northwesterly course from Lisbon toward the steamer lanes of the -North Atlantic. First, one had been detected communicating with her -base, and then the two communicating with each other and increasing -the power of their signals as their divergent courses required it. The -Flag Office, which had somewhat reluctantly acceded to Commander -Fraser’s request that he be allowed to hold his squadron in port in -order to await such an opportunity, now issued the orders to proceed -to the indicated area in search of the enemy, and granted his request -that the radio gunner should go with him on his ship. - -Evans contrived to visit the weather station before sailing, and -received assurance of two days at least without storms or fogs. He -also arranged with Communication Headquarters that if the shore -stations should report another “fix” on their intended quarry, the -news should be transmitted to them without delay. The message was to -be repeated three times, and there would be no acknowledgment, for the -squadron had better keep quiet on this hunt. At dusk he went aboard -the destroyer, and as he reached the deck he heard with a thrill the -roar of the great blowers voicing the impatience of the ship to spring -to the full speed of her thirty thousand horse-power. His blood -stirred as he recalled half-forgotten days when to the tune of the -same roar the gaunt destroyer on which he lived—a mere lad -then—slipped her mooring at Queenstown and stood out into the wet -drizzle of the North Atlantic. “From chief radio electrician to radio -gunner,” he thought—not much change in status for twenty years. - -It was just after dark when the three destroyers slipped their -moorings and, headed by Commander Fraser’s ship, took the opening in -the net at sixteen knots. Completely darkened, they headed south till -well out of sight of land, then turned east and rounded the end of -Saint Michael’s far enough away to be invisible from shore. It was not -forgotten in the navy that news had spread mysteriously from -Queenstown to Berlin with lightning speed in an earlier generation, -and there were those on shore who were not over-friendly at heart with -the Americans. - -The last reported “fix” of the two submarines had shown them to be -proceeding approximately northwest by west at eleven knots, having -left Lisbon on the morning of the previous day. As the destroyers -cleared Saint Michael’s, Fraser laid his course north by east one half -east, or, as they say in the navy, seventeen degrees. Up to this point -they had steamed in column, but now they formed a scouting line, -Fraser’s ship in the center, each wing boat six miles away bearing -abeam from the flagship. The accuracy with which these ships could -place themselves by dead-reckoning, using engine revolutions for -distance and careful steering for direction, was such that they could -shift from column to line abreast and hold their relative positions -for a considerable time, dark as it was, without any direct means of -checking them. But this would not suffice for the task in hand; now -they must be prepared for accurate triangulation upon their victim by -radio compass with their scouting line as a base; they must at all -times be sure of their relative distances and bearings from each -other, for on this would depend their locating of the submarine by -radio bearings. Attached to staffs at the bow and stern of each ship -were two strange lanterns. No visible light came from them, but each -emitted horizontally a powerful beam of infra-red rays, invisible to -the eye, but capable of detection with a delicate instrument. By means -of this instrument observers on the bridge of each destroyer could -tell just where the other destroyers were—could register both -direction and distance, invisible though they were to the eye even -with the most powerful glass. Thus the two wing ships kept themselves -in their proper positions as the flagship steamed ahead through the -night, and thus the flagship verified the positions which they kept. - -All night they steamed at eighteen knots, and though they did not -expect to be in the vicinity of the submarines they sought till the -following night, still all hands maintained a ceaseless vigilance. The -weather was fine, and the three slender ships left scarcely any wake -as they slipped quietly through the water. - -There is no warrant officers’ mess on a destroyer; when warrant -officers are present, they live in the wardroom with all the other -officers, from the skipper down. Thus there is an informal atmosphere -which is far removed from the traditional etiquette of a battleship. -Evans found himself in a party of genial youths which might have been -taking a vacation cruise together in a small boat, as far as one could -judge from the wardroom life. Fraser put them all at ease, encouraging -in every way the informal spirit of good-fellowship, yet never for a -moment losing their respect nor failing to inspire them with the sense -of his leadership. - -They were a heterogeneous mixture, the officers of this ship, eight in -all; three besides the skipper were graduates of the Naval Academy; -one was a temporary ensign who had worked up from the ranks through -the grades of chief petty officer and warrant officer; three were -college boys of yachting experience who had joined the navy for the -war. But months together at sea under the magnetic personality of -their commander had welded them into the most harmonious and congenial -crew of shipmates. One of the college boys, Jackson by name, was a -very good singer, having been prominent in his college glee club. -Besides this he was uncommonly handy with the mandolin, a gift which -was much appreciated on board the destroyer. He had brought with him -his mandolin and some old college song-books, both of which were in -demand. The skipper was fond of good singing and had a very fair voice -himself. So when the day’s duties were done, it was their wont, as -often as might be, when the supper dishes had been cleared away, to -make the wardroom ring with many a rousing chorus. All of the gang -would be there but the lone officer who “had the deck.” He, standing -on the bridge, alert and watchful, directed the man at the wheel and -the quartermasters as they moved swiftly about, performing the duties -of the ship’s nerve center. He held the lives of all on board in his -hands while the others made merry below. And whenever it was not -Jackson’s turn as officer of the deck during the eight-to-twelve -watch, he would “break out” his mandolin, and harmony would reign in -the cheery little wardroom. - -On this occasion the day following their departure proved uneventful. -Steadily they held their course at eighteen knots. The visibility was -fair and there was no difficulty in maintaining the scouting line -according to plan. Fraser conferred with his executive officer and -Evans at some length over the details of their intended procedure. All -hands at the radio compass, the hydrophones, and magnetic detectors -were coached as for a great athletic contest till each man looked -forward to the coming night as the chance of his life. Early in the -morning a message had been received from Punta Delgada reporting the -submarines still heading northwest by west at eleven knots. The -destroyers themselves had not heard them, for their range was not -equal to those of the shore stations with their marvelous amplifiers, -too sensitive and too cumbersome to be successfully installed on -vibrating or crowded ships. All day long no signals were heard, and -none were expected till midnight, for the subs would not send signals -needlessly, and when they did they would use so little power that the -hunting squadron could hardly expect to hear them more than fifty -miles; at the present speed they should be within fifty miles of the -supposed position of the enemy about the middle of the night. - -Darkness came, and the infra-red lanterns were again turned on. All -was in readiness, the radio operators on watch listening like wild -animals in the night. Fortunately Jackson did not have the -eight-to-twelve watch that night; so when supper was finished, the -skipper said to him: “Jackson, break out your mandolin and let’s have -some old-time songs; it’ll do us a lot of good.” - -Evans had slipped off to look over the radio gear once more and see -that all was in perfect order. This done, he rejoined the crowd in the -wardroom just in time to join in the chorus of “Lucy Lee,” a song -which was having a great run of popularity at the time. Jackson turned -over the leaves of one of his song-books and picked out one favorite -after another according to the mood of the moment. Some he sang as -solos; some were familiar airs that all joined in singing. Fraser, -thoroughly enjoying himself, did his share of the singing, looking -over the book, and now and then suggesting a song that caught his eye. -In a lull between songs, Jackson rambled on with his mandolin through -a kaleidoscopic series of melodies till through some strange caprice -he stumbled on a Christmas carol which most of them knew. They sang -it, and Fraser then fell to recalling the winter evenings in his -boyhood when he with other children of the village where he lived had -sung this and other carols with the new-fallen snow on the spruce -trees reflecting the lamplight from the window with a golden glow. -Evans picked up the old Princeton song-book off the wardroom table and -began turning over the leaves. Suddenly his face lighted as he turned -to “Stand to Your Glasses Steady.” - -“That’s the most stirring song ever written by man,” he said. “That -was written by a British army officer facing death in the great -cholera plague in India.” - -Jackson looked at the song and started playing the air from the notes. - -“Oh, yes!” he said presently. “I remember that. My older brother used -to sing it when I was a little kid. He had a crowd of them home from -college with him, and they all used to get going on that song. My God! -how they raised the roof with it! I’ll never forget it.” - -Evans and Jackson sang the song together, Fraser looking over the page -and joining in after the first verse. There was a fire in Evans’s -voice which it took this song to bring out, and every one sat up and -took notice, and before the song was done each felt it. - -Fraser spoke with warmth, “That is a wonderful song. Let’s try it -again; maybe every one can join in this time.” - -They sang, and the song rang out with all the fire that’s in it—the -fire that makes it immortal. They had just begun the third verse, - - “Who dreads to the dust returning? - Who shrinks from the sable shore?” - -when a sharp call through the voice-tube from the bridge broke in: - -“Radio room reports a high-pitched spark on five hundred metres.” - -Almost before the others had taken it in, Evans shot out of the door, -saying, “The hunt’s on.” - -Running aft along the matted deck, he climbed the ladder leading to -the radio-compass shack, and, silently opening the door, seated -himself beside the operator on watch who was listening intently as he -rotated the coil back and forth, his eyes glued on the dial. Evans -slipped the spare head-phones over his ears and plugged them into a -socket which enabled him to listen in with the operator. Not a sound -could he hear. After listening a moment, he said, “D’you get a -bearing?” - -“Very rough,” answered the operator. “He only sent for about three -seconds after they opened the main antenna. I reported it, though.” - -“What was it?” - -“Fifteen degrees,” answered the man. - -Evans made a mental calculation. “We’re headed seventeen; that makes -it thirty-two, true,” he said to himself. - -They sat a moment in silence, then suddenly there came through the -receivers a rapid series of dots and dashes in a peculiar high-pitched -note. Both men grew tense as if struck by an electric shock. Almost -instantly a small light flashed beside the operator, showing that the -main radio room had heard and recognized the unmistakable note of an -enemy submarine, and had opened the main antenna to enable the radio -compass to function. With a rapid spin the operator whirled the coil -through a large angle, stopped it and spun it back a little more -slowly. The message stopped, but it was enough. - -“How’s that?” said the operator, turning the coil partway back and -stopping it. - -“Right, as near as I can judge,” said Evans. “Let ’em have it.” - -The operator called through the voice-tube: - -“Bridge—thirteen.” - -Evans listened a minute more, then hearing nothing, took off the -head-phones and, saying, “Do your damnedest, and we’ll have this goose -cooked by morning,” he slipped out of the shack and ran up to the main -radio room to see how things were working there. - -Ever since he left the wardroom the skipper had been conversing with -the wing boats by radio telephone. Both wing boats had reported their -bearings. Evans satisfied himself that enough power was being used in -the transmitter to reach the wing boats, but no further. Then he went -up on the bridge. Commander Fraser was at the moment talking to the -other destroyers. - -“Now’s our chance,” he said. “Keep the boys on the job, and on your -life don’t miss any tricks.” - -Fraser put up the phone. Catching sight of Evans, he said: - -“Exec.’s plotting the fix in the chart room; let’s see how he’s coming -out.” - -They went to the small chart room on the after part of the bridge, and -looked over the executive officer’s shoulder. He was just finishing -his plot of the second set of triple bearings from a line on the chart -representing the twelve-mile scouting line of the three ships. Where -the lines met they crossed in a pair of elongated triangles which -overlapped in a small area. - -“Those look like good fixes,” said Fraser. “Where would you put him, -Evans, on the strength of them?” - -Evans drew a pencil line around the two triangles, enclosing an area -about seven miles long and two miles wide. “It’s safe to say he’s -somewhere in that area. The second fix was the best; I’d go more by -that. If we put him there, we shan’t be far off,” and he marked with -his pencil a spot near the center of the triangle made by the second -set of bearings. This spot was thirty-eight nautical miles from the -present position of the flagship. Fraser said, “They’re undoubtedly -still steaming northwest at about eleven knots; but they’ll change -when they hear us coming.” Then he made a hurried calculation, stepped -to the radio phone, and called to the other destroyers: - -“Course, twenty-three degrees, true; speed of port wing boat, -thirty-six knots; starboard boat, thirty-two knots till line is true -on the new course, then squadron speed thirty-six knots; keep six -miles distant for the present; speed up now.” - -He put up the phone, said to the officer of the deck, “Course, -twenty-three degrees; speed, thirty-four knots.” Word was passed to -the engine room, and almost at the same moment the three destroyers -swung six degrees to starboard and leapt forward like greyhounds -unleashed. - -There was a light head wind which at eighteen knots had scarcely been -noticed, but now, as they dashed headlong into the seas at double the -speed, masses of fine spray rose from the bow and swept madly past, -white and ghostly in the darkness, mingling again with the tumultuous -white wake receding rapidly astern. - -But there was little thought of spray or foam on the bridge. Captain -and “exec.” alert and tense, conversed in brief sentences, while the -officer of the deck with brisk orders directed the business of the -bridge. Quartermasters, on the jump, dispatched their duties, noting -and reporting readings of the wing boats’ distance and bearing. The -helmsman, ignoring all else, kept the racing ship true on her course. -Elsewhere gun crews and depth charge crews were ready for instant -action. - -Fraser turned to Evans. - -“Has he heard our radio phones yet?” - -“Not with the power we’re using,” said Evans. “He’ll get us by -hydrophone first. At thirty-six knots we’ll make a noise he can hear a -good way off.” - -Ten minutes passed. Then the man at the radio-compass voice-tube -reported, “Bearing three degrees,” and a moment later the wing boats -each reported a bearing taken on the same signal of the enemy. In a -second the executive officer was plotting the bearings from the new -base line. - -“Corking fix! They damn near meet in a point,” he said to the skipper -and Evans who were close behind him. - -“The blighter hasn’t changed course yet,” said Fraser. “I don’t -believe he’s heard us.” - -The new fix showed that probably the submarine was still traveling -northwest at about the same speed as before. But now her distance was -barely thirty miles. - -After this no more radio signals were heard. Had she heard them racing -toward her yet? If so, she would soon be submerged, and they must find -her by hydrophone. By this time the three ships had squared their -scouting line and were tearing through the water at thirty-six knots. - -For fifteen minutes they rushed on through the darkness, holding their -line in perfect order, but hearing no sound and seeing no sign. The -suspense grew. The submarine could not now be more than twenty-four -miles away. Fraser again called the other ships by radio phone, and -ordered them to close in till within two miles of him. - -“How far off could he hear us coming at this speed?” he asked of -Evans. - -“If he stopped to listen, he’d hear us all of thirty miles, if he has -the gear I think he has. But I trust he has had no intimation of our -coming, and hasn’t stopped to listen. Running at eleven knots he might -not hear us till we’re within fifteen miles or less.” - -“When he does he’ll submerge and do his damnedest to fool us,” said -Fraser. - -“He’ll know we’re closing in to cover him with our hydrophones,” said -Evans, “and assuming that, his best chance to get out of range is -either to hold the course he’s been on, nearly at right angles to -ours, or to double back about at right angles the other way.” - -“I wonder which he’ll do.” - -“I bet he’ll go back,” said Evans. - -“He’s about as likely to think we’ll expect him to, and keep right -on.” - -“They don’t think much of our intelligence,” said Evans. “Of course -it’s a gamble; but I bet he thinks we’re too stupid to think of his -doubling back; he’ll bet on our going for the place his course has -been taking him.” - -“Well,” said Fraser, “suppose he hears us when we’re fifteen miles -off, and then submerges and changes course. His best speed submerged -is nine knots. By the times we get there he may be anywhere within a -radius of about four miles of that point. The farthest we can hope to -hear with our hydrophones, while we’re going faster than he, is a -mile. That means we can cover at best a strip six miles wide. We’ve -got to leave two miles of the circle uncovered on the first shot. If -we miss, we can double back. If he goes slow enough, we’re apt to miss -him altogether. I guess it’s our wits against his, with a betting -element thrown in. Anyhow, I’m not betting on him to-night.” - -Twenty-five minutes of converging courses brought the wing ships -within two miles of the flagship, and dimly their dark forms and white -streaming wakes could be seen through the darkness on either side. Now -the assumed spot where the submarine, hearing her pursuers, had -probably submerged, lay seven miles dead ahead;—twelve minutes more at -their racehorse speed. - -Fraser spoke. “Evans, I’ll chance it on your guess, and cover the -eastern half of the circle, leaving the western two miles to search -later if we miss.” - -A few brief words were flashed out by radio phone, and the next minute -the squadron had changed course eight degrees to the eastward, and all -three charged on at top speed. - -Presently the executive officer said, “Isn’t it about time to slow -down and give the listeners a chance, Cap’n? They can’t hear anything -while we go at this speed.” - -“The trouble is, he’ll hear us and slow down, too,” said Fraser. -“He’ll slow down till we can’t hear him unless we’re right on top of -him. There’s little chance he’ll be near enough to hear yet. I’d -rather go full speed till we’re almost on the line I think he’s on, -and then stop quick and try to spot him before he has time to slow -down. Tell the engine room to be ready to stop all auxiliaries when I -give the word, and give the listeners warning.” - -Calling the other ships by phone, he gave them similar instructions. -Nine minutes passed in silence save for the roar of the blowers and -the swish of the waves and the ghostly sheets of spray swirling past -over the bridge and lifeboats. The executive officer was beginning to -fidget. Commander Fraser stood with his eye on his watch. - -“Stop the auxiliaries. Give the word to the listeners,” he called -quickly. “Ready? Stop the engines.” - -A signal was flashed to the other ships. The great torrents of steam -pouring into the turbines of the three ships stopped almost as if the -valves controlling them were geared together. As the ships lost -headway, the suspense became almost unbearable. A minute elapsed, with -no word from the listeners, but to every man on the bridge it seemed -an hour. Then a voice from the hydrophone station down in the hull -called, “Motors heard slowing down, too faint to get bearing; slowed -and became inaudible about five seconds after engines stopped.” - -“My God! I wish the wing boats would report,” said the skipper. - -The words were hardly spoken when the radio phone from the starboard -ship reported, “Motors heard slowing down as we stopped, roughly -bearing fifty-five degrees, true.” - -Fraser fairly jumped for joy. Eagerly he called the port ship: “Have -you heard anything?” - -“Nothing heard,” was the answer. - -“Starboard ship reports motors bearing fifty-five, true; motors heard -here, no bearing,” he replied. “Submarine probably three to six miles -east of us. Your course is eighty degrees, true, speed, thirty-five; -start now.” - -“Aye, aye,” came back from the port ship. - -To the starboard ship he called, “Course, eighty, true, speed, -fifteen; start now.” - -Then to the officer of the deck, “Course, eighty, true, speed, -twenty-five.” - -In a few seconds the pack was dashing forward again in a maneuver -calculated to bring them in nine minutes into line on their new -course, within a mile or two of their prey—perhaps less. - -Fraser reviewed the evidence: - -“Bearing fifty-five from starboard end; barely heard here; not heard -port. It’s a good scent, if it isn’t a fix.” - -“We haven’t got him yet,” remarked Evans uneasily. “He may stop -altogether and balance with his tanks. Then we’ll have to find him -with the magnetic detectors, and that way we can barely cover a -thousand yards, the three of us. It won’t be any cinch.” - -But the frightened submarine underestimated the hydrophones of her -pursuers and preferred trying to steal away at the almost silent speed -of three knots. In the last half of the ninth minute, as the ships -were coming into perfect line, Fraser again called a general halt; and -as the three ships made their sudden stop which enabled the sensitive -hydrophones to penetrate the silent deep about them, clearly the -listeners down in the three hulls heard at the same moment the faint -hum of motors, again dying quickly away as the fact that the pursuers -had stopped again to listen was reported to the submarine captain and -the motors were hastily shut down. But this time each ship had heard, -and each had read the bearing. - -First the report came up the voice-tube from the flagship’s own -hydrophones, “Relative bearing three forty-three.” - -“What does that make it?” said Fraser. - -“Sixty-three, true,” answered Evans. - -“That’s right,” said Fraser, and, turning to the executive officer, -“Plot it.” - -Next in quick succession came the reports from the wing ships: “A -hundred and sixteen, true,” from port; “twenty-five, true,” from -starboard. - -“Plot ’em lively,” said the skipper. - -The “exec.” lost no time, and as the third line he ruled crossed the -other two almost at their point of intersection, Fraser gave a shout. - -“A fix for fair!” he cried, and, seizing the radio phone, called -simultaneously to both wing ships, “Do you still hear submarine?” - -Only silence was reported from all three ships; the sub was clearly -lying still to escape detection, or stealing along with her motors -barely turning over. - -Receiving this report, he called back, “Submarine moving very slowly -or not at all; fixed at a point bearing sixty-three degrees, true from -flagship; distant twenty-five hundred yards; close in at thirty-five -knots to two hundred yards for attack,” This was followed by -instructions as to courses needed to execute this delicate maneuver, -bringing each ship on his flank at the right moment to cover with a -destructive pattern of depth charges the area where the submarine must -be. Again the three ships leapt to high speed, the wing ships -converging sharply toward the flagship, while she forged slightly -ahead of them. - -“He knows we’ve got his trail,” said Evans. “He’ll probably strike out -to one side at full speed. If he does, he can get clear of the -destructive area of our pattern before we can get there to make it.” - -Fraser, who, getting so clear a fix on a submarine so close at hand, -had felt ready to attack without further reconnoitering, especially as -the sub had apparently been motionless when he started his dash for -the attack, now did some quick thinking, making mental calculations -half aloud: - -“Twenty-five hundred yards, two minutes and a half; subtract fifteen -seconds for hearing us start and giving orders, fifteen more for -getting up his speed; two minutes—nine knots—six hundred yards. That’s -right; he’ll just about clear us if he uses full speed.” - -He looked at his watch, then gave orders preparatory to another halt, -then looked at his watch again. After a minute and a half on -converging lines he called a halt. Once more the listeners heard the -submarine motors stopping more quickly than before, but now they were -near enough to get a fix in spite of the abruptness with which the -sound ceased. - -The fix showed the submarine now only a thousand yards from both the -flagship and the port wing boat. Fraser well knew that as long as the -destroyer lay still they could detect the submarine at this range if -she tried to move at a speed of more than one knot. Therefore, he took -his time planning how to place his depth charge pattern, for, though -the stern of each ship was well stocked with these destructive cans, -the total area which they could cover with the certainty of a kill -was, after all, not large. The maneuver planned to a nicety, he gave -the order for the final charge. - -“We can cover him this time,” he said. - -Jumping to thirty knots, the port wing boat and the flagship rushed in -on sharply converging courses till the men on the bridge of each ship -watched with their hearts in their mouths the black hulk of the other -looming up as if nothing could avert collision. But when they were -less than five hundred yards apart, Fraser calmly said, “Right -rudder,” and flashed a signal to the other ship, at which both -destroyers swerved upon parallel courses just before they reached the -spot designated by the last fix. - -At that moment Fraser gave the signal to begin the barrage of depth -charges. From rack and Y-gun the great cans splashed into the water, -three every six seconds from each ship, and then shock after shock -seemed to jar the whole ocean. Astern through the flying sheets of -spray from the bow could be dimly seen a solid wall of white fountains -towering high against the sky. Meanwhile the starboard ship, left -behind by the submarine’s dodging to port, raced after the other two -with all the speed she had. Overtaking them she laid her pattern down, -piecing it on to those already begun by the other two, so that not a -square yard of the designated area should escape the force of the high -explosive. For half a minute the first two ships let loose this -frightful din, twenty charges from each ship; then, as the starboard -ship finished her pattern, it ended as suddenly as it had begun, and -at a single word from Fraser all three stopped short to listen. Had -they got her? - -It was at this point that the magnetic detector showed what it could -do. This device was able to show the presence of a mass of steel the -size of a submarine if it came within a hundred and fifty yards. One -man on each ship had been assigned to keep his eye on this and nothing -else. As soon as the din had ceased, reports came to the flagship’s -bridge that toward the end of the area bombed a small deflection had -been seen on the flagship’s detector, and one twice as large on that -of the port ship. - -“She couldn’t have been beyond the port boat, could she?” asked -Fraser. - -“No; we shouldn’t have got any deflection at all in that case,” -answered Evans. - -“Can you trust it not to make deflections out of nothing, or due to -the depth charges?” - -“No gear is absolutely infallible, but I think you can trust this, -especially as the starboard boat got no deflection, and the sub hardly -could have got far beyond the port wing boat, in the time she had.” - -“That’s reasonable,” said Fraser. “Anyhow, we’d better wait here and -listen a bit.” - -Fifteen minutes passed, and not a sound was heard. Was the submarine -sunk? Was she so crippled that she could not move, or was she “playing -’possum”; playing dead in hopes they’d leave her? Submarines have -survived a barrage as dense as this one, damaged, but still able to -lurk beneath the sea. - -At length Fraser said, “I think we’d better explore.” The three ships -turned cautiously round and headed back for the spot indicated by the -magnetic detectors, steaming at only six knots, so that no sound -should be missed, the flagship slightly in the lead. They had gone -perhaps two hundred yards into the bombed area when the man on the -flagship’s detector reported a deflection. - -“Is it getting bigger?” asked the skipper. - -“Yes,” came through the voice-tube. - -“Let us know when it’s maximum,” he called back. Just then from the -starboard boat came the report, “Very slight deflection.” - -A few seconds later from the voice-tube came, “No further increase.” - -At a word from the skipper a float with a light was dropped over the -stern to mark the spot. - -Dropping depth charges at six knots is unhealthy for the boat that -does it, as some learned to their cost in 1918. Therefore no “ash -cans” were dropped during this exploratory maneuver. As they passed on -away from the lighted float, the deflection of the magnetic detector -grew smaller and disappeared. The detectors of the three ships -indicated that the sub had been almost under the flagship, but a -little way to starboard. Her position was well marked by the light. -Proceeding far enough to get up a safe speed for bombing, the three -ships turned and formed their line with greatest care, this time -closer together. Then they steamed back at a good speed over the -marked spot. Just before they reached it, the signal was given, and a -small but deadly pattern of depth charges began to fall. Through the -skillful generalship of Commander Fraser the circle of certain death -surrounding each depth charge was made to overlap those of the -adjacent charges. Two men standing at the stern of the flagship, -straining their eyes back into the darkness, reported seeing black -things rise into the air in the midst of the great white fountain of -shattered water following one of the explosions. But this was not -enough for Fraser;—imagination may play strange tricks on a night like -this. - -As soon as the last bomb had exploded, the ships stopped short once -more, and listened. Not a sound was heard beneath the waves. Again -they turned and steamed slowly back to the spot where the focus of the -attack had been and dropped overboard another lighted float to replace -the first which, needless to say, had been demolished by the barrage. -This time the magnetic detectors showed not the slightest deflection. -Slowly they steamed back and forth twice over the marked spot, -listening as well as watching the magnetic detector, but not a sign or -sound was recorded. Then they steamed at fifteen knots on a “retiring -search curve” like a watch-spring around the lighted float, listening -intently, till they had covered a circle with a radius of a mile and a -half, but no trace was found, magnetic or audible, of the submarine. -The inference seemed clear, for had she been slipping away from them -they would have heard her, or if too slow for that the magnetic device -would have found her somewhere in that area. Could there have been -some serious lapse in the vigilance of the trained listeners and -observers, or some error in their calculations, or had the submarine, -indeed, been sent to the bottom of the sea? - -It was nearly two o’clock, and strained nerves were feeling the effect -of their prolonged nocturnal adventure. And now a tawny moon rose over -the eastern horizon, and under it a golden trail marked the crests of -the waves. - -“That may help us,” said Fraser. - -The light on the float glimmered faintly on the water near the focus -of their last barrage. Toward it the three ships steamed, swerving as -they approached it so that the supposed point at which the submarine -should have sunk would lie in the wake of the moon. As the light on -the float was lost among the flashing crests of the waves, the -squadron swung into line abreast, and laid its course straight into -the shimmering path of gold on the water. - -“There!” said Evans eagerly, pointing toward the moon’s wake. “There’s -your oil slick, isn’t it, Captain?” - -[Illustration: “THERE’S YOUR OIL-SLICK, ISN’T IT, CAPTAIN?”] - -“Yes—yes, that’s it for sure,” said Fraser. “We’ll examine it a bit.” - -As they approached, the smooth patch on the water, spreading across -the wake of the moon, was unmistakable. At first a slender line, it -widened to a band, as they came nearer, till it clearly covered a -large area, spreading out into the darkness on both sides of the -moon’s wake. - -Slowing down as they approached the edge of the oil slick, they -prepared to skim the surface of the water for a sample of the oil, -that it might be identified by the chemist at headquarters. - -Suddenly Fraser exclaimed, “Hullo! There’s something else. Left -rudder.” - -The shining surface of the oil slick was broken by a small black -speck. He was heading the ship straight for it. Other dark fragmentary -objects were discerned. Fraser signaled to stop the engines. In -another moment he was down on deck directing the seamen as they fished -a few floating objects out of the water. Evans had followed him. When -the first of these was brought aboard, Fraser seized it and carried it -quickly into the light of the wardroom. It was a splintered piece of -wood. Fraser examined it carefully, then reached for another which a -boatswain’s mate brought him from the rail. - -“That settles it,” he said. “We got her.” - -To his professional eye there was no doubt that this wood had come -from the inside of an enemy submarine. Other fragments were brought in -which confirmed his conviction; mute testimony to the tragedy just -ended in the depths of the sea. Before long, enough fragments had been -gathered to provide souvenirs of the chase to every man on board. - -“It has been a wonderful hunt,” said Evans with warmth, “and the -team-work of your squadron is the best thing I ever saw. The other -ships will like to hear the result.” - -“Yes, I’ll tell them,” said Fraser, and went off to call them by radio -phone. - -Evans left the wardroom and hastened aft to the radio-compass shack. -The operator who took the bearings had been relieved at midnight by -the other operator assigned to this duty, just before the final -barrage was dropped. But with things like this going on he did not, as -usual, turn in and go to sleep. He stayed beside his mate in the shack -where Evans now found him still listening with the extra phones. It -was not their part to question, but only eternally to listen. Through -the din of the bombing and through the long hours afterwards, they had -listened intently and patiently. - -Evans came into the shack like a gust of wind. - -“We got the sub,” he said to the tired operators, “and we have your -good work to thank for it, not forgetting the hydrophone listeners. -You gave us good fixes, you and the boys on the other ships, and -without ’em we couldn’t have got her; neither could we without the -hydrophone fixes later on; as for the skipper, you’re lucky to be on -his ship, he knows how to use your fixes when you give ’em to him.” - -“I reckon I didn’t do much,” said the second operator. - -“There’ll be another hunt, and maybe you’ll get your chance then.” - -He then outlined to them the story of the hunt and attack, showing the -significance of what they had done. Then with a final word of -congratulation he left them and went forward. Whatever else those men -forgot about the war in after years, they never forgot that. - -The men on all the ships were tired; the depth charges were so nearly -expended that had another submarine been found they couldn’t have -attacked her with much hope of success. Therefore they laid their -course for Punta Delgada and in the early dawn, twenty-six hours -later, slipped into the harbor and tied up to their moorings. - -Commander Fraser submitted to the Force Commander a report of the -hunt, which was a model of instructive exposition. Copies of it were -distributed among all the destroyer captains for their enlightenment -and for the instruction of the officers under them. It made a great -stir, and was the chief topic of wardroom talk for the best part of a -week. Those skippers who studied it intelligently, grasped the lesson -taught, and then prepared their own ships to follow the lead, soon -began to harass the enemy submarines. Two or three squadrons, -conscientiously practicing the method indicated, actually had -encounters in which they sank their victims. Those skippers who lacked -the imagination and faith to see and do the thing right continued to -grope listlessly in the dark, and laid the success of the others to -luck. - -One result of all this was that the enemy began to realize they were -losing submarines at an increasing rate; and consequently they studied -carefully the reports of those that came back damaged. This study led -the submarine commanders to operate with greater caution, to zigzag, -and especially to refrain as far as possible from using their radio. -And soon the upshot of this was that, while the Allied shipping had -gained materially in the restrictions placed on their ability to do -damage, the enemy submarines became almost as hard to find as ever. - - - - - CHAPTER VII - - THE FLEET ARRIVES - - -In August the preparation of Punta Delgada as a base for the entire -fleet was completed, and the fleet arrived. In supreme command was -Admiral Johnson, a distinguished figure, a man of commanding -personality, well trained in his profession, and conspicuous for his -faculty of maintaining the morale of the fleet at its best. - -The change at Punta Delgada was impressive. Hitherto the informality -of the destroyer had characterized the life there; now all the pomp -and ceremony of the battleship pervaded the place. Where once the most -typical sight had been officers and men, in old and paint-smooched -uniforms or in dungarees, working among the torpedo tubes and engine -hatches on the cramped deck of a lean destroyer, now the eye turned to -the mighty dreadnaught with her vast expanse of quarter-deck, -immaculately clean, on which paced to and fro officers in faultless -uniform. The sea was dotted with these great ships and with scouts and -armored cruisers and a host of auxiliary craft. Liberty parties came -and went, and the picturesque old town swarmed with American -blue-jackets, interspersed with the sailors of the British and French -navies. - -It is the pride of radio officers and radio chiefs in the fleet to be -able to deal with their own problems when away from the home Navy -Yard—to be independent of outside help. So it was with the fleet at -Punta Delgada. Problems they had, but it would not occur to the radio -personnel of a battleship to look for help in their solution to the -mother-ship of a destroyer flotilla. Yet it wasn’t long before the -radio chiefs on the battleships discovered that the radio test shop -where Evans worked was a place worth visiting. Interesting things were -to be seen there, and ideas and hints could be informally picked up -which somehow helped them make their apparatus work when they got back -to their own ships. Thus the little laboratory came more and more to -be sought as an oracle. As a consequence of this, Evans soon came to -be welcome in the radio rooms of the various battleships and cruisers -where problems existed. - -Lieutenant Larabee, under whom Evans was technically supposed to -perform his duties, naturally felt that his handy gunner belonged to -the flotilla, and he was prone to demur a bit at his digressions into -the battle fleet. But he had come to feel that Evans’s activities were -somewhat difficult to control, and that after all it was just as well -not to try to control them too rigidly. Besides, Larabee had sense -enough to see that, if Evans’s services could be really useful to the -fleet, the fleet had better have them. - -Evans found the radio equipment in too many of the ships in a -disappointing condition, the more modern apparatus was badly installed -and very poorly understood by the personnel. The new British -vacuum-tube transmitter on very few ships was giving the efficient -service and satisfaction of which it was capable. He soon discovered -to his dismay that just where perfection of apparatus was of most -vital importance to the entire fleet—where it ought to count for as -much as in all the other ships put together—in Admiral Johnson’s -flagship—there all the best efforts of the Bureau of Engineering to -make the nerve center of the fleet perfect had been slighted. His -first visit to the flagship made his heart sink. Because of her -supreme importance in directing the whole fleet, her radio room had -been enlarged and equipped with apparatus more highly developed than -had ever been seen aboard ship. Special methods had been devised to -expedite the handling of the great and complex volume of dispatches to -all branches of the fleet which in a great naval action must go on -without interference or confusion. The initial installation had been -made, but the space needed for using it properly had been encroached -upon for miscellaneous storage purposes, and the most valuable -features of the installation had been neglected and abused till it was -woefully crippled. The plan of fleet control so carefully worked out -in the Bureau was frustrated at its central point, in the flagship. - -Evans began looking for the cause of the trouble. The radio chief was -listless and discontented. But it was not his fault. The fleet radio -officer seemed discouraged and disgruntled. At first he was rather -uncommunicative as to the general plan of coördinating the fleet’s -activities, but before long the sympathetic interest which Evans -showed in the problem of making the most of the situation, drew him -out and revealed the fact that the trouble lay in the Admiral’s chief -of staff. - -This officer, Captain Brigham, was one of the senior four-stripers in -the navy. A man of impressive bearing and iron will, he was a -conspicuous exponent of the conservative point of view in all naval -matters. He was insistent on decorum and etiquette to the last detail, -and he guarded his authority and prestige with a jealous diligence. He -was one of those officers who insist on keeping their fingers on every -activity that comes under their jurisdiction, if only to throttle it. -All the officers on his staff excelled in “officer-like bearing.” -Nowhere in the fleet were salutes executed in more perfect form. -Behind this cloak of faultless formality there was nothing which made -for efficiency in the coördination of the fleet. Captain Brigham had -Commander White, the fleet radio officer, completely under his thumb. -White had ideas as to the proper organization of communications, but -they were snubbed before they even found expression. Captain Brigham -had himself been a radio officer for two or three months just after -the close of the war with Germany, and he flattered himself that his -knowledge of radio was all that could be desired. - -The new methods which had been developed by the Bureau of Engineering, -to meet the vast demands of the modern fleet with the best that -science could offer, differed so much from those which he recalled as -standard in the days of his youth, that they were not to his liking. -He had abused his authority by having the more modern parts of the -apparatus dismantled, and the specially trained operators who -understood their use sent away from the ship. The remaining radio -force was quite inadequate for the proper handling of the flagship’s -communications in the event of battle. - -These facts were not posted in so many words on any bulletin board, -but Evans read them almost as clearly in many signs and symptoms and -in the stray remarks of those with whom he talked. With the fleet -radio officer he talked quite frankly, discussing the appalling -prospect of a great naval action in which the vast fleet of the enemy -would operate with perfect coördination between its battlecruisers, -scouts, and destroyers, directed by its flagship, as much a unit as a -battleship operated from the bridge, while the Allied fleet, its -directing nerve center semi-paralyzed, would be doomed to confusion, -and almost certain disaster. - -“Do you realize what it means?” he said. “It would be like a man, with -half his brain gone to pot, competing at fencing or wrestling with a -champion in perfect trim.” - -Commander White shrugged his shoulders. “Between you and me,” he said, -“the radio on this ship isn’t what it ought to be; but what can you do -about it?” - -Evans was on his mettle. - -“I’ll talk with Captain Brigham, and if I don’t make him understand -the need of that apparatus, it won’t be because I haven’t tried.” - -“You’ve got your nerve with you,” said White. “Take my advice and keep -away from him, if you value your hide.” - -“There are more important things in the service than my hide,” said -Evans. “I was sent here by the Bureau of Engineering to see that the -newer and less familiar parts of the radio equipment in the fleet are -in proper working order and are understood by the personnel. If I fail -to point out to those concerned what I find amiss, I shall not be -doing my job.” - -“That’s a fine spirit, but if you get away with it you’ll be a -wonder,” said White. “I’m afraid, though, you’ll be out of luck.” - -It was not long before Evans found the chance he wanted, when the -chief of staff came into the radio room for an inspection. Evans -approached and, ignoring his terrible frown, with a calmness of voice -which Captain Brigham had never heard in a subordinate since attaining -his present rank, explained his mission, and said in conclusion—“I’m -afraid the apparatus in its present condition won’t give you the -service it is meant to.” - -The tirade from Captain Brigham which this remark called forth would -have done credit to a ward politician on the stump. The floodgates of -his wrath were opened. The apparatus was as he wanted it and was not -to be changed; he was sick and tired of the Bureau of Engineering with -its meddlesome nonsense. Evans listened patiently till he had -finished, then put to him some searching and practical questions about -the proposed handling of communications. He sketched certain tactical -situations which might well occur and asked how the complex task of -communicating simultaneously with all parts of the fleet would be -handled without the apparatus designed for this purpose. This display -in a warrant officer of that function which Captain Brigham had never -exercised—imagination in picturing the tactical situations he might -have to meet and preparing his mind for them—touched him on a -sensitive spot; his wrath knew no bounds. Yet his pride forbade his -dismissing the offender at once from his presence, and compelled him -instead to talk more volubly than ever, completely evading the issue, -and taking refuge in a magnificent invective against modern methods. - -“You radio fans and cranks are cluttering up the ships with -new-fangled gadgets and good-for-nothing specialists to play with -them; soon there won’t be room for the deck force. The ships are on -their way to becoming scientific toy shops, and it’s got to be -stopped; the ships are meant for fighting. In the days when all the -signaling was done from the bridge we had the quartermasters under our -eyes where we could watch ’em and keep them up to the mark. Now your -big radio force of specialized men can hide behind all this mess of -stuff down here, and lounge around doing nothing, and if you try to -keep them on the job there’s always some alibi about something no one -else knows how to do. In the old days, before we had any radio or -listening gear or other playthings, every man on the ship had to be a -sailor and a fighting man, and every one of them was worth ten of your -damned specialists.” - -“I don’t just see, though, how this apparatus is going to cope with -the fleet requirements in action,” said Evans quietly when Brigham had -finished. - -“It will cope with my requirements,” said Captain Brigham savagely, -“and you’ll cope with my requirements if you leave it alone.” And with -that he left the radio room in high dudgeon. - -Commander White had entered during the conversation and heard most of -the Captain’s tirade. - -“Why doesn’t he chuck all the radio gear overboard, while he is about -it?” said Evans, half to himself and half to Commander White. “He -might rig the ship with sails and smoothbore guns, and then engage the -enemy at close range with the valor of our fathers. That would breed -fine sailors while they lasted.” - -“Well,” said White, “I should say you’d done your duty by the Bureau; -and you drew a good salvo doing it. I didn’t expect you’d make much -progress with the old man.” - -When next Captain Brigham saw Commander White, they were alone -together. - -“It wouldn’t do to speak of it to that gunner,” said the chief of -staff, “but I may as well tell you that before I left Washington I had -a talk with Commander Rich who handles the radio business in the -Bureau of Engineering. He’s a man of sound judgment and good -old-fashioned horse sense, who understands the point of view of a -well-balanced, all-round naval officer, and he doesn’t at all believe -in having the fighting efficiency of the ships sacrificed to the -caprice of scientific specialists. He told me a great deal of the -radio junk furnished this ship was authorized against his better -judgment, and he believed I’d do well to let the equipment be reduced -in practice to the simple, standard gear we are all used to.” - -For some time White kept this information to himself. Evans returned -to the mother-ship of the destroyer flotilla, and, slipping on -dungarees, plunged into a bit of experimental engineering on which he -had recently embarked. He worked at it the rest of the day and late -into the night, all alone in the radio test shop. - -“If only we had Fraser for chief of staff,” he said to himself, “we’d -have a fleet that could stand up to the enemy with little fear of the -outcome; but with this dummy—God help us! The old Admiral’s all right, -but he’s got to have a good chief of staff to swing this fleet.” - -With feverish energy he wielded pliers and solder-iron till after -midnight. Then he put down his things and said, “Well, I’ve got to -sleep on this thing if I can,” and turned in. - -His sleep was restless and full of stress and worry. He dreamt that he -saw a miniature admiral in a cocked hat, standing on the deck of a -frigate of the olden days, brandishing his sword. The ship was no -bigger than a toy, but the little admiral, puffing with pride, -strutted up and down. He looked like Captain Brigham. As the dream -progressed, the ship grew smaller and smaller, and the admiral shrank -proportionately; but the more he shrank, the more pompous became the -bravado with which he brandished his sword. A giant dreadnaught came -over the horizon and bore down on the little admiral, her great turret -guns trained on him. Nearer she came, her guns growing to monstrous -size, till the admiral seemed but a speck in front of the yawning -muzzle of a gigantic gun. A projectile, bigger than any the world has -ever seen, slid out of the great muzzle, and knocked off the admiral’s -head which fell into the sea with the splash of a tiny pebble. - -Evans awoke with an oath, turned over and slept again. When next he -dreamed he found himself sailing in his own little ketch, the -_Petrel_, gliding through tranquil waters by an enchanted shore where -great trees hung out far over the water, casting a deep, cool shadow -beneath them—trees now resembling the great tree-ferns and other -tropical forms of the Borge garden, now the familiar oaks and pines of -the New England shore. - -In the morning he returned to his engineering task in the radio test -shop. The electricians at work there noticed that he was not himself -this morning. Most of the time he was silent and abstracted, with a -far-off look in his face, or frowning gloomily. Now and then he would -show exasperation, wielding his tools as if bent on annihilating the -apparatus with which he worked. Now and then he would come out of his -trance, crack a joke, and restore the usual good-humor of the test -shop. - -By the middle of the afternoon he finished his task, put down his -tools, and went ashore. With the usual handful of breadcrumbs he -sought the Borge garden, wandering through the tree-fern grottoes, and -came at last to the ancient watch-tower under the old cedar tree. Here -he sat down and gave himself over to luring his little friends, the -birds, down from the trees with a tempting array of crumbs. Soon he -was surrounded with his feathered coterie, presenting a scene of busy -festivity. Then he gazed off over the blue expanse of the sea, dotted -with the great ships of the Allied fleet riding easily at their -moorings, a panorama of strength and majesty which could scarcely fail -to thrill the beholder. But to-day the thrill for Evans was swamped by -other emotions. - -“Scrap iron and paint, with that poison adrift in the fleet!” he -muttered to himself. - -He threw some more crumbs on the ground. “What would you do with him, -little bird?” he said as one of them hopped up close to his hand. -“Throw him overboard? Throw him overboard damn quick, if you’ve got -the sense I give you credit for.” - -He sat silent a few minutes more, deep in thought. Then, suddenly -exclaiming, “There’s only one way out, and it’s time to act,” he -jumped to his feet with a start which sent the birds scattering and -scurrying to the nearest cover. - -“Good-bye, little birds,” he called, throwing the last of his crumbs -on the ground. Then he hastened to Communication Headquarters. - -That night a dispatch went out to Washington requesting the Bureau of -Engineering to send a shipment of vacuum tubes and sundry other -supplies to Punta Delgada. - -Evans turned in early in a tranquil frame of mind now, for the die was -cast, and slept the sleep of healthy childhood. - -The next day a message came from Washington ordering a certain -destroyer to proceed at once to Hampton Roads. This particular -destroyer had just had a complete refit and her engines were in the -best of running order, although these details were not known in -Washington. Her skipper was a very good sailorman characterized by a -faculty for reaching his destination promptly, even if things didn’t -go just as he wished; he knew how fast he could safely drive his ship -against head seas, and when the need arose he drove her. And yet the -schedule for patrol and escort duty was such that—for reasons also -unknown in Washington—this ship could be more easily spared at Punta -Delgada during the next two weeks than most of the other destroyers. -In spite of this fact, Captain Brigham expressed an abundance of -resentment at the importunity of the Navy Department for taking away -one of his best destroyers just when he would like to have her on -hand. - -Two hours after this dispatch a series of others arrived, including -one directing Evans to proceed by the first available ship to -Washington and report for duty at the Bureau of Engineering. - -The destroyer was ready for sea the following morning, and Evans was -directed to take passage on her. An hour later she had slipped out of -the harbor and headed westward, her officers speculating wildly as to -what their sudden mission to home waters could mean. In all there were -twice as many hypotheses advanced as there were officers on board, -Evans contributing his share, but in the end their conjecturing left -them just where they started. - -When he arrived in Washington, Evans went to a hotel and took a room. -From there he telephoned to Secretary Mortimer and told him of his -arrival. - -“When can you come and see me?” said Mortimer. - -“Any time,” answered Evans. “Only wouldn’t it be just as well for me -not to go too directly from the destroyer to your office? Even in -civilian clothes, some one might recognize me and link me up with the -ship. Why don’t you come here? I’m pretty keen to see you.” - -“All right; I’ll come right over,” was the answer. In a few minutes -more they were chatting away in the privacy of Evans’s room. - -Evans described the general condition of the base at Punta Delgada, -the destroyer flotilla and the fleet as a whole, and in less than an -hour he presented a more effective survey than Mortimer could have got -from a month’s intensive study of official reports. The fleet was -revealed as an organization in its true perspective. When Evans came -to the chief of staff, he waxed truly eloquent. Mortimer had listened -to the ablest lawyers and political orators, he had heard the most -famous after-dinner speakers, but never had he heard so many artistic -combinations of derogatory terms as Evans assembled to convey his -impressions of Captain Brigham. - -“Sounds as if you had a grudge against the poor fellow,” said -Mortimer. - -“I’ve got a grudge, all right,” answered Evans. “Whether I’m biased by -it is another question. I worried myself sick over it for a day and a -half, and every angle I could view it from I came to the same -conclusion. He’s getting the coördination of the fleet so undermined -that in action it would hardly be worth the powder to blow it off the -map, and that would be forthcoming damn quick from the enemy. It is -all right on parade, but in action we should be up against the enemy’s -team-work, which is marvelous; the best organized business in the -world isn’t in it compared with them. We should be like a man with -half a brain. The coördinating mechanism is so crippled, we shouldn’t -stand the chance of the proverbial celluloid dog chasing the asbestos -cat through hell. The radio business is enough to damn him, but in -addition I found evidence that he’s doing his best to get the gunnery -back to where it was in the pre-Sims days—fine on paper, rotten in -practice. He’s a first-class stuffed shirt, and the quicker you can -scrap him the better.” - -“What about the Admiral?” asked Mortimer. “Isn’t he a pretty good -sort? And how does he stand his offending chief of staff?” - -“The Admiral is a good man,” said Evans. “He is well-trained, standing -high in his profession, has fine qualities of leadership, maintains -good discipline, and is universally liked and respected. It is a great -thing for the morale of the fleet to have such a man at the head. He -has a good military personality, but he is a bit old-fashioned, and is -rather short on imagination. He doesn’t adapt himself readily to new -conditions, but, of course, that’s hard for any man of his age. He -will do the obvious very well; but I wish he had a little keener -perception. Now this stuffed club, Brigham, is the finest ever at -keeping up good military form and appearances; the flagship is a very -‘smart ship’ to look at. - -“The Admiral has a touch of the old-fashioned weakness for that sort -of thing, and he doesn’t know quite enough about the detail of modern -methods to see how rotten things are below the surface. You see, he -was trained in the days before those things which modern developments -have forced us to rely on had become vital. Consequently, he doesn’t -quite know how to probe his organization and make sure the details are -well attended to. He relies on his chief of staff, and it’s pretty -hard for him to do otherwise. He ought to have a keen, alert, -adaptable chief of staff with a real head; then he’d be all right.” - -Evans then told of Fraser and his experience with him on the submarine -hunt. He told how he had searched through the destroyer flotilla and -later through the fleet looking for men of real brains and capacity -for generalship, and how Fraser had seemed to him to stand head and -shoulders above the rest. - -“There’s the ideal man for chief of staff,” he said. “With his tact -and personality he would quickly win the Admiral’s confidence, and -with Fraser at his right hand all the Admiral’s good qualities of -leadership would stand out at their best. They’d make a splendid -combination; Fraser would be the brains, Admiral Johnson the -embodiment of authority and formal leadership which would carry weight -with the personnel at large, and give the necessary moral support to -make Fraser’s skill effective.” - -They continued thrashing out the question and discussing it from every -possible angle till Mortimer was as firmly convinced as Evans that the -salvation of the fleet lay in replacing Brigham with Fraser. - -Then their talk turned on the more detailed problem of the personnel -directly concerned with radio engineering and other communication -duties. Commander Rich, it seemed, was as firmly entrenched as ever in -the esteem of both Mortimer and Admiral Bishop, the Bureau Chief. -Evans, having nothing tangible to support his feeling of uneasiness, -did not dwell on that subject. - -“I believe, Sam,” said Evans, “it would be a very good thing to send -Elkins out to be fleet radio officer. He’s just the man for the job; -and, coming from the Bureau of Engineering, he would have the latest -developments fresh in his mind. He’d appreciate the chance to get into -the game, and he deserves it. White, who has that job now, is a good -man, but he hasn’t the brains or the force that Elkins has. I think it -would be a good move just to have them swap places. White, coming -fresh from the fleet, would be of great value to the Bureau; it always -helps to have some one there who is thoroughly familiar with -conditions afloat. White has been afloat a good while and might not -mind the change, and, anyway, if emphasis is given to the fact that -his point of view is needed in the Bureau, rather than that the best -brains are now needed in the fleet, he needn’t feel that he’s being -put on the shelf.” - -“I’ll have to find some billet for Brigham where he’ll be -comparatively harmless;—perhaps commandant of the Great Lakes District -or of the Naval Prison,” said Mortimer. - -“Yes,” said Evans. “Or put him in command of the old _Constitution_ -tied up in her tomb at the Boston Navy Yard, where they show off the -relics and hoist the flag every morning at eight-bells to set the pace -for the Yard. He’d make them get the flag up on time, all right. Put -him in charge of a bunch of incompetents who’ll be no good, anyway, -and let him teach them an officer-like bearing. - -“As to White, I wouldn’t transfer him at the same time as Brigham, it -would draw too much attention to the sweeping change; besides, it -would be too tough on White to bracket him with that old dummy. Get -Brigham out first; then in a week or so you could let Elkins go out to -relieve White.” - -The next day Mortimer set the machinery in motion to promote Fraser -from commander to captain in order that he should have the necessary -rank, and then to make him chief of staff in place of Brigham. - -When the news of this change reached the fleet, it caused a -considerable commotion. Speculation as to the occasion of it -constituted the burden of the wardroom gossip for several days. Some -few officers tried to connect it in some way with the sudden and -mysterious departure of the destroyer for Hampton Roads, but their -ingenuity failed them, and the idea was dismissed as quite impossible. - -On the journey home in the destroyer a somewhat new problem had -engaged Evans’s attention. It is a recognized principle that secret -codes must be changed frequently. Enemy experts are constantly at work -studying the radio messages which their operators have intercepted, -and it is granted that in time they will gather sufficient data to -work out any code. It has been said that ten days is as long as it is -safe to use one code. Evans had time to spare on this destroyer trip, -and he found a fascinating occupation in trying to devise a new system -of codes more baffling to the enemy. He finally hit on a scheme which -would render the codes so difficult to unravel that he felt sure they -could be trusted for fully twice as long as those then in use. - -When in Washington, after his conference with Mortimer, he sought -Commander Barton, of the Intelligence Bureau, with whom he had worked -in London over the establishment of communication with Heringham, and -laid his scheme before him. Barton was well pleased with the plan and -requested Evans to work out the details of his system. For the next -fortnight, Evans was busily engaged in this task, first devising and -planning the system and then arranging for the printing of the -necessary code books. Not content with one system, he devised another -so different that even should the enemy become thoroughly acquainted -with the first, it would give them no clue at all to the second. In -fact, his productivity in this line reached such a point that a less -enthusiastic and enterprising man than Barton would have begged him to -give o’er. - -During these days Evans also gave a large share of his time to the -Bureau of Engineering where he got his finger once more in the pie of -radio engineering progress. His experience with the fleet had given -him a somewhat new point of view which led to a number of practical -suggestions. Many bright ideas which had developed in the planning -rooms had to be snubbed because utterly unsuited to conditions afloat. - -As before, he found himself acting informally as liaison officer -between the Bureau of Engineering and the office of the Director of -Naval Communications. He found loose ends in the way of fitting the -more highly specialized apparatus to the intricate uses for which it -was required, and the problem thus raised brought him closely in touch -with the radio men in Communication Headquarters. - -There was one man attached to the office of the Director of Naval -Communications who especially attracted his interest and attention. -This was Lieutenant Wellman, a lean man with dark, mobile eyes and an -almost uncanny look of penetration. He had recently been attached to -this office, and had a reputation of great knowledge of telephone and -telegraph systems and all manner of communication problems. Just as -Evans spent much of his time at the D.N.C. office, so Wellman spent -much of his at the Bureau of Engineering, where he was on friendly -terms with the officers in the Radio Division from Commander Rich -down. Evans found him alert and ready with an intellectual grasp of -the problems before them, and eager for technical knowledge, -especially of the newer radio methods. These Evans discussed with him -at some length, but his own gift for inquiry was such that in their -talk Evans did most of the questioning and Wellman most of the -telling. - -Evans also spent more than one evening in conference with Mortimer. -With mutual profit they viewed the war in its larger perspective, and -unearthed its salient features from amidst the jumble of apparently -unrelated facts. - -The situation, boiled down to its essentials, was much as it had been -at the time of their earlier talks before Evans went to the fleet. The -increased destruction of enemy submarines had facilitated the shipping -of supplies to Northern Europe, but in this respect the situation was -still critical. Every submarine that could be destroyed would help to -turn the balance. - -“The soldiers we are sending over help the morale of the Allies and -aid them materially in holding the line,” said Evans, “but do you -think they’ll ever push it back enough to win the war that way?” - -Mortimer shook his head. “It doesn’t look like it.” - -“I fear all the man power of Northern Europe and North America -combined would be expended in pushing through to a decision on land,” -said Evans, frowning. - -“They depend on their sea power to such an extent that if we could -strike hard at that, we could paralyze them,” said Mortimer. “Don’t -you think so?” - -“Yes,” said Evans, “and they know it and are guarding their fleet -mighty carefully. Conversely, if they could smash our fleet, they’d -finish us. And if they saw what looked like a good chance, they’d try -it. It would be the most colossal sea battle in history, if those two -fleets met in the open sea. With Fraser on the job and a slight -advantage of visibility or other weather conditions on our side, such -as we might get if we could choose our time with Jeremy’s help, I -believe we could be reasonably sure of doing them in; at least enough -to justify seeking an engagement.” - -“Can’t you think of any scheme for baiting them to action at such a -time?” said Mortimer. - -Evans pondered awhile. “I have a wild scheme in my head,” he said. -“It’s one of those notions of which I’m the victim now and then.” - -“Let’s have it,” said Mortimer. - -Evans then propounded a series of imaginary situations and their -strategical and tactical developments, which aroused in Mortimer a -strange alternation of enthusiasm and doubt. At the end he felt enough -conviction that there was merit in the scheme to satisfy him that it -should in some way be followed up. - -“Don’t you think I had better take this up with the General Staff, and -send some suggestion to the Admiral?” he asked. - -“No,” answered Evans. “Admirals don’t like their strategy and tactics -fed to them by civilian secretaries much better than by gunners. -Besides, it’s probably full of weak points, as I’ve outlined it. I’m -not a trained admiral, you know. Anyway, give them a chance to work it -out themselves, and they’ll probably improve on it in doing so. If the -premises are sufficiently suggestive to the Staff at Punta Delgada, -they may easily hit on the main ideas, or something better. Fraser’s a -wizard at that sort of thing.” - -“So, you fancy the premises can be made sufficiently suggestive?” said -Mortimer. - -“I shouldn’t wonder a bit,” answered Evans with a smile. - -“See here!” said Mortimer. “It’s damn silly for you to be going on as -a warrant officer. You ought to be taking the responsibilities you -know how to handle, and taking them squarely. I could work the -regulations now so as to have you promoted to commander very quickly, -and it wouldn’t be long before you’d be a captain. Then you could fit -into the fleet more nearly where you belong.” - -“Oh, come,” said Evans. “I wouldn’t know what to do with all that -rank, and I should be looked on with suspicion and jealousy. I’d -always be having to buck the resulting hostility. No, no, Sam, I can -carry on much better as I am, doing things in my own way. For one -thing, I find it an enormous advantage to be able to get right into -the game as I’ve done on the destroyers, particularly on that sub -hunt, and see how things really are. The more gold braid you have on, -the less things look as they really are when you go to look at them.” - -“I’d give my eye teeth to get into the fleet and really see how things -are going,” said Mortimer. - -“That’s just it,” said Evans. “You don’t suppose you could go aboard -the ships as Mr. Secretary and see things as they really are, do you? -Every one would be in his best uniform, full dress, at attention, the -band playing and nothing doing; no war going on at all.” - -“That’s so,” said Mortimer; “but I’m afraid your fondness for -tinkering with apparatus will lead you to do too much of that, and -distract you from the bigger problems you ought to be thinking about.” - -“I know that’s my vice,” answered Evans, “but the appeal of the game -as a whole will draw my thoughts in that direction to the extent of -daydreams quite bold enough for all practical purposes—bold enough to -make the gold braid snub me good and plenty if they knew what I was -thinking about. I need some manual work to keep me normal, to occupy -my hands and lower nerve centers while I’m thinking about some of the -knotty problems that come up. Some tangible part of the machinery in -my hands and before my eyes will help the whole plan of its use to -take shape in my mind.” - -For some time they argued the pros and cons, and at last Mortimer -somewhat reluctantly yielded and consented to let Evans return to the -fleet as a radio gunner. - -It was also decided that in the near future Commander Barton should -proceed to Punta Delgada to direct the work of the Bureau of Naval -Intelligence there, since it had now definitely become the -storm-center of naval activity. - -During the days that remained before Evans was to return to the fleet, -he was kept busy completing the new systems of secret codes for -Commander Barton, and conferring with various officials in the Bureau -of Engineering and in the office of the Director of Naval -Communications. In the latter office he had many conversations with -Lieutenant Wellman, and with each conversation he became more -interested in the man, seeing in him great possibilities in connection -with the coördinated machinery of communications and Naval -Intelligence. It transpired that Wellman had traveled extensively, was -an accomplished linguist, and possessed considerable knowledge of -enemy country. It was, therefore, suggested that he should confer with -Commander Barton to see how far his qualifications might render him -useful to the Bureau of Naval Intelligence. - -On the particular morning when Lieutenant Wellman was awaiting this -conference, Evans came to Barton’s office with some copies of one of -his new secret codes, fresh from the printer. Leading to the inner -office was an anteroom at the outer door of which stood a sentry whose -duty it was to see that none but officers and others with proper -credentials entered. Evans came with the bundle of code books under -his arm, and muttered a password to the sentry, who pressed a button -just inside the door, at which Commander Barton rose from his desk in -the inner office and came to the door between it and the anteroom. -Seeing Evans at the outer door, he called to him to come in. In the -anteroom sat Lieutenant Wellman waiting till it should suit Commander -Barton’s convenience to confer with him; as he sat there his dark, -penetrating eyes traveled restlessly about the room observing and -noting everything that human observation could encompass. Evans, -seeing Wellman alone there, exchanged greetings with him, and passed -on into the inner office. He opened the bundle and handed the six -books it contained to Barton. - -Wellman, following Evans with his eye, silently shifted his seat so -that he could watch the proceedings through the half-open door. - -Barton took the books and thanked Evans, who then left the room. -Barton opened one of the books and glanced through it rather hastily, -postponing a more careful examination till he should have more time. -Then he unlocked a drawer in his desk and put the six books into it. -He was just closing the drawer when a yeoman entered from a side door -rather hurriedly, saying: - -“There’s a long-distance call from San Francisco; your desk phone is -being repaired, so I’ve had the call plugged into the sound-proof -booth.” - -Commander Barton jumped up and, followed by the yeoman, hurried out -through the side door to answer the telephone. It was only for a few -seconds that the room was deserted, but in those seconds Wellman -slipped in, took one copy of the new secret code from the drawer, and -slipped out again, tucking it under his coat as he went. Leaving the -anteroom as one who has transacted his business, he returned the -salute of the sentry, and walked briskly away down the corridor, -passing Evans, who was walking slowly, so absorbed in his thoughts -that it seemed a pity to disturb him—yes, better not interrupt his -reverie. In an hour he had left Washington; in five weeks more he -arrived in Constantinople, no longer in the uniform of a United States -naval officer, carrying in his satchel the treasured code book. He was -no longer Lieutenant Wellman, but now in his true colors, Commander -Bela, of the Turkish Naval Intelligence Service. - -Great was the rejoicing at Naval Headquarters when Bela arrived with -his prize. Some facts of interest he had obtained while in Washington, -but his stay had been cut short by the rare opportunity which had put -him in possession of the code book; and this he deemed to be worth so -much more than the information he might have obtained by staying -longer that he had taken the responsibility of making all possible -speed with the book to Headquarters. His prompt decision in so doing -was warmly commended by his chief, who was even more pleased than Bela -himself with the unexpected outcome of his mission. - -In the code book was a key explaining how it was to be changed monthly -to prevent breaking; moreover, the dates were given on which each -arrangement was to go into effect. Thus it was evidently good for the -decoding of Allied naval messages for several months to come. - -In Washington conditions had been especially favorable for Lieutenant -Wellman to effect his disappearance unnoticed. His duties had been -such as involved extensive traveling, and he had been given an -unusually free hand in the arrangement of his own time. Moreover, when -it became finally known that he had really disappeared, a variety of -rumors explaining the fact passed into circulation in ways that were -not generally understood and seemed impossible to trace. No one had -seen him take the code book, and it was so long afterwards that his -disappearance became known to the officers at Communication -Headquarters, that, even had they been disposed to suspect him, it -could hardly be expected that his disappearance would in any way lead -to a checking-up of the number of copies in Barton’s desk. - -By the time Bela arrived in Constantinople, Heringham was well -established in a post of high authority in the Coalition Government. -The men who directed the affairs of this great conspiracy against the -liberties of the world included besides Turks those of an -extraordinary array of nationalities—Russians, Italians, Bulgars, -Jews, Egyptians, and Arabs. Therefore a well-disguised Englishman with -Heringham’s rare gift of impersonation might well fit into the -organization without exciting suspicion. Yet Bela, on finding a -stranger to him in such an important position, was strongly inclined -to distrust him. He made guarded inquiries. Nothing of a compromising -nature was known about him. On every hand Bela was assured that this -official, with his extensive knowledge of the nations allied against -the coalition, had rendered most valuable services to the cause. Still -Bela suspected. Finally he contrived to have an interview with -Heringham alone, and sought to probe the case. After feeling his way -for some time with guarded questions, he asked Heringham rather -suddenly if he had not lived for some time in England. Heringham, -still in the Turkish language and with phrasing and intonation -perfectly reproducing the diction of a thoroughbred Turk, replied -casually, “Indeed I have. I know the little sea-girt island well.” - -Then in a jocular vein he added in the English language, aping the -English manner of speech in a mocking tone, yet betraying an -unmistakable Turkish accent, “Have you been in Piccadilly? I say, it’s -a topping place, you know!” - -The easy and confiding smile with which he cast this bit of ridicule -on the Briton was altogether disarming; and when he added in Turkish, -“What fools those British are!” Bela could hardly conceive that any -but a true Turk could have spoken so. - -But now it was Heringham’s turn to take the initiative. He questioned -Bela about his recent trip to America, and listened with admiration -and wonder to the tale of his exploits in finding his way into the -confidence of high officers in the Navy Department. With warm praise -Heringham drew forth more and more of the story, and as his frank -appreciation dispelled the last of Bela’s doubts, this cautious Turk -ended by giving him a full recital of the information he had gained of -radio affairs in the Allied Navy. One thing, however, Bela did not -divulge; he said nothing to Heringham of the stolen code book. - -A few days after Wellman’s uncanny disappearance, Evans received his -orders to return to Punta Delgada and report for radio duty on board -the flagship. It was now early in November, and the autumn colors were -fading on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay as the cruiser on which -both Elkins and Evans took passage left the Virginia Capes and stood -out to sea. In a few days they sighted the greener shores of the -Azores, where in the outer harbor of Punta Delgada the new battleship -_Delaware_, the flagship, lay majestically at anchor, queen of the -Allied Navy. - - - - - CHAPTER VIII - - DISPATCHING THE SECRET MESSENGER - - -Evans now lived aboard the battleship _Delaware_, Admiral Johnson’s -flagship; and here the life was different, indeed, from that on the -mother-ship of the destroyer flotilla. He found himself one of a large -number of warrant officers, some real old-timers, but most of them -much younger men than himself. To his great delight he found on board -the _Delaware_ his old friend Lindsay, erstwhile radio officer of the -cruiser that had taken him to England. Lindsay had now risen to the -rank of lieutenant and was in command of a turret on the great -superdreadnought, but the same sunny disposition and cordial -informality were unchanged; he still was not too proud to associate -with a warrant officer. - -Lindsay knew how to enjoy himself on an evening ashore; he had a -faculty for finding out when there was any merry-making going on, and -for being there. Evans, having little time or inclination to join in -the crude pleasures which most of his fellow warrant officers sought -in the town, now found real refreshment in knocking about on shore -with Lindsay, the natural geniality of the youth being of a compelling -sort. He managed to get Lindsay talking more than once about his own -affairs, and learned that in his home in the Middle West his widowed -mother depended on his savings as her chief means of support. - -Now there are haunts in Punta Delgada where a visitor may find a -roulette wheel spinning merrily of an evening. The scraps of paper -representing Portuguese money fly hither and thither on the long -table, and ever like a Nemesis the treasurer rakes them in as a man -rakes in the autumn leaves that strew the road. He who frequents the -roulette wheel often becomes poorer—else there would not be roulette -wheels. - -Now this game had a fatal fascination for Lindsay, who was one of -those individuals that love to take a chance, and can always persuade -themselves that next time they’ll make a pile. Once he had won a -surprising sum of money at roulette and had sent it home to his mother -before the opportunity to lose it again had beset him. Since then his -earnings had nearly all fallen into the hungry maw of the spinning -wheel. The most pathetic feature of the case was the way his eagerness -to send more money home kept luring the incautious youth into taking -another chance at the losing game. - -Once on the evening before the fleet was to put to sea for some -maneuver, Evans, dead tired from his arduous toil, was planning to go -to bed early and get a long sleep. As supper-time drew near, Lindsay, -making for the gangway to catch the last boat taking a liberty party -ashore, chanced to meet Evans on deck. - -“Are you coming ashore? It’s going to be a great night on the beach,” -he said. - -“I guess I’ll stay aboard and turn in early.” - -“Oh, come on, be a sport, old man,” said Lindsay genially. “Lord knows -where we’re going on this cruise or when we’ll get back; there’ll be -all kinds of fun in town to-night.” - -“You’ll have to break out a pile of excitement to get me ashore -to-night.” - -“Why, what’s the matter with you?” - -“I suppose I’ve been hitting too hot a pace,” said Evans with an -enigmatic look on his face. - -“Oh, quit your kidding, and come ashore,” said Lindsay. - -Evans hesitated a minute. - -“The fact is, I’m kind of tired and don’t seem to feel like hunting -all the hilarity there is,” he said, “but there’s a little restaurant -that you may not know of where you can get a good supper and hear some -rather good music; it’s a quiet place and most of the men don’t seem -to know it. If you’d like to go and have supper there on me and have a -good heart-to-heart talk, that would suit me as well as staying on -board.” - -“All right, I’ll go and try your quiet restaurant with you, for a -starter, anyway.” - -So off they went and took their places in the motor-sailer at the -gangway. Once ashore, Evans led the way through the crooked streets to -a picturesque little building where a modest restaurant served a few -familiar patrons. A small orchestra consisting of a piano, a -double-bass ’cello, and one or two other instruments, ensconced in a -nook by some potted palms, beguiled the supper hour for such as sought -the little hostelry. Evans and Lindsay, alone save for two natives of -the town, chose a table from which they could look out over the -harbor, and just near enough the orchestra to get the full benefit of -the music. Lindsay at first felt a little dismayed at the lack of -gayety which seemed destined to characterize the celebration of his -night on shore, but soon the appetizing food and the melodious strains -of a Portuguese air put him in a mood for the enjoyment of a quiet -evening chatting freely with his friend. Evans was more than ten years -his senior, but of that Lindsay had no suspicion. Their talk drifted -easily from the personnel of the flagship through a wide range of -human affairs. The orchestra, after a brief rest, struck up a Strauss -waltz, once familiar to all, now known only to those of Evans’s age -and older. Evans stopped talking and listened, a far-away look coming -into his eyes, and his hand unconsciously beating time on the table. - -“Lord! how that takes me back to old times!” he said. - -Their talk drifted back to the States, and into speculation as to what -people were thinking and doing at home. The orchestra paused again, -and then began to play a song once popular in all modern cities, now -long since out of fashion, a song whose melodious sweetness had made -it a favorite in its day and commended it now to the little Portuguese -orchestra, guided more by melody than by vogue. As Lindsay recognized -the tune, vivid memories of his childhood rose before him; and as the -rich, deep tones of the double-bass ’cello vibrated with the appealing -spirit of the melody, the long-forgotten past swept over him like a -flood; his eyes became moist, and he sat in silence till the music had -ceased for some time. Then he spoke, and told Evans of the early -memories awakened by the song. He felt that he could speak to Evans of -things he couldn’t mention to his other shipmates, for Evans -understood. And so it was that the youth poured out his heart to the -older man, giving vent to feelings long deeply repressed within him. -He told of his concern about his mother, his zeal to bring her no -shame, his hopes and ambitions, his temptations and struggles. And in -all this he found what without knowing it he had craved since leaving -home—the confidence of a friend on whom he could lean as on an older -brother. - -Evans in his turn found in this intimacy with the younger man -something that satisfied a long-felt want; and he thanked his stars -for it. With a deepening bond of sympathy they talked till the players -had packed up their instruments and gone. All thoughts of seeking the -usual pleasures of the town had now evaporated, and it was only when -the time came to catch the last boat returning to the flagship that -they left the little restaurant and walked down to the landing. - -Next day Lindsay’s monthly pay, which had been lying restless in his -pocket the night before, was dispatched intact to his mother in the -Middle West. - -About the middle of November, a few days after Evans and Elkins -arrived at Punta Delgada, Commander Barton also arrived from -Washington and took charge of the Naval Intelligence service at -Communication Headquarters on shore. Before leaving Washington he -interviewed an officer who rendered notable service in finding men for -unusual duties. If a man was needed to make a corner in glue for the -Government, or to deliver a consignment of homing pigeons in Northern -Russia, he would find just the man for the job. To this officer Barton -made the request that as soon as possible a man, with experience as a -spy in enemy territory and with some knowledge of radio, be chosen for -important duties at the Azores and elsewhere. He was to be enrolled as -a chief petty officer and sent to Punta Delgada to report at -Communication Headquarters. - -Barton’s parting injunctions were, “Much will depend on him; look him -over well, and be sure he’s a real man.” - -About three weeks after this, while Evans was in the radio room of the -flagship busily engaged in the congenial task of rehabilitating this -vital nerve center of the fleet and undoing the damage wrought by -Brigham, he received a cryptic message from Commander Barton -intimating that a friend had arrived from home whom he would like -Evans to see. - -Evans obtained permission for shore liberty and proceeded to -Communication Headquarters. There he learned that the man requested by -Barton “for important duties” had arrived, a man of thirty-six named -Kendrick. He had been an army spy, who, being sent by aeroplane behind -enemy lines, had been for some weeks performing valuable duties in -Spain, and had just returned successfully to Washington. By some -maneuver of which very few are master, great masses of red-tape had -been cut, and he had been transferred to the navy, enrolled as a chief -radio electrician and sent at once to Punta Delgada. He had as yet -been kept completely in the dark as to the nature of the duties for -which he had been sent. - -Evans opened conversation with him informally and questioned him -concerning his experiences in enemy countries, then as to his -knowledge of radio. After a somewhat prolonged interview in some of -which Barton took part, Kendrick was still quite in the dark as to the -real object of his mission, although given clearly to understand that -it had to do with radio communication. - -During their talk Evans watched closely the play of Kendrick’s -features, and said to himself, “He looks like three or four men in -one; I guess he’s what we’re after.” - -But along with this reflection came the disquieting thought—“What if -he’s one man too many?” - -Perhaps there was more in his performance in enemy country than was -known to the Army Intelligence Service. Cases were by no means unknown -in which the most valued spies had been really in the enemy employ. -Keenly Evans sought to sense all that lay beneath this mobile exterior -as they talked. But this was a task for some one other than a -scientist. He longed for the power of a master sleuth. - -We are all quite accustomed to trusting our lives to the nervous -coördination of a taxicab driver, and thinking nothing of it. But when -the fate of the world may hang on the sensory impressions, the -resulting nerve impulses in the brain and the emotional responses -thereby aroused in one individual by barely perceptible motions in the -features of another, we may well consider the great importance of -little things, especially if those little things be nerve impulses. - -That this man had been a consummately successful spy there could be no -doubt. But the question whom he had fooled, Evans dared not consider -settled to his satisfaction without further scrutiny. He imparted his -wonderings to Barton when they were alone, and, though the latter at -first inclined to regard the suspicion as fanciful and too improbable -for serious consideration, he finally agreed that they had better -scrutinize their man for a few days before revealing to him much of -his real task. - -During the next week Evans spent a good part of his time training -Kendrick in the use of certain radio apparatus, and at the same time -striving to assure himself as to his loyalty. Gradually the conviction -grew in both Barton and Evans that Kendrick was a man they could trust -without fear, but still they said little to him of his mission. - -About this time there arrived from the States a long, narrow crate -addressed to Evans. The supply clerk who handled the shipment -remarked—“That’s some box, Gunner; what do you expect’s in it?” - -“Looks like an eight-day clock,” was the answer. “Still, my watch -keeps pretty good time,” he added with a puzzled look. - -“Do you want to open it here?” asked the clerk. - -“No; it will litter things up to scatter the crate round here. I’ll -get it lugged down to the shore where I can turn it adrift.” - -So some hands were summoned and, having moved the crate down to the -shore, were dismissed. Evans then opened it by himself. The wildest -guess which the supply clerk could have made as to its contents would -have been far from the truth, for never in his life had he seen such -an object. It contained a sort of narrow, decked-over canoe built -essentially on the lines of an Eskimo kayak. To the unfamiliar -observer it would give the impression of frailty such that he who -would venture beyond easy swimming distance from shore in such a craft -must be foolhardy to the verge of madness. In point of fact, as the -Eskimo well knows, this type of boat is so seaworthy as to be safe in -almost any gale that blows. - -Evans had a friend who had traveled much among the Eskimos and studied -their ways, and especially the handling of their kayaks. This man had -built himself two or three of these light craft, patterned in the main -on the lines used by the Eskimos, and in years gone by had taught -Evans to handle them in rough water. It was one of these that he had -now placed at Evans’s disposal. - -As he ripped off the last of the crate and brought to view the -graceful lines of the little craft, Evans smiled at the memory of -pleasant hours spent paddling off the rough New England coast. He -fitted together the two halves of the double-bladed paddle which came -with her, then lifted the kayak on his shoulder, carried her to the -water’s edge and launched her. Then, getting in and sitting in the -bottom, Eskimo-fashion, he paddled away along the shore. With a thrill -of joy he felt the familiar responsive motion as the light and buoyant -little craft sped forward. Skirting the shore line, he came in a few -minutes to a secluded and unfrequented spot where the contour of the -rocks afforded a sheltered and convenient place to land. Lifting the -kayak out of the water, he concealed her well above high-water mark. - -The next day he took Kendrick to the spot where the kayak lay hidden, -dragged her out into view, and said: - -“Do you think you could make a landing on an exposed seacoast in -that?” - -Kendrick stared at the delicate-looking craft and answered, “Well, if -you asked me if I thought I could swim over Niagara Falls without -inconvenience, I should about as soon say ‘yes.’” - -Evans laughed. “Oh, it isn’t as bad as that. I’ve a friend who used to -play in that kayak by the hour in the ocean surf where it breaks on -outlying ledges, just for the fun of it, and I’ve done it more or less -myself. I’ll teach you the game; I expect we shall want you to do -something like that pretty soon. It’s surprising how little violence -there is in big waves if you float freely on them in a small boat. A -tennis ball suffers little violence in a sea that pounds a battleship -with a stress measured in tons. It’s only rough if you resist it. If -you stay just outside where the waves actually break, their motion is -all up and down; you can sit there at your leisure and study the -situation farther in. Let me show you how it works. I’ll paddle round -the point to where there’s a moderate sea breaking; you can follow -along the shore and see for yourself how simple it is.” - -So saying he launched the kayak and paddled out round the rocky point -to where he felt the heave of the ocean swell. Kendrick followed along -the shore watching him curiously. Evans paddled close to the shore -keeping just where the waves curled up before they broke on the rocks. -Presently he found a place to his liking and, turning the bow of the -kayak toward the shore, rested as he studied the action of the -breaking waves between him and Kendrick, who stood watching from a -high rock just above. Some thirty feet from the actual shore line was -a barrier of rock, the highest part of which rose clear above the -water, while even the lowest part was barely uncovered in the trough -of the largest waves. Over this ledge the seas broke, each wave -sending a torrent of frothy water into the deeper pool beyond, which -seethed like a cauldron streaked with shifting patterns of foam; and -as each wave receded another torrent would flow out over the ledge -till, balked by the crest of an incoming wave, it was lost in a -smother of white foam. As the kayak rose and fell on the waves, its -pointed bow barely beyond the edge of this dangerous-looking reef, -Kendrick wondered that it was not caught by the inward rush of water -and dashed on the rocks. Presently, just as a good-sized wave came -rolling in and curled right under the kayak before breaking, he saw -Evans give a few quick strokes which carried him forward on the crest -of the wave. It broke, and in the midst of the great mass of white -water pouring in over the ledge came the kayak, floating lightly till -well within the pool where on the agitated waters she bobbed up and -down like an eggshell, while Evans rested his paddle on the cockpit -combing as if taking his ease on a millpond. Then looking at the shore -line he chose a gently sloping shelf of rock which was half-submerged -when the pool was filled by the larger waves, but which each receding -wave left bare, and, paddling swiftly forward on the crest of a large -wave, grounded, and thrusting his paddle firmly into a niche in the -rock held himself there as the water poured back off the shelf. Then, -jumping out, he seized the kayak and ran with it up to the dry rocks -above without even wetting his feet. - -Sitting down beside Kendrick who felt as if some miracle had brought -him safely ashore, he said: “You see, if you find a place like this it -really isn’t hard at all; and you can almost always find a place as -good as this, if you hunt for it. The main thing to remember is that -the waves aren’t all alike. Sometimes a small wave will recede so -quickly that you’ll be caught on the rocks just when you think you’re -going over them. You must take your time and watch a lot of them till -you know what sort of thing they do; then choose your wave as you see -it coming.” - -“I suppose you’ll want to take the boat back overland,” said Kendrick. -“You couldn’t very well get out again through that, could you?” - -“Quite easily,” said Evans. “I’ll show you how that works. After a big -wave there’s a lot of water going out, enough to float you over the -ledge.” - -“But wouldn’t the next wave coming in swamp you?” - -“Not at all. That’s the beauty of a decked-in boat like this. It -doesn’t matter if she buries her nose well under water, she’ll ship -very little over the cockpit combing. Another thing—the main secret of -her seaworthiness is the fact that you sit in the bottom; your center -of gravity is so low that you have enormous stability. Big waves can -break on you broadside without tipping you over. If you watch her -closely and see how she behaves in breaking waves for a while, you’ll -get the idea of the thing better than I can tell it to you.” - -So saying, Evans carried the kayak down to his landing-place on the -sloping shelf, and, watching his chance, put her down as a wave -receded, climbed in, and waited for another to come and float him off. -On the next large wave, foamy and tumultuous though it was, he floated -gently off the rock and shoved himself out into deep water. Kendrick -watched intently as he paddled out till the bow of the kayak was just -over the inner edge of the rocky barrier. A big wave came rushing in -and as it broke seemed to engulf the sharp bow of the kayak, then -lifted it high into the air as if to turn her over backwards and throw -her across the pool. But instead she rose gracefully as the crest -passed under her, and the next moment Evans was paddling her swiftly -into the stream of water already starting to pour out over the ledge. -Gliding smoothly out, he plunged into the next wave just as it broke -on the outer edge of the reef, and almost disappeared from view in the -white froth. But again the kayak rose as the crest passed under her, -and now she was riding like a duck on the heaving waters beyond the -reef. Several times Evans rode this buoyant craft in and out of the -pool in order to familiarize Kendrick with her behavior under such -conditions, and incidentally, it must be admitted, for the sport of -the thing. Then he paddled back round the point to the hiding-place of -the kayak, where he explained to Kendrick what he was there for. - -“We want you to go to Gibraltar,” he said. “And the quickest way of -getting you there from here unobserved seems to be to have you land in -this thing somewhere near Cape Trafalgar. You can’t land where there -are people; that’s why it has to be on an exposed coast instead of a -snug harbor, although you might work the mouth of a small stream. I -suppose you can manage to get to Gibraltar without exciting suspicion, -once you get ashore, can’t you?” - -“Once I get ashore, yes,” answered Kendrick. “Once I get ashore, I can -manage the rest easy; it’s getting ashore in that damn thing that -worries me.” - -“If I were in your shoes it would be the other way round,” said Evans. -“Landing in the kayak is play. But to smuggle myself into a stronghold -of the enemy as one of them; ye gods! I’d be paralyzed at the start -and wouldn’t know where to begin.” - -“It’s all in what you’re used to,” said Kendrick. “I’m so used to -knocking round Spain and bluffing my way along, it’s more or less -second nature.” - -“Your game is very different from ours here at Headquarters,” said -Evans, musing. “We can play our game something like chess, taking our -time to think out the next move. Your game is more like tennis. You’ve -got to hit the ball when it comes and place it where the other fellow -can’t get it, and your time to act is measured in hundredths of a -second.” - -He then went on to explain to Kendrick the purpose of his mission, and -told him how Heringham was established in Constantinople with radio -operators in enemy stations for the purpose of communicating with the -Allies. But the distance from Constantinople to the Azores hampered -direct radio communication, and it was therefore important to install -another radio man at Gibraltar to relay messages between -Constantinople and Punta Delgada. His problem was to get himself -established as an operator in the main radio station of the enemy at -Gibraltar. In the art of making himself acceptable and trusted by the -enemy he was a master, almost if not quite unsurpassed. How to proceed -to do this was to be left to him. - -“Commander Barton will give you points about establishing -communication with Heringham,” said Evans. “My job is to show you how -to adapt their apparatus to your needs, once you get your hands on it, -and how to superpose your messages to us on their regular traffic; -also to teach you how to get ashore safely in this kayak.” - -It was planned, he explained, to have a seaplane take him and the -kayak at early dawn to a point within easy paddling distance of the -Spanish coast and leave him to find a landing-place where he could -approach with the least risk of detection, landing preferably at dusk. - -“With the help of our weather experts,” said Evans, “we can choose a -day when the sea will be calm. And now why don’t you get into the -kayak and start getting the feel of her as soon as possible? Paddle a -few miles in smooth water before you try landing where it’s rough, and -you’ll be surprised to find how quickly you get a sense of stability.” - -So Kendrick began a series of lessons in a form of seamanship which -till that morning he didn’t know existed. At first it was with some -nervousness that he stepped into the narrow craft and, when seated, -anxiously pushed off from the shore. But before long he was quite at -home in her and paddling a good stroke; and then Evans began to -initiate him into the art of handling her in the surf, which he soon -learned was largely a matter of “watchful waiting” and then letting -the waves do the work. - -But during these days exercises in the surf were incidental; the -principal task was teaching Kendrick all he needed to know of radio -apparatus and methods, and the special ciphers he was to use for -weaving his messages into the enemy traffic. - -He might not gain access to a transmitter of sufficient power to reach -the Azores, even if the best receivers then in use were ready to pick -up his signals. With this difficulty in mind Evans had been -experimenting with a new device which had occurred to him for making -the receiver on the flagship more sensitive and at the same time more -selective, that he might pick out the desired signal, though -incredibly faint, from all those abroad in the vibrating ether. As -soon as Kendrick had learned his duties and a suitable day should come -he was to go, for his services in Gibraltar were much needed. Evans -felt sure his device would work, but it must be installed in the -flagship and tested in actual use, and this if possible before -Kendrick’s departure, lest its failure should entail some modification -of his instructions. For this, quick work was required. - -About this time a new batch of ensigns, recruited from civil life and -put through a four months’ course at the Naval Academy, arrived at -Punta Delgada and were distributed to various billets in the fleet. -Among them was a youth named Coffee, alert, smartly dressed, and truly -a marvel for etiquette. By the caprice of fortune, this ensign was -assigned to the communication force on the flagship as an assistant to -the fleet radio officer. As soon as he was thus established, he took -occasion to make it clear to all the radio personnel of inferior rank -to himself, including Evans, that their duties came under his -jurisdiction; there was to be no misunderstanding about that. - -One Saturday morning when the work of installing the new device in the -receiver was nearing completion, Evans asked the chief radio -electrician if he could spare one of the operators to assist him with -the job. - -“It’s almost time for captain’s inspection, sir,” said the chief. “The -boys ain’t supposed to be in their dungarees then.” - -“Oh, well,” said Evans, “I can manage about as well by myself. There’s -not much room for more than one pair of hands on this job, anyway.” - -So saying, he clambered and squirmed in behind a varied assortment of -apparatus constituting the vitals of the radio room, and in his old -dungarees sat down on the steel deck. With knife and pliers he swiftly -fashioned the labyrinth of wires which was to put his new receiving -device to the test of actual use, the tar of the insulation rapidly -turning his hands a dark brown. As he worked away with the joy of one -in his native element, he whistled a tune of his early childhood, and -soon was quite oblivious of his surroundings. The door of the radio -room opened and footsteps approached, followed by more footsteps. For -a while Evans continued to scrape and bend his wires, still whistling -as he worked. Presently he looked up. There stood the captain of the -flagship, and beside him Fraser, chief of staff; behind them was -Lieutenant-Commander Elkins and his new assistant, Ensign Coffee. The -radio chief and his force of electricians stood at attention for the -formalities of the captain’s inspection, but the captain, attracted by -the sound of whistling, was peering with a look of mild surprise -through the maze of electrical gear at the unusual sight of a man who -had failed to stop working for inspection. Evans caught Fraser’s eye -and saw there the suggestion of a smile which bespoke enjoyment of the -contrast between this unwonted spectacle and the rest of the ship -during inspection. But Coffee was glaring at him with a terrible look -of affronted dignity, and this in turn provoked the suggestion of a -twinkle in Evans’s eye. - -The captain glanced around the room and passed on, followed by the -other officers. But in a moment Coffee returned and in a sharp voice -called—“Gunner! Come out here, I wish to speak to you.” - -Evans crawled out through the interstices in the gear. - -“What do you mean by being in dirty dungarees at captain’s -inspection?” said Coffee. - -“There were changes to be made in the apparatus; they’re needed rather -urgently,” answered Evans. “Some captains would rather see work going -on than idleness; I rather thought our skipper was that kind.” - -“There’s a time for work of that sort,” answered Coffee stiffly, “and -there are persons assigned to do it. Didn’t you know that an -officer—even a warrant officer—isn’t supposed to do the manual work of -an electrician?” - -“I’m afraid I didn’t,” answered Evans; “in fact, in the war with -Germany, I heard the skipper of a destroyer rebuking a junior -lieutenant for saying just that to an ensign.” - -Coffee bit his lip and gulped, then drew himself up straighter than -ever and said: “Well, understand hereafter that at Captain’s -inspection you are to be in full uniform standing at attention.” - -With these words he turned and marched out of the radio room. - -But Coffee was not wholly satisfied with the success of his effort to -improve Evans’s morale. Therefore, early in the afternoon he sent a -message to Evans commanding his immediate presence in his room. When -the messenger arrived and delivered his message, Evans, pliers in -hand, was racing against time. If he could complete the installation -of his new device in half an hour, he would be in time to test it by -listening in on a schedule of signals from a distant station, and in -his eagerness to see if it would fulfill his expectations he worked at -a feverish speed. - -On receipt of Coffee’s message he seized a piece of paper and wrote on -it: “Am hastening to complete installation in time for J X Z schedule. -If you approve, please give me written instructions to continue till -job is completed.” - -Handing it to the messenger he said: “Take that to Commander Elkins in -the Flag Office, and wait for an answer.” - -Then he continued to cut and fit the wires, handling them now and then -with an almost vicious aggressiveness. Soon the messenger returned -with the desired instructions. - -“Please tell Mr. Coffee,” said Evans, “that Commander Elkins has -instructed me to continue at this installation till it is completed.” - -Soon the job was done. Hot and grimy, Evans seized the head-phones, -made his adjustments and listened. The schedule began and the signals -continued for some time, during which a variety of tests and -measurements were needed to determine the success of the new device. -In part these tests were satisfactory, but they revealed the need of -further study and modification. The schedule over, Evans went to his -room deep in thought, and was cleaning up preparatory to a session of -slide-rule calculations, when again a messenger came from Coffee -demanding his presence. Coffee had seen him walking slowly toward his -room, and the installation was therefore no longer an “alibi.” To -Coffee’s room he went and presented himself meekly at the door. - -“Gunner,” said Coffee with great dignity, “you are not taking your -duties in the right spirit. You excuse yourself from observing the -amenities on board ship on account of a wiring job. You must -understand that discipline and morale are more important than -apparatus. - -“Now I want to see if you are up to standard in the matter of those -things we expect all of you to know. I’ll just ask you a few -questions. Can you tell me what is meant by the cadence?” - -“The cadence?” answered Evans. “The only kind of cadence I know of is -the concluding phrase in a piece of music.” - -“Music!” echoed Coffee. “You’ll have to face more music than you like -if you don’t look out. The cadence is something which every -second-class seaman is supposed to know, as you will see if you -consult your Blue-Jacket’s Manual,” and he held up a copy of this book -to give emphasis to his words. He then tried one or two more questions -about infantry maneuvers, unearthing in Evans a woeful degree of -ignorance, which in no wise eased the outraged state of his mind. -Finally he summoned a messenger and sent him for a rifle. When it was -brought he handed it to Evans and said: - -“Now let me see you demonstrate the maneuvers in the Manual of Arms as -you would to a raw recruit.” - -Evans took the rifle and examined the mechanism of the breech for a -moment, then looked up at Coffee and said: - -“Really, it’s no use my trying to do that. It’s so long since I had -anything to do with that sort of thing that I’ve forgotten the whole -of it.” - -With these words he handed the gun back to Coffee, who received it -with a gesture of contempt and said: - -“And you a gunner! How, in Heaven’s name, did you ever get your -rating?” - -“Perhaps you’d get that best from the officers that enrolled me,” -answered Evans mildly. - -“Don’t you ever say ‘Sir’ in speaking to a superior officer?” asked -Coffee sharply. - -“Not often; in fact, come to think of it, I don’t know that I ever do. -Most officers I talk with don’t seem to care much whether I do or -not.” - -Coffee returned to ground on which he felt more comfortable. - -“You have shown,” he said, “a degree of ignorance which would shame a -third-class electrician; in a warrant officer it is appalling; you -deserve to be demoted. Go to your room and study your Blue-Jacket’s -Manual till you know the things every seaman should know; and don’t -let me catch you again giving such answers as you’ve given to-night. -That will do.” - -As Evans retired, he muttered to himself: “What a jolly chap to have -about the ship. Well, I trust he’s through jawing at me for the -present.” - -The next morning Evans, having with the aid of his trusty slide-rule -arrived at a decision as to the method of correcting the remaining -weak points in his new receiving device, was making his way to the -radio room to apply the results of his calculations. On deck he met -Commander Elkins. - -“Well, Evans,” said he, “what was the matter yesterday? I never knew -you to worry about written authority when it came to tinkering with -apparatus.” - -“I guess I must have had a fit of conscience,” answered Evans -absently. - -“Conscience! What made you want to break out a conscience?” - -“I just wanted to be sure I wasn’t getting insubordinate.” - -“Who’s been putting that kind of idea in your head?” said Elkins. - -“Not you,” answered Evans. - -Commander Elkins looked off over the blue sea with a puzzled -expression and watched the speed launches dashing to and fro on their -errands among the ships of the fleet. Then, as the truth dawned on -him, he turned to Evans and said, “Has Ensign Coffee been bothering -you?” - -“Since you ask me,” said Evans, “he was rather a nuisance yesterday.” - -“He’s young yet,” said Elkins, “and takes himself a bit seriously. -Then there’s another thing; he told me when he came that Commander -Rich had spoken to him before he left Washington and told him to keep -his eyes open for insubordination or unmilitary conduct on the part of -warrant officers or chief petty officers with whom he had to do, and, -if he found such, to deal severely with it. I don’t know why Commander -Rich should have said that; it looks as if he had heard some rumors of -things being too free and easy and unofficial here in the fleet. -Anyway, the fact that Commander Rich saw fit to say that to him has -doubtless increased his sense of importance. It will probably wear -off; but remember, his rank is above yours, and respect for rank has -to be maintained as part of the system. So be as tactful as you can, -and try to avoid rows with him, even if it involves a little sacrifice -of your working time now and then.” - -Before the next schedule the remaining defects had been eliminated, -and that night Evans felt ready to trust the receiver for the -performance of its delicate task. Soon Kendrick’s training was -complete and all was ready for him to start on his adventurous errand. -A few days after Kendrick’s departure, Evans was to listen in at -stated times every day, and at these times Kendrick was to make a -special effort to establish communication. - -With the aid of Jeremy at the weather station, a calm spell was chosen -in which to send him off. A scout cruiser equipped with the necessary -gear for launching a seaplane was ordered to prepare for the voyage, -and a fast seaplane was tuned up for a long flight. When the weather -conditions were pronounced favorable and the day was set for -departure, Evans and Kendrick went as soon as it was dark to the -hiding-place of the kayak, Kendrick carrying a nondescript bundle -containing his personal effects for the voyage, including the means of -effecting a wonderful array of disguises. Evans helped him launch the -kayak, and exhorted the little ship to do her best; then Kendrick, -stowing his bundle under the deck, stepped in and paddled off into the -darkness, now quite at home with this mode of locomotion, and in a -moment was lost to view. In a few minutes he came alongside the scout -cruiser, at the foot of a ladder hanging over the ship’s side, where -he was met by an officer. No enlisted men were in sight, for it had -been arranged by this officer that none should be where they could -witness the arrival of this peculiar-looking craft. The officer -lowered a rope which Kendrick secured around the kayak before coming -up the ladder. These two then hoisted her on board and stowed her in a -prearranged hiding-place. A few minutes later the cruiser let go her -mooring and slipped out through the gate in the net, which was opened -as she approached, and closed at once behind her. - -It was now early in December and the long nights afforded the cruiser -the cover of darkness during most of her journey. All night and all -day, and the next night till after midnight she steamed eastward. At -two in the morning she stopped about two hundred and fifty miles from -Cape Trafalgar. With none but those needed for the work to witness the -proceeding, the kayak was removed from her hiding-place and lashed to -the seaplane in such a manner that she could easily be cast loose when -the seaplane had alighted on the water. Kendrick took his place in the -plane, followed by the pilot and mechanician, and in a moment they -shot out into the air, the engine roaring in their ears. - -The first red streak of dawn was showing over the eastern horizon when -the seaplane hovered and came down on the calm surface of the sea, -trailing a white streak of spray for a moment, then coming to rest. -Fifteen miles away lay the Spanish coast. Losing no time, Kendrick cut -loose the kayak from her lashings, climbed in, waved good-bye and -paddled off into the northeast, keeping the light of the dawn on his -starboard beam. The seaplane rose and flew away, and in less than -three hours was hoisted aboard the cruiser, which headed for Punta -Delgada, and not ten of all her complement of officers and men had -even a vague idea of the purpose for which their excursion had been -made. - -Kendrick had a compass by which to steer as soon as it was light. He -wished to land in the twilight, and with ten hours at his disposal it -was not necessary to paddle constantly to reach the shore before dark, -so, without exerting himself, he was near enough the shore to study -its character by the middle of the afternoon. Then he took it easy, -waiting so far from shore that his tiny boat would scarcely be visible -to the naked eye, and watching land, sea, and sky for observers who -might detect his arrival. Then the sun set, and, choosing a -lonely-looking spot, Kendrick paddled quickly in shore to avail -himself of the fast-fading light in choosing a place to land. Through -the line of white foam that fringed the shore he picked out a recess -where the force of the waves appeared broken, dodged the outlying -rocks, and soon, with a vast sense of relief, was dragging the kayak -up on dry land. In the dark he studied the ground about him, and found -a place to hide the kayak so completely that he could feel assured she -would not be found, and thus give a dangerous clue to the enemy -sleuths. - -On shore in Spain, he was once more in a familiar environment, one -that brought his extraordinary faculties into full play. With nothing -but his wits and the small bundle of belongings he had brought under -the deck of the kayak, he launched himself on the enterprise of -getting into Gibraltar unnoticed, and making himself desired as a -radio operator and trusted in that capacity. How he overcame the -innumerable and formidable obstacles to such a course would require a -volume in itself. But that is another story, and we must return to -Punta Delgada. - -After a week had elapsed, Evans began listening every day at the -appointed hours to see if the enemy traffic showed any signs of -Kendrick’s magic touch. The excuse of testing his new device had to be -worked for all it was worth, until one operator remarked to another, -after he had gone, “He’s tested it every way he can; he seems to be so -pleased with it he just wants to listen in even if there’s nothing in -particular to pick up.” - -Three weeks elapsed during which Evans and Barton met now and then and -speculated over Kendrick’s probable fortunes and the prospect of -hearing from him. At last, late one afternoon as Evans was listening -in, he picked up a pencil and began writing on a slip of paper; slowly -he wrote, only five or six words a minute instead of the usual twenty -to twenty-five at which messages are received. For nearly five minutes -he wrote, then stopped, and, after listening a moment more, he took -off the head-phones and slipped out of the radio room. Taking the -first boat ashore he hastened to Commander Barton. - -“What’s the news?” asked Barton eagerly, as Evans entered his office. - -“He’s there. Got an operator’s job that gives him access to a good -transmitter,” answered Evans; and he pulled out of his pocket the slip -of paper with Kendrick’s message and handed it to Barton. - -“That’s real business,” said Barton with unrestrained joy, on reading -the message. A long conference ensued in which Barton and Evans -reviewed the possibilities opened by this new channel of communication -with Heringham in Constantinople, and laid their plans for making the -most of it. - - - - - CHAPTER IX - - THE ROUND-UP - - -An earlier chapter has told of the planning of a fleet of net-laying -ships to coöperate with chasers on their drifting patrols and to -surround at short notice a designated spot where a submarine had been -located with hydrophones. This fleet of ships, eight in number, -completed at last, arrived at Punta Delgada about the first of -December. In accordance with their instructions, they commenced -practicing the maneuver of proceeding at speed to a spot designated by -signal from a destroyer or chaser and then surrounding it in such a -way as to enable them with a minimum of lost motion to lay their lines -of nets completely around the spot at a specified radius from it. This -maneuver required a high order of team-work and a correspondingly -large amount of drill; after a few weeks of this, however, the -personnel acquired enough proficiency to make the officers feel ready -to carry it out in earnest, and they grew impatient to try it on a -real submarine instead of an imaginary one. - -Then they began to go out as planned surrounded at a distance by -groups of chasers on drifting patrols. But the ocean is very large, -and the days and weeks seemed long as they waited for their first -chance to put this new method of hunting to the test of a real “fix.” -The skippers of these ships began to complain that their time was -wasted—not to mention the elaborate equipment—when the chance of -picking up a scent seemed so remote. Yet enemy submarines were abroad, -as was shown by the toll of merchant ships, sunk in spite of the best -efforts to lead them in organized convoys through to safety. An -unfortunate atmosphere of grumbling at being tied up in what appeared -to be an elaborate failure began to develop and to spread from the -net-laying fleet to Headquarters. Was this vast project to prove a -waste of effort and a failure, after all? - -The enemy was gradually increasing the efficiency with which he -planned and executed his submarine forays. The principal secret of -this lay in the concentration of his submarine forces. Groups of five, -six, or seven submarines would await a favorable moment in the -conditions of ocean traffic; then proceeding together, combining their -resources in the matter of detecting the approach of hostile craft, -and skillfully disposing their force, they would deliver a concerted -attack on a convoy, and often would take a heavy toll of tonnage. - -Aided now by the acquisition of the code book brought from Washington -by Bela, they prepared to launch more formidable attacks than -heretofore, knowing in advance the disposition of Allied ships, and -thus able to choose the most vulnerable point. It was necessary first -to ascertain, if possible, whether the code was actually in use as -planned. Possibly the book had been missed, and the Yankees had -decided to abandon the code for fear it had fallen into enemy hands. -To this end all the intercepted radio traffic of the Allies was -diligently copied, and every effort made to correlate it with observed -movements of Allied forces by sea or air. To the great delight of the -Turks, they found messages being sent which conveyed a meaning when -decoded in accordance with the system set forth in the book. - -Early in January there came a welcome opportunity to verify the code -and to satisfy the Turkish Chief of Staff that it was indeed being -used by the Allies for directing naval operations. Punta Delgada was -heard sending messages which when decoded proved to be addressed to a -ship carrying seaplanes headed toward the Portuguese coast. These -messages related to a bombing attack on the defenses of Lisbon. -Eagerly the Intelligence officers at this port followed the -preparations and then the progress of the attack. The seaplane carrier -was next heard sending messages to the planes in the air, messages -which were readily interpreted by means of the code, and finally, at -the time when these dispatches had led them to expect it, the -seaplanes appeared, only to be driven off by an overwhelming force of -small fighting planes which, thanks to the code, had been prepared in -time to prevent a single bombing plane from reaching its objective. -The Intelligence officers were greatly elated, and praised the name of -Bela. - -About a week after this incident, a force of seven submarines set -forth from Gibraltar to make a series of destructive attacks on Allied -shipping. It was to be a long cruise, and no pains had been spared to -equip the submarines with all the munitions they could carry to do -their job well, for this was the first time a large group had gone out -since the new code had become available to the skippers. - -When two days out from Gibraltar, the radio operator on watch in one -of the submarines began picking up signals from Allied ships. Word was -passed to the others, and all listened intently. The messages were -copied and decoded with the key in the stolen book. - -The following situation was deciphered: A large and important convoy -from Brazil was approaching the danger zone; it had reached its -supposed rendezvous and found no escort; no ships responded to its -low-powered radio call. Now it was calling Punta Delgada asking for -instructions, evidently using just enough power to reach the Naval -Headquarters, and incidently the submarines, but endeavoring not to -use enough power to be heard in Spain or Portugal. From the exchange -of messages it appeared that an earlier dispatch, which should have -led to the sending of a destroyer escort, had failed to get through. -Owing to this misunderstanding, then, a valuable convoy was already -entering the danger zone, and no escort was available for its -protection. Punta Delgada was finally heard to instruct the convoy to -proceed at maximum speed on a zigzag course and to refrain from using -radio; at the moment no destroyers or cruisers were available, but, if -possible, an escort would be assembled on the following day and sent -to make contact with the convoy farther on. - -The submarines were proceeding in a westerly direction, spread out in -a long scouting line extending from north to south. With their radio -direction-finding apparatus they took bearings on the flagship of the -convoy as she sent her messages to Punta Delgada. To their unbounded -delight, the position which this indicated corresponded closely with -that mentioned by the convoy flagship in her dispatch to Punta -Delgada, a point about three hundred miles south of the eastern -Azores. Once more the stolen code had proved itself correct. - -The intercepted dispatches had revealed what the course of the convoy -would be during the next twenty-four hours. So the submarines shaped -their own course for the place where they should find their victims -the next morning soon after daybreak. Eagerly the officers of the -flagship bent to the task of preparing their formation for the attack. - -“Bela has served the cause well,” said the Captain; “his reward for -this will be great.” And warm was the praise of him echoed in the -rejoinders of the others. - -As the gray afternoon wore on, the seven long, sinister-looking ships -glided steadily westward, their low decks washed by the waves, and -only the conning tower of each visible from her next in line. By dawn -next day they should be already in the path of the northbound convoy, -in plenty of time to re-form on a line stretching east and west which -would surely cover the course of their intended victims and thus -ensure good prizes for at least one and probably more of the -submarines. - -As the gray twilight settled down on the sea, the line closed in till -not more than three miles separated the ships at the extreme ends. -Every valve, every item of machinery and armament was carefully -inspected and all necessary tests were made, that no mishap should -hinder the reaping of the grim harvest on the morrow. Tense as were -the nerves of all, those off duty slept during the night, for a -submarine crew must learn the art of sleeping when the chance offers. -The captains scarcely slept at all, but, as each new watch went on -duty, exhorted the radio operators and hydrophone listeners, going to -their posts in the hull, to listen as never before. From ship to ship -such messages as occasion required were transmitted by radio phone, -with barely enough power to cover the distance intervening between -them. Once soon after midnight the seven ships stopped to listen in -silence, in case the convoy should be approaching sooner than was -expected, but, although lying still in the water increased the range -of the hydrophones by many miles, not a sound was heard. - -Two o’clock came, then three. The tension of eager anticipation grew. -With powerful night glasses, the captains swept the sea, but nothing -appeared to break the leaden skyline. At four o’clock they stopped -again to listen, but through the hydrophones the ocean seemed as still -as the grave. Soon they would be in the path of the convoy, and, -taking their stations, would stop and wait. But they had twenty-five -miles yet to go and two hours more of darkness. Westward with decks -awash they steamed at fourteen knots. - -At half-past five nothing had broken the monotonous suspense. Then -suddenly a report was flashed in by radio from the submarine at the -northern end of the line—the hydrophones had detected a ship bearing -northwest. This was an unexpected quarter. Was it the convoy or -something else? Scarcely had this report been received when it was -followed by another—the sound was increasing fast; there seemed to be -more than one ship, approaching at high speed. Another of the -submarines had heard the sounds also, and then another, till in a few -minutes they were heard all along the line. What was it? The captains -began to be uneasy. The ships were approaching much too fast to be the -convoy; besides, they didn’t sound like merchant ships, nor did they -sound quite like destroyers, nor yet like cruisers. One fact soon -stood out above all others; their bearing did not change; whatever -these ships were they were coming toward the submarines as straight as -if steering for a lighthouse at their home port. Uneasiness changed to -grave apprehension. Nearer still they came; the oncoming ships could -not now be more than six miles from the nearest of the submarines, -judging from their rate of approach. - -A red streak of dawn showed faintly on the eastern horizon. There was -one thing to be done, and that without delay—submerge. Quickly the -orders were given, hatches were closed, valves opened, electric motors -started, and the seven ships sank beneath the waves, leaving only the -periscopes to observe the approach of the enigmatic ships. Nearer the -sounds approached, and then the bearings became confused; the ships -seemed to be spreading out in a wide arc from north to west. Then -dimly through the periscopes the dark forms of long, narrow ships -could be seen in the faint dawn light. Two by two they came till at -last the submarine skippers counted eight. Two pairs started to cross -the bows of the submarines to the west and southwest, while the other -two pairs deployed to the northeast. Just what kind of ships these -were could not be made out, but at all events their speed marked them -as warships of some sort. The greatest safety lay in concealment and -silence; the submarines, therefore, slowed their motors till they had -barely steerageway; and as the light increased and the strange vessels -drew nearer, the periscopes were withdrawn, and the submarines dived -deeper. But before the last periscope was withdrawn below the waves, a -fleeting sweep of the horizon was made which revealed the two ships to -the west executing a peculiar maneuver. The leading ship of the two -doubled on her course and, passing very close to her partner ship, -started steaming at reduced speed in the opposite direction, while the -ship which had followed her also reduced speed, but held her course. -One thing more was revealed by this final sweep of the horizon—a -destroyer in the wake of the other ships approached at high speed from -the northwest. - -On the bridge of this destroyer, besides her skipper and others on -watch, stood Captain Fraser, chief of staff to Admiral Johnson, -Commander Barton, of the Intelligence Bureau, and Evans. The eight -ships seen by the submarines were the new net-laying squadron. Not a -conning tower nor a periscope had they seen, but nevertheless they -were now paying out their nets in a circle seven miles in diameter. -Each pair laid a quadrant of the circle, the two starting at a point -and steaming opposite ways till they met the ships of the adjacent -quadrants, and thus completed the circle. On each of the eight ships -the strange new mechanical gear was working at top speed, drawing the -great net from the hold of the ship and paying it out over the stern, -the supporting buoys and the little indicator bombs splashing -ceaselessly into the water, while the crew tending the gear worked -with all their might. - -And now, following a few miles behind the destroyer carrying Captain -Fraser, came eleven more destroyers steaming up at thirty-five knots -out of the western haze. Following the lead of the first destroyer, -the other eleven started steaming in a steady procession round and -round the outer edge of the circle of nets. Then as the dawn merged -into daylight there appeared from several points of the compass small -gray chasers, hurrying to the scene of action, and finally from the -northwest, more chasers, swarms of them, till the sea was alive with -the little craft. - -The first of the chasers to appear on the scene, some eighteen in -number, coming from all directions, had been lying all night on a -drifting patrol stretched in a long line from north to south across -the path of the submarines. So near had each chaser been to the next -in line that word could be passed from one end of the line to the -other without the use of radio, by simply flashing the signals from -boat to boat with infra-red rays, invisible to the eye, but readily -perceived with the selenium detector. At a point near the northern end -of the line, some fifteen miles from the present busy scene of action, -the net-layers had lain in wait, together with the twelve destroyers, -on one of which was Captain Fraser in charge of the operation. He had -brought with him Commander Barton to observe results, and Evans to -supervise the use of the infra-red signaling apparatus, lest through -some failure of this unusual method a chaser captain should be -impelled to use his radio and thus reveal his presence to the enemy. - -Now, just before sunrise, while the eighteen chasers of the drifting -patrol were taking station, as fast as they arrived, in groups of two -and three just outside the eight openings where the individual nets -met and overlapped, the other chasers which had come from the -northwest filed in through one of these openings, one at a time, each -rounding the net-laying ship as she lay holding the end of her net, -turning and threading with an S-shaped course the narrow gap till -within the enclosed area. When all had entered, they formed in two -long parallel lines at right angles with the net on the northwest -side, those in the front line spaced within a stone’s throw of each -other, those in the second line, nearly half a mile behind, being -somewhat more spread out. As soon as the lines had thus formed, buoys -were thrown overboard to mark the beginning of the sweep; then each -chaser in the front line dropped over her stern two paravanes or -submarine kites to be towed astern at the greatest depth to which a -submarine could go, one from each quarter, each equipped with a small -contact mine like those in the net. At a signal from the chaser -flagship, all started, jumping to their full speed, following the -curve of the net in line abreast, and the sweep began. - -The destroyer, with Captain Fraser on the bridge, stopped in her tour -of the net, close to the point where the chasers assembled, and the -officers on the bridge stood watching the maneuver. - -“They’re off!” cried Fraser as the chasers started their sweep. “Over -the line like a bunch of colts on a race-track. Go it, boys!” and he -rang, “One third speed” on both engines to keep the destroyer abreast -of the sweep, exclaiming, “I hope we’ve got the whole works inside -this purse-string.” - -“It’s bad business if we haven’t,” remarked Evans. “It must be -‘_spurlos versenkt_,’ or our talisman will lose its charm.” - -“You’re right there,” echoed Barton warmly. “‘_Spurlos versenkt_,’ no -matter what the cost.” - -“How many do you expect there are, sir?” asked the skipper of the -destroyer, addressing Captain Fraser. - -“According to Commander Barton’s friend, seven started out together -from Gibraltar. They have probably stayed together,” answered Fraser. -Then, seeing Barton look uneasily at the quartermasters on duty on the -bridge to see if any had been within hearing, Fraser added, “Keep that -about Barton’s friend under your hat.” - -“What assurance have you that they are all inside the net, sir?” asked -the skipper. - -“We had a series of clear fixes from four of the chasers,” answered -Fraser. “At the last fix their motors were heard to slow down. That -was—how long, Evans, before we started laying the net?” - -“Twenty minutes,” answered Evans. - -“Twenty minutes,” resumed Fraser, “and in another twenty-five the nets -were laid. The last fix was at the center of this circle; their speed -from that point could not have averaged more than three and a half -knots without their being heard, in spite of the noise of our engines. -That gives them two and a half miles; the nets are three and a half -miles from the fix. That’s a margin of a mile; pretty safe, I think, -considering the accuracy of the fix.” - -All eyes were on the chasers. Ten minutes passed; it seemed an age. -Then at last a small fountain of water rose in the wake of one of -them. A paravane had struck something under water, and its bomb had -detonated. Instantly from the second line of chasers the three most -nearly behind the explosion converged upon the spot and smothered the -vicinity with a concentrated barrage of depth charges. Mid the jar and -din and the monstrous fountains of white and black froth there rose -bits of wreckage, clearly visible to the watching eyes on the -destroyer. The chaser whose paravane had given the signal kept her -place in the line; another paravane was thrown out astern to replace -the first which had done its duty and gone; and the sweep went on. - -Fifteen minutes elapsed. Then two miles away another small fountain -rose into the air, this time from the encircling net. The two nearest -destroyers raced to the spot and laid down a pattern of depth charges -which ripped to bits a hundred yards of the net, and brought up other -wreckage which told of another kill. The drifting chasers on that side -of the net, hastened to the spot, and with grappling irons caught the -broken ends of the net and drew them together, securing them with a -short overlap. Meanwhile a maneuver had been commenced by the -net-laying ships and chasers together, whereby the ends of the net -were slowly drawn in toward the center of the circle, in order to -reduce the area to be swept. - -More telltale bombs behind the chasers sent up their signal fountains, -and two more barrages brought up their gruesome wreckage. The ocean -shook and seethed with the tumult. - -“It’s a grim business,” muttered Evans, looking on solemnly. Never -before had he stood by in cold blood and watched such a horror of war -being enacted. The thought of the helpless wretches under the water -being systematically hunted down and blown to eternity, oppressed his -spirit, and made him graver than was his wont. - -Terrified by the appalling din of the depth charge barrages, one of -the submarines came at last to the surface and surrendered. The crew -were taken off by a chaser, but before leaving, they placed a -demolition charge where it blew open the hull of the submarine after -they were safely away, and sent her to the bottom of the sea. - -“By Jove, those are risky captives to have,” said Evans, roused from -his depression by this new turn of events. “Better put ’em under lock -and key where they can’t get ashore.” - -“That’s no idle jest,” said Barton. “Captain Fraser, I’d keep those -prisoners on one of the ships in this action, if I were you, and not -let a soul who hasn’t been here see or hear of them.” - -“That won’t be easy to arrange,” said Fraser. “But you’re right; we -can’t afford to take the risk of letting them get ashore.” - -Some minutes passed in silence. - -The sweep had now gone from the northwest through the southwest to the -southeast side of the circle. Then another bomb went off, and another -heavy barrage racked the sea and sent up tokens of destruction. The -count stood six. The officers were standing together in a small group -at one end of the destroyer’s bridge, at a safe distance from the ears -of the quartermasters. - -“Too bad your friend Wellman isn’t here to see the fun,” said Barton -to Evans with a dry smile. - -“Who’s Wellman?” asked the skipper of the destroyer. - -“A special messenger we sent to Constantinople with a code, so they -could follow our instructions when we told ’em what to do.” - -“You sent?” exclaimed the skipper. “How do you mean ‘sent’?” - -“Well, he didn’t know he was being sent,” said Barton. “He thought he -was turning a rather good trick; and he was—for us. He was hanging -round Washington in a way we didn’t like; so, when we’d seen enough of -him, we gave him a little present, and he toddled off to hand it over -to his boss.” - -“So that was the game, was it?” said the skipper with a chuckle. - -“Yes,” answered Barton, “but keep it right under your hat.” - -“I’m a good deal scared that he’ll hear of the sequel to his stroke of -genius,” remarked Evans. - -“That mustn’t be,” rejoined Barton firmly. - -The sweep of the chasers went on till the circuit of the net had been -completed. But since in the close formation necessary for a thorough -sweep the chasers covered barely a mile, there was still an inner -circle of two and a half miles’ radius that had not been swept. -Assuming that the original seven submarines which Kendrick reported to -have left Gibraltar had kept together, there was still one in the area -to be found. Five had evidently held more or less to their course and -had reached the western side of the netted area in time to be caught -in the sweep; the sixth, turning to the southeastward away from the -approaching fleet, had been caught on that side. The seventh, assuming -she had stayed with the others, was still in the ring, and remained to -be found. - -Swinging in toward the center of the circle, the chasers began their -second circuit of the enclosed area, this time so placing the line -that it overlapped slightly the area of its previous sweep. It might -be a prolonged search, for each time the circuit was made, the -submarine might shift into the area just swept, and thus escape. -Still, in her blind state of submersion she could hardly dodge them -indefinitely; and ultimately the drawing-in of the net would so limit -the area that the chasers could rake it in a single sweep. - -The morning wore away, and the circles successively swept by the -chasers closed in on the center, toward which also the ends of the net -were towed, and, as the circumference of the circle became shorter, -the superfluous lengths of net were recovered from the water and -stowed in the holds of the net-layers. - -It was nearly noon; the entire area had been swept by the chasers and -their weary officers had begun to think there could be no more -submarines. The chaser flagship made signal requesting instructions. -Fraser signaled back from the destroyer to renew the sweep, -designating a course which, in view of the altered size and shape of -the area, would offer the best prospect of finding an object thus far -missed. The sweep went on. The chaser skippers were wondering how much -longer the raking process, already becoming tedious, would have to -continue, when another detonation of a paravane bomb gave the signal -for attack. Again the following chasers charged the spot, and again a -formidable array of depth charges shook the sea and sky; and visible -wreckage brought the count to seven. - -“That makes the whole works, sir,” said the destroyer skipper to -Fraser. - -“Yes,” answered he, “but we’re going to keep on sweeping for a while. -We can’t take any chances of any of them getting back to tell the -tale. It isn’t likely, but there’s just a small chance that some of -them, even with visible wreckage blown off, might not be too much -damaged to get home. Then, too, an eighth sub might have joined them -after they left Gib.” - -And so the sweep went on. And at last, early in the afternoon, the -nets had been drawn in till there was less than a square mile -enclosed. Then it was that the chasers were able to sweep the entire -area at a single stroke, their line stretching clear across it. Three -times they swept it thus, but nothing more did they find. Then the -sweeping ceased, and in single file the chasers left the enclosure. -Still the nets were towed closer together as they were being reeled in -aboard the ships, and finally they were brought together in pairs till -there was no room left for a submarine to lie between them. Then only -did Fraser signal that the hunt was over and the fleet would return to -its base. - -“Evans,” he said, “your radio-compass men, both at Saint Michael’s and -Madeira, did a good job in spotting these subs so soon after they left -Gib.” - -“Yes,” said Barton; “that helped a lot; it gave us a good start. -Still, the trump card was the code. By the way, Captain, don’t forget -to send the escort out to meet that convoy just as soon as you can -spare it.” - -Fraser laughed. - -“Well,” he said, “I think we all rate a good rest after this.” - -As the procession headed for Punta Delgada, the tired officers sought -their bunks, all that could be spared from the duties of the watch. -For many hours the nervous tension had been unremitting. A sense of -triumph pervaded the flotilla, which combined with fatigue made for -easy relaxation. But in Evans, underlying this feeling was a sense of -oppression due to the horror of the submarine carnage. Added to this -there lurked the fear that the story of the trap might reach the enemy -and rob his magic talisman of its power to do, possibly, even greater -things in the future. - -No more doubts were raised as to the utility of the net-layers. The -eagerness of all concerned to be out again in search of more -submarines was rather inclined to go beyond the dictates of good -judgment. For it was not every night that a line of drifters could -hope to intercept another such group. At all events, the enthusiasm -bred of the adventure was a wholesome tonic, and on every hand the -energies of officers and men were bent to the task of bringing about -other successful hunts. - -Meanwhile Evans devoted his energies to exercising a tireless -surveillance over the radio stations in the islands. Wherever there -was a transmitter he found an excuse to go and tinker with the -apparatus, apparently too much absorbed in the wiring to notice the -operators or their handling of the traffic; in reality, looking for -any indication that might mean leakage of information to the enemy. -Commander Barton installed secret agents at every station from which -messages could go out, camouflaged as “strikers” or “makee-learn” -operators, and these were charged with the duty of watching with -eternal vigilance for evidence of suspicious messages. - -In its effect on tonnage losses the result of the submarine round-up -was appreciable. Seven fast, seagoing submarines, gone at one stroke, -meant a substantial loss to the enemy, and a corresponding saving of -Allied shipping could be detected. Yet still the situation was -critical. More submarines were building, and, unless more round-ups -could be brought about, the outlook for the future was none too -bright. - -The increased vigilance of the listening crews on the drifting chasers -brought its reward in other round-ups in which several ocean-going -submarines met their doom. And in greater security the endless convoys -carried their cargoes of munitions into Northern Europe. - - - - - CHAPTER X - - THE POWER OF SUGGESTION - - -As the winter wore away, great troop convoys poured a seemingly -endless stream of American soldiers into Northern Europe to reinforce -the armies there, worn as they were with their ceaseless vigil, -holding the line, but never able to push the enemy back. It was indeed -a deadlock; and all the world watched in suspense. At times it was -worse than a deadlock. Murad Pasha, the Turkish generalissimo, was a -military genius. He kept harassing the northern lines with masterly -strokes of surprise action which told heavily on the more -heterogeneous, less consolidated Army of the North. The length and -breadth of North America every one was “doing his bit.” All industries -were mobilized for war. The women knitted socks at home or worked on -farms and in factories. All watched the daily press, noting with alarm -each move of Murad; eagerly grasping at hope when a colossal -bombardment forced the Southern Army back ever so little. On that -battle-line all thoughts were focused and all hopes were based. The -navy, shielded from the daily press by two thousand miles of silent -ocean, was little heeded as compared with the army. Its doings were -almost unknown to the general public. - -At the Azores little change of consequence occurred in the naval -situation. By diligent application of the methods thus far developed, -enemy submarines were from time to time found and either destroyed or -damaged, but, although the menace was diminished, it was always there, -and the toll of merchant and supply ships continued to be heavy. The -fleet was kept in fighting trim by constant drill, and those in -command were eager for a decisive action with the main fleet of the -enemy. The outcome of such an action could not be foretold with any -confidence, for the fleets were very evenly matched. Still, with the -condition of hopeless stalemate existing in the absence of such an -action, with the fear of a master stroke on land by the resourceful -enemy, the men of fighting blood were ready to risk the supreme test. -The enemy, however, was carefully holding his main fleet within the -Mediterranean. Was there any way to draw him out? The British and -American admirals speculated much concerning his disposition to engage -in a major action if conditions should appear favorable. What apparent -advantages, they wondered, would suffice to make him risk a meeting -with the Allied fleet? - -Evans, from time to time, went into the main transmitting station on -shore to “test the apparatus,” and on these occasions, after making -certain adjustments, would sit down with his hand on the key and send -out a few seemingly meaningless dots and dashes. Whereupon Kendrick at -Gibraltar would copy down a message and pass it on to Heringham in -Constantinople. Also from time to time Evans, testing the receiver on -the flagship, would at certain times of day write things down on a -slip of paper in a leisurely manner—only five or six words a minute. -After he had done this, he was apt to have a talk with Barton. - -On one of his visits to the transmitting station he sent a request for -information on the moot question—how did the enemy look on the -possibility of an encounter with the Allied fleet? Would a slight -apparent advantage in weather conditions suffice to draw him out, or -must the Turkish Admiral see a chance of cutting off a small -detachment of Allied ships before leaving his base? A few days later, -after Evans had talked with Barton, Barton talked with Fraser, chief -of staff, and Fraser talked with Admiral Johnson. It seemed, so Fraser -told the Admiral, that Barton had secured advices through secret -channels that the enemy’s attitude toward a possible naval action was -decidedly conservative. If he had reason to suppose he could catch the -Allied fleet unprepared, with weather conditions which would put the -advantage of visibility on his side, he would risk action; otherwise -he would hold his fleet behind the defenses of Gibraltar until he -could catch a detachment of the Allied fleet far enough from support -to warrant the hope of cutting it off and destroying it. - -Each month at the date set in the key to Bela’s code book for the -change of code, the Intelligence officers of the enemy noted with -satisfaction that a considerable part of the Allied radio traffic made -sense in the new code. The rest of the traffic, they concluded, was -probably nothing but dummy messages sent to disguise the times of -increased volume which would otherwise give evidence of naval -activity, a well-recognized practice. The loss of the seven submarines -was still a complete mystery, and as their commander had had no -opportunity of reporting back to headquarters any of the messages they -had heard concerning the mythical convoy, nothing had yet transpired -to arouse any suspicion about the code. - -At Punta Delgada the prisoners taken in the great round-up were -carefully guarded on a ship of the fleet, never allowed on shore, and -only seen by one or two trusted persons who took them their food. No -one save Admiral Johnson, the four officers who had stood on the -bridge of the destroyer during the round-up, and two or three others -at Headquarters, knew how the submarines had been lured to their -destruction. All others simply supposed they had first been located by -radio compass, and then more exactly by the hydrophones of the -drifting chasers; and incidentally both of these facts were true. - -One day late in February, Fraser was in the radio room of the flagship -discussing with Evans the intricate system of radio communication by -which her many diverse duties as the brain of the fleet could be -performed in battle without mutual interference. The discussion was -profitable to both, for though a chief of staff cannot afford to -encumber his mind with an excess of technical details, nevertheless a -clear understanding of the principles on which the directing mind -coördinates the moving parts of a fleet is useful to all concerned. It -was the way in which principles were applied, rather than minute -details, with which this discussion dealt. Fraser desired to prolong -the conversation to a greater length than was feasible in the radio -room; so at last he said, “Let’s go ashore and talk over these things -where there isn’t so much going on.” - -“I can show you a quiet spot where nobody goes,” answered Evans. - -Together they went ashore and Evans led the way to the Borge garden. -The old gardener opened the gate, and the two men entered and strolled -off among the great tree-ferns and other rare plants. Fraser was -enchanted. He had never even heard of the place before. As they -explored the deep grottoes, he exclaimed with delight at the vistas of -rich and varied greenery. Finally their walk led them to the old -watch-tower at the top of the garden where they sat down and, looking -out under the branches of the old cedar toward the ocean, continued to -discuss communications and their relation to tactics. The little -birds, accustomed to a feast whenever Evans came to the garden, now -gathered round him and hopped on the ground searching for the usual -crumbs in vain, for to-day he was too much occupied to recall what was -expected of him. - -[Illustration: FRASER SCRATCHED ON THE GROUND DIAGRAMS ILLUSTRATIVE OF -THE FORMATIONS HE HAD IN MIND] - -Evans, questioning Fraser about major naval actions, drew from him an -expression of his views on the most important elements of success. -Among these Fraser placed great emphasis on surprise. From this the -conversation went on to a discussion of the pros and cons of various -possible fleet formations, in which Evans questioned and listened -attentively. With a sharp stick Fraser scratched on the ground -diagrams illustrative of the formations he had in mind. A few leading -questions made him warm to his theme and crystallize certain ideas on -tactics hitherto latent in his mind. And as he disposed the great -units of the mighty Allied fleet on the wide expanse of the sea, he -kept reaching the point where his hands were tied by the limits of -visibility; in his tactics the units must be within sight of each -other to be operated accurately as coördinated parts of an organized -whole. This limitation restricted him, and he mentioned it -specifically as obstructing certain expansions in tactical arrangement -at which Evans had hinted. - -“Suppose you could find a way to overcome that limitation, and place -the divisions of the fleet in their desired relative positions beyond -the range of visibility, what use could you make of it; that is, what -effective formations might you then adopt?” asked Evans. - -“Well,” said Fraser, “that might open lots of possibilities. But how -could you ever place your divisions accurately at distances beyond the -limits of vision?” - -“If you wanted to badly enough, you could place and maintain any unit -in the fleet in any desired relation to any other by triangulation -from radio-compass bearings.” - -“That’s an idea,” said Fraser. “But, then, your units would have to -keep sending radio signals, and the enemy could locate them with -_their_ radio compasses; so that you’d lose all the advantages of -surprise, and that would cut out most of what you might gain by that -sort of trick.” - -“Only one unit need reveal its position by sending radio; the rest can -take bearings on the signals of the key unit, and thus take station -without ever making a sound.” - -“That’s so,” said Fraser. “That opens some very interesting -possibilities.” - -He thought a while, and scratched more diagrams on the ground, -developing a few applications of this method. Evans discussed and -questioned and led him on. The wax was now plastic in his hands. With -acute suspense he watched Fraser’s mind work. Had he made the premises -suggestive enough, and would the main idea strike home? A false step -now might forever block the path to success. But what was this -preposterous thing he was doing? A vista opened before his mind’s eye -revealing vast armies stretching in unbroken line for hundreds of -miles across the continent of Europe while the whole world watched in -agonized suspense, and the colossal industries of the Western -Hemisphere, working feverishly, poured their great stream of food and -supplies across the ocean; and there on the placid sea before him lay -the great fleet, the keystone of an arch that spanned the world. And -he, a gunner, was seeking to sway the mind of the chief of staff of -that fleet. For a moment he felt weak and foolish in his impudence. -But then again he saw the picture in a larger perspective, and all -that was at stake spurred him on. The wax was indeed plastic in his -hands; a leading question, a veiled hint, and he saw Fraser’s mind -working toward the scheme he had outlined to Mortimer in the autumn. -As the plan evolved and took shape in the rough diagrams he was -scratching on the ground, Fraser’s enthusiasm grew till he was as keen -as a schoolboy learning a new game. Then he brought himself back to -earth and said: - -“The trouble is, to get away with it, you’d have to have the enemy in -just the right place, and then if the wind was wrong you’d lose most -of your advantage through the wrong kind of visibility.” - -“We got the enemy, or part of him, just about where we wanted him last -month,” said Evans. - -“In the submarine round-up,” said Fraser. “That’s so.” - -“There may still be possibilities in the same general technique,” -continued Evans. “As for weather, Commander Jeremy can tell us a -surprising amount about what the wind and visibility are going to be -like for several days ahead. Did you ever talk with him about that?” - -“No,” said Fraser. “I had an idea that the weather-prophet business -beyond twelve to eighteen hours was still pretty much guesswork. And, -anyway, be you ever so wise you can’t control the weather.” - -“No, but you can choose it,” said Evans. “You’d find it worth while to -talk with Jeremy. He has really done some remarkable work, and I -believe he could help you a good deal.” - -Fraser thought a moment. - -“But to get back to your placing battleship divisions by radio -compass,” he said at last; “don’t you think it would be too -complicated and uncertain to rely on in all the stress of a naval -action?” - -“Not if it’s worth doing,” answered Evans. “It’s no more complicated -or difficult than director firing or torpedo work or several other -things you rely on in battle, that have been perfected by intensive -effort and labor. It’s just a matter of insisting that the gear shall -be in working trim, and then everlastingly drilling the men in the use -of it.” - -For a moment Fraser sat deep in thought while the other watched him. -Then, as his face bespoke the conclusion of his train of thought, -Evans added: - -“The one thing I fear as a menace to the success of such a plan is -treachery. Any little leakage of information bearing on it might well -prove fatal. I should be afraid to have an intimation of the plan go -even to the General Staff in Washington.” - -Fraser looked at him hard and nodded thoughtfully. - -“Yes,” he said, “a hint of it to the enemy would be fatal. But -confidential messages to the General Staff are well safeguarded.” - -“Would any such message be necessary? I hate to think how easy it -would be for a radio operator of the wrong kind to tip some one off by -means of a cipher worked into the traffic; and you can’t know all -about every operator.” - -Fraser nodded. - -“That’s true,” he said; “it’ll pay to keep the lid on good and tight, -if we try any game like this. But then, that’s a big ‘if.’” - -During the next few days the ideas Fraser had arrived at during their -talk recurred to him from time to time with increasing force, but with -all his acumen he never knew the power of suggestion whereby the -strategic plan which so fired his enthusiasm had been laid before his -mind’s eye. At last he discussed, with some of the admirals in command -of divisions of the fleet, the question of training the personnel to -place their divisions in long-range formations by means of -radio-compass triangulation, and pointed out some of the tactical -advantages that might be had by so doing. The admirals for the most -part thought little of the idea. They were used to thinking of the -radio compass as a useful adjunct to navigation in thick weather, and -as being possibly useful in finding enemy submarines, but to use it -for fleet formations seemed ridiculous. Some thought it looked well on -paper, but wouldn’t work out in the practice; one or two simply didn’t -think. These officers, excellent men, well trained in their -profession, could hardly be blamed for shying at so radical an -innovation. An eminent scientist has said anent the inflexibility of -the mind in the latter half of its career, that, considering what an -immutable structure the nervous system becomes at maturity, the -remarkable fact is that we can take in any new ideas after fifty. The -flexible mind at this age is a rarity; the original mind at any age is -a rarity. - -Fraser sought Commander Jeremy and was surprised and impressed with -the number of verified predictions of weather several days in advance -and the regularity with which they were correctly made. The intricate -system of measurements of temperature, humidity, wind direction and -velocity presented a truly wonderful picture of scientific -development; and the way all these were correlated with similar data -from remote stations and the conclusions were reached was marvelous. - -Fraser refrained from mentioning these matters to Admiral Johnson -himself until he had noted the reaction of several of the rear -admirals to his tactical scheme as he proposed it, and until he had -given serious thought to their comments. Finally, having enlisted a -moderate degree of approval on the part of two of these men, he -suggested what he had in mind to Admiral Johnson. The Admiral, who -valued Fraser for the efficiency he had already shown, listened -attentively, but was disposed to shake his head at several features of -the plan. It sounded to him too fantastic and impracticable. -Nevertheless, he consented to discuss it at a conference with his rear -admirals. - -The conference was called and Fraser went into it with the conviction -that his proposal was fraught with momentous possibilities. But as the -discussion progressed, he found that with only halting and hesitant -support from the two admirals whose backing he had previously won, -even his buoyant enthusiasm was no match for the opposition of the -majority. But, since not one convincing argument against the scheme -was presented by any one, he was at the end of the conference more -convinced than ever of its essential soundness, and more determined to -fight for its adoption. After the other admirals had dispersed, Fraser -continued to discuss the matter with Admiral Johnson. - -“You see, Fraser,” said the Admiral, “you mustn’t let your enthusiasm -carry you away too far. The majority of the admirals were clearly -opposed to your idea.” - -“Yes,” answered Fraser, “but was there one single valid reason given -why it should not work?” - -“I don’t know about that,” answered the Admiral, “but it would be rash -policy to adopt all of a sudden a new type of formation differing -radically from that to which we are trained and which has been proved -efficient, especially when a failure of this new-fangled method with -which you propose to correlate the divisions would result in -disastrous confusion and loss of all-important concentration of -force.” - -“If we could hope to engage the enemy under tolerably favorable -conditions,” answered Fraser, “we should be justified in adhering to -the present well-tried formations, but they know our strength and -won’t chance it. Unless we can draw them out by making them think -conditions are favorable for them, they won’t come out at all; and -unless we have something up our sleeves better than they are prepared -for, we can’t afford to risk action under conditions which they deem -favorable. If things drag on as they are now, what does it mean? -Continued deadlock on sea like the deadlock on land. At the present -moment the deadlock on land is in danger of breaking for the worse. -The enemy have recently made a serious breach in our line by a new -trick in chemical warfare of which we have not the secret. There were -enough reserves available to close up the breach this time. But with -such methods, unknown to us, available to them, and with the marvelous -generalship of Murad, and his genius for making effective use of just -that sort of thing, the outlook for the war is very ominous unless we -can force their hand at sea. It’s worth everything to bring things to -a head in the most advantageous way. If the stake is worth it, we can -by adequate effort develop this method and make it work. Surely the -stake is worth it.” - -The Admiral sat for a while frowning and tapping his desk with his -fingers. - -“What assurance have you that this method will work?” he asked at -last. “Are you well enough acquainted with the technical difficulties -that may have to be overcome to guarantee its success?” - -“Technically it is the same method that has worked on destroyers in -finding and sinking submarines. I have not an intimate knowledge of -the technical details myself, but the radio gunner, Evans, who was -responsible for its proper working on the first successful submarine -hunt, knows more about it than any man in the navy; he has assured me -that it would be perfectly feasible to apply the same method on the -more extensive scale required for the maneuvers we’ve been -discussing.” - -“It’s risky to touch too closely on grand strategy in talking with a -gunner,” remarked the Admiral. - -“I trust this man’s discretion above that of most men of twice his -rank,” answered Fraser. “I have found his advice on technical radio -matters of the greatest value, and he has an unusual sense of the -fitness of such things from the tactical point of view. I wish you -would talk with him about this; he could answer your questions as to -the technical difficulties better than I can.” - -Admiral Johnson pondered the matter awhile and then decided to summon -the rear admirals again and let Fraser call in Evans to explain to -them more fully what radio direction-finding actually amounted to. - -It was an atmosphere well calculated to make the stoutest heart quail -that confronted Evans when Fraser brought him into the august -gathering of rear admirals, their patience already visibly tried by -the resumption of an apparently futile discussion. Admiral Johnson -explained to him that his testimony was desired on certain technical -questions concerning the radio compass. Carefully avoiding any -disclosure of the ultimate object in view, he endeavored to outline -the sort of service that might be required of the apparatus, and asked -if it could be relied upon to perform this service accurately, -regularly, and under a variety of adverse conditions. Evans with -difficulty suppressed a smile as he listened to the Admiral’s -elaborate and guarded wording of the question he had come prepared to -answer. - -He answered emphatically and unqualifiedly in the affirmative. And he -did not stop there. He went on to say: - -“Technically the service you mention is no different from that which -the radio compasses in cruisers, destroyers, chasers, and shore -stations are performing daily. The apparatus would be used in the same -way; it would simply be used for a different purpose.” - -One of the admirals asked if he thought it was well enough understood -to be safely relied on in an emergency. - -“Certainly,” answered Evans; “it is as well understood as a gun, and -that has been relied on in most of the emergencies in history.” - -“But isn’t it the work of a highly trained specialist to keep it in -proper working order and to use it accurately?” - -“There again, I can say, without hesitation, not the least bit more so -than a gun. It takes less skill to calibrate a radio compass than to -bore-sight a gun, and it is far easier to use it accurately than to -shoot straight with a gun; that is, with the accuracy required for -practical results. If one quarter the effort that is spent -bore-sighting guns and drilling gun crews were given to calibrating -and inspecting radio compasses and training the men to use them -quickly and accurately, and if the officers insisted on efficiency, -the radio compass would do its job just as surely as the guns under a -good gunnery officer. As for using the intelligence obtained with it, -that is up to the officers that handle the fleet, and in that respect -the Navy is not apt to fail.” - -Admiral Johnson was startled by the earnestness and assurance with -which he warmed to the conclusion of his remarks; some of those -present felt that he was verging on effrontery, and sought to snub him -with expressions of doubt. - -“Might I suggest,” said Evans, turning to Admiral Johnson, “that the -best way to settle this question and find out if the radio compass -will do what you want, is to try it with the ships at sea in a test -maneuver?” - -One rear admiral, incensed by the gunner’s evident contempt for the -authority with which he had essayed to set him down, and the unabashed -appeal to the higher authority of experiment, exclaimed testily: “It -would only be a waste of time, fuel, and energy.” - -“Would it involve any more time, fuel, and energy than the practice -cruises which are being made periodically at the present time?” asked -Evans quietly. - -“On these we drill the men at battle stations, gunnery practice, and -other things in which the fleet must be kept in constant training,” -said the rear admiral. - -“That could all be done while the proposed trial maneuver is going on, -without the slightest interference,” said Evans. “The men at battle -stations and the other regular drills needn’t even know that any other -test is being made; in fact, it would be better they shouldn’t.” - -Another rear admiral who had been inclined to favor the plan from the -first, now nodded in approval and remarked, “There’s some merit in -that idea.” - -Admiral Johnson then spoke. - -“I can see no reason why the question should not be put to the test of -a trial maneuver of the fleet, such as has been suggested. It is worth -while to experiment to that extent and see what can be done.” - -He then requested Fraser to make plans for a maneuver which would give -the proposed method of fleet coördination a fair test and to report to -him the next day. Then turning to Evans he thanked him for his -testimony, and, forgetting that Evans had just put the thought into -his head by his last remark, warned him to be extremely discreet and -repeat nothing of what he had heard to any one. Evans received the -warning with due courtesy and deference, and then withdrew. - -It was arranged that in a week’s time two battleship divisions should -take station on opposite sides, east and west, of a designated -rectangular area at sea; then a division of cruisers, with the -Commander-in-Chief on board, would steam into this area from the south -at a point unknown to the battleship divisions, and would continue on -a roughly northerly course; the flagship in the lead and another ship -at the rear, keeping a distance of just two miles between them, were -to send radio signals to each other continuously. The battleship -divisions, guided solely by their radio compasses, were to take -station, each in a stated position, relative to the cruiser force, far -enough away to be well out of sight, and were to maintain these -relative positions without sending any radio signals; then at a given -signal from the flagship they were to deploy toward her till visual -contact should reveal whether or no the assigned relative positions -had been accurately maintained. This was a fair test which should -answer the question whether the maneuver Fraser had so earnestly -advocated was feasible. - -The next few days Evans spent going continuously from ship to ship -inspecting and testing the radio compasses in all that were to -participate in the maneuver, and satisfying himself that the operators -were proficient in their use. The necessary testing of apparatus and -quizzing of men took all his time from morning till night, and, as he -sank into bed after the second day, dead tired, the feverish activity -pursued him into his sleep. In his dreams he was still restlessly -whirling the coils in a search of the elusive bearing—never quite -satisfactorily obtained; or trying over and over again to drive into a -stupid operator’s mind an intangible something which he couldn’t -crystallize in his own. Ill refreshed by his sleep he rose and plunged -into the task anew, questioning operators searchingly, drilling them -when necessary, explaining to them points on which they were not -clear. Before the week was over, he was able to rest with the -assurance that the men would not fail him in this crucial test. - -The ships put to sea, the two battleship divisions going first to -their allotted places of waiting where with the usual drills the minds -of all were kept occupied, none but the communication officers being -apprised of the nature of the tests to be made. Admiral Johnson, -flying his flag on a scout cruiser, then led the cruiser force into -the designated area, laying a course that would put the -direction-finding procedure to a real test. The visibility was low; -barely two miles could a battleship be seen through the low-lying -haze. The stream of radio traffic between the leading scout and the -cruiser at the rear end of the line was begun and duly maintained. For -thirty miles the column steamed northward after entering the -designated area; twice they changed course, to render the task of the -battleships more difficult. Then at last the signal was given for the -battleships to deploy inward. When the forms of the battleships loomed -up through the haze both east and west almost simultaneously, Admiral -Johnson knew at once that they could not have been far from the -positions assigned; and when their reports were all in and the -laying-out of the day’s work on the plotting-board revealed that each -division had held its relative position to within half a mile -throughout the maneuver, he knew that he had in truth a powerful -weapon in his hand. - -Immediately after this convincing demonstration, Admiral Johnson -showed his worth by vigorously sweeping aside all objections on the -part of the more conservative admirals and insisting that the new -method of tactical coördination should be developed to a high degree -of perfection; and in this he relied largely on Fraser. With the -increased hope of gaining an advantage through surprise, the Admiral’s -eagerness for a decisive action increased, and he cudgeled his wits to -think how this desired end could be attained. Fraser, himself able to -assimilate at a single meal the three ideas which had developed in his -conversation with Evans, knew better than to feed them to Admiral -Johnson more than one at a time. He now met the Admiral’s desire to -draw out the enemy by suggesting various ways of presenting an outlook -that would appear favorable to the enemy Intelligence Service. - -Frequent conferences followed between Fraser and Barton; and -consultations with Jeremy on the weather problem. Conferences also -occurred between Barton and Evans, unknown even to Fraser. The fleet -engaged in an increasing number of practice cruises at sea on which -they worked out various problems of group maneuvering by means of -radio-compass triangulation, and yet all of the ships’ companies -except those directly concerned were kept busy at their own tasks, and -remained in complete ignorance of this new feature of the fleet’s -activity. - -As the month of March drew to a close, a subtle feeling diffused -through the fleet that something of moment was in the air. In wardroom -conversation remarks were dropped that vaguely reflected this -quickening of the spirit of impending adventure. Yet no one could -trace this feeling to its source. Was it, after all, anything more -than the magic influence of spring which even to the worker within -brick walls comes and permeates the core of his emotional being with a -strange elation and a sense of universal expansion? Perhaps even in -these semi-tropical islands, where there is little of the rotation of -seasons as we know it in the North, the approach of April filled the -men with a yearning that found its expression in this general sense -that some great event was about to happen. - - - - - CHAPTER XI - - INTRIGUE AND MISCHIEF - - -Throughout these days Evans maintained vigilant and nerve-racking -watch over the personnel with a view to detecting any leakage of -information by radio which might give the enemy a hint about the code. -For more than one reason he now began to contemplate with increasing -uneasiness the incumbency of Commander Rich as head of the Radio -Division of the Bureau of Engineering in Washington. When Captain -Brigham had told Commander White, the preceding August, about -Commander Rich’s advice to him on the subject of the radio equipment -on the flagship, White had, of course, carefully refrained from -repeating the remarks of his chief to Evans. But when in the autumn he -was relieved by Commander Elkins, White had explained the situation to -his successor and told him how Brigham’s attitude had been responsible -for virtually putting the most important part of the radio equipment -out of commission. In the course of his explanation White had quoted -Captain Brigham’s remark about his conversation with Rich, which -revealed the fact that this high official had actually encouraged the -dismantling of apparatus whose value, though unknown to Brigham, was -well understood by Elkins. In the course of the winter Elkins placed -ever-increasing confidence in Evans as they worked together in the -nerve center of the fleet. One day he told him of this remark of -Captain Brigham’s which White had passed on to him. Elkins mentioned -it as evidence of ultra-conservatism in the Bureau, constituting a -difficulty with which they were obliged to reckon. To Evans it -appeared not merely as a troublesome obstacle, but as a cause of grave -uneasiness. - -Another thing which enhanced this feeling was the fact that he had -found several important pieces of radio apparatus, recently shipped -from the navy test shop in Washington, seriously defective. What was -more, the defects did not appear to be such as could be ascribed to -sheer carelessness of workmanship; they were in vital parts of the -apparatus, always where most difficult to discover, and most -inaccessible and troublesome to remedy. The frequency with which these -conditions were found was greater than could be laid to the common -perversity of complex apparatus. Yet nothing of this sort had been -definite enough to arouse in him much more than a vague sense of -uneasiness, nor to make him feel justified in mentioning his fears to -either Elkins or Barton. One night, as he lay in his berth pondering -the significance of these defects which kept coming to light, there -flashed on his mind the recollection that when last in Washington he -had often seen Wellman going to see Commander Rich in his private -office. At the time, this had not added much to his uneasiness about -Rich, for, being already convinced that Wellman was a spy, it seemed -only natural that he should be assiduously cultivating the head of the -Radio Division; but now it began to haunt him. The malignant look he -fancied he had seen in Rich’s face came back to him. At the time, he -had persuaded himself that it was a trick of his imagination provoked -by pique. Now the memory of that look returned and would not be set -aside. Late into the night he tossed on his mattress, devoured by -ominous conjectures. When sleep came at last, the face of Rich, its -malignity horribly intensified, haunted his dreams. - -It was near the end of March; the preparations in the fleet were daily -assuming a more momentous import, and efficiency in the flagship’s -center of communication was more vital than ever. Radio Gunner Long -now arrived at Punta Delgada from Washington, and presented himself -aboard the flagship with orders from the Bureau of Engineering to make -certain changes in the radio apparatus, changes which were the result -of secret developments just made in the laboratories of the Bureau. -Evans recalled having seen Long occasionally in the Bureau at -Washington, though he had scarcely made his acquaintance. Now he -received him with cordial attention, and asked him all the news from -Washington, showing especial interest in the new developments which -Long had come to introduce. In this he met a rebuff. Long answered his -questions with generalities, evading any disclosure of the nature of -the changes he was going to make. These were confidential, and his -duty to the Bureau of Engineering constrained him from revealing their -nature to any one. - -It was nearing the noon hour when Long first began looking over the -gear in the radio room in preparation for commencing alterations. -Evans and the chief radio electrician were both in the radio room -about their various duties, and offered to help Long at his task. He -declined their offers; the job he was going to do was one that he -could manage better by himself. He spent a good deal of time getting -out pliers and other tools and looking them over; he stopped to -examine this and that piece of apparatus, and altogether seemed to be -very slow in getting to work. Eight-bells struck, and Evans asked Long -if he wasn’t coming down to lunch. - -“I think I’ll stay here and work,” said Long. “I’m not very hungry -to-day.” - -So Evans went to lunch, leaving Long alone in the radio room except -for the operator on watch. He had not been gone two minutes, however, -before he returned to get a notebook he had left there. Entering -quickly, he saw Long rise hastily from behind one of the receivers at -the sound of the opening door, and on his face an ugly scowl gave way -rapidly to a look of utter indifference. The place where Long was at -work was so concealed from the operator on watch that it was -impossible for him to see anything of the nature of the changes Long -was making without leaving the receiver at which it was his duty to -listen. Evans remarked something about forgetting his notebook, -fumbled for a minute among the papers on the table, then left again -and went to his lunch. - -When next he returned, half an hour later, Long was in a different -part of the radio room making some adjustments on the main -transmitter, and took no notice at all of Evans as he entered. - -Evans sat down unconcernedly and looked over some recent dispatches, -then began to engage Long in conversation. A few platitudes were -exchanged, and the atmosphere became a bit less tense. Evans began -tinkering with some apparatus, and, opening a drawer, took out a strip -of polished metal and set it down on the bench before him, propped -against the panel of a receiver. Looking intently at the panel and -with his back to Long, he asked in a casual voice, “What do you think -of Commander Rich as an authority on radio?” - -The reflection in the metal strip revealed a sudden start and a quick -glance at Evans, but the voice was casual enough as Long replied, -“Why, he’s the greatest radio man we’ve got. Of course, I scarcely -know him personally, but from all I’ve heard, I guess he heads the -list, all right.” - -Evans continued to tinker with some odds and ends on the bench in -front of him and to examine the adjustments of the receiver, glancing -now and then at the strip of metal. Long continued to kill time, -fussing ineffectually over some wires. Evans then sat down comfortably -in a chair with his feet up in another, and, taking his slide-rule out -of his pocket, began to seek in it the answer to a mathematical -riddle. He was determined not to leave the room now until Long had -left it, and not then until he had done a bit of looking round. He -made it evident that he was settling down to stay. But the slide-rule -told him nothing more erudite than that two times two equals four; and -even that bit of erudition was quite lost on him, for his thoughts -were tussling with ugly conjectures. - -An hour passed; Long kept as busy as he was able doing nothing, while -Evans wielded his slide-rule, and once in a while scribbled a figure -on a slip of paper. At last Long said, “Well, I guess I’ll go to the -machine shop and see if I can find some things I shall need -to-morrow.” - -Evans took no notice of him as he went out, but, as soon as the sound -of his steps had died away, he opened the door and looked out to be -sure Long was not still lurking near by. Then shutting it again he -hastened to examine the apparatus. He soon satisfied himself that the -only changes Long had made in the main transmitter were trifling -readjustments whose only effect would be to impair its efficiency a -little without making enough trouble to attract the attention of the -operators. Clearly that was not worth sending a man all the way from -Washington to do. Evans then began examining the gear in the vicinity -in which he had surprised Long when he first returned after his false -departure for lunch. At first everything appeared to be wholly -undisturbed. But on more careful examination he saw the tiny scratch -of a screwdriver freshly made on the woodwork at the back of a -receiver not much used in port, but on which much would depend in -communicating with the fleet in action. Seizing a screwdriver he -hastily opened the receiver. Inside everything appeared as it should -be; not a wire appeared displaced. But as he examined it more closely -with a flashlight something caught his eye. Two wires had been removed -from their terminals and then adjusted so that they rested in contact -with them and would continue to do so as long as the receiver was not -disturbed, but their position was so unstable that the jarring of the -ship under way was certain to shake them loose and leave their ends -dangling in the air. The result of this would be that as long as the -ship remained in harbor the receiver would meet all tests without a -flaw, but as soon as she put to sea this important means of receiving -information from the fleet would be crippled. - -The case against Long was proved as far as Evans was concerned, and he -no longer had any doubts as to Commander Rich’s complicity. He must -see Barton at once. He looked at his watch and recalled that Fraser -and Elkins had already gone ashore to meet Barton, and that in less -than an hour these three were to start on a tour of inspection of the -defenses on Saint Michael’s, Santa Maria, and Formigas where were -located the stations with the devices for detecting the approach of -hostile craft to the outer line of nets. They would not return till -late in the afternoon of the following day. It was just time for a -boat with a liberty party to shove off for the shore; there would not -be another for an hour, and that would be too late. He must catch that -boat. He said to the operator on watch and the chief radio electrician -who had just entered, “Keep your eyes open and notice the changes Mr. -Long is making, as far as you can; it will make it easier for him to -teach you anything you will need to know about operating the set when -he gets through.” - -Then leaving the room he ran for all he was worth till he came on -deck, and, rushing to the starboard rail, looked over. There was the -big motor-sailer already loaded with sailors and away, swinging round -to her course for the inner harbor; in a minute she would be passing -close to the ladder hanging from the boom off the quarter-deck. - -Now every man aboard ship must ask permission to go ashore, and the -officer of the deck is stationed at the gangway when the liberty -parties leave, to grant such permission, but to a man performing such -duties as Evans’s, requiring frequent excursions at all sorts of -times, the mumbling of “Permission to leave the ship” as he steps over -the rail soon becomes an empty form and is relegated to the -subconscious. Furthermore, Evans was quite accustomed to climbing down -into the motor-sailer from the boom in order to rig a temporary -transmitter in her for testing some of the radio gear aboard the ship. -For such a purpose the formal permission to leave the ship was -commonly waived or completely overlooked. Therefore, it was not wholly -unnatural that when Evans came on deck, in his eagerness to convey his -news to Barton he simply forgot all about formalities and made for the -boom. Running nimbly out on it and slipping down the ladder, he hailed -the coxswain of the motor-sailer, who swung in a few feet from his -course to take him aboard. Ensign Coffee was officer of the deck at -the time, and witnessed the performance. This mode of leaving the ship -was not for a moment to be countenanced. Seizing a megaphone this -irate officer called sharply to the coxswain and ordered him to return -at once to the ship, and, when she was at the gangway, ordered Evans -to come aboard, then sent the motor-sailer once more on her way. - -“What does this mean?” asked Coffee sternly. “Why didn’t you come and -ask permission to leave the ship?” - -“I came on deck after the boat had shoved off,” answered Evans, now in -the position of a schoolboy caught playing truant; “I had an urgent -errand on shore in connection with the radio apparatus, and as I had -always been granted permission so regularly that I had come to take it -as a matter of course, I simply didn’t think of it, but, in my haste, -made for the boat as I saw her go by the boom.” - -“Well, you won’t take it as a matter of course any more,” said Coffee. -“That sounds to me like a pretty thin excuse. Go to your room and -we’ll look into this matter a little further.” - -Evans looked Coffee squarely in the eyes and said quietly but -earnestly, “May I speak to the Captain first? It is about a matter of -great importance, and there’s no time to lose.” - -“I am the officer of the deck,” answered Coffee with great dignity, -“and I represent the Captain as far as you are concerned. I have heard -more than I wish to hear from you already. Go to your room.” - -The corporal of the guard and a quartermaster were standing by -watching the scene. Evans hesitated a moment wondering if there were -any way of persuading Coffee that a real emergency existed, but the -look of the man convinced him that he might as well talk to a pumpkin. -A futile attempt would only do harm. Therefore he went to his room and -sat down to think matters over. - -Ensign Coffee reported this incident to the executive officer of the -flagship. Fraser and Elkins were already ashore with Barton, and the -executive officer knew nothing of Evans and his duties, but the -incident looked to him suspicious. He therefore started inquiries as -to Evans’s activities aboard the ship. When he learned that he had -been making changes in the radio receiver, the exact nature of which -was not fully understood by any one else on the ship, he concluded -that Evans required close watching, and ordered him confined to his -room with a guard at the door. - -Here was a nice situation. Fraser, Elkins, and Barton away for at -least twenty-four hours; Evans locked in his room with little or no -hope of release till they should return. In that time Long might work -untold damage to the radio room; there were hidden parts of the -mechanism that he might break, which would take weeks to repair. Worse -than this, he might by skillful questioning draw valuable information -from the operators; he might even get hold of secret code books, and -then on the pretext of making tests on the transmitter, send out -signals in a code of his own that would divulge vital information to -the enemy. Worst of all, he might find some clue to the secret of the -stolen code and how by its aid the seven submarines had been lured to -their doom. Then all that was hoped for by the further use of this -talisman would be lost. In his agony of apprehension Evans became -almost frantic. He racked his brains to think of some line of action. -When the guard was placed at his door, he realized his utter -helplessness to do anything to avert disaster. He knew that Barton had -confided nothing of his unusual status to any of his colleagues in the -Bureau of Intelligence; it would avail little to communicate with them -even if he were able. After all, what was his status? A radio gunner, -and nothing more. His private conversations with Barton were purely -informal, and gave him no official claim whatever to the consideration -of other officers who were not acquainted with him. Still, if he could -only have an interview with some officer in the Intelligence Bureau he -might be able to secure action; the emergency would justify his -telling things it had hitherto been his rule to mention to none but -Barton. - -With an effort at composure he began talking to himself. - -“This is a pretty pickle for me,” he said aloud. “I suppose they’ll be -having the Intelligence officers out here to put me through the third -degree. Then what’ll happen?” - -The guard heard, and, when relieved, reported his remarks to the -executive officer. - -“Well, I think the best medicine for him is to let his fears come -true,” said this officer. - -He did not consider it worth while to do anything that evening, but -early next morning he dispatched a note ashore, requesting of the -Intelligence Bureau an officer to investigate some suspicious conduct -on the part of one of the ship’s company. On receipt of this message a -young lieutenant attached to Commander Barton’s office was sent aboard -the flagship to make the investigation. - -Now Barton, as is the way of some Intelligence officers, did not -confide all he knew to his colleagues. No one in his entire force knew -the nature of his relations with Evans; few of them even knew of the -latter’s existence. Therefore, when the young lieutenant undertook his -mission he had wholly new ground to break. - -The night had been for Evans one of acute mental torture. Visions of -Long’s possible revelations to the enemy kept rising before him. -Suddenly it flashed on his mind that Long was the same radio gunner -that had been on the Sheridan when she was wrecked. Out of the depths -of his subconscious memories came the words of the operator whom he -had questioned on his visit to the wrecked ship in the Boston Navy -Yard: - -“He was here in the shack and sent me to get some wire or something -from the main radio room an hour or so before we struck.” - -What a dunce he had been not to think of it before! Long had gone -aboard the _Sheridan_ to shift the position of that circular scale, -after first showing the navigator how well the radio compass worked, -so that he would trust it. It wasn’t his own idea, either; Rich had -sent him—Evans would bet his last dollar on that. Of course, it all -fitted in with that gallant officer’s denunciation of radio compasses -in general to Mortimer as soon as the _Sheridan_ went aground. What -about the Gloucester station? Ten to one some one else had been -tampering with that at the same time, only there he had had an -opportunity to cover his tracks by putting things back in their proper -adjustment afterwards, whereas on the _Sheridan_ the operator had -stayed in the shack till they took to the boats, and Long had had no -chance to put the scale back where it belonged. - -Now this devil was here in the flagship’s radio room at the behest of -Rich, with a free hand for nearly twenty-four hours. And Evans had -lost his chance to trip him up. Never had he suffered so in all his -life. At last, realizing the hopelessness of attempting to do anything -before morning, he tried to sleep. But sleep would not come. Toward -morning he dozed occasionally only to wake with a start as -apprehension began to assume the reality of a dream image, and the -nightmare sense that his fears had come true roused him again to full -consciousness. - -In the morning, when the young officer from the Intelligence Bureau -arrived, he found Evans looking haggard and worn, with deep circles -under his eyes, like one haunted by a bad conscience. Evans welcomed -his arrival and endeavored to explain the situation, but the officer -cut short his explanations, rebuking him sharply for trying to shift -the blame to a fellow warrant officer. It soon became evident that his -investigator had his mind made up that Evans was engaged in some plot, -and could not be made to listen to anything he said. Evans also became -convinced that specific information about Long would not only be -disbelieved, but was apt to be repeated indiscreetly to some one who -would pass it on to others, till Long would hear of it and be put on -his guard. Clearly, then, the less he told this officer the better. He -therefore abandoned his attempt to explain matters and became as -noncommittal as possible. - -The Intelligence officer sought to question Evans concerning his -activities aboard the ship. All he could elicit from him was that he -had been sent by the Bureau of Engineering to look after the -efficiency of the radio apparatus in the fleet and to effect whatever -repairs were needed to make it do what was wanted of it. More detailed -questions brought out only technicalities that he did not understand. -He tried frightening him into making confessions, but Evans’s -equanimity remained unruffled. - -The lieutenant was stumped, and was debating what his next move should -be, when Evans said: - -“Shall you see Commander Barton when you go ashore?” - -“Yes. Why?” answered the other, taken aback. - -“If you don’t mind, I should be grateful if you would tell him that I -should like very much to see him as soon as possible. You have my -name?” - -“I have your name,” said the young lieutenant, astonished. “Perhaps -you’ll see more of Commander Barton than you want.” - -Here was a bit of cool effrontery the like of which he had never seen. -What could it mean? Perhaps it might be a clue, but how to interpret -it was beyond him. Perhaps he had better report his interview to -Commander Barton and see if he could make anything of it. - -First, he went to the executive officer and told him that the case was -very puzzling, that he thought he had made a little progress, but had -best confer with Commander Barton before going further. It was not -till late that afternoon that Barton returned to Headquarters in Punta -Delgada. As soon as he arrived, the young lieutenant who had -interviewed Evans reported the whole story to his chief. Commander -Barton listened gravely, and at the end said, “You did quite right to -come back and report to me. I’ll go aboard and look into it myself.” - -Barton lost no time getting aboard the flagship and down to Evans’s -room. He dismissed the guard, and, entering, found Evans in a state of -mind which showed him that a situation of no ordinary sort had arisen. -Evans hastily told him what had happened and mentioned briefly his -reasons for believing that Commander Rich was at the bottom of the -plot, including what he knew of Long’s part in the Sheridan affair. -Barton listened attentively and thought a moment. - -“Some time I’ll tell you something else about that Sheridan business,” -he said; “but now the thing to do is to get this man Long locked up at -once.” - -“Do you suppose you could get some useful information by keeping him -under observation awhile without letting him know he’s under arrest?” -asked Evans. - -“We might do that; anyway, we must be about it. Wait here till I see -Fraser.” - -Fraser and Elkins had returned to the flagship before Barton had come -aboard, but the executive officer had not deemed it worth while -telling the chief of staff about Evans’s conduct and subsequent -confinement. Barton now explained to Fraser what had happened, still -not intimating that Evans was in the habit of having secret -conferences with him, but merely putting his actions on the ground of -his sense of the importance of reporting what he had learned to -Intelligence Headquarters, in the absence of Elkins. Evans was sent -for, and explained to Fraser in detail what had happened in the radio -room. It was then decided that Fraser should tell Long that he was -wanted for certain important duties at Intelligence Headquarters, and -should send him ashore with Barton. - -Long was found in the radio room examining some of the newer -apparatus, but apparently not meddling with it at the moment. He was -told that his services had been requested by the Intelligence Bureau, -and that the chief of staff desired him to get his personal effects -and go ashore at once with Commander Barton who was waiting for him. -At Headquarters he was given supper, and then shown to his quarters. -He was to sleep in a room with another warrant officer, and in the -morning his new duties would be explained to him. He turned in early, -and through the night sentries from concealed positions kept watch on -the door and window of his room. - -In the mean time on board the flagship, Evans hastened to the radio -room to ascertain, if possible, what mischief Long had been up to. He -questioned the operators who had been on watch, avoiding any -implication that he suspected mischief, merely putting his questions -as if interested only in the amount of progress made. In this way he -was able to get a preliminary idea as to which pieces of apparatus he -had best examine for evidence of tampering. He also contrived, without -arousing their curiosity, to question the operators further as to -Long’s activities. Had he tested any of the transmitters? Yes, he had -sent signals with considerable power for nearly half an hour. Had he -called any station in doing so? Apparently not; he seemed to be just -testing the gear and sending blank signals. Anyway, he had not made -use of any of the codes; all the code books had been locked up all the -time. This latter news, at least, was good; but what were the blank -signals that Long had sent? This was now the main question, and Evans -saw no way to answer it. - -Before Barton went ashore with his unwitting prisoner, he and Evans -had agreed that no time should be lost in warning Mortimer of Rich’s -probable complicity in the plot. - -“Use your special method of reaching the Secretary,” Barton had said. -“We have no means as prompt and as free from the danger of leakage as -that.” - -So now, before waiting to make a thorough search for damage to the -extensive array of apparatus in the room, Evans merely assured himself -that a certain transmitter was in working order, and sat down to make -one of his periodical “tests of its efficiency.” It will be recalled -that two civilian experts in the Bureau of Engineering, Tompkins and -Rand by name, were the men whom Evans had charged Mortimer to keep -ever on the job to apprise him of such messages as Evans might send. -On this particular evening in Washington, Tompkins had the duty. At a -late hour that night, the following message came into his hands: - - We have evidence suggesting that the man I warned you - against last spring is involved in treason. Watch him - closely. E. - -Tompkins telephoned at once to Mortimer’s house to ask if he could see -him, but was told that the Secretary had gone to bed very tired. He -decided to wait till morning. The next day he went early to the -Secretary’s office, but was told that Mortimer had not yet arrived. He -therefore returned to his own office in the Bureau of Engineering to -attend to some business. As soon as he felt sure the Secretary would -be in his office, he set out again to deliver his message. - -Now during the night while Evans was confined to his room under guard, -Long had asked many questions of the operators on watch in the radio -room. Among other things he learned that Evans not infrequently sent -dummy messages to “test the transmitter.” It was after he had learned -this that Long did the same thing himself. Within two hours Commander -Rich in Washington had received a slip of paper with the following -words written on it: - - E. has been sending out signals. Watch for delivery to - Sec. L. - -When Tompkins left his office in quest of Mortimer, he was confronted -by Commander Rich. - -“I understand you were looking for the Secretary this morning,” he -said. “You must understand that no one in the Bureau is permitted to -communicate with any one except through his immediate superior. If you -have anything to communicate to the Secretary, you must do so through -me.” - -“I understood,” replied Tompkins, “that as a civilian employee that -rule did not apply to me. I have merely an unofficial message for the -Secretary.” - -“As long as you are working in this division of the Bureau you are -under my orders,” said Rich. “If you have a message for the Secretary, -give it to me and I will see that it is delivered promptly.” - -Tompkins did not know against whom Evans had warned Mortimer, and had -no reason to suspect Rich of anything more than a desire to assert his -authority, yet he knew that he should entrust this message to no one, -but should deliver it in person. - -He therefore replied, “It is the Secretary’s wish that I should -deliver this message to him myself.” - -“It is the Secretary’s wish that discipline should be maintained in -the Department, and that orders should be obeyed. It is by his -authority that every one in this division of the Bureau is under my -orders. You will therefore hand over the message to me.” - -“I am afraid that I cannot do so without the express authority of the -Secretary,” replied Tompkins. - -A dark flush of anger appeared on Rich’s face, but he controlled -himself and took another tack. - -“See here,” he said; “I understand about these confidential messages. -You are making an unnecessary fuss over nothing. The Secretary wants -me to keep things going through the regular channels as far as -possible, and cut out some of the irregularities that are apt to -appear if we get too slack about the regulations, that’s all. However, -to set your mind at rest I’ll get him on the telephone and let him -reassure you himself. Come into my room while I call him.” - -Tompkins followed Rich into his private office where Rich sat down at -his desk and took up the telephone receiver. - -“Give me Secretary Mortimer,” he said. Then in a few seconds, “Mr. -Secretary? Good-morning. Do you recall speaking to me about stiffening -up the regulations and seeing that all communications went through the -proper channels?... Well, Mr. Tompkins, one of our expert radio aides, -has a message for you that he wants to deliver in person. He has -scruples about entrusting it to me; I thought you might like to -reassure him yourself. He’s right here.” - -Rich then handed the telephone to Tompkins who was answered by a voice -that he recognized clearly as Mortimer’s, saying, “That’s all right, -Tompkins; give Commander Rich the message. I think it’s a better way; -it will excite less notice if you don’t keep coming to my office.” - -There seemed now to be no doubt that he must do as he was told; so he -drew from his pocket the sealed envelope containing the message and -handed it to Commander Rich, who received it graciously, saying, “You -see the Secretary and I are in perfect understanding about all this; -you need have no fears.” - -His manner was both authoritative and reassuring, yet as Tompkins left -the room he felt a qualm of uneasiness at leaving the message behind -him. He contemplated talking the affair over with Rand, but their -duties kept them in the midst of other people during the day, and no -good opportunity to do so appeared. - -Half an hour after Tompkins left his message with Rich, a messenger -from the Bureau of Engineering called at Mortimer’s office and asked -to see the Secretary, saying he had an urgent message. He was shown -in, handed a sealed envelope to Mortimer and withdrew. Mortimer opened -the envelope and read with amazement the words: - - Recall Fraser to Washington at once. Urgent. E. - -He examined the handwriting carefully; surely it was that of Tompkins. -But why had not Tompkins delivered it in person? He reached for his -telephone and asked for the Bureau of Engineering. Getting the Bureau, -he asked for Tompkins, but his call was answered by Commander Rich. - -“Mr. Secretary? Good-morning,” he said. “Mr. Tompkins received a -confidential message for you this morning just as he was leaving the -office in response to a telegram saying that his wife, who is out of -town, had been taken seriously ill. The poor man was distracted, for -he felt that he must deliver this message to you in person, yet he -hadn’t a moment to spare to catch his train. I told him to go to his -wife, and promised I would deliver the message to you at once. So I -sent it round by a trustworthy messenger. It was just as he handed it -to me with the seal unbroken.” - -Mortimer pondered the question. Could there be a mistake? Evans had -assured him that his system was as proof against error as was humanly -possible, safeguarded by a method of double-checking to ensure it -against the misspelling of names. It had never failed. And there -before him was this surprising message in Tompkins’s own hand. Why -should Fraser be recalled? There must be a good reason. Having -excluded every possible source of error he could imagine, he concluded -that he had best maintain his faith in Evans who had never yet failed -him. He therefore arranged to have orders cabled to Punta Delgada -detaching Captain Fraser to return immediately to Washington. - -That afternoon, at the end of the day’s work, Tompkins had just -arrived at his rooms when he was called to the telephone. Again he -recognized Secretary Mortimer’s voice. - -“Mr. Tompkins, I want to see you about a matter of great importance. I -will send my car to your rooms to bring you to my house. The car will -be there in about ten minutes; please be ready for it.” - -In ten minutes a limousine drew up in front of the door. The chauffeur -wore a smart livery. Seated in the tonneau was another man. Tompkins -stepped in and sat down beside him. - -“Good-evening,” said the man. “I wonder what this conference is about; -the Secretary merely asked me to come to his house. I’m in the -electrical manufacturing business.” - -The car started rapidly and soon turned into an unfrequented street; -there it slowed down. Two men ran out from the sidewalk, jumped on the -running-board, and the car sped on. One of the men got into the -tonneau beside Tompkins, and instantly seized his hands, while the -electrical manufacturer threw a gag over his mouth. He was also -blindfolded, so that thenceforth he knew not where they were going. -For seven hours the car sped on through the night, and toward the end -of the journey the sound of the engine told him it was climbing a -considerable grade. The road became rougher, then rougher still. At -last, some time after midnight, the car stopped, and Tompkins was -taken out and conducted through an overgrown wood road for some -distance to an abandoned lumberman’s shack where the gag and blindfold -bandage were removed, and he found himself surrounded by six armed -men. He had not the remotest idea where he was, but evidently it was -far from Washington. The hut in reality was in the vastnesses of the -Shenandoah Mountains. It would have been a simple matter to seal his -lips for all time, but Rich had instructed that instead he be -carefully guarded in the hope that by appropriate treatment useful -information might be extracted from him. And here let us leave him. - -The next morning, early, before any one else had arrived at the -Bureau, Commander Rich was in his office, pacing up and down. -Presently there was a knock at the door, and a man with a sallow face -entered. - -“How about it?” said Rich quickly. - -“They got him off, all right. I’ve just been talking with Calvani by -long-distance phone. He had just got down out of the mountains, and -says they’ve lodged the beggar where you told ’em to.” - -“Good,” said Rich, and lit a cigarette. - -“I wonder how many more of these secret messengers there are knocking -round the works,” he continued; then, scowling, added, “We haven’t got -to the bottom of all this business yet. I’d give anything to know -where that man Heringham disappeared to, and what he’s up to. Why in -hell didn’t you get the dope on him while you were there in London?” - -“I couldn’t shadow both him and Evans when they separated,” was the -answer; “and I thought Evans was the more important.” - -“Remember, hereafter,” muttered Rich savagely, “that I like results a -whole lot better than excuses.” - -And with that he sat down at his desk and waved the sallow man away. - -At Punta Delgada, Evans, having sent his message of warning about -Rich, proceeded to examine all the apparatus which the information of -the operators led him to suspect that Long had molested. Considerable -damage had been done, always of the same sort as that which he found -in the receiver. The man certainly was ingenious. Inaccessible parts -had been broken or damaged in a manner calculated to do the maximum -harm with the minimum symptoms, so that it would be a long time before -the operators suspected that anything was wrong, and longer still -before they could trace the trouble to its cause. He was relieved to -find that, troublesome as was the breakage, the worst of it could be -repaired within a week. What bothered him most now was the -question—what and to whom had Long been signaling in his half-hour’s -test? His worst fear was that Long might have discovered some clue to -the secret of Wellman’s stolen code book, and passed it on to his -confederates. - - - - - CHAPTER XII - - THE VICTIM - - -At Intelligence Headquarters in Punta Delgada there was an expert -psychologist, versed in all the latest and most scientific methods of -probing a man’s veracity. With a sensitive galvanometer connected to -the hands of the subject, he could detect the slightest emotional -disturbance when no other evidence would reveal it. The morning after -Long was taken ashore with the understanding that his skill as an -electrician was to be utilized at Headquarters, Barton explained to -him that the task they wanted him for was one requiring presence of -mind and other faculties for which they wished to give him a -psychological test. Barton was well aware that as likely as not Long -knew he was caught, and was not to be fooled; but what if he did? They -had him, and he would have to submit to their test in any case. And in -any case their tests would reveal what they wanted. Since uncertainty -as to whether he was a prisoner or not was apt to increase Long’s -emotional instability, it seemed best to keep up the bluff of a -_bona-fide_ test of his fitness. - -Long was placed in a comfortable chair with his hands in contact with -electrodes connected with the galvanometer whose mirror threw a spot -of light on a screen which the psychologist could watch, but which -Long could not. The psychologist then asked him questions or analyzed -his association processes with test words, observing the motion of the -spot of light on the screen. Some questions were calculated to test -his knowledge of electricity; others were apparently frivolous and -pointless. Whenever a question or word aroused an emotional response, -the spot would make a quick excursion across the screen. After a -series of idle-seeming questions, the psychologist made a remark which -was not calculated to ruffle the composure of any one, except that it -contained the name Wellman. Long continued to present an imperturbable -exterior, but the spot of light made the largest excursion that had -yet appeared. Some more unimportant patter followed which permitted -the spot of light to come to rest again. Another insignificant remark -was made containing a casual reference to the name of Rich. The spot -of light moved quickly on the screen and registered an even larger -excursion than had followed the name of Wellman. At this juncture -Evans quietly entered the room through a door behind Long’s back. At a -signal from the psychologist, he addressed a casual remark to Barton. -At the sound of his voice the spot of light shot off the scale on the -screen. When it had steadied again somewhat, Barton said to Evans, “By -the way, you said you had some repairs to make on that small -transmitter; have you got it working all right this morning?” Again -the spot of light went off the scale; a pulse-recording device showed -Long’s heart beating rapidly, and now beads of sweat stood out on his -forehead. His agitated state was completely ignored, and the test went -on, more innocuous talk being used to steady the spot of light. Barton -then dropped a harmless remark to Evans about Commander Rich, and once -again the spot jumped in a way that could never have been due to -instrumental error or chance. Long was then formally made prisoner. - -Scarcely had this job been completed when Barton and Evans were fairly -stunned by the news that a dispatch had been received at Communication -Headquarters ordering Captain Fraser detached from duty as chief of -staff and to proceed immediately to Washington on whatever cruiser -could best be spared from the fleet. What on earth could this mean? -With the momentous preparations for action in progress, Fraser was -never needed in the fleet as much as now. The obvious inference was -that some crucial question had arisen in Washington, and he was wanted -for a conference. Yet Evans could not escape the feeling that -something was wrong; he could not help associating this new -development with the activities of Long and Rich. As head of the Radio -Division of the important Bureau of Engineering, Rich had the means at -his hand of wielding vast power for evil. Very likely he had created a -situation for recalling Fraser, knowing his to be the controlling mind -in the fleet; and quite possibly he would contrive to have a swarm of -enemy submarines lurking in the path of the cruiser that was to take -him home; or perhaps a mine-field would be laid across her path as she -approached home waters; perhaps some intrigue was on foot to get -Fraser discredited and put on the shelf when he reached Washington. As -a matter of fact, Rich was at the moment considering all these -possibilities of turning to account the removal of Fraser from the -fleet. - -Evans and Barton at once held a conference on the subject. Barton was -at first inclined to assume that there was a good reason for Fraser’s -recall and to advise leaving matters alone until further developments -should arise. He did not feel that there was adequate reason to -suppose that Evans’s secret method of communication had broken down. -If it had not, Mortimer would already be investigating Rich, and any -unnecessary use of the method would add to the danger of its -discovery. If the method had broken down, any message Evans might send -would go to Rich instead of to Mortimer and would thus serve only to -help the wrong man by giving him information and putting him on his -guard. Finally, however, Evans succeeded in convincing Barton that a -show-down might avert disaster, and should be attempted at once. He -therefore went to Communication Headquarters and began once more to -“test a transmitter.” - -Late that afternoon—the same day that Mortimer had received the -message about Fraser and acted on it—Rand received this message: - - Go to M. in person, put nothing on paper, ask him verbally - to repeat back to me all messages received from me in this - way in the last two days. If you cannot do so, let me - know. Avoid head of division; danger. E. - -Tompkins had just left the office for his rooms, whence he had gone on -his long and uncomfortable motor ride. Whatever caution and -watchfulness Rand possessed was now thoroughly aroused. He felt as if -all the sentries, yeomen, and orderlies in the Bureau were watching -him. Taking pains not to digress in any particular from his usual -routine, he put on his hat and coat and started home. But when he had -reached a corridor where he was unobserved, he took a roundabout way -to the Secretary’s office, where he found Mortimer just getting ready -to go home. - -Mortimer frowned as Rand repeated his message to him. - -“What’s troubling Jim now?” he said to himself. “Is he still having -notions about Rich?” - -Then he said aloud to Rand, “Was there nothing more?” - -“No, sir.” - -“Well,” said Mortimer, “the only message I’ve received from him for -some time was as follows: ‘Recall Fraser to Washington at once. -Urgent.’ You can repeat that back to him and tell him that is all.” - -“When did that come?” said Rand. - -“This morning,” said Mortimer. “Commander Rich sent it to me by -special messenger when Tompkins was called away.” - -“Tompkins called away? Where?” - -“Commander Rich said he had been wired for because his wife was very -sick; he had barely time to catch his train; so the Commander -delivered the message for him.” - -“His wife sick!” echoed Rand. “He’s not married.” - -“Then perhaps it was his mother, I forget which,” said Mortimer. - -“But he’s been working in the Bureau all day. I saw him walk out of -the office not half an hour ago.” - -When Commander Rich planned his trick, he knew nothing of Rand’s part -in the system. His only intimations were the message of warning from -Long and the report of the spies he had posted in consequence of that -warning, to the effect that Tompkins had been seen trying to find the -Secretary. He had taken a gambler’s chance, and not an unreasonable -one, that Mortimer would hear nothing of an obscure employee in the -Bureau between the time of his alleged departure and the time when his -kidnapers should get him away from the city. But his gambler’s luck -had failed him. - -Mortimer was thunderstruck. The message Rand had brought him took on a -new meaning. A council of war was held to guard against interception -or leakage in the exchange of messages with Evans which must now -proceed as rapidly as possible till the mystery should be cleared up. -Rand was told to repeat back to Evans the message about Fraser at -once. - -In half an hour Evans in the radio station at Punta Delgada received -it, with difficulty containing his feelings lest the operators about -him should be started speculating about what did not concern them. -Without waiting to tell Barton what had happened, he sent back the -following: - - Message as repeated was never sent from here. True message - was this: “We have evidence suggesting that the man I - warned you against last spring is involved in treason. - Watch him closely.” To-day more evidence has appeared in - confirmation. Fraser sorely needed in fleet; is already on - board cruiser bound for States. - -Nervously Mortimer and Rand waited, discussing the ominous -possibilities of this crisis, till the message from Punta Delgada -arrived. Then Mortimer broke all records for speed in doing two -things: one was to tell the Chief of Naval Intelligence what had -happened; the other was to cable Punta Delgada canceling the orders -recalling Fraser and directing him to return at once to the fleet. - -Captain Fraser, turning over his duties to the assistant chief of -staff, had boarded a fast scout cruiser and left the harbor of Punta -Delgada for the open sea late in the evening. The night was dark, and -by midnight the island of Saint Michael’s had disappeared astern, when -Fraser was roused from his sleep by a messenger with word that an -important radio message for him had just been received. To his -surprise he found that he had been directed to return at once to Punta -Delgada. - -“Well, what next, I wonder?” he said to himself. “Something damn funny -seems to be going on.” - -He sent back a radio ordering the arrangements to be made for opening -the gates in the nets to allow the cruiser to return to harbor, and -then, going up on the bridge, told the officer of the deck to change -course one hundred and eighty degrees and return to port. Before dawn -the cruiser was back at her moorings in the harbor. - -Barton and Evans had both agreed that they had best continue to keep -to themselves the secret of Evans’s confidential relations with -Mortimer, and especially his secret method of communicating with -Washington. Barton therefore called on Fraser and merely explained -that he had been advised through secret channels from Washington that -Fraser’s recall had resulted in some way from the intrigue of a group -of spies, and that their plot had been discovered in time to cancel -the orders immediately after they were issued. - -Meanwhile in Washington, Mortimer, as soon as he received the message -from Punta Delgada revealing the trick and casting suspicion on Rich, -went to Admiral Rallston, Chief of Naval Intelligence, and discussed -the problem with him. This officer cautioned him against taking -anything for granted. - -“Clearly a dangerous spy is at work,” he said, “but let us not be too -hasty in placing the guilt. It behooves us to be cautious about -concluding that a man in Commander Rich’s position is guilty of -treason. The spy, whoever he is, will use every means he can think of -to make the blame appear unmistakably to fall on some one else. It is -easy to tap wires, you know.” - -“That’s so,” said Mortimer. “What is the best move?” - -“I advise you to go to Commander Rich to-morrow morning and, without -intimating that anything is amiss, refer to your telephone -conversation. If he does not deny having had such a conversation, ask -him to explain the discrepancy about Tompkins. You can judge from his -conversation whether he’s in a hole or whether some one else has -framed the thing up.” - -Mortimer passed an uneasy night. The next morning he went to the -office of Commander Rich. While he had been in bed the message which -caused Fraser to turn back to Punta Delgada had been sent and -received, and his ship, turning back, had already reached the harbor. -It was by no miracle that these facts had found their way to certain -persons in Washington who had to do with radio apparatus; nor was it -surprising that the man who controlled all radio apparatus at its -source got wind of them before Mortimer made his call. - -Before Mortimer was up and about, Commander Rich sent for a certain -henchman named Goss, and in the privacy of his room spoke to him thus: -“When the supreme test of duty comes, the faithful will not fail. Our -ruse has been betrayed. Yesterday morning I told the Secretary that -Tompkins had been called away by family sickness. The chances were a -thousand to one he would never hear that Tompkins was in the Bureau -after I said he had gone. By some mischance his suspicions have been -aroused; last night he canceled orders issued in the morning. Soon he -will come to question me. It is of supreme importance for the cause we -serve that I should stay at my post. I shall deny the telephone -conversation and tell him some one has played a trick and impersonated -me. But that will not suffice. To make my position secure, I must find -some one who can mimic my voice well enough to have deceived the -Secretary. Your power of mimicry deceived Tompkins. You will be called -on to show what you can do, avowedly for another purpose, and you must -play your part. I do you the honor to call on you for this sacrifice.” - -An agonized look spread over the face of Goss. - -“Master, is there no other way?” he said. - -“None,” replied Rich. “I must stay, and you must go; the cause demands -it. By good fortune you may yet escape the extreme penalty. We must -also have evidence of tampering with the wires. Go quickly to the -Bureau before any one is about, and, in a well-concealed place, cut -the wires from the switch-board to Tompkins’s desk, then splice them -together again and put tape around the splices. - -“When you are questioned, protest your innocence till the case is -proved against you. Own no master nearer than Constantinople. Tompkins -will not return; but, remember, you know nothing of that.” - -When Mortimer called on Commander Rich at his office that morning, -Rich received him with disarming cordiality and equanimity. Indeed, he -did not look like a guilty man. - -“Do you recall our telephone conversation yesterday morning?” said -Mortimer. - -“No,” said Rich with a puzzled look. “I had forgotten we had one. What -was it about?” - -“About Tompkins.” - -“Tompkins?” said Rich. “Who is he?” - -“An expert radio aide in your division. You said he had a message for -me.” - -“I know the man you mean now; we have several aides, and I see so -little of them individually I am apt to forget their names. But I -recall nothing about any message. What was it?” - -“You said he had a message he wished to deliver to me in person, but -was in a great hurry to catch a train because of serious illness in -his family. For that reason you undertook to deliver the message by -special messenger.” - -“Mr. Secretary, I am certain that I had no such conversation with you; -this is the first I have heard of it. Some one else must have -impersonated me.” - -“That is strange,” said Mortimer, “for it was I that called this -Bureau. I had received the message, and, being surprised at its -contents, I called up the Radio Division, and asked for Tompkins. I -was answered by your voice saying, ‘Commander Rich speaking,’ and -following with the statement I just told you. I have since learned -that the message as delivered to me was quite different from that -which was originally sent.” - -“Most extraordinary,” said Rich, frowning. “There must be some one up -to mischief.” - -He thought a moment, then resumed: - -“Some one understanding the wires could have cut them and connected -them with a portable phone.” - -“But how was it that I heard your voice?” - -“A good mimic could easily have deceived you over the telephone. Was -the message very important?” - -“Very.” - -“This looks like a serious plot,” said Rich. “Some enemy agent must -have access to the wires in our Bureau; most probably he has been -planted in the Bureau itself. I will track this thing down at once.” - -“Hadn’t you better get in touch with the Bureau of Naval Intelligence -about it?” said Mortimer. - -“Yes; I’ll get them to send over a man who is good on wiring and that -sort of thing,” said Rich. “With a clue like this we should be able to -find the culprit shortly. We can question some of the officers and a -few of the more trust-worthy draftsmen and yeomen as to who was in the -vicinity of those wires yesterday morning. I haven’t a doubt we shall -find our man.” - -Mortimer returned to Admiral Rallston in the Bureau of Naval -Intelligence and told him of the interview. Rich had seemed so -thoroughly in earnest he could not help but believe in his ignorance -of the whole affair, especially since in his own opening question to -Rich he had not even hinted that anything was wrong; he had merely -asked if he recalled the conversation. If Rich had been the villain, -why should he have changed his tactics overnight before receiving any -intimation that the message had been changed? Why should he not have -stood by his story of the day before? It all looked as if the spy were -some one else. Admiral Rallston concurred in this view. They would -give Rich what help he wanted in finding the spy, and await results. - -That very afternoon Rich called at the room of Secretary Mortimer. He -already had two very important clues. A place had been found where the -wires to Tompkins’s desk had recently been cut and then spliced -together again. This explained the method whereby some one -impersonating Rich had been substituted for Tompkins on the line. -Besides this a certain chief electrician named Goss had been seen with -a portable telephone going through some of the rooms in that vicinity -yesterday morning. Goss was a man of unknown antecedents who looked -like a southern European of some sort; he had been known to entertain -the others by mimicry on one occasion. Rich proposed that, by way of a -trap, they approach Goss and tell him they have some special detective -work in which his help is desired; that they understand he is a fair -mimic, and would like to see what he can do, since that faculty will -be of assistance. - -“I feel confident that he is our man,” said Rich. “If we show no signs -of suspecting him, but offer him the prospect of receiving increased -confidence, it will be just what he wants, and he will probably -display his talent. We can then confront him with the cut wires and -the evidence that some one was tampering with the line yesterday, and -that none but he could have done it. It is not unlikely that he will -then break down and confess.” - -Mortimer agreed to this ruse, and went with Rich to his office, where -they met Admiral Rallston, who recalled the name of Goss as being -under suspicion of tampering with some radio gear. Goss was summoned, -and Rich explained to him that the Secretary wished a good electrician -for certain special duty requiring resource and presence of mind, and -that he, Rich, had selected him as a good candidate for the task. -Mortimer then questioned Goss as to his experience. Then Rich -addressed him. - -“The Secretary tells me that in this work there may be occasion for -you to imitate the voice of another over the telephone. They tell me -that one day you amused the men in the drafting room by mimicking some -other members of the division. If you can do that, it will be very -useful.” - -“I was just doing it for fun,” said Goss. “I don’t know as I could -really fool any one.” - -“Let me hear you mimic Commander Rich,” said Mortimer. - -Upon this Goss said a characteristic sentence in which he aped the -voice and manner of his master with such skill that Mortimer laughed -and Rich blushed in spite of himself. Goss glanced at Rich for an -instant. In the glance Rich saw a look of pathetic appeal; and even in -his hard and cruel heart there was a shadow of admiration and pity as -he realized how his henchman had shown his talent at its best, though -the revelation sealed his doom. - -Rich cast a knowing glance at Mortimer who saw the convincing -significance of the demonstration. The action then moved swiftly. -Admiral Rallston took the lead and told Goss they wanted him to look -over some wires with them. Then he led the way, followed by Mortimer, -Rich, and Goss, to the severed wires, and, suddenly lifting the plank -that hid them, turned sharply on Goss, saying, “We want to know who -cut and spliced those wires.” - -Goss, true to his master, appeared confused and disconcerted; then, -with a visible effort to regain his composure, professed his ignorance -of the matter. Mortimer and Rich looked on as Admiral Rallston grilled -his victim. At last they wrung from him a confession that he served -the Sultan, but when questioned as to his confederates he stoutly -insisted that he was his own master; Headquarters in Constantinople -had sent him and from none other had he taken orders. - -With the fatalism of the Moslem he faced his execution. Rich was now -more strongly entrenched than ever in the good graces of the Navy -Department. His promptitude in finding the real spy had won him the -warmest commendation. - -The day after Goss had confessed to cutting the wires and -impersonating Commander Rich, Mortimer instructed Rand to send a -secret message to Evans informing him that the original suspect had -been exonerated, and had in fact assisted them in finding the real spy -who was now imprisoned under a strong guard, and awaiting execution. -When Evans received this message his mind was troubled. He conferred -again with Barton and told him he was not satisfied. - -“I’ll bet my last dollar that scoundrel is the guilty one,” he said. -“He’s just pulling their legs.” - -He reviewed the evidence in detail. - -“I believe you’re right,” said Barton. “But it’s hard to convince them -at this distance. I didn’t tell you,” he continued after a pause, -“what I learned about the Sheridan affair.” - -“What was it?” - -“You recall that when the _Sheridan_ asked for bearings, Fourth Cliff -was reported out of commission and Gloucester gave a bearing that was -found afterwards to have been sixteen degrees in error? I sent one of -the best Intelligence officers in the Bureau to investigate. He found -that a certain chief radio electrician named Goss, from the Bureau of -Engineering, had been to Fourth Cliff early that morning to inspect -the station, and had come to Gloucester at noon. He was alone in the -radio-compass shack there for a few minutes just after lunch, and -again about dusk just after the Sheridan went aground. The most -careful examination of the apparatus revealed nothing definite, but -the set-screw which holds the circular scale in place looked as if it -had recently been tightened.” - -“My God!” cried Evans, “what a jackass I was not to get on to that. It -fits into the rest like the last piece in a picture puzzle. Look here! -The activities of those two men, Goss and Long, must have been -carefully planned beforehand. One of the most puzzling things of all -was the way those three bearings, although two of them were wildly -inaccurate, checked up with each other well enough to convince a -careful navigator in a fog. If the gear had been thrown out of true by -haphazard amounts they never would have given bearings so consistent -with each other, except by the merest chance. Those devils must have -decided where they wanted to locate the ship in order to put her -aground; then they must have worked out the errors scientifically in -the light of the ship’s actual position; and they did a damn smart job -of it.” - -“Possibly Long sent a message from the ship in some secret code, -telling Goss where they were, so that he could calculate the desired -error,” said Barton. - -“That’s the most probable bet,” said Evans. “Anyway, it shows clearly -that there was careful planning from some headquarters of deviltry, -which, unless I’m much mistaken, means Rich.” - -“Goss is being watched, but thus far we haven’t pinned anything on -him,” said Barton. “No suspicion of Rich has been mentioned hitherto.” - -“Seems to me,” said Evans, “it’s up to you to go to Washington as -quick as you can get there, and have him strung up.” - -Barton looked perplexed. - -“It would be rather hard to arrange,” he said, “and would attract -attention that might prove embarrassing. Then, too, it might be very -hard to pin anything on Rich with the evidence we have at present. -He’s so clever, and so well entrenched, he can probably work all kinds -of alibis. I think perhaps the best policy is just to keep the lid on -tight out here, and not let any strategic messages go out to -Washington at all.” - -“But he may have other men like Long planted here in the fleet with -all kinds of secret methods of sending messages in code,” said Evans. -“It’s too dangerous to let a man like that stay where he can function -as the brains of the whole intrigue. We don’t know how he may contrive -to cripple us. If he gets on to the secret of Wellman’s code book -we’ve lost a weapon worth many ships. As to evidence, I’ll bet I can -get some information straight from headquarters through Kendrick and -Heringham.” - -Barton shook his head. - -“I wouldn’t,” he said. “Sending names of persons, even disguised in as -good a code as yours, involves a terrible risk.” - -“It’s a terrible risk if we don’t,” said Evans earnestly. “We are -staking the whole war on our naval strategy, and what will all our -strategy avail with a thing like this at the heart of our -communication system in Washington? Every bit of evidence we can get -may be needed to dislodge him. The risk of leakage in communicating -with Heringham is nothing to the risk of leaving Rich where he is.” - -Barton thought awhile. - -“You are right,” he said at last. “Send your message to Heringham and, -when we hear from him, I’ll see whether it’s best to go to Washington, -or what to do.” - -Once more Evans tested a transmitter. For twenty-four hours he waited, -on pins and needles, and during those twenty-four hours both Kendrick -and Heringham lost some sleep, too; also some one in Constantinople -who knew how to make Bela talk did so. The return message which Evans -deciphered from the radio traffic at Gibraltar caused him to go to -Barton and urge on him more insistently than ever the importance of -his going at once to Washington. Thereupon Barton made a call on -Captain Fraser, and in consequence of this call some unusual orders -were drawn up and signed. - -The same day as the conference with Barton which resulted in the -message to Heringham, Evans happened to pass Ensign Coffee on the deck -of the flagship _Delaware_. Coffee glared savagely at him, realizing -that, though he did not know why or how, some power above himself had -caused the punishment he had sought to inflict on this insubordinate -warrant officer to be so mitigated as to amount to little or nothing. -At least, here he was walking the deck as freely as ever, but four -days after his attempt to jump ship, when he should by rights still be -confined to his room, if not in irons. - -“That reminds me,” said Evans to himself, “that there’s one more bit -of house-cleaning needed on this ship. I’d better attend to that now -before I forget it.” - -He knew that his agents in the Bureau of Engineering were now able to -handle his messages to Mortimer; so he went to the radio room and once -again “tested a transmitter.” With his hand on the key he made the -cryptic dots and dashes which the powerful transmitter translated into -silent ether waves speeding across the sea, while the operator on -watch sat listlessly by, waiting for him to finish. - -“The gear’s working well,” said Evans; then rising, handed the -head-phones back to the operator, and returned to his room, where he -got out some warm clothing and made ready for a long journey on which -he must travel light. - -The next morning in Washington Rand transmitted to Secretary Mortimer -the following message: - - Get Ensign J. L. Coffee transferred as far away from - flagship as possible. Can recommend him wherever red-tape - is needed. E. - -Later in the day Evans was talking things over with Elkins in the -radio room, when a yeoman from the coding room handed Elkins a -dispatch. He opened it and read: - - Detach Ensign Coffee to proceed immediately to Washington, - report Bureau Navigation. - -Elkins handed the dispatch to Evans, saying, “I wonder what in hell -they want him in Washington for.” - -“That’s an interesting matter for speculation,” said Evans, and went -about his work. - -When Coffee received his orders, he was in the act of boasting to some -of the other ensigns of the way he had carried out the instructions of -no less an official than Commander Rich to squelch insubordination in -the warrant officers under him, should he see any. He was telling how -he was getting that man Evans to toe the mark, and how he was going to -give him some more medicine before he got through. His jaw fell when -he read the dispatch. The other ensigns tittered. - -“Save your medicine for some one else, Coffee,” said one. - -“Be sure you don’t swallow any of it yourself, by mistake,” said -another. - -Coffee, however, though profoundly chagrined, soon convinced himself -that there must be an important mission awaiting him in Washington. - - - - - CHAPTER XIII - - THE SHOW-DOWN - - -In 1919 when the N-C 4, the colossal flying boat built for the purpose -by the American Navy, made her epoch-making flight across the ocean, -there was, among many others, one great difficulty surpassing the -rest, which made the task well-nigh impossible. The distance from -Newfoundland to the Azores was so great that the problem of building a -machine with a hull strong enough to alight safely on the waves, with -a load of fuel sufficient for the journey, yet still able to lift the -required weight off the water, taxed the available engineering talent -to the limit. When all that had been deemed essential was put aboard, -the boats were actually unable to rise into the air. Something had to -be discarded. The margin of fuel above what the flight would consume -was already so small that the commanding officer was unwilling to -reduce it further. Therefore the emergency radio transmitter was left -behind, and in consequence the N-C 3, flagship of the flight, was -nearly lost with all on board. This much is history, but let us get on -with our story. - -In the years between 1919 and 1937, science and engineering had done -wonders, but they had not lessened the number of miles between -Newfoundland and the Azores, nor enabled seaplanes to fly without fuel -nor to alight on ocean waves without strong hulls. The problem of -flying seaplanes across the ocean under their own power was still -acute. Seaplanes manufactured in the States were needed in steadily -increasing numbers at the great center of naval activity in the -Azores. Cargo space on ships could ill be spared for their -transportation; they must transport themselves. But instead of -attempting to cross the wide ocean in a single hop, they divided the -journey in two stages by means of a great floating hangar midway -between Newfoundland and Fayal. Thus the load of fuel required was cut -in two. - -This floating hangar was little more than a glorified scow with a huge -sea anchor to windward and engines of just power enough to supplement -this in holding her against drifting away from her station when the -wind was strong. Two long arms or wings projecting to leeward from her -hull enclosed a large sheltered pool, and giant plates, extending deep -down under water from the flanks of these arms, broke the waves, so -that even in the heaviest gales the surface of the pool was smooth -enough for the planes to alight. Fuel tanks, repair shop, quarters for -crew of hangar and of passing seaplanes, fast seagoing motor-boats for -rescue and salvage work, and storage space for a few planes comprised -the rest of the equipment. - -A gray lifeless dusk was about to close in on this lonely floating -station the day after Barton had called on Fraser. In a deckhouse was -a sort of wardroom where were wont to gather the officers in charge -and the pilots of such planes as were attached to the station or had -stopped there in passing. A group of pilots was sitting round the -table looking over the latest weather bulletin received by radio; this -promised a clearing of the sky before morning. The sky had been -overcast for two days, and the officers now began their usual custom, -on such occasions, of getting up a pool with bets on the number of -miles off station that the navigator would find them to be with his -early morning star sights. One man bet as high as ten miles. - -“That’s absurd,” said another. “They know just what the ocean currents -are round here by now, and they’ve got indicators to show just what -drift the old scow makes. They’re always making allowances for all -that. I don’t believe we’ll be over three miles off.” - -“I’m from Missouri on this dead-reckoning with a scow riding to a sea -anchor, and a one-horse engine to get home with,” said the first. - -“Well,” said the other, “you back your notion with your dough, and -I’ll back mine. If it clears off like they say it will, we’ll see -to-morrow who’s the richer for the deal.” - -The skeptic rose from the table, yawned, stretched, and sauntered to -the window where he looked out over the endless gray waste of water on -which the leaden sky was already beginning to cast the gloom of -approaching twilight. - -“Gosh, what a dreary place this is!” he said. “I hope they won’t keep -me stuck in this billet many weeks; the monotony of it will just about -drive me silly.” - -“That’s the kind of thing you’ve got to expect in war,” said another -officer, older than the rest—one that was permanently attached to the -floating hangar. - -“I’d give my eye teeth,” said the skeptic, “to be out where there’s -something doing—looking for enemy subs to bomb. Good Lord, all we do -here is to go out to find some blighter who can’t keep his engine -running and has flopped on the water, and tell him ‘cheerio’ while he -waits for the motor-boat to come and salvage him. Why can’t they teach -these bums to fly, before sending them out here with brand-new planes, -anyway?” - -“If they did that, you’d have even less to occupy you than you have -now,” said the older man. “As for hunting subs, I’ll bet you’d find -that a damn sight more monotonous than this. Here you at least find -the blighter you’re looking for.” - -The conversation was suddenly interrupted by the signal, “Action -Stations.” The pilots ran to their planes, and the older officer ran -to his station in the pilot-house where he found the commanding -officer studying the eastern sky with his binoculars. - -“What’s up?” he asked. - -“A big seaplane coming this way,” answered the commanding officer. -“She looks like an American plane, but we’re not expecting any from -there, and we’ve had no radio from Punta Delgada or Fayal that would -indicate any plane was coming. So I called out the gun crew to be -ready in case of trouble. Give a recognition signal—she’s near enough -now to see it.” - -The signal was flashed out—a series of brilliant colored lights—and -instantly the answering signal was seen to flash from the approaching -seaplane, already visible to the naked eye. - -“She’s American, all right,” said the skipper, “but what’s she doing -coming here now? I thought they needed all their planes right there. -And why haven’t we had any word of her coming?” - -The roar of the four big engines was already audible, and soon the -great plane with her wing-spread of a hundred feet, swung round to -leeward of the hangar, swooped down, hovered low over the waves, and -settled gracefully on the smooth surface of the water between the -sheltering arms of the giant scow. - -The great seaplane was warped into the landing stage, and down from -the hull clambered her pilot followed by Barton, Evans, and the -prisoner, Long. - -“Where’s the Captain?” asked Barton of the seaman who helped him on to -the landing stage. - -“Right here,” said the skipper, hastening down from the pilot-house. - -Barton handed him a slip of paper. He looked at it; then turned -quickly to his orderly. - -“Tell Mr. Jones I want to see him at once. Commander Barton, come to -my room and I’ll have supper for you right away. The gunners can go to -the wardroom. I’ll have the plane ready for you to go on in half an -hour.” - -Lieutenant Jones, the executive officer, appeared, on the run, and -saluted. - -“Mr. Jones, have the tanks of this seaplane filled with gas and oil, -have the engine carefully inspected and the best emergency crew fully -equipped and ready to take her; they are going on to Trepassy Bay, and -everything must be ready in half an hour. Have supper for the crew -that brought her in; they’ll stay here.” - -The skeptic was told that he was to take the big seaplane on the next -lap of her journey;—the monotony was to break more abruptly than he -had hoped. Never had the routine of this floating relay station been -so violently shaken. To-day a new record for speed was made, for the -slip of paper called for speed, and it bore the signature of Admiral -Johnson. In arranging with Fraser for the trip, Barton had told him -nothing of his confidential relations with Evans, but merely stated -that since the case involved tampering with the radio gear in the -flagship, which Evans had discovered, he wanted to take him along as a -witness. - -In half an hour, as the tired crew that had brought the giant seaplane -on her flight from the Azores, refreshed by hot coffee and cigarettes, -were beginning to wonder how long they were doomed to stay at this -lonely spot in midocean, Barton, Evans, and Long climbed aboard the -seaplane once more. Long was shackled to his seat, so that he could -not by a sudden leap deprive them of his services as a witness. The -skeptic took his place in the pilot’s seat; and with a deafening roar -from her engines the great creature rose off the water and shot away -into the twilight where she was almost instantly lost to view. Looking -back ten minutes later, the pilot saw twinkling faintly astern the -light on the floating hangar that guided seaplanes to this haven of -rest and refuge on the lonely sea. - -It was only just after two in the morning when the commanding officer -of the great seaplane base at Trepassy Bay, Newfoundland, was roused -from his sleep and handed a slip of paper which caused him to spring -out of bed and order the best seaplane at the base to be ready at once -to take passengers to Halifax. - -At Halifax they stopped for breakfast while a fresh plane was being -prepared to make a non-stop flight to Washington. Before nine they -were on their way again, dropping the islands and promontories of the -Nova Scotia coast behind them at a rate of ninety miles an hour. As -they passed over the heel of Cape Cod, flying high, Evans could make -out the long white line of Monomoy Island with its sandy ocean beach. -The memory returned to him of the same white line when last he had -seen it over the roaring breakers, showing dimly through the rain from -the _Petrel’s_ cockpit, on his adventurous sail with Mortimer. - -It was toward the end of the afternoon that the strange trio arrived -in Washington, quite unheralded. With the utmost care to keep Evans -concealed from Rich’s possible spies, Barton found Mortimer and -brought him secretly to the place where Evans was awaiting them. -Mortimer told them all that had transpired in Washington and how Rich -had found in Goss the real culprit. Then they in turn recited the -evidence they had obtained at the Azores implicating Rich. The -behavior of Long and his visible agitation on the mention of Rich’s -name seemed to Mortimer suggestive, but not conclusive; so did the -testimony of Elkins concerning Rich’s advice to Captain Brigham, but -this, having passed through so many months, carried less weight than -the other. The report of Heringham, however, made him feel that the -case, indeed, looked bad for Rich. After some consultation it was -decided that, unknown to Rich, Mortimer should assemble Admiral -Rallston, Chief of Naval Intelligence, Barton and Evans in his office, -and then send for Rich and question him. Long would be held under -guard where he could easily be brought in, and Commander White could -be summoned at any time from the Bureau of Engineering to repeat the -significant words of Captain Brigham, if it seemed desirable. - -The next morning Evans and Barton were smuggled into Mortimer’s office -with every precaution that no word of their presence should reach the -ears of Commander Rich. Admiral Rallston then came, and all sat down -where they could watch the face of Rich as he entered the door. Rich -was then requested to come to the Secretary’s office. So cordial had -been their relations that he now felt sure all suspicion of him had -vanished, and he obeyed the summons without misgivings. - -With breathless suspense the others awaited his arrival. The door was -opened by an orderly and Rich entered. All eyes were on him. As he saw -Evans sitting before him, his face blanched visibly and there was the -least suggestion of a tightening of his muscles. But in an instant he -was all cordiality, his self-possession never better. - -“This is an unexpected pleasure,” he said to Evans. “I hadn’t heard -you were returning from the fleet so soon.” - -“You wouldn’t,” answered Evans; “the Bureau keeps you occupied with -larger issues.” - -“Indeed,” replied Rich graciously, “I hear often of the splendid work -you have been doing for us in the fleet in keeping our equipment in -working order.” - -Equally gracious was Rich in his greetings to Barton and Admiral -Rallston. - -Then Mortimer, bracing himself for the effort, spoke. - -“Commander Rich,” he said, “I regret to say that a man from your -division of the Bureau of Engineering was found purposely damaging the -radio apparatus on the _Delaware_ under pretense of making changes -indicated in orders from you.” - -“Indeed?” said Rich, his composure not the least bit ruffled, yet with -an appropriate display of surprise. “And what was his name and -rating?” - -“Radio Gunner Long,” answered Mortimer. “Do you remember him?” - -“I think I recall his name,” said Rich, “but we have so many in the -Bureau I find it hard to know them all. At all events, I should not -have been directly concerned with planning the work of such a man. The -officers under me lay out the work and make out the orders; they -merely bring them to Admiral Bishop or me to sign. It would be -impossible for me to give any clue to this particular case offhand; -but I can start an investigation at once, and we can probably trace -his orders to their source.” - -“Unhappily,” said Mortimer, “evidence was brought to light which -appeared to point unmistakably to you as the real author of the plan -to damage the apparatus.” - -“Mr. Secretary,” said Rich, with impressive dignity and earnestness, -“it is impossible that you have given credence to such slanderous -accusations after our years of close and cordial coöperation in the -prosecution of the war.” - -“Indeed,” said Mortimer, “I was loath to listen to them till the mass -of evidence seemed overwhelming.” - -“It must, indeed, have been overwhelming to outweigh my years of -devoted service to the navy. May I ask what this overwhelming evidence -is?” - -“A number of things about the behavior of this man Long appeared to -those who apprehended him only capable of interpretation as signifying -your complicity with his acts. These facts, coupled with the changing -of messages last week, and the simultaneous disappearance of Mr. -Tompkins, which present indications seem to show are not as easily -explained as you made them appear to be then through the agency of -Goss, have led to the accusation.” - -“All these things can still be perfectly well explained. Goss -confessed to tapping the wires and impersonating me, as you yourself -can witness; Tompkins was probably himself implicated, and, hearing of -Goss’s fate, has either absconded or committed suicide. The evidence -associated with this man Long, you speak of, can be explained on -proper investigation as easily as all the rest. I think, Mr. -Secretary, you are doing me an extraordinary injustice to so much as -listen to these accusations after my years of devoted service. Perhaps -the gunner, here,” indicating Evans, “who has at times been impatient -with me for not accepting new-fangled ideas as quickly as he would -like, has been poisoning your mind against me.” - -“Since you bring up that issue,” said Evans, “I should like to ask -why, if you are indeed the gallant and loyal officer you modestly -concede yourself to be, you told Captain Brigham the _Delaware_ would -be better off without the equipment you had authorized to enable her -to direct the fleet in action.” - -A dark scowl showed for an instant on Rich’s face. “It’s a lie,” said -he; “I never said such a thing to Captain Brigham or any one else.” - -Evans turned to Mortimer. - -“Commander White’s testimony on that point might be interesting,” he -said. - -Commander White was summoned. When he entered the room, Mortimer said -to him, “Commander White, I wish to know if Captain Brigham, while -chief of staff, ever said anything to you about remarks by Commander -Rich to him on the subject of the radio equipment of the _Delaware_.” - -“He did say something about that, sir.” - -“Do you remember what he said?” - -“It is some time ago, but, as I recall it, Gunner Evans had just said -something to him about the set not being in good working order -according to the specifications of the Bureau, and he had told the -gunner the set was the way he wanted it. When Gunner Evans had gone, -Captain Brigham told me that Commander Rich had said he didn’t believe -in most of the newer equipment, and he thought it would be just as -well not to attempt to keep it all in working order, but to rely in -practice on the old-fashioned gear.” - -Commander Rich then said: “I don’t recall making any such remarks as -that. Captain Brigham and I had frequent conversations, and at some -time I may have said that some of the older gear had stood up well in -service and was in some ways more reliable than some of the newer -devices. Mr. Secretary, you know how easy it is to misquote a man, -even with the best of intentions. Some remark of mine has been -misunderstood and then passed from mouth to mouth till it actually is -held up as evidence of treason. The thing is ludicrous. I never -dreamed of advocating anything that would impair the efficiency of the -ships.” - -Evans spoke next. “The efficiency of the _Delaware’s_ radio room as it -was in Captain Brigham’s regime might well be likened to that of a -Ford car with one cylinder working and no front wheels. In spacing the -battleship divisions most effectively for the concentration of -gun-fire, in disposing the cruiser squadrons and destroyer flotillas, -every bit of modern equipment authorized by the Bureau is needed. -Messages must often go out simultaneously on as many as five different -wave-lengths. With the gear as Captain Brigham had it, that would be -absolutely impossible; the team-work of the fleet would be crude and -clumsy—worse, it would be paralyzed. Our ships, rambling incoherently -over the ocean, would be at the mercy of the enemy if ever they were -brought to action. That is what Brigham’s efficiency stood for.” - -“Mr. Secretary,” said Rich with dignity, “I have already told you that -I never advocated any neglect of radio equipment which could have -impaired the efficiency of the fleet. The gunner here is obsessed by -an exaggerated sense of the importance of certain devices in whose -development he has been interested. When he found them not working as -well as he would have liked, and Captain Brigham not as much -interested in them as he was, he built out of some misquoted remark of -mine an elaborate picture of high treason.” - -Evans shrugged his shoulders and looked at Barton. The case against -Rich did not appear on the face of it as clear and convincing as it -had before the defendant’s eloquent tongue had been mobilized in his -defense. But Barton held in his hand a strong card of which he had as -yet given no intimation. During the night, after hearing from Mortimer -how Goss had been caught and driven to confess, he had interviewed -Long. He now rose and went to a door leading to an adjoining room, -opened it, and beckoned Long to come in. As he entered, all eyes were -not on him, but on Rich. When this officer saw the prisoner enter, he -started and turned pale. To the watchful eyes of Barton the look of -guilt on his face was unmistakable. Mortimer was rather struck by the -ease with which he regained his composure after the surprise of seeing -one whom he thought to be in the Azores, suddenly brought before him. - -Barton then handed to Mortimer the original orders under which Long -had been sent to Punta Delgada, formally signed by Admiral Bishop as -Chief of the Bureau. Mortimer read the orders; then questioned Long as -to his mission and how he had come to be sent on it. Long’s voice -trembled as he answered: - -“Commander Rich explained to me that my task was to damage the radio -equipment on the flagship—and later on the division flagships—as much -as I could without its being discovered in time to repair it. Before I -went he called me to his office in the Bureau, where we looked over -the diagrams of most of the apparatus, and considered the best places -to damage the sets in a way that would not be found out till they were -called on for heavy usage. After making a few suggestions he left it -to me to work out the details.” - -“This is the most preposterous fabrication I have heard yet,” called -out Rich in high dudgeon. - -“Just a moment,” said Mortimer. “I wish to ask Gunner Long a few more -questions, then we can have your comments.” Then, turning again to -Long, he continued, “How did you come to be in the service, and how -did your relations with Commander Rich come about?” - -“Goss and I were working as electricians in a factory in New York -where they make radio apparatus. We had been in this country since we -were boys; I came from Bulgaria and he from Thrace. Just before this -country joined the war, Commander Rich, in civilian clothes, came to -see us and talked with us for a long time, asking us what we knew of -electricity and how we felt about the war. We both were on the side of -the Balkan Powers in our hearts and had no feeling of obligation to -America. He told us this country was soon going into the war and that -the rulers in Constantinople had things so well planned and organized -that they were sure to win, and America would then be under their -rule; and any one who had helped the cause would be in luck. Finding -us disposed to work for that end, he told us that he was an agent of -the Constantinople Government and had been holding a position in the -United States Navy for some years, and showed us documents proving his -statement. He offered us jobs in the Bureau of Engineering with the -salaries of our ratings and in addition an equal amount from a secret -source at his disposal. We both accepted the offer, and as I was the -older and more experienced, I was made a radio gunner, while Goss was -enrolled as chief radio electrician. He promised us both rewards -either in money or good positions at the close of the war, and assured -us he would then control great power. - -“Goss was my best friend in the world. No man was ever more faithful; -never did a man face the dangers of that work more bravely or more -cheerfully than he. If Commander Rich had stood by him, nothing on -earth would have made me tell. Till yesterday I stood ready to keep my -mouth shut even if you tortured me. But last night I learned how this -cur had betrayed my friend and foully done him to death. And now I am -ready and glad to tell you the truth. Goss never faltered. He was ever -ready at the master’s bidding to risk discovery, tapping wires and -impersonating others. When Rich found himself cornered, he turned to -Goss and ordered him to reveal his mimicry that he himself might -escape the net.” - -All eyes were on Rich. His face wore a sneering look. - -“Mr. Secretary,” he said, “it seems to me that story is pretty thin, I -might almost say transparent. You, as a lawyer, have doubtless seen -through it yourself already. This man is a spy; we all know that. He -was caught in the act of doing the work he has just described. Goss -was his friend; they were confederates. Now that he has been caught, -and his plan frustrated, he naturally wants to shift the burden of -guilt, as much of it as will shift, on to the shoulders of some one -else. Whom will he try to implicate? Naturally the head of the -division in charge of radio apparatus. It would help his case to do -so, anyway; and now that he finds on his return that I discovered his -friend and confederate, and caused his execution, naturally his desire -for revenge makes him all the more eager to accuse me. With two -motives, both strong, one might almost predict in advance that he -would do just this. As for his story, any one who wanted could invent -it in ten minutes. Surely you will not be so simple as to believe it.” - -Long was seeing red. The storm of pent-up feeling, brewing as Rich -delivered these remarks, now broke. - -“You vile scoundrel!” cried the prisoner. “Goss served you to the -last, and you betrayed him; you made him use the skill that had served -you, to bring on his own death sentence, to save your dirty hide.” - -“Mr. Secretary,” said Rich, “on my honor I am innocent. A man of your -experience will not take the word of a confessed spy with an obvious -grievance, against that of an officer tried by years of service in the -navy.” - -“Probably not, if that were the only evidence,” said Mortimer. - -“I demand of you in the interest of fair play,” said Rich earnestly, -“that Admiral Bishop, Chief of the Bureau of Engineering, be permitted -to come and speak in my defense. I am certain he will assure you of my -innocence.” - -“Very well,” said Mortimer, “I will send for him at once.” - -In a few moments Admiral Bishop was ushered in, looking more pompous, -his face redder and his whiskers whiter then ever. Mortimer told him -briefly the story of the suspicions and charges, and summarized Rich’s -defense. Admiral Bishop could hardly contain his indignation. - -“This is the most outrageous frame-up against a loyal officer that I -ever heard of,” he said. “Commander Rich has been my right-hand man -throughout the war. He has contributed more than any one in Washington -to the high state of preparedness of the navy to-day. Ask any man who -has been close to the organization of radio communications in the -fleet during recent months if the efficiency of the apparatus is not a -signal tribute to the responsible man at the head.” - -“We have just heard from one man who has been very close to radio -communications in the fleet,” said Barton, “and he didn’t seem to look -on their efficiency in that light.” - -“Who?” asked Bishop. - -“Evans,” replied Barton. “He seems to feel that our communications are -working well in spite of Commander Rich, not because of him.” - -“The gunner here!” said Admiral Bishop in surprise. “You don’t expect -me to yield to a radio gunner in my judgment of the men in charge of -the divisions of my Bureau?” - -“No,” said Barton, “only you said, ‘Ask any man who has been close to -the organization in the fleet,’ and he was one; that’s all.” - -Barton deemed it unwise to mention before Rich anything of what he had -heard from Heringham about Rich’s status in enemy circles. He had -mentioned this to Mortimer in private, but the skill with which Rich -had parried all attacks thus far, and the stanch support of Admiral -Bishop seemed to have obscured that testimony in Mortimer’s mind; and -the upshot of it was that he seemed perplexed and rather inclined to -lean toward Rich’s side of the case. Barton therefore left the room, -and, when out of sight of the others, beckoned Mortimer to follow. In -a moment Mortimer excused himself and joined Barton in a corridor -where they could be far enough to be safe from eavesdroppers while -they conversed in whispers. Barton then reminded him of the testimony -received in the secret messages from Heringham in Constantinople. - -Mortimer thought a moment and then remarked: “That might all have come -from some spy who has caught on to Evans’s method of getting messages -from Gibraltar, and has smuggled in fake messages implicating Rich.” - -“That is extremely improbable,” said Barton. “Anyway, there are so -many things all pointing the same way I am convinced of his guilt.” - -“He has offered a reasonable explanation of every item thus far,” said -Mortimer. “I don’t see how we can prove the case against him without -something more definite and unanswerable than we’ve got.” - -While this whispered conference was going on in the corridor, -Commander Rich and Admiral Bishop were making things as uncomfortable -as they were able for Evans. The Admiral was so incensed by the affair -that he freely proclaimed his indignation—men who made such -accusations against one of Rich’s integrity and distinguished service -ought to be imprisoned. Rich, with malicious insinuation, turned the -odium of it upon Evans who, glum and silent, paid no apparent heed. - -Mortimer and Barton in the corridor outside were making little -progress with their conference and were about to rejoin the others -when Mortimer’s attention was drawn to the sound of a man’s voice -talking rather excitedly to one of the clerks in the outer office. He -listened and could hear the voice saying, “It is most important that I -should see him at once.” - -Then he heard the clerk say, “He is having a very important conference -and can’t be disturbed.” - -Mortimer stepped into the outer office and saw that the man with the -excited voice was Rand. - -“Did you wish to see me?” he asked. - -“Yes, at once,” answered Rand breathlessly. - -Mortimer led him into the corridor. - -“What is it?” he said. “Tell me in a whisper. We can’t go in there -now.” - -“Tompkins has just appeared,” said Rand in a hoarse whisper. “He was -kidnaped and has just escaped. His story is most important.” - -“Where is he now?” - -“In his own office,” said Rand. - -“Bring him here at once,” said Mortimer. - -Rand disappeared on the run, and in less than three minutes returned -with Tompkins, looking thin, worn, and exhausted. Tompkins then told -how on that memorable morning when so many things happened he had gone -early to the Secretary’s office with the message from Evans, and, not -finding Mortimer, had returned to his own office, and how, when he -next set out, Commander Rich had dealt with the situation. - -“Commander Rich called you up and explained the situation, then handed -me the phone,” he said. “You probably remember the conversation; as I -recall it, you said, ‘It’s all right, give Commander Rich the message. -It will excite less notice if you don’t keep coming to my office.’” - -“You say I said that?” broke in Mortimer. - -“Yes, sir.” - -“I never had any telephone conversation with you at all that morning,” -said Mortimer, “nor with Rich till after I received the message -delivered by his messenger.” - -Tompkins stared with amazement. - -“This is the most important testimony we’ve got,” said Barton. “Go on, -and remember to speak quietly.” - -Tompkins then told of his kidnaping, the long motor-ride into the -mountains and the days of imprisonment in the abandoned logging hut -with the scantiest food supplies, under guard of five armed ruffians. - -“A few days ago they had an altercation. There were whispered -conferences and arguments just out of my hearing. Angry words passed, -and I don’t know just what happened, but pretty soon I found that -three of the five had deserted, leaving only the two to guard me. The -food got low and one of them had to walk a long distance to get more; -he got back pretty tired. The two of them drank some liquor and -started taking turns at watching through the night. Just before dawn -the man who had gone for the food, having stood watch since midnight, -dropped off to sleep; the long walk and the liquor were too much for -him. I was sleeping with one eye open. When I was satisfied that he -was asleep, I slipped out of the hut. The dawn was just breaking, and -I picked my way down a wood road, and then ran till I had got a good -mile from the hut. I tramped nearly all day and in the afternoon -reached a village where I learned that I was at the edge of the -Shenandoah Mountains. I hadn’t a cent, but I got a man to take me down -in his flivver to a railroad town where I induced the bank president -to trust me and give me a night’s lodging. That was yesterday, but it -seems like last year. This morning he lent me the railroad fare to get -back to Washington. I took the first train this morning, and got in -about an hour ago.” - -Barton asked a few more questions, and then said to Mortimer, “I think -we’d better have him come right in and give his testimony before the -others.” - -Then he explained to Tompkins that Rich was charged with treason, and -they were in the middle of the investigation. - -Mortimer and Barton reëntered the room, and then, with their eyes on -Rich, beckoned Tompkins to follow. As Tompkins entered, Rich caught -his breath with a gasp. There was no mistaking the pallor on his face -now, nor did he regain his composure as easily this time. - -Tompkins then recited the details of the momentous morning when Rich -had intercepted his message. Mortimer explained to Admirals Rallston -and Bishop that he had never taken part in the alleged telephone -conversation, that the message which Tompkins tried to deliver was -identical with that which Evans had later repeated to Rand, and that -the message received by messenger, urging the recall of Fraser, was a -bogus one. Admiral Bishop was quite bewildered, and got lost in the -intricacies of the conflicting narratives. Rallston, grasping the -significance of the revelations, looked very serious. Evans, alert and -missing nothing, was looking more cheerful. - -Mortimer turned on Rich. - -“How do you explain this telephone conversation in which I never took -part, but in which Mr. Tompkins understood me to instruct him to -deliver his message to you?” - -Rich, once more perfectly at ease, replied: “I explain it by telling -you it is a lie; just one more bit of this whole elaborate frame-up. I -told you Tompkins was probably involved in this business, and had -probably absconded.” - -“Or committed suicide,” put in Barton. - -Rich ignored the interruption and continued: “When he heard that there -was a conspiracy on foot to discredit me, he saw his chance to get in -on the thing. He has doubtless been in conference with others in his -gang, and they have decided that this story is the best way to play -their game.” - -There was a pause. Admiral Bishop stroked his whiskers and nodded -approvingly. - -“I think that is a very reasonable explanation, Mr. Secretary,” he -said. - -Evans then spoke. - -“I think there is now a chance of putting this thing to the test of -something better than words. Until Tompkins entered the room just now -I had no idea he was in Washington; I didn’t know whether he was still -alive. I have therefore had no possible chance of collusion with him -since I got home from the Azores. Are you satisfied on that point?” - -“Perfectly,” answered Mortimer. - -“I should now like to ask Tompkins if he felt sure that he recognized -the voice in the telephone as yours,” continued Evans. “Is that a fair -question?” - -“It is,” said Mortimer, turning to Tompkins and awaiting his reply. - -“The voice sounded exactly like the Secretary’s; I had no doubt of it -at the time,” said Tompkins. - -“Now,” said Evans, “according to Tompkins’s story, Commander Rich went -through the usual procedure of calling this room through the Bureau -switch-board. In due course a voice, which Tompkins believed he -recognized as yours, answered. You never received the call. If -Tompkins’s story is true, some one must have cut the wires from -Commander Rich’s room to the switch-board; otherwise the call would -have gone through to this room. Furthermore, some one who could mimic -your voice must have been at the other end of the cut wires. When Goss -was charged with cutting in on Tompkins’s line and impersonating -Commander Rich, more than one man in the Bureau testified to having -seen him with a portable phone in the vicinity of the wires leading to -the switch-board, on the morning when all this happened. He was also -shown to be an expert mimic. It remains, then, to see if the wires -from Commander Rich’s phone to the switch-board have been cut. - -“As for the possibility that they have been cut since then in order to -corroborate the story, you will notice that Tompkins himself has not -suggested that mode of corroboration, and you have granted that he has -had no opportunity of suggesting it to me. Furthermore, if his story -is true, the wires must have been cut and spliced together again a -week ago when all this happened. But if, as Commander Rich suggests, -he had made up his story as the result of a recent conference with his -gang, after hearing that he had a good chance to get in on the -frame-up, then, if he has had the forethought to cut and splice the -wires in order to back up his story, he must have done it within a few -hours. Now an experienced electrician could tell, on examining the -splices, whether they were done within a few hours, or as long as a -week ago. In fifteen minutes we can find out whether those wires have -been cut, and approximately when.” - -“I think, Mr. Secretary,” said Admiral Bishop, “it would be a -gratuitous insult to a distinguished officer to follow the inquiry -further by looking for such evidence against him. I am satisfied the -whole business is an audacious conspiracy to discredit Commander -Rich.” - -“Don’t you think that fair play to Mr. Tompkins requires that we -should look at those wires before concluding that he is lying?” asked -Mortimer. - -“I do not see it,” said the Admiral. - -“I do,” said Mortimer. - -The electrician who had installed the wires in the Bureau at the -outbreak of the war was sent for; also two other expert wire-men as -witnesses. It was a strangely assorted procession that walked through -the corridors of the Navy Department from the Secretary’s room to the -Bureau of Engineering. Secretary Mortimer and Admiral Rallston went -first; behind them followed Admiral Bishop and Commander Rich, while -Barton, Evans, Rand, Tompkins, and Long brought up the rear. Evans and -the electricians set to work removing planks to explore the wires -leading from Commander Rich’s room to the switch-board. It was not -long before Evans, who had chosen a place where a man could work -unseen, to begin his search, called the others to come and look. There -were the wires, each with a swelling of electric tape. This was -carefully removed by one of the electricians, and under the tape the -wires were spliced. Every one had a look at the splices. - -“Do you recall whether the wires were spliced at that point when you -put them in?” asked Mortimer. - -“I am certain that they were not,” replied the electrician. - -“Have you ever looked at them since?” - -“I inspected them two months ago.” - -“Were they spliced then?” - -“No.” - -“Could you swear to it?” - -“Yes.” - -“Can you tell how long ago those splices were made?” - -The electrician examined the wires carefully; then answered, “They -weren’t done within the last three days; I am sure of that. How much -longer ago, I can’t tell.” - -The other electricians examined the wires and all testified that the -splices couldn’t have been made less than four days ago at the very -latest. - -The electricians were dismissed. Admiral Rallston turned to Admiral -Bishop. - -“Can you tell me how that evidence could have been faked?” he said. - -Admiral Bishop did not answer. All eyes were now on Rich who was an -ashy gray, all his affable manner gone, a venomous look of malice on -his face. - -Evans and Barton exchanged glances, and Barton nudged Admiral -Rallston. - -“Have you heard anything from our friend Bela since his unceremonious -departure?” said Evans casually to Rich. “He has been praising you -warmly.” - -Rich started violently and turned a shade paler; the look of fear and -hate in his face was more intense than ever. He opened his mouth to -speak, and then, looking at the eyes of the others all grimly watching -him, he remained silent. Suddenly he turned on Evans and like a flash -drew a pistol from his pocket. Barton, standing close beside him, was -watching him like a lynx. Quick as was Rich’s hand, Barton’s was -quicker. With a swift blow he struck Rich’s right hand toward the -ceiling with such force that the pistol flew from it, and, sailing -through the air, fell at Evans’s feet. Long’s desire to assault Rich -now became uncontrollable; like a wild animal he sprang at him and -dealt him a blow with his fist that sent him sprawling on the floor. - - * * * * * - -High officials in Constantinople sent out message after message -through secret channels. But the messages remained unanswered. - -The day after Rich suddenly ceased to be an officer in the United -States Navy, a great seaplane arrived at Trepassy Bay from Halifax -just after sunset. Out of it stepped Commander Barton and Radio Gunner -Evans, both looking haggard and exhausted. They turned in early at the -seaplane base. Next morning before sunrise they were once more on -board the same seaplane that had brought them from the Azores, with -the same skeptic as pilot, somewhat cheered now by his visit to dry -land. At the floating hangar they found the original crew of the -plane, well rested now and eager to get back to the Azores. - -The sunset colors were fading and the pink stucco buildings of Punta -Delgada but dimly showing against the green hills behind the town as -the great seaplane hovered over the battleship _Delaware_, answering -her recognition signals, and then alighted at the entrance to the -inner harbor. - -Evans was now easier in his mind, for Rich was no more. But still he -was terribly haunted by the fear that Rich or his agents had learned -the secret of the code stolen by Wellman (alias Bela), and revealed it -to their superiors in Constantinople. Therefore the first thing he did -on his arrival aboard the _Delaware_ was to send one of his secret -messages to Heringham by way of Kendrick, requesting an investigation -as to whether the code was still believed to be genuine, and a report -as soon as feasible. - -Two days later, Evans, listening on his specially prepared receiver at -the appointed hour when Kendrick was wont to transmit intelligence -from Gibraltar, recognized the significant combinations of sounds -which meant there was news for him. Listening eagerly, with quickening -pulse he followed the message which came from Heringham. Careful -investigation, it said, had satisfied him that implicit trust was -still placed in the genuineness of the stolen code. Evans breathed -freely once more. The talisman was still good. - -At last, early in April, orders were issued to the various units of -the fleet to be ready for sea on a certain night, and a handful of men -knew that this foreshadowed more than a practice cruise. This handful -of men knew that, by dawn of the morning following the designated -night, the entire fleet would be on the open sea. - -Two days of feverish preparation followed, during which Evans made -hasty visits in the rôle of family doctor, or rather chief consultant, -to the radio apparatus of the fleet, diagnosing ailments, giving -advice and, when necessary, applying radical treatment to disordered -gear. - -As the last day before the departure drew to a close, weary with his -labors, but satisfied that the fleet was ready for its task, he went -to the Borge garden at dusk and ascended the old watch-tower once -more. The moon was rising over the sea, and its broad, shimmering wake -on the water was broken in a hundred places by the dark forms of great -ships, emblems of concentrated might. The moon rose higher till its -outline was broken by the branches of the old cedar tree which formed -a perfect frame for the great tableau of gallant ships on the shining -water. Evans sat and drank in the glory of the picture before him, -which for sheer beauty was almost unsurpassed in all his experience; -its splendor took his breath away. And as he sat gazing far off over -the moonlit sea with the soft air of the spring night fanning his -cheek, a sense of the glamour of the great navy with its power and -majesty, swept over him. A wild thrill went through him, and -long-forgotten feelings of his boyhood seized him. He yearned -passionately to do great deeds and play an heroic part in this war for -civilization. And as the expansive feeling took hold of him he -contemplated his own rôle as he saw it—a technical man fussing over -small details in a small part of the great machine that was going -forth to fight—a tiny cog in the works of a vast organization of men, -almost a non-combatant compared with the men who would direct the -battle, or the spotters in the fighting top. With a pang he told -himself that perhaps his part in the war was already done, and the -yearning to express the heroic impulse within him must die -unfulfilled. Then he rebuked himself for thinking of his own paltry -rôle as if it were of consequence. The sublimity of the scene before -his eyes inspired him to a larger perspective in which self was -submerged and the cause was all. - -“If the cause only triumphs,” he thought, “that’s all that matters. -And the cause will triumph.” - -The majestic fleet dotting the silvery surface of the moonlit sea now -seemed to him the symbol of a great hope, and yet, symbol though it -was, it was something very personal and very dear to him. Then there -came back to him another feeling, long buried deep in the remote past, -a feeling once closely linked with the ardent yearning for great -deeds, that had fired his youth. There rose before his eyes the vision -of one who long ago had meant more to him than life itself, one who -when his hopes seemed brightest had been snatched from him through the -influence of a dominating and ambitious mother.... From this his -thoughts turned to the memory of his own mother, unfailing in her -sympathy, gone now, leaving him the priceless heritage of her -devotion. - -It was time to return to the flagship. Descending through the shadowy -paths of the old garden, he came out at last and threaded his way -through the picturesque streets of the town to the harbor front where -the Old-World architecture around the landing seemed shrouded in -mystery in the pale moonlight. And as he took his place in the -motor-sailer, he felt that his spirit had been far away from the -little things that make up the daily life in the fleet, now crowding -in on his consciousness and dragging him rudely back from Olympian -heights. - -By dawn the next morning the vast fleet—battleships, cruisers, -destroyers and all—had vanished. - - - - - CHAPTER XIV - - THE BATTLE - - -At Communication Headquarters of the enemy in Gibraltar there were -busy times. Radio experts, decoding experts, and Intelligence officers -were especially active in analyzing Allied naval dispatches. The code -system to which Bela procured the key had been verified by repeated -observation of fleet maneuvers, thus completing their assurance that -the Allies still placed confidence in it, and were changing code from -month to month according to the schedule outlined in the key. - -And now activity of special interest was discovered. A considerable -detachment of the Allied Navy, scouts and armored cruisers, together -with four of the older battleships, was cruising to the eastward of -the Azores and approaching near enough to the coast of Portugal to -make things look very interesting. Intercepted messages and -radio-compass bearings taken on their signals by the shore stations at -Vigo, Lisbon, and Gibraltar told the story, leaving no chance of -mistake as to the actual approach of ships to the coast. Such a force -as this, if cut off from the rest of the Allied fleet, would be easy -prey for the Mediterranean Navy; and a chance to destroy it would be a -golden opportunity, for the loss of these cruisers and battleships, -even though the latter were nearly obsolete and inferior to the -first-line capital ships, would be a serious blow to the Allies; it -would measurably weaken their navy, and greatly improve the outlook -for a subsequent battle between the two fleets. - -But could this force be really cruising so far away from the main -fleet as to render it liable to be cut off from support? With -redoubled vigilance the radio forces in the Portuguese and Spanish -stations listened for clues to the presence of a supporting force of -capital ships, or to some explanation of the apparently isolated -position of the cruiser force. - -Now, in radio communications, as elsewhere, the chain is often no -stronger than its weakest link. A slip on the part of a single -operator entrusted with a message may work vast havoc through the -resulting confusion. Before long, as the messages of the Allied -flagships were decoded and studied by the enemy experts in Gibraltar, -an explanation of the dangerous move of the Allied cruisers came to -light. This force, conducting a sweep of the waters east of the Azores -on the chance of finding enemy commerce raiders, was supposed to be -remaining within reach of the main fleet, still at the Azores; that -is, so near that if the enemy should put out from Gibraltar, the -cruiser force and the rest of the fleet could, by steaming toward each -other at full speed, effect a junction before the enemy battle -cruisers with their higher speed could overtake and attack. But a -message from Allied Headquarters in Punta Delgada saying, “Proceed no -farther to the eastward,” had through error been transmitted, “Proceed -farther to the eastward.” Before the mistake had been discovered, the -cruisers had steamed close in to the vicinity of Cape Saint Vincent -and Gibraltar. And now, with the slow speed of the older battleships -to retard their escape, and with the rest of the fleet far away, the -detached force was in a most perilous position. All this was now -revealed to the enemy through their analysis of intercepted messages. - -Clearly there was no time to lose in giving chase. The cruiser force -had discovered the mistake and would retreat toward the supporting -fleet with all possible speed. But so near was it, and so much would -its speed be retarded by the slower ships, that the battle cruisers of -the Mediterranean Navy could surely overtake it before reinforcements -could arrive on the scene. - -[Illustration] - -Emergency orders were given by the Turkish Admiral; steam was raised -for maximum speed in the entire fleet, and with expedition denoting a -high degree of preparedness and efficiency the fleet steamed off to -the westward in search of the detached force. Speed was everything in -this pursuit, and soon the advance force of the battle cruisers with a -screen of scouts and destroyers thrown out ahead, speeding west at -twenty-nine knots, had dropped the main battle fleet out of sight -astern. It was nearly sunset when the fleet left Gibraltar, and -through the night the race to the westward went on. No radio signals -were sent by the advance force, for, though their strength left no -doubts in the mind of the commanding officer of his ability to destroy -the force that now seemed almost within his grasp, still it was -desirable to avoid revealing his approach, in order that he might -catch his prey unawares—he would probably make quicker work of them -this way. But every radio operator listened intently for signals from -the Allied cruisers. Before the night was over, they had been heard -reporting progress and telling their whereabouts to the Allied battle -fleet, supposedly hastening eastward in a vain endeavor to come to the -rescue before a superior force from Gibraltar should have time to -overtake and destroy them. To the great satisfaction of the Turkish -Admiral on the battle cruiser flagship, a message soon reached him -from Gibraltar reporting that bearings taken by radio compass at -Lisbon and Gibraltar on the same message of the Allied cruiser force -had verified the position reported by the cruisers themselves, and -showed that they were only making nineteen knots. Soon after sunrise -the fugitives would be overtaken, and it would not be long before the -heavy guns of the battle cruisers had sunk the entire force. Even if -the Allied battle fleet had started eastward at top speed as soon as -the dangerous position of the cruisers was discovered, they could not -possibly reach the point where the battle cruisers would overtake the -fugitive detachment before the afternoon. By that time the battle -cruisers would have ample time to finish off their victims, retreat, -and effect a conjunction with their own battle fleet. The -Mediterranean fleet thus consolidated could well afford, if conditions -then seemed favorable, to meet and give battle to the Allied fleet, -weakened as it would be by the loss of its cruisers and the four older -battleships. - -At dawn seaplanes were sent up from the Turkish battle cruiser -squadron to scout to the westward and look for the Allied cruiser -force, and especially to make sure that no other force, not mentioned -in the dispatches, was lurking in the neighborhood. A light southwest -wind was blowing; low-lying haze and clouds rendered observations from -any great height impossible. This obliged the seaplanes to fly low. -Just after sunrise they returned and reported sighting a considerable -force of cruisers and destroyers steaming west. Being under orders to -avoid approaching enemy craft near enough to be seen, they had -returned without getting close enough to make out just what type of -cruisers they had seen or whether the four battleships were with them, -for the visibility to the westward was very poor. There was no mistake -then; their prey was surely theirs. The news was acclaimed with joy on -the flagship. The Admiral rubbed his palms together and smiled grimly. -He recalled the great deeds of the Turkish navies of the fifteenth -century, and gloried in the thought that the honor of adding a new -page to their illustrious record would be his. - -Onward steamed the battle cruisers, all hands in high hopes of a swift -and decisive action. At half-past seven in the morning the lookouts in -the Mediterranean scouts, three miles in advance of the battle -cruisers, reported ships to the westward. “Action stations” was -sounded and the scouting line rapidly maneuvered into battle -formation. Overtaking as fast as they were, it was soon easy to make -out a long line of scout cruisers to the westward, now steaming on a -northwesterly course. But where were the armored cruisers, and where -were the four battleships that had been holding them back? The -visibility to the westward was low, and probably the scouts and -destroyers, having greater speed, had held back to give warning if a -pursuing force should come. Probably the rest of the force was a few -miles ahead. At all events, the scouts were now in range, and the -chance to do them damage was not to be lost. The battle cruisers -opened fire with their big guns, and had landed two salvos close to -the fleeing scout cruisers when a smoke screen from the destroyers on -their flank hid them from view. When next they were seen through the -smoke, they had increased speed and opened the range, so that the -battle cruisers’ salvos were falling short. - -The northwesterly course of the fleeing ships was a considerable -change from the westerly course of the pursuit through the night. -Possibly the slower ships had turned southwest in hopes of escaping in -the low visibility while the scouts decoyed the battle cruisers away -to the northwest. Therefore the seaplanes were sent up again to search -the sea to the southwest and find the armored cruisers and -battleships. After a prolonged search they returned with a report that -no ships were to be seen to the west, southwest, or south for a -distance of many miles. - -Meanwhile the destroyers of the two fleets had come together in an -attempt to maneuver for torpedo attack against the larger ships. -Lively shelling at close range resulted, but only minor damage was -done on either side. In consequence of this diversion, the smoke -screen became sufficiently dissipated to enable the battle cruisers to -catch sight of the Allied scouts speeding toward the northwest far on -the port bow, near the limit of visibility. Again they opened fire and -saw their salvos beginning to fall very close just before the smoke -screen of the destroyers again hid them from sight. - -When next they came into view, they had changed course to north and -were already bearing almost dead ahead. The battle cruisers swung on -to a parallel course and opened a heavy fire on them, but the rapidly -changing range made the targets difficult to hit; so, dodging salvos, -the Allied scout cruisers sped northward disappearing again into smoke -and haze. - -Hitherto the scout cruisers of the Mediterranean fleet had remained -only a short distance ahead of their supporting battle cruisers and -hence too far out of effective range of the Allied scouts to make it -worth while to open fire with their six-inch guns. But now a signal -was made from the flagship telling the scouts to pursue and engage -those of the Allies. - -Putting on all speed and changing course to port, the Mediterranean -scouts succeeded in closing the range with their adversaries till it -was possible to engage them with their six-inch guns. And now for the -first time in the war ships of the same type, evenly matched, engaged -in battle. In numbers, speed, and gun-power there was little to choose -between the opposing scout cruiser divisions; but in morale the -difference was one that told in the tense five minutes after the -cruisers opened fire on each other. Those of the Allies replied to the -first salvo, which fell short, not only with a salvo from their own -six-inch guns, but also by deploying sharply toward their adversaries, -thus passing well under the second enemy salvo which screeched -overhead, and rapidly closing the range. Hits were scored on both -sides. On the Allied ships one gun was put out of action, while -several shells burst in pantries, hammock lashings, and other places -which caused more annoyance than vital damage. But so heavy and -determined was their fire upon the Mediterranean scouts that, with -flames bursting forth and magazines endangered, a conning tower -smashed,—skipper and all, and two or three guns crippled, confusion -and panic began to spread. With the Allied fire growing heavier and -their own growing wild, the Turks soon veered sharply away and -retreated under cover of the big guns of the battle cruisers. - -What with distance, haze, and the smoke screen of the destroyers, only -the flashes of the guns on the Allied scouts were visible to the -pursuing battle cruisers; and when their firing ceased as the -Mediterranean scouts withdrew, they disappeared from view altogether. -But it was not for long; soon they were seen again through a rift in -the smoke screen, once more dead ahead, and now heading no longer -north, but northeast. - -What could this mean? Could it be that these scouts were leading the -battle cruisers into some sort of trap? Could there be reinforcements -lying in wait to the northeast? This seemed hardly possible. No -vessels had been heard sending radio signals in that vicinity, -although the net of sensitive receivers, capable of detecting even the -feeblest signals, had been constantly spread—an army of vigilant -operators listening every instant for the faintest sound. Nothing had -been heard save the steady stream of tactical signals between the -Allied scout cruisers as they sped away. If the four old battleships -and the armored cruisers, reported to have been with the scouts, had -gone in that direction, it would be the worse for them, since the -heavy guns of the approaching battle cruisers, soon to be reinforced -by those of the main battle fleet, coming up rapidly from the east, -would make short work of them. No; it was unlikely that the Allied -scouts would attempt to lead them toward the detached division of -slower ships. The main battle fleet of the Allies must still be far -away—in the vicinity of the Azores; the dispatches intercepted the day -before seemed to make a certainty of that. This move on the part of -the Allied scouts was quite unintelligible. At all events, it was -leading them toward the main battle fleet of the Mediterranean Powers. -At this rate a junction would soon be effected, and the Turks couldn’t -wish anything better than that. - -The chase continued on a northeasterly course till the forenoon was -well advanced, the fugitive scouts and destroyers of the Allies -appearing like shadows in a dream, with bewildering elusiveness; and -all this time the main battle fleet from the east, apprised of the -course of events by radio from the battle cruisers, was approaching -rapidly on a northwesterly course. Most of the time the Allied scouts -were out of sight, and fire was withheld, but now and then a fleeting -glimpse of them would cause the battle cruisers to “loose off” a salvo -or two. - -The lookouts on the pursuing ships did not see two American destroyers -approach the Allied scouts from the north at thirty-five knots and -fall into line on their port beam. But they did see the scouts -reappear through the haze and smoke once again at closer range than -before, having shifted course to the east. This was better still;—the -battle cruisers would the sooner effect a junction with the main -fleet. - -By noon the men in the fighting tops of the Mediterranean battle -cruisers saw the welcome sight of smoke in the southeast denoting the -approach of their main battle fleet. A few minutes later the smoke was -also seen by the lookouts on the Allied scouts. The Mediterranean -fleet was now united in one colossal force, the scout and battle -cruiser squadrons taking station ahead of the battleships. Upon this -the Allied scout cruisers and destroyers veered to the north. -Zigzagging, disappearing behind smoke screens and fitfully -reappearing, these scouts presented a maddeningly difficult target for -the battle cruisers. With the speed presumably at their disposal they -might have drawn away and escaped, but instead they zigzagged and kept -reappearing so near that the battle cruisers would open fire on them, -only to lose sight of them again in the smoke and haze before the -range-finders, spotters, and trainers could get in the necessary work -for hitting the elusive targets. Then, as the order to cease firing -was given, the commanders would realize, to the tune of many an oath, -that they had only been wasting ammunition. - -Thus the running fight went on, the entire fleet of the Mediterranean -Powers pursuing a squadron of scout cruisers and a score or so of -destroyers on a northerly course, but only the battle cruisers in the -van could get within range of the fugitives. For half an hour they -held this course; then the zigzagging of the Allied scouts took them -farther to the west, till by one o’clock the pursuit had shifted to a -northwesterly course. Then for a moment the scout cruisers appeared -still well in the lead, but more clearly visible than usual and -offering an irresistible target for the big guns of the battle -cruisers. But it was only for a brief minute or two, and as the salvos -began to splash closer to their mark, six destroyers were seen to dash -between the scouts and their pursuers, sending out a dense smoke -screen behind which all else was lost to view. The smoke screen -continued to lie like a great pall far on the port bow of the pursuing -fleet, but the light southwest wind swept it toward their path, and -soon the destroyers, dodging behind their own screen, had also -vanished from sight. They must, however, still be holding the same -general course, for the smoke continued to pour forth, making a wide -blanket to the west and northwest; and behind that blanket the scouts -were doubtless increasing speed to make good their escape. So said the -Turkish Admiral in command of the battle cruiser squadron, but he -could not see the Allied scout cruisers behind their screen executing -the same maneuver which the German High Seas Fleet executed at -Jutland, although the British believed it impracticable in action—a -“simultaneous swing-around” whereby, each ship doubling on her tracks, -and all at the same moment, both the direction and the order of the -ships were rapidly reversed. Steaming back at high speed, together -with the majority of the destroyers—all but the six that made the -screen—it was only a few minutes before the Allied scouts were abreast -of the main body of the enemy’s battle fleet, some miles astern of the -battle cruisers. Again the simultaneous swing-around was effected and -the scouts closed in on the enemy. - -With blank amazement the Turkish Commander-in-Chief on the bridge of -his flagship saw the long, slender scout cruisers, nine in number, -preceded by some eighteen destroyers, emerge from the thinning smoke -and haze barely five miles away on his port beam and come tearing at -top speed toward his formidable fleet of giant dreadnaughts. The -audacity of it fairly staggered him; here they came into the very jaws -of death. The smoke screen, dissipated and blowing across his line, -left the visibility good toward the southwest; against the bright -horizon sky under the sun the approaching ships stood out clearly, -making excellent targets but for their speed, which taxed the -range-finders’ powers to the limit. Clearly it was an attack with -intent to torpedo. - -“What madness is this?” gasped the Admiral. “They’ll pay for their -folly,” he added grimly. And all along his battle-line big guns and -secondary batteries began to belch forth their terrific fire on the -swarm of hornets making their reckless dash. And pay they did. One of -the scouts was hit heavily by two successive salvos, burst into -flames, and then blew up in a great cloud of black smoke. Another, -with steam pouring from the rent deck over her engine room, veered -off, dropped out of line, and soon fell rapidly astern. But the other -seven came on at a frightful pace, following close to the destroyers, -already hotly engaged by those of the enemy. On came the destroyers -through the deadly hail of shot, and some of them came unscathed -except for funnels and superstructures, to within six thousand yards -of the great battle-line, where each one let go a dozen torpedoes. The -scout cruisers, close behind, fired their torpedoes almost at the same -moment. - -So densely did these underwater missiles swarm toward the great battle -fleet that, in spite of every effort to dodge, several vital hits were -made. One battleship sank then and there. Another, hit close to the -stern, her port propeller gone and her steering-gear smashed, was soon -left wallowing helpless far astern. The Admiral in his flagship -muttered savagely as he saw two of his best ships put out of action, -but he noted with satisfaction the cruel punishment the Allied scout -cruisers and destroyers were getting as they turned to retreat after -firing their torpedoes. He was eagerly watching his salvos hit, the -red glow of the impact, the bursts of flame, the shattered decks and -superstructures that marked the havoc wrought by his gunners, when a -frightful din behind him made him turn and stare wildly to starboard. -There, scarce a hundred yards away, rose the giant splash of a -concentrated salvo of heavy shells. With an awful screech projectiles -ricocheted overhead, and tons of water came aboard. Only the big guns -of a dreadnaught could have sent such a salvo. Where was she? The -skyline to starboard all the way from north to east was obscured by -the combined smoke of the Allied destroyers and the entire -Mediterranean fleet, blown thither by the southwest wind, and merging -into the haze. In vain the Admiral and his lookouts searched for the -outline of an enemy ship. But then, through the murk, they saw faintly -an ominous ripple of orange flashes extending almost continuously for -miles along the northeastern horizon. Not one, but many salvos were on -their way through space, coming with deadly aim for his battleships. -With indescribable noise the next salvo arrived and straddled the -flagship. One shell hit fair on a forward turret, exploded, and put -its three guns hopelessly out of action; another started an angry -blaze on the superstructure; others tore great holes in the ship’s -side, wrecking compartments through which they passed. Looking -anxiously down the line of ships astern, the Admiral saw an awful -picture of fires and explosions telling of havoc already wrought. -Confusion and consternation were everywhere. All hands on all ships -had been giving their full attention to pouring the hottest kind of -fire from full broadsides into the attacking destroyers and scouts as -they endeavored to turn and escape from the close range to which they -had approached. No one grasped the significance of this sudden -development in time to begin training the turrets around to starboard -before the second salvo arrived and registered damaging hits on nearly -half the ships of the line. Orders were wildly shouted and signals -made, and when they understood what was up, with all the speed they -could muster the distracted men trained the big turrets to starboard. -But what was there to shoot at? Not a ship could be seen; only the dim -blur of the orange-red flashes through the smoke revealed where the -salvos came from, and these were far too well obscured to enable the -range-finders to give the gunners the distance or to offer a target -for trainers and pointers. But from a range of twelve thousand yards -each of the Mediterranean battleships presented a perfect target in -silhouette against the southwestern sky to the battle-line of the -Allied fleet. - - * * * * * - -In the radio room of the battleship _Delaware_, Admiral Johnson’s -flagship, there had been a busy scene all the morning. Yet in all the -fleet not a transmitter was in action, not a signal was sent by radio, -for a single spark might reveal their presence to the enemy and give -away the maneuver; but on every battleship and on every destroyer the -radio operators were listening intently. Nearly a hundred miles to the -northeast, as the running fight between the enemy battle cruisers and -the scouts began in the early morning, the Allied battleship fleet, -well screened by destroyers, had been maneuvering, guided by -radio-compass bearings taken on the tactical signals of the Allied -scouts and the signals exchanged between the battle cruisers and the -main fleet of the enemy. Since no telltale radio signals could be -sent, all messages between the ships of the Allied battle fleet must -be transmitted by flag hoist or by blinker—flashes sent by -searchlights from the bridge. By this means the radio-compass reports -from all parts of the fleet were silently relayed to the flagship, and -in return all orders directing operations were sent out from the -flagship to the other ships, without making a sound that could reveal -their presence to the enemy. - -So important was it to place the ships accurately in the desired -position that two methods besides those of ordinary navigation were -used to coördinate the movements of the battle fleet with those of the -decoying squadron of scout cruisers and destroyers. Radio-compass -triangulation was worked both ways: first, with the battle fleet as a -base line; second, with the decoying scout cruisers as a base line. -The second method was a rough one, for in their running fight the -scouts offered a poor base line at best. Therefore the main reliance -was placed on the base line established in the main fleet. For this -purpose, two groups of destroyers, one at each end of the column, were -detailed to take radio-compass bearings on the signals of the scout -cruiser flagship, and report them to the _Delaware_ by blinker, the -reports being relayed from ship to ship all along the column. This -method was accurate, but slow because of the time needed to relay the -reports. Therefore it was supplemented by the reverse process, the -_Delaware_ herself taking bearings on signals exchanged between the -two ends of the scout cruiser column. - -The _Delaware_ had two radio compasses at widely separate points on -the superstructure, in case of accident to one. At these stations were -two men whom Evans had chosen from all the radio-compass operators in -the fleet for the speed and accuracy with which they could take -bearings. At one of these stations, with an extra pair of head-phones -plugged into the circuit, Evans listened in during the entire time of -the running fight which brought the fleets together, checking the -bearings taken by the operator and reporting them to the plotting -room. Thus he gave Fraser a rough estimate of the position of the -scouts some time before the more accurate information could be relayed -in from the destroyers. - -In the plotting room, Captain Fraser, Chief of Staff, with a group of -officers plotting the entire development of the action, including the -positions and progress of both the advance force and the main fleet of -the enemy and of the decoying scouts and the battle fleet of the -Allies, received the advance reports which Evans gave him, and -prepared in his mind the next step in maneuvering the battle fleet -while waiting for the corroborating reports from the destroyers at the -ends of the column. - -Thus the morning wore on, the mighty fleet, giant dreadnaughts, -armored cruisers, scouts, and destroyers, spread out for miles over -the wide expanse of ocean, all moving in perfect unison, maneuvered at -the behest of Fraser’s guiding mind. Now they would speed up, now slow -down, now change course to port or starboard, much as a hawk with -watchful eye will hover and wheel before the final swoop on his prey. -And ever the suspense grew more acute. - -Admiral Johnson on the bridge scanned the wide horizon where his great -line of ships stretched away as far as the eye could reach, and -farther. Signalmen, tense and alert, awaited the word to flash out -orders by blinker or bend on the flags to the signal halyards. -Lookouts way aloft strained their eyes to detect the slightest object -on the blue expanse of sea. - -In the middle of the morning, Fraser, studying on the plotting sheet -the converging courses of the three groups of ships, calculated where -his decoying force of scout cruisers should next lead the enemy in -order to place them in a favorable position for attack. He then -dispatched the two destroyers which approached the scout cruiser -squadron from the north where the enemy could not see them, with -orders for them to shift course from northeast to east. - -Soon after this, signals were sent out from the _Delaware_ to the rear -admirals in command of the various battleship divisions giving them -preparatory instructions for the maneuver which should bring the fleet -into battle-line when the right moment arrived, and apprising them of -the imminence of battle. By this time every man in the fleet knew that -momentous doings were on foot, but few knew what the next turn of -events would be. The ships were cleared for action. - -As soon as the radio reports from the scouts showed that the enemy had -joined forces, a third destroyer was sent to approach the scouts under -cover of the smoke and haze in the northwest, telling them what course -to steer and when to make the torpedo attack which should divert and -absorb the attention of the enemy. The united fleet of the enemy was -now only fifteen miles away bearing southeast; the booming of their -heavy guns was clearly heard. - -On every ship all hands were assembled and told that action of the -first magnitude was at hand; the situation was outlined, conditions -were favorable, and the outcome was in their hands. - -On the _Delaware_, Admiral Johnson spoke to the men himself. - -“The great battle is at hand,” he said. “Now is the chance of your -lives to show what is in you. The outcome of the war is at stake. The -advantage of visibility will all be on our side. You will see the -enemy better than he can see you. It is a golden chance to do your -best at gunnery; so keep your heads and shoot straight, and your first -five minutes’ shooting will decide the issue. We are going to make it -a swift and decisive victory, and it depends on you. In a few minutes’ -time a detachment of our scouts and destroyers will make a desperate -attack on the enemy’s battle-line from the farther side, partly to -damage him with torpedoes, but chiefly to draw his fire from us. We -are asking heroism of the highest order from them; let us see that it -is not given in vain.” - -Then “General Quarters” was sounded. The men ran eagerly to their -action stations. - -Now began a maneuver of the fleet which would have staggered the -imagination of an admiral of the Jutland days. A brief series of -signals went out from the _Delaware_, and at the word the countless -ships of the fleet commenced an evolution so bewildering and involved -that the keenest observer would have seen in it nothing but disorder -and confusion. In complexity it surpassed the performance of the most -intricate machine. Yet in an incredibly short time all ships fell as -if by magic into battle-line in perfect formation, on a northwesterly -course that slowly converged on the enemy. - -As soon as the scouts commenced their simultaneous swing-around, they -ceased sending signals lest they betray their move; but the -destroyers, making the smoke screen where they had been, kept up the -patter needed to inform the battle fleet of their progress. As soon as -the scouts emerged from the lifting smoke screen and came into full -view of the enemy battle-line in their final dash, they began again to -use their radio. - -The battle fleet of the Allies had now maneuvered into a position -northeast of the enemy, broad on his starboard bow, and had swung into -battle formation. The lookouts reported sighting the enemy -battleships, and Fraser, now in the conning tower, noted with -satisfaction how closely their position agreed with that deduced from -the great mass of data which had been pouring into the plotting room. -The radio compass had not failed. The maneuver, which had been his -dream since he scratched the diagram on the ground in the Borge -garden, was realized at last; it had worked even better than he had -hoped. Then in the radio room the signals of the scouts were again -heard. - -“Attacking enemy on his port beam—range nine thousand yards—under -heavy fire, big guns and secondary battery—range eight thousand -yards”—and so on. - -Thanks to the greater visibility to the southwest, the enemy -battle-line was now clearly in view from the turrets and control tops; -the range-finders had measured the range, the targets had been -assigned, the trainers and pointers were “on,” and all were in -readiness to open fire. Their suspense was nearing the breaking point. -Then the results of the torpedo attack appeared; one battleship -silhouette changed to a cloud of black smoke and vanished. The other -disabled ship could be seen to drop out of line. - -At a signal from the _Delaware_, all at once the broadsides of the -entire battle-line went off; in record time the second salvo followed -the first, and then the third; and, even before the enemy had -responded and his first salvos had come screeching through the air, -great fires and jets of steam and smoke told the story of heavy damage -already done across the six miles of water. - -There was now no more need for silence; the flagship would direct the -movements of the fleet by radio, all transmitters would be in action; -the radio compass had done its work. Evans left the radio-compass -station and hastened to a hatch leading to the main radio room beneath -the armored deck. As he crossed the superstructure he saw far away in -the southwest the scene of wild tumult, ships on fire, the orange -flashes of their salvos, the splashes and hits of the straddling -salvos from the Allied fleet, and then the great splashes of the -enemy’s salvos landing several hundred yards short, followed by the -screech of their ricocheting shells overhead. Added to this, the -deafening roar of the _Delaware’s_ own broadside completed an -indelible picture in his mind as he went below into the comparative -quiet of the radio room, now becoming the busy scene of tactical -dispatches coming and going, with Elkins directing the work of coding -and decoding. - -The scouts and destroyers of the decoying force had paid a fearful -price in the climax of their torpedo attack. The seven surviving -cruisers, all riddled with shells, some crippled with vital hits, -their decks strewn with splinters and wreckage, but all still able to -steam, withdrew out of range. Their work was done, and well done. -Several destroyers were sunk, for they had come even closer to the -enemy, and thus drawn the heavier fire. Those nearest to their sinking -comrades turned, zigzagged, dodged a salvo or two, and then stopped -while the shells still fell round them thick and fast, to rescue the -survivors, the speed of the enemy battle fleet soon, happily, causing -the range to increase just enough to render the rescue something short -of downright suicide. Yet many men went down with their ships, -thinking to the last, not of self, but only of the fight. - -Barely had the attacking cruisers and destroyers on the port side of -the Mediterranean column withdrawn, when no less than forty American -destroyers appeared darting out from the haze on their starboard bow. -With all available destroyers of the Mediterranean fleet busy -repelling the first attack on the port side, and with all turret guns -not yet crippled, firing wildly into the haze on the northeastern -horizon, there was nothing left but the starboard secondary batteries -of the battleships with which to repel this new and formidable -onslaught. The morale of the gunners, already shaken by the startling -turn of events, was no whit the better for the sight of the angry -swarm of destroyers charging in with the speed of express trains. -Their fire was hot but wild, and soon the sea fairly seethed with -torpedo tracks which the battleships desperately maneuvered to dodge, -thus dislocating the aim of their turrets. - -The torpedo attack was chiefly concentrated on the leading ships and -especially on the Mediterranean flagship, for well the Allies knew -that morale was not the Turk’s long suit, and that a loss of -centralized control would severely cripple his fleet. In spite of -frantic efforts by the gunners of the secondary battery and vigilant -watch for torpedo tracks from bridge and crow’s-nest, nothing the -helmsman could do availed to dodge the concentrated swarm of -torpedoes, and, in less than ten minutes from the landing of the first -salvo, the Mediterranean flagship was hit in the starboard engine -room. - -The men on the American destroyers, now zigzagging off through a -tornado of shell-fire, looked back through the leaping pillars of -white, frothy water, and shouted as they saw the great battleship more -than half-obscured by a strange patchwork of white steam and black -smoke rising in clouds above her fighting tops. Then they saw her, -with her engines crippled, listing heavily to starboard, fall out of -line, and drop astern. The Turkish Admiral signaled a light cruiser to -come alongside, and soon had transferred his flag to another -battleship farther astern, swinging well out of line to port and thus -taking refuge on the disengaged side of his line during the transfer. - -Before his flagship was torpedoed, the Admiral had managed to send a -signal to his advance battle cruiser force, ordering them to deploy to -starboard and attack the Allied battle-line. The rear admiral in -charge of this force, angry at his vain pursuit of the scout cruisers -which had led him into the trap, turned his flagship at high speed and -led his column impetuously to the attack. At nine thousand yards, in -spite of the low visibility to the east, he sighted the American -flagship leading the Allied column, and, swinging rapidly on to a -parallel course, opened fire on her. The _Delaware_, having seen the -enemy flagship hit by the torpedo and then fall out of line, was in -the act of training her turrets on the next battleship astern when the -enemy battle cruisers suddenly appeared closing rapidly on her port -bow. She had barely time to train her turrets on the leading battle -cruiser before the concentrated fire of three of these formidable -opponents began to pour in upon her. And now came the great test for -her manifold radio equipment. There was no time to lose. Signals must -be sent to all battleships within range to support her by diverting -their fire to these fast and powerful ships; signals must be sent to -all available destroyers to harass them with torpedo attacks; and -still the direction of the fleet as a unit must go on, and all without -mutual interference of messages. Signals were flashing out -simultaneously on different wave-lengths from three or four separate -antennæ, both by radio telephone and by radio telegraph. The -_Delaware_ was now heavily engaged, delivering salvos from all her -turrets at the maximum speed, and, in spite of zigzagging, frequently -being straddled by the salvos of the battle cruisers. Down in the -radio room officers were feverishly coding and decoding messages, some -operators were sending them, others tending the control switches -whereby the radio telephone was kept running so that the chief of -staff in the conning tower could give orders verbally to those units -which he was in the greatest hurry to reach. Evans was watching the -various ammeters and indicators to see that the machinery ran -smoothly, and Elkins was directing the whole show. - -Suddenly Evans noticed the metres of the radio telephone outfit doing -strange things. Down behind the battleship’s armor the general din of -action was so confused that the burst of a shell on the superstructure -had not been noticed as distinct from the rest. But to Evans the -combination of symptoms in the metres told a story. - -“The antenna or rat-tail of the ’phone set is broken,” he shouted to -Elkins. “Tell Fraser. I’ll see if it can be fixed.” Then turning to -the chief radio electrician and pointing to the generator involved, he -called, “Shut off the juice and don’t turn it on till I tell you.” -Then, seizing a spool of wire and a strong pair of wire-cutting -pliers, he shot out of the room. - -A hasty conversation then followed by voice-tube between Elkins and -Captain Fraser in the conning tower, in which arrangement was made for -the use of the next most expeditious channel of communication with the -destroyer flotilla. Just then Fraser, looking out of the conning -tower, saw a figure in dungarees climbing rapidly up the basket mast -like a monkey, with a loose wire trailing from his belt. Evans, coming -on deck, had found the rat-tail, cut away from the antenna by a shell -fragment, sprawling on the deck. Seizing the broken end and securing -it to his belt, he started up the ladder, swinging himself out on the -framework where necessary to avoid leading the rat-tail foul of stays. -As he crawled out at last, clinging like a bee to the chain of -insulators that supported the antenna swaying in mid-air, and groping -for the ends of the broken wires that had converged from the antenna -to the rat-tail, his senses were fairly dazed by the roar and din of -the battle now raging at its height. Shells screeched past him, shells -hit on the decks, shaking the whole ship as they burst, great -fountains of water rose where others fell short and filled the air -with heavy spray. Smoke was pouring from a large, jagged hole in the -deck; and as he clung there, swaying high in the air, he saw a large -whaleboat smashed to matchwood by a shell, fragments of her timbers -flung far into the sea. A fire brigade was running aft over the -splintered deck, the men looking like ants from the great height -whence he caught these fragmentary glimpses of the scene. Every -fifteen seconds consciousness seemed suspended as the _Delaware’s_ -twelve sixteen-inch guns let go their salvos—flash, roar, and -concussion fusing in one mighty shock that well-nigh stunned and -paralyzed every faculty. Half-dazed he could only cling each time till -the salvo was over, then renew his efforts to reach the swaying wires; -and each time the spotters in the foretop close by, while waiting for -the smoke to clear and the seconds to elapse before the salvo was due -to reach its mark, looked round to see if he still was there. At last -he reached the wires, and, clinging with both legs and one arm, -managed to join together the broken ends by means of the spool of wire -in his pocket. As he crawled back, he had a momentary glimpse of the -enemy battle cruisers in the west, and could clearly distinguish from -the flash of their gun-fire the red glow of the hits made by the -_Delaware’s_ salvos. The action, as he had seen it earlier when he was -on his way to the radio room, was mild compared to what was going on -now. The _Delaware_ was being heavily pounded, but, supported by the -three battleships next in line, she was scoring more hits on the enemy -than she received, and with heavier shells. Just as he reached the -basket mast, there was a concussion which almost shook him off. -Looking aft he saw fragments of steel flying from the roof of one of -the turrets. With a sinking feeling he realized that in that turret -was Lindsay’s battle station. A moment later some of the turret crew -came scrambling out of the hole the shell had torn. Then to his horror -he saw a great burst of flame shoot from the turret and rise to the -height of the mast. - -Descending the basket mast, he shouted to Captain Fraser as he passed -the conning tower, “All ready to use,” and hastened below to the radio -room where he found the generator already humming again at its task of -supplying the power to carry the voice from the conning tower far over -the turbulent waters. And as he watched the metres on the panel he -knew that the transmitter was again carrying the messages that were -directing the work of the fleet. But his heart was sick with the -haunting picture of the flame shooting from Lindsay’s turret. - -A flotilla of American destroyers, stationed ahead of the column, was -now racing to attack the battle cruisers with torpedoes. -Simultaneously some thirty more destroyers—all that were left and able -to fight of the forty which had just delivered their attack on the -enemy’s main battle-line—came up from the south to join in this new -attack. Meanwhile the destroyers of the enemy, thrown into confusion -by the unexpected change in affairs, their coördination completely -upset when the flagship of the fleet was put out of action, operated -in haphazard fashion, each virtually “on its own,” darting about like -mad hornets in search of their tormenter. Some of them now came to the -support of the battle cruisers, and engaged in lively dueling with the -American destroyers at close range. But their haphazard attacks -availed little against the team-work by which the Allied flotillas -delivered their concerted torpedo attack. - -The Allied fleet had a great advantage in visibility all along the -line. Not only the main battle fleet of the enemy in the southwest, -but also his battle cruisers in the west stood out in bold relief -against the afternoon sky. For this reason, as well as by virtue of -the heavier guns of the Allied battleships and the disconcerting -effect of the torpedo attack, the fire of the battle cruisers soon -became wild and ineffective. Vital hits were being made on them in -increasing numbers, and soon one of them, on fire in several places, -was straddled by a salvo which let the flames into her magazine. With -a blaze that lit the sky she burst into fragments, leaving nothing but -oil and wreckage when the smoke cleared. Another, hit in a starboard -boiler room, was unable to maintain speed, and, to avoid being pounded -to pieces as she dropped astern past the entire battle-line of the -Allies, turned sharply to port and escaped behind her own line of -battleships. The remainder of the battle cruisers, battered and -crippled, drew out of range while still they could, pursued by -destroyers racing after like a pack of hungry greyhounds. - -And now the _Delaware_ and those directly astern of her were able to -concentrate their fire once more on the main battle-line of the enemy, -or what was left of it. One turret on the _Delaware_ was out of -action, her funnels and superstructure were riddled with shells, her -decks presented a picture of chaos, but in the main her fighting -strength was scarcely impaired. The Allied battle-line had maintained -a range which rendered them invisible except for the flash of their -guns in the northeastern haze and smoke, while the enemy in silhouette -against the southwestern horizon made good targets for the American -gun-layers. And during the time when the leading ships were compelled -to direct their fire on the enemy battle cruisers, those in the rear -had been pounding away at their corresponding ships in the enemy’s -line, scoring two hits at least to one received, till, with turrets -smashed, control tops gone, bridges shattered, and superstructures -ablaze, the hostile guns were silenced in steadily increasing numbers. - -Now, seeing that he had the enemy where he wanted him, Admiral Johnson -closed the range enough to render his gun-fire even more effective. -This brought his ships into view of the enemy, whose gun-fire was so -badly broken that he no longer feared it. Then, as with increasing -deadliness of aim the sixteen-inch guns tore holes in deck and armor, -the shattering of the Mediterranean fleet became more rapid. And as -ship after ship sank, or, out of control and helpless, dropped out of -line, the concentration of fire upon those that remained closed in -like a Nemesis. Two hours after the first salvo from the Allied -battleships the great Mediterranean fleet which had defied the -civilized world was reduced to a straggling line of battered hulks -scattered over the sea in all stages of destruction. Before sunset the -Turkish Admiral had surrendered. - -The casualties of the Allies had been surprisingly light, considering -the extent of the action, having fallen most heavily on the scout -cruisers and destroyers, although the battleships had come in for a -good share of pounding, in spite of their advantage in the matter of -visibility. On the _Delaware_ the most serious mishap had been in the -turret from which the ominous flame had shot forth. The members of the -turret crew who had escaped told the story of what happened. A shell -had penetrated the roof of the turret and killed several of the crew. -Their clothing, ignited by the detonating shell, was spreading fire -toward a charge of powder in the loading cage on its way to one of the -guns. Lindsay, in command of the turret, seeing that nothing could -avert the explosion, and shouting, “Clear the turret!” to those about -him, had plunged down through the working chamber into the main trunk -and yelled into the handling room below the order to close the -magazine doors. Instantly the doors had slammed shut, thus cutting off -the magazine from the turret. In another second the fire reached the -powder, filling the entire turret, handling room, and all, with a -blinding flash which instantly killed all those who had not yet made -their escape. Lindsay’s quick action which cut off his hope of escape -had saved the flagship. - - - - - CHAPTER XV - - THE HARBOR AT SUNSET - - -It was an impressive procession of ships that steamed into Punta -Delgada two days after the great battle. As the _Delaware_, at the -head of the column, battle-scarred from stem to stern, passed the -supply ships and fleet-tenders anchored in the roadstead, the shout -that went up seemed as if it would lift the vault of heaven. For miles -astern the battleships stretched out in an apparently endless line, -while destroyers and cruisers lined both flanks. The disabled craft, -including the surrendered ships of the enemy, followed more slowly at -a greater distance, while those unable to steam were still waiting -near the scene of the action for ocean-going tugs to arrive and tow -them in. - -In the United States not a hint of an impending naval crisis had -filtered through into the daily press. So when the news of the victory -came, the people were fairly dazed by it. Stirring as it was, and -great as was the rejoicing throughout the land, the full meaning of it -was scarcely realized at first, for the extent to which the enemy -depended on his fleet was not understood by the general public. - -But the heads of the Coalition Government in Constantinople -understood, and cursed their lot, and trembled in their shoes. And the -British Admiralty understood, and lost no time instigating the Foreign -Office in London to make certain significant representations to -Washington, which figured largely in the negotiations that followed. -Before long overtures from Constantinople concerning peace were -received in Washington and London. They were met by a firm and solid -front on the part of the Allies. Nothing but unconditional surrender -would be acceptable. - -The Constantinople leaders, being better endowed with wits than with -morale, had little disposition to prolong a futile struggle or -continue a losing game, especially as they held the Mediterranean -Powers united by a slender thread of intrigue rather than by unity of -spirit. The control of the sea irrevocably lost to them, their armies -were doomed to ultimate defeat. Therefore, after some clever attempts -at bargaining for terms which were coolly and flatly rejected by the -Allies, they agreed to unconditional surrender. With explosive force -the news spread through the Western world, like a titanic peal of -thunder echoing from mountain crest to valley and reverberating -throughout the land. The bells rang, and all the populace gave -themselves to wild joy or solemn thanksgiving. - -As soon as the surrender had been made, the Allied fleet proceeded to -Gibraltar to take possession. At the first opportunity for shore -liberty, Evans found Kendrick, and for hours they talked over the -events since they had separated in the dark on the shore at Punta -Delgada. The tales which Kendrick told of his adventures in finding -his way to the desired post at a radio transmitter fairly made Evans’s -blood run cold. A kaleidoscopic sequence of hardships, narrow escapes, -and undreamed-of expedients to outwit the enemy, long hours in hiding, -disguises, brazen effrontery, and lightning decisions in the face of -danger, all told with the unconcern of one used to living in that sort -of thing, kept Evans enthralled, now laughing, now as nervous as if -himself facing the danger of discovery. Before leaving, Evans arranged -to have the kayak exhumed from her hiding-place and sent back to her -owner. - -June was in its prime when Evans, on his release from active duty, -returned to his home, a private citizen. He went to the university -where before the war he had been engaged in research, and asked if he -might resume his former position as Associate in Physics and continue -the researches which had been interrupted. Some there were in the -university who looked askance at the giving of valuable laboratory -space to one who had held no more distinguished a position in the war -than radio gunner. But there stood his unique apparatus which had -taken him years of patient labor to assemble and which no one in the -world but he could use. Fortunately the head of the Physics Department -understood this, and his wish prevailed. - -Evans, assured that his cherished laboratory was his once more, -returned to it. The apparatus stood as he had left it, but covered -with the dust of two long years. A flood of happy memories returned to -him of days and nights spent in enthralling quests. He began eagerly -to overhaul and test the apparatus in preparation for the renewed -attack on the great problems which awaited his long-deferred -experiments for their solution. For a few days he tinkered with the -intricate assortment of instruments and devices, inspecting parts -here, making minor repairs on them there, looking over old notes, and -endeavoring to plan his campaign for renewed research. But as the hot -July days wore on, his brain seemed to balk at the task; he realized -that he was tired with the deep-seated fatigue which a day’s rest or a -week’s rest will not cure. On the one hand, the din of a great naval -action still echoed in his ears; on the other, he heard the call of -the sea and the wild New England shore. - -“I’ll make a better job of this in September,” he said to himself. -And, closing his laboratory for the summer, he went to New Bedford -where soon he was splicing ropes and helping the riggers at the -shipyard put the _Petrel_ in commission. - -In a few days he was again at the wheel of his beloved boat, the sails -pulling hard in the fresh southwest wind. Leaving New Bedford, he -headed for the Maine coast. Once more alone in his seaworthy little -ketch, he cruised along the coast by easy stages, northward and -eastward, farther and farther from the crowded habitats of man, to the -spruce-clad, rocky islands of Maine. Off Seguin he stood well out to -sea, the gentle rocking of the boat on the ocean swell lulling him -into a happy reverie as she glided along before the summer breeze. -Passing the Georges and the endless labyrinth of islands in Penobscot -Bay, he came at last to Mount Desert Island, where Mortimer, breaking -away from his desk in Washington, joined him for a cruise into the -unfrequented waters beyond Schoodic. Here there are bays and harbors -seldom visited by the great stream of cruising yachts, where, over -dense forests of spruce that rise from the water’s edge along a rugged -shore line, great ospreys wheel and scream, and in countless mossy -nooks in the depth of the wood close by the sound of the surf, the -witchery of Nature’s solitude casts a spell over the lonely wanderer. - -Into such a bay, as the gorgeous summer afternoon drew to a close, the -_Petrel_ steered her course, her sails beginning to droop as the -breeze gave way to the calm of evening. Two happy men sat lazily in -her cockpit gazing over the placid water into the enchanted forest -that lined the shore ahead of them. Through the day, while bounding -over the sparkling blue waves, their talk had drifted on, as the -spirit moved them, from one phase of the war to another. Evans -delighted Mortimer with his pictures of the life in the navy and -sidelights on the various admirals and others who had figured in the -official doings. He told of his talk with Fraser in the Borge garden -and the conferences that followed—tales which never reached another -mortal ear. - -The opal tints of approaching sunset were playing in kaleidoscopic -reflection on the restless surface of the water, and the dying zephyr -just sufficed to give the _Petrel_ steerageway as she headed for a -snug little cove among the spruce trees. - -The conversation had drifted through all phases of the war to the -final action, and Mortimer was for the first time receiving a clear -exposition of the underlying strategy and tactics. Evans explained how -the placing of every unit of the fleet was worked out to ensure the -greatest strength in case of every conceivable unforeseen contingency, -and how, guided by the master mind of Fraser, Admiral Johnson’s -fighting spirit had driven home the decisive blow. - -The sun had set, and both sea and sky were aflame with gorgeous -colors, while the dark, pointed spruce trees on the shore, now close -at hand, cast mobile reflections dancing on the undulating surface of -the cove. The anchor splashed and the chain rattled down, and then the -sails were lowered and furled for the night. Late into the twilight -the two comrades sat watching the colors fade in sea and sky as the -great chapter of history just closed was unfolded in reminiscence -before them. - -“Jim,” said Mortimer, “I know you prefer to work in the dark, but it -makes me uncomfortable to have you go without recognition. I want to -have some open acknowledgment of the Nation’s gratitude to you, to -ease my own feelings. Would you mind if I did something about it?” - -Evans gave his friend a look that spoke his depth of friendship. - -“I am well content as it is,” he said. “That is something of a boast, -and sometimes I don’t live up to it. But I know that in my better -moods I’m not bothered that way. The pleasure of praise tends to cloy. -Please give recognition to my better self, and let the reward be -always, as now, in the doing.” - - THE END - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE RADIO GUNNER *** - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the -United States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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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 <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you -are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the -country where you are located before using this eBook. -</div> - -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: The Radio Gunner</p> - <p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: Alexander Forbes</p> -<p style='display:block; text-indent:0; margin:1em 0'>Release Date: December 29, 2021 [eBook #67038]</p> -<p style='display:block; text-indent:0; margin:1em 0'>Language: English</p> - <p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; text-align:left'>Produced by: Roger Frank and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This book was produced from images made available by the HathiTrust Digital Library.)</p> -<div style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE RADIO GUNNER ***</div> - -<div class='section'> - -<div style='text-align:center; text-indent:0; margin-top:0; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:auto; margin-right:auto; '> -<h1>THE RADIO GUNNER </h1> -</div> -<div id='i001' class='mt01 mb01 wi001'> - <img src='images/illus-001.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> -<p class='caption'>IN THE LABORATORY</p> -</div> -</div> - -<div class='section'> - -<div style='text-align:center; text-indent:0; margin-top:0; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:auto; margin-right:auto; '> -<div style='font-size:1.4em;'>THE RADIO GUNNER </div> -<div style='margin-top:2em;'>WITH ILLUSTRATIONS </div> -</div> -<div id='i002' class='mt01 mb01 wi002'> - <img src='images/illus-002.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> -</div> -<div style='text-align:center; text-indent:0; margin-top:0; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:auto; margin-right:auto; '> -<div style='font-size:0.9em;'>BOSTON AND NEW YORK </div> -<div>HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY </div> -<div style='font-size:0.9em;'>The Riverside Press Cambridge </div> -<div style='font-size:0.9em;'>1924 </div> -</div> -</div> - -<div class='section'> - -<div style='text-align:center; text-indent:0; margin-top:0; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:auto; margin-right:auto; '> -<div style='font-size:0.9em;'>COPYRIGHT, 1924, BY HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY</div> -<div style='font-size:0.9em;'>ALL RIGHTS RESERVED</div> -<div style='font-size:0.9em;margin-top:1em;'>The Riverside Press</div> -<div style='font-size:0.9em;'>CAMBRIDGE · MASSACHUSETTS</div> -<div style='font-size:0.9em;'>PRINTED IN THE U.S.A.</div> -</div> -</div> - -<div class='section'> - -<blockquote> -<p>“Certainly they give men rewards for doing such things, but what -reward can there be in any gift of Kings or peoples to match the -enduring satisfaction of having done them, not alone, but with and -through and by trusty and proven companions?”</p> - -<div style='text-align:right'><span style='font-variant:small-caps'>Kipling</span>; <i>Sea Warfare</i></div> -</blockquote> -</div> - -<div class='section'> - -<div style='text-align:center'>CONTENTS</div> -<table class='toc tcenter' style='margin-bottom:3em'> -<tbody> - <tr><td class='c1'>I</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chI'>A Scientist in the Making</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>II</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chII'>The Storm-Cloud</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>III</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chIII'>The Mobilization</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>IV</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chIV'>Progress in Jeopardy</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>V</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chV'>The Storm-Center Moves Eastward</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>VI</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chVI'>The Hunt</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>VII</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chVII'>The Fleet Arrives</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>VIII</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chVIII'>Dispatching the Secret Messenger</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>IX</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chIX'>The Round-up</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>X</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chX'>The Power of Suggestion</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>XI</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chXI'>Intrigue and Mischief</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>XII</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chXII'>The Victim</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>XIII</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chXIII'>The Show-down</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>XIV</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chXIV'>The Battle</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>XV</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chXV'>The Harbor at Sunset</a></td></tr> -</tbody> -</table> -</div> - -<div class='section'> - -<div style='text-align:center;'> - <div>ILLUSTRATIONS</div> - <div style='display:inline-block; text-align:left;'> - <ul style="list-style: none;"> - <li><a href='#i001'>In the Laboratory</a></li> - <li><a href='#i003'>And then the thing struck</a></li> - <li><a href='#i004'>“There’s your oil-slick, isn’t it, Captain?”</a></li> - <li><a href='#i005'>Fraser scratched on the ground diagrams illustrative of the formations</a></li> - </ul> - </div> - <div>Drawn by Heman Fay, Jr.</div> -</div> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' title='I—A Scientist in the Making' id='chI'> - <span style='font-size:1.4em;'>THE RADIO GUNNER</span><br/><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER I</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>A SCIENTIST IN THE MAKING</span> -</h2> -<div style='text-align:center; margin:1.8em auto 1.2em auto;'>1</div> -<p>Early in the twentieth century the annual Memorial Day parade was -passing through a New England town. The sun shone hotly down till the -tarvia of the road felt soft and sticky underfoot. At the head of the -procession the usual brass band led the way with martial music. Every -one in the town was out, the older citizens for the most part standing -reverently with uncovered heads, while the children, in anything but a -solemn mood, tagged along on the flanks of the band.</p> - -<p>Jim Evans, a boy of six years, stood by the sidewalk in front of the -little white house in which he lived, his mother beside him, holding -him by the hand. At the rhythmic crescendo of the approaching music, -his pulse throbbed, and as the band swept by his eyes sparkled with -delight. Then came the aged veterans of the Civil War in their faded -blue uniforms, their grizzled white beards and wrinkled features -giving them a quaintness in the child’s eyes that made him want to -call his mother’s attention. He tugged at her hand and looked up at -her. The look in her face struck wonder to his childish soul; there -were tears in her eyes. He gazed at her in amazement. Tears had always -been to him the expression of childish grievance—nothing more. He had -never seen them shed by a grown-up. To his inquiring mind a mystery -had now presented itself. More than that, deep down within him there -was an awakening of something he had never felt before. His mother -looked down and saw the expression of wonder in the child’s serious -face. Her only answer was a tightening of her grip on his hand and a -quiver of the lip.</p> - -<p>The sound of the beating drum died away down the street; the -procession was gone. The mother and child returned to the little -garden behind the house. Seating herself in a garden chair, she took -him in her lap.</p> - -<p>“Jim,” she said in a low tender voice, “my father would have been -marching with those old men if he had lived. I remember so well when -he said ‘good-bye.’ I was a little girl about as big as you are, and -he picked me up in his arms and kissed me. Then he went away and never -came back. He died fighting bravely for all of us who stayed behind.”</p> - -<p>Thus with the vision of the parade fresh in his eyes and the sound of -martial music still ringing in his ears, and with the wonder of this -new meaning of his mother’s tears stirring his soul, the tradition of -an heroic life and death, the most precious heritage of the mother, -was handed on to Jim, the small boy. In after years he never saw a -Memorial Day parade but the memory of that day rose vividly before -him, and he never forgot what the day stood for.</p> - -<div style='text-align:center; margin:1.8em auto 1.2em auto;'>2</div> -<p>Eleven years after this incident, one October afternoon, Jim Evans, -now at boarding-school, had gone up into the laboratory in the top of -the schoolhouse to finish an experiment with a new radio hook-up -before putting on his football clothes. He had just become absorbed in -his task when he heard the ringing of a bell which sounded the fire -alarm. Every boy in the school had his duty in the fire brigade -assigned him, and all knew that this summons took precedence over -everything.</p> - -<p>Evans dropped his tools and ran to a window overlooking the school -grounds. From his high position he could see the situation at a -glance. The school grounds comprised a superb grove of stately white -pines, the pride of the neighborhood. Within this grove, by its -western border, was a pond, and north of the pond the grove was -bounded for a short distance at its northwest corner by a small swamp, -choked with dense vegetation, a place frequented by a great variety of -bird life. West of the grove lay a wide expanse of low meadowland -overgrown with tall grass and thick bushes. After weeks of drought the -ground was parched and dry. A strong northwest wind was blowing, and a -brush fire burning in the meadow was sweeping rapidly toward the pine -grove, imminently threatening its destruction. Evans saw the boys dash -into a building and then, emerging with buckets and brooms, start on a -run, led by Sam Mortimer, chief of the fire brigade, to the south side -of the pond. Here lay the greater part of the boundary between the -meadow and the grove, and here it was that the shore of the pond was -most easily approached, for on the north it was lined with the dense -swamp vegetation. Evidently the plan of campaign was to form a bucket -line from the pond along the western edge of the grove to its southern -extremity. Evans could see that no one was detailed to deal with the -fire north of the pond; apparently it was assumed that the natural -moisture there would stop the fire. Now Evans had frequently haunted -this swamp in search of birds, and knew that the drought had reduced -it to a highly inflammable state. After a brief survey of the -situation, he ran downstairs and out toward the grove. By the time he -was out on the grounds the entire school, boys and masters, had -disappeared into the grove to the south of the pond. Evans ran for the -swamp where the smoke told him the fire was already entering the dense -growth of brush.</p> - -<p>Into the thicket he plunged and clawed his way through the tall bushes -till, half-suffocated with smoke, he reached the advancing line of the -fire. Down he went on his hands and knees and began scraping away the -dried leaves from the surface of the mud, now and again jumping to his -feet and uprooting bushes where the density of the growth required it, -then dropping again to his knees and working among the leaves like a -terrier. Thus he made across the path of the fire a swath where the -flames were stopped except in the strongest gusts of wind. Now and -then one of these would blow a burning leaf across the swath and start -the fire anew on the other side. Then Evans would jump back and stamp -out the fresh blaze. Once, when a runaway blaze threatened to spread -too fast to be stopped in this way, he threw himself on it and -smothered it with his body.</p> - -<p>With feverish effort he struggled against the advancing flames, -fearful lest they should get beyond his control in the larger bushes -and trees by the edge of the pond and thus set fire to the entire pine -grove. But now he saw the water of the pond gleaming through the smoke -not far ahead, and redoubled his efforts to carry his swath of bare -earth to the water’s edge. Half-blinded with smoke he dug and clawed -and kicked away the leaves till at last he reached the muddy shore of -the pond, and with vast relief saw the last of the flames expend -themselves in the dried leaves west of the line.</p> - -<p>He turned and walked back over the swath he had made, searching -carefully for embers that might start the fire anew. Only smouldering -embers did he find, and, stamping these out, he returned to the edge -of the pond satisfied that no more danger lay in this quarter. He then -skirted the shore of the pond and came to the south side where the -rest of the boys, having put out the fire in that quarter with their -bucket line, were assembling.</p> - -<p>Evans approached the others, picking the thorns out of his fingers as -he came.</p> - -<p>When Mortimer saw him he said, “Well, Jim, where in thunder have you -been?”</p> - -<p>“In the swamp,” was the answer.</p> - -<p>“What, looking for birds? There’s no fire there, is there?”</p> - -<p>Evans looked at him a second before answering, then said quietly, -“No.”</p> - -<p>“Didn’t you hear the fire bell?” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said Evans.</p> - -<p>“That’s a nice example to set the younger boys!” said Mortimer. “How -can we make anything of the fire brigade if the fellows in the -graduating class quit in an emergency like that? You ought to be put -in the jug.”</p> - -<p>The eyes of half a dozen boys standing near were on Evans, but he said -nothing. The fire brigade was formally dismissed, and the boys -repaired to the gymnasium where they dressed for football practice. As -they were dressing, Evans spoke to no one, and no one spoke to him. In -the line-up between the first and second teams, Evans, being one of -the smallest on the squad, played quarterback on the second. Usually -his game was not remarkable; he was criticized for too much -deliberation in the choice of plays. To-day he seemed possessed; he -was all over the field at once, picking up the ball on fumbles, -darting through the line and gaining ground, till Mortimer, captain of -the first eleven, coached his team to watch Evans and stop him. In -spite of all he could do to rally his team, Evans made a touchdown -which resulted in the defeat of the first eleven by the second, a -humiliation it had hitherto been spared.</p> - -<p>As the boys were walking back to the locker building in their reeking -football clothes, the head-master drew Mortimer aside and said to him: -“Didn’t you have your whole fire brigade on the south side of the -pond?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir,” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“I suppose you thought the swamp on the north side would be too wet to -burn, and the fire would stop there anyway,” said the head-master.</p> - -<p>“Surely.”</p> - -<p>“I should have thought so, too,” said the head-master; “there’s -usually standing water all through there. Fortunately some one who -knew better than you or I went in there and saved the pine grove. I’ve -just been looking over the ground and found that the fire had gone -right into the middle of the swamp to where some one had scraped away -the leaves and stopped it. It was dry as tinder everywhere. Have you -any idea who could have done it?”</p> - -<p>Mortimer was staggered.</p> - -<p>“Jim Evans was in the swamp,” he said. “It must have been he. And I -called him down for not being on the job. Why didn’t he tell me?”</p> - -<p>Mortimer hastened to find Evans and ascertain the truth.</p> - -<p>“Why didn’t you tell me, you great chump?” he said.</p> - -<p>“You seemed to take it for granted that I’d been making a fool of -myself, and I suppose that made me sore. Anyway, I didn’t feel like -going into explanations with those other fellows looking on.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I’m going into explanations just as quick as I can,” said -Mortimer warmly.</p> - -<p>“That’s mighty white of you, Sam,” said Evans, “but don’t make too -much fuss over it.”</p> - -<p>Mortimer lost no time in telling all who had heard his sharp -rebuke—and more too—the truth of the matter.</p> - -<div style='text-align:center; margin:1.8em auto 1.2em auto;'>3</div> -<p>The next year Evans and Mortimer were freshmen together in college. -The friendship between them was firmly established, but in the larger -number of boys with whom they were thrown the divergence of their -tastes caused them to see less and less of each other. Mortimer was -universally liked and socially prominent. Altogether he was a -distinguished figure in his class. Evans devoted himself assiduously -to scientific study, and in his leisure time his strong love of -outdoor life usually led him away from, rather than toward, the haunts -of men. For this reason, as well as because of his reserved and -retiring disposition, he was socially comparatively obscure, though -respected and beloved by the few with whom he became intimate.</p> - -<p>Few would have supposed that one so obviously a leader as Mortimer -could ever want to lean for support in any exigency of life on one -younger than himself. Yet there were times when he felt depressed or -when his philosophy of life seemed clouded with doubts. At such times -he was apt to stroll over to Evans’s room where the two friends would -have a “heart-to-heart” talk, often lasting well into the night; and -always the clouds of confusion or doubt would disappear.</p> - -<p>The spring following their entrance into college came that great -turning-point in history, when in April, 1917, America entered the -war. Mortimer enrolled in the first Plattsburg Camp where he applied -himself so well to his training for the army that, in spite of being -only twenty years old, he won the commission of first lieutenant. -After many months in a training camp he was promoted to captain and -sent overseas. His company continued in training in France till the -last two months of the war when it was sent into action in the -Argonne. Mortimer served with distinction and won an enviable -citation.</p> - -<p>Evans, being a proficient radio operator, enlisted at once in the navy -and was put through the intensive course for radio electricians, and -then sent abroad on a destroyer.</p> - -<p>When he left his home the parting was not easy. His mother was a -widow, and he her only child; he was all she had. But in the spirit -with which the Spartan mothers gave to their sons the shields they -were to carry into battle, saying as they did so, “Return with it, or -on it,” Jim Evans’s mother bade him Godspeed with a brave smile on her -lips. He had a tradition to live up to, and she thanked God he was -able to do it.</p> - -<p>During the last months of the war the destroyer to which Evans was -attached was among those basing on Queenstown and performing the -arduous duty of meeting the great convoys from the States, far out at -sea, and escorting them through the danger zone to safety.</p> - -<p>The life on these slim fighting ships was a strange one indeed. As -they slid silently out of the harbor past Haulbowline, three, four, or -five in column, they never knew what might be in store for them. Then -as they passed Daunt Rock and, forming their scouting line, plunged -into the head seas that swept their narrow decks, there came the test -of the sailor’s morale. To learn to live and carry on in their cramped -quarters, rolling, pitching, and thrashing about till it seemed as if -neither flesh and blood nor steel could stand it any longer, while the -cold, gray rollers, washing over the ship from stem to stern, chilled -the very soul, was a feat that seemed to call for even more than human -powers of adaptation.</p> - -<p>But it was not always rough and dreary. There were days of sparkling -sunshine and calm seas, days when Evans’s spirit expanded and he -rejoiced in the grandeur of the ocean. And as he became more and more -accustomed to the life, his love of the sea, born at first in his -childhood acquaintance with it on the New England coast, became -deeper, till it was woven into every fiber of his being.</p> - -<p>Soon after the Armistice, Evans went to London on leave. He now wore -the uniform of a Chief Petty Officer, having risen through the -successive grades of radio electrician to chief. In London he met Sam -Mortimer, and they had a happy evening together. Mortimer told of the -days and nights at the front in mud, rain, shell-fire, and gas.</p> - -<p>“How was it on the destroyers?” he asked of Evans.</p> - -<p>“Pretty hard to stick it at first,” was the answer. “In those early -days when we first started bucking the head seas going out to -seventeen degrees west to look for convoys, I’d just want to curl up -in the lee of a stack where I could breathe fresh air and still not be -drenched to the skin with the spray and green seas washing over the -decks. I didn’t care a hang half the time if I made good or not. And I -was just crazy for the sight of the green hills of Ireland and the -spires of Queenstown, the snug berth at the mooring buoy and the -liberty party ashore. Then I waked up to the fact that the messages I -had to copy in those tedious watches in the radio room were very close -to the heart of our naval strategy; handling them mechanically like an -automaton, I was losing a golden opportunity to read the controlling -mind. I began to notice things, and I saw a wonderful evolution going -on. Sailing orders which at first required long messages were later -transmitted in a few brief signals. Every month saw new growth of -efficiency in handling communications and disposing the forces. We -have the British chiefly to thank for that—especially Admiral Bayly.</p> - -<p>“Toward the end I got to feel more like part of the ship; I got so I -didn’t mind, no matter how rough it was, and then the real spirit of -the sea got hold of me. As an old sailor said, life at sea clears the -corruption of the beach right out of your system. I’ve got now so that -when the old ship leaves Corkbeg Light astern and puts her nose into -the Atlantic, I feel that I’m getting back into my native element.”</p> - -<p>“I like the ocean on a nice calm day,” said Mortimer, “but I’d never -feel like that.”</p> - -<p>“What I want to do now more than anything,” said Evans, “is to go for -a good long cruise in my own boat when I can go where I want, turn in -when I want, and get up when I want.”</p> - -<p>“I’ll do that with you when we get home,” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“That’s a go,” echoed Evans warmly. “Don’t forget it.”</p> - -<p>“You bet I won’t,” said Mortimer.</p> - -<div style='text-align:center; margin:1.8em auto 1.2em auto;'>4</div> -<p>Before the end of the winter these two young men were back in college, -finishing the courses they had begun. The summer vacations were for -Mortimer so well occupied with house parties and travel that the -promised cruise was forgotten.</p> - -<p>After college Mortimer studied law. As a student of this profession, -though of average thoroughness, he was more especially characterized -by brilliance; he could take in the “headlines” of a subject quickly -and well. After a short apprenticeship as a lawyer, he turned his -attention to politics in which he made for himself a brilliant and -successful career.</p> - -<p>Evans took up research in physics as his life-work, and after a year -in the great Cavendish Laboratory of Cambridge, England, he found a -place in the physics department of one of the leading American -universities. His researches dealt with the problems of atomic -structure and dynamics, and in this work he was deeply absorbed, -giving little time to anything else, except during his vacations when -he made a point each year of taking a substantial allowance of outdoor -life, usually cruising in a small sailboat along the New England coast -and often as far as Nova Scotia or the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. Thus he -kept the elasticity of youth, and with it an ever-increasing -self-reliance, so that no problem presented to him by wind or tide or -fog could catch him without adequate resource.</p> - -<p>Three years after graduation the class of which Evans and Mortimer -were members held a reunion at their Alma Mater in June. Mortimer, now -as always the leader in his class, was the central figure, usually -surrounded by groups of warm friends chatting about old times and war -times, or discussing questions of the day. Once during the reunion he -contrived to get off in a corner with Evans.</p> - -<p>“What about that cruise we planned in London?” he said. “Six years -have gone by and we don’t seem to have pulled it off yet.”</p> - -<p>“Name your day this summer,” said Evans, “and I’ll take you on.”</p> - -<p>“I’m scheduled for a vacation the first of August. How would that suit -you?”</p> - -<p>“That suits me fine. My boat will be in the harbor; just come to my -laboratory and we’ll go aboard.”</p> - -<p>“That’s a date,” said Mortimer; “don’t forget.”</p> - -<p>On August first Mortimer appeared at the Physics Building and asked -for Evans. A crotchety <i>diener</i> in faded overalls showed him to a room -in the basement far removed from the light of day. Within, the sight -which met his eye was what appeared to be a hopeless snarl of junk. -There was a maze of glass tubing bent into all sorts of bizarre -shapes, some of it covered with crumpled bits of sheet lead or tinfoil -from the wrapping of a cake of chocolate; there were wires leading -every which way with no apparent vestige of order; there were old -wooden packing-boxes serving as supports, rusty nails bent upward for -hooks, nondescript objects tied together with twine or stuck together -with wax. Yet within this crazy jumble were instruments whose -construction required the highest refinement of manual skill that can -be found in all the world. The entire set-up was the culmination of -years of patient planning, designing, and assembling. Crude as it -appeared, it was in reality the key to some of the profoundest secrets -of Nature; and no man on earth save Evans knew how to use it. In the -midst of this strange assortment of matter, Evans sat on an empty -packing-box, his eye glued to the eye-piece of an optical instrument.</p> - -<p>“Well, Jim, are you coming sailing?”</p> - -<p>Before answering, Evans scribbled some figures on a scrap of paper. -Then he turned to Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“Good Lord, Sam, is it the first of August already? I’d clean lost -track of time.”</p> - -<p>“That’s what it is; and there’s a fine sailing breeze.”</p> - -<p>“Sailing breeze or no, I can’t knock off now. I’ve been sweating all -summer to get this experiment going right, and it’s going at last to -the Queen’s taste.”</p> - -<p>“Well, where do I come in? I’ve come all the way from New York to go -cruising with you.”</p> - -<p>“I tell you what,” said Evans, after a moment’s reflection, “you go -down to the harbor and find Jones’s store. Get whatever looks good in -the way of fresh food; I’ve got plenty of canned goods and staple -groceries on board. Get the stuff delivered at Salter’s Landing. I can -finish up this experiment by midnight, and I guess after that it won’t -hurt me to get it out of my system for a while. Go to the movies or -anything you like, and then come here with a taxi about midnight, and -we’ll get aboard as quick as we can.”</p> - -<p>Clearly the man of science could no more be budged till his cherished -experiment had yielded its golden fruit of knowledge than can the moon -be diverted from her course in the skies. No exploration of new -continents, no searching for hidden gold can lure the spirit on with -so strong an appeal as the unknown law of Nature awaiting the crucial -experiment, planned and prepared for months, and then appearing at -last like the light of day when the experiment is done and the -measurements construed with the power of reason.</p> - -<p>Mortimer obeyed, and wandered off to spend the afternoon and evening -on the water-front of the harbor. The next day the two friends sailed -a sparkling sea together in a tiny cruising knockabout—boys once more.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chII' title='II—The Storm-Cloud'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER II</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>THE STORM-CLOUD</span> -</h2> -<p>The next act of our story opens in the year 1937. An international -crisis of the most momentous nature had just come to a head in Europe.</p> - -<p>For some years past a group of powerful men in Constantinople, -intriguing diplomatists and financial magnates, had been quietly -developing a scheme for world domination. By a process of peaceful -penetration, aided liberally by the adroit use of secret agents, they -had obtained complete control of the Balkan Peninsula and Asia Minor, -and for the first time in history reaped the harvest of a proper -development of the rich natural resources of these areas. Thus -enriched, the coalition had spread its tentacles all around the -Mediterranean till it held Italy and Spain firmly in its grip; and yet -by respecting the nominal independence of these countries the power -which it had over them was cleverly concealed from the world.</p> - -<p>Much of Russia was entangled in the snare. Being once more promised a -realization of the fools’ dream of communism, the adherents of -Bolshevism were won over into an alliance. By propaganda promising the -dawn of a new day of freedom, the enthusiastic support of the -peasants, long oppressed by the sinister strangle-hold of the Soviets, -was enlisted in behalf of the new combination.</p> - -<p>The old Pan-Islam spirit of the Moslems was vigorously exploited, and -thus a powerful underlying motive force was brought to bear on the -furtherance of the scheme.</p> - -<p>A substantial Turkish navy was built, and with money furnished by the -coalition, Greece, Italy, and Spain were encouraged to build strong -navies, too. No one of these navies was big enough to excite much -suspicion in England or America, and no one but the coalition and its -secret agents knew that these three navies were planned with a view to -forming parts of one great whole. With diabolical cunning the gigantic -plot against the world had been laid, and no exigency had been -overlooked. Then suddenly in the early summer of 1937, the fruits of -this vast intrigue appeared. Italy and Spain found themselves -committed to an alliance with Constantinople with a view to obtaining -complete control of the Mediterranean Sea. Through the work of a body -of spies, unique in preparedness and efficiency, France suddenly found -her Mediterranean fleet paralyzed, and before she could make a move to -defend them, her ships were seized without a blow. With astonishing -rapidity the various navies, thus reinforced, were mobilized and -operated as a coördinated fleet. England had but few ships in the -Mediterranean at the time, and these were soon engaged in battle by -overwhelming numbers, and sunk, after putting up the stiffest -resistance imaginable against fearful odds. Then Malta and Egypt were -attacked and seized. The south coast of France was occupied with an -invading force; all important points on the north coast of Africa were -taken, and the control of the Mediterranean became complete, with the -exception of Gibraltar.</p> - -<p>The British Navy was rushed to the defense of this stronghold, and had -they passed the strait a naval action would have ensued which might -have saved Europe then and there from the specter of the new Byzantine -Empire. But this exigency, like others, had been anticipated. As the -great navy steamed into the straits, supposedly under the protection -of Gibraltar, a vast battery of sixteen-inch guns mounted on railway -cars opened a withering fire from the Spanish shore at Tarifa. Less -than half of the capital ships passed through this barrage, and most -of those, before they were well out of range, ran into a mine-field -stretching across the strait, laid at night some weeks before by enemy -submarines and made ready for action by wire from Tarifa as the fleet -approached.</p> - -<p>A handful of battleships, cruisers, and destroyers escaped the trap, -and bravely faced their fate in the defense of Gibraltar. But the -waiting enemy had now such an overwhelming advantage in numbers that -their doom was sealed. Cut off by land and sea, it was of course only -a matter of time before Gibraltar fell.</p> - -<p>And now England was left with her mighty navy gone, all but the few -ships that were in dry-dock and couldn’t be sent in time, and a few -obsolete vessels purposely left at home.</p> - -<p>All Northern Europe rose to fight the Constantinople Coalition. -England, France, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Poland, and the -Scandinavian nations placed troops in the field. And soon two giant -armies faced each other entrenched in a battle-line extending from the -Pyrenees to the Alps and thence along mountain barriers where such -existed, eastward to the Caspian Sea. In the development of land -warfare, defensive measures had outstripped offensive measures, and -especially strong were the defensive methods used by the Mediterranean -forces. Consequently ground could be gained by the northern armies -only at the cost of prohibitive losses. A military deadlock ensued, -and the problem became one of attrition. In natural resources in the -Eastern Hemisphere the Mediterranean group had slightly the better -situation, but what counted still more was control of the Atlantic -Ocean, and through it, access to the resources of the Western -Hemisphere.</p> - -<p>This control by the Mediterranean Powers being undisputed, virtually -all commerce between North America and Northern Europe was cut off. -The resources of Northern Europe sufficed to maintain the war for the -present, but clearly materials from the Western Hemisphere would in -time be a necessity if the war was to go on.</p> - -<p>Through the summer months America maintained neutrality, although it -was daily becoming clearer to those whose vision extended beyond the -balance-sheet of the current month that, as in 1917, civilization was -at stake, and the sooner America shouldered her share of the fight the -better it would be for all the world, herself included.</p> - -<p>This was the situation when on a warm sunny morning in September one -of America’s newest destroyers crossed Cape Cod Bay at a thirty-knot -speed, and, gliding smoothly into Provincetown Harbor, dropped anchor. -As the chain rattled down, a tall, well-built man in civilian clothes -stood on the bridge beside the skipper and surveyed the harbor. -Presently his eye rested on a small sailboat, ketch-rigged, of some -thirty-six feet over-all length, making toward them about a quarter of -a mile away.</p> - -<p>“I guess that’s my boat, skipper,” said the civilian.</p> - -<p>“Going round the Cape in that, are you? She’s not over-roomy, but she -looks like a good sea boat,” was the answer.</p> - -<p>A boat was lowered; the civilian left the bridge, shook hands with the -skipper, and was soon on his way toward the sailboat which presently -shot up into the wind and, with her sails flapping, gradually lost -headway as the motor-boat from the destroyer came up on her starboard -quarter. The passenger clambered over the side and into the cockpit of -the little ketch, a sailor handed him his suitcase, and with a parting -word of thanks to the crew of the motor-boat he sat down to look about -him.</p> - -<p>At the wheel was a man not over middle height, compact and -strong-looking, with a clear, ruddy complexion, dressed in a pair of -khaki trousers and gray flannel shirt, a striking contrast to the -officers of the destroyer. The new skipper wasted no time in -greetings, but with eyes intent on the movements of the motor-boat -just shoving off, reached for the starboard jib sheet, pulled it in -and held it till the sailboat payed off to port and gathered -steerageway. Then, trimming the jib over, he settled back comfortably -and said, “Well, how are you? Had a nice trip across the Bay, didn’t -you?”</p> - -<p>“Beautiful; those destroyers glide along like a dream. This is a cozy -little boat you’ve got, Jim; where’s your crew?”</p> - -<p>“You’re my crew to-day,” said the skipper. “Lord! I don’t want a crew -killing time about the deck. That’s the advantage of this size and -rig; I can handle her alone, and yet she’s big enough for comfortable -cruising, and safe in any sea there is. I couldn’t afford a crew if I -wanted one; so I’m glad I don’t. Take your valise below and have a -look round, don’t you want to? Take the port bunk, my gear’s on the -starboard.”</p> - -<p>His friend acted on the suggestion and with a landsman’s clumsiness -engineered himself and his valise down the hatch into the coziest, -snuggest little cabin he had ever seen. Presently he returned to the -cockpit.</p> - -<p>“Looks like a nice little place to duck in out of the wet.”</p> - -<p>“It is rather a nice little cabin,” said the skipper. “To tell the -truth, this boat just suits me, and I feel as much at home on her as I -do anywhere in the world. I used to fancy something fast and racy as -my ideal of a sailboat, but as I get older I incline more to this sort -of thing, seaworthy and comfortable, fit to ride out any gale that -blows.”</p> - -<p>“You don’t look so awfully old yet,” said the other.</p> - -<p>“I don’t suppose I do,” said the skipper, “but if I remember rightly -I’m only a year younger than you.”</p> - -<p>“That’s so,” said the other. “I’m forty, and they tell me I look five -years older than I am. But you don’t look any older than you did in -college.”</p> - -<p>“I’m generally supposed to be still in the twenties. I judge that my -sheltered and quiet existence in the laboratory, together with lots of -outdoor life, camping, cruising, etc., has kept me young, while -battling with the storms of a busy world has been ageing you.”</p> - -<p>The skipper of the sailboat was Jim Evans; his passenger, Sam -Mortimer. Through the years since college their friendship had -endured, yet their lives led them so far apart that they seldom came -together. Evans’s career as a scientist had brought him happiness, but -no fame. His reputation for work of the highest quality was known only -to a handful of experts competent to judge.</p> - -<p>Mortimer’s career in politics had, on the other hand, placed him -increasingly in the limelight, till in the spring of 1937 he found -himself shouldering no less a responsibility than that of Secretary of -the Navy, just as the European crisis was coming to a head. His -predecessor had been none too competent, and in consequence his six -months in office had been almost wholly taken up with reorganization -in the Department, and little time had been left him to study the -principles of naval policy, strategy, and tactics. His knowledge of -naval affairs was small, and indeed he knew little of seafaring lore -in any form. In years gone by he had made one or two short cruises in -a small boat with Evans, but since then his recreations had been golf -and tennis, and all his professional attention had been focused on -politics. As yet no action had been taken by the American Government -toward joining in the war, and the public had little idea whether any -was to be expected; but to the Cabinet it was evident that action must -come soon. Now Mortimer was keenly aware that the question of naval -control of the Atlantic Ocean would soon be resting on his shoulders -more directly than on those of any other man living; small wonder, -then, that he felt overwhelmed by the responsibility he saw -approaching. The American Navy was large and powerful, and, reinforced -by such French ships as had been outside the Mediterranean and such -British ships as had escaped disaster, it was about an even match for -the consolidated navy of the Mediterranean Powers. On its efficiency -rested the control of the Atlantic.</p> - -<p>Early in September Secretary Mortimer left Washington for Boston to -spend three days examining the resources of the First Naval District. -He had spent a harassed and busy summer struggling to get the navy -ready for the task which each week made it seem more probable was to -devolve upon it. Every week the consciousness of his inability to see -with an expert’s eye the large problems of naval strategy distressed -him more. His brain was in a whirl, and he felt that he must for one -day at least get off and give himself over to relaxation.</p> - -<p>In this crisis the old desire to see Evans came over him; the sense of -reliance on his friend, though often forgotten, was still there. He -had telegraphed Evans asking if he could spare a day when they might -get off by themselves and have a good talk. Evans had replied, -suggesting a sail round Cape Cod as the most complete escape from the -interruptions which would pursue them were they to remain in the -haunts of men. Evans had his boat at Provincetown, and Mortimer, on -completing his business in Boston, boarded a destroyer at the Navy -Yard in the early morning and joined his friend in time to make a good -start round the Cape.</p> - -<p>The wind was west, and a little beating to windward brought the boat -clear of Provincetown Harbor and around Race Point, where they started -their sheets, then jibed and began the long reach down the Cape, by -Highland Light, keeping close in shore where the sandy and pebbly -beach and the bluffs behind presented a pleasing if somewhat -monotonous picture.</p> - -<p>As these two stanch friends sat chatting together in the cockpit of -the <i>Petrel</i>, as Evans called his boat, dropping Highland Light astern -and picking up Nauset, their talk drifted toward the topic that was -harassing Mortimer by day and night.</p> - -<p>“How much have you kept up with navy affairs since you left the -service after the war?” he asked of Evans.</p> - -<p>“Enough to know that the engineering men of the service have made -wonderful strides in development in various fields, especially in -communications, opening possibilities undreamed of in 1918, and that -through the perennial difficulties of personnel, these developments -are not utilized to anything like the extent they might be. To tell -the truth, the navy has always interested me intensely; it has been a -hobby of mine to read Mahan and other standard writers during my spare -time, as well as the Naval Institute Proceedings. I’ve also kept in -touch with some of the radio men I knew in the war who have stayed in -the service, and I have watched with great interest the progress in -radio communication that has taken place.”</p> - -<p>“My God, I wish I had your knowledge of the subject,” said Mortimer. -“Law and politics have taught me some things, but they haven’t taught -me the principles of naval policy and naval operations, and those are -the things I want to know now.</p> - -<p>“I suppose you realize,” he went on, “that we may not be able to stay -out of the European vortex much longer.”</p> - -<p>“On the face of it,” answered Evans, “I should say we were due in it -right now. I haven’t heard the ‘inside dope,’ but I can’t conceive of -our staying out much longer, all things considered.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I trust your discretion enough to say that you have sized it up -about right. There won’t be many weeks more of neutrality; and then a -big load comes on our Department.”</p> - -<p>“I should say it was a clear case,” said Evans, “that the whole game -hung on our navy. While the enemy keep their fleet intact and maintain -the complete control of the Mediterranean, the Northern armies can -never score a decisive victory; and if the Turks are left in control -of the Atlantic the attrition will all come on our side. We must -establish and keep up a steady flow of supplies from both North and -South America to maintain even the present status; and we must destroy -their navy to win the war.”</p> - -<p>Thus the conversation progressed to a discussion of the basic -principles of naval policy and strategy, in which Mortimer, as more -than once before, found himself marveling at Evans’s clearness and -breadth of vision. None of the admirals at the heads of bureaus in -Washington had seemed able to see things in so large a perspective; -none had helped him to grasp the fundamental principles of the problem -before him as this man, trained in science, yet versed in naval -affairs as well.</p> - -<p>The small cabin clock struck two-bells.</p> - -<p>“Let’s have some lunch, Sam,” said Evans. “Take the wheel, steer as -you’re going, due south, while I get the stuff out.”</p> - -<p>He disappeared down the hatch with the nimbleness of a boy in his -teens, and began to prepare a simple lunch over an alcohol stove. As -Mortimer sat at the wheel with the warm wind off the Cape Cod shore -fanning his cheek, he pondered over this simple child of Nature, to -all appearances a college boy on a vacation, whose characterization of -the crisis offered so much food for thought.</p> - -<p>Soon Evans reappeared in the cockpit with an appetizing meal which -they ate in camp style, Evans steering and eating at the same time, -not appreciably to the detriment of either task. Again he left -Mortimer at the wheel while he addressed himself to the task of -cleaning up. When next he came on deck, he found Mortimer manifestly -drowsy and a good two points off the course. The warm shore wind, the -peace and quiet and the relaxation from constant strain, conspired to -overcome him. Evans reached below for a pillow and placed it on the -lee side.</p> - -<p>“Here, stretch out on the cockpit seat and take a good nap,” he said.</p> - -<p>Mortimer relinquished the wheel, and soon was fast asleep.</p> - -<p>When next he waked the afternoon was well advanced. The air felt -rather close and muggy, and so hazy was it that the sun shone dimly, -and the land, only three or four miles away, was scarcely visible.</p> - -<p>“Where are we?” he asked.</p> - -<p>“There’s Chatham nearly abeam,” said Evans. “The barometer’s falling; -I think we may get a squall.”</p> - -<p>“Your boat will stand it, I trust?”</p> - -<p>“She’ll stand it, all right,” said Evans with a laugh. “She’ll stand -anything that blows. The only practical question is whether to take -the short cut between Bearse Shoal and Monomoy. It saves two or three -miles, and if it’s going to be rotten weather it’ll be more -comfortable for old men like us to get into some sheltered water -before dark.”</p> - -<p>“What is there against the short cut?”</p> - -<p>“Well, if it should get thick with rain it would be a little hard to -see where we were, and there are shoals on both sides; also it’s all -so shoal there that a heavy squall from the northeast would kick up an -infernal rip with the tide running the way it will be when we get -there. But then, a rip can’t hurt us unless it’s bad enough to let her -touch bottom in the trough, and it would take a first-class hurricane -to do that.”</p> - -<p>“Well, all I ask is that you avoid a serious shipwreck, for I’ve -responsibilities ahead that I really ought not to sidestep.”</p> - -<p>“You can trust the <i>Petrel</i> to get you through,” said Evans.</p> - -<p>“Not to mention her skipper,” answered Mortimer.</p> - -<p>Still the west wind held and the little boat stood on till Chatham was -on the starboard quarter and no longer visible through the haze. The -air still felt warm and heavy; in the northeast, through the haze, -dark clouds could be dimly seen gathering. Evans trimmed in his sheets -and luffed toward the point of Monomoy. Pollock Rip Slue Lightship was -visible, and on that Evans took a careful bearing and wrote it down, -together with the time. Monomoy could barely be seen as a faint white -line of sand to the westward. No landmark there could be identified, -but Evans noted the bearings of as much of it as he could see, then -studied the chart. He took a look round at the sky, left the wheel, -and glanced at the barometer.</p> - -<p>“Glass is falling fast,” he said. “Take the wheel a minute while I put -on rubber boots and oilers; then you can do the same.”</p> - -<p>He dived below and soon came up dressed in oilskins and sou’wester, -took the wheel, and sent Mortimer down to put on his spare set. -Suddenly a chill wind struck from the northeast; the sails went over -and fetched up on the sheets to starboard.</p> - -<p>“What’s up?” called Mortimer from below.</p> - -<p>“Wind’s shifted; nothing much yet,” answered Evans as he trimmed over -the jib and slacked the main sheet.</p> - -<p>Mortimer came on deck. Evans was looking now at the compass and now at -the clouds in the northeast, already looking murky and ominous.</p> - -<p>“I’m heading for that short cut,” said Evans. “I could still go out -round Pollock Rip, but it would waste a lot of time and we’ll be all -right in here. I know where we are well enough to hit the channel; if -it blows hard the rip will be rather sensational at the shallowest -point, but won’t do us any harm. She’s built so strong that even if -she did touch the sand in the trough of a wave, it wouldn’t hurt her.”</p> - -<p>The wind was now blowing freshly from the northeast and the <i>Petrel</i> -was driving along before it at a good speed.</p> - -<p>“Isn’t it about time to reef?” asked Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“We shan’t need to. That’s the beauty of this rig; you can shorten -sail to your heart’s content without reefing.”</p> - -<p>The clouds grew darker and the wind increased till whitecaps appeared -and dotted the sea, and the little boat sped on before it with -increasing speed.</p> - -<p>“Time to get in the mainsail,” said Evans; “take the wheel; steer -southwest by west, and hold your course as close as you know how.”</p> - -<p>Then he let go the halyards, and running forward with a couple of -stops in his hand, had the sail down and roughly furled in a few -seconds.</p> - -<p>“Now,” he said, taking the wheel again, “she’ll stand a whole lot of -wind this way. Hold the chart for me. This channel isn’t buoyed, and -the chart helps.”</p> - -<p>Even with only the mizzen and jib the <i>Petrel</i> made good speed; and -now with the stiff wind and east-running tide, the whitecaps were -increasing to good-sized breakers. Then the dark clouds to windward -gathered themselves into a huge black knot, black as ink and roughly -funnel-shaped. Like a giant projectile this black mass approached, -coming at an astounding speed.</p> - -<p>“This is going to be a good one,” said Evans. “It’ll be thick in a -minute, I wouldn’t mind seeing a landmark ahead. Ah! there’s Monomoy -Light.”</p> - -<p>Straining his eyes he could barely make out the lighthouse and get an -approximate bearing on it. But Mortimer’s eyes were riveted on the -colossal black storm-cloud whirling through space toward him in a way -that fairly took his breath away.</p> - -<p>“The jib’s all we’ll want when this hits,” said Evans, and in another -second or two he had the mizzen down and a stop around it.</p> - -<div id='i003' class='mt01 mb01 wi003'> - <img src='images/illus-003.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> -<p class='caption'>AND THEN THE THING STRUCK</p> -</div> -<p>And then the thing struck. So violent was the blow that it seemed as -if the boat might be lifted from the water and carried through space. -The air was full of flying water—sheets of spray blown from the tops -of the waves, while overhead a darkness almost like the night closed -in. Rain came driving horizontally in sheets, and lightning flashed -round half the horizon. It was impossible to see a quarter of a mile.</p> - -<p>Mortimer looked at Evans whose eyes scarcely left the compass, and saw -in his face alertness, steadiness, and strength; and the fear which -such an overwhelming outburst of the fury of the elements had -naturally aroused in him was effectually quelled.</p> - -<p>Almost as quickly as it had come the black cloud blew over, leaving a -sense of dazzling brightness by contrast, although the sky was still -heavily clouded. For three or four minutes the wind blew with almost -unabated fury, the little boat scudding bravely before it under her -jib. Then the wind moderated enough to relax the tension, but still -blew hard enough to make them glad of shortened sail.</p> - -<p>“Eighty miles an hour, I’ll bet, during the height of that,” said -Evans. “All of forty, still.”</p> - -<p>And now the waves had become high and steep and short.</p> - -<p>“We’re getting into that tide rip I spoke of; the water’s getting -shoal. The sand’s so white it looks shoaler than it really is.”</p> - -<p>Mortimer looked ahead and saw through the rain great whitecaps forming -an almost solid line like the breakers on a beach, and in the troughs -of the waves the white sand bottom gleamed alarmingly near.</p> - -<p>“Lord! are we going into that?” he asked.</p> - -<p>“She won’t touch, and the waves can’t hurt her. They may come aboard -now and then, but they’ll drain right out through the cockpit -scuppers. You might close the cabin hatch.”</p> - -<p>The waves grew higher and steeper, and now they were in a mass of -breaking whitecaps. Each wave lifted the little boat up, and with her -nose deep down in the trough, she would dash forward with amazing -speed till the wave broke all around her and she came to a stop in a -smother of foam. Looking back, it often seemed as though the waves, -towering high and curling over the stern, would swamp the boat -completely, but each time the stern rose gracefully, and at most a few -gallons of water would splash into the cockpit.</p> - -<p>“I didn’t suppose any boat could live in this,” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“It sometimes surprises me to see how well she rides these things,” -answered Evans. “I’d like to see that lighthouse again to make sure -we’re in the channel. We should in a minute, as the rain’s letting up, -and we’re getting near to it. There it is. We’ll be through most of it -in a minute now.”</p> - -<p>Then, with series of plunges, in each of which it seemed as if she -must drive her bow into the white sand, so close below the surface it -appeared, the <i>Petrel</i> passed through the roaring breakers into the -deeper water beyond, where, rough as it was, it seemed like a haven of -refuge compared with the rip they had come through.</p> - -<p>Mortimer breathed more freely. “I don’t mind saying I felt scared -coming through that,” he said. “I’m glad you know this game as well as -you do.”</p> - -<p>“I’m not sorry to be through it myself,” said Evans. “It was quite -rough enough for a bit. I don’t think I ever saw such an ugly squall, -and I’ve seen some bad ones. Still, as long as I had that bearing on -Monomoy Light we were in no danger. Quarter of a mile out of the -channel, it’s so shoal she might have hit.”</p> - -<p>“What would you have done if you hadn’t got that bearing?”</p> - -<p>“I guess I’d have stood off and waited till it cleared enough to see -the lighthouse, or else beat out round Bearse Shoal, and that would -have been a hell of a rough thrash to windward; still, it wouldn’t -have hurt us any.”</p> - -<p>“It looks to me as if the gods had a way of fighting on your side,” -said Mortimer. “Do you always get away with it when you take a chance -like that?”</p> - -<p>Evans looked serious. “I don’t know as I can claim that,” he said, -“but Fortune has been pretty good to me in her own way. Maybe I was -rather foolish to go through that. It will be smoother from now on; -there’ll be some small rips, but nothing like that one. I think we’d -better make for Hyannis. We could anchor in Chatham Roads, but that -would be exposed if the wind turned southwest. Hyannis is a good -harbor in any wind, and it will be easy getting in after dark with -Bishop and Clerk’s and the harbor range lights to steer by. It’ll be -handier for you in the morning, too. Take her while I hoist the -mizzen; we may as well have that now.”</p> - -<p>In another minute the little boat was speeding on before the gale -under mizzen and jib. The rain had subsided, but a leaden twilight was -closing in. Monomoy appeared as a low white streak of sand on the -starboard beam. Hugging it close, they rounded Monomoy Point and -luffed to clear the north end of Handkerchief Shoal. Evans went below -and lit the running lights, then, starting a fire in the small coal -stove in the galley, put some potatoes and rice on to boil. Then he -came on deck with some pilot biscuit and chocolate, and the two -friends settled down in the snug little cockpit to enjoy their sail -through the shoals in the gathering darkness.</p> - -<p>Soon their talk drifted back to the all-important topic of the coming -crisis.</p> - -<p>“It always seemed to me,” said Evans, “that a navy could conveniently -be likened to a living organism, a man, for instance. A man has -senses—sight, hearing, etc.—which tell him what’s happening about him. -Nerves carry the impressions from the sense organs to the central -station, the brain, where information is sorted into the springs of -action; other nerves carry messages from the brain to the muscles that -work the arms and legs—and incidentally the teeth. Now in the navy -your patrols, scouts, planes, drifters, etc., with their observers and -hydrophones, and all forms of radio receiving apparatus, are the -senses, and I should include under that head, spies. In place of the -muscles, fists, and teeth you have the ships’ engines and the guns, -torpedoes, bombs, and such like. The nervous system is the general -staff which determines policy, the admirals who execute it, and -communications which are the nerves that bring information into the -navy’s brain, and in turn give the word for action. Communications, of -course, comprise flag signals, blinkers, semaphores, couriers, postal -service, telephones, telegraph, radio, and the newer methods, such as -infra-red rays.</p> - -<p>“Now it seems to me the importance of communications hasn’t been -emphasized half enough. The methods available are highly developed, -but their value isn’t clearly enough appreciated. You can hardly find -a finer, keener, better-trained bunch of men anywhere than the -officers of our navy, but the profession has grown so complex and the -duties to be learned so manifold that it takes an exceptional man to -grasp all the possibilities science has developed and to see them in a -proper perspective. The average naval officer takes far more interest -in ordnance and gunnery than he does in communications. The difference -between an athlete and a lummox is not in the muscles, but in the -nervous system which coördinates their action. Provided the muscles -are not atrophied or diseased, they’ll do what the nerves tell ’em to. -Now gunnery is obviously important—so obviously that the personnel -tends to look on it as the whole thing. Of course it must be -efficient, but it has been ever since Sims made it so; it must be kept -up to the mark, but it is a strong tradition in the navy to keep it -so, and I don’t think you’ll have any trouble on that score. It is -intelligence and coördination, and communication in particular that -you must look out for in order to make your fighting strength -effective. Just as the skill and wisdom of the gunnery officer direct -the titanic force of the guns to the point where it is most telling, -so the controlling mind, acting through communications, directs the -force of the entire fleet; that’s the field where the minimum energy -will yield the largest return; put your best efforts in there.”</p> - -<p>“Don’t forget morale,” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“Quite right,” said Evans; “morale is more than half the fight; -without it no amount of skill or intelligence will avail; but without -the aid of the mind morale is flung helpless at the mercy of superior -skill in an opponent. I am inclined to assume morale; and I believe it -is a justified assumption, for to stress and foster it is a tradition -well maintained in our service.”</p> - -<p>Evans went on to explain to Mortimer some of the methods of -communication which had been developed: the internal communications in -a ship, the dual use of a single antenna to receive two messages -simultaneously on different wave-lengths, the use of infra-red rays -for secret messages between ships in a fleet, and many other things -which Mortimer had never had time to learn.</p> - -<p>“I wish I could make you Director of Naval Communications,” said -Mortimer. “Unfortunately the rank that goes with that position is rear -admiral. Under the existing regulations the highest rank I could give -you is lieutenant-commander. If you were a captain, I could make you a -temporary rear admiral in order to hold that position, but I don’t -know of any way that it could be done straight from civil life.”</p> - -<p>“If I were you I wouldn’t try to make me an admiral or even a -lieutenant-commander,” answered Evans. “Professional naval officers -are apt to resent having men out of civil life put over them with -superior naval rank. They’d feel that I was ‘striped way up,’ even as -lieutenant-commander, and that I hadn’t earned my rank. I should -encounter friction and difficulties in consequence. I sure want to -help you in any capacity I can, but my suggestion is that you make me -a warrant officer, say radio gunner.”</p> - -<p>“Radio gunner!” exclaimed Mortimer; “that’s a pretty small job for -you. You’d be subordinate to a lot of ensigns just out of Annapolis.”</p> - -<p>“It’s not necessarily such a small job; officers of high rank are apt -to heed the advice of a dependable warrant officer, regarding him as a -technical expert. Often they respect a warrant officer who knows his -business a good deal more than they do ensigns and lieutenants. If he -works his opportunities right, he may put over more than purely -technical ideas. A man who doesn’t use his opportunities right won’t -get very far in warfare though he wears the gold braid of an admiral.”</p> - -<p>The night had closed in dark as pitch, and the wind swept on furiously -from the stormy sky. Evans steered his little boat over the waves, -guided by the familiar lights in the distance. To the south the lights -of a tow of barges and a coasting schooner, threading the ship channel -through the shoals, grew dimmer and finally were lost in the murk.</p> - -<p>The conversation drifted on to the question of the use of scientists -in war. Evans summed up his views on this point as follows:</p> - -<p>“Make free use of scientists, but use them with skill. A scientist in -war, if he hasn’t engineering sense as well as scientific spirit, is -apt to be like a drunken man trying to make a speech; his mind is so -discursive he can never get to the point. In peace the best measure of -a scientist’s merit is the patience with which he can seek truth for -its own sake, and his indifference to the application of his work to -tangible results. In war this point of view is out of season; the -man’s value then depends on his impatience to apply all he knows to -getting results of the most tangible kind. At the dinner hour we sit -down to eat our food and digest it; the dinner hour over, eating -becomes unseasonable, and we must absorb what we have eaten and -utilize it in the performance of the day’s work.</p> - -<p>“In the war with Germany a vast amount of time was wasted by -scientists who couldn’t adapt their points of view to war-time -conditions. They insisted on laying their foundations with the same -painstaking thoroughness and patience with which they would pave the -way to a new theory of light; they kept before them the same ideal of -perfection which the highest standards of peace-time scholarship -demand. The Armistice found them still laying their foundations, and -their efforts all wasted, as far as winning the war was concerned. Of -course it pays to keep some fundamental work going on the chance of -the war lasting a good many years, but there’s such a thing as sense -of proportion about it; and that’s what lots of scientists lack.”</p> - -<p>“How is the non-scientific head of a big department to know whether a -line of research promises to bring results in a finite time or not?” -asked Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“That’s difficult,” said Evans. “The best thing is to have on hand -some men of large caliber whom you can trust to have engineering sense -as well as scientific vision, and make them keep the others in the -paths of reason.”</p> - -<p>Among other things Evans pointed out the great importance of weather -forecasting in naval warfare.</p> - -<p>“It doesn’t take much imagination to see that it might come in handy -to know a little beforehand when something like what hit us to-day is -coming. Imagine trying to carry out some kinds of naval operations -during the worst of that squall. Then the direction of the wind may -affect the visibility in different directions, so as to make it a -decisive factor in a naval action.”</p> - -<p>“Weather prediction is still pretty much a matter of guesswork, isn’t -it?” asked Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“No, there’s a good deal of science to it,” said Evans, “and there’s -more coming to fruition than is generally known. Professor Jeremy is -probably the ablest meteorologist in the world. He has been doing some -wonderful research on the causes of weather changes, and I believe -he’s in a way to reach some very important conclusions before long. -You couldn’t do better than put him in charge of your Naval Weather -Service, with a free hand to do things his own way. He’d have a sense -of proportion, and go at the most practical kind of research which -would in a few months give our navy so much better knowledge of -weather prediction than the enemy as to be a really important military -advantage. Then the trouble would be to make the admirals appreciate -what they had, and use it.”</p> - -<p>They had now crossed the open sheet of water between Monomoy and Point -Gammon, and had passed Bishop and Clerk’s lighthouse a mile to -leeward, till it was already receding on the port quarter. The outline -of Point Gammon showed dimly to windward. Taking a bearing on -Hyannisport Light, Evans luffed and trimmed in the sheets a bit. Soon -they were in the lee of Point Gammon where the water was smoother, and -steering north-northwest picked up the spindle on Great Rock on the -weather bow. Passing this they luffed close on the wind till they -sighted the breakwater to leeward just before they brought the range -lights in line. Inside the breakwater, Evans kept off and steered for -the lights in the cottages that line the harbor shore, while the dark -line of the land ahead loomed nearer and nearer, and its outline grew -more distinct. The riding lights of some of the larger boats at anchor -were now quite distinguishable from the cottage lights beyond. Evans -went forward, cleared the anchor, and hauled down the jib, then -returning to the wheel he picked his way in past some of the larger -vessels to a snug anchorage near a group of Cape Cod catboats. The -gale was still blowing hard and showed no signs of moderating, so he -let go both anchors and gave them a generous allowance of scope. He -made all snug on deck in spite of the darkness, with an alacrity born -of long experience and the most intimate familiarity with every rope -and cleat on his boat; then put up the riding light. With a careful -look around he went aft into the cockpit, saying:</p> - -<p>“Well, we’re all snug here. The holding ground’s good, so it can blow -all it’s a mind to, and we shan’t drag. Let’s go below, get out of -these wet oilers, and have something to eat.”</p> - -<p>The hour was late for supper—a fact which did not militate against -their appetites. In the cabin there was warmth from the little galley -stove where the potatoes and rice were now done. Evans opened a tin of -canned chicken and stirred the contents into the rice.</p> - -<p>“Supper’s ready,” he said, putting some plates and bread on the table. -“This chicken-rice mixture is about the easiest thing to get ready on -a rough day, and it makes a pretty good meal in itself.”</p> - -<p>They fell to like a pair of wolves, and Mortimer declared he had never -found a meal more to his liking.</p> - -<p>After supper Evans tumbled the débris into a big dishpan and began a -hasty but effective dish-washing.</p> - -<p>“Can I help?” asked Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“You can wipe,” answered Evans, and tossed him a dish towel.</p> - -<p>Before turning in, Evans took another look at the weather which still -showed no signs of changing, and then the tired men took to their -bunks, and darkness reigned in the little cabin except for a glimmer -from the riding light through a porthole forward.</p> - -<p>Tired as he was, it was some time before Mortimer fell asleep. The -excitement of the squall and the novelty of his surroundings kept him -awake, listening to the wind shrieking in the rigging. But the gentle -rocking of the boat in her sheltered anchorage lulled him off at last -to a deep sleep.</p> - -<p>Next morning he waked to hear Evans shaking the ashes out of the -galley stove. The wind had moderated and the sky showed signs of -clearing. After a plunge overboard and a good breakfast, Mortimer felt -better than he had for months. Evans rowed him ashore in his dinghy in -time to catch the train, and before they parted it was settled that -Evans should go to Washington in a fortnight’s time and be enrolled as -a radio gunner in the navy.</p> - -<p>Evans took advantage of the northeast wind which was still blowing -strong to make the run to New Bedford. With a single-reefed mainsail, -for comfort in handling, as he was alone, he made the run through -Wood’s Hole and across Buzzard’s Bay in six hours or so, and dropped -anchor in New Bedford Harbor some time before sunset. As he sailed -across the bay he pondered the problem confronting his friend.</p> - -<p>“It’s strange,” he said to himself, “on what capricious things the -great affairs of the world sometimes depend. But Sam will make good, -even if he does seem to know less about the navy than I do. He’s able, -he’s dead in earnest, and he’s open-minded; damn few secretaries have -been more than that.”</p> - -<p>He racked his brains to think how he could help his friend, and in his -mind there grew the framework of a strong organization of engineering -men so mobilized as to place at the disposal of the navy the efficient -use of the best that science could offer.</p> - -<p>At New Bedford he arranged to have his boat hauled out for the winter.</p> - -<p>“I don’t expect to put her in commission next summer,” he said to the -man at the shipyard; “you’d better be prepared to store her for a -second winter.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chIII' title='III—The Mobilization'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER III</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>THE MOBILIZATION</span> -</h2> -<p>Early in October, about four weeks after Mortimer’s sail around Cape -Cod with Evans, the United States declared war against the -Constantinople Coalition, otherwise known as “The Mediterranean -Powers.”</p> - -<p>Like a great conflagration, a new wave of idealism swept over the -land. To every one was offered the opportunity to come forward and -give the best that was in him, and few but accepted it gladly.</p> - -<p>Washington became the scene of turmoil. Flocks of people poured in. -The “swivel-chair warrior” reappeared in all his glory, and the -“efficiency expert” added the finishing touch to the orgy of -organization and reorganization in which the War Department became -engulfed.</p> - -<p>In the Navy Department a comparative quiet reigned; the atmosphere was -almost that of an efficiently organized and smoothly running business. -Until two or three days before the declaration of war Secretary -Mortimer was daily in conference for an hour or more with a certain -civilian, but so large was the department and so many were the new -faces that no one noticed him to be the same individual as the warrant -officer, Radio Gunner Evans, who, the day before war was declared, was -assigned to duty in the Radio Division of the Bureau of Engineering. -Here Evans was given a room to himself. On his desk were two -telephones, one connected with the department exchange, the other with -the Secretary’s room by a special wire. Evans had himself completed -the laying of these wires into his own room and made the terminal -connection with the telephone on his desk. No one but he and Mortimer -knew where this line led.</p> - -<p>Nominally Evans’s duty was the direction and supervision of a group of -civilian experts engaged in designing new radio apparatus for -installation on ships and shore stations. He was also frequently seen -at the office of the Director of Naval Communications.</p> - -<p>It behooves the personnel of this office to coöperate cordially with -the personnel of the Bureau of Engineering, since the latter makes the -apparatus for the former to use, though some people don’t understand -this fact. In general, the personnel of the D.N.C. office did not know -why this warrant officer should appear from time to time, and some -said, “Who’s this guy, anyway, and what’s he doing round here?”</p> - -<p>To which query the answer was, as like as not, “Dunno; maybe he’s -using this office as an alibi for dodging his work where he belongs.”</p> - -<p>Before a state of war had existed two days, letters had been received -from Mortimer by half a dozen of the best radio engineers in the -country and a number of eminent investigators in various fields of -physical science, asking them to come to Washington to confer with -him. Within a week nearly all of these men had come, and a -comprehensive plan had been laid for the coöperative work whereby -their brains could be utilized to the best advantage of the navy. At -these conferences Commander Rich, head of the Radio Division of the -Bureau of Engineering, was present, and the impression which he made -on the scientists for his rapid grasp of what was essential in the -great problem before them was such that more than one took occasion to -congratulate Mortimer on having such a man in his organization, -especially on having him in charge of so important a branch of the -service as radio. About this time, also, Professor Jeremy, with rank -of lieutenant-commander, was placed in charge of the naval weather -service, and with a group of able young assistants began to attack his -problem with energy and resource.</p> - -<p>The public mind turned rather to the army than to the navy; to most -people entry into the war meant the sending of troops to reinforce the -armies of Northern Europe in the line of trenches stretching across -the continent; the thought of the happenings on the sea scarcely -figured in their minds. The popular hue and cry was, “Join the Army.” -Congress began agitating the question of conscription for the army. -But the navy needed enormous additions to its personnel.</p> - -<p>Mortimer paid a visit to the Bureau of Engineering and, after -discussing progress with the Bureau Chief and Commander Rich, he -slipped into Evans’s room to discuss matters with him.</p> - -<p>“It looks as if this conscription business might fill up the army and -leave the navy high and dry,” he said. “I don’t think Congress -understands that the main task is up to the navy, and we’ve got to -have men to do it.”</p> - -<p>“People don’t understand that, as a rule,” answered Evans. “They look -at the battle-line across Europe, and think that’s the war. They don’t -understand that the war can be carried on only by means of certain -commodities some of which can be produced only in the Western -Hemisphere; that the vast resources of South America are of vital -importance to whichever side controls them; that the control of the -sea has thus far given the enemy access to these resources and denied -it to our allies; and that the one way to checkmate them is to secure -complete control of the seas for ourselves. Welcome as our army would -be to reinforce those of Northern Europe, even if we got it safely -across, it could do nothing decisive against the present defensive -methods in use along the enemy’s line. No, the game is up to us; -you’re dead right, we’ve got to have our share of the men.”</p> - -<p>“I believe the President could do something about it by executive -action,” said Mortimer. “But I’m not sure if he’s quite alive to the -importance of the navy himself. Military affairs are not his long -suit. If I urge on him the importance of it, the danger is that, -unless I can give him convincing reasons, he may assume that it’s just -the usual thing—each man wants his own particular show to be the -biggest. I want to get the essential points down in convincing and -unanswerable form, and I’d like to have you help me prepare the case.”</p> - -<p>Evans then enumerated the salient points, indicating wherein the -problem devolved upon the navy, while Mortimer questioned him and took -notes. Evans showed how, through the progress of science and invention -during the last twenty years, new methods had become available in -warfare, and how the devilish cunning of the Constantinople plotters -had utilized these and had taken advantage of their maritime control -of the Mediterranean to establish a powerful grip on the south of -France and make their defenses virtually impregnable, new inventions -in offensive warfare having been more than countered by new methods of -defense. He then enumerated the raw materials essential to maintaining -the intricate structure of their military system and showed how a -large percentage of these could be got only from the tropical regions -of the Western Hemisphere—South America, Central America, and the West -Indies. During the summer, when they held undisputed control of the -Atlantic, the enemy had been transporting enormous stores of those -things which they most needed across from Brazil. Now that the -American Navy had entered the field to dispute the control of the -Atlantic, it became a question of naval power which side should keep -its own source of supplies open and cut off that of the opponents.</p> - -<p>The enemy now had control of Portugal, the Azores, Madeira, Teneriffe, -and the Cape Verde Islands, and, with submarine and seaplane bases at -Lisbon and the islands, they were continuing to harass the shipping in -the North Atlantic in defiance of international law. Furthermore, -under protection from these bases they could maintain an almost -uninterrupted flow of commerce with South America, their ships passing -close to the African coast where American surface craft could not -safely attack them.</p> - -<p>During their conversation Evans revealed a knowledge of raw materials, -their places of origin and their uses, at which Mortimer was amazed.</p> - -<p>“I don’t see how you ever learned and remembered all these facts,” he -said.</p> - -<p>“I forget lots of things I hear,” answered Evans, “but these facts are -so relevant to the crisis at hand that I had good reason to remember -them. After all, the facts are open to any one; it’s just a matter of -taking the trouble to put them together and see what they mean.”</p> - -<p>In discussing the submarine situation, Evans urged the importance of -getting possession of the Azores as soon as possible. He believed that -a blow struck with the entire naval strength available would encounter -no very serious opposition from the enemy.</p> - -<p>“My guess is that, much as they want to keep the Azores, they are so -much keener about keeping their navy intact and holding their control -of the Mediterranean that they wouldn’t risk their fleet in a major -naval action for the sake of the islands. Of course, we must first -effect a consolidation of our fleet with what’s left of the British -and French navies, in order to have the maximum strength available.”</p> - -<p>“That’s one of the first things we’ve got to get after,” said -Mortimer. “Well, first of all there’s this matter of personnel to -start right, and I must be about it. Many thanks for these points -you’ve given me; they’ll come in handy.” With that he left the room.</p> - -<p>The next day Evans was called by Mortimer on the telephone connected -directly with the Secretary’s room. The President had listened -attentively to his recital of cogent facts and had been much -impressed. He was almost certain the draft bill would go through, and -had virtually assured Mortimer that the navy would not suffer in the -choice of men.</p> - -<p>Not many days passed before Evans and Mortimer were again closeted -together discussing the coördination of naval effort. The British Navy -was still able, in spite of the disaster, to furnish an appreciable -addition to the force, and, above all, to furnish the wisdom and -indomitable spirit bred of centuries of maritime greatness. -Coöperation with it was now in Mortimer’s mind as a foremost -consideration. To this end he was about to dispatch a commission of -liaison officers to London. On this occasion Evans emphasized -especially the need of a well-organized intelligence service with -agents permeating the enemy’s country.</p> - -<p>“At sea it is universally admitted that by virtue of our great -preponderance of available power, we must take command,” said Evans. -“But in the matter of intelligence service there is none on earth that -can touch the British, and I believe we had better play that game -under their lead. Their organization is marvelous, and the best we can -do is to fit our machinery to theirs.</p> - -<p>“You know, I think there’s something in the temperament of a certain -type of Englishman that fits him extraordinarily well for the -hazardous game of secret service in enemy country. It’s his faculty of -keeping his thoughts and feelings to himself, his impenetrable -exterior, together with his coolness in danger.”</p> - -<p>“Haven’t we plenty of men with those same faculties?” Mortimer asked.</p> - -<p>“It’s rare to find them so well developed in an American. Then, too, -there’s a thoroughness in the education of the British scholar that -helps him grasp new and difficult problems. What I’m driving at is -this:—there ought to be some one in Constantinople who is not only a -damn clever spy, but who also understands what you can do with radio.”</p> - -<p>“You’re trying to combine too much in one man,” said Mortimer. “You -don’t want to have your secret agent for intelligence bother his head -with technical stuff like radio; he should rely on others for that.”</p> - -<p>“Of course he should, as far as handling the apparatus is concerned. -But he must grasp the basic principles, so that he’ll understand the -kind of thing modern apparatus will do for him.</p> - -<p>“Both in regard to secret service and to coördination in general, we -must get together with the British communication experts and come to -an understanding about codes and apparatus. Science has given us such -a wealth of new methods in radio engineering that much depends on a -clear understanding of what your apparatus will do. The British have -developed it along their lines, and we along ours. There should be -consultation to determine the best way of standardizing procedure in -the fleet, and still more important at the moment is to consult with -them as to how recent developments in both countries may be made to -help the business of communicating with our spies.”</p> - -<p>“I wonder if it wouldn’t be a good plan for you to go with the -commission we are sending to England, and confer with their radio men -on the matter of apparatus and communication methods in general,” said -Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“I believe it would,” answered Evans. “I should like to discuss those -points with them, and I should like particularly to see some man in -their intelligence service who understands radio methods, or at least -their possibilities, and who could get into Constantinople; together -we could work out codes and ciphers and other matters of procedure -that would facilitate the transmission of intelligence to us from that -interesting spot.”</p> - -<p>“All right; I’ll send you along with the bunch,” said Mortimer. “I -think the party will be ready to go in four or five days.”</p> - -<p>“I’ve been thinking,” said Evans, still following his previous train -of thought, “that an old friend of mine in England would be the ideal -person for that job; I mean, to undertake to keep us posted from enemy -headquarters. He’s an archaeologist by profession, and the most -versatile man I know. He has spent a lot of time in Greece and Asia -Minor, knows Constantinople and the Balkans like a book; he’s a -wonderful linguist, and the best actor you ever saw. His name is -Heringham. I used to play chess with him when I was studying in the -Cavendish in Cambridge, and I never knew a man who could fool you more -adroitly as to his real plan of campaign. He used to take every kind -of part in student theatricals, from a Buddhist to a buffoon, and to -realize that the same man did them all would tax your powers of belief -to the limit. I don’t think he knows much radio, but he has a good -scientific foundation, and he’s so confoundedly clever that he’d learn -what he needed for that job in no time. I’d give a lot to have him in -Constantinople and to have had a chance to plan things a bit with him -first.”</p> - -<p>“What’s he doing now?” asked Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“Nothing important,” was the answer. “I got a letter from him saying -he offered his services to the army, and was rejected because of his -age and a slight defect in his eyes; he’s forty-one or forty-two. He’s -still living at his rooms in Trinity, trying to make himself useful at -odd jobs.”</p> - -<p>“Do you suppose there’s any way of getting your wish realized?”</p> - -<p>“I don’t know. I’d like to get over there and see what can be done.”</p> - -<p>“I’ll give you letters to any one you want,” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“I think I’d better keep away from the mighty men at the top, and have -my business talks with their technical radio men. Send over Barton who -is right-hand man to the Chief of Naval Intelligence, and the real -brains of the Bureau, and tell him how much you want me to dip into -his line of business; he’s no red-tape artist. Between us we may find -a way to the sort of collaboration we want.”</p> - -<p>A few days later a scout cruiser capable of forty knots slipped out of -the Navy Yard at Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and headed south, passing -between the Isles of Shoals and Cape Ann; but when well out of sight -of land she changed her course to east, and sped rapidly out to sea, -making several knots better than her economical cruising speed. On -board of her was a group of liaison officers of high rank. Commander -Barton, of the Bureau of Naval Intelligence, and a number of experts -on naval specialties—ordnance, aircraft, and the like, including Evans -and a certain Lieutenant Brown representing the Director of Naval -Communications.</p> - -<p>The ocean passage lasted four days. Evans spent much of his time in -the radio room at the congenial pastime of discussing problems with -the chief radio electrician and his operators, and helping them tinker -with apparatus. A radio chief likes to discuss his set with any one -who has a genuine interest, and it wasn’t long before the chief and -all the operators were picking up innumerable hints on the newest -engineering developments. The radio officer of the ship was an ensign -named Lindsay, a youngster just out of Annapolis with a sunny -disposition and a wholesome boyishness about him that won Evans’s -heart. He was also free from the conceit of rank which constrains some -ensigns to treat a warrant officer with a forced superiority. He had -little knowledge of radio, and, as is usually the case, relied in -technical matters on the chief radio electrician. He soon found in -Evans one from whom he could learn what he needed to know of radio -methods, without the sense of losing prestige which some officers feel -to be associated with acquiring information from one of subordinate -rank. Before the voyage was over, Lindsay had acquired a new outlook -on the significance of communications and the possibilities which lay -in the various methods a ship may use for picking up and transmitting -information concerning the enemy, such as hydrophones, radio -direction-finders, amplifiers, selective devices to avoid -interference, and secret methods of signaling. With this enlarged -vision there was born in him a new enthusiasm for his task.</p> - -<p>On a cold, gray autumn day the cruiser passed the Lizard, rounded Rame -Head and Penlee Point, and dropped anchor in Plymouth Sound. In -another hour the party was speeding through the mellow green hills of -Devonshire on its way to London. The next day found Evans at the great -National Physical Laboratory at Teddington where some of the best -brains in the world were engaged in coördinated research to solve the -many problems of physical science and technology which the peril of -the Empire had rendered vital.</p> - -<p>More than one physicist whom he had known years before at the -Cavendish Laboratory did he now find serving here as a department -head. One of these, knowing his work in the field of pure science, -expressed surprise at seeing him in a rank below that of -sublieutenant.</p> - -<p>“You shouldn’t be wasting yourself as a gunner,” he said; “you ought -to be directing research.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” answered Evans, “I manage to get a shot at research now and -then, and the kind of duty that comes my way on this job suits me -pretty well, on the whole.”</p> - -<p>Before he had been in London a day, Evans had arranged to see his -friend Heringham in Cambridge. He took an afternoon train thither, and -found dusk gathering in the narrow streets of the ancient town. At the -sight of familiar landmarks, shops, and churches, memories came -flooding over him of the happy winter spent there in his youth, -learning from the world’s greatest masters of pure science. He -recalled the profound debt he owed to the Cavendish for its part in -the moulding of his career, and with the thought a deep gratitude -stirred within him. Crossing the market-place, he came to the old -College buildings, the beauty and dignity of their architecture never -more impressive than now in the twilight. At last he came to the -venerable main gate of Trinity and entered the Great Court, hallowed -by the memory of Newton, Tennyson, and a host of other men of genius, -through centuries the greatest fountain-head of high scholarship and -learning in Anglo-Saxon civilization. He stopped and looked about him, -and the realization of all that this place stood for came over him as -it never had before. Here in these walls of weather-stained and -crumbling stone was the cradle of that intellectual and spiritual -growth which constituted the real world in which he lived and for -which he would gladly die. There arose before his mind a picture of -the calculating and mercenary group in Constantinople, and the cynical -and iconoclastic spirit in which they would wreck the shrines of -Western civilization and learning should they win the fight. He set -his teeth and crossed the court to the stairway leading to Heringham’s -room.</p> - -<p>He knocked at the door and found his friend sitting by a small coal -fire, smoking his pipe and reading the noncommittal news in the daily -paper. Seated together by the fire, these two congenial souls were -soon chatting comfortably on the basis of a natural and inalienable -understanding which existed between them. Evans found, as he expected, -that Heringham possessed an extraordinary knowledge of the leading -characters in the Constantinople conspiracy and how matters stood -among them.</p> - -<p>“You ought to be using this knowledge in some way,” said Evans.</p> - -<p>“How can I?” asked Heringham. “The army rejected me, and here I am.”</p> - -<p>“Could you smuggle yourself into Constantinople without disturbing the -equanimity of these devils you’ve been telling me about?” said Evans.</p> - -<p>Heringham sucked hard at his pipe and stared at the fire.</p> - -<p>“I don’t know that game,” he said at last. “I imagine it takes rather -a lot of experience.”</p> - -<p>“I can’t think of any one who would learn it quicker than you, and -you’ve got a big head start in your knowledge of the country and the -people you would have to deal with,” said Evans.</p> - -<p>Again Heringham thought awhile in silence. “I dare say I could get -there if I had to,” he said musingly, “but then, I don’t see much -prospect of their asking me to.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, well,” said Evans, “you never know what may turn up next.”</p> - -<p>“What’s up?” said Heringham. “Have you got strings on the dear old -things in the War Office that you’re going to pull?”</p> - -<p>“Not that I know of,” said Evans. “But I’ll tell you a little of our -situation. Mortimer, our Secretary of the Navy, happens to be an old -pal of mine; classmates we were, in school and college. He’s a trump, -dead in earnest and a splendid organizer. But his life-work has been -law and politics, and when this job fell on his shoulders he knew no -more of naval affairs than I know of Sanskrit. In spite of this -handicap he’s making good, but he needs a good deal of technical help, -and I’m trying to contribute what I can in the field of -communications.”</p> - -<p>He went on to explain the nature of his present mission to England, -both as to consultation in the matter of radio apparatus in general, -and in particular as to effecting coöperation with the British -Intelligence Service for the transmission of information by radio to -the Allied Navies.</p> - -<p>“Barton, of our Intelligence Bureau, is over here,” he said, “and he -will have access to the men who control things in your Intelligence -Service. He is the only one in our mission who knows that I’m not -concerned simply with radio apparatus. I can talk to him, and he’ll -listen.”</p> - -<p>“Well, old chap,” said Heringham, “I’m at your disposal or his, to -stick my head in the lion’s mouth if it will do any good. Lord knows -I’ve been hating myself to death here, doing an old woman’s odd jobs -when I should be fighting. By Jove, there’s eight o’clock striking; -come over to Hall and we’ll have some dinner.”</p> - -<p>The slow tolling of the College bell came ringing across the court. -Heringham slipped on his academic gown and led the way out into the -Great Court where they joined the converging streams of dons crossing -to the famous Hall where hang the portraits of more great men, past -members of Trinity College, than can be found in any similar place the -world over. At dinner Evans sat between Heringham and an elderly -professor of Greek, with a distinguished face and a white beard. With -this scholar he soon became engaged in a conversation of absorbing -interest, which furnished him useful scraps of information bearing on -the present situation in the Mediterranean, based on the old man’s -intimate knowledge of the Greece of an earlier day.</p> - -<p>After dinner, the dons migrated in procession to the Combination Room -where Evans sat next the Master of Trinity, an eminent mathematician, -who plied him eagerly with questions about the American Navy, as they -sipped their port and coffee. He, at least, was keenly aware that on -this group of ships, and the controlling mind behind it, rested the -future of all.</p> - -<p>Returning at length to Heringham’s room, they poked the smouldering -coals into flame and returned to their talk of the European situation, -and of Heringham’s availability for playing the part which had been -suggested for him. Evans questioned him closely as to his knowledge of -physics. Of radio he knew nothing in detail, but his knowledge of -fundamental principles was good. Their talk engrossed them the best -part of the evening.</p> - -<p>Heringham then went with him to the gate to say the ‘open sesame’ -whereby the night porter was induced to let him out into Trinity -Street, dark, narrow, and deserted save for a lone man who passed on -the opposite sidewalk as Evans came out and started for his hotel.</p> - -<p>Returning next day to London, Evans sought Commander Barton and drew -for him a picture of Heringham’s qualifications which filled that -officer with enthusiasm for the plan of getting him impressed into -service. He had already been in conference with several of the head -men in the British Intelligence Service and was satisfied that there -was a distinct need for just such a person in the heart of the enemy -country. A number of able agents were already there, but they had gone -in before the American Navy had entered the field and become the most -important force for them to collaborate with; moreover, they had not -at their disposal the radio experts who would be needed to find means -of transmitting intelligence to sea. Barton, therefore, took very -kindly to the idea of sending in a man like Heringham who could -previously prepare a concerted plan of action and a system of codes -with representatives of the American Navy, and who could then proceed, -together with an experienced operator, to penetrate to enemy -headquarters there to direct the leakage of information through -whatever channel his ingenuity could discover or devise.</p> - -<p>Three days later, Heringham received an urgent request from a certain -high official to come at once to London for an interview. Proceeding -to the street and number mentioned, he was taken in a taxicab to -another part of the city where he was ushered through innumerable -doors and corridors to a small room where an officer with penetrating -eyes questioned him minutely about his life and activities, and -especially his experience in the Near East. After a searching -examination, this officer finally revealed his own status in the -British Intelligence Service and asked Heringham if he would be -willing to undertake secret service in enemy country, and the upshot -of it was that then and there it was arranged that he should be sent -on the hazardous and responsible mission.</p> - -<p>Busy days followed in which Heringham, besides receiving instruction -as to his duties and methods of procedure from those above him, was -also in frequent conference with Evans and Barton, planning their -general course of action and devising codes. They anticipated that -their main reliance would be placed on smuggling operators into the -crews of enemy transmitting stations and having them superimpose -messages in secret code on the regular traffic of the stations. -Therefore, two experienced radio operators were also selected and -educated in the lore of spies that they might go to Constantinople and -there act as technical advisers to Heringham.</p> - -<p>In these conferences Evans came to realize how sharply his own point -of view, as a physicist, differed from that of Barton, the trained -Intelligence officer. Problems which he saw from a purely intellectual -point of view took on a wholly new aspect when Barton’s ready and -practical wits had been focused on them. Evans felt his own -shortcomings in this strange world of secret service, a world in which -deliberate scientific reasoning was replaced by intuition, -dissembling, and juggling with the caprice of human nature. He felt as -awkward as a country bumpkin in the midst of a group of experts at -flashing repartee.</p> - -<p>In addition to these conferences, Evans devoted all the spare time he -could to instructing Heringham in the essentials of radio science and -engineering, that he should understand more fully what kind of -opportunities might present themselves for juggling with the radio -business of the enemy.</p> - -<p>Advices were sent through the mysterious channels best known to those -who practice the art of secret service, to the agents already in -Constantinople, apprising them of the plan to send Heringham to join -them; in return, valuable suggestions were received from them -concerning conditions in enemy country.</p> - -<p>The adventurous nature of Heringham’s mission took such a hold on -Evans’s imagination that he became absorbed in the planning of it with -the eagerness of a boy building some new castle in the air. It was -only with effort that he turned his attention to what was nominally -his own mission, the consultation with British radio experts on -technical matters. He managed, nevertheless, to confer with the best -men in this field in England, and to compare notes with them on recent -progress. He learned from them what improvements in British apparatus -could, without lost motion, be advantageously incorporated into -American gear, and arrived at an understanding with them on the -standardization of apparatus wherever this was desirable.</p> - -<p>One night, after a late conference with Heringham and Barton, Evans -was walking back to his hotel in the vicinity of Trafalgar Square, -when he met Lindsay. In the darkened street they might not have -recognized each other had they not met close to one of the dim, blue -street lights. It was the first time they had met since their arrival -in England, Lindsay only just having come to London for a few days of -leave.</p> - -<p>“Hullo,” he said to Evans. “Are you having a time doing up old -London?”</p> - -<p>“I’m having a time, all right; but I don’t know that it’s the kind of -time you mean.”</p> - -<p>“Well, whatever kind of time it is, don’t overdo it.”</p> - -<p>As he spoke, Lindsay’s eye followed a figure on the other side of the -street, walking in the same direction that Evans had been going when -they met. Evans, following his glance, saw a man with a businesslike -step walking by. The man turned down the first side street, and as he -turned under the street light at the corner, Evans caught a glimpse of -a sallow face. When the sound of his footsteps had died away, Lindsay -said in a manner that seemed more than half-joking:</p> - -<p>“It looks to me as if you were being shadowed; that man stopped when -you stopped, then crossed the street. What are you up to, anyway?”</p> - -<p>“I don’t believe any one wants to bother about shadowing me,” said -Evans.</p> - -<p>“You’d better let me go along and look after you, or some fellow will -get you with a sandbag while you’re up in the clouds thinking about -wave lengths or frequencies or something.”</p> - -<p>“Come along,” said Evans, “I’ll be glad enough to have you.”</p> - -<p>“I guess I’d better mind my own business,” said Lindsay; “but watch -your step, old man.”</p> - -<p>They parted, and Evans told himself that, of course, Lindsay was -joking. Yet, as he walked on through the lonely streets, he wished his -young friend was still with him. Just before he reached his hotel, he -heard a strangely familiar tread on the pavement a long way behind -him. Looking round as he turned to enter the hotel, he saw dimly in -the darkness a block away the form of a man; and though obviously too -far off to warrant any valid judgment, Evans couldn’t escape the -feeling that it was the same man that he and Lindsay had just noticed. -At the same moment there flashed into his mind an uncomfortable -feeling that it was the same man he had seen on Trinity Street in -Cambridge when he was saying good-night to Heringham after their first -talk. Evans laughed at himself for letting the darkness and the -strange blue street lights make him wax superstitious. Of course it -was all a trick of imagination; no one would waste time shadowing -him—a mere warrant officer. Yet it was with a keen sense of relief -that he found himself safe inside his room at the hotel.</p> - -<p>Very soon after the commission of liaison officers arrived in London, -they were assured by the British authorities in no uncertain terms -that the navy was the keystone of everything. A message was cabled to -Washington which swept away all vestiges of doubt in the President’s -mind that the navy must come first, and which materially facilitated -his adoption of the necessary action giving the navy first claim on -the draft, which had now passed Congress.</p> - -<p>After three weeks of strenuous activity on the part of the entire -commission preparing plans for the consolidation of the naval forces, -they embarked in their scout cruiser at the great Devonport dockyard -where the noise of hammer and riveter, the great heaps of steel -wreckage from repaired ships, and the general atmosphere of -miscellaneous naval activities betokened its great significance as a -naval base. On the high tide the long, slender cruiser glided quietly -out through the narrow channel between Stonehouse and Cremyl, and in -the gathering darkness left Plymouth Sound for the open sea. Four days -later the party landed in New York, and proceeded without delay to -Washington.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chIV' title='IV—Progress in Jeopardy'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER IV</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>PROGRESS IN JEOPARDY</span> -</h2> -<p>Immediately after the return of the commission to Washington, a -meeting was held in the Bureau of Engineering, at which those results -of the mission to England which had to do with engineering problems -were reported.</p> - -<p>Admiral Bishop, Chief of the Bureau, presided. He was an elderly -officer of robust build, with a hearty red face and white -side-whiskers. At his right hand sat Commander Rich, head of the Radio -Division of the Bureau, a thin-faced man with an aquiline nose and -dark mobile eyes; his face bespoke an alert mind and quick perception. -He had enrolled in the navy as a radio electrician many years before. -By his ability he had risen through the various grades to warrant -officer, and had been one of those selected from this status for the -course at the Naval Academy. In this way he had risen to his present -rank of commander. Heads of other divisions of the Bureau also sat at -the large table near the center of the room. The three or four -officers who had been sent abroad on engineering problems were present -with their reports. Lieutenant Brown, although attached to the office -of the Director of Naval Communications, and therefore belonging to -the Bureau of Operations, was present, for among those who had been -abroad he was the senior officer concerned with communications. -Various other officers, whose duties dealt with the diverse branches -of engineering, sat in chairs around the walls of the room. Among -these was Lieutenant-Commander Elkins whom Evans had sized up as the -most intelligent and open-minded of all the officers in the Radio -Division of the Bureau. His technical training in radio engineering -was less than that of some of the others, but perhaps by just so much -was he free from prejudice in favor of home-made apparatus.</p> - -<p>Before the meeting Evans had sought Elkins and explained the results -of his investigation of radio methods in England. The British experts -had presented convincing reasons for the universal adoption of some of -their best engineering developments. One improvement in particular, a -new type of vacuum-tube transmitter which they had recently perfected, -far surpassed anything that had yet been seen, and by its efficiency -in eliminating interference it opened such extraordinary possibilities -in the scope of fleet communications that without it the navy would be -lagging sadly behind the more progressive Allies. Adoption of this -transmitter would mean scrapping a great deal of gear now in use, yet -the facts learned in England showed plainly that the navy could not -afford to do otherwise. Elkins saw this, and so did Brown. It was -Brown’s rôle to report on the handling of communications. This problem -was indissolubly linked with that of producing the apparatus, but on -all technical phases of the subject he left it to Evans, with his -superior scientific knowledge, to report their findings to the -meeting.</p> - -<p>As clearly as he was able, Evans described the most important -contributions which the British had made. He warmed to his theme as he -came to their most brilliant feats of invention, especially the new -vacuum-tube transmitter. But at this juncture his enthusiasm met a -check. Admiral Bishop shook his head in disapproval, and remarked that -it would be most unwise to abandon the apparatus which had been so -successfully developed by American talent. One or two of the other -officers nodded acquiescence. Evans was accustomed to the discussion -of problems in physics at meetings of scientists where the quest of -truth was as genuine in the others as in himself. He now started to -argue the case much as he would have done at such a meeting. Too late -he saw his blunder; the opinions of a warrant officer were not to be -set up against those of the Bureau Chief. His insistence had only -served to incense the Admiral. When he saw the effect of his remarks, -he shut up like a clam, and, smarting inwardly with self-reproach -enhanced by the rancor of annoyance at the official complacence of the -Admiral, listened through the rest of the conference.</p> - -<p>Elkins endeavored to argue the case.</p> - -<p>“There’s a chance here to increase the efficiency of our -communications one hundred per cent,” he said, “I believe, sir, we -shall be making a grave mistake if we don’t at least give this -transmitter careful consideration.”</p> - -<p>But Admiral Bishop only shook his head the harder; he had set the -official seal of his disapproval upon the adoption of the British -transmitter, and it was clearly the sense of the conference that -American-made apparatus and American methods were undoubtedly the -best. It is difficult to discard one’s own organization and adopt in -its stead the creation of a foreign nation; and to recognize when a -situation demands that course, requires more imagination and honesty -of mind than most men have.</p> - -<p>As the meeting was breaking up, Commander Rich approached Elkins and -Evans and said, graciously:</p> - -<p>“I admired your report on that British apparatus; clearly it merits -the most careful consideration. But, of course, you must recognize the -difficulties in the way of radical changes involving destruction of -gear already in use, and you will realize the natural reluctance of an -older man like the Admiral to take such a course unless it is -necessary. However, you may be sure I will see to it that all -arguments in favor of the British apparatus are given a fair and -impartial hearing.”</p> - -<p>After Commander Rich and the others had left, Evans continued to -discuss the matter with Elkins and Brown. They tried to view it from -Admiral Bishop’s standpoint. Would it be better, after all, to ignore -the valuable advances made by the British, and to use only the -apparatus of home design, and demand of the British that they adopt -American procedure for the sake of uniformity? Viewing it from every -possible angle, they all agreed that this course would be the height -of folly, for it would materially impair the efficiency of the fleet, -and would also make a very bad impression on the British experts by -using dominance in numbers to force on them the adoption of obviously -inferior methods. The British had been more than willing to adopt such -of the American procedure as was superior to their own. How would they -feel if America failed to reciprocate where common sense clearly -demanded it? This would be an ill omen for friendly coöperation.</p> - -<p>“It’s too important to let slide,” Evans said to himself, “but it -wouldn’t be wise to bother Sam with it, if I can help it. He’s got -enough on his hands, and any insistence on his part that the Bureau -should go against the wish of the Chief might do a lot of harm. It’s -got to be done some other way.”</p> - -<p>Impelled by this feeling, he voiced his sentiments more earnestly than -ever to Elkins. The implied criticism of superiors would have deterred -both men from candor had it been the average lieutenant-commander -talking with the average warrant officer. But when in time of stress -men actuated by the right spirit join in a disinterested effort to -serve a cause, matters of rank and seniority automatically drop out of -the equation. Elkins assured him he would use what influence he had, -but was by no means confident of his ability to do anything with the -Admiral.</p> - -<p>Evans remarked: “It would help a good deal if a demand for it made -itself felt from the D.N.C. office. Engineering supplies the apparatus -and Operations uses it. There are times when Engineering can take the -lead by developing gear which creates new possibilities for -Operations; there are times when Operations can take the lead by -saying to Engineering, ‘We want apparatus that will do so-and-so; can -you make it?’ Now, if Operations, as embodied in the D.N.C. office, -could make just the right request, it might shake things up over here. -Mr. Brown, have you got some live wires in your office?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, a few,” replied Brown; “but I don’t know just how to rouse them -to the kind of action that you want.”</p> - -<p>“That may be rather difficult,” said Evans; “but there’s no knowing -what a little modern telepathy on scientific lines may accomplish.”</p> - -<p>“I took you for a simple-minded scientist,” said Elkins, “but from the -way you talk I begin to think you’re a regular politician.”</p> - -<p>Evans laughed. In the next few days he found business to discuss with -Lieutenant Brown at the D.N.C. office. While he was there, discussions -arose over modern problems of communications in which he was consulted -as technical expert.</p> - -<p>Ten days later, after Elkins had been preparing the ground among some -of the officers in the Bureau of Engineering, they received an -intimation from the Director of Naval Communications that the British -procedure was deemed most suitable for adoption throughout the Allied -fleet, and that it would be desirable to produce, if possible, -apparatus suited to this procedure. These officers asked Elkins if any -information was available bearing on the feasibility of providing -something which would answer these requirements. He said he would find -out, and soon returned with specifications following close to those of -the British transmitter, and estimates furnished by the best available -manufacturers. Armed with this information he took the case to -Commander Rich. This officer expressed a warm appreciation of the -valuable work performed in securing the information and estimates, and -said he would take the matter up with the Admiral. After a conference -with Admiral Bishop, Rich sent for Elkins and told him the Admiral had -been firm in his refusal to abandon the gear then in use and to adopt -in its stead the proposed apparatus.</p> - -<p>“Admiral Bishop is conservative,” said Rich, “but we must remember -that he is a man of great experience, and wiser than we.”</p> - -<p>Evans was dismayed when Elkins told him the news.</p> - -<p>“I don’t like it a bit,” he said. “It seems as if there were something -more than mere conservatism in this.”</p> - -<p>“What do you mean?”</p> - -<p>“I don’t know,” was the reply.</p> - -<p>“Well,” said Elkins, “you know it is devilish hard for an older man to -throw overboard the things he’s used to and take on something entirely -new.”</p> - -<p>“I know,” said Evans, “but this case is so perfectly clear—well, I -don’t know.”</p> - -<p>That evening Evans spent an hour with Mortimer in his private study. -Their talk was concerned chiefly with the broader problems of naval -policy. Evans did not tell him of the trouble over the transmitter, -but merely remarked that the mission to England had been fruitful of -most interesting developments, especially in connection with the radio -problems that concerned both the Director of Naval Communications and -the Bureau of Engineering.</p> - -<p>“When do you expect to visit the Bureau of Engineering again? You’d be -interested to hear something of this from the men at the top,” said -Evans as he was rising to go.</p> - -<p>“I’ll be round Friday morning,” replied Mortimer.</p> - -<p>Evans knew Mortimer’s habits well enough to be quite certain that this -meant about eleven o’clock.</p> - -<p>Next morning he went to the Bureau of Operations and sought Lieutenant -Brown. This officer and his chief, Admiral Fraley, the Director of -Naval Communications, were greatly disturbed by the refusal of the -Bureau of Engineering to furnish the apparatus required for adapting -their procedure to the improved British plan; they hardly knew what to -do about it. Evans now told Brown to tell his chief that he had heard -from some one in the Bureau of Engineering that Friday, a few minutes -before eleven, would be a favorable time for him to see Admiral Bishop -about the question of apparatus. This intimation was duly passed on to -Admiral Fraley.</p> - -<p>Acting on this intimation, Fraley called on Admiral Bishop just before -eleven. He had scarcely opened the subject when Secretary Mortimer was -announced. In spite of a good measure of self-possession, Admiral -Fraley’s face revealed to Mortimer’s keen perception a trace of the -annoyance which he naturally felt at losing his chance to present his -case to Admiral Bishop. He started to withdraw, but Mortimer stopped -him and said, “Don’t let me interrupt your conference.”</p> - -<p>“I can come back some other time,” said Fraley.</p> - -<p>“I’m here to promote, not obstruct, the work of the department,” said -Mortimer. “I’m interested in everything that goes on, and if my -presence doesn’t embarrass your freedom of speech, I’d really rather -have you go on with your business; I’m in no hurry.”</p> - -<p>Admiral Fraley hesitated a moment, then, as it flashed on him that -Mortimer’s presence and interest might offer a rare opportunity of -support from superior brains and authority, he stated his case. He -explained how Lieutenant Brown’s report on British methods made it -seem imperative that certain of their procedures depending on their -new transmitter be adopted, and he further said he understood that -those who had looked into the technical side of the matter were -convinced that it could be done. He wondered what was the difficulty -in the way of supplying the necessary apparatus, and whether there -might not be some way of surmounting it, in view of the great tactical -importance of conformity with the British in this respect.</p> - -<p>Admiral Bishop was nothing if not pompous. He was senior in rank to -Fraley. His round, red face became slightly redder at what appeared to -be the airing of a difference of opinion in the presence of the -Secretary. But with Mortimer’s keen eye upon him, he was aware that -this was no matter to be put off with a display of authority and rank.</p> - -<p>His manner was therefore affable enough as he replied: “In all matters -pertaining to radio apparatus I rely on the judgment of Commander -Rich, who is in charge of that division, and whose wisdom in such -matters is quite unsurpassed. He gave me to understand that he had -inquired into the matter thoroughly and could assure me that the -alleged advantage of the British procedure amounted to practically -nothing, and was certainly not worth making the expensive change -involved in removing vast quantities of material already installed in -the ships and replacing it with something comparatively new and -untried, with which our operators are unfamiliar.”</p> - -<p>Mortimer looked at Admiral Fraley, who appeared perplexed and rather -taken aback.</p> - -<p>“There seems to be a surprising conflict in expert opinion,” remarked -Mortimer, “and this on a matter of some importance. Can’t we call in -the exponents of the conflicting views and come to an understanding -here and now?”</p> - -<p>“I can send for Commander Rich,” said Admiral Bishop.</p> - -<p>“Who are your authorities on the side of the British procedure?” -Mortimer asked of Fraley.</p> - -<p>“Lieutenant Brown of my office reported on the traffic end of the -question,” answered Fraley. “He got his information on the apparatus -chiefly from Lieutenant-Commander Elkins of this Bureau and also from -a radio gunner who obtained most of the data, as I understand it.”</p> - -<p>“Let’s get them all in here and thrash out the problem,” said -Mortimer.</p> - -<p>Thereupon Commander Rich, Elkins, Brown, and Evans were all summoned. -Mortimer was spokesman.</p> - -<p>“I chanced to be present,” he said, “as Admiral Fraley was asking -Admiral Bishop if there was not some way to overcome the obstacles in -the way of supplying the apparatus needed for the adoption of this -British procedure which, from the standpoint of operations, he deems -so important. From what I heard I gathered that there had been some -misunderstanding, and I thought we might clear it right up. Commander -Rich, I understand from Admiral Bishop that you have looked into this -and concluded that it was not of sufficient importance to warrant the -expense of making the necessary changes. Am I right in my -understanding?”</p> - -<p>Evans and Elkins both looked at Commander Rich in surprise. He -appeared perfectly at ease as he replied in a manner which bespoke -deference and conciliation: “Mr. Secretary, if I in any way -underestimated the advantages of the British procedure, I am sure it -was quite unintentional. What I endeavored to do was to sum up the -pros and cons as impartially as I could, and to defer to the superior -judgment of the Admiral, rather than to seek in any way to influence -his decision.”</p> - -<p>“It was my impression,” said Admiral Bishop, “that you favored -adherence to our standard procedure, a course to which I should -naturally incline, to be sure, unless very good reasons for changing -were forthcoming. Perhaps, however, I misunderstood your attitude.”</p> - -<p>The Admiral’s memory was not clear enough to recall that Rich had -reinforced his natural conservatism by intimating, before the meeting -at which the matter was first brought up, that changes were about to -be proposed which it would be unwise even to consider.</p> - -<p>Mortimer then asked for a summary of the case for the proposed -changes. Brown, at the request of Admiral Fraley, explained the -salient points of the communication problem. When he came to the -question of the needed apparatus, he referred Mortimer to Elkins, who -in turn referred him to Evans. In a few words Evans stated the -advantages of the apparatus.</p> - -<p>“What about the expense and difficulty of having it installed?” said -Mortimer. “This seems to have been a seriously deterring -consideration.”</p> - -<p>Evans answered with figures and estimates which decisively disposed of -this difficulty, leaving the case so clear for the proposed changes -that Admiral Bishop could not do otherwise than authorize them.</p> - -<p>Soon after this incident, late one afternoon when the day’s work in -the Bureau of Engineering was done, and almost every one had gone -home, Evans lingered, as he often did, over a knotty engineering -problem. As he was leaving to go, he saw in the corridor a man with a -sallow face going into Commander Rich’s room. He knew Commander Rich -often stayed in his room long after the others had gone, and many -people had business with him; so there was nothing remarkable about -this. But to-night the sight of this man gave him a vague, -uncomfortable feeling, scarcely more than subconscious, that he had -seen him somewhere before. Also in a seemingly haphazard way the -thought and feeling of England stirred in his subconscious mind. But -the guileless physicist was so absorbed in his engineering problem -that these matters never quite reached the arena of his conscious -thoughts. He had so much to think about that he had neither time nor -inclination to heed such capricious freaks of the subconscious, and -the impressions soon passed into the storehouse of forgotten -experience.</p> - -<p>During the winter months following the return of the commission to -Washington, the navy was preparing in a hundred different ways for the -task which lay before it. The draft law having been passed, large -numbers of recruits, the pick of the draft, were assembled at training -stations and rapidly absorbed into the fleet and the various naval -bases on shore. Fortunate they were that the organization into which -they were thus merged was led by such a body of men as the officers of -the United States Navy. Through the long years of indifference on the -part of the majority of their countrymen, these faithful guardians of -the Nation’s frontier, trained at the Naval Academy to a high degree -of professional skill, without which the complex organization of the -fighting ships cannot function, had served with zeal, and against -great odds had kept the fleet ready—kept the colossal machine intact, -so that the hordes of untrained men could be assimilated with the -least possible loss of time and effort.</p> - -<p>Ship and aircraft construction were accelerated by all known means, -and the work of designing and experimenting in every department went -on with ever-increasing efficiency and concentration. In gunnery no -department was neglected; on ships and in training stations drills -with loading machine and dotter were carried on with zeal, and -everywhere the officers saw to it that the high standard of efficiency -in this field was maintained.</p> - -<p>The convoy system had been adopted with the declaration of war, and, -with the aid of light cruisers and destroyers, great quantities of -essential supplies were being poured into Northern Europe, enabling -the Allies to keep up the fight, but by no means to break the -deadlock. Nor were the convoys always able to pass unscathed through -the submarine-infested seas; the toll of ships and cargoes proved a -serious drain on the Allied strength.</p> - -<p>During these months, Evans, dressed in civilian clothes, dined with -Mortimer at his house almost weekly, and after dinner they would sit -alone together in Mortimer’s study, discussing the great problem of -the war, often late into the night. Mortimer would tell of the -deliberations and decisions of the General Staff. Evans would listen -attentively and question him on significant points whose importance -Mortimer himself had sometimes missed.</p> - -<p>Plans for combating the submarine menace were now developing apace. In -spite of the convoy system, serious losses of tonnage kept occurring, -and methods of searching systematically for the undersea pirates were -eagerly sought. The Bureau of Engineering was devoting intensive -effort to testing, perfecting, and installing in new vessels the best -available hydrophones (underwater listening gear) and radio compasses -(direction-finders), the latter both for finding the enemy by his -wireless signals and for making contact with friendly craft when -desired, as well as for purposes of navigation in thick weather. Evans -devoted most of his time to these tasks, taking a hand in the work of -improving methods, and exercising general supervision over the -installation, testing, and calibration of all this sort of gear. As in -1918, a special two weeks’ course was started for instructing radio -operators in the use of the radio compass, a course given in a -laboratory by young radio experts. The operators, as fast as they -finished this course, were sent aboard destroyers and other ships -where the apparatus was installed, with the understanding that they -were fully trained in the use of it. Evans endeavored to enlist the -help of these operators in the work of testing and calibrating the -apparatus; but he found that more than half of them, although -supposedly radio-compass specialists, were utterly useless for the -task. Their teachers, being inexperienced in the psychology of the -student, had failed to impart the essentials, except to those of more -than average intelligence; and, what made matters worse, the -laboratory instruction had not approximated the actual conditions -aboard ship. Even if the principles had been grasped, the operator -found them difficult to apply under conditions so remotely resembling -those of the laboratory. Evidently, to send these men out in charge of -the radio compass aboard ship would mean the failure of the apparatus -in about fifty per cent of the cases in which its use would be -required.</p> - -<p>It was clear that the course should not only be improved, but should -be supplemented by practical instruction aboard ship. Evans conferred -with Lieutenant-Commander Elkins, and suggested to him that a -motor-boat be equipped with a radio compass and that the operators be -taken out on her and given practice in reporting the bearing of a -transmitting station as the motor-boat steered an irregular, zigzag -course. Aside from the advantage of instruction and practice under -actual working conditions, the fitness of a man for radio-compass duty -could thus be readily determined. At first they should practice on a -transmitting station sending signals continuously, and thus -facilitating the readings by giving them plenty of time for their -observations; next, they should assay the more difficult task of -taking bearings when the transmitting station sent only brief -messages. Naval experts have pointed out that the enemy, knowing that -his signals will probably be used to locate him by means of the radio -compass, will make his messages as brief as possible, in order to -render difficult the work of direction-finding; hence the importance -of training the operators by calling on them to take bearings with -messages of ever-increasing brevity.</p> - -<p>Elkins endeavored to arrange through the “usual channels” to have a -motor-boat assigned to the Bureau of Engineering for this important -training duty. But in this he met obstacles. Those who had control of -the available motor-boats were not interested, and did not see the -need of it; furthermore, Commander Rich told him Admiral Bishop felt -that any training of operators beyond what was already provided would -be quite unnecessary. Elkins told Evans the discouraging result of his -effort.</p> - -<p>“What damn nonsense!” said Evans, frowning. “There needs to be a -demand for efficient operators that will make itself felt enough to -shake loose some of the stiff joints of this organization.” Then, -after a pause, “Maybe the demand will come.”</p> - -<p>That evening Mortimer heard the whole story.</p> - -<p>“I guess it will be a simple matter for me to arrange to have a -motor-boat set aside for this work,” he said to Evans.</p> - -<p>“Wouldn’t it be better not to have them get the idea that I have a -‘drag’?” said Evans. “Then, too, sequelæ embarrassing to Elkins might -result if such an order came through just after his request had been -turned down. There’s a better way than that. Isn’t it about time for -you to decide that you want to determine whether the radio-compass -machinery—material and personnel—is up to the important task required -of it? You could order a practical test—a board appointed to make -it—and for samples of the goods, eight or ten operators just through -the compass course, selected at random, aboard a destroyer with the -gear just installed. Let ’em show what they can do with signals sent -from various bearings. Make them come across quick with the test so -that there won’t be time for any one to cheat it by giving the -operators special training. I am confident this test will show that -something is lacking. Then let us have some men along who know a radio -compass when they see it, to show what the gear can do if you -understand it, lest perchance the apparatus be condemned instead of -the poor boobs that are miscalled experts.”</p> - -<p>It seemed altogether natural when a few days later the Secretary of -the Navy appointed a board to conduct a test of the radio compass and -the men assigned to operate it, under the nearest possible approach to -service conditions. Ten operators just from their special course were -to report on board a destroyer whose radio compass had recently been -installed. Three patrol boats were to maneuver about her and each one -in turn was to send signals for one minute. Thus the radio signals -would come from unexpected angles. The operator was to be shut into -the radio-compass shack, so that he couldn’t see the patrol boats, and -was to report the bearing by voice-tube to the bridge as soon as he -had determined it. Then the Bureau of Engineering was to select for -comparison four operators known to be really familiar with the radio -compass, to take bearings on the same patrol boats after the new -operators had completed their test, in order that a fair basis might -be established for judging the operators as prepared by the special -course.</p> - -<p>When this order became known, Elkins was delighted. “Now is our -chance,” he said to Evans, “to have this thing properly tested, and -we’ll know whether those boys need some practical drilling or not.”</p> - -<p>Together they picked the four best men among the radio chiefs who had -been helping with the radio compasses, and made sure that when it came -to their part of the test they would not be found wanting.</p> - -<p>On the appointed day the destroyer steamed out into Chesapeake Bay -accompanied by the three patrol boats. Secretary Mortimer was on -board, for he deemed the experiment important enough to warrant his -personal observation. Admiral Bishop, Commander Rich, and Elkins had -come to represent the Bureau of Engineering, and Elkins had obtained -permission to bring Evans to be sure that the gear was in working -order.</p> - -<p>Commander Rich was almost constantly at Mortimer’s side, talking with -him pleasantly or earnestly as seemed most fitting at the moment. He -spoke of the value of a broad sense of proportion in naval matters.</p> - -<p>“Some people,” he said, “can’t see anything outside their own little -problems. A man in charge of a thing like this radio compass, for -example, is apt to think it’s the most important thing in the whole -navy, and everything else should give way before it. I believe a man -should see the problem as a whole. Now take my case: I’m in charge of -radio, but it would be silly of me to fancy that radio was the most -important thing in the whole organization. I recognize that Admiral -Bishop has a much wider vision, that radio is only one small part of a -colossal machine, and I am ready to defer to the needs of gunnery and -the like when occasion demands.”</p> - -<p>In preparation for the test, Evans had to come up on the bridge to -confer with Elkins. Encountering Commander Rich, he saw in his face a -look of scorn as this keen-looking officer eyed him in his dungarees, -and in the look he fancied he saw, too, something more sinister than -scorn. It haunted him as he returned to the radio compass, but with an -effort he dismissed the thought, convincing himself that it was -probably the result of pique in his own rather sensitive nature.</p> - -<p>Commander Rich, watching Evans swinging himself nimbly up the ladder -to the radio-compass shack, remarked jovially to Mortimer, “Looks to -me like that gunner had a little of that monkey-gland extract you read -about, the way he goes climbing round the ship.”</p> - -<p>And when during the subsequent stages of the test Evans appeared, -Commander Rich was ever ready, if the chance offered, to drop a -sarcastic remark about the “monkey-man.”</p> - -<p>Admiral Bishop had some difficulty engineering his portly form up the -steep ladder leading to the destroyer’s bridge. It would be hard to -find anywhere, on land or sea, a scene more vividly expressive of -human efficiency than is presented by the bridge of a warship -executing a maneuver even of the simplest sort. Officers, signalmen, -and helmsman, alert and intent on the perfect team-work needed to fit -the operation of the ship into the working of the larger machine, the -fleet, execute their orders in a way that testifies to the high -character of their training. Into such a scene came Admiral Bishop -with all his pomp, as the signals were being sent which directed the -patrol boats to their stations.</p> - -<p>When all was ready for the test, the patrol boats circled round the -destroyer at a distance of a mile or so, and first one, then another, -was signaled to send messages. First, the operators just graduated -from the special radio-compass course were tested. Each man was given -three bearings to report, one on each patrol boat. The first operator -to be tested nervously entered the radio-compass house, wondering if -his fate hung on his performance, and fumbled for a while with the -somewhat unfamiliar apparatus. Finally he tuned in the patrol boat -signal, and then, as he twirled the hand-wheel which rotates the coil, -he became confused, and before he could gather his wits he realized -that his minute was up and he had reported no bearing. On his second -and third bearings he made a little progress, but the results were -considerably in error. As he took off the head-phones and stepped out -of the house, he said to the chief radio operator of the destroyer, -“That don’t sound nothing like what they give us to learn on in the -course. It’s all so different I couldn’t make nothing of it.” The next -man, awaiting his turn, heard the remark and profited somewhat by it. -He obtained a rough bearing each time just before his minute was up. -Out of the ten operators tested, only three gave even a respectable -performance.</p> - -<p>Admiral Bishop had but a hazy idea of the nature of the test which was -being made. When he first came on the bridge, he got into conversation -with the skipper of the destroyer, who fortunately had his officers -well enough indoctrinated to operate the ship and carry on the test -without his personal attention. The Admiral, having been on shore duty -for several years, coming once more on shipboard, was reminded of -cruises of long years ago. His talk became one of reminiscence about -the good old days. It was not until the test of the ten operators was -nearly finished that he became aware that it had begun. Commander Rich -then explained to him just how the test was being conducted.</p> - -<p>“You see the patrol boat out there is sending us signals. Down there -in the radio-compass house aft, the operator is taking the bearing he -gets on the signal as it comes in. He reports it to us here on the -bridge by voice-tube. At the same time the navigating officer here is -noting the actual bearing of the patrol boat by eye with the pelorus, -to see whether the radio bearing is right.”</p> - -<p>About this time the last of the ten operators completed his test, and -the results were displayed before Admiral Bishop, revealing clearly -their unsatisfactory performance.</p> - -<p>“Seems to me this radio compass doesn’t show up very well in service -conditions, Mr. Secretary,” said the Admiral. “That’s the way with a -lot of these gadgets; they’re all right on paper and in the -laboratory, but on board ship they don’t cut much figure.”</p> - -<p>“We have still to see the second part of the test,” answered Mortimer. -“The fault may be in the gear or in the operators; I want to find out -which.”</p> - -<p>One of the men picked by the Bureau was then sent into the compass -house. The signal was given for the sending to begin and in twenty -seconds he reported by voice-tube, “Sixty-five.”</p> - -<p>“That looks like business,” said the skipper of the destroyer. “How is -it?” addressing the question to his navigator, who with his eye at the -sighting vane of the pelorus followed the course of the patrol boat.</p> - -<p>“She’s bearing sixty-four,” was the answer.</p> - -<p>“Right to within one degree. Will he do it again?” said the skipper.</p> - -<p>In five successive tests this operator reported the bearings with an -average error of less than one degree, and his reports were delivered -to the bridge with increasing promptness.</p> - -<p>A signal to the patrol boats ordered the time of sending reduced to -thirty seconds. The three remaining picked men then showed what they -could do, and the greatest error was two degrees. On average barely -eighteen seconds elapsed from the time the signals began till the -report was heard on the bridge.</p> - -<p>Admiral Bishop was now following the proceedings with interest and -began to see what an accurate instrument the radio compass was when in -competent hands, but his imagination was not keen enough to envisage -the possibilities which it opened. The skipper of the destroyer was -the first to propose a more spectacular demonstration.</p> - -<p>“Let’s have him steer us to one of the boats,” he said.</p> - -<p>A signal was made to the patrol boat on the port quarter to send -signals continuously till further notice. The operator, when told what -he was to do, listened a moment, revolving the coil and manipulating -the switches, then called to the bridge, “Left rudder.” The officer of -the deck passed the word to the helmsman, and as the ship swung round -till the signaling patrol boat bore dead ahead, the voice from the -radio-compass house called, “Steady as you go.” It looked like -witchcraft, this guidance of the ship by an unseen and sightless power -unerringly toward the source of the silent ether waves. As the patrol -boat bore away to starboard, the operator kept the destroyer following -her with her bow till, bearing down on her at eighteen knots, they -were only a hundred yards from the little boat, when the skipper said, -“Left rudder,” and the destroyer shot past the smaller boat within a -stone’s throw.</p> - -<p>Admiral Bishop, watching this exhibition, grasped for the first time -what it really meant. As the unfailing precision with which the -destroyer tracked her quarry became more and more apparent, his -enthusiasm grew till his eyes fairly sparkled with delight. He shook -hands with Commander Rich and congratulated him heartily on the -splendid equipment which his division had installed in the ships.</p> - -<p>After that it was only natural that, when the report of the test had -been made, a motor-boat equipped with a radio compass should be set -aside for the drilling of operators. And in the wake of this reform -there naturally followed similar methods for the drilling of personnel -in the use of hydrophones of all sorts, and all manner of special -apparatus.</p> - -<p>About a fortnight after this convincing demonstration on Chesapeake -Bay, the <i>Sheridan</i>, a brand-new scout cruiser, was steaming back to -the Boston Navy Yard after making her speed trial at Rockland, Maine. -She was the first of a new batch of scout cruisers being rushed to -completion, and in speed and every other important essential for this -type of craft she was the last word. She was, of course, equipped with -a radio compass of the latest model, and before the trip to Rockland -this had been carefully tested and calibrated. In view of the -importance attached to this apparatus since the demonstration on the -Chesapeake, a radio gunner named Long had been sent by the Bureau of -Engineering to stay on board throughout this trip and check the work -of the operators to be sure that both they and the apparatus were -dependable for purposes of navigation. On the way to Rockland, Long -had seized every opportunity of taking bearings on stations along the -coast. The results had delighted the navigator, who saw that in every -case he could depend on the bearings given.</p> - -<p>Now, on the return trip, the navigator had occasion to be especially -glad of the pains Long had taken, for a thick fog shut in soon after -they passed Monhegan Island; every adjunct that could help him in his -important duty of fixing the ship’s position was more than welcome.</p> - -<p>Late in the afternoon the captain, the navigator, and the officer of -the deck stood on the bridge straining their eyes ahead into the -dense, wet fog.</p> - -<p>“Captain,” said the navigator, “I think we’d better get some -radio-compass bearings; my dead-reckoning shows us about ten miles -from Cape Ann, and we don’t want to go much closer without checking -our position.”</p> - -<p>“Very well,” said the captain, “you may instruct the radio room to get -the bearings.”</p> - -<p>A signal was sent out, and in less than five minutes a full report -from the radio room was handed to the officer of the deck on the -bridge. It read as follows:</p> - -<blockquote> -<p>Cape Cod reports bearing 338°, Gloucester reports bearing 73°, Fourth -Cliff radio compass temporarily out of commission; ship’s own radio -compass gives bearing of Boston Navy Yard transmitter 242°.</p> - -</blockquote> -<p>With alacrity the navigator plotted on the chart the position thus -given.</p> - -<p>“This shows us five miles south-southeast of our dead-reckoning,” he -said to the captain.</p> - -<p>“Are those bearings dependable?” was the reply.</p> - -<p>“Our radio compass has been giving us bearings accurate to within one -degree without fail ever since we left Boston, and the shore stations -are regularly dependable to within less than that. Besides, we have -here three bearings and they check each other reasonably close, making -the fix practically a certainty.”</p> - -<p>“Have them repeated,” said the skipper.</p> - -<p>“Aye, aye, sir.”</p> - -<p>The message was sent and in three minutes a report was received -corroborating the previous bearings.</p> - -<p>“How do you account for the error in dead-reckoning?” asked the -captain.</p> - -<p>“I don’t know,” said the navigator; “but you remember the seven -destroyers that went aground on the Pacific coast in 1923 because they -ignored the radio-compass bearings and trusted their dead-reckoning.”</p> - -<p>“That’s right,” said the skipper; “we can’t afford to do that. What -about sounding?”</p> - -<p>“That wouldn’t help us much here, the bottom’s too irregular.”</p> - -<p>They looked at the chart together for a minute.</p> - -<p>“Give us a course that will pick up the whistling buoy off Thatcher’s -Island from this last fix,” said the skipper.</p> - -<p>The navigator plotted the course, and the order was given, at which -the ship swung a point and a half to the northward.</p> - -<p>The speed of the ship had already been reduced to fifteen knots which -on a ship in the habit of cruising at twenty-five, and capable of -forty, seemed like a snail’s pace. There was not much more than an -hour of daylight left, and making a landfall in fog and twilight is -nasty business; so the captain was loath to slow down any more. But -the fog shut in thicker till the bow could barely be seen from the -bridge; a hundred yards marked the limit of visibility ahead. At -fifteen knots a hundred yards is traversed in very few seconds; -caution therefore constrained the captain to reduce speed to twelve -knots. The lithe ship seemed to be crawling through the water.</p> - -<p>Forty minutes passed. All eyes looked forward into the thick blanket -of fog which seemed to paralyze the sense of sight. Captain and -navigator paced nervously to and fro, looking now at the chart and -then again into the gray void. The leaden sky began to darken visibly.</p> - -<p>“We’ve gone eight miles since we changed course,” said the navigator; -“we ought to hear that whistle, we could hear it two miles in any -direction.”</p> - -<p>“You’d better get some more bearings,” said the captain.</p> - -<p>At that moment the lookout in the bow shouted, “Surf ahead.”</p> - -<p>The captain sprang to the engine-room telegraph and jerked back the -lever calling for full speed astern. In two seconds, which seemed an -eternity, the whole ship began to shake as the turbines backed water -with all their power. But a seven-thousand-ton ship even at twelve -knots cannot be brought to a standstill instantly, and just as the -breakers ahead became visible to the anxious eyes on the bridge, there -was a hideous, grinding crash and shock.</p> - -<p>To the skipper and navigator it was like the crack of doom—the -death-knell of their careers, for with a horrible sickness in their -hearts they knew they had driven one of Uncle Sam’s finest ships -ashore on an exposed and dangerous coast. The <i>Sheridan</i> was hard -aground on the north end of a reef known as “the Salvages,” just off -the Rockport breakwater, some three miles north of Thatcher’s Island.</p> - -<p>The coolness, self-possession, and resourcefulness which these -officers and those under them showed in handling this disastrous -situation, which confronted them with overwhelming suddenness, was to -their eternal credit and to that of the navy. Fortunately, the sea was -not heavy and no difficulty was found in getting the crew safely off -the ship. Salvage operations were promptly begun, and in a few days -the Sheridan was pulled off the reef and towed to the Navy Yard where -the extensive repairs and rebuilding of her bow were begun.</p> - -<p>When the board of inquiry met to investigate the cause of the -disaster, it was clearly revealed that the navigator’s dead-reckoning -had been correct, that the radio-compass bearings, which showed the -ship to be five miles south-southeast of the dead-reckoning position, -must have been in error, and that trusting these bearings and changing -course to the northward had caused the ship to run aground.</p> - -<p>Mortimer held a conference with Commander Rich.</p> - -<p>“You can’t trust these gadgets,” said Rich, speaking of the radio -compass. “There’s a dangerous tendency among some officers to rely on -a thing like this because it works well once. You see what -happens:—one day it works beautifully, the next day it puts your best -cruiser on the beach. If I were you I wouldn’t waste another dollar -installing such gear; it will be leading to a false sense of security, -and will wreck some more ships.”</p> - -<p>With the wreck of the <i>Sheridan</i> staring Mortimer in the face, -Commander Rich’s logic seemed to him convincing. When Evans heard of -this, he was sorely troubled.</p> - -<p>“See here, Sam,” he said, “this radio compass is a thing that has been -working for twenty years, guiding our ships safely into harbors in -thick weather. Look at the possibilities it has in naval warfare! To -go and scrap it because of one bad fix would be like throwing -overboard all your guns because of one wild shot.”</p> - -<p>“Commander Rich says it’s not dependable and is apt to cause more -wrecks,” said Mortimer; “and Commander Rich is one of the keenest and -wisest men in the navy.”</p> - -<p>“He’s a jackass if he tells you to give up this valuable instrument. -There’s some definite reason why those bearings were wrong, and the -reason ought to be looked for and found.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t like the way you speak of Commander Rich. I count on him in -matters of practical engineering more than on almost any one.”</p> - -<p>Evans was silent a moment, frowning and fingering a paper-weight -restlessly.</p> - -<p>“I wish you’d let me go to Boston myself and examine the <i>Sheridan’s</i> -radio compass, and the one in the shore station at Gloucester that -gave the wrong bearing. I believe I could find out something.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t see that it would do any good,” said Mortimer. “Besides, -you’re needed for your work right here in the Bureau.”</p> - -<p>“I’m doing nothing in the Bureau half so important as getting the -truth on this matter. If I can find out why the apparatus failed and -show how to prevent its failure in future, and thereby restore your -confidence in it, I’ll have done the biggest job for the navy that I -can ever hope to do.”</p> - -<p>“If Commander Rich thinks it worth while to send you there, well and -good,” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“Commander Rich would never send me. He has disliked me ever since -that scene we had over the British vacuum-tube transmitter. He’d turn -down a request like that just for the sake of snubbing me, even if he -saw the point in my going, which he wouldn’t. The only way is to have -orders come from some one above him. For God’s sake, Sam, give this -thing a chance. Let me get up there and see what happened.”</p> - -<p>His earnestness startled Mortimer and recalled the deep trust in his -friend that he had always felt, and at last he yielded. It was -arranged that Evans should receive orders which would enable him to -visit the radio compasses around Boston and to go aboard the -<i>Sheridan</i>, now being repaired there.</p> - -<p>First Evans visited the station at Fourth Cliff near Scituate, the -station which on the fateful day had been reported out of commission. -He learned that during the entire day of the wreck the operators had -been unable to make the apparatus work. The next morning a careful -examination had revealed a loose connection which had resulted in an -open circuit. It was the kind of thing that might easily result from -undue haste in installing the gear.</p> - -<p>At Gloucester he questioned the operators closely. They could not -account for the error in the bearings they had given to the -<i>Sheridan</i>, both of them having proved to be some sixteen degrees off. -The apparatus had been giving accurate bearings for years; they used -it on that day just as they always had, and since that day it had been -tested and recalibrated, and had proved to be in perfect condition and -giving just as accurate bearings as it always had. Evans examined the -apparatus himself with the greatest care. Nothing was amiss; it -certainly was in perfect working order and adjustment. He was -mystified; he could find no possible clue to this sudden and -disastrous lapse. At all events, the gear was working well now, and -the operators on their guard against mistakes.</p> - -<p>On the <i>Sheridan</i> Evans found the radio compass apparently in good -order. But when he had signals sent from a station near by and tested -the gear in actual use, he found the bearings which it indicated -always eight degrees to the right of what they should be. He then -examined the circular scale from which the readings were taken and -found it eight degrees out of alignment with the coil.</p> - -<p>“That’s a rank bit of installation,” he said to the operator in charge -of the apparatus. “I thought you’d been getting good bearings with it -all along the coast before you went aground.”</p> - -<p>“We did,” said the operator.</p> - -<p>“How could you? The scale is eight degrees out.”</p> - -<p>“It must have slipped.”</p> - -<p>Evans took hold of the scale and found it securely fixed in position. -He looked carefully for any possible obstruction which might have -caught on it as the coil was rotated and forced it round on the shaft, -but he found none.</p> - -<p>“I don’t see how it could have slipped; it’s on tight enough,” he -said.</p> - -<p>The operator shrugged his shoulders.</p> - -<p>“Are you sure no one made any adjustments here that day?” Evans asked.</p> - -<p>“I know I didn’t, and I’m pretty sure my mate didn’t, but I’ll ask -him. We were the only ones in here except Gunner Long who came from -the Bureau to see that the gear was working. He was here in the shack -and sent me to get some wire or something from the main radio room an -hour or so before we struck. I was gone only two or three minutes, and -that was the only time I was out of the shack all the forenoon. I -stayed here till the order came to abandon ship and we all got into -the boats.”</p> - -<p>His mate, the other radio-compass operator, was sent for, and -corroborated his story as far as his own watch was concerned. Evans -was baffled. But it was a simple matter to set the apparatus right. He -reset the circular scale in its proper position; and he nearly broke -his screwdriver tightening the set-screw which held it in position, to -be sure it did not “slip” again.</p> - -<p>When he returned to Washington to report on his findings, his task was -not easy. Elkins, with whom he discussed the matter, was entirely -sympathetic. A peculiar combination of circumstances had wrecked the -ship. The one time in years when the Gloucester station failed to give -accurate bearings happened to coincide with an unaccountable slipping -of the scale on the Sheridan’s radio compass. Such a combination of -mishaps was not likely to occur again in a generation. It would be -absurd to abandon anything so obviously useful because of it. Mortimer -was still skeptical, and inclined to follow the advice of Rich, but -Evans drove home his point with such earnestness and force, as they -discussed it by Mortimer’s study fire, backing up his argument with -Elkins’s concurrence, that Mortimer finally said he would allow -installation of the gear to continue for the present. But he -considered it on trial; any more serious failures or disasters, and -the radio compass would be discarded as far as any active use of it in -warfare was concerned.</p> - -<p>One day, soon after his return to Washington from Boston, Evans talked -with Commander Barton of the Bureau of Intelligence about the peculiar -mishap, and his failure to explain just how it occurred. When he -mentioned his investigation of the Gloucester station, and finding the -apparatus there in perfect order, Barton said, “Did you ask them who -had been in the station that day or the day before?”</p> - -<p>“No, I didn’t think of that,” said Evans; “I was looking for trouble -in the apparatus.”</p> - -<p>“I should say that was the first thing to find out,” said Barton.</p> - -<p>That evening Evans did some hard thinking, and went to bed a wiser -man.</p> - -<p>Barton sent one of his best officers to Boston to visit the stations -at Gloucester and Fourth Cliff, and conduct a bit of research along -somewhat different lines from those Evans had followed. What this -officer told Barton on his return he kept to himself. For a long, long -time he did not speak of it to another living soul except Admiral -Rallston, Chief of the Bureau of Naval Intelligence.</p> - -<p>As the winter months wore on, the navy’s main task was escorting the -great convoys across the ocean and thus enabling the armies of -Northern Europe to hold their line. But the navy was preparing for -larger things than escort duty. The enemy submarine base at the Azores -proved to be a constant menace; from it submarines would come out in -force, and sometimes succeed in sinking ships and escaping unharmed -from the depth charges of the escort.</p> - -<p>At Punta Delgada, the capital port of the Azores, the enemy had for -some years been building a giant breakwater to create a harbor far -bigger than that which sheltered American destroyers and submarines in -1918 when this port was in friendly hands. Work was now being rushed -to complete this greater harbor, and with it docking facilities that -would make the base more efficient in the maintenance of extensive -submarine operations.</p> - -<p>The nearest Allied base to the Azores was Berehaven on the Irish -coast, and from here a British airplane carrier went out from time to -time, cruising southwest to within two hundred miles of Punta Delgada, -whence just before dawn she would launch into the air two or three -high-speed aeroplanes equipped only with their machine guns and -cameras of the most perfect type for long-distance photography. When -the first rays of the rising sun struck the harbor and port works of -Punta Delgada, revealing all details through the contrast of light and -shadow, with a brilliance of relief which is lost when the sun is -high, these planes, soaring at an altitude too great for the eyes of -the drowsy watchers, would take their pictures and fly away unseen to -the waiting mother ship. The optical system in these cameras was a -marvel of design, and when the photographs were studied under the lens -in London and Washington, it was not difficult to follow in detail the -work of perfecting the submarine base.</p> - -<p>By the end of the winter this photographic study had revealed that the -breakwater was practically complete, and the docks almost ready for -the opening of more extensive submarine operations; moreover, -coast-defense guns and vast stores of ordnance and engineering -material had been accumulated, and all was in readiness for the -building of powerful defenses which would make the seizure of the port -difficult in the extreme. Now was the time to attack, before the great -coast-defense guns were mounted and ready for use. The American Navy, -which had suffered from the peace-time shortage of personnel, was now -adequately manned and ready for aggressive action. A consolidation -with the British and French ships was effected, and in March the -attempt was made to seize Punta Delgada. The Mediterranean Powers -deemed it unwise to risk their capital ships for the defense of this -point, and kept them safe in the Mediterranean. After a brief -resistance, the Azores fell into the hands of the Allies. The enemy -had done the lion’s share of the work of preparing a first-class base -with the strongest kind of defenses. The materials were there, and it -was a comparatively easy task for the Americans and British to -assemble them after their own pattern. The loss of this valuable base -was extremely annoying to the enemy, but as long as their fleet -remained intact within the shelter of the Mediterranean Sea they felt -secure in their control of the great resources on which they pinned -their faith.</p> - -<p>Following the advantage gained by possession of the Azores, the Allied -forces soon took Madeira and the Canary Islands, both bases being less -strongly defended than the Azores. The Cape Verde Islands thus were -virtually cut off from their base, and surrendered before long without -resistance.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chV' title='V—The Storm-Center Moves Eastward'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER V</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>THE STORM-CENTER MOVES EASTWARD</span> -</h2> -<p>The loss of their island bases seriously hampered the enemy in their -submarine warfare on the great stream of trans-Atlantic shipping. -Submarines were now based on Lisbon and Gibraltar, and while they were -still able to harass the merchant ships of the Allies, the sinkings -were materially reduced, and the prospect of keeping Northern Europe -supplied with the sinews of war became much brighter. Possession of -these bases also enabled the Allies to conduct anti-submarine -operations with destroyers and submarines in a way that had hitherto -been impossible for want of any base near the focus of activity.</p> - -<p>The first time Evans dined with Mortimer after these islands had come -into the possession of the Allies, this important development -naturally led them to talk over the general problem from a new angle.</p> - -<p>“Broadly speaking,” said Evans, “it is in a way a problem of morale -and numbers against resources and wits. We have far better morale and -slightly superior numbers. They command the resources of all Southern -Europe, Egypt, and the East, and they still have pretty free access to -those of South America. In this respect, unless we can cut them off -from South America, they have an appreciable advantage over us. As to -wits, I don’t mean that the Nordic peoples as a whole are inferior to -them, but theirs is the advantage of well-laid plans and a marvelous -centralized control. They’ve been planning this thing for fifteen -years, and they’ve done a devilish good job of it. We have wits, but -ours are not yet coördinated.</p> - -<p>“Specifically, our problem is, first, to sink enough of their subs to -ensure the flow of munitions from the Western Hemisphere to Northern -Europe; that will enable us to maintain our present status; second, to -engage and destroy their fleet, and thus break their control of the -Mediterranean. That will be the hardest thing to do, for they don’t -want to give us a crack at it; they won’t take a chance of battle -unless they can feel sure of most favorable conditions; but if we can -smash their fleet, the game is won.”</p> - -<p>Mortimer listened thoughtfully, nodding his head in acquiescence as -his friend talked; but Evans interrupted himself by saying, “Well, -here I am giving my elders and betters a twopenny talk on the cosmos.”</p> - -<p>“Don’t worry about that,” answered Mortimer; “it helps me to see the -broader issues and clear my head of the mass of administrative detail. -Go to it and give me some more.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” resumed Evans, “as to the submarine problem—we’re in a -position to go after them now. Obviously one of the first things to do -is to put the very best radio compasses we can on shore stations at -Punta Delgada, Madeira, and the Canaries, fitting them with first-rate -amplifiers so that we can pick up subs as soon as they come out of -Lisbon or Gibraltar. Then we can follow their movements by taking -cross-bearings on them every time they use their radio, just as the -British did with the German subs in the old days.”</p> - -<p>“You know, I still have my doubts about this radio-compass business,” -put in Mortimer. “Nothing has been done with it to restore the -confidence of either Commander Rich or myself since the Sheridan -affair. I still consider it on trial, and question the wisdom of -spending much money installing such stuff on the islands.”</p> - -<p>“No one has bothered to tell you what has been done,” said Evans, “but -the fact is that the radio compasses all along the coast are -continuing to give accurate bearings to incoming ships whenever the -weather is thick, just as they have for the past twenty years, and the -skippers for the most part continue to trust them. Anyway, this is a -different issue. It doesn’t involve depending on the bearings for -navigation of our ships; it is a matter of information about the -enemy, and we can’t afford not to use it. The Bureau of Operations is -counting on the use of these shore stations, and recognizes also the -importance of working up coördinated hunting groups of destroyers to -pick up the scent of the sub by crossed radio-compass bearings, and -then, having thus located her roughly, to run her down with -hydrophones.</p> - -<p>“Now the shore stations have the longest range; they’ll spot a sub -nearly a thousand miles away, but since their work is long-distance -triangulation, they’ll place her only roughly. This will serve very -well to tell the destroyers and chasers where to go to look for her, -but by the time the information is transmitted and the hunting craft -have got there, the sub may be too far away from the designated spot -to find her with hydrophones. It is in this intermediate stage that -the radio compasses on the destroyers themselves will come in. These -have less range than the shore stations, but more than the -hydrophones. Cruising in line, the destroyers may, by quick work, get -cross-bearings on a sub sending signals anywhere within fifty miles, -and thus locate her to within a mile. Then there’s a fair chance of -picking her up with the hydrophones or magnetic detectors after she -has submerged; and once that is done there’s a fair chance of covering -her with a pattern of depth bombs, if the team-work is good.</p> - -<p>“Now that sounds all very pretty, here by the fireside. But the pirate -will have sense enough to fear these tactics, and will cut his -messages down perhaps to one or two letters at a time, which won’t -give the boys much chance for accurate bearings, no matter how quick -they are. Then, he too has hydrophones, and when he hears us coming, -he’ll slow down till you can’t hear him unless you’re almost on top of -him. Still, with all these difficulties, it’s worth while playing that -game for all there is in it. It may get us a few subs, if we keep it -up on a big enough scale; even if it doesn’t, it will bother the sub -and cramp her style, and it will give our boys the finest kind of -drill.</p> - -<p>“Now, there’s another matter which the difficulties of hunting with -destroyers brings to my mind. In the war with Germany the chasers used -to run their drifting patrols and hunts with all their listening gear, -and once in a while, probably even less often than they thought, they -picked up the sound of a sub. Then it was ‘up tubes’ and give chase; -then ‘down tubes’ and listen again; a short burst of speed, then a -dead stop, for they couldn’t listen under way. The chases had to be -short, for Fritz could change course and speed, and then, while they -were rushing to where they thought he was, they’d lose him. It was a -sort of a hare and tortoise race, and you remember who won that. Our -chasers to-day are somewhat faster and have much better hydrophones -than those of 1918, but the problem is still much the same.</p> - -<p>“Now, there’s a group of young officers in the Bureau of Engineering -that have studied the history of those chaser maneuvers of 1918, and -have put their heads together and worked out what looks to me like a -real solution of that difficulty. More than one of the chaser captains -of that time have said that, if they could have continued to listen -instead of having to attack, they would have kept track of the sub’s -whereabouts much longer than they could in the intermittent pursuit. -Taking their cue from this fact, these officers have worked out a -scheme which enables the listeners to keep on listening, and then to -delegate other vessels to go to the spot they designate and surround -the sub as a seiner surrounds a school of mackerel—with a string of -nets. Their plan is to develop a fleet of ships like those that laid -the great North Sea mine barrage—ships that will be fast and will have -machinery for laying a net at very high speed. A sub can cut through -an ordinary net and escape, so they have worked out plans for a net -that will give notice if she tries it. It is to be studded with small -telltale bombs just big enough to raise a fountain, but not big enough -to add much to the weight and size of the net. These bombs, each in a -section a hundred yards long, will be exploded by an electrical device -if the sub touches any part of that section. It won’t hurt the sub, -but it will tell you where she is, and you’ll have boats on hand with -depth charges to do the hurting. The point is to establish quickly a -barrier around the sub through which she can’t pass without giving -away her position.</p> - -<p>“These young officers have been fearfully keen on this thing and have -worked out practical plans for machinery that will pay out the net at -a speed of six knots, and the electrical gear for setting off the -bombs.</p> - -<p>“You can’t anchor the net, for the ocean’s too deep out there; it must -be suspended from buoys. It needn’t reach down more than about three -hundred feet, for no sub could dive under it at that depth without -being crushed by water pressure. The tactical scheme is to have these -boats, eight or ten of them, lie in wait at a central point with -groups of drifting listeners scattered all around them, say, twenty -miles away. When a sub is heard and located, the listeners call the -net-layers by radio, and they go to the spot at a thirty-knot speed. -As they approach they soon drown out the sound of the sub, but their -speed and number enables them to surround the area in which she is -known to be, for she won’t have time to go far from where she was last -heard. Paying out their nets, they hem her in and keep the ring of -nets closed round her till the area is raked with trailing wires and -other electromagnetic detectors which will enable the chasers to -concentrate their depth charges with the certainty of a kill.”</p> - -<p>“That sounds like the most constructive—or rather artistically -destructive—proposition I’ve heard yet,” said Mortimer with -enthusiasm. “What are they doing about it? Have they submitted it to -the Bureau Chief?”</p> - -<p>“They’ve tried to, but they couldn’t get much attention paid to it.”</p> - -<p>“Why not?”</p> - -<p>“I’ve tried to find out why, but I can’t quite make it out. On the -face of it the trouble seems to be the usual conservatism and inertia -about taking up anything new. Did you ever read the article Sims wrote -on Military Conservatism?”</p> - -<p>“No,” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“Well, in that, he showed how every great advance, such as gunpowder -and steam, met with opposition, and chiefly from the men at the top, -who, being the older men, had quite naturally lost the mental -flexibility of youth. It may be just another case of that. Admiral -Bishop is a conservative old buck. But then I suspect this project has -never come to his attention. I think it’s been stopped lower down, and -I fear there may be jealousy or politics or something else worse than -conservatism involved in this.”</p> - -<p>“Give me the names of the men who have developed the scheme,” said -Mortimer, “and I’ll dig it out. I’ll make old Bishop find out about it -and bring it up before the General Staff. I needn’t tell him how I -heard of it; so nobody will get in trouble.”</p> - -<p>Mortimer lost no time in bringing this matter before Admiral Bishop. -The old man was averse to bothering his head with any new, wild-cat -schemes, but, yielding reluctantly before Mortimer’s insistence, did -secure from the authors of this one an outline of it for consideration -by the General Staff. At the meeting of this body a number of -objections were raised by the more conservative officers. The expense -would be out of all proportion to the prospect of success; nets could -never be paid out fast enough to surround the elusive sub; the thing -had never been done—was unheard of; these new-fangled schemes never -did work, anyway. With his lawyer’s skill, Mortimer questioned them as -to all the difficulties in the way of the project, till he felt that -some of the more progressive members were in favor of it, and the -others weakening. Then, following this advantage, he showed them how -lacking in the convincing quality all the objections had been, and -virtually demanded and finally obtained their acquiescence in putting -the plan into operation, overriding the final objections of Admiral -Bishop in a way that caused this officer to be visibly incensed.</p> - -<p>Engineering talent was set to work on the details of the scheme, -perfecting the net studded with tiny bombs, and the machinery for -paying it out at high speed from the moving ship. This latter being a -purely mechanical problem, there was no lack of inventive skill -available for bringing it to the production stage in record time. -Provision was made for the safe recovering of the nets without -detonating the bombs. Five fast liners, built and building, were taken -over and rearranged for installation of additional boilers and the new -gear. Three new ships were started building, specially designed for -this service. Thus it was estimated that, during the autumn, eight -ships capable of thirty knots would be ready to give this project a -trial.</p> - -<p>Mortimer requested Admiral Bishop to institute an investigation to -find out why this important suggestion had been side-tracked. This -quest proved most confusing; the original copy of the communication -could not be found. Several engineer officers recalled having seen it, -and one said he thought he had turned it over to Commander Rich to get -his opinion. Commander Rich, on the other hand, said he was sure he -had never seen it. In the end it was concluded that the paper had been -pigeon-holed and then lost through the carelessness of some yeoman.</p> - -<p>Mortimer told Evans the result of this investigation. Evans listened -attentively, frowning as the unsatisfactory conclusion was reached. -For some time he sat in silence; then he spoke:</p> - -<p>“Sam, it’s a beastly uncomfortable thing to come to you with a -criticism of my superior officer, but I don’t see how I can -conscientiously dodge it. For some time I’ve been getting uneasy about -Commander Rich, and this thing makes me more so.”</p> - -<p>“What do you mean?” asked Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“I doubt his loyalty.”</p> - -<p>“That’s a pretty serious thing to say. What evidence have you?”</p> - -<p>“Not much, I admit,” said Evans. “But do you recall that business -about the British vacuum-tube transmitter? There seemed to be a -peculiar discrepancy between his point of view as represented by the -Admiral, and that which he himself took in the final show-down.”</p> - -<p>“That was just a misunderstanding,” said Mortimer. “You’re too -suspicious, Jim. Just get that out of your system.”</p> - -<p>“Maybe I am. Just the same, I’d keep my eye on him if I were you.”</p> - -<p>“That’s perfect rot,” said Mortimer. “Rich is one of the ablest and -most dependable men in the service; the more I see of him the better I -like him. You’d better quit suspecting him, and give him a little -loyal support and coöperation yourself.”</p> - -<p>Evans said no more; there seemed nothing more to say. He had a nasty -feeling inside, and a change of subject seemed indicated.</p> - -<p>Another project, made possible by the capture of the Azores, also -engaged the attention of the Navy Department at this time. The -completion of the new breakwater and harbor works at Punta Delgada had -now made this an ideal base for destroyers, chasers, and other -submarine-hunting craft; but even this harbor was not nearly big -enough for the entire fleet of battleships and cruisers. If the fleet -had to lie at anchor outside the harbor there must be some protection -against attack by enemy submarines. Now, unless the place could be -made safe for the entire fleet, its value as a base for anti-submarine -operations was seriously impaired, for if a fleet of chasers set out -from Punta Delgada to hunt in the direction of Gibraltar and no -powerful ships were within call, a detachment of enemy cruisers could -come out and destroy them. Destroyers supported by fast scout cruisers -could sally forth in comparative safety, for their speed would enable -them to retreat under the cover of the coast-defense guns if pursued -by a superior force of the enemy. Submarines, too, could operate from -the Azores in comparative safety, for they could hide at will. But the -large flotillas of chasers now being commissioned and manned, good for -only sixteen knots, would be exposed to grave danger if they operated -far enough from their base to do any good.</p> - -<p>It was at this point that the services of Heringham in Constantinople -became a source of safety and strength. The combined fleet of the -Allies could lie at Brest, and if at any moment, day or night, a force -of enemy ships weighed anchor at Gibraltar, and started out through -the strait, word of it would at once reach the Admiral at Brest, and -in less than two hours the Allied fleet could be under way in search -of them. This arrangement made it possible for chasers and other -patrol craft, too slow to escape from enemy cruisers, to operate in -waters nearer to Brest than to Gibraltar, but outside this area their -helplessness in the face of attack by cruisers rendered their search -for submarines unwise.</p> - -<p>For this reason, as well as because of the strategic position of the -place and the greater ease with which secrecy concerning the -activities of the fleet could be maintained at such an isolated spot, -it was most desirable to develop a base for the whole fleet at the -Azores rather than in French or British waters. A plan was therefore -developed to enclose the entire area between the islands of Saint -Michael’s, Santa Maria, and Formigas, the most easterly group of the -Azores, with a barrier of heavy nets reinforced with mines, and a -system of detecting nets of wires which would at once reveal the -approach of a submarine attempting to break through, and tell the -observer at a central station on shore the very point at which the -approach was made. Thus there would be a sheet of water roughly thirty -miles by sixty, protected from attack by sea, with a fair anchorage -for the entire fleet just south of Saint Michael’s. It was a large -engineering project, but not too large for the end to be gained. This, -it was estimated, would take till the late summer for completion.</p> - -<p>In the mean time, Punta Delgada became the storm-center of all the -patrolling and submarine hunting by swarms of destroyers, submarines, -and seaplanes. Weather stations were established here and in all the -other captured islands, manned by officers trained for this duty by -Professor Jeremy, now holding the rank of commander.</p> - -<p>As the spring wore on and the men on the patrolling craft learned how -large the ocean was and how seldom any trace of a submarine could be -found in its expanse, enthusiasm for the chase gave way to ennui and -discouragement. A little success was sorely needed to put heart into -both officers and men, worn as they were by the tedium of the long, -dreary watches at sea.</p> - -<p>Late in May, Evans and Mortimer motored out into the country some -miles from Washington, and went for a walk together.</p> - -<p>“I think I’m rather wasting time here in Washington,” said Evans. “I -believe I’d find more to do now in the Azores.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t see how we can spare you here, Jim,” answered Mortimer. -“Seems to me we need you in the Bureau to help all these engineering -developments;—not to mention your glittering generalities which I find -rather helpful now and then.”</p> - -<p>“I guess you can get along all right without any ‘glittering -generalities’ from me. As for engineering developments, I find that I -can’t get much of anywhere with Rich in charge of the Radio Division.”</p> - -<p>“Still at odds with your chief? Forget it; buck up, and play the game -with the organization as you find it.”</p> - -<p>“I can’t help it,” said Evans. “There’s no use my trying to work here -in the Bureau with him. He apparently stands for efficiency and -progress; he agrees heartily to every constructive suggestion for -improvement, yet somehow the necessary orders don’t get issued, or, if -issued, don’t go into effect. I keep feeling that my hands are tied. -But in spite of all this we’ve got enough material out to the Azores, -so that if I could get there, I could shape it into what I want, -unhampered by the obstruction that’s hindering me here. I know how it -is from what I saw in 1918. There’s always less red-tape at the scene -of actual warfare than there is in the Bureaus here. I’m sure that if -I can get to Punta Delgada I shall be more nearly on my own, and can -work to better advantage. There are lots of engineering possibilities -there, and I can fix things up to my liking without this officious -interference from above.</p> - -<p>“Besides, it’s at Punta Delgada that the communication storm-center -will be from now on. I feel sure I can be more useful tinkering with -the apparatus in the fleet, and seeing that the boys use it right, -than I can imparting spare calories to a swivel chair here in -Washington. In particular, there are the radio-compass shore stations -that we are installing in the various islands; the regular work of -installation is going on all right, but there’s always a possibility -of their not working as they should, and it’s really a physicist’s job -to take care of that sort of thing. Then the apparatus must be -accurately calibrated, and the personnel taught to use it quickly, and -the machinery for transmitting the intelligence rapidly to -headquarters and thence to the ships that can use it, must be -organized, and organized well. For all that sort of work, I think it’s -time to be moving a good many of your men of engineering ability out -to the Azores where things are going on.”</p> - -<p>“There’s no doubt,” said Mortimer, “that there’ll be plenty of -engineering work to be done out there, and more and more as time goes -on; and I can see the importance of having you as a physicist look -over those radio compasses. But I should like to be able to keep in -touch with you, and frequent messages from a warrant officer in the -fleet to the Secretary would look kind of funny; you might get -uncomfortably snubbed by some one.”</p> - -<p>“I think I can get round that,” said Evans. “I’ll work out a method of -dropping you a hint or a glittering generality now and then without -even ruffling the surface. I learned one or two tricks from those -fellows in London about faking telepathy. We could arrange a flying -trip home if the occasion arose.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said Mortimer, “you’ve got away with lots of things a warrant -officer’s got no business to, and they haven’t had to court-martial -you yet. Go ahead and fix up your secret code and make your plans, and -let me know when you’re ready to start.”</p> - -<p>A few days later they met again. Evans reported himself ready to leave -for the destroyer flotilla.</p> - -<p>Mortimer said: “I wish you would look over the dramatis personæ in the -fleet and size up who’s who as far as you can, especially when the -main fleet gets out there, which will be some time in August. It’s -hard for me to size them up from my desk in the department. If you are -convinced that there’s anything radically wrong with the men at the -top, give me one of your magic hints and I’ll send for you to come and -tell me about it.”</p> - -<p>They conferred at length over many phases of the great problem, -arriving at a close and harmonious understanding on the main points of -the task confronting the navy. It was arranged that Evans should be -temporarily attached to a new destroyer that was about to sail for -Punta Delgada, and on arrival, be attached to the mother-ship of the -destroyer flotilla, a vessel similar to the old <i>Melville</i> that lay at -Queenstown in 1918, equipped with repair shops and other facilities -for the care of the destroyers. Here he was to be technical assistant -to the radio material officer; and in a letter from the Bureau of -Engineering it was explained that he was to visit the shore stations -and see that everything was installed according to the latest -engineering developments.</p> - -<p>“What about your method of communicating with me?” asked Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“There are two expert radio aides (civilians) in the Bureau of -Engineering, who are highly intelligent and preeminently discreet,” -answered Evans. “Their names are Tompkins and Rand. Keep those men on -the job in the Bureau, and if I have anything to tell you they’ll pass -it on to you.”</p> - -<p>“How will you manage that?”</p> - -<p>“I’ll fix it somehow. All you’ll have to do is to keep those two men -there. If anything happens to either of them, notify the Intelligence -Bureau at once, and tell them to lose no time and spare no pains -probing the matter; then watch your step. If one dies, let the -remaining one choose his successor and teach him the technique.”</p> - -<p>Four days later Evans reported on board a new destroyer setting out to -join the flotilla at Punta Delgada. During the first part of the -journey she assisted a cruiser serving as ocean escort for a great -convoy of merchant ships loaded with munitions and food for the armies -of Northern Europe; but when in mid-ocean, she was detached from the -convoy, and, speeding up to twenty knots, laid her course for Punta -Delgada.</p> - -<p>It was in the middle of a beautiful June afternoon as the destroyer -was gliding over a glassy sea bathed in sunshine, when the lookout -first sighted the cloud-capped mountains of Saint Michael’s. As they -approached and coasted along the southern shore of the island, the -clouds rolled away revealing the soft yet striking outline of the -range clad in semi-tropical verdure. Presently, some miles ahead, they -could discern the town of Punta Delgada shining in the afternoon sun; -then across the breakwater the masts of many ships, destroyers, and -auxiliary craft. The town took shape, scattered over the steep, -sloping hillsides around the old harbor. Nearer they came, and at last -slid smoothly through the opening in the net into the great new -harbor. Before them spread a panorama that might well gladden the eyes -of all on board after nine long days on the barren ocean. Gay-colored -houses in pink, yellow, and white stucco, in brilliant relief of sun -and shadow, breathing an Old-World atmosphere, lined the shore, while -strange and picturesque trees and gardens dotted the slopes receding -to the capricious outline of the green hills beyond. It seemed as if a -magician’s wand had conjured out of the sea a city of a far-off age -and of another world. And in the foreground, tied two by two at -mooring buoys, the long, lean American destroyers spoke of the grim -business of war.</p> - -<p>To Evans, drinking in the picture before him, it was hard to believe -he was not in some strange dream. And being more impressionable than -most men, his mood became that of a child witnessing for the first -time a scene of fairyland artfully displayed on the theatrical stage.</p> - -<p>To make the incongruity of the whole scene complete, a large American -seaplane, returning from patrol, came whirring down out of the sky and -lit on the harbor in a great splash of white foam, then taxied to her -mooring. Rowboats, manned by natives of the town and loaded with -pineapples and other tempting commodities, swarmed around the -destroyer as she tied up to her designated buoy.</p> - -<p>The sunlight on the hills and houses turned golden and then red, and -finally disappeared. A pink sunset faded into twilight, and just -before dark six destroyers cast off from their moorings, slipped out -silently through the opening in the net and headed to sea on a hunting -patrol.</p> - -<p>Early next morning Evans went aboard the mother-ship of the flotilla -and presented his orders at the Flag Office. When they had received -the endorsement of the Chief of Staff, he was instructed to report for -duty to Lieutenant Larabee, the radio material officer, a man of -twenty-eight, whose technical assistant he was to be.</p> - -<p>“Gunner Evans,” said Larabee. “Yes, we had a letter about you from the -Bureau. I understand you have been assisting in some of the newer -engineering developments there, and that you’ve had previous -experience in a physics laboratory.”</p> - -<p>Evans assented.</p> - -<p>“There’s one thing you’ll have to learn on this job,” continued -Larabee; “conditions afloat are very different from those in a -laboratory on shore; a lot that goes there won’t go here.”</p> - -<p>Evans received the advice with thoughtful deference, and as they -discussed the problems before them, he studied with the closest -scrutiny the mentality of the young officer, nearly twelve years his -junior in age, but three grades his senior in rank. Neither in this -conversation nor for long afterward did Larabee discover that Evans -had served many months as a radio operator on a destroyer in the war -zone during the war with Germany twenty years before, nor did he dream -that his age was such as to render this possible.</p> - -<p>In pursuance of the suggestion Evans had made to Mortimer, several men -who had played important parts in the engineering developments at home -were soon transferred to Punta Delgada—not without remonstrance on the -part of those who had come to rely on their efficiency—and were now -absorbed in the increasing organization at this point. In this way -preparation was made to bring the engineering skill of the service -into play at what would soon be the center of all operations. Among -others a chief radio electrician of exceptional skill and -understanding, a man Evans had picked before leaving Washington, to be -his assistant, arrived and reported as he had done, for duty under the -radio material officer.</p> - -<p>On board the mother-ship there was a small radio laboratory or test -shop where experiments with new apparatus could be conducted. Evans -saw its present limitations and future possibilities (provided more -space was available), possibilities of work of the first importance in -the perfection of the technique of communication in all its complex -phases. Larabee, eager to make the radio material service of the -flotilla as good as possible, welcomed the assistance of a handy and -competent radio gunner, and began to put up a strenuous fight for the -needed space. The ordnance officers wanted the space and objected, and -the executive officer backed them up. But at last, spurred on by his -increasing sense of the importance of what he sought, Larabee -succeeded in showing the ordnance officers how they could manage -without the coveted space, and in convincing the executive officer of -his need of it. Then Evans had a free hand to equip the laboratory to -his heart’s content. Cabled requests went out to Washington for new -supplies and apparatus, but during the necessary weeks of waiting -Evans was never at a loss for methods of utilizing such crude -materials as he could pick up in the machine shop or on the -scrap-heap.</p> - -<p>Nor was his time all spent in this laboratory: his duties took him -aboard nearly every ship in the flotilla, where he scrutinized the -condition of the apparatus, questioned the operators, stimulated their -interest, and set them thinking as they had never thought before. Most -of the destroyer skippers noticed an increase in efficiency in the -handling of communications by the men under them, and some patted -themselves lustily on the back for it. It was not long after his -arrival that he had made the round of the radio-compass stations on -shore, not only in the Azores, but also at Madeira and the Canaries. -On these excursions he tested and calibrated each station with a -destroyer circling at a distance of two or three miles, sending -signals; and he spared no pains to satisfy himself that the operators -had a thorough understanding of their duties, and knew full well that -on their vigilance rested large issues.</p> - -<p>But after his first general survey of the flotilla as regards its -efficiency in communications, Evans found time for further research -which this survey had suggested to him; and he was never so happy as -when thus engaged. Sometimes, as a result of an idea either in the -realm of electrical theory or of tactical expediency, the need of -intensive development of new or modified apparatus would appear; then -an engineering research, which in peace-time would require months, was -completed in five or six days. Evans in his dungarees would work day -and night with his skilled assistants, often risking death among wires -charged with a thousand volts or more. No time was spent writing -detailed protocols of experiments. Results were carried in his head -with only occasional notes scribbled on scraps of paper or on the -walls of the test shop. The radio chief who assisted him became fired -with his enthusiasm and worked ungrudgingly for long hours which would -ordinarily make most petty officers grumble loud and long.</p> - -<p>In the warrant officers’ mess Evans was more often the listener than -the speaker. When occasion offered, he would draw out the older men on -the specialties in which they were expert, and often would guide the -conversation into a discussion of coördination, in which each man was -stumped to show how his particular duty fitted into the organization -of the navy as a whole, and thereby was led to see his own function in -a new light, thus acquiring an increased sense of his responsibility. -There was one old boatswain named Jenks nearly sixty years of age, a -veteran of both the Spanish and the German wars, a relic of the old -type of seaman that is all too scarce. Evans delighted in leading him -to open his rich storehouse of experience, and in drawing from him his -old-time navy lore. Jenks in his turn found Evans sympathetic, and -talked with him as he did with few other men, revealing a shrewdness -and wisdom which had often stood him and the navy in good stead.</p> - -<p>To the mess as a whole Evans remained something of an enigma. They saw -him in his room manipulating a slide-rule and jotting down figures on -a scrap of paper, softly humming a tune to himself the while. Few of -them had ever seen a slide-rule, and from his frequent use of it they -inferred that he had had more schooling than most of them; but in -general they found him rather uncommunicative as to his past history.</p> - -<p>For exercise and relaxation Evans frequently went ashore and took a -walk among the hills. On his first shore liberty the sense of foreign -picturesqueness came over him more than ever as he approached the -antique landing in the center of the town, where at the water’s edge -was an array of architecture so different from anything in the -Anglo-Saxon world. On shore he found himself in a strange world -indeed. Strange sights, sounds, and smells greeted him everywhere; -barefooted men were leading donkeys laden with goods about the narrow, -dirty streets. And after flooding his senses with a riot of -impressions of an alien world, it was with a distinct sense of -homecoming that he returned to his quarters aboard the mother-ship of -the flotilla.</p> - -<p>He had not been at Punta Delgada long before he discovered a spot easy -of access, walled off from the town, in which, among the most restful -and soothing surroundings, he could give himself over to relaxation or -thought. This was the ancient Borge garden, created by one of the -Portuguese nobles who flourished on these islands in the far-off days -of their feudal prosperity. Now neglected, overgrown with weeds, this -antiquated paradise reflects its former glory with a stronger appeal -than if it were kept up with a lavish hand, much as the ivy-covered -ruins of England tell their story all the better for their ruined -state.</p> - -<p>In the Borge garden there are trees of the strangest, most fantastic -character—trees with pudgy leaves, trees with shapes one would never -believe could really exist. Here and there are deep grottoes with -giant tree-ferns growing from their depths; zigzag stony paths lead -down into them or through tunnels or over bridges artfully contrived -to conceal as far as possible their artificial nature. Fascinating -glimpses into the depths of tropical greenery are thus given emphasis -by their skillful setting. Surmounting the rest of the garden high up -on the slope is an ancient watch-tower commanding a view of the sea. -Crumbling steps overgrown with weeds lead up the side to its summit. -Beside it stands a majestic and venerable tree, a conifer of the cedar -or cypress group, which must have stood there for centuries casting -its deep shade on the old watch-tower. Framed under its great -lichen-covered branches, the wide expanse of the blue ocean makes the -fairest of pictures—one on which the eye can rest and never tire.</p> - -<p>Evans made friends with the old barefoot gardener who opened the great -gate in the garden wall, and by signs and gestures allayed his -suspicions till the old man admitted him cheerfully whenever he -knocked.</p> - -<p>Here, when his brain was taxed and overwrought, he would seek the -quiet of the garden and give himself over to rest or meditation. -Sometimes he would wander through the depths of the great fern -grottoes, but oftener he would climb to the top of the watch-tower and -sit gazing off over the blue expanse of sea, as perhaps the lookout -had done in other wars of a bygone age. Many a problem in the -borderland of science and strategy which harassed him in the turmoil -of life aboard ship yielded a solution to his mind unfettered and free -as it was when he sat on the watch-tower.</p> - -<p>The Borge garden was inhabited by numerous small birds that sang -melodiously among the trees and shrubs, and so doing enhanced -immeasurably the charm of the place. Evans was no ornithologist, but -he was a lover of all wild life, and especially of birds. He took with -him to the garden liberal stores of crumbs which he scattered on the -ground about him. Little by little the more venturesome of his -feathered friends grew accustomed to his presence, and would light on -the ground beside him, till finally one or two actually came and ate -from his hand. He would talk and whistle to them, and in course of -time, whenever they heard his voice, they would fly to the old tree by -the watch-tower and there await the social feast which he never failed -to bring. He in turn found a deal of cheer in the companionship of his -bird friends. And so it was that when disheartened or exasperated with -inertia and officiousness, the snarls of red-tape in which supply -clerks entangled much-needed gear, or the stupidity and indifference -of radio operators whom he tried to instruct, he found in the little -birds of the garden a solace that made life more livable, and more -than once helped him over the hard places.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chVI' title='VI—The Hunt'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER VI</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>THE HUNT</span> -</h2> -<p>During June and July, Evans devoted a liberal share of his attention -to the radio-compass problem. He felt that the apparatus was still on -trial. A slight lapse might cause this instrument of untold -possibilities to be lost to the navy because of the <i>Sheridan</i> -disaster and Rich’s subsequent effort to discredit the apparatus in -Mortimer’s eyes. Going frequently aboard the destroyers, he looked -over the apparatus and talked with both the operators and the -officers. With the former he discussed all details of operation; with -the latter, the prospect of using it effectively in the search for -subs; in talking to both groups he made sure that they understood what -was necessary for all hands to know.</p> - -<p>The problem of submarine destruction was even more difficult than in -the war with Germany, for then the German U-boats to reach their -hunting ground must pass through British waters so narrow as to render -the mine barrage feasible and to facilitate a considerable -concentration of anti-submarine craft. Now the submarines emerging -from Gibraltar and Lisbon, both powerfully defended, could far more -easily lose themselves in the broad Atlantic.</p> - -<p>From time to time when they attacked convoys the submarines were sunk -or damaged by the escorting destroyers. But the numbers dealt with in -this way were not nearly enough to give the needed protection to -shipping. The chasers now and then picked up suspicious noises with -their listening gear, but seldom were able to follow them to a -successful issue.</p> - -<p>Hunting squadrons of destroyers, three in each squadron, were going -out and sweeping the seas, but encounters with the enemy were so rare -as to be almost negligible. As of old, the search was long and -tedious. Whole days of seeking in vain for a trace of the enemy were -telling on the men. They were growing stale and losing their -enthusiasm, and so the efficiency of their vigils waned. Encouragement -was sorely needed—something to rouse them with an intimation of the -great role that was theirs should the opportunity come and they use it -right. Especially some signal success was needed to awaken them to -renewed efforts. Both officers and men felt that they were groping in -the dark for the unseen foe. Occasionally they heard him send radio -signals, but usually the bored operators failed to get bearings before -the signals had ceased. No one had ever seen a submarine successfully -tracked down by radio compass and by hydrophone, and therefore the -prospect of this feat was not real to them.</p> - -<p>The radio compasses on the shore stations, with their long range of -operation, were now beginning to get cross bearings on enemy -submarines from time to time, and were making an encouraging beginning -in tracing their movements about the sea. But as yet little had been -done to direct the destroyer squadrons by this method to the fruitful -hunting grounds. It was time for a concerted effort to bring about a -successful hunt which would serve to demonstrate what could be done -with the materials already at hand.</p> - -<p>Evans found technical duties to perform at Communication Headquarters -on shore, as well as in the main radio room of the mother-ship to -which he was attached, and these duties gave him the opportunity to -follow closely the reports that were coming in from the radio-compass -stations on the various islands. In this way he knew as much as any -one in the force about the movements of enemy submarines. He watched -the increasing efficiency with which their movements were revealed, -and at the same time he gradually acquired a familiarity with the -habits of the undersea pirates and the general plan upon which they -operated.</p> - -<p>He studied the personnel on the various hunting groups of destroyers, -and talked with their skippers whenever the opportunity offered. He -was looking for the most promising group with which to give a -demonstration that would wake up the men. If a squadron could once -pick up the scent by radio-compass triangulation and then get the sub -within hydrophone range, there would be a good chance of ending her -career; and even if they only gave her a hard run for her life, a -report of this would do a deal of good to the rest of the flotilla.</p> - -<p>Therefore he searched diligently among the young skippers as they came -and went on their arduous patrols; with each he found business to -discuss, and thereby sized him up. At last he found the man he wanted, -one of the senior skippers in the flotilla, a man named Fraser, with -the rank of commander. He was a tall, well-built, fair-haired man, -clear-eyed and alert, with a magnetic personality. Wholesome and -vigorous, with a boyish enthusiasm and a genuine frankness about him, -he at once inspired in Evans a strong liking, and, more than that, a -confidence that he was a real man. He saw at once that Fraser was in -earnest, and open-mindedly seeking any and every means that human -ingenuity could devise to get the enemy. Fraser took Evans for what he -was, regardless of rank, and eagerly discussed with him the problem of -utilizing all the gear on his ship to the best advantage. Evans did -not take long to discern that, besides the charm which had attracted -him, Fraser had a mind of unusual quality, clear and strong, well -trained in his profession, but untrammeled by the fetters of -tradition; a mind that could grasp quickly, think straight, and see -with the vision that comes only with imagination—a quality without -which no man can be a truly great naval or military leader. Evans -found plenty of lines of approach to Fraser through questions of the -fitness of the radio gear for the various tasks required in the -team-work of the hunting squadron. Through such channels he led the -conversation into a discussion of all the possibilities that might -arise in the pursuit and attack of a submarine, a discussion which was -mutually profitable. They naturally spoke the same language; far fewer -words sufficed to convey ideas to each other than was the case with -most of the skippers. Each caught the other’s meaning with a minimum -of explanation, and each knew that the other had caught his. Chatting -together in the radio room they picked up the trail of an imaginary -submarine by radio compass and maneuvered to get her within range of -the hydrophones and magnetic detectors.</p> - -<p>“I wish you’d go out with us on patrol,” said Fraser, “and see to it -that all this gear is being handled right. You could help us by seeing -that the boys understand their duties and are making the most of these -things.”</p> - -<p>“There’s nothing I’d like better,” said Evans.</p> - -<p>“I’ll get Larabee to let you come. It won’t be hard to arrange.”</p> - -<p>This was what Evans wanted. He proceeded to interest Fraser in the -work that the radio-compass shore stations were doing in reporting the -movements of enemy submarines. Fraser had not appreciated the extent -to which this had become possible.</p> - -<p>“I tell you what we’ll do,” said the Commander; “we’ll choose a time -when they’ve got a hot scent of some subs coming within striking -distance, and then we’ll go to it.”</p> - -<p>Soon thereafter Evans and Fraser met more than once at Communication -Headquarters and looked over the radio-compass reports together. -Before long Fraser was making the same generalizations concerning the -habits of the enemy at which Evans had arrived. And as in the ensuing -days, they watched the reports, Evans visited the three destroyers in -Fraser’s squadron and made sure that men and material were up to -standard in every detail, from the radio sets to the hydrophones and -the internal communications on each ship. He drilled the radio-compass -operators in taking bearings on dummy signals, drilling them so hard, -with ever shorter and shorter messages, that soon they could give him -a fairly good bearing even on the briefest signals.</p> - -<p>Before many days of waiting had passed, reports came in from the radio -compasses at the Grand Canary, Madeira, and the station at the eastern -end of Saint Michael’s, showing that two submarines were proceeding on -a northwesterly course from Lisbon toward the steamer lanes of the -North Atlantic. First, one had been detected communicating with her -base, and then the two communicating with each other and increasing -the power of their signals as their divergent courses required it. The -Flag Office, which had somewhat reluctantly acceded to Commander -Fraser’s request that he be allowed to hold his squadron in port in -order to await such an opportunity, now issued the orders to proceed -to the indicated area in search of the enemy, and granted his request -that the radio gunner should go with him on his ship.</p> - -<p>Evans contrived to visit the weather station before sailing, and -received assurance of two days at least without storms or fogs. He -also arranged with Communication Headquarters that if the shore -stations should report another “fix” on their intended quarry, the -news should be transmitted to them without delay. The message was to -be repeated three times, and there would be no acknowledgment, for the -squadron had better keep quiet on this hunt. At dusk he went aboard -the destroyer, and as he reached the deck he heard with a thrill the -roar of the great blowers voicing the impatience of the ship to spring -to the full speed of her thirty thousand horse-power. His blood -stirred as he recalled half-forgotten days when to the tune of the -same roar the gaunt destroyer on which he lived—a mere lad -then—slipped her mooring at Queenstown and stood out into the wet -drizzle of the North Atlantic. “From chief radio electrician to radio -gunner,” he thought—not much change in status for twenty years.</p> - -<p>It was just after dark when the three destroyers slipped their -moorings and, headed by Commander Fraser’s ship, took the opening in -the net at sixteen knots. Completely darkened, they headed south till -well out of sight of land, then turned east and rounded the end of -Saint Michael’s far enough away to be invisible from shore. It was not -forgotten in the navy that news had spread mysteriously from -Queenstown to Berlin with lightning speed in an earlier generation, -and there were those on shore who were not over-friendly at heart with -the Americans.</p> - -<p>The last reported “fix” of the two submarines had shown them to be -proceeding approximately northwest by west at eleven knots, having -left Lisbon on the morning of the previous day. As the destroyers -cleared Saint Michael’s, Fraser laid his course north by east one half -east, or, as they say in the navy, seventeen degrees. Up to this point -they had steamed in column, but now they formed a scouting line, -Fraser’s ship in the center, each wing boat six miles away bearing -abeam from the flagship. The accuracy with which these ships could -place themselves by dead-reckoning, using engine revolutions for -distance and careful steering for direction, was such that they could -shift from column to line abreast and hold their relative positions -for a considerable time, dark as it was, without any direct means of -checking them. But this would not suffice for the task in hand; now -they must be prepared for accurate triangulation upon their victim by -radio compass with their scouting line as a base; they must at all -times be sure of their relative distances and bearings from each -other, for on this would depend their locating of the submarine by -radio bearings. Attached to staffs at the bow and stern of each ship -were two strange lanterns. No visible light came from them, but each -emitted horizontally a powerful beam of infra-red rays, invisible to -the eye, but capable of detection with a delicate instrument. By means -of this instrument observers on the bridge of each destroyer could -tell just where the other destroyers were—could register both -direction and distance, invisible though they were to the eye even -with the most powerful glass. Thus the two wing ships kept themselves -in their proper positions as the flagship steamed ahead through the -night, and thus the flagship verified the positions which they kept.</p> - -<p>All night they steamed at eighteen knots, and though they did not -expect to be in the vicinity of the submarines they sought till the -following night, still all hands maintained a ceaseless vigilance. The -weather was fine, and the three slender ships left scarcely any wake -as they slipped quietly through the water.</p> - -<p>There is no warrant officers’ mess on a destroyer; when warrant -officers are present, they live in the wardroom with all the other -officers, from the skipper down. Thus there is an informal atmosphere -which is far removed from the traditional etiquette of a battleship. -Evans found himself in a party of genial youths which might have been -taking a vacation cruise together in a small boat, as far as one could -judge from the wardroom life. Fraser put them all at ease, encouraging -in every way the informal spirit of good-fellowship, yet never for a -moment losing their respect nor failing to inspire them with the sense -of his leadership.</p> - -<p>They were a heterogeneous mixture, the officers of this ship, eight in -all; three besides the skipper were graduates of the Naval Academy; -one was a temporary ensign who had worked up from the ranks through -the grades of chief petty officer and warrant officer; three were -college boys of yachting experience who had joined the navy for the -war. But months together at sea under the magnetic personality of -their commander had welded them into the most harmonious and congenial -crew of shipmates. One of the college boys, Jackson by name, was a -very good singer, having been prominent in his college glee club. -Besides this he was uncommonly handy with the mandolin, a gift which -was much appreciated on board the destroyer. He had brought with him -his mandolin and some old college song-books, both of which were in -demand. The skipper was fond of good singing and had a very fair voice -himself. So when the day’s duties were done, it was their wont, as -often as might be, when the supper dishes had been cleared away, to -make the wardroom ring with many a rousing chorus. All of the gang -would be there but the lone officer who “had the deck.” He, standing -on the bridge, alert and watchful, directed the man at the wheel and -the quartermasters as they moved swiftly about, performing the duties -of the ship’s nerve center. He held the lives of all on board in his -hands while the others made merry below. And whenever it was not -Jackson’s turn as officer of the deck during the eight-to-twelve -watch, he would “break out” his mandolin, and harmony would reign in -the cheery little wardroom.</p> - -<p>On this occasion the day following their departure proved uneventful. -Steadily they held their course at eighteen knots. The visibility was -fair and there was no difficulty in maintaining the scouting line -according to plan. Fraser conferred with his executive officer and -Evans at some length over the details of their intended procedure. All -hands at the radio compass, the hydrophones, and magnetic detectors -were coached as for a great athletic contest till each man looked -forward to the coming night as the chance of his life. Early in the -morning a message had been received from Punta Delgada reporting the -submarines still heading northwest by west at eleven knots. The -destroyers themselves had not heard them, for their range was not -equal to those of the shore stations with their marvelous amplifiers, -too sensitive and too cumbersome to be successfully installed on -vibrating or crowded ships. All day long no signals were heard, and -none were expected till midnight, for the subs would not send signals -needlessly, and when they did they would use so little power that the -hunting squadron could hardly expect to hear them more than fifty -miles; at the present speed they should be within fifty miles of the -supposed position of the enemy about the middle of the night.</p> - -<p>Darkness came, and the infra-red lanterns were again turned on. All -was in readiness, the radio operators on watch listening like wild -animals in the night. Fortunately Jackson did not have the -eight-to-twelve watch that night; so when supper was finished, the -skipper said to him: “Jackson, break out your mandolin and let’s have -some old-time songs; it’ll do us a lot of good.”</p> - -<p>Evans had slipped off to look over the radio gear once more and see -that all was in perfect order. This done, he rejoined the crowd in the -wardroom just in time to join in the chorus of “Lucy Lee,” a song -which was having a great run of popularity at the time. Jackson turned -over the leaves of one of his song-books and picked out one favorite -after another according to the mood of the moment. Some he sang as -solos; some were familiar airs that all joined in singing. Fraser, -thoroughly enjoying himself, did his share of the singing, looking -over the book, and now and then suggesting a song that caught his eye. -In a lull between songs, Jackson rambled on with his mandolin through -a kaleidoscopic series of melodies till through some strange caprice -he stumbled on a Christmas carol which most of them knew. They sang -it, and Fraser then fell to recalling the winter evenings in his -boyhood when he with other children of the village where he lived had -sung this and other carols with the new-fallen snow on the spruce -trees reflecting the lamplight from the window with a golden glow. -Evans picked up the old Princeton song-book off the wardroom table and -began turning over the leaves. Suddenly his face lighted as he turned -to “Stand to Your Glasses Steady.”</p> - -<p>“That’s the most stirring song ever written by man,” he said. “That -was written by a British army officer facing death in the great -cholera plague in India.”</p> - -<p>Jackson looked at the song and started playing the air from the notes.</p> - -<p>“Oh, yes!” he said presently. “I remember that. My older brother used -to sing it when I was a little kid. He had a crowd of them home from -college with him, and they all used to get going on that song. My God! -how they raised the roof with it! I’ll never forget it.”</p> - -<p>Evans and Jackson sang the song together, Fraser looking over the page -and joining in after the first verse. There was a fire in Evans’s -voice which it took this song to bring out, and every one sat up and -took notice, and before the song was done each felt it.</p> - -<p>Fraser spoke with warmth, “That is a wonderful song. Let’s try it -again; maybe every one can join in this time.”</p> - -<p>They sang, and the song rang out with all the fire that’s in it—the -fire that makes it immortal. They had just begun the third verse,</p> - -<div class='poetry-container'> -<div class='poetry'> -<div class='stanza'> -<div class='verse'>“Who dreads to the dust returning?</div> -<div class='indent2'>Who shrinks from the sable shore?”</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<p>when a sharp call through the voice-tube from the bridge broke in:</p> - -<p>“Radio room reports a high-pitched spark on five hundred metres.”</p> - -<p>Almost before the others had taken it in, Evans shot out of the door, -saying, “The hunt’s on.”</p> - -<p>Running aft along the matted deck, he climbed the ladder leading to -the radio-compass shack, and, silently opening the door, seated -himself beside the operator on watch who was listening intently as he -rotated the coil back and forth, his eyes glued on the dial. Evans -slipped the spare head-phones over his ears and plugged them into a -socket which enabled him to listen in with the operator. Not a sound -could he hear. After listening a moment, he said, “D’you get a -bearing?”</p> - -<p>“Very rough,” answered the operator. “He only sent for about three -seconds after they opened the main antenna. I reported it, though.”</p> - -<p>“What was it?”</p> - -<p>“Fifteen degrees,” answered the man.</p> - -<p>Evans made a mental calculation. “We’re headed seventeen; that makes -it thirty-two, true,” he said to himself.</p> - -<p>They sat a moment in silence, then suddenly there came through the -receivers a rapid series of dots and dashes in a peculiar high-pitched -note. Both men grew tense as if struck by an electric shock. Almost -instantly a small light flashed beside the operator, showing that the -main radio room had heard and recognized the unmistakable note of an -enemy submarine, and had opened the main antenna to enable the radio -compass to function. With a rapid spin the operator whirled the coil -through a large angle, stopped it and spun it back a little more -slowly. The message stopped, but it was enough.</p> - -<p>“How’s that?” said the operator, turning the coil partway back and -stopping it.</p> - -<p>“Right, as near as I can judge,” said Evans. “Let ’em have it.”</p> - -<p>The operator called through the voice-tube:</p> - -<p>“Bridge—thirteen.”</p> - -<p>Evans listened a minute more, then hearing nothing, took off the -head-phones and, saying, “Do your damnedest, and we’ll have this goose -cooked by morning,” he slipped out of the shack and ran up to the main -radio room to see how things were working there.</p> - -<p>Ever since he left the wardroom the skipper had been conversing with -the wing boats by radio telephone. Both wing boats had reported their -bearings. Evans satisfied himself that enough power was being used in -the transmitter to reach the wing boats, but no further. Then he went -up on the bridge. Commander Fraser was at the moment talking to the -other destroyers.</p> - -<p>“Now’s our chance,” he said. “Keep the boys on the job, and on your -life don’t miss any tricks.”</p> - -<p>Fraser put up the phone. Catching sight of Evans, he said:</p> - -<p>“Exec.’s plotting the fix in the chart room; let’s see how he’s coming -out.”</p> - -<p>They went to the small chart room on the after part of the bridge, and -looked over the executive officer’s shoulder. He was just finishing -his plot of the second set of triple bearings from a line on the chart -representing the twelve-mile scouting line of the three ships. Where -the lines met they crossed in a pair of elongated triangles which -overlapped in a small area.</p> - -<p>“Those look like good fixes,” said Fraser. “Where would you put him, -Evans, on the strength of them?”</p> - -<p>Evans drew a pencil line around the two triangles, enclosing an area -about seven miles long and two miles wide. “It’s safe to say he’s -somewhere in that area. The second fix was the best; I’d go more by -that. If we put him there, we shan’t be far off,” and he marked with -his pencil a spot near the center of the triangle made by the second -set of bearings. This spot was thirty-eight nautical miles from the -present position of the flagship. Fraser said, “They’re undoubtedly -still steaming northwest at about eleven knots; but they’ll change -when they hear us coming.” Then he made a hurried calculation, stepped -to the radio phone, and called to the other destroyers:</p> - -<p>“Course, twenty-three degrees, true; speed of port wing boat, -thirty-six knots; starboard boat, thirty-two knots till line is true -on the new course, then squadron speed thirty-six knots; keep six -miles distant for the present; speed up now.”</p> - -<p>He put up the phone, said to the officer of the deck, “Course, -twenty-three degrees; speed, thirty-four knots.” Word was passed to -the engine room, and almost at the same moment the three destroyers -swung six degrees to starboard and leapt forward like greyhounds -unleashed.</p> - -<p>There was a light head wind which at eighteen knots had scarcely been -noticed, but now, as they dashed headlong into the seas at double the -speed, masses of fine spray rose from the bow and swept madly past, -white and ghostly in the darkness, mingling again with the tumultuous -white wake receding rapidly astern.</p> - -<p>But there was little thought of spray or foam on the bridge. Captain -and “exec.” alert and tense, conversed in brief sentences, while the -officer of the deck with brisk orders directed the business of the -bridge. Quartermasters, on the jump, dispatched their duties, noting -and reporting readings of the wing boats’ distance and bearing. The -helmsman, ignoring all else, kept the racing ship true on her course. -Elsewhere gun crews and depth charge crews were ready for instant -action.</p> - -<p>Fraser turned to Evans.</p> - -<p>“Has he heard our radio phones yet?”</p> - -<p>“Not with the power we’re using,” said Evans. “He’ll get us by -hydrophone first. At thirty-six knots we’ll make a noise he can hear a -good way off.”</p> - -<p>Ten minutes passed. Then the man at the radio-compass voice-tube -reported, “Bearing three degrees,” and a moment later the wing boats -each reported a bearing taken on the same signal of the enemy. In a -second the executive officer was plotting the bearings from the new -base line.</p> - -<p>“Corking fix! They damn near meet in a point,” he said to the skipper -and Evans who were close behind him.</p> - -<p>“The blighter hasn’t changed course yet,” said Fraser. “I don’t -believe he’s heard us.”</p> - -<p>The new fix showed that probably the submarine was still traveling -northwest at about the same speed as before. But now her distance was -barely thirty miles.</p> - -<p>After this no more radio signals were heard. Had she heard them racing -toward her yet? If so, she would soon be submerged, and they must find -her by hydrophone. By this time the three ships had squared their -scouting line and were tearing through the water at thirty-six knots.</p> - -<p>For fifteen minutes they rushed on through the darkness, holding their -line in perfect order, but hearing no sound and seeing no sign. The -suspense grew. The submarine could not now be more than twenty-four -miles away. Fraser again called the other ships by radio phone, and -ordered them to close in till within two miles of him.</p> - -<p>“How far off could he hear us coming at this speed?” he asked of -Evans.</p> - -<p>“If he stopped to listen, he’d hear us all of thirty miles, if he has -the gear I think he has. But I trust he has had no intimation of our -coming, and hasn’t stopped to listen. Running at eleven knots he might -not hear us till we’re within fifteen miles or less.”</p> - -<p>“When he does he’ll submerge and do his damnedest to fool us,” said -Fraser.</p> - -<p>“He’ll know we’re closing in to cover him with our hydrophones,” said -Evans, “and assuming that, his best chance to get out of range is -either to hold the course he’s been on, nearly at right angles to -ours, or to double back about at right angles the other way.”</p> - -<p>“I wonder which he’ll do.”</p> - -<p>“I bet he’ll go back,” said Evans.</p> - -<p>“He’s about as likely to think we’ll expect him to, and keep right -on.”</p> - -<p>“They don’t think much of our intelligence,” said Evans. “Of course -it’s a gamble; but I bet he thinks we’re too stupid to think of his -doubling back; he’ll bet on our going for the place his course has -been taking him.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said Fraser, “suppose he hears us when we’re fifteen miles -off, and then submerges and changes course. His best speed submerged -is nine knots. By the times we get there he may be anywhere within a -radius of about four miles of that point. The farthest we can hope to -hear with our hydrophones, while we’re going faster than he, is a -mile. That means we can cover at best a strip six miles wide. We’ve -got to leave two miles of the circle uncovered on the first shot. If -we miss, we can double back. If he goes slow enough, we’re apt to miss -him altogether. I guess it’s our wits against his, with a betting -element thrown in. Anyhow, I’m not betting on him to-night.”</p> - -<p>Twenty-five minutes of converging courses brought the wing ships -within two miles of the flagship, and dimly their dark forms and white -streaming wakes could be seen through the darkness on either side. Now -the assumed spot where the submarine, hearing her pursuers, had -probably submerged, lay seven miles dead ahead;—twelve minutes more at -their racehorse speed.</p> - -<p>Fraser spoke. “Evans, I’ll chance it on your guess, and cover the -eastern half of the circle, leaving the western two miles to search -later if we miss.”</p> - -<p>A few brief words were flashed out by radio phone, and the next minute -the squadron had changed course eight degrees to the eastward, and all -three charged on at top speed.</p> - -<p>Presently the executive officer said, “Isn’t it about time to slow -down and give the listeners a chance, Cap’n? They can’t hear anything -while we go at this speed.”</p> - -<p>“The trouble is, he’ll hear us and slow down, too,” said Fraser. -“He’ll slow down till we can’t hear him unless we’re right on top of -him. There’s little chance he’ll be near enough to hear yet. I’d -rather go full speed till we’re almost on the line I think he’s on, -and then stop quick and try to spot him before he has time to slow -down. Tell the engine room to be ready to stop all auxiliaries when I -give the word, and give the listeners warning.”</p> - -<p>Calling the other ships by phone, he gave them similar instructions. -Nine minutes passed in silence save for the roar of the blowers and -the swish of the waves and the ghostly sheets of spray swirling past -over the bridge and lifeboats. The executive officer was beginning to -fidget. Commander Fraser stood with his eye on his watch.</p> - -<p>“Stop the auxiliaries. Give the word to the listeners,” he called -quickly. “Ready? Stop the engines.”</p> - -<p>A signal was flashed to the other ships. The great torrents of steam -pouring into the turbines of the three ships stopped almost as if the -valves controlling them were geared together. As the ships lost -headway, the suspense became almost unbearable. A minute elapsed, with -no word from the listeners, but to every man on the bridge it seemed -an hour. Then a voice from the hydrophone station down in the hull -called, “Motors heard slowing down, too faint to get bearing; slowed -and became inaudible about five seconds after engines stopped.”</p> - -<p>“My God! I wish the wing boats would report,” said the skipper.</p> - -<p>The words were hardly spoken when the radio phone from the starboard -ship reported, “Motors heard slowing down as we stopped, roughly -bearing fifty-five degrees, true.”</p> - -<p>Fraser fairly jumped for joy. Eagerly he called the port ship: “Have -you heard anything?”</p> - -<p>“Nothing heard,” was the answer.</p> - -<p>“Starboard ship reports motors bearing fifty-five, true; motors heard -here, no bearing,” he replied. “Submarine probably three to six miles -east of us. Your course is eighty degrees, true, speed, thirty-five; -start now.”</p> - -<p>“Aye, aye,” came back from the port ship.</p> - -<p>To the starboard ship he called, “Course, eighty, true, speed, -fifteen; start now.”</p> - -<p>Then to the officer of the deck, “Course, eighty, true, speed, -twenty-five.”</p> - -<p>In a few seconds the pack was dashing forward again in a maneuver -calculated to bring them in nine minutes into line on their new -course, within a mile or two of their prey—perhaps less.</p> - -<p>Fraser reviewed the evidence:</p> - -<p>“Bearing fifty-five from starboard end; barely heard here; not heard -port. It’s a good scent, if it isn’t a fix.”</p> - -<p>“We haven’t got him yet,” remarked Evans uneasily. “He may stop -altogether and balance with his tanks. Then we’ll have to find him -with the magnetic detectors, and that way we can barely cover a -thousand yards, the three of us. It won’t be any cinch.”</p> - -<p>But the frightened submarine underestimated the hydrophones of her -pursuers and preferred trying to steal away at the almost silent speed -of three knots. In the last half of the ninth minute, as the ships -were coming into perfect line, Fraser again called a general halt; and -as the three ships made their sudden stop which enabled the sensitive -hydrophones to penetrate the silent deep about them, clearly the -listeners down in the three hulls heard at the same moment the faint -hum of motors, again dying quickly away as the fact that the pursuers -had stopped again to listen was reported to the submarine captain and -the motors were hastily shut down. But this time each ship had heard, -and each had read the bearing.</p> - -<p>First the report came up the voice-tube from the flagship’s own -hydrophones, “Relative bearing three forty-three.”</p> - -<p>“What does that make it?” said Fraser.</p> - -<p>“Sixty-three, true,” answered Evans.</p> - -<p>“That’s right,” said Fraser, and, turning to the executive officer, -“Plot it.”</p> - -<p>Next in quick succession came the reports from the wing ships: “A -hundred and sixteen, true,” from port; “twenty-five, true,” from -starboard.</p> - -<p>“Plot ’em lively,” said the skipper.</p> - -<p>The “exec.” lost no time, and as the third line he ruled crossed the -other two almost at their point of intersection, Fraser gave a shout.</p> - -<p>“A fix for fair!” he cried, and, seizing the radio phone, called -simultaneously to both wing ships, “Do you still hear submarine?”</p> - -<p>Only silence was reported from all three ships; the sub was clearly -lying still to escape detection, or stealing along with her motors -barely turning over.</p> - -<p>Receiving this report, he called back, “Submarine moving very slowly -or not at all; fixed at a point bearing sixty-three degrees, true from -flagship; distant twenty-five hundred yards; close in at thirty-five -knots to two hundred yards for attack,” This was followed by -instructions as to courses needed to execute this delicate maneuver, -bringing each ship on his flank at the right moment to cover with a -destructive pattern of depth charges the area where the submarine must -be. Again the three ships leapt to high speed, the wing ships -converging sharply toward the flagship, while she forged slightly -ahead of them.</p> - -<p>“He knows we’ve got his trail,” said Evans. “He’ll probably strike out -to one side at full speed. If he does, he can get clear of the -destructive area of our pattern before we can get there to make it.”</p> - -<p>Fraser, who, getting so clear a fix on a submarine so close at hand, -had felt ready to attack without further reconnoitering, especially as -the sub had apparently been motionless when he started his dash for -the attack, now did some quick thinking, making mental calculations -half aloud:</p> - -<p>“Twenty-five hundred yards, two minutes and a half; subtract fifteen -seconds for hearing us start and giving orders, fifteen more for -getting up his speed; two minutes—nine knots—six hundred yards. That’s -right; he’ll just about clear us if he uses full speed.”</p> - -<p>He looked at his watch, then gave orders preparatory to another halt, -then looked at his watch again. After a minute and a half on -converging lines he called a halt. Once more the listeners heard the -submarine motors stopping more quickly than before, but now they were -near enough to get a fix in spite of the abruptness with which the -sound ceased.</p> - -<p>The fix showed the submarine now only a thousand yards from both the -flagship and the port wing boat. Fraser well knew that as long as the -destroyer lay still they could detect the submarine at this range if -she tried to move at a speed of more than one knot. Therefore, he took -his time planning how to place his depth charge pattern, for, though -the stern of each ship was well stocked with these destructive cans, -the total area which they could cover with the certainty of a kill -was, after all, not large. The maneuver planned to a nicety, he gave -the order for the final charge.</p> - -<p>“We can cover him this time,” he said.</p> - -<p>Jumping to thirty knots, the port wing boat and the flagship rushed in -on sharply converging courses till the men on the bridge of each ship -watched with their hearts in their mouths the black hulk of the other -looming up as if nothing could avert collision. But when they were -less than five hundred yards apart, Fraser calmly said, “Right -rudder,” and flashed a signal to the other ship, at which both -destroyers swerved upon parallel courses just before they reached the -spot designated by the last fix.</p> - -<p>At that moment Fraser gave the signal to begin the barrage of depth -charges. From rack and Y-gun the great cans splashed into the water, -three every six seconds from each ship, and then shock after shock -seemed to jar the whole ocean. Astern through the flying sheets of -spray from the bow could be dimly seen a solid wall of white fountains -towering high against the sky. Meanwhile the starboard ship, left -behind by the submarine’s dodging to port, raced after the other two -with all the speed she had. Overtaking them she laid her pattern down, -piecing it on to those already begun by the other two, so that not a -square yard of the designated area should escape the force of the high -explosive. For half a minute the first two ships let loose this -frightful din, twenty charges from each ship; then, as the starboard -ship finished her pattern, it ended as suddenly as it had begun, and -at a single word from Fraser all three stopped short to listen. Had -they got her?</p> - -<p>It was at this point that the magnetic detector showed what it could -do. This device was able to show the presence of a mass of steel the -size of a submarine if it came within a hundred and fifty yards. One -man on each ship had been assigned to keep his eye on this and nothing -else. As soon as the din had ceased, reports came to the flagship’s -bridge that toward the end of the area bombed a small deflection had -been seen on the flagship’s detector, and one twice as large on that -of the port ship.</p> - -<p>“She couldn’t have been beyond the port boat, could she?” asked -Fraser.</p> - -<p>“No; we shouldn’t have got any deflection at all in that case,” -answered Evans.</p> - -<p>“Can you trust it not to make deflections out of nothing, or due to -the depth charges?”</p> - -<p>“No gear is absolutely infallible, but I think you can trust this, -especially as the starboard boat got no deflection, and the sub hardly -could have got far beyond the port wing boat, in the time she had.”</p> - -<p>“That’s reasonable,” said Fraser. “Anyhow, we’d better wait here and -listen a bit.”</p> - -<p>Fifteen minutes passed, and not a sound was heard. Was the submarine -sunk? Was she so crippled that she could not move, or was she “playing -’possum”; playing dead in hopes they’d leave her? Submarines have -survived a barrage as dense as this one, damaged, but still able to -lurk beneath the sea.</p> - -<p>At length Fraser said, “I think we’d better explore.” The three ships -turned cautiously round and headed back for the spot indicated by the -magnetic detectors, steaming at only six knots, so that no sound -should be missed, the flagship slightly in the lead. They had gone -perhaps two hundred yards into the bombed area when the man on the -flagship’s detector reported a deflection.</p> - -<p>“Is it getting bigger?” asked the skipper.</p> - -<p>“Yes,” came through the voice-tube.</p> - -<p>“Let us know when it’s maximum,” he called back. Just then from the -starboard boat came the report, “Very slight deflection.”</p> - -<p>A few seconds later from the voice-tube came, “No further increase.”</p> - -<p>At a word from the skipper a float with a light was dropped over the -stern to mark the spot.</p> - -<p>Dropping depth charges at six knots is unhealthy for the boat that -does it, as some learned to their cost in 1918. Therefore no “ash -cans” were dropped during this exploratory maneuver. As they passed on -away from the lighted float, the deflection of the magnetic detector -grew smaller and disappeared. The detectors of the three ships -indicated that the sub had been almost under the flagship, but a -little way to starboard. Her position was well marked by the light. -Proceeding far enough to get up a safe speed for bombing, the three -ships turned and formed their line with greatest care, this time -closer together. Then they steamed back at a good speed over the -marked spot. Just before they reached it, the signal was given, and a -small but deadly pattern of depth charges began to fall. Through the -skillful generalship of Commander Fraser the circle of certain death -surrounding each depth charge was made to overlap those of the -adjacent charges. Two men standing at the stern of the flagship, -straining their eyes back into the darkness, reported seeing black -things rise into the air in the midst of the great white fountain of -shattered water following one of the explosions. But this was not -enough for Fraser;—imagination may play strange tricks on a night like -this.</p> - -<p>As soon as the last bomb had exploded, the ships stopped short once -more, and listened. Not a sound was heard beneath the waves. Again -they turned and steamed slowly back to the spot where the focus of the -attack had been and dropped overboard another lighted float to replace -the first which, needless to say, had been demolished by the barrage. -This time the magnetic detectors showed not the slightest deflection. -Slowly they steamed back and forth twice over the marked spot, -listening as well as watching the magnetic detector, but not a sign or -sound was recorded. Then they steamed at fifteen knots on a “retiring -search curve” like a watch-spring around the lighted float, listening -intently, till they had covered a circle with a radius of a mile and a -half, but no trace was found, magnetic or audible, of the submarine. -The inference seemed clear, for had she been slipping away from them -they would have heard her, or if too slow for that the magnetic device -would have found her somewhere in that area. Could there have been -some serious lapse in the vigilance of the trained listeners and -observers, or some error in their calculations, or had the submarine, -indeed, been sent to the bottom of the sea?</p> - -<p>It was nearly two o’clock, and strained nerves were feeling the effect -of their prolonged nocturnal adventure. And now a tawny moon rose over -the eastern horizon, and under it a golden trail marked the crests of -the waves.</p> - -<p>“That may help us,” said Fraser.</p> - -<p>The light on the float glimmered faintly on the water near the focus -of their last barrage. Toward it the three ships steamed, swerving as -they approached it so that the supposed point at which the submarine -should have sunk would lie in the wake of the moon. As the light on -the float was lost among the flashing crests of the waves, the -squadron swung into line abreast, and laid its course straight into -the shimmering path of gold on the water.</p> - -<p>“There!” said Evans eagerly, pointing toward the moon’s wake. “There’s -your oil slick, isn’t it, Captain?”</p> - -<div id='i004' class='mt01 mb01 wi004'> - <img src='images/illus-004.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> -<p class='caption'>“THERE’S YOUR OIL-SLICK, ISN’T IT, CAPTAIN?”</p> -</div> -<p>“Yes—yes, that’s it for sure,” said Fraser. “We’ll examine it a bit.”</p> - -<p>As they approached, the smooth patch on the water, spreading across -the wake of the moon, was unmistakable. At first a slender line, it -widened to a band, as they came nearer, till it clearly covered a -large area, spreading out into the darkness on both sides of the -moon’s wake.</p> - -<p>Slowing down as they approached the edge of the oil slick, they -prepared to skim the surface of the water for a sample of the oil, -that it might be identified by the chemist at headquarters.</p> - -<p>Suddenly Fraser exclaimed, “Hullo! There’s something else. Left -rudder.”</p> - -<p>The shining surface of the oil slick was broken by a small black -speck. He was heading the ship straight for it. Other dark fragmentary -objects were discerned. Fraser signaled to stop the engines. In -another moment he was down on deck directing the seamen as they fished -a few floating objects out of the water. Evans had followed him. When -the first of these was brought aboard, Fraser seized it and carried it -quickly into the light of the wardroom. It was a splintered piece of -wood. Fraser examined it carefully, then reached for another which a -boatswain’s mate brought him from the rail.</p> - -<p>“That settles it,” he said. “We got her.”</p> - -<p>To his professional eye there was no doubt that this wood had come -from the inside of an enemy submarine. Other fragments were brought in -which confirmed his conviction; mute testimony to the tragedy just -ended in the depths of the sea. Before long, enough fragments had been -gathered to provide souvenirs of the chase to every man on board.</p> - -<p>“It has been a wonderful hunt,” said Evans with warmth, “and the -team-work of your squadron is the best thing I ever saw. The other -ships will like to hear the result.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, I’ll tell them,” said Fraser, and went off to call them by radio -phone.</p> - -<p>Evans left the wardroom and hastened aft to the radio-compass shack. -The operator who took the bearings had been relieved at midnight by -the other operator assigned to this duty, just before the final -barrage was dropped. But with things like this going on he did not, as -usual, turn in and go to sleep. He stayed beside his mate in the shack -where Evans now found him still listening with the extra phones. It -was not their part to question, but only eternally to listen. Through -the din of the bombing and through the long hours afterwards, they had -listened intently and patiently.</p> - -<p>Evans came into the shack like a gust of wind.</p> - -<p>“We got the sub,” he said to the tired operators, “and we have your -good work to thank for it, not forgetting the hydrophone listeners. -You gave us good fixes, you and the boys on the other ships, and -without ’em we couldn’t have got her; neither could we without the -hydrophone fixes later on; as for the skipper, you’re lucky to be on -his ship, he knows how to use your fixes when you give ’em to him.”</p> - -<p>“I reckon I didn’t do much,” said the second operator.</p> - -<p>“There’ll be another hunt, and maybe you’ll get your chance then.”</p> - -<p>He then outlined to them the story of the hunt and attack, showing the -significance of what they had done. Then with a final word of -congratulation he left them and went forward. Whatever else those men -forgot about the war in after years, they never forgot that.</p> - -<p>The men on all the ships were tired; the depth charges were so nearly -expended that had another submarine been found they couldn’t have -attacked her with much hope of success. Therefore they laid their -course for Punta Delgada and in the early dawn, twenty-six hours -later, slipped into the harbor and tied up to their moorings.</p> - -<p>Commander Fraser submitted to the Force Commander a report of the -hunt, which was a model of instructive exposition. Copies of it were -distributed among all the destroyer captains for their enlightenment -and for the instruction of the officers under them. It made a great -stir, and was the chief topic of wardroom talk for the best part of a -week. Those skippers who studied it intelligently, grasped the lesson -taught, and then prepared their own ships to follow the lead, soon -began to harass the enemy submarines. Two or three squadrons, -conscientiously practicing the method indicated, actually had -encounters in which they sank their victims. Those skippers who lacked -the imagination and faith to see and do the thing right continued to -grope listlessly in the dark, and laid the success of the others to -luck.</p> - -<p>One result of all this was that the enemy began to realize they were -losing submarines at an increasing rate; and consequently they studied -carefully the reports of those that came back damaged. This study led -the submarine commanders to operate with greater caution, to zigzag, -and especially to refrain as far as possible from using their radio. -And soon the upshot of this was that, while the Allied shipping had -gained materially in the restrictions placed on their ability to do -damage, the enemy submarines became almost as hard to find as ever.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chVII' title='VII—The Fleet Arrives'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER VII</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>THE FLEET ARRIVES</span> -</h2> -<p>In August the preparation of Punta Delgada as a base for the entire -fleet was completed, and the fleet arrived. In supreme command was -Admiral Johnson, a distinguished figure, a man of commanding -personality, well trained in his profession, and conspicuous for his -faculty of maintaining the morale of the fleet at its best.</p> - -<p>The change at Punta Delgada was impressive. Hitherto the informality -of the destroyer had characterized the life there; now all the pomp -and ceremony of the battleship pervaded the place. Where once the most -typical sight had been officers and men, in old and paint-smooched -uniforms or in dungarees, working among the torpedo tubes and engine -hatches on the cramped deck of a lean destroyer, now the eye turned to -the mighty dreadnaught with her vast expanse of quarter-deck, -immaculately clean, on which paced to and fro officers in faultless -uniform. The sea was dotted with these great ships and with scouts and -armored cruisers and a host of auxiliary craft. Liberty parties came -and went, and the picturesque old town swarmed with American -blue-jackets, interspersed with the sailors of the British and French -navies.</p> - -<p>It is the pride of radio officers and radio chiefs in the fleet to be -able to deal with their own problems when away from the home Navy -Yard—to be independent of outside help. So it was with the fleet at -Punta Delgada. Problems they had, but it would not occur to the radio -personnel of a battleship to look for help in their solution to the -mother-ship of a destroyer flotilla. Yet it wasn’t long before the -radio chiefs on the battleships discovered that the radio test shop -where Evans worked was a place worth visiting. Interesting things were -to be seen there, and ideas and hints could be informally picked up -which somehow helped them make their apparatus work when they got back -to their own ships. Thus the little laboratory came more and more to -be sought as an oracle. As a consequence of this, Evans soon came to -be welcome in the radio rooms of the various battleships and cruisers -where problems existed.</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Larabee, under whom Evans was technically supposed to -perform his duties, naturally felt that his handy gunner belonged to -the flotilla, and he was prone to demur a bit at his digressions into -the battle fleet. But he had come to feel that Evans’s activities were -somewhat difficult to control, and that after all it was just as well -not to try to control them too rigidly. Besides, Larabee had sense -enough to see that, if Evans’s services could be really useful to the -fleet, the fleet had better have them.</p> - -<p>Evans found the radio equipment in too many of the ships in a -disappointing condition, the more modern apparatus was badly installed -and very poorly understood by the personnel. The new British -vacuum-tube transmitter on very few ships was giving the efficient -service and satisfaction of which it was capable. He soon discovered -to his dismay that just where perfection of apparatus was of most -vital importance to the entire fleet—where it ought to count for as -much as in all the other ships put together—in Admiral Johnson’s -flagship—there all the best efforts of the Bureau of Engineering to -make the nerve center of the fleet perfect had been slighted. His -first visit to the flagship made his heart sink. Because of her -supreme importance in directing the whole fleet, her radio room had -been enlarged and equipped with apparatus more highly developed than -had ever been seen aboard ship. Special methods had been devised to -expedite the handling of the great and complex volume of dispatches to -all branches of the fleet which in a great naval action must go on -without interference or confusion. The initial installation had been -made, but the space needed for using it properly had been encroached -upon for miscellaneous storage purposes, and the most valuable -features of the installation had been neglected and abused till it was -woefully crippled. The plan of fleet control so carefully worked out -in the Bureau was frustrated at its central point, in the flagship.</p> - -<p>Evans began looking for the cause of the trouble. The radio chief was -listless and discontented. But it was not his fault. The fleet radio -officer seemed discouraged and disgruntled. At first he was rather -uncommunicative as to the general plan of coördinating the fleet’s -activities, but before long the sympathetic interest which Evans -showed in the problem of making the most of the situation, drew him -out and revealed the fact that the trouble lay in the Admiral’s chief -of staff.</p> - -<p>This officer, Captain Brigham, was one of the senior four-stripers in -the navy. A man of impressive bearing and iron will, he was a -conspicuous exponent of the conservative point of view in all naval -matters. He was insistent on decorum and etiquette to the last detail, -and he guarded his authority and prestige with a jealous diligence. He -was one of those officers who insist on keeping their fingers on every -activity that comes under their jurisdiction, if only to throttle it. -All the officers on his staff excelled in “officer-like bearing.” -Nowhere in the fleet were salutes executed in more perfect form. -Behind this cloak of faultless formality there was nothing which made -for efficiency in the coördination of the fleet. Captain Brigham had -Commander White, the fleet radio officer, completely under his thumb. -White had ideas as to the proper organization of communications, but -they were snubbed before they even found expression. Captain Brigham -had himself been a radio officer for two or three months just after -the close of the war with Germany, and he flattered himself that his -knowledge of radio was all that could be desired.</p> - -<p>The new methods which had been developed by the Bureau of Engineering, -to meet the vast demands of the modern fleet with the best that -science could offer, differed so much from those which he recalled as -standard in the days of his youth, that they were not to his liking. -He had abused his authority by having the more modern parts of the -apparatus dismantled, and the specially trained operators who -understood their use sent away from the ship. The remaining radio -force was quite inadequate for the proper handling of the flagship’s -communications in the event of battle.</p> - -<p>These facts were not posted in so many words on any bulletin board, -but Evans read them almost as clearly in many signs and symptoms and -in the stray remarks of those with whom he talked. With the fleet -radio officer he talked quite frankly, discussing the appalling -prospect of a great naval action in which the vast fleet of the enemy -would operate with perfect coördination between its battlecruisers, -scouts, and destroyers, directed by its flagship, as much a unit as a -battleship operated from the bridge, while the Allied fleet, its -directing nerve center semi-paralyzed, would be doomed to confusion, -and almost certain disaster.</p> - -<p>“Do you realize what it means?” he said. “It would be like a man, with -half his brain gone to pot, competing at fencing or wrestling with a -champion in perfect trim.”</p> - -<p>Commander White shrugged his shoulders. “Between you and me,” he said, -“the radio on this ship isn’t what it ought to be; but what can you do -about it?”</p> - -<p>Evans was on his mettle.</p> - -<p>“I’ll talk with Captain Brigham, and if I don’t make him understand -the need of that apparatus, it won’t be because I haven’t tried.”</p> - -<p>“You’ve got your nerve with you,” said White. “Take my advice and keep -away from him, if you value your hide.”</p> - -<p>“There are more important things in the service than my hide,” said -Evans. “I was sent here by the Bureau of Engineering to see that the -newer and less familiar parts of the radio equipment in the fleet are -in proper working order and are understood by the personnel. If I fail -to point out to those concerned what I find amiss, I shall not be -doing my job.”</p> - -<p>“That’s a fine spirit, but if you get away with it you’ll be a -wonder,” said White. “I’m afraid, though, you’ll be out of luck.”</p> - -<p>It was not long before Evans found the chance he wanted, when the -chief of staff came into the radio room for an inspection. Evans -approached and, ignoring his terrible frown, with a calmness of voice -which Captain Brigham had never heard in a subordinate since attaining -his present rank, explained his mission, and said in conclusion—“I’m -afraid the apparatus in its present condition won’t give you the -service it is meant to.”</p> - -<p>The tirade from Captain Brigham which this remark called forth would -have done credit to a ward politician on the stump. The floodgates of -his wrath were opened. The apparatus was as he wanted it and was not -to be changed; he was sick and tired of the Bureau of Engineering with -its meddlesome nonsense. Evans listened patiently till he had -finished, then put to him some searching and practical questions about -the proposed handling of communications. He sketched certain tactical -situations which might well occur and asked how the complex task of -communicating simultaneously with all parts of the fleet would be -handled without the apparatus designed for this purpose. This display -in a warrant officer of that function which Captain Brigham had never -exercised—imagination in picturing the tactical situations he might -have to meet and preparing his mind for them—touched him on a -sensitive spot; his wrath knew no bounds. Yet his pride forbade his -dismissing the offender at once from his presence, and compelled him -instead to talk more volubly than ever, completely evading the issue, -and taking refuge in a magnificent invective against modern methods.</p> - -<p>“You radio fans and cranks are cluttering up the ships with -new-fangled gadgets and good-for-nothing specialists to play with -them; soon there won’t be room for the deck force. The ships are on -their way to becoming scientific toy shops, and it’s got to be -stopped; the ships are meant for fighting. In the days when all the -signaling was done from the bridge we had the quartermasters under our -eyes where we could watch ’em and keep them up to the mark. Now your -big radio force of specialized men can hide behind all this mess of -stuff down here, and lounge around doing nothing, and if you try to -keep them on the job there’s always some alibi about something no one -else knows how to do. In the old days, before we had any radio or -listening gear or other playthings, every man on the ship had to be a -sailor and a fighting man, and every one of them was worth ten of your -damned specialists.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t just see, though, how this apparatus is going to cope with -the fleet requirements in action,” said Evans quietly when Brigham had -finished.</p> - -<p>“It will cope with my requirements,” said Captain Brigham savagely, -“and you’ll cope with my requirements if you leave it alone.” And with -that he left the radio room in high dudgeon.</p> - -<p>Commander White had entered during the conversation and heard most of -the Captain’s tirade.</p> - -<p>“Why doesn’t he chuck all the radio gear overboard, while he is about -it?” said Evans, half to himself and half to Commander White. “He -might rig the ship with sails and smoothbore guns, and then engage the -enemy at close range with the valor of our fathers. That would breed -fine sailors while they lasted.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said White, “I should say you’d done your duty by the Bureau; -and you drew a good salvo doing it. I didn’t expect you’d make much -progress with the old man.”</p> - -<p>When next Captain Brigham saw Commander White, they were alone -together.</p> - -<p>“It wouldn’t do to speak of it to that gunner,” said the chief of -staff, “but I may as well tell you that before I left Washington I had -a talk with Commander Rich who handles the radio business in the -Bureau of Engineering. He’s a man of sound judgment and good -old-fashioned horse sense, who understands the point of view of a -well-balanced, all-round naval officer, and he doesn’t at all believe -in having the fighting efficiency of the ships sacrificed to the -caprice of scientific specialists. He told me a great deal of the -radio junk furnished this ship was authorized against his better -judgment, and he believed I’d do well to let the equipment be reduced -in practice to the simple, standard gear we are all used to.”</p> - -<p>For some time White kept this information to himself. Evans returned -to the mother-ship of the destroyer flotilla, and, slipping on -dungarees, plunged into a bit of experimental engineering on which he -had recently embarked. He worked at it the rest of the day and late -into the night, all alone in the radio test shop.</p> - -<p>“If only we had Fraser for chief of staff,” he said to himself, “we’d -have a fleet that could stand up to the enemy with little fear of the -outcome; but with this dummy—God help us! The old Admiral’s all right, -but he’s got to have a good chief of staff to swing this fleet.”</p> - -<p>With feverish energy he wielded pliers and solder-iron till after -midnight. Then he put down his things and said, “Well, I’ve got to -sleep on this thing if I can,” and turned in.</p> - -<p>His sleep was restless and full of stress and worry. He dreamt that he -saw a miniature admiral in a cocked hat, standing on the deck of a -frigate of the olden days, brandishing his sword. The ship was no -bigger than a toy, but the little admiral, puffing with pride, -strutted up and down. He looked like Captain Brigham. As the dream -progressed, the ship grew smaller and smaller, and the admiral shrank -proportionately; but the more he shrank, the more pompous became the -bravado with which he brandished his sword. A giant dreadnaught came -over the horizon and bore down on the little admiral, her great turret -guns trained on him. Nearer she came, her guns growing to monstrous -size, till the admiral seemed but a speck in front of the yawning -muzzle of a gigantic gun. A projectile, bigger than any the world has -ever seen, slid out of the great muzzle, and knocked off the admiral’s -head which fell into the sea with the splash of a tiny pebble.</p> - -<p>Evans awoke with an oath, turned over and slept again. When next he -dreamed he found himself sailing in his own little ketch, the -<i>Petrel</i>, gliding through tranquil waters by an enchanted shore where -great trees hung out far over the water, casting a deep, cool shadow -beneath them—trees now resembling the great tree-ferns and other -tropical forms of the Borge garden, now the familiar oaks and pines of -the New England shore.</p> - -<p>In the morning he returned to his engineering task in the radio test -shop. The electricians at work there noticed that he was not himself -this morning. Most of the time he was silent and abstracted, with a -far-off look in his face, or frowning gloomily. Now and then he would -show exasperation, wielding his tools as if bent on annihilating the -apparatus with which he worked. Now and then he would come out of his -trance, crack a joke, and restore the usual good-humor of the test -shop.</p> - -<p>By the middle of the afternoon he finished his task, put down his -tools, and went ashore. With the usual handful of breadcrumbs he -sought the Borge garden, wandering through the tree-fern grottoes, and -came at last to the ancient watch-tower under the old cedar tree. Here -he sat down and gave himself over to luring his little friends, the -birds, down from the trees with a tempting array of crumbs. Soon he -was surrounded with his feathered coterie, presenting a scene of busy -festivity. Then he gazed off over the blue expanse of the sea, dotted -with the great ships of the Allied fleet riding easily at their -moorings, a panorama of strength and majesty which could scarcely fail -to thrill the beholder. But to-day the thrill for Evans was swamped by -other emotions.</p> - -<p>“Scrap iron and paint, with that poison adrift in the fleet!” he -muttered to himself.</p> - -<p>He threw some more crumbs on the ground. “What would you do with him, -little bird?” he said as one of them hopped up close to his hand. -“Throw him overboard? Throw him overboard damn quick, if you’ve got -the sense I give you credit for.”</p> - -<p>He sat silent a few minutes more, deep in thought. Then, suddenly -exclaiming, “There’s only one way out, and it’s time to act,” he -jumped to his feet with a start which sent the birds scattering and -scurrying to the nearest cover.</p> - -<p>“Good-bye, little birds,” he called, throwing the last of his crumbs -on the ground. Then he hastened to Communication Headquarters.</p> - -<p>That night a dispatch went out to Washington requesting the Bureau of -Engineering to send a shipment of vacuum tubes and sundry other -supplies to Punta Delgada.</p> - -<p>Evans turned in early in a tranquil frame of mind now, for the die was -cast, and slept the sleep of healthy childhood.</p> - -<p>The next day a message came from Washington ordering a certain -destroyer to proceed at once to Hampton Roads. This particular -destroyer had just had a complete refit and her engines were in the -best of running order, although these details were not known in -Washington. Her skipper was a very good sailorman characterized by a -faculty for reaching his destination promptly, even if things didn’t -go just as he wished; he knew how fast he could safely drive his ship -against head seas, and when the need arose he drove her. And yet the -schedule for patrol and escort duty was such that—for reasons also -unknown in Washington—this ship could be more easily spared at Punta -Delgada during the next two weeks than most of the other destroyers. -In spite of this fact, Captain Brigham expressed an abundance of -resentment at the importunity of the Navy Department for taking away -one of his best destroyers just when he would like to have her on -hand.</p> - -<p>Two hours after this dispatch a series of others arrived, including -one directing Evans to proceed by the first available ship to -Washington and report for duty at the Bureau of Engineering.</p> - -<p>The destroyer was ready for sea the following morning, and Evans was -directed to take passage on her. An hour later she had slipped out of -the harbor and headed westward, her officers speculating wildly as to -what their sudden mission to home waters could mean. In all there were -twice as many hypotheses advanced as there were officers on board, -Evans contributing his share, but in the end their conjecturing left -them just where they started.</p> - -<p>When he arrived in Washington, Evans went to a hotel and took a room. -From there he telephoned to Secretary Mortimer and told him of his -arrival.</p> - -<p>“When can you come and see me?” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“Any time,” answered Evans. “Only wouldn’t it be just as well for me -not to go too directly from the destroyer to your office? Even in -civilian clothes, some one might recognize me and link me up with the -ship. Why don’t you come here? I’m pretty keen to see you.”</p> - -<p>“All right; I’ll come right over,” was the answer. In a few minutes -more they were chatting away in the privacy of Evans’s room.</p> - -<p>Evans described the general condition of the base at Punta Delgada, -the destroyer flotilla and the fleet as a whole, and in less than an -hour he presented a more effective survey than Mortimer could have got -from a month’s intensive study of official reports. The fleet was -revealed as an organization in its true perspective. When Evans came -to the chief of staff, he waxed truly eloquent. Mortimer had listened -to the ablest lawyers and political orators, he had heard the most -famous after-dinner speakers, but never had he heard so many artistic -combinations of derogatory terms as Evans assembled to convey his -impressions of Captain Brigham.</p> - -<p>“Sounds as if you had a grudge against the poor fellow,” said -Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“I’ve got a grudge, all right,” answered Evans. “Whether I’m biased by -it is another question. I worried myself sick over it for a day and a -half, and every angle I could view it from I came to the same -conclusion. He’s getting the coördination of the fleet so undermined -that in action it would hardly be worth the powder to blow it off the -map, and that would be forthcoming damn quick from the enemy. It is -all right on parade, but in action we should be up against the enemy’s -team-work, which is marvelous; the best organized business in the -world isn’t in it compared with them. We should be like a man with -half a brain. The coördinating mechanism is so crippled, we shouldn’t -stand the chance of the proverbial celluloid dog chasing the asbestos -cat through hell. The radio business is enough to damn him, but in -addition I found evidence that he’s doing his best to get the gunnery -back to where it was in the pre-Sims days—fine on paper, rotten in -practice. He’s a first-class stuffed shirt, and the quicker you can -scrap him the better.”</p> - -<p>“What about the Admiral?” asked Mortimer. “Isn’t he a pretty good -sort? And how does he stand his offending chief of staff?”</p> - -<p>“The Admiral is a good man,” said Evans. “He is well-trained, standing -high in his profession, has fine qualities of leadership, maintains -good discipline, and is universally liked and respected. It is a great -thing for the morale of the fleet to have such a man at the head. He -has a good military personality, but he is a bit old-fashioned, and is -rather short on imagination. He doesn’t adapt himself readily to new -conditions, but, of course, that’s hard for any man of his age. He -will do the obvious very well; but I wish he had a little keener -perception. Now this stuffed club, Brigham, is the finest ever at -keeping up good military form and appearances; the flagship is a very -‘smart ship’ to look at.</p> - -<p>“The Admiral has a touch of the old-fashioned weakness for that sort -of thing, and he doesn’t know quite enough about the detail of modern -methods to see how rotten things are below the surface. You see, he -was trained in the days before those things which modern developments -have forced us to rely on had become vital. Consequently, he doesn’t -quite know how to probe his organization and make sure the details are -well attended to. He relies on his chief of staff, and it’s pretty -hard for him to do otherwise. He ought to have a keen, alert, -adaptable chief of staff with a real head; then he’d be all right.”</p> - -<p>Evans then told of Fraser and his experience with him on the submarine -hunt. He told how he had searched through the destroyer flotilla and -later through the fleet looking for men of real brains and capacity -for generalship, and how Fraser had seemed to him to stand head and -shoulders above the rest.</p> - -<p>“There’s the ideal man for chief of staff,” he said. “With his tact -and personality he would quickly win the Admiral’s confidence, and -with Fraser at his right hand all the Admiral’s good qualities of -leadership would stand out at their best. They’d make a splendid -combination; Fraser would be the brains, Admiral Johnson the -embodiment of authority and formal leadership which would carry weight -with the personnel at large, and give the necessary moral support to -make Fraser’s skill effective.”</p> - -<p>They continued thrashing out the question and discussing it from every -possible angle till Mortimer was as firmly convinced as Evans that the -salvation of the fleet lay in replacing Brigham with Fraser.</p> - -<p>Then their talk turned on the more detailed problem of the personnel -directly concerned with radio engineering and other communication -duties. Commander Rich, it seemed, was as firmly entrenched as ever in -the esteem of both Mortimer and Admiral Bishop, the Bureau Chief. -Evans, having nothing tangible to support his feeling of uneasiness, -did not dwell on that subject.</p> - -<p>“I believe, Sam,” said Evans, “it would be a very good thing to send -Elkins out to be fleet radio officer. He’s just the man for the job; -and, coming from the Bureau of Engineering, he would have the latest -developments fresh in his mind. He’d appreciate the chance to get into -the game, and he deserves it. White, who has that job now, is a good -man, but he hasn’t the brains or the force that Elkins has. I think it -would be a good move just to have them swap places. White, coming -fresh from the fleet, would be of great value to the Bureau; it always -helps to have some one there who is thoroughly familiar with -conditions afloat. White has been afloat a good while and might not -mind the change, and, anyway, if emphasis is given to the fact that -his point of view is needed in the Bureau, rather than that the best -brains are now needed in the fleet, he needn’t feel that he’s being -put on the shelf.”</p> - -<p>“I’ll have to find some billet for Brigham where he’ll be -comparatively harmless;—perhaps commandant of the Great Lakes District -or of the Naval Prison,” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said Evans. “Or put him in command of the old <i>Constitution</i> -tied up in her tomb at the Boston Navy Yard, where they show off the -relics and hoist the flag every morning at eight-bells to set the pace -for the Yard. He’d make them get the flag up on time, all right. Put -him in charge of a bunch of incompetents who’ll be no good, anyway, -and let him teach them an officer-like bearing.</p> - -<p>“As to White, I wouldn’t transfer him at the same time as Brigham, it -would draw too much attention to the sweeping change; besides, it -would be too tough on White to bracket him with that old dummy. Get -Brigham out first; then in a week or so you could let Elkins go out to -relieve White.”</p> - -<p>The next day Mortimer set the machinery in motion to promote Fraser -from commander to captain in order that he should have the necessary -rank, and then to make him chief of staff in place of Brigham.</p> - -<p>When the news of this change reached the fleet, it caused a -considerable commotion. Speculation as to the occasion of it -constituted the burden of the wardroom gossip for several days. Some -few officers tried to connect it in some way with the sudden and -mysterious departure of the destroyer for Hampton Roads, but their -ingenuity failed them, and the idea was dismissed as quite impossible.</p> - -<p>On the journey home in the destroyer a somewhat new problem had -engaged Evans’s attention. It is a recognized principle that secret -codes must be changed frequently. Enemy experts are constantly at work -studying the radio messages which their operators have intercepted, -and it is granted that in time they will gather sufficient data to -work out any code. It has been said that ten days is as long as it is -safe to use one code. Evans had time to spare on this destroyer trip, -and he found a fascinating occupation in trying to devise a new system -of codes more baffling to the enemy. He finally hit on a scheme which -would render the codes so difficult to unravel that he felt sure they -could be trusted for fully twice as long as those then in use.</p> - -<p>When in Washington, after his conference with Mortimer, he sought -Commander Barton, of the Intelligence Bureau, with whom he had worked -in London over the establishment of communication with Heringham, and -laid his scheme before him. Barton was well pleased with the plan and -requested Evans to work out the details of his system. For the next -fortnight, Evans was busily engaged in this task, first devising and -planning the system and then arranging for the printing of the -necessary code books. Not content with one system, he devised another -so different that even should the enemy become thoroughly acquainted -with the first, it would give them no clue at all to the second. In -fact, his productivity in this line reached such a point that a less -enthusiastic and enterprising man than Barton would have begged him to -give o’er.</p> - -<p>During these days Evans also gave a large share of his time to the -Bureau of Engineering where he got his finger once more in the pie of -radio engineering progress. His experience with the fleet had given -him a somewhat new point of view which led to a number of practical -suggestions. Many bright ideas which had developed in the planning -rooms had to be snubbed because utterly unsuited to conditions afloat.</p> - -<p>As before, he found himself acting informally as liaison officer -between the Bureau of Engineering and the office of the Director of -Naval Communications. He found loose ends in the way of fitting the -more highly specialized apparatus to the intricate uses for which it -was required, and the problem thus raised brought him closely in touch -with the radio men in Communication Headquarters.</p> - -<p>There was one man attached to the office of the Director of Naval -Communications who especially attracted his interest and attention. -This was Lieutenant Wellman, a lean man with dark, mobile eyes and an -almost uncanny look of penetration. He had recently been attached to -this office, and had a reputation of great knowledge of telephone and -telegraph systems and all manner of communication problems. Just as -Evans spent much of his time at the D.N.C. office, so Wellman spent -much of his at the Bureau of Engineering, where he was on friendly -terms with the officers in the Radio Division from Commander Rich -down. Evans found him alert and ready with an intellectual grasp of -the problems before them, and eager for technical knowledge, -especially of the newer radio methods. These Evans discussed with him -at some length, but his own gift for inquiry was such that in their -talk Evans did most of the questioning and Wellman most of the -telling.</p> - -<p>Evans also spent more than one evening in conference with Mortimer. -With mutual profit they viewed the war in its larger perspective, and -unearthed its salient features from amidst the jumble of apparently -unrelated facts.</p> - -<p>The situation, boiled down to its essentials, was much as it had been -at the time of their earlier talks before Evans went to the fleet. The -increased destruction of enemy submarines had facilitated the shipping -of supplies to Northern Europe, but in this respect the situation was -still critical. Every submarine that could be destroyed would help to -turn the balance.</p> - -<p>“The soldiers we are sending over help the morale of the Allies and -aid them materially in holding the line,” said Evans, “but do you -think they’ll ever push it back enough to win the war that way?”</p> - -<p>Mortimer shook his head. “It doesn’t look like it.”</p> - -<p>“I fear all the man power of Northern Europe and North America -combined would be expended in pushing through to a decision on land,” -said Evans, frowning.</p> - -<p>“They depend on their sea power to such an extent that if we could -strike hard at that, we could paralyze them,” said Mortimer. “Don’t -you think so?”</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said Evans, “and they know it and are guarding their fleet -mighty carefully. Conversely, if they could smash our fleet, they’d -finish us. And if they saw what looked like a good chance, they’d try -it. It would be the most colossal sea battle in history, if those two -fleets met in the open sea. With Fraser on the job and a slight -advantage of visibility or other weather conditions on our side, such -as we might get if we could choose our time with Jeremy’s help, I -believe we could be reasonably sure of doing them in; at least enough -to justify seeking an engagement.”</p> - -<p>“Can’t you think of any scheme for baiting them to action at such a -time?” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>Evans pondered awhile. “I have a wild scheme in my head,” he said. -“It’s one of those notions of which I’m the victim now and then.”</p> - -<p>“Let’s have it,” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>Evans then propounded a series of imaginary situations and their -strategical and tactical developments, which aroused in Mortimer a -strange alternation of enthusiasm and doubt. At the end he felt enough -conviction that there was merit in the scheme to satisfy him that it -should in some way be followed up.</p> - -<p>“Don’t you think I had better take this up with the General Staff, and -send some suggestion to the Admiral?” he asked.</p> - -<p>“No,” answered Evans. “Admirals don’t like their strategy and tactics -fed to them by civilian secretaries much better than by gunners. -Besides, it’s probably full of weak points, as I’ve outlined it. I’m -not a trained admiral, you know. Anyway, give them a chance to work it -out themselves, and they’ll probably improve on it in doing so. If the -premises are sufficiently suggestive to the Staff at Punta Delgada, -they may easily hit on the main ideas, or something better. Fraser’s a -wizard at that sort of thing.”</p> - -<p>“So, you fancy the premises can be made sufficiently suggestive?” said -Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“I shouldn’t wonder a bit,” answered Evans with a smile.</p> - -<p>“See here!” said Mortimer. “It’s damn silly for you to be going on as -a warrant officer. You ought to be taking the responsibilities you -know how to handle, and taking them squarely. I could work the -regulations now so as to have you promoted to commander very quickly, -and it wouldn’t be long before you’d be a captain. Then you could fit -into the fleet more nearly where you belong.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, come,” said Evans. “I wouldn’t know what to do with all that -rank, and I should be looked on with suspicion and jealousy. I’d -always be having to buck the resulting hostility. No, no, Sam, I can -carry on much better as I am, doing things in my own way. For one -thing, I find it an enormous advantage to be able to get right into -the game as I’ve done on the destroyers, particularly on that sub -hunt, and see how things really are. The more gold braid you have on, -the less things look as they really are when you go to look at them.”</p> - -<p>“I’d give my eye teeth to get into the fleet and really see how things -are going,” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“That’s just it,” said Evans. “You don’t suppose you could go aboard -the ships as Mr. Secretary and see things as they really are, do you? -Every one would be in his best uniform, full dress, at attention, the -band playing and nothing doing; no war going on at all.”</p> - -<p>“That’s so,” said Mortimer; “but I’m afraid your fondness for -tinkering with apparatus will lead you to do too much of that, and -distract you from the bigger problems you ought to be thinking about.”</p> - -<p>“I know that’s my vice,” answered Evans, “but the appeal of the game -as a whole will draw my thoughts in that direction to the extent of -daydreams quite bold enough for all practical purposes—bold enough to -make the gold braid snub me good and plenty if they knew what I was -thinking about. I need some manual work to keep me normal, to occupy -my hands and lower nerve centers while I’m thinking about some of the -knotty problems that come up. Some tangible part of the machinery in -my hands and before my eyes will help the whole plan of its use to -take shape in my mind.”</p> - -<p>For some time they argued the pros and cons, and at last Mortimer -somewhat reluctantly yielded and consented to let Evans return to the -fleet as a radio gunner.</p> - -<p>It was also decided that in the near future Commander Barton should -proceed to Punta Delgada to direct the work of the Bureau of Naval -Intelligence there, since it had now definitely become the -storm-center of naval activity.</p> - -<p>During the days that remained before Evans was to return to the fleet, -he was kept busy completing the new systems of secret codes for -Commander Barton, and conferring with various officials in the Bureau -of Engineering and in the office of the Director of Naval -Communications. In the latter office he had many conversations with -Lieutenant Wellman, and with each conversation he became more -interested in the man, seeing in him great possibilities in connection -with the coördinated machinery of communications and Naval -Intelligence. It transpired that Wellman had traveled extensively, was -an accomplished linguist, and possessed considerable knowledge of -enemy country. It was, therefore, suggested that he should confer with -Commander Barton to see how far his qualifications might render him -useful to the Bureau of Naval Intelligence.</p> - -<p>On the particular morning when Lieutenant Wellman was awaiting this -conference, Evans came to Barton’s office with some copies of one of -his new secret codes, fresh from the printer. Leading to the inner -office was an anteroom at the outer door of which stood a sentry whose -duty it was to see that none but officers and others with proper -credentials entered. Evans came with the bundle of code books under -his arm, and muttered a password to the sentry, who pressed a button -just inside the door, at which Commander Barton rose from his desk in -the inner office and came to the door between it and the anteroom. -Seeing Evans at the outer door, he called to him to come in. In the -anteroom sat Lieutenant Wellman waiting till it should suit Commander -Barton’s convenience to confer with him; as he sat there his dark, -penetrating eyes traveled restlessly about the room observing and -noting everything that human observation could encompass. Evans, -seeing Wellman alone there, exchanged greetings with him, and passed -on into the inner office. He opened the bundle and handed the six -books it contained to Barton.</p> - -<p>Wellman, following Evans with his eye, silently shifted his seat so -that he could watch the proceedings through the half-open door.</p> - -<p>Barton took the books and thanked Evans, who then left the room. -Barton opened one of the books and glanced through it rather hastily, -postponing a more careful examination till he should have more time. -Then he unlocked a drawer in his desk and put the six books into it. -He was just closing the drawer when a yeoman entered from a side door -rather hurriedly, saying:</p> - -<p>“There’s a long-distance call from San Francisco; your desk phone is -being repaired, so I’ve had the call plugged into the sound-proof -booth.”</p> - -<p>Commander Barton jumped up and, followed by the yeoman, hurried out -through the side door to answer the telephone. It was only for a few -seconds that the room was deserted, but in those seconds Wellman -slipped in, took one copy of the new secret code from the drawer, and -slipped out again, tucking it under his coat as he went. Leaving the -anteroom as one who has transacted his business, he returned the -salute of the sentry, and walked briskly away down the corridor, -passing Evans, who was walking slowly, so absorbed in his thoughts -that it seemed a pity to disturb him—yes, better not interrupt his -reverie. In an hour he had left Washington; in five weeks more he -arrived in Constantinople, no longer in the uniform of a United States -naval officer, carrying in his satchel the treasured code book. He was -no longer Lieutenant Wellman, but now in his true colors, Commander -Bela, of the Turkish Naval Intelligence Service.</p> - -<p>Great was the rejoicing at Naval Headquarters when Bela arrived with -his prize. Some facts of interest he had obtained while in Washington, -but his stay had been cut short by the rare opportunity which had put -him in possession of the code book; and this he deemed to be worth so -much more than the information he might have obtained by staying -longer that he had taken the responsibility of making all possible -speed with the book to Headquarters. His prompt decision in so doing -was warmly commended by his chief, who was even more pleased than Bela -himself with the unexpected outcome of his mission.</p> - -<p>In the code book was a key explaining how it was to be changed monthly -to prevent breaking; moreover, the dates were given on which each -arrangement was to go into effect. Thus it was evidently good for the -decoding of Allied naval messages for several months to come.</p> - -<p>In Washington conditions had been especially favorable for Lieutenant -Wellman to effect his disappearance unnoticed. His duties had been -such as involved extensive traveling, and he had been given an -unusually free hand in the arrangement of his own time. Moreover, when -it became finally known that he had really disappeared, a variety of -rumors explaining the fact passed into circulation in ways that were -not generally understood and seemed impossible to trace. No one had -seen him take the code book, and it was so long afterwards that his -disappearance became known to the officers at Communication -Headquarters, that, even had they been disposed to suspect him, it -could hardly be expected that his disappearance would in any way lead -to a checking-up of the number of copies in Barton’s desk.</p> - -<p>By the time Bela arrived in Constantinople, Heringham was well -established in a post of high authority in the Coalition Government. -The men who directed the affairs of this great conspiracy against the -liberties of the world included besides Turks those of an -extraordinary array of nationalities—Russians, Italians, Bulgars, -Jews, Egyptians, and Arabs. Therefore a well-disguised Englishman with -Heringham’s rare gift of impersonation might well fit into the -organization without exciting suspicion. Yet Bela, on finding a -stranger to him in such an important position, was strongly inclined -to distrust him. He made guarded inquiries. Nothing of a compromising -nature was known about him. On every hand Bela was assured that this -official, with his extensive knowledge of the nations allied against -the coalition, had rendered most valuable services to the cause. Still -Bela suspected. Finally he contrived to have an interview with -Heringham alone, and sought to probe the case. After feeling his way -for some time with guarded questions, he asked Heringham rather -suddenly if he had not lived for some time in England. Heringham, -still in the Turkish language and with phrasing and intonation -perfectly reproducing the diction of a thoroughbred Turk, replied -casually, “Indeed I have. I know the little sea-girt island well.”</p> - -<p>Then in a jocular vein he added in the English language, aping the -English manner of speech in a mocking tone, yet betraying an -unmistakable Turkish accent, “Have you been in Piccadilly? I say, it’s -a topping place, you know!”</p> - -<p>The easy and confiding smile with which he cast this bit of ridicule -on the Briton was altogether disarming; and when he added in Turkish, -“What fools those British are!” Bela could hardly conceive that any -but a true Turk could have spoken so.</p> - -<p>But now it was Heringham’s turn to take the initiative. He questioned -Bela about his recent trip to America, and listened with admiration -and wonder to the tale of his exploits in finding his way into the -confidence of high officers in the Navy Department. With warm praise -Heringham drew forth more and more of the story, and as his frank -appreciation dispelled the last of Bela’s doubts, this cautious Turk -ended by giving him a full recital of the information he had gained of -radio affairs in the Allied Navy. One thing, however, Bela did not -divulge; he said nothing to Heringham of the stolen code book.</p> - -<p>A few days after Wellman’s uncanny disappearance, Evans received his -orders to return to Punta Delgada and report for radio duty on board -the flagship. It was now early in November, and the autumn colors were -fading on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay as the cruiser on which -both Elkins and Evans took passage left the Virginia Capes and stood -out to sea. In a few days they sighted the greener shores of the -Azores, where in the outer harbor of Punta Delgada the new battleship -<i>Delaware</i>, the flagship, lay majestically at anchor, queen of the -Allied Navy.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chVIII' title='VIII—Dispatching the Secret Messenger'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER VIII</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>DISPATCHING THE SECRET MESSENGER</span> -</h2> -<p>Evans now lived aboard the battleship <i>Delaware</i>, Admiral Johnson’s -flagship; and here the life was different, indeed, from that on the -mother-ship of the destroyer flotilla. He found himself one of a large -number of warrant officers, some real old-timers, but most of them -much younger men than himself. To his great delight he found on board -the <i>Delaware</i> his old friend Lindsay, erstwhile radio officer of the -cruiser that had taken him to England. Lindsay had now risen to the -rank of lieutenant and was in command of a turret on the great -superdreadnought, but the same sunny disposition and cordial -informality were unchanged; he still was not too proud to associate -with a warrant officer.</p> - -<p>Lindsay knew how to enjoy himself on an evening ashore; he had a -faculty for finding out when there was any merry-making going on, and -for being there. Evans, having little time or inclination to join in -the crude pleasures which most of his fellow warrant officers sought -in the town, now found real refreshment in knocking about on shore -with Lindsay, the natural geniality of the youth being of a compelling -sort. He managed to get Lindsay talking more than once about his own -affairs, and learned that in his home in the Middle West his widowed -mother depended on his savings as her chief means of support.</p> - -<p>Now there are haunts in Punta Delgada where a visitor may find a -roulette wheel spinning merrily of an evening. The scraps of paper -representing Portuguese money fly hither and thither on the long -table, and ever like a Nemesis the treasurer rakes them in as a man -rakes in the autumn leaves that strew the road. He who frequents the -roulette wheel often becomes poorer—else there would not be roulette -wheels.</p> - -<p>Now this game had a fatal fascination for Lindsay, who was one of -those individuals that love to take a chance, and can always persuade -themselves that next time they’ll make a pile. Once he had won a -surprising sum of money at roulette and had sent it home to his mother -before the opportunity to lose it again had beset him. Since then his -earnings had nearly all fallen into the hungry maw of the spinning -wheel. The most pathetic feature of the case was the way his eagerness -to send more money home kept luring the incautious youth into taking -another chance at the losing game.</p> - -<p>Once on the evening before the fleet was to put to sea for some -maneuver, Evans, dead tired from his arduous toil, was planning to go -to bed early and get a long sleep. As supper-time drew near, Lindsay, -making for the gangway to catch the last boat taking a liberty party -ashore, chanced to meet Evans on deck.</p> - -<p>“Are you coming ashore? It’s going to be a great night on the beach,” -he said.</p> - -<p>“I guess I’ll stay aboard and turn in early.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, come on, be a sport, old man,” said Lindsay genially. “Lord knows -where we’re going on this cruise or when we’ll get back; there’ll be -all kinds of fun in town to-night.”</p> - -<p>“You’ll have to break out a pile of excitement to get me ashore -to-night.”</p> - -<p>“Why, what’s the matter with you?”</p> - -<p>“I suppose I’ve been hitting too hot a pace,” said Evans with an -enigmatic look on his face.</p> - -<p>“Oh, quit your kidding, and come ashore,” said Lindsay.</p> - -<p>Evans hesitated a minute.</p> - -<p>“The fact is, I’m kind of tired and don’t seem to feel like hunting -all the hilarity there is,” he said, “but there’s a little restaurant -that you may not know of where you can get a good supper and hear some -rather good music; it’s a quiet place and most of the men don’t seem -to know it. If you’d like to go and have supper there on me and have a -good heart-to-heart talk, that would suit me as well as staying on -board.”</p> - -<p>“All right, I’ll go and try your quiet restaurant with you, for a -starter, anyway.”</p> - -<p>So off they went and took their places in the motor-sailer at the -gangway. Once ashore, Evans led the way through the crooked streets to -a picturesque little building where a modest restaurant served a few -familiar patrons. A small orchestra consisting of a piano, a -double-bass ’cello, and one or two other instruments, ensconced in a -nook by some potted palms, beguiled the supper hour for such as sought -the little hostelry. Evans and Lindsay, alone save for two natives of -the town, chose a table from which they could look out over the -harbor, and just near enough the orchestra to get the full benefit of -the music. Lindsay at first felt a little dismayed at the lack of -gayety which seemed destined to characterize the celebration of his -night on shore, but soon the appetizing food and the melodious strains -of a Portuguese air put him in a mood for the enjoyment of a quiet -evening chatting freely with his friend. Evans was more than ten years -his senior, but of that Lindsay had no suspicion. Their talk drifted -easily from the personnel of the flagship through a wide range of -human affairs. The orchestra, after a brief rest, struck up a Strauss -waltz, once familiar to all, now known only to those of Evans’s age -and older. Evans stopped talking and listened, a far-away look coming -into his eyes, and his hand unconsciously beating time on the table.</p> - -<p>“Lord! how that takes me back to old times!” he said.</p> - -<p>Their talk drifted back to the States, and into speculation as to what -people were thinking and doing at home. The orchestra paused again, -and then began to play a song once popular in all modern cities, now -long since out of fashion, a song whose melodious sweetness had made -it a favorite in its day and commended it now to the little Portuguese -orchestra, guided more by melody than by vogue. As Lindsay recognized -the tune, vivid memories of his childhood rose before him; and as the -rich, deep tones of the double-bass ’cello vibrated with the appealing -spirit of the melody, the long-forgotten past swept over him like a -flood; his eyes became moist, and he sat in silence till the music had -ceased for some time. Then he spoke, and told Evans of the early -memories awakened by the song. He felt that he could speak to Evans of -things he couldn’t mention to his other shipmates, for Evans -understood. And so it was that the youth poured out his heart to the -older man, giving vent to feelings long deeply repressed within him. -He told of his concern about his mother, his zeal to bring her no -shame, his hopes and ambitions, his temptations and struggles. And in -all this he found what without knowing it he had craved since leaving -home—the confidence of a friend on whom he could lean as on an older -brother.</p> - -<p>Evans in his turn found in this intimacy with the younger man -something that satisfied a long-felt want; and he thanked his stars -for it. With a deepening bond of sympathy they talked till the players -had packed up their instruments and gone. All thoughts of seeking the -usual pleasures of the town had now evaporated, and it was only when -the time came to catch the last boat returning to the flagship that -they left the little restaurant and walked down to the landing.</p> - -<p>Next day Lindsay’s monthly pay, which had been lying restless in his -pocket the night before, was dispatched intact to his mother in the -Middle West.</p> - -<p>About the middle of November, a few days after Evans and Elkins -arrived at Punta Delgada, Commander Barton also arrived from -Washington and took charge of the Naval Intelligence service at -Communication Headquarters on shore. Before leaving Washington he -interviewed an officer who rendered notable service in finding men for -unusual duties. If a man was needed to make a corner in glue for the -Government, or to deliver a consignment of homing pigeons in Northern -Russia, he would find just the man for the job. To this officer Barton -made the request that as soon as possible a man, with experience as a -spy in enemy territory and with some knowledge of radio, be chosen for -important duties at the Azores and elsewhere. He was to be enrolled as -a chief petty officer and sent to Punta Delgada to report at -Communication Headquarters.</p> - -<p>Barton’s parting injunctions were, “Much will depend on him; look him -over well, and be sure he’s a real man.”</p> - -<p>About three weeks after this, while Evans was in the radio room of the -flagship busily engaged in the congenial task of rehabilitating this -vital nerve center of the fleet and undoing the damage wrought by -Brigham, he received a cryptic message from Commander Barton -intimating that a friend had arrived from home whom he would like -Evans to see.</p> - -<p>Evans obtained permission for shore liberty and proceeded to -Communication Headquarters. There he learned that the man requested by -Barton “for important duties” had arrived, a man of thirty-six named -Kendrick. He had been an army spy, who, being sent by aeroplane behind -enemy lines, had been for some weeks performing valuable duties in -Spain, and had just returned successfully to Washington. By some -maneuver of which very few are master, great masses of red-tape had -been cut, and he had been transferred to the navy, enrolled as a chief -radio electrician and sent at once to Punta Delgada. He had as yet -been kept completely in the dark as to the nature of the duties for -which he had been sent.</p> - -<p>Evans opened conversation with him informally and questioned him -concerning his experiences in enemy countries, then as to his -knowledge of radio. After a somewhat prolonged interview in some of -which Barton took part, Kendrick was still quite in the dark as to the -real object of his mission, although given clearly to understand that -it had to do with radio communication.</p> - -<p>During their talk Evans watched closely the play of Kendrick’s -features, and said to himself, “He looks like three or four men in -one; I guess he’s what we’re after.”</p> - -<p>But along with this reflection came the disquieting thought—“What if -he’s one man too many?”</p> - -<p>Perhaps there was more in his performance in enemy country than was -known to the Army Intelligence Service. Cases were by no means unknown -in which the most valued spies had been really in the enemy employ. -Keenly Evans sought to sense all that lay beneath this mobile exterior -as they talked. But this was a task for some one other than a -scientist. He longed for the power of a master sleuth.</p> - -<p>We are all quite accustomed to trusting our lives to the nervous -coördination of a taxicab driver, and thinking nothing of it. But when -the fate of the world may hang on the sensory impressions, the -resulting nerve impulses in the brain and the emotional responses -thereby aroused in one individual by barely perceptible motions in the -features of another, we may well consider the great importance of -little things, especially if those little things be nerve impulses.</p> - -<p>That this man had been a consummately successful spy there could be no -doubt. But the question whom he had fooled, Evans dared not consider -settled to his satisfaction without further scrutiny. He imparted his -wonderings to Barton when they were alone, and, though the latter at -first inclined to regard the suspicion as fanciful and too improbable -for serious consideration, he finally agreed that they had better -scrutinize their man for a few days before revealing to him much of -his real task.</p> - -<p>During the next week Evans spent a good part of his time training -Kendrick in the use of certain radio apparatus, and at the same time -striving to assure himself as to his loyalty. Gradually the conviction -grew in both Barton and Evans that Kendrick was a man they could trust -without fear, but still they said little to him of his mission.</p> - -<p>About this time there arrived from the States a long, narrow crate -addressed to Evans. The supply clerk who handled the shipment -remarked—“That’s some box, Gunner; what do you expect’s in it?”</p> - -<p>“Looks like an eight-day clock,” was the answer. “Still, my watch -keeps pretty good time,” he added with a puzzled look.</p> - -<p>“Do you want to open it here?” asked the clerk.</p> - -<p>“No; it will litter things up to scatter the crate round here. I’ll -get it lugged down to the shore where I can turn it adrift.”</p> - -<p>So some hands were summoned and, having moved the crate down to the -shore, were dismissed. Evans then opened it by himself. The wildest -guess which the supply clerk could have made as to its contents would -have been far from the truth, for never in his life had he seen such -an object. It contained a sort of narrow, decked-over canoe built -essentially on the lines of an Eskimo kayak. To the unfamiliar -observer it would give the impression of frailty such that he who -would venture beyond easy swimming distance from shore in such a craft -must be foolhardy to the verge of madness. In point of fact, as the -Eskimo well knows, this type of boat is so seaworthy as to be safe in -almost any gale that blows.</p> - -<p>Evans had a friend who had traveled much among the Eskimos and studied -their ways, and especially the handling of their kayaks. This man had -built himself two or three of these light craft, patterned in the main -on the lines used by the Eskimos, and in years gone by had taught -Evans to handle them in rough water. It was one of these that he had -now placed at Evans’s disposal.</p> - -<p>As he ripped off the last of the crate and brought to view the -graceful lines of the little craft, Evans smiled at the memory of -pleasant hours spent paddling off the rough New England coast. He -fitted together the two halves of the double-bladed paddle which came -with her, then lifted the kayak on his shoulder, carried her to the -water’s edge and launched her. Then, getting in and sitting in the -bottom, Eskimo-fashion, he paddled away along the shore. With a thrill -of joy he felt the familiar responsive motion as the light and buoyant -little craft sped forward. Skirting the shore line, he came in a few -minutes to a secluded and unfrequented spot where the contour of the -rocks afforded a sheltered and convenient place to land. Lifting the -kayak out of the water, he concealed her well above high-water mark.</p> - -<p>The next day he took Kendrick to the spot where the kayak lay hidden, -dragged her out into view, and said:</p> - -<p>“Do you think you could make a landing on an exposed seacoast in -that?”</p> - -<p>Kendrick stared at the delicate-looking craft and answered, “Well, if -you asked me if I thought I could swim over Niagara Falls without -inconvenience, I should about as soon say ‘yes.’”</p> - -<p>Evans laughed. “Oh, it isn’t as bad as that. I’ve a friend who used to -play in that kayak by the hour in the ocean surf where it breaks on -outlying ledges, just for the fun of it, and I’ve done it more or less -myself. I’ll teach you the game; I expect we shall want you to do -something like that pretty soon. It’s surprising how little violence -there is in big waves if you float freely on them in a small boat. A -tennis ball suffers little violence in a sea that pounds a battleship -with a stress measured in tons. It’s only rough if you resist it. If -you stay just outside where the waves actually break, their motion is -all up and down; you can sit there at your leisure and study the -situation farther in. Let me show you how it works. I’ll paddle round -the point to where there’s a moderate sea breaking; you can follow -along the shore and see for yourself how simple it is.”</p> - -<p>So saying he launched the kayak and paddled out round the rocky point -to where he felt the heave of the ocean swell. Kendrick followed along -the shore watching him curiously. Evans paddled close to the shore -keeping just where the waves curled up before they broke on the rocks. -Presently he found a place to his liking and, turning the bow of the -kayak toward the shore, rested as he studied the action of the -breaking waves between him and Kendrick, who stood watching from a -high rock just above. Some thirty feet from the actual shore line was -a barrier of rock, the highest part of which rose clear above the -water, while even the lowest part was barely uncovered in the trough -of the largest waves. Over this ledge the seas broke, each wave -sending a torrent of frothy water into the deeper pool beyond, which -seethed like a cauldron streaked with shifting patterns of foam; and -as each wave receded another torrent would flow out over the ledge -till, balked by the crest of an incoming wave, it was lost in a -smother of white foam. As the kayak rose and fell on the waves, its -pointed bow barely beyond the edge of this dangerous-looking reef, -Kendrick wondered that it was not caught by the inward rush of water -and dashed on the rocks. Presently, just as a good-sized wave came -rolling in and curled right under the kayak before breaking, he saw -Evans give a few quick strokes which carried him forward on the crest -of the wave. It broke, and in the midst of the great mass of white -water pouring in over the ledge came the kayak, floating lightly till -well within the pool where on the agitated waters she bobbed up and -down like an eggshell, while Evans rested his paddle on the cockpit -combing as if taking his ease on a millpond. Then looking at the shore -line he chose a gently sloping shelf of rock which was half-submerged -when the pool was filled by the larger waves, but which each receding -wave left bare, and, paddling swiftly forward on the crest of a large -wave, grounded, and thrusting his paddle firmly into a niche in the -rock held himself there as the water poured back off the shelf. Then, -jumping out, he seized the kayak and ran with it up to the dry rocks -above without even wetting his feet.</p> - -<p>Sitting down beside Kendrick who felt as if some miracle had brought -him safely ashore, he said: “You see, if you find a place like this it -really isn’t hard at all; and you can almost always find a place as -good as this, if you hunt for it. The main thing to remember is that -the waves aren’t all alike. Sometimes a small wave will recede so -quickly that you’ll be caught on the rocks just when you think you’re -going over them. You must take your time and watch a lot of them till -you know what sort of thing they do; then choose your wave as you see -it coming.”</p> - -<p>“I suppose you’ll want to take the boat back overland,” said Kendrick. -“You couldn’t very well get out again through that, could you?”</p> - -<p>“Quite easily,” said Evans. “I’ll show you how that works. After a big -wave there’s a lot of water going out, enough to float you over the -ledge.”</p> - -<p>“But wouldn’t the next wave coming in swamp you?”</p> - -<p>“Not at all. That’s the beauty of a decked-in boat like this. It -doesn’t matter if she buries her nose well under water, she’ll ship -very little over the cockpit combing. Another thing—the main secret of -her seaworthiness is the fact that you sit in the bottom; your center -of gravity is so low that you have enormous stability. Big waves can -break on you broadside without tipping you over. If you watch her -closely and see how she behaves in breaking waves for a while, you’ll -get the idea of the thing better than I can tell it to you.”</p> - -<p>So saying, Evans carried the kayak down to his landing-place on the -sloping shelf, and, watching his chance, put her down as a wave -receded, climbed in, and waited for another to come and float him off. -On the next large wave, foamy and tumultuous though it was, he floated -gently off the rock and shoved himself out into deep water. Kendrick -watched intently as he paddled out till the bow of the kayak was just -over the inner edge of the rocky barrier. A big wave came rushing in -and as it broke seemed to engulf the sharp bow of the kayak, then -lifted it high into the air as if to turn her over backwards and throw -her across the pool. But instead she rose gracefully as the crest -passed under her, and the next moment Evans was paddling her swiftly -into the stream of water already starting to pour out over the ledge. -Gliding smoothly out, he plunged into the next wave just as it broke -on the outer edge of the reef, and almost disappeared from view in the -white froth. But again the kayak rose as the crest passed under her, -and now she was riding like a duck on the heaving waters beyond the -reef. Several times Evans rode this buoyant craft in and out of the -pool in order to familiarize Kendrick with her behavior under such -conditions, and incidentally, it must be admitted, for the sport of -the thing. Then he paddled back round the point to the hiding-place of -the kayak, where he explained to Kendrick what he was there for.</p> - -<p>“We want you to go to Gibraltar,” he said. “And the quickest way of -getting you there from here unobserved seems to be to have you land in -this thing somewhere near Cape Trafalgar. You can’t land where there -are people; that’s why it has to be on an exposed coast instead of a -snug harbor, although you might work the mouth of a small stream. I -suppose you can manage to get to Gibraltar without exciting suspicion, -once you get ashore, can’t you?”</p> - -<p>“Once I get ashore, yes,” answered Kendrick. “Once I get ashore, I can -manage the rest easy; it’s getting ashore in that damn thing that -worries me.”</p> - -<p>“If I were in your shoes it would be the other way round,” said Evans. -“Landing in the kayak is play. But to smuggle myself into a stronghold -of the enemy as one of them; ye gods! I’d be paralyzed at the start -and wouldn’t know where to begin.”</p> - -<p>“It’s all in what you’re used to,” said Kendrick. “I’m so used to -knocking round Spain and bluffing my way along, it’s more or less -second nature.”</p> - -<p>“Your game is very different from ours here at Headquarters,” said -Evans, musing. “We can play our game something like chess, taking our -time to think out the next move. Your game is more like tennis. You’ve -got to hit the ball when it comes and place it where the other fellow -can’t get it, and your time to act is measured in hundredths of a -second.”</p> - -<p>He then went on to explain to Kendrick the purpose of his mission, and -told him how Heringham was established in Constantinople with radio -operators in enemy stations for the purpose of communicating with the -Allies. But the distance from Constantinople to the Azores hampered -direct radio communication, and it was therefore important to install -another radio man at Gibraltar to relay messages between -Constantinople and Punta Delgada. His problem was to get himself -established as an operator in the main radio station of the enemy at -Gibraltar. In the art of making himself acceptable and trusted by the -enemy he was a master, almost if not quite unsurpassed. How to proceed -to do this was to be left to him.</p> - -<p>“Commander Barton will give you points about establishing -communication with Heringham,” said Evans. “My job is to show you how -to adapt their apparatus to your needs, once you get your hands on it, -and how to superpose your messages to us on their regular traffic; -also to teach you how to get ashore safely in this kayak.”</p> - -<p>It was planned, he explained, to have a seaplane take him and the -kayak at early dawn to a point within easy paddling distance of the -Spanish coast and leave him to find a landing-place where he could -approach with the least risk of detection, landing preferably at dusk.</p> - -<p>“With the help of our weather experts,” said Evans, “we can choose a -day when the sea will be calm. And now why don’t you get into the -kayak and start getting the feel of her as soon as possible? Paddle a -few miles in smooth water before you try landing where it’s rough, and -you’ll be surprised to find how quickly you get a sense of stability.”</p> - -<p>So Kendrick began a series of lessons in a form of seamanship which -till that morning he didn’t know existed. At first it was with some -nervousness that he stepped into the narrow craft and, when seated, -anxiously pushed off from the shore. But before long he was quite at -home in her and paddling a good stroke; and then Evans began to -initiate him into the art of handling her in the surf, which he soon -learned was largely a matter of “watchful waiting” and then letting -the waves do the work.</p> - -<p>But during these days exercises in the surf were incidental; the -principal task was teaching Kendrick all he needed to know of radio -apparatus and methods, and the special ciphers he was to use for -weaving his messages into the enemy traffic.</p> - -<p>He might not gain access to a transmitter of sufficient power to reach -the Azores, even if the best receivers then in use were ready to pick -up his signals. With this difficulty in mind Evans had been -experimenting with a new device which had occurred to him for making -the receiver on the flagship more sensitive and at the same time more -selective, that he might pick out the desired signal, though -incredibly faint, from all those abroad in the vibrating ether. As -soon as Kendrick had learned his duties and a suitable day should come -he was to go, for his services in Gibraltar were much needed. Evans -felt sure his device would work, but it must be installed in the -flagship and tested in actual use, and this if possible before -Kendrick’s departure, lest its failure should entail some modification -of his instructions. For this, quick work was required.</p> - -<p>About this time a new batch of ensigns, recruited from civil life and -put through a four months’ course at the Naval Academy, arrived at -Punta Delgada and were distributed to various billets in the fleet. -Among them was a youth named Coffee, alert, smartly dressed, and truly -a marvel for etiquette. By the caprice of fortune, this ensign was -assigned to the communication force on the flagship as an assistant to -the fleet radio officer. As soon as he was thus established, he took -occasion to make it clear to all the radio personnel of inferior rank -to himself, including Evans, that their duties came under his -jurisdiction; there was to be no misunderstanding about that.</p> - -<p>One Saturday morning when the work of installing the new device in the -receiver was nearing completion, Evans asked the chief radio -electrician if he could spare one of the operators to assist him with -the job.</p> - -<p>“It’s almost time for captain’s inspection, sir,” said the chief. “The -boys ain’t supposed to be in their dungarees then.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, well,” said Evans, “I can manage about as well by myself. There’s -not much room for more than one pair of hands on this job, anyway.”</p> - -<p>So saying, he clambered and squirmed in behind a varied assortment of -apparatus constituting the vitals of the radio room, and in his old -dungarees sat down on the steel deck. With knife and pliers he swiftly -fashioned the labyrinth of wires which was to put his new receiving -device to the test of actual use, the tar of the insulation rapidly -turning his hands a dark brown. As he worked away with the joy of one -in his native element, he whistled a tune of his early childhood, and -soon was quite oblivious of his surroundings. The door of the radio -room opened and footsteps approached, followed by more footsteps. For -a while Evans continued to scrape and bend his wires, still whistling -as he worked. Presently he looked up. There stood the captain of the -flagship, and beside him Fraser, chief of staff; behind them was -Lieutenant-Commander Elkins and his new assistant, Ensign Coffee. The -radio chief and his force of electricians stood at attention for the -formalities of the captain’s inspection, but the captain, attracted by -the sound of whistling, was peering with a look of mild surprise -through the maze of electrical gear at the unusual sight of a man who -had failed to stop working for inspection. Evans caught Fraser’s eye -and saw there the suggestion of a smile which bespoke enjoyment of the -contrast between this unwonted spectacle and the rest of the ship -during inspection. But Coffee was glaring at him with a terrible look -of affronted dignity, and this in turn provoked the suggestion of a -twinkle in Evans’s eye.</p> - -<p>The captain glanced around the room and passed on, followed by the -other officers. But in a moment Coffee returned and in a sharp voice -called—“Gunner! Come out here, I wish to speak to you.”</p> - -<p>Evans crawled out through the interstices in the gear.</p> - -<p>“What do you mean by being in dirty dungarees at captain’s -inspection?” said Coffee.</p> - -<p>“There were changes to be made in the apparatus; they’re needed rather -urgently,” answered Evans. “Some captains would rather see work going -on than idleness; I rather thought our skipper was that kind.”</p> - -<p>“There’s a time for work of that sort,” answered Coffee stiffly, “and -there are persons assigned to do it. Didn’t you know that an -officer—even a warrant officer—isn’t supposed to do the manual work of -an electrician?”</p> - -<p>“I’m afraid I didn’t,” answered Evans; “in fact, in the war with -Germany, I heard the skipper of a destroyer rebuking a junior -lieutenant for saying just that to an ensign.”</p> - -<p>Coffee bit his lip and gulped, then drew himself up straighter than -ever and said: “Well, understand hereafter that at Captain’s -inspection you are to be in full uniform standing at attention.”</p> - -<p>With these words he turned and marched out of the radio room.</p> - -<p>But Coffee was not wholly satisfied with the success of his effort to -improve Evans’s morale. Therefore, early in the afternoon he sent a -message to Evans commanding his immediate presence in his room. When -the messenger arrived and delivered his message, Evans, pliers in -hand, was racing against time. If he could complete the installation -of his new device in half an hour, he would be in time to test it by -listening in on a schedule of signals from a distant station, and in -his eagerness to see if it would fulfill his expectations he worked at -a feverish speed.</p> - -<p>On receipt of Coffee’s message he seized a piece of paper and wrote on -it: “Am hastening to complete installation in time for J X Z schedule. -If you approve, please give me written instructions to continue till -job is completed.”</p> - -<p>Handing it to the messenger he said: “Take that to Commander Elkins in -the Flag Office, and wait for an answer.”</p> - -<p>Then he continued to cut and fit the wires, handling them now and then -with an almost vicious aggressiveness. Soon the messenger returned -with the desired instructions.</p> - -<p>“Please tell Mr. Coffee,” said Evans, “that Commander Elkins has -instructed me to continue at this installation till it is completed.”</p> - -<p>Soon the job was done. Hot and grimy, Evans seized the head-phones, -made his adjustments and listened. The schedule began and the signals -continued for some time, during which a variety of tests and -measurements were needed to determine the success of the new device. -In part these tests were satisfactory, but they revealed the need of -further study and modification. The schedule over, Evans went to his -room deep in thought, and was cleaning up preparatory to a session of -slide-rule calculations, when again a messenger came from Coffee -demanding his presence. Coffee had seen him walking slowly toward his -room, and the installation was therefore no longer an “alibi.” To -Coffee’s room he went and presented himself meekly at the door.</p> - -<p>“Gunner,” said Coffee with great dignity, “you are not taking your -duties in the right spirit. You excuse yourself from observing the -amenities on board ship on account of a wiring job. You must -understand that discipline and morale are more important than -apparatus.</p> - -<p>“Now I want to see if you are up to standard in the matter of those -things we expect all of you to know. I’ll just ask you a few -questions. Can you tell me what is meant by the cadence?”</p> - -<p>“The cadence?” answered Evans. “The only kind of cadence I know of is -the concluding phrase in a piece of music.”</p> - -<p>“Music!” echoed Coffee. “You’ll have to face more music than you like -if you don’t look out. The cadence is something which every -second-class seaman is supposed to know, as you will see if you -consult your Blue-Jacket’s Manual,” and he held up a copy of this book -to give emphasis to his words. He then tried one or two more questions -about infantry maneuvers, unearthing in Evans a woeful degree of -ignorance, which in no wise eased the outraged state of his mind. -Finally he summoned a messenger and sent him for a rifle. When it was -brought he handed it to Evans and said:</p> - -<p>“Now let me see you demonstrate the maneuvers in the Manual of Arms as -you would to a raw recruit.”</p> - -<p>Evans took the rifle and examined the mechanism of the breech for a -moment, then looked up at Coffee and said:</p> - -<p>“Really, it’s no use my trying to do that. It’s so long since I had -anything to do with that sort of thing that I’ve forgotten the whole -of it.”</p> - -<p>With these words he handed the gun back to Coffee, who received it -with a gesture of contempt and said:</p> - -<p>“And you a gunner! How, in Heaven’s name, did you ever get your -rating?”</p> - -<p>“Perhaps you’d get that best from the officers that enrolled me,” -answered Evans mildly.</p> - -<p>“Don’t you ever say ‘Sir’ in speaking to a superior officer?” asked -Coffee sharply.</p> - -<p>“Not often; in fact, come to think of it, I don’t know that I ever do. -Most officers I talk with don’t seem to care much whether I do or -not.”</p> - -<p>Coffee returned to ground on which he felt more comfortable.</p> - -<p>“You have shown,” he said, “a degree of ignorance which would shame a -third-class electrician; in a warrant officer it is appalling; you -deserve to be demoted. Go to your room and study your Blue-Jacket’s -Manual till you know the things every seaman should know; and don’t -let me catch you again giving such answers as you’ve given to-night. -That will do.”</p> - -<p>As Evans retired, he muttered to himself: “What a jolly chap to have -about the ship. Well, I trust he’s through jawing at me for the -present.”</p> - -<p>The next morning Evans, having with the aid of his trusty slide-rule -arrived at a decision as to the method of correcting the remaining -weak points in his new receiving device, was making his way to the -radio room to apply the results of his calculations. On deck he met -Commander Elkins.</p> - -<p>“Well, Evans,” said he, “what was the matter yesterday? I never knew -you to worry about written authority when it came to tinkering with -apparatus.”</p> - -<p>“I guess I must have had a fit of conscience,” answered Evans -absently.</p> - -<p>“Conscience! What made you want to break out a conscience?”</p> - -<p>“I just wanted to be sure I wasn’t getting insubordinate.”</p> - -<p>“Who’s been putting that kind of idea in your head?” said Elkins.</p> - -<p>“Not you,” answered Evans.</p> - -<p>Commander Elkins looked off over the blue sea with a puzzled -expression and watched the speed launches dashing to and fro on their -errands among the ships of the fleet. Then, as the truth dawned on -him, he turned to Evans and said, “Has Ensign Coffee been bothering -you?”</p> - -<p>“Since you ask me,” said Evans, “he was rather a nuisance yesterday.”</p> - -<p>“He’s young yet,” said Elkins, “and takes himself a bit seriously. -Then there’s another thing; he told me when he came that Commander -Rich had spoken to him before he left Washington and told him to keep -his eyes open for insubordination or unmilitary conduct on the part of -warrant officers or chief petty officers with whom he had to do, and, -if he found such, to deal severely with it. I don’t know why Commander -Rich should have said that; it looks as if he had heard some rumors of -things being too free and easy and unofficial here in the fleet. -Anyway, the fact that Commander Rich saw fit to say that to him has -doubtless increased his sense of importance. It will probably wear -off; but remember, his rank is above yours, and respect for rank has -to be maintained as part of the system. So be as tactful as you can, -and try to avoid rows with him, even if it involves a little sacrifice -of your working time now and then.”</p> - -<p>Before the next schedule the remaining defects had been eliminated, -and that night Evans felt ready to trust the receiver for the -performance of its delicate task. Soon Kendrick’s training was -complete and all was ready for him to start on his adventurous errand. -A few days after Kendrick’s departure, Evans was to listen in at -stated times every day, and at these times Kendrick was to make a -special effort to establish communication.</p> - -<p>With the aid of Jeremy at the weather station, a calm spell was chosen -in which to send him off. A scout cruiser equipped with the necessary -gear for launching a seaplane was ordered to prepare for the voyage, -and a fast seaplane was tuned up for a long flight. When the weather -conditions were pronounced favorable and the day was set for -departure, Evans and Kendrick went as soon as it was dark to the -hiding-place of the kayak, Kendrick carrying a nondescript bundle -containing his personal effects for the voyage, including the means of -effecting a wonderful array of disguises. Evans helped him launch the -kayak, and exhorted the little ship to do her best; then Kendrick, -stowing his bundle under the deck, stepped in and paddled off into the -darkness, now quite at home with this mode of locomotion, and in a -moment was lost to view. In a few minutes he came alongside the scout -cruiser, at the foot of a ladder hanging over the ship’s side, where -he was met by an officer. No enlisted men were in sight, for it had -been arranged by this officer that none should be where they could -witness the arrival of this peculiar-looking craft. The officer -lowered a rope which Kendrick secured around the kayak before coming -up the ladder. These two then hoisted her on board and stowed her in a -prearranged hiding-place. A few minutes later the cruiser let go her -mooring and slipped out through the gate in the net, which was opened -as she approached, and closed at once behind her.</p> - -<p>It was now early in December and the long nights afforded the cruiser -the cover of darkness during most of her journey. All night and all -day, and the next night till after midnight she steamed eastward. At -two in the morning she stopped about two hundred and fifty miles from -Cape Trafalgar. With none but those needed for the work to witness the -proceeding, the kayak was removed from her hiding-place and lashed to -the seaplane in such a manner that she could easily be cast loose when -the seaplane had alighted on the water. Kendrick took his place in the -plane, followed by the pilot and mechanician, and in a moment they -shot out into the air, the engine roaring in their ears.</p> - -<p>The first red streak of dawn was showing over the eastern horizon when -the seaplane hovered and came down on the calm surface of the sea, -trailing a white streak of spray for a moment, then coming to rest. -Fifteen miles away lay the Spanish coast. Losing no time, Kendrick cut -loose the kayak from her lashings, climbed in, waved good-bye and -paddled off into the northeast, keeping the light of the dawn on his -starboard beam. The seaplane rose and flew away, and in less than -three hours was hoisted aboard the cruiser, which headed for Punta -Delgada, and not ten of all her complement of officers and men had -even a vague idea of the purpose for which their excursion had been -made.</p> - -<p>Kendrick had a compass by which to steer as soon as it was light. He -wished to land in the twilight, and with ten hours at his disposal it -was not necessary to paddle constantly to reach the shore before dark, -so, without exerting himself, he was near enough the shore to study -its character by the middle of the afternoon. Then he took it easy, -waiting so far from shore that his tiny boat would scarcely be visible -to the naked eye, and watching land, sea, and sky for observers who -might detect his arrival. Then the sun set, and, choosing a -lonely-looking spot, Kendrick paddled quickly in shore to avail -himself of the fast-fading light in choosing a place to land. Through -the line of white foam that fringed the shore he picked out a recess -where the force of the waves appeared broken, dodged the outlying -rocks, and soon, with a vast sense of relief, was dragging the kayak -up on dry land. In the dark he studied the ground about him, and found -a place to hide the kayak so completely that he could feel assured she -would not be found, and thus give a dangerous clue to the enemy -sleuths.</p> - -<p>On shore in Spain, he was once more in a familiar environment, one -that brought his extraordinary faculties into full play. With nothing -but his wits and the small bundle of belongings he had brought under -the deck of the kayak, he launched himself on the enterprise of -getting into Gibraltar unnoticed, and making himself desired as a -radio operator and trusted in that capacity. How he overcame the -innumerable and formidable obstacles to such a course would require a -volume in itself. But that is another story, and we must return to -Punta Delgada.</p> - -<p>After a week had elapsed, Evans began listening every day at the -appointed hours to see if the enemy traffic showed any signs of -Kendrick’s magic touch. The excuse of testing his new device had to be -worked for all it was worth, until one operator remarked to another, -after he had gone, “He’s tested it every way he can; he seems to be so -pleased with it he just wants to listen in even if there’s nothing in -particular to pick up.”</p> - -<p>Three weeks elapsed during which Evans and Barton met now and then and -speculated over Kendrick’s probable fortunes and the prospect of -hearing from him. At last, late one afternoon as Evans was listening -in, he picked up a pencil and began writing on a slip of paper; slowly -he wrote, only five or six words a minute instead of the usual twenty -to twenty-five at which messages are received. For nearly five minutes -he wrote, then stopped, and, after listening a moment more, he took -off the head-phones and slipped out of the radio room. Taking the -first boat ashore he hastened to Commander Barton.</p> - -<p>“What’s the news?” asked Barton eagerly, as Evans entered his office.</p> - -<p>“He’s there. Got an operator’s job that gives him access to a good -transmitter,” answered Evans; and he pulled out of his pocket the slip -of paper with Kendrick’s message and handed it to Barton.</p> - -<p>“That’s real business,” said Barton with unrestrained joy, on reading -the message. A long conference ensued in which Barton and Evans -reviewed the possibilities opened by this new channel of communication -with Heringham in Constantinople, and laid their plans for making the -most of it.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chIX' title='IX—The Round-Up'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER IX</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>THE ROUND-UP</span> -</h2> -<p>An earlier chapter has told of the planning of a fleet of net-laying -ships to coöperate with chasers on their drifting patrols and to -surround at short notice a designated spot where a submarine had been -located with hydrophones. This fleet of ships, eight in number, -completed at last, arrived at Punta Delgada about the first of -December. In accordance with their instructions, they commenced -practicing the maneuver of proceeding at speed to a spot designated by -signal from a destroyer or chaser and then surrounding it in such a -way as to enable them with a minimum of lost motion to lay their lines -of nets completely around the spot at a specified radius from it. This -maneuver required a high order of team-work and a correspondingly -large amount of drill; after a few weeks of this, however, the -personnel acquired enough proficiency to make the officers feel ready -to carry it out in earnest, and they grew impatient to try it on a -real submarine instead of an imaginary one.</p> - -<p>Then they began to go out as planned surrounded at a distance by -groups of chasers on drifting patrols. But the ocean is very large, -and the days and weeks seemed long as they waited for their first -chance to put this new method of hunting to the test of a real “fix.” -The skippers of these ships began to complain that their time was -wasted—not to mention the elaborate equipment—when the chance of -picking up a scent seemed so remote. Yet enemy submarines were abroad, -as was shown by the toll of merchant ships, sunk in spite of the best -efforts to lead them in organized convoys through to safety. An -unfortunate atmosphere of grumbling at being tied up in what appeared -to be an elaborate failure began to develop and to spread from the -net-laying fleet to Headquarters. Was this vast project to prove a -waste of effort and a failure, after all?</p> - -<p>The enemy was gradually increasing the efficiency with which he -planned and executed his submarine forays. The principal secret of -this lay in the concentration of his submarine forces. Groups of five, -six, or seven submarines would await a favorable moment in the -conditions of ocean traffic; then proceeding together, combining their -resources in the matter of detecting the approach of hostile craft, -and skillfully disposing their force, they would deliver a concerted -attack on a convoy, and often would take a heavy toll of tonnage.</p> - -<p>Aided now by the acquisition of the code book brought from Washington -by Bela, they prepared to launch more formidable attacks than -heretofore, knowing in advance the disposition of Allied ships, and -thus able to choose the most vulnerable point. It was necessary first -to ascertain, if possible, whether the code was actually in use as -planned. Possibly the book had been missed, and the Yankees had -decided to abandon the code for fear it had fallen into enemy hands. -To this end all the intercepted radio traffic of the Allies was -diligently copied, and every effort made to correlate it with observed -movements of Allied forces by sea or air. To the great delight of the -Turks, they found messages being sent which conveyed a meaning when -decoded in accordance with the system set forth in the book.</p> - -<p>Early in January there came a welcome opportunity to verify the code -and to satisfy the Turkish Chief of Staff that it was indeed being -used by the Allies for directing naval operations. Punta Delgada was -heard sending messages which when decoded proved to be addressed to a -ship carrying seaplanes headed toward the Portuguese coast. These -messages related to a bombing attack on the defenses of Lisbon. -Eagerly the Intelligence officers at this port followed the -preparations and then the progress of the attack. The seaplane carrier -was next heard sending messages to the planes in the air, messages -which were readily interpreted by means of the code, and finally, at -the time when these dispatches had led them to expect it, the -seaplanes appeared, only to be driven off by an overwhelming force of -small fighting planes which, thanks to the code, had been prepared in -time to prevent a single bombing plane from reaching its objective. -The Intelligence officers were greatly elated, and praised the name of -Bela.</p> - -<p>About a week after this incident, a force of seven submarines set -forth from Gibraltar to make a series of destructive attacks on Allied -shipping. It was to be a long cruise, and no pains had been spared to -equip the submarines with all the munitions they could carry to do -their job well, for this was the first time a large group had gone out -since the new code had become available to the skippers.</p> - -<p>When two days out from Gibraltar, the radio operator on watch in one -of the submarines began picking up signals from Allied ships. Word was -passed to the others, and all listened intently. The messages were -copied and decoded with the key in the stolen book.</p> - -<p>The following situation was deciphered: A large and important convoy -from Brazil was approaching the danger zone; it had reached its -supposed rendezvous and found no escort; no ships responded to its -low-powered radio call. Now it was calling Punta Delgada asking for -instructions, evidently using just enough power to reach the Naval -Headquarters, and incidently the submarines, but endeavoring not to -use enough power to be heard in Spain or Portugal. From the exchange -of messages it appeared that an earlier dispatch, which should have -led to the sending of a destroyer escort, had failed to get through. -Owing to this misunderstanding, then, a valuable convoy was already -entering the danger zone, and no escort was available for its -protection. Punta Delgada was finally heard to instruct the convoy to -proceed at maximum speed on a zigzag course and to refrain from using -radio; at the moment no destroyers or cruisers were available, but, if -possible, an escort would be assembled on the following day and sent -to make contact with the convoy farther on.</p> - -<p>The submarines were proceeding in a westerly direction, spread out in -a long scouting line extending from north to south. With their radio -direction-finding apparatus they took bearings on the flagship of the -convoy as she sent her messages to Punta Delgada. To their unbounded -delight, the position which this indicated corresponded closely with -that mentioned by the convoy flagship in her dispatch to Punta -Delgada, a point about three hundred miles south of the eastern -Azores. Once more the stolen code had proved itself correct.</p> - -<p>The intercepted dispatches had revealed what the course of the convoy -would be during the next twenty-four hours. So the submarines shaped -their own course for the place where they should find their victims -the next morning soon after daybreak. Eagerly the officers of the -flagship bent to the task of preparing their formation for the attack.</p> - -<p>“Bela has served the cause well,” said the Captain; “his reward for -this will be great.” And warm was the praise of him echoed in the -rejoinders of the others.</p> - -<p>As the gray afternoon wore on, the seven long, sinister-looking ships -glided steadily westward, their low decks washed by the waves, and -only the conning tower of each visible from her next in line. By dawn -next day they should be already in the path of the northbound convoy, -in plenty of time to re-form on a line stretching east and west which -would surely cover the course of their intended victims and thus -ensure good prizes for at least one and probably more of the -submarines.</p> - -<p>As the gray twilight settled down on the sea, the line closed in till -not more than three miles separated the ships at the extreme ends. -Every valve, every item of machinery and armament was carefully -inspected and all necessary tests were made, that no mishap should -hinder the reaping of the grim harvest on the morrow. Tense as were -the nerves of all, those off duty slept during the night, for a -submarine crew must learn the art of sleeping when the chance offers. -The captains scarcely slept at all, but, as each new watch went on -duty, exhorted the radio operators and hydrophone listeners, going to -their posts in the hull, to listen as never before. From ship to ship -such messages as occasion required were transmitted by radio phone, -with barely enough power to cover the distance intervening between -them. Once soon after midnight the seven ships stopped to listen in -silence, in case the convoy should be approaching sooner than was -expected, but, although lying still in the water increased the range -of the hydrophones by many miles, not a sound was heard.</p> - -<p>Two o’clock came, then three. The tension of eager anticipation grew. -With powerful night glasses, the captains swept the sea, but nothing -appeared to break the leaden skyline. At four o’clock they stopped -again to listen, but through the hydrophones the ocean seemed as still -as the grave. Soon they would be in the path of the convoy, and, -taking their stations, would stop and wait. But they had twenty-five -miles yet to go and two hours more of darkness. Westward with decks -awash they steamed at fourteen knots.</p> - -<p>At half-past five nothing had broken the monotonous suspense. Then -suddenly a report was flashed in by radio from the submarine at the -northern end of the line—the hydrophones had detected a ship bearing -northwest. This was an unexpected quarter. Was it the convoy or -something else? Scarcely had this report been received when it was -followed by another—the sound was increasing fast; there seemed to be -more than one ship, approaching at high speed. Another of the -submarines had heard the sounds also, and then another, till in a few -minutes they were heard all along the line. What was it? The captains -began to be uneasy. The ships were approaching much too fast to be the -convoy; besides, they didn’t sound like merchant ships, nor did they -sound quite like destroyers, nor yet like cruisers. One fact soon -stood out above all others; their bearing did not change; whatever -these ships were they were coming toward the submarines as straight as -if steering for a lighthouse at their home port. Uneasiness changed to -grave apprehension. Nearer still they came; the oncoming ships could -not now be more than six miles from the nearest of the submarines, -judging from their rate of approach.</p> - -<p>A red streak of dawn showed faintly on the eastern horizon. There was -one thing to be done, and that without delay—submerge. Quickly the -orders were given, hatches were closed, valves opened, electric motors -started, and the seven ships sank beneath the waves, leaving only the -periscopes to observe the approach of the enigmatic ships. Nearer the -sounds approached, and then the bearings became confused; the ships -seemed to be spreading out in a wide arc from north to west. Then -dimly through the periscopes the dark forms of long, narrow ships -could be seen in the faint dawn light. Two by two they came till at -last the submarine skippers counted eight. Two pairs started to cross -the bows of the submarines to the west and southwest, while the other -two pairs deployed to the northeast. Just what kind of ships these -were could not be made out, but at all events their speed marked them -as warships of some sort. The greatest safety lay in concealment and -silence; the submarines, therefore, slowed their motors till they had -barely steerageway; and as the light increased and the strange vessels -drew nearer, the periscopes were withdrawn, and the submarines dived -deeper. But before the last periscope was withdrawn below the waves, a -fleeting sweep of the horizon was made which revealed the two ships to -the west executing a peculiar maneuver. The leading ship of the two -doubled on her course and, passing very close to her partner ship, -started steaming at reduced speed in the opposite direction, while the -ship which had followed her also reduced speed, but held her course. -One thing more was revealed by this final sweep of the horizon—a -destroyer in the wake of the other ships approached at high speed from -the northwest.</p> - -<p>On the bridge of this destroyer, besides her skipper and others on -watch, stood Captain Fraser, chief of staff to Admiral Johnson, -Commander Barton, of the Intelligence Bureau, and Evans. The eight -ships seen by the submarines were the new net-laying squadron. Not a -conning tower nor a periscope had they seen, but nevertheless they -were now paying out their nets in a circle seven miles in diameter. -Each pair laid a quadrant of the circle, the two starting at a point -and steaming opposite ways till they met the ships of the adjacent -quadrants, and thus completed the circle. On each of the eight ships -the strange new mechanical gear was working at top speed, drawing the -great net from the hold of the ship and paying it out over the stern, -the supporting buoys and the little indicator bombs splashing -ceaselessly into the water, while the crew tending the gear worked -with all their might.</p> - -<p>And now, following a few miles behind the destroyer carrying Captain -Fraser, came eleven more destroyers steaming up at thirty-five knots -out of the western haze. Following the lead of the first destroyer, -the other eleven started steaming in a steady procession round and -round the outer edge of the circle of nets. Then as the dawn merged -into daylight there appeared from several points of the compass small -gray chasers, hurrying to the scene of action, and finally from the -northwest, more chasers, swarms of them, till the sea was alive with -the little craft.</p> - -<p>The first of the chasers to appear on the scene, some eighteen in -number, coming from all directions, had been lying all night on a -drifting patrol stretched in a long line from north to south across -the path of the submarines. So near had each chaser been to the next -in line that word could be passed from one end of the line to the -other without the use of radio, by simply flashing the signals from -boat to boat with infra-red rays, invisible to the eye, but readily -perceived with the selenium detector. At a point near the northern end -of the line, some fifteen miles from the present busy scene of action, -the net-layers had lain in wait, together with the twelve destroyers, -on one of which was Captain Fraser in charge of the operation. He had -brought with him Commander Barton to observe results, and Evans to -supervise the use of the infra-red signaling apparatus, lest through -some failure of this unusual method a chaser captain should be -impelled to use his radio and thus reveal his presence to the enemy.</p> - -<p>Now, just before sunrise, while the eighteen chasers of the drifting -patrol were taking station, as fast as they arrived, in groups of two -and three just outside the eight openings where the individual nets -met and overlapped, the other chasers which had come from the -northwest filed in through one of these openings, one at a time, each -rounding the net-laying ship as she lay holding the end of her net, -turning and threading with an S-shaped course the narrow gap till -within the enclosed area. When all had entered, they formed in two -long parallel lines at right angles with the net on the northwest -side, those in the front line spaced within a stone’s throw of each -other, those in the second line, nearly half a mile behind, being -somewhat more spread out. As soon as the lines had thus formed, buoys -were thrown overboard to mark the beginning of the sweep; then each -chaser in the front line dropped over her stern two paravanes or -submarine kites to be towed astern at the greatest depth to which a -submarine could go, one from each quarter, each equipped with a small -contact mine like those in the net. At a signal from the chaser -flagship, all started, jumping to their full speed, following the -curve of the net in line abreast, and the sweep began.</p> - -<p>The destroyer, with Captain Fraser on the bridge, stopped in her tour -of the net, close to the point where the chasers assembled, and the -officers on the bridge stood watching the maneuver.</p> - -<p>“They’re off!” cried Fraser as the chasers started their sweep. “Over -the line like a bunch of colts on a race-track. Go it, boys!” and he -rang, “One third speed” on both engines to keep the destroyer abreast -of the sweep, exclaiming, “I hope we’ve got the whole works inside -this purse-string.”</p> - -<p>“It’s bad business if we haven’t,” remarked Evans. “It must be -‘<i>spurlos versenkt</i>,’ or our talisman will lose its charm.”</p> - -<p>“You’re right there,” echoed Barton warmly. “‘<i>Spurlos versenkt</i>,’ no -matter what the cost.”</p> - -<p>“How many do you expect there are, sir?” asked the skipper of the -destroyer, addressing Captain Fraser.</p> - -<p>“According to Commander Barton’s friend, seven started out together -from Gibraltar. They have probably stayed together,” answered Fraser. -Then, seeing Barton look uneasily at the quartermasters on duty on the -bridge to see if any had been within hearing, Fraser added, “Keep that -about Barton’s friend under your hat.”</p> - -<p>“What assurance have you that they are all inside the net, sir?” asked -the skipper.</p> - -<p>“We had a series of clear fixes from four of the chasers,” answered -Fraser. “At the last fix their motors were heard to slow down. That -was—how long, Evans, before we started laying the net?”</p> - -<p>“Twenty minutes,” answered Evans.</p> - -<p>“Twenty minutes,” resumed Fraser, “and in another twenty-five the nets -were laid. The last fix was at the center of this circle; their speed -from that point could not have averaged more than three and a half -knots without their being heard, in spite of the noise of our engines. -That gives them two and a half miles; the nets are three and a half -miles from the fix. That’s a margin of a mile; pretty safe, I think, -considering the accuracy of the fix.”</p> - -<p>All eyes were on the chasers. Ten minutes passed; it seemed an age. -Then at last a small fountain of water rose in the wake of one of -them. A paravane had struck something under water, and its bomb had -detonated. Instantly from the second line of chasers the three most -nearly behind the explosion converged upon the spot and smothered the -vicinity with a concentrated barrage of depth charges. Mid the jar and -din and the monstrous fountains of white and black froth there rose -bits of wreckage, clearly visible to the watching eyes on the -destroyer. The chaser whose paravane had given the signal kept her -place in the line; another paravane was thrown out astern to replace -the first which had done its duty and gone; and the sweep went on.</p> - -<p>Fifteen minutes elapsed. Then two miles away another small fountain -rose into the air, this time from the encircling net. The two nearest -destroyers raced to the spot and laid down a pattern of depth charges -which ripped to bits a hundred yards of the net, and brought up other -wreckage which told of another kill. The drifting chasers on that side -of the net, hastened to the spot, and with grappling irons caught the -broken ends of the net and drew them together, securing them with a -short overlap. Meanwhile a maneuver had been commenced by the -net-laying ships and chasers together, whereby the ends of the net -were slowly drawn in toward the center of the circle, in order to -reduce the area to be swept.</p> - -<p>More telltale bombs behind the chasers sent up their signal fountains, -and two more barrages brought up their gruesome wreckage. The ocean -shook and seethed with the tumult.</p> - -<p>“It’s a grim business,” muttered Evans, looking on solemnly. Never -before had he stood by in cold blood and watched such a horror of war -being enacted. The thought of the helpless wretches under the water -being systematically hunted down and blown to eternity, oppressed his -spirit, and made him graver than was his wont.</p> - -<p>Terrified by the appalling din of the depth charge barrages, one of -the submarines came at last to the surface and surrendered. The crew -were taken off by a chaser, but before leaving, they placed a -demolition charge where it blew open the hull of the submarine after -they were safely away, and sent her to the bottom of the sea.</p> - -<p>“By Jove, those are risky captives to have,” said Evans, roused from -his depression by this new turn of events. “Better put ’em under lock -and key where they can’t get ashore.”</p> - -<p>“That’s no idle jest,” said Barton. “Captain Fraser, I’d keep those -prisoners on one of the ships in this action, if I were you, and not -let a soul who hasn’t been here see or hear of them.”</p> - -<p>“That won’t be easy to arrange,” said Fraser. “But you’re right; we -can’t afford to take the risk of letting them get ashore.”</p> - -<p>Some minutes passed in silence.</p> - -<p>The sweep had now gone from the northwest through the southwest to the -southeast side of the circle. Then another bomb went off, and another -heavy barrage racked the sea and sent up tokens of destruction. The -count stood six. The officers were standing together in a small group -at one end of the destroyer’s bridge, at a safe distance from the ears -of the quartermasters.</p> - -<p>“Too bad your friend Wellman isn’t here to see the fun,” said Barton -to Evans with a dry smile.</p> - -<p>“Who’s Wellman?” asked the skipper of the destroyer.</p> - -<p>“A special messenger we sent to Constantinople with a code, so they -could follow our instructions when we told ’em what to do.”</p> - -<p>“You sent?” exclaimed the skipper. “How do you mean ‘sent’?”</p> - -<p>“Well, he didn’t know he was being sent,” said Barton. “He thought he -was turning a rather good trick; and he was—for us. He was hanging -round Washington in a way we didn’t like; so, when we’d seen enough of -him, we gave him a little present, and he toddled off to hand it over -to his boss.”</p> - -<p>“So that was the game, was it?” said the skipper with a chuckle.</p> - -<p>“Yes,” answered Barton, “but keep it right under your hat.”</p> - -<p>“I’m a good deal scared that he’ll hear of the sequel to his stroke of -genius,” remarked Evans.</p> - -<p>“That mustn’t be,” rejoined Barton firmly.</p> - -<p>The sweep of the chasers went on till the circuit of the net had been -completed. But since in the close formation necessary for a thorough -sweep the chasers covered barely a mile, there was still an inner -circle of two and a half miles’ radius that had not been swept. -Assuming that the original seven submarines which Kendrick reported to -have left Gibraltar had kept together, there was still one in the area -to be found. Five had evidently held more or less to their course and -had reached the western side of the netted area in time to be caught -in the sweep; the sixth, turning to the southeastward away from the -approaching fleet, had been caught on that side. The seventh, assuming -she had stayed with the others, was still in the ring, and remained to -be found.</p> - -<p>Swinging in toward the center of the circle, the chasers began their -second circuit of the enclosed area, this time so placing the line -that it overlapped slightly the area of its previous sweep. It might -be a prolonged search, for each time the circuit was made, the -submarine might shift into the area just swept, and thus escape. -Still, in her blind state of submersion she could hardly dodge them -indefinitely; and ultimately the drawing-in of the net would so limit -the area that the chasers could rake it in a single sweep.</p> - -<p>The morning wore away, and the circles successively swept by the -chasers closed in on the center, toward which also the ends of the net -were towed, and, as the circumference of the circle became shorter, -the superfluous lengths of net were recovered from the water and -stowed in the holds of the net-layers.</p> - -<p>It was nearly noon; the entire area had been swept by the chasers and -their weary officers had begun to think there could be no more -submarines. The chaser flagship made signal requesting instructions. -Fraser signaled back from the destroyer to renew the sweep, -designating a course which, in view of the altered size and shape of -the area, would offer the best prospect of finding an object thus far -missed. The sweep went on. The chaser skippers were wondering how much -longer the raking process, already becoming tedious, would have to -continue, when another detonation of a paravane bomb gave the signal -for attack. Again the following chasers charged the spot, and again a -formidable array of depth charges shook the sea and sky; and visible -wreckage brought the count to seven.</p> - -<p>“That makes the whole works, sir,” said the destroyer skipper to -Fraser.</p> - -<p>“Yes,” answered he, “but we’re going to keep on sweeping for a while. -We can’t take any chances of any of them getting back to tell the -tale. It isn’t likely, but there’s just a small chance that some of -them, even with visible wreckage blown off, might not be too much -damaged to get home. Then, too, an eighth sub might have joined them -after they left Gib.”</p> - -<p>And so the sweep went on. And at last, early in the afternoon, the -nets had been drawn in till there was less than a square mile -enclosed. Then it was that the chasers were able to sweep the entire -area at a single stroke, their line stretching clear across it. Three -times they swept it thus, but nothing more did they find. Then the -sweeping ceased, and in single file the chasers left the enclosure. -Still the nets were towed closer together as they were being reeled in -aboard the ships, and finally they were brought together in pairs till -there was no room left for a submarine to lie between them. Then only -did Fraser signal that the hunt was over and the fleet would return to -its base.</p> - -<p>“Evans,” he said, “your radio-compass men, both at Saint Michael’s and -Madeira, did a good job in spotting these subs so soon after they left -Gib.”</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said Barton; “that helped a lot; it gave us a good start. -Still, the trump card was the code. By the way, Captain, don’t forget -to send the escort out to meet that convoy just as soon as you can -spare it.”</p> - -<p>Fraser laughed.</p> - -<p>“Well,” he said, “I think we all rate a good rest after this.”</p> - -<p>As the procession headed for Punta Delgada, the tired officers sought -their bunks, all that could be spared from the duties of the watch. -For many hours the nervous tension had been unremitting. A sense of -triumph pervaded the flotilla, which combined with fatigue made for -easy relaxation. But in Evans, underlying this feeling was a sense of -oppression due to the horror of the submarine carnage. Added to this -there lurked the fear that the story of the trap might reach the enemy -and rob his magic talisman of its power to do, possibly, even greater -things in the future.</p> - -<p>No more doubts were raised as to the utility of the net-layers. The -eagerness of all concerned to be out again in search of more -submarines was rather inclined to go beyond the dictates of good -judgment. For it was not every night that a line of drifters could -hope to intercept another such group. At all events, the enthusiasm -bred of the adventure was a wholesome tonic, and on every hand the -energies of officers and men were bent to the task of bringing about -other successful hunts.</p> - -<p>Meanwhile Evans devoted his energies to exercising a tireless -surveillance over the radio stations in the islands. Wherever there -was a transmitter he found an excuse to go and tinker with the -apparatus, apparently too much absorbed in the wiring to notice the -operators or their handling of the traffic; in reality, looking for -any indication that might mean leakage of information to the enemy. -Commander Barton installed secret agents at every station from which -messages could go out, camouflaged as “strikers” or “makee-learn” -operators, and these were charged with the duty of watching with -eternal vigilance for evidence of suspicious messages.</p> - -<p>In its effect on tonnage losses the result of the submarine round-up -was appreciable. Seven fast, seagoing submarines, gone at one stroke, -meant a substantial loss to the enemy, and a corresponding saving of -Allied shipping could be detected. Yet still the situation was -critical. More submarines were building, and, unless more round-ups -could be brought about, the outlook for the future was none too -bright.</p> - -<p>The increased vigilance of the listening crews on the drifting chasers -brought its reward in other round-ups in which several ocean-going -submarines met their doom. And in greater security the endless convoys -carried their cargoes of munitions into Northern Europe.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chX' title='X—The Power of Suggestion'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER X</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>THE POWER OF SUGGESTION</span> -</h2> -<p>As the winter wore away, great troop convoys poured a seemingly -endless stream of American soldiers into Northern Europe to reinforce -the armies there, worn as they were with their ceaseless vigil, -holding the line, but never able to push the enemy back. It was indeed -a deadlock; and all the world watched in suspense. At times it was -worse than a deadlock. Murad Pasha, the Turkish generalissimo, was a -military genius. He kept harassing the northern lines with masterly -strokes of surprise action which told heavily on the more -heterogeneous, less consolidated Army of the North. The length and -breadth of North America every one was “doing his bit.” All industries -were mobilized for war. The women knitted socks at home or worked on -farms and in factories. All watched the daily press, noting with alarm -each move of Murad; eagerly grasping at hope when a colossal -bombardment forced the Southern Army back ever so little. On that -battle-line all thoughts were focused and all hopes were based. The -navy, shielded from the daily press by two thousand miles of silent -ocean, was little heeded as compared with the army. Its doings were -almost unknown to the general public.</p> - -<p>At the Azores little change of consequence occurred in the naval -situation. By diligent application of the methods thus far developed, -enemy submarines were from time to time found and either destroyed or -damaged, but, although the menace was diminished, it was always there, -and the toll of merchant and supply ships continued to be heavy. The -fleet was kept in fighting trim by constant drill, and those in -command were eager for a decisive action with the main fleet of the -enemy. The outcome of such an action could not be foretold with any -confidence, for the fleets were very evenly matched. Still, with the -condition of hopeless stalemate existing in the absence of such an -action, with the fear of a master stroke on land by the resourceful -enemy, the men of fighting blood were ready to risk the supreme test. -The enemy, however, was carefully holding his main fleet within the -Mediterranean. Was there any way to draw him out? The British and -American admirals speculated much concerning his disposition to engage -in a major action if conditions should appear favorable. What apparent -advantages, they wondered, would suffice to make him risk a meeting -with the Allied fleet?</p> - -<p>Evans, from time to time, went into the main transmitting station on -shore to “test the apparatus,” and on these occasions, after making -certain adjustments, would sit down with his hand on the key and send -out a few seemingly meaningless dots and dashes. Whereupon Kendrick at -Gibraltar would copy down a message and pass it on to Heringham in -Constantinople. Also from time to time Evans, testing the receiver on -the flagship, would at certain times of day write things down on a -slip of paper in a leisurely manner—only five or six words a minute. -After he had done this, he was apt to have a talk with Barton.</p> - -<p>On one of his visits to the transmitting station he sent a request for -information on the moot question—how did the enemy look on the -possibility of an encounter with the Allied fleet? Would a slight -apparent advantage in weather conditions suffice to draw him out, or -must the Turkish Admiral see a chance of cutting off a small -detachment of Allied ships before leaving his base? A few days later, -after Evans had talked with Barton, Barton talked with Fraser, chief -of staff, and Fraser talked with Admiral Johnson. It seemed, so Fraser -told the Admiral, that Barton had secured advices through secret -channels that the enemy’s attitude toward a possible naval action was -decidedly conservative. If he had reason to suppose he could catch the -Allied fleet unprepared, with weather conditions which would put the -advantage of visibility on his side, he would risk action; otherwise -he would hold his fleet behind the defenses of Gibraltar until he -could catch a detachment of the Allied fleet far enough from support -to warrant the hope of cutting it off and destroying it.</p> - -<p>Each month at the date set in the key to Bela’s code book for the -change of code, the Intelligence officers of the enemy noted with -satisfaction that a considerable part of the Allied radio traffic made -sense in the new code. The rest of the traffic, they concluded, was -probably nothing but dummy messages sent to disguise the times of -increased volume which would otherwise give evidence of naval -activity, a well-recognized practice. The loss of the seven submarines -was still a complete mystery, and as their commander had had no -opportunity of reporting back to headquarters any of the messages they -had heard concerning the mythical convoy, nothing had yet transpired -to arouse any suspicion about the code.</p> - -<p>At Punta Delgada the prisoners taken in the great round-up were -carefully guarded on a ship of the fleet, never allowed on shore, and -only seen by one or two trusted persons who took them their food. No -one save Admiral Johnson, the four officers who had stood on the -bridge of the destroyer during the round-up, and two or three others -at Headquarters, knew how the submarines had been lured to their -destruction. All others simply supposed they had first been located by -radio compass, and then more exactly by the hydrophones of the -drifting chasers; and incidentally both of these facts were true.</p> - -<p>One day late in February, Fraser was in the radio room of the flagship -discussing with Evans the intricate system of radio communication by -which her many diverse duties as the brain of the fleet could be -performed in battle without mutual interference. The discussion was -profitable to both, for though a chief of staff cannot afford to -encumber his mind with an excess of technical details, nevertheless a -clear understanding of the principles on which the directing mind -coördinates the moving parts of a fleet is useful to all concerned. It -was the way in which principles were applied, rather than minute -details, with which this discussion dealt. Fraser desired to prolong -the conversation to a greater length than was feasible in the radio -room; so at last he said, “Let’s go ashore and talk over these things -where there isn’t so much going on.”</p> - -<p>“I can show you a quiet spot where nobody goes,” answered Evans.</p> - -<p>Together they went ashore and Evans led the way to the Borge garden. -The old gardener opened the gate, and the two men entered and strolled -off among the great tree-ferns and other rare plants. Fraser was -enchanted. He had never even heard of the place before. As they -explored the deep grottoes, he exclaimed with delight at the vistas of -rich and varied greenery. Finally their walk led them to the old -watch-tower at the top of the garden where they sat down and, looking -out under the branches of the old cedar toward the ocean, continued to -discuss communications and their relation to tactics. The little -birds, accustomed to a feast whenever Evans came to the garden, now -gathered round him and hopped on the ground searching for the usual -crumbs in vain, for to-day he was too much occupied to recall what was -expected of him.</p> - -<div id='i005' class='mt01 mb01 wi005'> - <img src='images/illus-005.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> -<p class='caption'>FRASER SCRATCHED ON THE GROUND DIAGRAMS ILLUSTRATIVE OF THE FORMATIONS HE HAD IN MIND</p> -</div> -<p>Evans, questioning Fraser about major naval actions, drew from him an -expression of his views on the most important elements of success. -Among these Fraser placed great emphasis on surprise. From this the -conversation went on to a discussion of the pros and cons of various -possible fleet formations, in which Evans questioned and listened -attentively. With a sharp stick Fraser scratched on the ground -diagrams illustrative of the formations he had in mind. A few leading -questions made him warm to his theme and crystallize certain ideas on -tactics hitherto latent in his mind. And as he disposed the great -units of the mighty Allied fleet on the wide expanse of the sea, he -kept reaching the point where his hands were tied by the limits of -visibility; in his tactics the units must be within sight of each -other to be operated accurately as coördinated parts of an organized -whole. This limitation restricted him, and he mentioned it -specifically as obstructing certain expansions in tactical arrangement -at which Evans had hinted.</p> - -<p>“Suppose you could find a way to overcome that limitation, and place -the divisions of the fleet in their desired relative positions beyond -the range of visibility, what use could you make of it; that is, what -effective formations might you then adopt?” asked Evans.</p> - -<p>“Well,” said Fraser, “that might open lots of possibilities. But how -could you ever place your divisions accurately at distances beyond the -limits of vision?”</p> - -<p>“If you wanted to badly enough, you could place and maintain any unit -in the fleet in any desired relation to any other by triangulation -from radio-compass bearings.”</p> - -<p>“That’s an idea,” said Fraser. “But, then, your units would have to -keep sending radio signals, and the enemy could locate them with -<i>their</i> radio compasses; so that you’d lose all the advantages of -surprise, and that would cut out most of what you might gain by that -sort of trick.”</p> - -<p>“Only one unit need reveal its position by sending radio; the rest can -take bearings on the signals of the key unit, and thus take station -without ever making a sound.”</p> - -<p>“That’s so,” said Fraser. “That opens some very interesting -possibilities.”</p> - -<p>He thought a while, and scratched more diagrams on the ground, -developing a few applications of this method. Evans discussed and -questioned and led him on. The wax was now plastic in his hands. With -acute suspense he watched Fraser’s mind work. Had he made the premises -suggestive enough, and would the main idea strike home? A false step -now might forever block the path to success. But what was this -preposterous thing he was doing? A vista opened before his mind’s eye -revealing vast armies stretching in unbroken line for hundreds of -miles across the continent of Europe while the whole world watched in -agonized suspense, and the colossal industries of the Western -Hemisphere, working feverishly, poured their great stream of food and -supplies across the ocean; and there on the placid sea before him lay -the great fleet, the keystone of an arch that spanned the world. And -he, a gunner, was seeking to sway the mind of the chief of staff of -that fleet. For a moment he felt weak and foolish in his impudence. -But then again he saw the picture in a larger perspective, and all -that was at stake spurred him on. The wax was indeed plastic in his -hands; a leading question, a veiled hint, and he saw Fraser’s mind -working toward the scheme he had outlined to Mortimer in the autumn. -As the plan evolved and took shape in the rough diagrams he was -scratching on the ground, Fraser’s enthusiasm grew till he was as keen -as a schoolboy learning a new game. Then he brought himself back to -earth and said:</p> - -<p>“The trouble is, to get away with it, you’d have to have the enemy in -just the right place, and then if the wind was wrong you’d lose most -of your advantage through the wrong kind of visibility.”</p> - -<p>“We got the enemy, or part of him, just about where we wanted him last -month,” said Evans.</p> - -<p>“In the submarine round-up,” said Fraser. “That’s so.”</p> - -<p>“There may still be possibilities in the same general technique,” -continued Evans. “As for weather, Commander Jeremy can tell us a -surprising amount about what the wind and visibility are going to be -like for several days ahead. Did you ever talk with him about that?”</p> - -<p>“No,” said Fraser. “I had an idea that the weather-prophet business -beyond twelve to eighteen hours was still pretty much guesswork. And, -anyway, be you ever so wise you can’t control the weather.”</p> - -<p>“No, but you can choose it,” said Evans. “You’d find it worth while to -talk with Jeremy. He has really done some remarkable work, and I -believe he could help you a good deal.”</p> - -<p>Fraser thought a moment.</p> - -<p>“But to get back to your placing battleship divisions by radio -compass,” he said at last; “don’t you think it would be too -complicated and uncertain to rely on in all the stress of a naval -action?”</p> - -<p>“Not if it’s worth doing,” answered Evans. “It’s no more complicated -or difficult than director firing or torpedo work or several other -things you rely on in battle, that have been perfected by intensive -effort and labor. It’s just a matter of insisting that the gear shall -be in working trim, and then everlastingly drilling the men in the use -of it.”</p> - -<p>For a moment Fraser sat deep in thought while the other watched him. -Then, as his face bespoke the conclusion of his train of thought, -Evans added:</p> - -<p>“The one thing I fear as a menace to the success of such a plan is -treachery. Any little leakage of information bearing on it might well -prove fatal. I should be afraid to have an intimation of the plan go -even to the General Staff in Washington.”</p> - -<p>Fraser looked at him hard and nodded thoughtfully.</p> - -<p>“Yes,” he said, “a hint of it to the enemy would be fatal. But -confidential messages to the General Staff are well safeguarded.”</p> - -<p>“Would any such message be necessary? I hate to think how easy it -would be for a radio operator of the wrong kind to tip some one off by -means of a cipher worked into the traffic; and you can’t know all -about every operator.”</p> - -<p>Fraser nodded.</p> - -<p>“That’s true,” he said; “it’ll pay to keep the lid on good and tight, -if we try any game like this. But then, that’s a big ‘if.’”</p> - -<p>During the next few days the ideas Fraser had arrived at during their -talk recurred to him from time to time with increasing force, but with -all his acumen he never knew the power of suggestion whereby the -strategic plan which so fired his enthusiasm had been laid before his -mind’s eye. At last he discussed, with some of the admirals in command -of divisions of the fleet, the question of training the personnel to -place their divisions in long-range formations by means of -radio-compass triangulation, and pointed out some of the tactical -advantages that might be had by so doing. The admirals for the most -part thought little of the idea. They were used to thinking of the -radio compass as a useful adjunct to navigation in thick weather, and -as being possibly useful in finding enemy submarines, but to use it -for fleet formations seemed ridiculous. Some thought it looked well on -paper, but wouldn’t work out in the practice; one or two simply didn’t -think. These officers, excellent men, well trained in their -profession, could hardly be blamed for shying at so radical an -innovation. An eminent scientist has said anent the inflexibility of -the mind in the latter half of its career, that, considering what an -immutable structure the nervous system becomes at maturity, the -remarkable fact is that we can take in any new ideas after fifty. The -flexible mind at this age is a rarity; the original mind at any age is -a rarity.</p> - -<p>Fraser sought Commander Jeremy and was surprised and impressed with -the number of verified predictions of weather several days in advance -and the regularity with which they were correctly made. The intricate -system of measurements of temperature, humidity, wind direction and -velocity presented a truly wonderful picture of scientific -development; and the way all these were correlated with similar data -from remote stations and the conclusions were reached was marvelous.</p> - -<p>Fraser refrained from mentioning these matters to Admiral Johnson -himself until he had noted the reaction of several of the rear -admirals to his tactical scheme as he proposed it, and until he had -given serious thought to their comments. Finally, having enlisted a -moderate degree of approval on the part of two of these men, he -suggested what he had in mind to Admiral Johnson. The Admiral, who -valued Fraser for the efficiency he had already shown, listened -attentively, but was disposed to shake his head at several features of -the plan. It sounded to him too fantastic and impracticable. -Nevertheless, he consented to discuss it at a conference with his rear -admirals.</p> - -<p>The conference was called and Fraser went into it with the conviction -that his proposal was fraught with momentous possibilities. But as the -discussion progressed, he found that with only halting and hesitant -support from the two admirals whose backing he had previously won, -even his buoyant enthusiasm was no match for the opposition of the -majority. But, since not one convincing argument against the scheme -was presented by any one, he was at the end of the conference more -convinced than ever of its essential soundness, and more determined to -fight for its adoption. After the other admirals had dispersed, Fraser -continued to discuss the matter with Admiral Johnson.</p> - -<p>“You see, Fraser,” said the Admiral, “you mustn’t let your enthusiasm -carry you away too far. The majority of the admirals were clearly -opposed to your idea.”</p> - -<p>“Yes,” answered Fraser, “but was there one single valid reason given -why it should not work?”</p> - -<p>“I don’t know about that,” answered the Admiral, “but it would be rash -policy to adopt all of a sudden a new type of formation differing -radically from that to which we are trained and which has been proved -efficient, especially when a failure of this new-fangled method with -which you propose to correlate the divisions would result in -disastrous confusion and loss of all-important concentration of -force.”</p> - -<p>“If we could hope to engage the enemy under tolerably favorable -conditions,” answered Fraser, “we should be justified in adhering to -the present well-tried formations, but they know our strength and -won’t chance it. Unless we can draw them out by making them think -conditions are favorable for them, they won’t come out at all; and -unless we have something up our sleeves better than they are prepared -for, we can’t afford to risk action under conditions which they deem -favorable. If things drag on as they are now, what does it mean? -Continued deadlock on sea like the deadlock on land. At the present -moment the deadlock on land is in danger of breaking for the worse. -The enemy have recently made a serious breach in our line by a new -trick in chemical warfare of which we have not the secret. There were -enough reserves available to close up the breach this time. But with -such methods, unknown to us, available to them, and with the marvelous -generalship of Murad, and his genius for making effective use of just -that sort of thing, the outlook for the war is very ominous unless we -can force their hand at sea. It’s worth everything to bring things to -a head in the most advantageous way. If the stake is worth it, we can -by adequate effort develop this method and make it work. Surely the -stake is worth it.”</p> - -<p>The Admiral sat for a while frowning and tapping his desk with his -fingers.</p> - -<p>“What assurance have you that this method will work?” he asked at -last. “Are you well enough acquainted with the technical difficulties -that may have to be overcome to guarantee its success?”</p> - -<p>“Technically it is the same method that has worked on destroyers in -finding and sinking submarines. I have not an intimate knowledge of -the technical details myself, but the radio gunner, Evans, who was -responsible for its proper working on the first successful submarine -hunt, knows more about it than any man in the navy; he has assured me -that it would be perfectly feasible to apply the same method on the -more extensive scale required for the maneuvers we’ve been -discussing.”</p> - -<p>“It’s risky to touch too closely on grand strategy in talking with a -gunner,” remarked the Admiral.</p> - -<p>“I trust this man’s discretion above that of most men of twice his -rank,” answered Fraser. “I have found his advice on technical radio -matters of the greatest value, and he has an unusual sense of the -fitness of such things from the tactical point of view. I wish you -would talk with him about this; he could answer your questions as to -the technical difficulties better than I can.”</p> - -<p>Admiral Johnson pondered the matter awhile and then decided to summon -the rear admirals again and let Fraser call in Evans to explain to -them more fully what radio direction-finding actually amounted to.</p> - -<p>It was an atmosphere well calculated to make the stoutest heart quail -that confronted Evans when Fraser brought him into the august -gathering of rear admirals, their patience already visibly tried by -the resumption of an apparently futile discussion. Admiral Johnson -explained to him that his testimony was desired on certain technical -questions concerning the radio compass. Carefully avoiding any -disclosure of the ultimate object in view, he endeavored to outline -the sort of service that might be required of the apparatus, and asked -if it could be relied upon to perform this service accurately, -regularly, and under a variety of adverse conditions. Evans with -difficulty suppressed a smile as he listened to the Admiral’s -elaborate and guarded wording of the question he had come prepared to -answer.</p> - -<p>He answered emphatically and unqualifiedly in the affirmative. And he -did not stop there. He went on to say:</p> - -<p>“Technically the service you mention is no different from that which -the radio compasses in cruisers, destroyers, chasers, and shore -stations are performing daily. The apparatus would be used in the same -way; it would simply be used for a different purpose.”</p> - -<p>One of the admirals asked if he thought it was well enough understood -to be safely relied on in an emergency.</p> - -<p>“Certainly,” answered Evans; “it is as well understood as a gun, and -that has been relied on in most of the emergencies in history.”</p> - -<p>“But isn’t it the work of a highly trained specialist to keep it in -proper working order and to use it accurately?”</p> - -<p>“There again, I can say, without hesitation, not the least bit more so -than a gun. It takes less skill to calibrate a radio compass than to -bore-sight a gun, and it is far easier to use it accurately than to -shoot straight with a gun; that is, with the accuracy required for -practical results. If one quarter the effort that is spent -bore-sighting guns and drilling gun crews were given to calibrating -and inspecting radio compasses and training the men to use them -quickly and accurately, and if the officers insisted on efficiency, -the radio compass would do its job just as surely as the guns under a -good gunnery officer. As for using the intelligence obtained with it, -that is up to the officers that handle the fleet, and in that respect -the Navy is not apt to fail.”</p> - -<p>Admiral Johnson was startled by the earnestness and assurance with -which he warmed to the conclusion of his remarks; some of those -present felt that he was verging on effrontery, and sought to snub him -with expressions of doubt.</p> - -<p>“Might I suggest,” said Evans, turning to Admiral Johnson, “that the -best way to settle this question and find out if the radio compass -will do what you want, is to try it with the ships at sea in a test -maneuver?”</p> - -<p>One rear admiral, incensed by the gunner’s evident contempt for the -authority with which he had essayed to set him down, and the unabashed -appeal to the higher authority of experiment, exclaimed testily: “It -would only be a waste of time, fuel, and energy.”</p> - -<p>“Would it involve any more time, fuel, and energy than the practice -cruises which are being made periodically at the present time?” asked -Evans quietly.</p> - -<p>“On these we drill the men at battle stations, gunnery practice, and -other things in which the fleet must be kept in constant training,” -said the rear admiral.</p> - -<p>“That could all be done while the proposed trial maneuver is going on, -without the slightest interference,” said Evans. “The men at battle -stations and the other regular drills needn’t even know that any other -test is being made; in fact, it would be better they shouldn’t.”</p> - -<p>Another rear admiral who had been inclined to favor the plan from the -first, now nodded in approval and remarked, “There’s some merit in -that idea.”</p> - -<p>Admiral Johnson then spoke.</p> - -<p>“I can see no reason why the question should not be put to the test of -a trial maneuver of the fleet, such as has been suggested. It is worth -while to experiment to that extent and see what can be done.”</p> - -<p>He then requested Fraser to make plans for a maneuver which would give -the proposed method of fleet coördination a fair test and to report to -him the next day. Then turning to Evans he thanked him for his -testimony, and, forgetting that Evans had just put the thought into -his head by his last remark, warned him to be extremely discreet and -repeat nothing of what he had heard to any one. Evans received the -warning with due courtesy and deference, and then withdrew.</p> - -<p>It was arranged that in a week’s time two battleship divisions should -take station on opposite sides, east and west, of a designated -rectangular area at sea; then a division of cruisers, with the -Commander-in-Chief on board, would steam into this area from the south -at a point unknown to the battleship divisions, and would continue on -a roughly northerly course; the flagship in the lead and another ship -at the rear, keeping a distance of just two miles between them, were -to send radio signals to each other continuously. The battleship -divisions, guided solely by their radio compasses, were to take -station, each in a stated position, relative to the cruiser force, far -enough away to be well out of sight, and were to maintain these -relative positions without sending any radio signals; then at a given -signal from the flagship they were to deploy toward her till visual -contact should reveal whether or no the assigned relative positions -had been accurately maintained. This was a fair test which should -answer the question whether the maneuver Fraser had so earnestly -advocated was feasible.</p> - -<p>The next few days Evans spent going continuously from ship to ship -inspecting and testing the radio compasses in all that were to -participate in the maneuver, and satisfying himself that the operators -were proficient in their use. The necessary testing of apparatus and -quizzing of men took all his time from morning till night, and, as he -sank into bed after the second day, dead tired, the feverish activity -pursued him into his sleep. In his dreams he was still restlessly -whirling the coils in a search of the elusive bearing—never quite -satisfactorily obtained; or trying over and over again to drive into a -stupid operator’s mind an intangible something which he couldn’t -crystallize in his own. Ill refreshed by his sleep he rose and plunged -into the task anew, questioning operators searchingly, drilling them -when necessary, explaining to them points on which they were not -clear. Before the week was over, he was able to rest with the -assurance that the men would not fail him in this crucial test.</p> - -<p>The ships put to sea, the two battleship divisions going first to -their allotted places of waiting where with the usual drills the minds -of all were kept occupied, none but the communication officers being -apprised of the nature of the tests to be made. Admiral Johnson, -flying his flag on a scout cruiser, then led the cruiser force into -the designated area, laying a course that would put the -direction-finding procedure to a real test. The visibility was low; -barely two miles could a battleship be seen through the low-lying -haze. The stream of radio traffic between the leading scout and the -cruiser at the rear end of the line was begun and duly maintained. For -thirty miles the column steamed northward after entering the -designated area; twice they changed course, to render the task of the -battleships more difficult. Then at last the signal was given for the -battleships to deploy inward. When the forms of the battleships loomed -up through the haze both east and west almost simultaneously, Admiral -Johnson knew at once that they could not have been far from the -positions assigned; and when their reports were all in and the -laying-out of the day’s work on the plotting-board revealed that each -division had held its relative position to within half a mile -throughout the maneuver, he knew that he had in truth a powerful -weapon in his hand.</p> - -<p>Immediately after this convincing demonstration, Admiral Johnson -showed his worth by vigorously sweeping aside all objections on the -part of the more conservative admirals and insisting that the new -method of tactical coördination should be developed to a high degree -of perfection; and in this he relied largely on Fraser. With the -increased hope of gaining an advantage through surprise, the Admiral’s -eagerness for a decisive action increased, and he cudgeled his wits to -think how this desired end could be attained. Fraser, himself able to -assimilate at a single meal the three ideas which had developed in his -conversation with Evans, knew better than to feed them to Admiral -Johnson more than one at a time. He now met the Admiral’s desire to -draw out the enemy by suggesting various ways of presenting an outlook -that would appear favorable to the enemy Intelligence Service.</p> - -<p>Frequent conferences followed between Fraser and Barton; and -consultations with Jeremy on the weather problem. Conferences also -occurred between Barton and Evans, unknown even to Fraser. The fleet -engaged in an increasing number of practice cruises at sea on which -they worked out various problems of group maneuvering by means of -radio-compass triangulation, and yet all of the ships’ companies -except those directly concerned were kept busy at their own tasks, and -remained in complete ignorance of this new feature of the fleet’s -activity.</p> - -<p>As the month of March drew to a close, a subtle feeling diffused -through the fleet that something of moment was in the air. In wardroom -conversation remarks were dropped that vaguely reflected this -quickening of the spirit of impending adventure. Yet no one could -trace this feeling to its source. Was it, after all, anything more -than the magic influence of spring which even to the worker within -brick walls comes and permeates the core of his emotional being with a -strange elation and a sense of universal expansion? Perhaps even in -these semi-tropical islands, where there is little of the rotation of -seasons as we know it in the North, the approach of April filled the -men with a yearning that found its expression in this general sense -that some great event was about to happen.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chXI' title='XI—Intrigue and Mischief'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XI</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>INTRIGUE AND MISCHIEF</span> -</h2> -<p>Throughout these days Evans maintained vigilant and nerve-racking -watch over the personnel with a view to detecting any leakage of -information by radio which might give the enemy a hint about the code. -For more than one reason he now began to contemplate with increasing -uneasiness the incumbency of Commander Rich as head of the Radio -Division of the Bureau of Engineering in Washington. When Captain -Brigham had told Commander White, the preceding August, about -Commander Rich’s advice to him on the subject of the radio equipment -on the flagship, White had, of course, carefully refrained from -repeating the remarks of his chief to Evans. But when in the autumn he -was relieved by Commander Elkins, White had explained the situation to -his successor and told him how Brigham’s attitude had been responsible -for virtually putting the most important part of the radio equipment -out of commission. In the course of his explanation White had quoted -Captain Brigham’s remark about his conversation with Rich, which -revealed the fact that this high official had actually encouraged the -dismantling of apparatus whose value, though unknown to Brigham, was -well understood by Elkins. In the course of the winter Elkins placed -ever-increasing confidence in Evans as they worked together in the -nerve center of the fleet. One day he told him of this remark of -Captain Brigham’s which White had passed on to him. Elkins mentioned -it as evidence of ultra-conservatism in the Bureau, constituting a -difficulty with which they were obliged to reckon. To Evans it -appeared not merely as a troublesome obstacle, but as a cause of grave -uneasiness.</p> - -<p>Another thing which enhanced this feeling was the fact that he had -found several important pieces of radio apparatus, recently shipped -from the navy test shop in Washington, seriously defective. What was -more, the defects did not appear to be such as could be ascribed to -sheer carelessness of workmanship; they were in vital parts of the -apparatus, always where most difficult to discover, and most -inaccessible and troublesome to remedy. The frequency with which these -conditions were found was greater than could be laid to the common -perversity of complex apparatus. Yet nothing of this sort had been -definite enough to arouse in him much more than a vague sense of -uneasiness, nor to make him feel justified in mentioning his fears to -either Elkins or Barton. One night, as he lay in his berth pondering -the significance of these defects which kept coming to light, there -flashed on his mind the recollection that when last in Washington he -had often seen Wellman going to see Commander Rich in his private -office. At the time, this had not added much to his uneasiness about -Rich, for, being already convinced that Wellman was a spy, it seemed -only natural that he should be assiduously cultivating the head of the -Radio Division; but now it began to haunt him. The malignant look he -fancied he had seen in Rich’s face came back to him. At the time, he -had persuaded himself that it was a trick of his imagination provoked -by pique. Now the memory of that look returned and would not be set -aside. Late into the night he tossed on his mattress, devoured by -ominous conjectures. When sleep came at last, the face of Rich, its -malignity horribly intensified, haunted his dreams.</p> - -<p>It was near the end of March; the preparations in the fleet were daily -assuming a more momentous import, and efficiency in the flagship’s -center of communication was more vital than ever. Radio Gunner Long -now arrived at Punta Delgada from Washington, and presented himself -aboard the flagship with orders from the Bureau of Engineering to make -certain changes in the radio apparatus, changes which were the result -of secret developments just made in the laboratories of the Bureau. -Evans recalled having seen Long occasionally in the Bureau at -Washington, though he had scarcely made his acquaintance. Now he -received him with cordial attention, and asked him all the news from -Washington, showing especial interest in the new developments which -Long had come to introduce. In this he met a rebuff. Long answered his -questions with generalities, evading any disclosure of the nature of -the changes he was going to make. These were confidential, and his -duty to the Bureau of Engineering constrained him from revealing their -nature to any one.</p> - -<p>It was nearing the noon hour when Long first began looking over the -gear in the radio room in preparation for commencing alterations. -Evans and the chief radio electrician were both in the radio room -about their various duties, and offered to help Long at his task. He -declined their offers; the job he was going to do was one that he -could manage better by himself. He spent a good deal of time getting -out pliers and other tools and looking them over; he stopped to -examine this and that piece of apparatus, and altogether seemed to be -very slow in getting to work. Eight-bells struck, and Evans asked Long -if he wasn’t coming down to lunch.</p> - -<p>“I think I’ll stay here and work,” said Long. “I’m not very hungry -to-day.”</p> - -<p>So Evans went to lunch, leaving Long alone in the radio room except -for the operator on watch. He had not been gone two minutes, however, -before he returned to get a notebook he had left there. Entering -quickly, he saw Long rise hastily from behind one of the receivers at -the sound of the opening door, and on his face an ugly scowl gave way -rapidly to a look of utter indifference. The place where Long was at -work was so concealed from the operator on watch that it was -impossible for him to see anything of the nature of the changes Long -was making without leaving the receiver at which it was his duty to -listen. Evans remarked something about forgetting his notebook, -fumbled for a minute among the papers on the table, then left again -and went to his lunch.</p> - -<p>When next he returned, half an hour later, Long was in a different -part of the radio room making some adjustments on the main -transmitter, and took no notice at all of Evans as he entered.</p> - -<p>Evans sat down unconcernedly and looked over some recent dispatches, -then began to engage Long in conversation. A few platitudes were -exchanged, and the atmosphere became a bit less tense. Evans began -tinkering with some apparatus, and, opening a drawer, took out a strip -of polished metal and set it down on the bench before him, propped -against the panel of a receiver. Looking intently at the panel and -with his back to Long, he asked in a casual voice, “What do you think -of Commander Rich as an authority on radio?”</p> - -<p>The reflection in the metal strip revealed a sudden start and a quick -glance at Evans, but the voice was casual enough as Long replied, -“Why, he’s the greatest radio man we’ve got. Of course, I scarcely -know him personally, but from all I’ve heard, I guess he heads the -list, all right.”</p> - -<p>Evans continued to tinker with some odds and ends on the bench in -front of him and to examine the adjustments of the receiver, glancing -now and then at the strip of metal. Long continued to kill time, -fussing ineffectually over some wires. Evans then sat down comfortably -in a chair with his feet up in another, and, taking his slide-rule out -of his pocket, began to seek in it the answer to a mathematical -riddle. He was determined not to leave the room now until Long had -left it, and not then until he had done a bit of looking round. He -made it evident that he was settling down to stay. But the slide-rule -told him nothing more erudite than that two times two equals four; and -even that bit of erudition was quite lost on him, for his thoughts -were tussling with ugly conjectures.</p> - -<p>An hour passed; Long kept as busy as he was able doing nothing, while -Evans wielded his slide-rule, and once in a while scribbled a figure -on a slip of paper. At last Long said, “Well, I guess I’ll go to the -machine shop and see if I can find some things I shall need -to-morrow.”</p> - -<p>Evans took no notice of him as he went out, but, as soon as the sound -of his steps had died away, he opened the door and looked out to be -sure Long was not still lurking near by. Then shutting it again he -hastened to examine the apparatus. He soon satisfied himself that the -only changes Long had made in the main transmitter were trifling -readjustments whose only effect would be to impair its efficiency a -little without making enough trouble to attract the attention of the -operators. Clearly that was not worth sending a man all the way from -Washington to do. Evans then began examining the gear in the vicinity -in which he had surprised Long when he first returned after his false -departure for lunch. At first everything appeared to be wholly -undisturbed. But on more careful examination he saw the tiny scratch -of a screwdriver freshly made on the woodwork at the back of a -receiver not much used in port, but on which much would depend in -communicating with the fleet in action. Seizing a screwdriver he -hastily opened the receiver. Inside everything appeared as it should -be; not a wire appeared displaced. But as he examined it more closely -with a flashlight something caught his eye. Two wires had been removed -from their terminals and then adjusted so that they rested in contact -with them and would continue to do so as long as the receiver was not -disturbed, but their position was so unstable that the jarring of the -ship under way was certain to shake them loose and leave their ends -dangling in the air. The result of this would be that as long as the -ship remained in harbor the receiver would meet all tests without a -flaw, but as soon as she put to sea this important means of receiving -information from the fleet would be crippled.</p> - -<p>The case against Long was proved as far as Evans was concerned, and he -no longer had any doubts as to Commander Rich’s complicity. He must -see Barton at once. He looked at his watch and recalled that Fraser -and Elkins had already gone ashore to meet Barton, and that in less -than an hour these three were to start on a tour of inspection of the -defenses on Saint Michael’s, Santa Maria, and Formigas where were -located the stations with the devices for detecting the approach of -hostile craft to the outer line of nets. They would not return till -late in the afternoon of the following day. It was just time for a -boat with a liberty party to shove off for the shore; there would not -be another for an hour, and that would be too late. He must catch that -boat. He said to the operator on watch and the chief radio electrician -who had just entered, “Keep your eyes open and notice the changes Mr. -Long is making, as far as you can; it will make it easier for him to -teach you anything you will need to know about operating the set when -he gets through.”</p> - -<p>Then leaving the room he ran for all he was worth till he came on -deck, and, rushing to the starboard rail, looked over. There was the -big motor-sailer already loaded with sailors and away, swinging round -to her course for the inner harbor; in a minute she would be passing -close to the ladder hanging from the boom off the quarter-deck.</p> - -<p>Now every man aboard ship must ask permission to go ashore, and the -officer of the deck is stationed at the gangway when the liberty -parties leave, to grant such permission, but to a man performing such -duties as Evans’s, requiring frequent excursions at all sorts of -times, the mumbling of “Permission to leave the ship” as he steps over -the rail soon becomes an empty form and is relegated to the -subconscious. Furthermore, Evans was quite accustomed to climbing down -into the motor-sailer from the boom in order to rig a temporary -transmitter in her for testing some of the radio gear aboard the ship. -For such a purpose the formal permission to leave the ship was -commonly waived or completely overlooked. Therefore, it was not wholly -unnatural that when Evans came on deck, in his eagerness to convey his -news to Barton he simply forgot all about formalities and made for the -boom. Running nimbly out on it and slipping down the ladder, he hailed -the coxswain of the motor-sailer, who swung in a few feet from his -course to take him aboard. Ensign Coffee was officer of the deck at -the time, and witnessed the performance. This mode of leaving the ship -was not for a moment to be countenanced. Seizing a megaphone this -irate officer called sharply to the coxswain and ordered him to return -at once to the ship, and, when she was at the gangway, ordered Evans -to come aboard, then sent the motor-sailer once more on her way.</p> - -<p>“What does this mean?” asked Coffee sternly. “Why didn’t you come and -ask permission to leave the ship?”</p> - -<p>“I came on deck after the boat had shoved off,” answered Evans, now in -the position of a schoolboy caught playing truant; “I had an urgent -errand on shore in connection with the radio apparatus, and as I had -always been granted permission so regularly that I had come to take it -as a matter of course, I simply didn’t think of it, but, in my haste, -made for the boat as I saw her go by the boom.”</p> - -<p>“Well, you won’t take it as a matter of course any more,” said Coffee. -“That sounds to me like a pretty thin excuse. Go to your room and -we’ll look into this matter a little further.”</p> - -<p>Evans looked Coffee squarely in the eyes and said quietly but -earnestly, “May I speak to the Captain first? It is about a matter of -great importance, and there’s no time to lose.”</p> - -<p>“I am the officer of the deck,” answered Coffee with great dignity, -“and I represent the Captain as far as you are concerned. I have heard -more than I wish to hear from you already. Go to your room.”</p> - -<p>The corporal of the guard and a quartermaster were standing by -watching the scene. Evans hesitated a moment wondering if there were -any way of persuading Coffee that a real emergency existed, but the -look of the man convinced him that he might as well talk to a pumpkin. -A futile attempt would only do harm. Therefore he went to his room and -sat down to think matters over.</p> - -<p>Ensign Coffee reported this incident to the executive officer of the -flagship. Fraser and Elkins were already ashore with Barton, and the -executive officer knew nothing of Evans and his duties, but the -incident looked to him suspicious. He therefore started inquiries as -to Evans’s activities aboard the ship. When he learned that he had -been making changes in the radio receiver, the exact nature of which -was not fully understood by any one else on the ship, he concluded -that Evans required close watching, and ordered him confined to his -room with a guard at the door.</p> - -<p>Here was a nice situation. Fraser, Elkins, and Barton away for at -least twenty-four hours; Evans locked in his room with little or no -hope of release till they should return. In that time Long might work -untold damage to the radio room; there were hidden parts of the -mechanism that he might break, which would take weeks to repair. Worse -than this, he might by skillful questioning draw valuable information -from the operators; he might even get hold of secret code books, and -then on the pretext of making tests on the transmitter, send out -signals in a code of his own that would divulge vital information to -the enemy. Worst of all, he might find some clue to the secret of the -stolen code and how by its aid the seven submarines had been lured to -their doom. Then all that was hoped for by the further use of this -talisman would be lost. In his agony of apprehension Evans became -almost frantic. He racked his brains to think of some line of action. -When the guard was placed at his door, he realized his utter -helplessness to do anything to avert disaster. He knew that Barton had -confided nothing of his unusual status to any of his colleagues in the -Bureau of Intelligence; it would avail little to communicate with them -even if he were able. After all, what was his status? A radio gunner, -and nothing more. His private conversations with Barton were purely -informal, and gave him no official claim whatever to the consideration -of other officers who were not acquainted with him. Still, if he could -only have an interview with some officer in the Intelligence Bureau he -might be able to secure action; the emergency would justify his -telling things it had hitherto been his rule to mention to none but -Barton.</p> - -<p>With an effort at composure he began talking to himself.</p> - -<p>“This is a pretty pickle for me,” he said aloud. “I suppose they’ll be -having the Intelligence officers out here to put me through the third -degree. Then what’ll happen?”</p> - -<p>The guard heard, and, when relieved, reported his remarks to the -executive officer.</p> - -<p>“Well, I think the best medicine for him is to let his fears come -true,” said this officer.</p> - -<p>He did not consider it worth while to do anything that evening, but -early next morning he dispatched a note ashore, requesting of the -Intelligence Bureau an officer to investigate some suspicious conduct -on the part of one of the ship’s company. On receipt of this message a -young lieutenant attached to Commander Barton’s office was sent aboard -the flagship to make the investigation.</p> - -<p>Now Barton, as is the way of some Intelligence officers, did not -confide all he knew to his colleagues. No one in his entire force knew -the nature of his relations with Evans; few of them even knew of the -latter’s existence. Therefore, when the young lieutenant undertook his -mission he had wholly new ground to break.</p> - -<p>The night had been for Evans one of acute mental torture. Visions of -Long’s possible revelations to the enemy kept rising before him. -Suddenly it flashed on his mind that Long was the same radio gunner -that had been on the Sheridan when she was wrecked. Out of the depths -of his subconscious memories came the words of the operator whom he -had questioned on his visit to the wrecked ship in the Boston Navy -Yard:</p> - -<p>“He was here in the shack and sent me to get some wire or something -from the main radio room an hour or so before we struck.”</p> - -<p>What a dunce he had been not to think of it before! Long had gone -aboard the <i>Sheridan</i> to shift the position of that circular scale, -after first showing the navigator how well the radio compass worked, -so that he would trust it. It wasn’t his own idea, either; Rich had -sent him—Evans would bet his last dollar on that. Of course, it all -fitted in with that gallant officer’s denunciation of radio compasses -in general to Mortimer as soon as the <i>Sheridan</i> went aground. What -about the Gloucester station? Ten to one some one else had been -tampering with that at the same time, only there he had had an -opportunity to cover his tracks by putting things back in their proper -adjustment afterwards, whereas on the <i>Sheridan</i> the operator had -stayed in the shack till they took to the boats, and Long had had no -chance to put the scale back where it belonged.</p> - -<p>Now this devil was here in the flagship’s radio room at the behest of -Rich, with a free hand for nearly twenty-four hours. And Evans had -lost his chance to trip him up. Never had he suffered so in all his -life. At last, realizing the hopelessness of attempting to do anything -before morning, he tried to sleep. But sleep would not come. Toward -morning he dozed occasionally only to wake with a start as -apprehension began to assume the reality of a dream image, and the -nightmare sense that his fears had come true roused him again to full -consciousness.</p> - -<p>In the morning, when the young officer from the Intelligence Bureau -arrived, he found Evans looking haggard and worn, with deep circles -under his eyes, like one haunted by a bad conscience. Evans welcomed -his arrival and endeavored to explain the situation, but the officer -cut short his explanations, rebuking him sharply for trying to shift -the blame to a fellow warrant officer. It soon became evident that his -investigator had his mind made up that Evans was engaged in some plot, -and could not be made to listen to anything he said. Evans also became -convinced that specific information about Long would not only be -disbelieved, but was apt to be repeated indiscreetly to some one who -would pass it on to others, till Long would hear of it and be put on -his guard. Clearly, then, the less he told this officer the better. He -therefore abandoned his attempt to explain matters and became as -noncommittal as possible.</p> - -<p>The Intelligence officer sought to question Evans concerning his -activities aboard the ship. All he could elicit from him was that he -had been sent by the Bureau of Engineering to look after the -efficiency of the radio apparatus in the fleet and to effect whatever -repairs were needed to make it do what was wanted of it. More detailed -questions brought out only technicalities that he did not understand. -He tried frightening him into making confessions, but Evans’s -equanimity remained unruffled.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant was stumped, and was debating what his next move should -be, when Evans said:</p> - -<p>“Shall you see Commander Barton when you go ashore?”</p> - -<p>“Yes. Why?” answered the other, taken aback.</p> - -<p>“If you don’t mind, I should be grateful if you would tell him that I -should like very much to see him as soon as possible. You have my -name?”</p> - -<p>“I have your name,” said the young lieutenant, astonished. “Perhaps -you’ll see more of Commander Barton than you want.”</p> - -<p>Here was a bit of cool effrontery the like of which he had never seen. -What could it mean? Perhaps it might be a clue, but how to interpret -it was beyond him. Perhaps he had better report his interview to -Commander Barton and see if he could make anything of it.</p> - -<p>First, he went to the executive officer and told him that the case was -very puzzling, that he thought he had made a little progress, but had -best confer with Commander Barton before going further. It was not -till late that afternoon that Barton returned to Headquarters in Punta -Delgada. As soon as he arrived, the young lieutenant who had -interviewed Evans reported the whole story to his chief. Commander -Barton listened gravely, and at the end said, “You did quite right to -come back and report to me. I’ll go aboard and look into it myself.”</p> - -<p>Barton lost no time getting aboard the flagship and down to Evans’s -room. He dismissed the guard, and, entering, found Evans in a state of -mind which showed him that a situation of no ordinary sort had arisen. -Evans hastily told him what had happened and mentioned briefly his -reasons for believing that Commander Rich was at the bottom of the -plot, including what he knew of Long’s part in the Sheridan affair. -Barton listened attentively and thought a moment.</p> - -<p>“Some time I’ll tell you something else about that Sheridan business,” -he said; “but now the thing to do is to get this man Long locked up at -once.”</p> - -<p>“Do you suppose you could get some useful information by keeping him -under observation awhile without letting him know he’s under arrest?” -asked Evans.</p> - -<p>“We might do that; anyway, we must be about it. Wait here till I see -Fraser.”</p> - -<p>Fraser and Elkins had returned to the flagship before Barton had come -aboard, but the executive officer had not deemed it worth while -telling the chief of staff about Evans’s conduct and subsequent -confinement. Barton now explained to Fraser what had happened, still -not intimating that Evans was in the habit of having secret -conferences with him, but merely putting his actions on the ground of -his sense of the importance of reporting what he had learned to -Intelligence Headquarters, in the absence of Elkins. Evans was sent -for, and explained to Fraser in detail what had happened in the radio -room. It was then decided that Fraser should tell Long that he was -wanted for certain important duties at Intelligence Headquarters, and -should send him ashore with Barton.</p> - -<p>Long was found in the radio room examining some of the newer -apparatus, but apparently not meddling with it at the moment. He was -told that his services had been requested by the Intelligence Bureau, -and that the chief of staff desired him to get his personal effects -and go ashore at once with Commander Barton who was waiting for him. -At Headquarters he was given supper, and then shown to his quarters. -He was to sleep in a room with another warrant officer, and in the -morning his new duties would be explained to him. He turned in early, -and through the night sentries from concealed positions kept watch on -the door and window of his room.</p> - -<p>In the mean time on board the flagship, Evans hastened to the radio -room to ascertain, if possible, what mischief Long had been up to. He -questioned the operators who had been on watch, avoiding any -implication that he suspected mischief, merely putting his questions -as if interested only in the amount of progress made. In this way he -was able to get a preliminary idea as to which pieces of apparatus he -had best examine for evidence of tampering. He also contrived, without -arousing their curiosity, to question the operators further as to -Long’s activities. Had he tested any of the transmitters? Yes, he had -sent signals with considerable power for nearly half an hour. Had he -called any station in doing so? Apparently not; he seemed to be just -testing the gear and sending blank signals. Anyway, he had not made -use of any of the codes; all the code books had been locked up all the -time. This latter news, at least, was good; but what were the blank -signals that Long had sent? This was now the main question, and Evans -saw no way to answer it.</p> - -<p>Before Barton went ashore with his unwitting prisoner, he and Evans -had agreed that no time should be lost in warning Mortimer of Rich’s -probable complicity in the plot.</p> - -<p>“Use your special method of reaching the Secretary,” Barton had said. -“We have no means as prompt and as free from the danger of leakage as -that.”</p> - -<p>So now, before waiting to make a thorough search for damage to the -extensive array of apparatus in the room, Evans merely assured himself -that a certain transmitter was in working order, and sat down to make -one of his periodical “tests of its efficiency.” It will be recalled -that two civilian experts in the Bureau of Engineering, Tompkins and -Rand by name, were the men whom Evans had charged Mortimer to keep -ever on the job to apprise him of such messages as Evans might send. -On this particular evening in Washington, Tompkins had the duty. At a -late hour that night, the following message came into his hands:</p> - -<blockquote> -<p>We have evidence suggesting that the man I warned you against last -spring is involved in treason. Watch him closely. E.</p> - -</blockquote> -<p>Tompkins telephoned at once to Mortimer’s house to ask if he could see -him, but was told that the Secretary had gone to bed very tired. He -decided to wait till morning. The next day he went early to the -Secretary’s office, but was told that Mortimer had not yet arrived. He -therefore returned to his own office in the Bureau of Engineering to -attend to some business. As soon as he felt sure the Secretary would -be in his office, he set out again to deliver his message.</p> - -<p>Now during the night while Evans was confined to his room under guard, -Long had asked many questions of the operators on watch in the radio -room. Among other things he learned that Evans not infrequently sent -dummy messages to “test the transmitter.” It was after he had learned -this that Long did the same thing himself. Within two hours Commander -Rich in Washington had received a slip of paper with the following -words written on it:</p> - -<blockquote> -<p>E. has been sending out signals. Watch for delivery to Sec. L.</p> - -</blockquote> -<p>When Tompkins left his office in quest of Mortimer, he was confronted -by Commander Rich.</p> - -<p>“I understand you were looking for the Secretary this morning,” he -said. “You must understand that no one in the Bureau is permitted to -communicate with any one except through his immediate superior. If you -have anything to communicate to the Secretary, you must do so through -me.”</p> - -<p>“I understood,” replied Tompkins, “that as a civilian employee that -rule did not apply to me. I have merely an unofficial message for the -Secretary.”</p> - -<p>“As long as you are working in this division of the Bureau you are -under my orders,” said Rich. “If you have a message for the Secretary, -give it to me and I will see that it is delivered promptly.”</p> - -<p>Tompkins did not know against whom Evans had warned Mortimer, and had -no reason to suspect Rich of anything more than a desire to assert his -authority, yet he knew that he should entrust this message to no one, -but should deliver it in person.</p> - -<p>He therefore replied, “It is the Secretary’s wish that I should -deliver this message to him myself.”</p> - -<p>“It is the Secretary’s wish that discipline should be maintained in -the Department, and that orders should be obeyed. It is by his -authority that every one in this division of the Bureau is under my -orders. You will therefore hand over the message to me.”</p> - -<p>“I am afraid that I cannot do so without the express authority of the -Secretary,” replied Tompkins.</p> - -<p>A dark flush of anger appeared on Rich’s face, but he controlled -himself and took another tack.</p> - -<p>“See here,” he said; “I understand about these confidential messages. -You are making an unnecessary fuss over nothing. The Secretary wants -me to keep things going through the regular channels as far as -possible, and cut out some of the irregularities that are apt to -appear if we get too slack about the regulations, that’s all. However, -to set your mind at rest I’ll get him on the telephone and let him -reassure you himself. Come into my room while I call him.”</p> - -<p>Tompkins followed Rich into his private office where Rich sat down at -his desk and took up the telephone receiver.</p> - -<p>“Give me Secretary Mortimer,” he said. Then in a few seconds, “Mr. -Secretary? Good-morning. Do you recall speaking to me about stiffening -up the regulations and seeing that all communications went through the -proper channels?... Well, Mr. Tompkins, one of our expert radio aides, -has a message for you that he wants to deliver in person. He has -scruples about entrusting it to me; I thought you might like to -reassure him yourself. He’s right here.”</p> - -<p>Rich then handed the telephone to Tompkins who was answered by a voice -that he recognized clearly as Mortimer’s, saying, “That’s all right, -Tompkins; give Commander Rich the message. I think it’s a better way; -it will excite less notice if you don’t keep coming to my office.”</p> - -<p>There seemed now to be no doubt that he must do as he was told; so he -drew from his pocket the sealed envelope containing the message and -handed it to Commander Rich, who received it graciously, saying, “You -see the Secretary and I are in perfect understanding about all this; -you need have no fears.”</p> - -<p>His manner was both authoritative and reassuring, yet as Tompkins left -the room he felt a qualm of uneasiness at leaving the message behind -him. He contemplated talking the affair over with Rand, but their -duties kept them in the midst of other people during the day, and no -good opportunity to do so appeared.</p> - -<p>Half an hour after Tompkins left his message with Rich, a messenger -from the Bureau of Engineering called at Mortimer’s office and asked -to see the Secretary, saying he had an urgent message. He was shown -in, handed a sealed envelope to Mortimer and withdrew. Mortimer opened -the envelope and read with amazement the words:</p> - -<blockquote> -<p>Recall Fraser to Washington at once. Urgent. E.</p> - -</blockquote> -<p>He examined the handwriting carefully; surely it was that of Tompkins. -But why had not Tompkins delivered it in person? He reached for his -telephone and asked for the Bureau of Engineering. Getting the Bureau, -he asked for Tompkins, but his call was answered by Commander Rich.</p> - -<p>“Mr. Secretary? Good-morning,” he said. “Mr. Tompkins received a -confidential message for you this morning just as he was leaving the -office in response to a telegram saying that his wife, who is out of -town, had been taken seriously ill. The poor man was distracted, for -he felt that he must deliver this message to you in person, yet he -hadn’t a moment to spare to catch his train. I told him to go to his -wife, and promised I would deliver the message to you at once. So I -sent it round by a trustworthy messenger. It was just as he handed it -to me with the seal unbroken.”</p> - -<p>Mortimer pondered the question. Could there be a mistake? Evans had -assured him that his system was as proof against error as was humanly -possible, safeguarded by a method of double-checking to ensure it -against the misspelling of names. It had never failed. And there -before him was this surprising message in Tompkins’s own hand. Why -should Fraser be recalled? There must be a good reason. Having -excluded every possible source of error he could imagine, he concluded -that he had best maintain his faith in Evans who had never yet failed -him. He therefore arranged to have orders cabled to Punta Delgada -detaching Captain Fraser to return immediately to Washington.</p> - -<p>That afternoon, at the end of the day’s work, Tompkins had just -arrived at his rooms when he was called to the telephone. Again he -recognized Secretary Mortimer’s voice.</p> - -<p>“Mr. Tompkins, I want to see you about a matter of great importance. I -will send my car to your rooms to bring you to my house. The car will -be there in about ten minutes; please be ready for it.”</p> - -<p>In ten minutes a limousine drew up in front of the door. The chauffeur -wore a smart livery. Seated in the tonneau was another man. Tompkins -stepped in and sat down beside him.</p> - -<p>“Good-evening,” said the man. “I wonder what this conference is about; -the Secretary merely asked me to come to his house. I’m in the -electrical manufacturing business.”</p> - -<p>The car started rapidly and soon turned into an unfrequented street; -there it slowed down. Two men ran out from the sidewalk, jumped on the -running-board, and the car sped on. One of the men got into the -tonneau beside Tompkins, and instantly seized his hands, while the -electrical manufacturer threw a gag over his mouth. He was also -blindfolded, so that thenceforth he knew not where they were going. -For seven hours the car sped on through the night, and toward the end -of the journey the sound of the engine told him it was climbing a -considerable grade. The road became rougher, then rougher still. At -last, some time after midnight, the car stopped, and Tompkins was -taken out and conducted through an overgrown wood road for some -distance to an abandoned lumberman’s shack where the gag and blindfold -bandage were removed, and he found himself surrounded by six armed -men. He had not the remotest idea where he was, but evidently it was -far from Washington. The hut in reality was in the vastnesses of the -Shenandoah Mountains. It would have been a simple matter to seal his -lips for all time, but Rich had instructed that instead he be -carefully guarded in the hope that by appropriate treatment useful -information might be extracted from him. And here let us leave him.</p> - -<p>The next morning, early, before any one else had arrived at the -Bureau, Commander Rich was in his office, pacing up and down. -Presently there was a knock at the door, and a man with a sallow face -entered.</p> - -<p>“How about it?” said Rich quickly.</p> - -<p>“They got him off, all right. I’ve just been talking with Calvani by -long-distance phone. He had just got down out of the mountains, and -says they’ve lodged the beggar where you told ’em to.”</p> - -<p>“Good,” said Rich, and lit a cigarette.</p> - -<p>“I wonder how many more of these secret messengers there are knocking -round the works,” he continued; then, scowling, added, “We haven’t got -to the bottom of all this business yet. I’d give anything to know -where that man Heringham disappeared to, and what he’s up to. Why in -hell didn’t you get the dope on him while you were there in London?”</p> - -<p>“I couldn’t shadow both him and Evans when they separated,” was the -answer; “and I thought Evans was the more important.”</p> - -<p>“Remember, hereafter,” muttered Rich savagely, “that I like results a -whole lot better than excuses.”</p> - -<p>And with that he sat down at his desk and waved the sallow man away.</p> - -<p>At Punta Delgada, Evans, having sent his message of warning about -Rich, proceeded to examine all the apparatus which the information of -the operators led him to suspect that Long had molested. Considerable -damage had been done, always of the same sort as that which he found -in the receiver. The man certainly was ingenious. Inaccessible parts -had been broken or damaged in a manner calculated to do the maximum -harm with the minimum symptoms, so that it would be a long time before -the operators suspected that anything was wrong, and longer still -before they could trace the trouble to its cause. He was relieved to -find that, troublesome as was the breakage, the worst of it could be -repaired within a week. What bothered him most now was the -question—what and to whom had Long been signaling in his half-hour’s -test? His worst fear was that Long might have discovered some clue to -the secret of Wellman’s stolen code book, and passed it on to his -confederates.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chXII' title='XII—The Victim'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XII</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>THE VICTIM</span> -</h2> -<p>At Intelligence Headquarters in Punta Delgada there was an expert -psychologist, versed in all the latest and most scientific methods of -probing a man’s veracity. With a sensitive galvanometer connected to -the hands of the subject, he could detect the slightest emotional -disturbance when no other evidence would reveal it. The morning after -Long was taken ashore with the understanding that his skill as an -electrician was to be utilized at Headquarters, Barton explained to -him that the task they wanted him for was one requiring presence of -mind and other faculties for which they wished to give him a -psychological test. Barton was well aware that as likely as not Long -knew he was caught, and was not to be fooled; but what if he did? They -had him, and he would have to submit to their test in any case. And in -any case their tests would reveal what they wanted. Since uncertainty -as to whether he was a prisoner or not was apt to increase Long’s -emotional instability, it seemed best to keep up the bluff of a -<i>bona-fide</i> test of his fitness.</p> - -<p>Long was placed in a comfortable chair with his hands in contact with -electrodes connected with the galvanometer whose mirror threw a spot -of light on a screen which the psychologist could watch, but which -Long could not. The psychologist then asked him questions or analyzed -his association processes with test words, observing the motion of the -spot of light on the screen. Some questions were calculated to test -his knowledge of electricity; others were apparently frivolous and -pointless. Whenever a question or word aroused an emotional response, -the spot would make a quick excursion across the screen. After a -series of idle-seeming questions, the psychologist made a remark which -was not calculated to ruffle the composure of any one, except that it -contained the name Wellman. Long continued to present an imperturbable -exterior, but the spot of light made the largest excursion that had -yet appeared. Some more unimportant patter followed which permitted -the spot of light to come to rest again. Another insignificant remark -was made containing a casual reference to the name of Rich. The spot -of light moved quickly on the screen and registered an even larger -excursion than had followed the name of Wellman. At this juncture -Evans quietly entered the room through a door behind Long’s back. At a -signal from the psychologist, he addressed a casual remark to Barton. -At the sound of his voice the spot of light shot off the scale on the -screen. When it had steadied again somewhat, Barton said to Evans, “By -the way, you said you had some repairs to make on that small -transmitter; have you got it working all right this morning?” Again -the spot of light went off the scale; a pulse-recording device showed -Long’s heart beating rapidly, and now beads of sweat stood out on his -forehead. His agitated state was completely ignored, and the test went -on, more innocuous talk being used to steady the spot of light. Barton -then dropped a harmless remark to Evans about Commander Rich, and once -again the spot jumped in a way that could never have been due to -instrumental error or chance. Long was then formally made prisoner.</p> - -<p>Scarcely had this job been completed when Barton and Evans were fairly -stunned by the news that a dispatch had been received at Communication -Headquarters ordering Captain Fraser detached from duty as chief of -staff and to proceed immediately to Washington on whatever cruiser -could best be spared from the fleet. What on earth could this mean? -With the momentous preparations for action in progress, Fraser was -never needed in the fleet as much as now. The obvious inference was -that some crucial question had arisen in Washington, and he was wanted -for a conference. Yet Evans could not escape the feeling that -something was wrong; he could not help associating this new -development with the activities of Long and Rich. As head of the Radio -Division of the important Bureau of Engineering, Rich had the means at -his hand of wielding vast power for evil. Very likely he had created a -situation for recalling Fraser, knowing his to be the controlling mind -in the fleet; and quite possibly he would contrive to have a swarm of -enemy submarines lurking in the path of the cruiser that was to take -him home; or perhaps a mine-field would be laid across her path as she -approached home waters; perhaps some intrigue was on foot to get -Fraser discredited and put on the shelf when he reached Washington. As -a matter of fact, Rich was at the moment considering all these -possibilities of turning to account the removal of Fraser from the -fleet.</p> - -<p>Evans and Barton at once held a conference on the subject. Barton was -at first inclined to assume that there was a good reason for Fraser’s -recall and to advise leaving matters alone until further developments -should arise. He did not feel that there was adequate reason to -suppose that Evans’s secret method of communication had broken down. -If it had not, Mortimer would already be investigating Rich, and any -unnecessary use of the method would add to the danger of its -discovery. If the method had broken down, any message Evans might send -would go to Rich instead of to Mortimer and would thus serve only to -help the wrong man by giving him information and putting him on his -guard. Finally, however, Evans succeeded in convincing Barton that a -show-down might avert disaster, and should be attempted at once. He -therefore went to Communication Headquarters and began once more to -“test a transmitter.”</p> - -<p>Late that afternoon—the same day that Mortimer had received the -message about Fraser and acted on it—Rand received this message:</p> - -<blockquote> -<p>Go to M. in person, put nothing on paper, ask him verbally to repeat -back to me all messages received from me in this way in the last two -days. If you cannot do so, let me know. Avoid head of division; -danger. E.</p> - -</blockquote> -<p>Tompkins had just left the office for his rooms, whence he had gone on -his long and uncomfortable motor ride. Whatever caution and -watchfulness Rand possessed was now thoroughly aroused. He felt as if -all the sentries, yeomen, and orderlies in the Bureau were watching -him. Taking pains not to digress in any particular from his usual -routine, he put on his hat and coat and started home. But when he had -reached a corridor where he was unobserved, he took a roundabout way -to the Secretary’s office, where he found Mortimer just getting ready -to go home.</p> - -<p>Mortimer frowned as Rand repeated his message to him.</p> - -<p>“What’s troubling Jim now?” he said to himself. “Is he still having -notions about Rich?”</p> - -<p>Then he said aloud to Rand, “Was there nothing more?”</p> - -<p>“No, sir.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said Mortimer, “the only message I’ve received from him for -some time was as follows: ‘Recall Fraser to Washington at once. -Urgent.’ You can repeat that back to him and tell him that is all.”</p> - -<p>“When did that come?” said Rand.</p> - -<p>“This morning,” said Mortimer. “Commander Rich sent it to me by -special messenger when Tompkins was called away.”</p> - -<p>“Tompkins called away? Where?”</p> - -<p>“Commander Rich said he had been wired for because his wife was very -sick; he had barely time to catch his train; so the Commander -delivered the message for him.”</p> - -<p>“His wife sick!” echoed Rand. “He’s not married.”</p> - -<p>“Then perhaps it was his mother, I forget which,” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“But he’s been working in the Bureau all day. I saw him walk out of -the office not half an hour ago.”</p> - -<p>When Commander Rich planned his trick, he knew nothing of Rand’s part -in the system. His only intimations were the message of warning from -Long and the report of the spies he had posted in consequence of that -warning, to the effect that Tompkins had been seen trying to find the -Secretary. He had taken a gambler’s chance, and not an unreasonable -one, that Mortimer would hear nothing of an obscure employee in the -Bureau between the time of his alleged departure and the time when his -kidnapers should get him away from the city. But his gambler’s luck -had failed him.</p> - -<p>Mortimer was thunderstruck. The message Rand had brought him took on a -new meaning. A council of war was held to guard against interception -or leakage in the exchange of messages with Evans which must now -proceed as rapidly as possible till the mystery should be cleared up. -Rand was told to repeat back to Evans the message about Fraser at -once.</p> - -<p>In half an hour Evans in the radio station at Punta Delgada received -it, with difficulty containing his feelings lest the operators about -him should be started speculating about what did not concern them. -Without waiting to tell Barton what had happened, he sent back the -following:</p> - -<blockquote> -<p>Message as repeated was never sent from here. True message was this: -“We have evidence suggesting that the man I warned you against last -spring is involved in treason. Watch him closely.” To-day more -evidence has appeared in confirmation. Fraser sorely needed in fleet; -is already on board cruiser bound for States.</p> - -</blockquote> -<p>Nervously Mortimer and Rand waited, discussing the ominous -possibilities of this crisis, till the message from Punta Delgada -arrived. Then Mortimer broke all records for speed in doing two -things: one was to tell the Chief of Naval Intelligence what had -happened; the other was to cable Punta Delgada canceling the orders -recalling Fraser and directing him to return at once to the fleet.</p> - -<p>Captain Fraser, turning over his duties to the assistant chief of -staff, had boarded a fast scout cruiser and left the harbor of Punta -Delgada for the open sea late in the evening. The night was dark, and -by midnight the island of Saint Michael’s had disappeared astern, when -Fraser was roused from his sleep by a messenger with word that an -important radio message for him had just been received. To his -surprise he found that he had been directed to return at once to Punta -Delgada.</p> - -<p>“Well, what next, I wonder?” he said to himself. “Something damn funny -seems to be going on.”</p> - -<p>He sent back a radio ordering the arrangements to be made for opening -the gates in the nets to allow the cruiser to return to harbor, and -then, going up on the bridge, told the officer of the deck to change -course one hundred and eighty degrees and return to port. Before dawn -the cruiser was back at her moorings in the harbor.</p> - -<p>Barton and Evans had both agreed that they had best continue to keep -to themselves the secret of Evans’s confidential relations with -Mortimer, and especially his secret method of communicating with -Washington. Barton therefore called on Fraser and merely explained -that he had been advised through secret channels from Washington that -Fraser’s recall had resulted in some way from the intrigue of a group -of spies, and that their plot had been discovered in time to cancel -the orders immediately after they were issued.</p> - -<p>Meanwhile in Washington, Mortimer, as soon as he received the message -from Punta Delgada revealing the trick and casting suspicion on Rich, -went to Admiral Rallston, Chief of Naval Intelligence, and discussed -the problem with him. This officer cautioned him against taking -anything for granted.</p> - -<p>“Clearly a dangerous spy is at work,” he said, “but let us not be too -hasty in placing the guilt. It behooves us to be cautious about -concluding that a man in Commander Rich’s position is guilty of -treason. The spy, whoever he is, will use every means he can think of -to make the blame appear unmistakably to fall on some one else. It is -easy to tap wires, you know.”</p> - -<p>“That’s so,” said Mortimer. “What is the best move?”</p> - -<p>“I advise you to go to Commander Rich to-morrow morning and, without -intimating that anything is amiss, refer to your telephone -conversation. If he does not deny having had such a conversation, ask -him to explain the discrepancy about Tompkins. You can judge from his -conversation whether he’s in a hole or whether some one else has -framed the thing up.”</p> - -<p>Mortimer passed an uneasy night. The next morning he went to the -office of Commander Rich. While he had been in bed the message which -caused Fraser to turn back to Punta Delgada had been sent and -received, and his ship, turning back, had already reached the harbor. -It was by no miracle that these facts had found their way to certain -persons in Washington who had to do with radio apparatus; nor was it -surprising that the man who controlled all radio apparatus at its -source got wind of them before Mortimer made his call.</p> - -<p>Before Mortimer was up and about, Commander Rich sent for a certain -henchman named Goss, and in the privacy of his room spoke to him thus: -“When the supreme test of duty comes, the faithful will not fail. Our -ruse has been betrayed. Yesterday morning I told the Secretary that -Tompkins had been called away by family sickness. The chances were a -thousand to one he would never hear that Tompkins was in the Bureau -after I said he had gone. By some mischance his suspicions have been -aroused; last night he canceled orders issued in the morning. Soon he -will come to question me. It is of supreme importance for the cause we -serve that I should stay at my post. I shall deny the telephone -conversation and tell him some one has played a trick and impersonated -me. But that will not suffice. To make my position secure, I must find -some one who can mimic my voice well enough to have deceived the -Secretary. Your power of mimicry deceived Tompkins. You will be called -on to show what you can do, avowedly for another purpose, and you must -play your part. I do you the honor to call on you for this sacrifice.”</p> - -<p>An agonized look spread over the face of Goss.</p> - -<p>“Master, is there no other way?” he said.</p> - -<p>“None,” replied Rich. “I must stay, and you must go; the cause demands -it. By good fortune you may yet escape the extreme penalty. We must -also have evidence of tampering with the wires. Go quickly to the -Bureau before any one is about, and, in a well-concealed place, cut -the wires from the switch-board to Tompkins’s desk, then splice them -together again and put tape around the splices.</p> - -<p>“When you are questioned, protest your innocence till the case is -proved against you. Own no master nearer than Constantinople. Tompkins -will not return; but, remember, you know nothing of that.”</p> - -<p>When Mortimer called on Commander Rich at his office that morning, -Rich received him with disarming cordiality and equanimity. Indeed, he -did not look like a guilty man.</p> - -<p>“Do you recall our telephone conversation yesterday morning?” said -Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“No,” said Rich with a puzzled look. “I had forgotten we had one. What -was it about?”</p> - -<p>“About Tompkins.”</p> - -<p>“Tompkins?” said Rich. “Who is he?”</p> - -<p>“An expert radio aide in your division. You said he had a message for -me.”</p> - -<p>“I know the man you mean now; we have several aides, and I see so -little of them individually I am apt to forget their names. But I -recall nothing about any message. What was it?”</p> - -<p>“You said he had a message he wished to deliver to me in person, but -was in a great hurry to catch a train because of serious illness in -his family. For that reason you undertook to deliver the message by -special messenger.”</p> - -<p>“Mr. Secretary, I am certain that I had no such conversation with you; -this is the first I have heard of it. Some one else must have -impersonated me.”</p> - -<p>“That is strange,” said Mortimer, “for it was I that called this -Bureau. I had received the message, and, being surprised at its -contents, I called up the Radio Division, and asked for Tompkins. I -was answered by your voice saying, ‘Commander Rich speaking,’ and -following with the statement I just told you. I have since learned -that the message as delivered to me was quite different from that -which was originally sent.”</p> - -<p>“Most extraordinary,” said Rich, frowning. “There must be some one up -to mischief.”</p> - -<p>He thought a moment, then resumed:</p> - -<p>“Some one understanding the wires could have cut them and connected -them with a portable phone.”</p> - -<p>“But how was it that I heard your voice?”</p> - -<p>“A good mimic could easily have deceived you over the telephone. Was -the message very important?”</p> - -<p>“Very.”</p> - -<p>“This looks like a serious plot,” said Rich. “Some enemy agent must -have access to the wires in our Bureau; most probably he has been -planted in the Bureau itself. I will track this thing down at once.”</p> - -<p>“Hadn’t you better get in touch with the Bureau of Naval Intelligence -about it?” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“Yes; I’ll get them to send over a man who is good on wiring and that -sort of thing,” said Rich. “With a clue like this we should be able to -find the culprit shortly. We can question some of the officers and a -few of the more trust-worthy draftsmen and yeomen as to who was in the -vicinity of those wires yesterday morning. I haven’t a doubt we shall -find our man.”</p> - -<p>Mortimer returned to Admiral Rallston in the Bureau of Naval -Intelligence and told him of the interview. Rich had seemed so -thoroughly in earnest he could not help but believe in his ignorance -of the whole affair, especially since in his own opening question to -Rich he had not even hinted that anything was wrong; he had merely -asked if he recalled the conversation. If Rich had been the villain, -why should he have changed his tactics overnight before receiving any -intimation that the message had been changed? Why should he not have -stood by his story of the day before? It all looked as if the spy were -some one else. Admiral Rallston concurred in this view. They would -give Rich what help he wanted in finding the spy, and await results.</p> - -<p>That very afternoon Rich called at the room of Secretary Mortimer. He -already had two very important clues. A place had been found where the -wires to Tompkins’s desk had recently been cut and then spliced -together again. This explained the method whereby some one -impersonating Rich had been substituted for Tompkins on the line. -Besides this a certain chief electrician named Goss had been seen with -a portable telephone going through some of the rooms in that vicinity -yesterday morning. Goss was a man of unknown antecedents who looked -like a southern European of some sort; he had been known to entertain -the others by mimicry on one occasion. Rich proposed that, by way of a -trap, they approach Goss and tell him they have some special detective -work in which his help is desired; that they understand he is a fair -mimic, and would like to see what he can do, since that faculty will -be of assistance.</p> - -<p>“I feel confident that he is our man,” said Rich. “If we show no signs -of suspecting him, but offer him the prospect of receiving increased -confidence, it will be just what he wants, and he will probably -display his talent. We can then confront him with the cut wires and -the evidence that some one was tampering with the line yesterday, and -that none but he could have done it. It is not unlikely that he will -then break down and confess.”</p> - -<p>Mortimer agreed to this ruse, and went with Rich to his office, where -they met Admiral Rallston, who recalled the name of Goss as being -under suspicion of tampering with some radio gear. Goss was summoned, -and Rich explained to him that the Secretary wished a good electrician -for certain special duty requiring resource and presence of mind, and -that he, Rich, had selected him as a good candidate for the task. -Mortimer then questioned Goss as to his experience. Then Rich -addressed him.</p> - -<p>“The Secretary tells me that in this work there may be occasion for -you to imitate the voice of another over the telephone. They tell me -that one day you amused the men in the drafting room by mimicking some -other members of the division. If you can do that, it will be very -useful.”</p> - -<p>“I was just doing it for fun,” said Goss. “I don’t know as I could -really fool any one.”</p> - -<p>“Let me hear you mimic Commander Rich,” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>Upon this Goss said a characteristic sentence in which he aped the -voice and manner of his master with such skill that Mortimer laughed -and Rich blushed in spite of himself. Goss glanced at Rich for an -instant. In the glance Rich saw a look of pathetic appeal; and even in -his hard and cruel heart there was a shadow of admiration and pity as -he realized how his henchman had shown his talent at its best, though -the revelation sealed his doom.</p> - -<p>Rich cast a knowing glance at Mortimer who saw the convincing -significance of the demonstration. The action then moved swiftly. -Admiral Rallston took the lead and told Goss they wanted him to look -over some wires with them. Then he led the way, followed by Mortimer, -Rich, and Goss, to the severed wires, and, suddenly lifting the plank -that hid them, turned sharply on Goss, saying, “We want to know who -cut and spliced those wires.”</p> - -<p>Goss, true to his master, appeared confused and disconcerted; then, -with a visible effort to regain his composure, professed his ignorance -of the matter. Mortimer and Rich looked on as Admiral Rallston grilled -his victim. At last they wrung from him a confession that he served -the Sultan, but when questioned as to his confederates he stoutly -insisted that he was his own master; Headquarters in Constantinople -had sent him and from none other had he taken orders.</p> - -<p>With the fatalism of the Moslem he faced his execution. Rich was now -more strongly entrenched than ever in the good graces of the Navy -Department. His promptitude in finding the real spy had won him the -warmest commendation.</p> - -<p>The day after Goss had confessed to cutting the wires and -impersonating Commander Rich, Mortimer instructed Rand to send a -secret message to Evans informing him that the original suspect had -been exonerated, and had in fact assisted them in finding the real spy -who was now imprisoned under a strong guard, and awaiting execution. -When Evans received this message his mind was troubled. He conferred -again with Barton and told him he was not satisfied.</p> - -<p>“I’ll bet my last dollar that scoundrel is the guilty one,” he said. -“He’s just pulling their legs.”</p> - -<p>He reviewed the evidence in detail.</p> - -<p>“I believe you’re right,” said Barton. “But it’s hard to convince them -at this distance. I didn’t tell you,” he continued after a pause, -“what I learned about the Sheridan affair.”</p> - -<p>“What was it?”</p> - -<p>“You recall that when the <i>Sheridan</i> asked for bearings, Fourth Cliff -was reported out of commission and Gloucester gave a bearing that was -found afterwards to have been sixteen degrees in error? I sent one of -the best Intelligence officers in the Bureau to investigate. He found -that a certain chief radio electrician named Goss, from the Bureau of -Engineering, had been to Fourth Cliff early that morning to inspect -the station, and had come to Gloucester at noon. He was alone in the -radio-compass shack there for a few minutes just after lunch, and -again about dusk just after the Sheridan went aground. The most -careful examination of the apparatus revealed nothing definite, but -the set-screw which holds the circular scale in place looked as if it -had recently been tightened.”</p> - -<p>“My God!” cried Evans, “what a jackass I was not to get on to that. It -fits into the rest like the last piece in a picture puzzle. Look here! -The activities of those two men, Goss and Long, must have been -carefully planned beforehand. One of the most puzzling things of all -was the way those three bearings, although two of them were wildly -inaccurate, checked up with each other well enough to convince a -careful navigator in a fog. If the gear had been thrown out of true by -haphazard amounts they never would have given bearings so consistent -with each other, except by the merest chance. Those devils must have -decided where they wanted to locate the ship in order to put her -aground; then they must have worked out the errors scientifically in -the light of the ship’s actual position; and they did a damn smart job -of it.”</p> - -<p>“Possibly Long sent a message from the ship in some secret code, -telling Goss where they were, so that he could calculate the desired -error,” said Barton.</p> - -<p>“That’s the most probable bet,” said Evans. “Anyway, it shows clearly -that there was careful planning from some headquarters of deviltry, -which, unless I’m much mistaken, means Rich.”</p> - -<p>“Goss is being watched, but thus far we haven’t pinned anything on -him,” said Barton. “No suspicion of Rich has been mentioned hitherto.”</p> - -<p>“Seems to me,” said Evans, “it’s up to you to go to Washington as -quick as you can get there, and have him strung up.”</p> - -<p>Barton looked perplexed.</p> - -<p>“It would be rather hard to arrange,” he said, “and would attract -attention that might prove embarrassing. Then, too, it might be very -hard to pin anything on Rich with the evidence we have at present. -He’s so clever, and so well entrenched, he can probably work all kinds -of alibis. I think perhaps the best policy is just to keep the lid on -tight out here, and not let any strategic messages go out to -Washington at all.”</p> - -<p>“But he may have other men like Long planted here in the fleet with -all kinds of secret methods of sending messages in code,” said Evans. -“It’s too dangerous to let a man like that stay where he can function -as the brains of the whole intrigue. We don’t know how he may contrive -to cripple us. If he gets on to the secret of Wellman’s code book -we’ve lost a weapon worth many ships. As to evidence, I’ll bet I can -get some information straight from headquarters through Kendrick and -Heringham.”</p> - -<p>Barton shook his head.</p> - -<p>“I wouldn’t,” he said. “Sending names of persons, even disguised in as -good a code as yours, involves a terrible risk.”</p> - -<p>“It’s a terrible risk if we don’t,” said Evans earnestly. “We are -staking the whole war on our naval strategy, and what will all our -strategy avail with a thing like this at the heart of our -communication system in Washington? Every bit of evidence we can get -may be needed to dislodge him. The risk of leakage in communicating -with Heringham is nothing to the risk of leaving Rich where he is.”</p> - -<p>Barton thought awhile.</p> - -<p>“You are right,” he said at last. “Send your message to Heringham and, -when we hear from him, I’ll see whether it’s best to go to Washington, -or what to do.”</p> - -<p>Once more Evans tested a transmitter. For twenty-four hours he waited, -on pins and needles, and during those twenty-four hours both Kendrick -and Heringham lost some sleep, too; also some one in Constantinople -who knew how to make Bela talk did so. The return message which Evans -deciphered from the radio traffic at Gibraltar caused him to go to -Barton and urge on him more insistently than ever the importance of -his going at once to Washington. Thereupon Barton made a call on -Captain Fraser, and in consequence of this call some unusual orders -were drawn up and signed.</p> - -<p>The same day as the conference with Barton which resulted in the -message to Heringham, Evans happened to pass Ensign Coffee on the deck -of the flagship <i>Delaware</i>. Coffee glared savagely at him, realizing -that, though he did not know why or how, some power above himself had -caused the punishment he had sought to inflict on this insubordinate -warrant officer to be so mitigated as to amount to little or nothing. -At least, here he was walking the deck as freely as ever, but four -days after his attempt to jump ship, when he should by rights still be -confined to his room, if not in irons.</p> - -<p>“That reminds me,” said Evans to himself, “that there’s one more bit -of house-cleaning needed on this ship. I’d better attend to that now -before I forget it.”</p> - -<p>He knew that his agents in the Bureau of Engineering were now able to -handle his messages to Mortimer; so he went to the radio room and once -again “tested a transmitter.” With his hand on the key he made the -cryptic dots and dashes which the powerful transmitter translated into -silent ether waves speeding across the sea, while the operator on -watch sat listlessly by, waiting for him to finish.</p> - -<p>“The gear’s working well,” said Evans; then rising, handed the -head-phones back to the operator, and returned to his room, where he -got out some warm clothing and made ready for a long journey on which -he must travel light.</p> - -<p>The next morning in Washington Rand transmitted to Secretary Mortimer -the following message:</p> - -<blockquote> -<p>Get Ensign J. L. Coffee transferred as far away from flagship as -possible. Can recommend him wherever red-tape is needed. E.</p> - -</blockquote> -<p>Later in the day Evans was talking things over with Elkins in the -radio room, when a yeoman from the coding room handed Elkins a -dispatch. He opened it and read:</p> - -<blockquote> -<p>Detach Ensign Coffee to proceed immediately to Washington, report -Bureau Navigation.</p> - -</blockquote> -<p>Elkins handed the dispatch to Evans, saying, “I wonder what in hell -they want him in Washington for.”</p> - -<p>“That’s an interesting matter for speculation,” said Evans, and went -about his work.</p> - -<p>When Coffee received his orders, he was in the act of boasting to some -of the other ensigns of the way he had carried out the instructions of -no less an official than Commander Rich to squelch insubordination in -the warrant officers under him, should he see any. He was telling how -he was getting that man Evans to toe the mark, and how he was going to -give him some more medicine before he got through. His jaw fell when -he read the dispatch. The other ensigns tittered.</p> - -<p>“Save your medicine for some one else, Coffee,” said one.</p> - -<p>“Be sure you don’t swallow any of it yourself, by mistake,” said -another.</p> - -<p>Coffee, however, though profoundly chagrined, soon convinced himself -that there must be an important mission awaiting him in Washington.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chXIII' title='XIII—The Show-Down'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XIII</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>THE SHOW-DOWN</span> -</h2> -<p>In 1919 when the N-C 4, the colossal flying boat built for the purpose -by the American Navy, made her epoch-making flight across the ocean, -there was, among many others, one great difficulty surpassing the -rest, which made the task well-nigh impossible. The distance from -Newfoundland to the Azores was so great that the problem of building a -machine with a hull strong enough to alight safely on the waves, with -a load of fuel sufficient for the journey, yet still able to lift the -required weight off the water, taxed the available engineering talent -to the limit. When all that had been deemed essential was put aboard, -the boats were actually unable to rise into the air. Something had to -be discarded. The margin of fuel above what the flight would consume -was already so small that the commanding officer was unwilling to -reduce it further. Therefore the emergency radio transmitter was left -behind, and in consequence the N-C 3, flagship of the flight, was -nearly lost with all on board. This much is history, but let us get on -with our story.</p> - -<p>In the years between 1919 and 1937, science and engineering had done -wonders, but they had not lessened the number of miles between -Newfoundland and the Azores, nor enabled seaplanes to fly without fuel -nor to alight on ocean waves without strong hulls. The problem of -flying seaplanes across the ocean under their own power was still -acute. Seaplanes manufactured in the States were needed in steadily -increasing numbers at the great center of naval activity in the -Azores. Cargo space on ships could ill be spared for their -transportation; they must transport themselves. But instead of -attempting to cross the wide ocean in a single hop, they divided the -journey in two stages by means of a great floating hangar midway -between Newfoundland and Fayal. Thus the load of fuel required was cut -in two.</p> - -<p>This floating hangar was little more than a glorified scow with a huge -sea anchor to windward and engines of just power enough to supplement -this in holding her against drifting away from her station when the -wind was strong. Two long arms or wings projecting to leeward from her -hull enclosed a large sheltered pool, and giant plates, extending deep -down under water from the flanks of these arms, broke the waves, so -that even in the heaviest gales the surface of the pool was smooth -enough for the planes to alight. Fuel tanks, repair shop, quarters for -crew of hangar and of passing seaplanes, fast seagoing motor-boats for -rescue and salvage work, and storage space for a few planes comprised -the rest of the equipment.</p> - -<p>A gray lifeless dusk was about to close in on this lonely floating -station the day after Barton had called on Fraser. In a deckhouse was -a sort of wardroom where were wont to gather the officers in charge -and the pilots of such planes as were attached to the station or had -stopped there in passing. A group of pilots was sitting round the -table looking over the latest weather bulletin received by radio; this -promised a clearing of the sky before morning. The sky had been -overcast for two days, and the officers now began their usual custom, -on such occasions, of getting up a pool with bets on the number of -miles off station that the navigator would find them to be with his -early morning star sights. One man bet as high as ten miles.</p> - -<p>“That’s absurd,” said another. “They know just what the ocean currents -are round here by now, and they’ve got indicators to show just what -drift the old scow makes. They’re always making allowances for all -that. I don’t believe we’ll be over three miles off.”</p> - -<p>“I’m from Missouri on this dead-reckoning with a scow riding to a sea -anchor, and a one-horse engine to get home with,” said the first.</p> - -<p>“Well,” said the other, “you back your notion with your dough, and -I’ll back mine. If it clears off like they say it will, we’ll see -to-morrow who’s the richer for the deal.”</p> - -<p>The skeptic rose from the table, yawned, stretched, and sauntered to -the window where he looked out over the endless gray waste of water on -which the leaden sky was already beginning to cast the gloom of -approaching twilight.</p> - -<p>“Gosh, what a dreary place this is!” he said. “I hope they won’t keep -me stuck in this billet many weeks; the monotony of it will just about -drive me silly.”</p> - -<p>“That’s the kind of thing you’ve got to expect in war,” said another -officer, older than the rest—one that was permanently attached to the -floating hangar.</p> - -<p>“I’d give my eye teeth,” said the skeptic, “to be out where there’s -something doing—looking for enemy subs to bomb. Good Lord, all we do -here is to go out to find some blighter who can’t keep his engine -running and has flopped on the water, and tell him ‘cheerio’ while he -waits for the motor-boat to come and salvage him. Why can’t they teach -these bums to fly, before sending them out here with brand-new planes, -anyway?”</p> - -<p>“If they did that, you’d have even less to occupy you than you have -now,” said the older man. “As for hunting subs, I’ll bet you’d find -that a damn sight more monotonous than this. Here you at least find -the blighter you’re looking for.”</p> - -<p>The conversation was suddenly interrupted by the signal, “Action -Stations.” The pilots ran to their planes, and the older officer ran -to his station in the pilot-house where he found the commanding -officer studying the eastern sky with his binoculars.</p> - -<p>“What’s up?” he asked.</p> - -<p>“A big seaplane coming this way,” answered the commanding officer. -“She looks like an American plane, but we’re not expecting any from -there, and we’ve had no radio from Punta Delgada or Fayal that would -indicate any plane was coming. So I called out the gun crew to be -ready in case of trouble. Give a recognition signal—she’s near enough -now to see it.”</p> - -<p>The signal was flashed out—a series of brilliant colored lights—and -instantly the answering signal was seen to flash from the approaching -seaplane, already visible to the naked eye.</p> - -<p>“She’s American, all right,” said the skipper, “but what’s she doing -coming here now? I thought they needed all their planes right there. -And why haven’t we had any word of her coming?”</p> - -<p>The roar of the four big engines was already audible, and soon the -great plane with her wing-spread of a hundred feet, swung round to -leeward of the hangar, swooped down, hovered low over the waves, and -settled gracefully on the smooth surface of the water between the -sheltering arms of the giant scow.</p> - -<p>The great seaplane was warped into the landing stage, and down from -the hull clambered her pilot followed by Barton, Evans, and the -prisoner, Long.</p> - -<p>“Where’s the Captain?” asked Barton of the seaman who helped him on to -the landing stage.</p> - -<p>“Right here,” said the skipper, hastening down from the pilot-house.</p> - -<p>Barton handed him a slip of paper. He looked at it; then turned -quickly to his orderly.</p> - -<p>“Tell Mr. Jones I want to see him at once. Commander Barton, come to -my room and I’ll have supper for you right away. The gunners can go to -the wardroom. I’ll have the plane ready for you to go on in half an -hour.”</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Jones, the executive officer, appeared, on the run, and -saluted.</p> - -<p>“Mr. Jones, have the tanks of this seaplane filled with gas and oil, -have the engine carefully inspected and the best emergency crew fully -equipped and ready to take her; they are going on to Trepassy Bay, and -everything must be ready in half an hour. Have supper for the crew -that brought her in; they’ll stay here.”</p> - -<p>The skeptic was told that he was to take the big seaplane on the next -lap of her journey;—the monotony was to break more abruptly than he -had hoped. Never had the routine of this floating relay station been -so violently shaken. To-day a new record for speed was made, for the -slip of paper called for speed, and it bore the signature of Admiral -Johnson. In arranging with Fraser for the trip, Barton had told him -nothing of his confidential relations with Evans, but merely stated -that since the case involved tampering with the radio gear in the -flagship, which Evans had discovered, he wanted to take him along as a -witness.</p> - -<p>In half an hour, as the tired crew that had brought the giant seaplane -on her flight from the Azores, refreshed by hot coffee and cigarettes, -were beginning to wonder how long they were doomed to stay at this -lonely spot in midocean, Barton, Evans, and Long climbed aboard the -seaplane once more. Long was shackled to his seat, so that he could -not by a sudden leap deprive them of his services as a witness. The -skeptic took his place in the pilot’s seat; and with a deafening roar -from her engines the great creature rose off the water and shot away -into the twilight where she was almost instantly lost to view. Looking -back ten minutes later, the pilot saw twinkling faintly astern the -light on the floating hangar that guided seaplanes to this haven of -rest and refuge on the lonely sea.</p> - -<p>It was only just after two in the morning when the commanding officer -of the great seaplane base at Trepassy Bay, Newfoundland, was roused -from his sleep and handed a slip of paper which caused him to spring -out of bed and order the best seaplane at the base to be ready at once -to take passengers to Halifax.</p> - -<p>At Halifax they stopped for breakfast while a fresh plane was being -prepared to make a non-stop flight to Washington. Before nine they -were on their way again, dropping the islands and promontories of the -Nova Scotia coast behind them at a rate of ninety miles an hour. As -they passed over the heel of Cape Cod, flying high, Evans could make -out the long white line of Monomoy Island with its sandy ocean beach. -The memory returned to him of the same white line when last he had -seen it over the roaring breakers, showing dimly through the rain from -the <i>Petrel’s</i> cockpit, on his adventurous sail with Mortimer.</p> - -<p>It was toward the end of the afternoon that the strange trio arrived -in Washington, quite unheralded. With the utmost care to keep Evans -concealed from Rich’s possible spies, Barton found Mortimer and -brought him secretly to the place where Evans was awaiting them. -Mortimer told them all that had transpired in Washington and how Rich -had found in Goss the real culprit. Then they in turn recited the -evidence they had obtained at the Azores implicating Rich. The -behavior of Long and his visible agitation on the mention of Rich’s -name seemed to Mortimer suggestive, but not conclusive; so did the -testimony of Elkins concerning Rich’s advice to Captain Brigham, but -this, having passed through so many months, carried less weight than -the other. The report of Heringham, however, made him feel that the -case, indeed, looked bad for Rich. After some consultation it was -decided that, unknown to Rich, Mortimer should assemble Admiral -Rallston, Chief of Naval Intelligence, Barton and Evans in his office, -and then send for Rich and question him. Long would be held under -guard where he could easily be brought in, and Commander White could -be summoned at any time from the Bureau of Engineering to repeat the -significant words of Captain Brigham, if it seemed desirable.</p> - -<p>The next morning Evans and Barton were smuggled into Mortimer’s office -with every precaution that no word of their presence should reach the -ears of Commander Rich. Admiral Rallston then came, and all sat down -where they could watch the face of Rich as he entered the door. Rich -was then requested to come to the Secretary’s office. So cordial had -been their relations that he now felt sure all suspicion of him had -vanished, and he obeyed the summons without misgivings.</p> - -<p>With breathless suspense the others awaited his arrival. The door was -opened by an orderly and Rich entered. All eyes were on him. As he saw -Evans sitting before him, his face blanched visibly and there was the -least suggestion of a tightening of his muscles. But in an instant he -was all cordiality, his self-possession never better.</p> - -<p>“This is an unexpected pleasure,” he said to Evans. “I hadn’t heard -you were returning from the fleet so soon.”</p> - -<p>“You wouldn’t,” answered Evans; “the Bureau keeps you occupied with -larger issues.”</p> - -<p>“Indeed,” replied Rich graciously, “I hear often of the splendid work -you have been doing for us in the fleet in keeping our equipment in -working order.”</p> - -<p>Equally gracious was Rich in his greetings to Barton and Admiral -Rallston.</p> - -<p>Then Mortimer, bracing himself for the effort, spoke.</p> - -<p>“Commander Rich,” he said, “I regret to say that a man from your -division of the Bureau of Engineering was found purposely damaging the -radio apparatus on the <i>Delaware</i> under pretense of making changes -indicated in orders from you.”</p> - -<p>“Indeed?” said Rich, his composure not the least bit ruffled, yet with -an appropriate display of surprise. “And what was his name and -rating?”</p> - -<p>“Radio Gunner Long,” answered Mortimer. “Do you remember him?”</p> - -<p>“I think I recall his name,” said Rich, “but we have so many in the -Bureau I find it hard to know them all. At all events, I should not -have been directly concerned with planning the work of such a man. The -officers under me lay out the work and make out the orders; they -merely bring them to Admiral Bishop or me to sign. It would be -impossible for me to give any clue to this particular case offhand; -but I can start an investigation at once, and we can probably trace -his orders to their source.”</p> - -<p>“Unhappily,” said Mortimer, “evidence was brought to light which -appeared to point unmistakably to you as the real author of the plan -to damage the apparatus.”</p> - -<p>“Mr. Secretary,” said Rich, with impressive dignity and earnestness, -“it is impossible that you have given credence to such slanderous -accusations after our years of close and cordial coöperation in the -prosecution of the war.”</p> - -<p>“Indeed,” said Mortimer, “I was loath to listen to them till the mass -of evidence seemed overwhelming.”</p> - -<p>“It must, indeed, have been overwhelming to outweigh my years of -devoted service to the navy. May I ask what this overwhelming evidence -is?”</p> - -<p>“A number of things about the behavior of this man Long appeared to -those who apprehended him only capable of interpretation as signifying -your complicity with his acts. These facts, coupled with the changing -of messages last week, and the simultaneous disappearance of Mr. -Tompkins, which present indications seem to show are not as easily -explained as you made them appear to be then through the agency of -Goss, have led to the accusation.”</p> - -<p>“All these things can still be perfectly well explained. Goss -confessed to tapping the wires and impersonating me, as you yourself -can witness; Tompkins was probably himself implicated, and, hearing of -Goss’s fate, has either absconded or committed suicide. The evidence -associated with this man Long, you speak of, can be explained on -proper investigation as easily as all the rest. I think, Mr. -Secretary, you are doing me an extraordinary injustice to so much as -listen to these accusations after my years of devoted service. Perhaps -the gunner, here,” indicating Evans, “who has at times been impatient -with me for not accepting new-fangled ideas as quickly as he would -like, has been poisoning your mind against me.”</p> - -<p>“Since you bring up that issue,” said Evans, “I should like to ask -why, if you are indeed the gallant and loyal officer you modestly -concede yourself to be, you told Captain Brigham the <i>Delaware</i> would -be better off without the equipment you had authorized to enable her -to direct the fleet in action.”</p> - -<p>A dark scowl showed for an instant on Rich’s face. “It’s a lie,” said -he; “I never said such a thing to Captain Brigham or any one else.”</p> - -<p>Evans turned to Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“Commander White’s testimony on that point might be interesting,” he -said.</p> - -<p>Commander White was summoned. When he entered the room, Mortimer said -to him, “Commander White, I wish to know if Captain Brigham, while -chief of staff, ever said anything to you about remarks by Commander -Rich to him on the subject of the radio equipment of the <i>Delaware</i>.”</p> - -<p>“He did say something about that, sir.”</p> - -<p>“Do you remember what he said?”</p> - -<p>“It is some time ago, but, as I recall it, Gunner Evans had just said -something to him about the set not being in good working order -according to the specifications of the Bureau, and he had told the -gunner the set was the way he wanted it. When Gunner Evans had gone, -Captain Brigham told me that Commander Rich had said he didn’t believe -in most of the newer equipment, and he thought it would be just as -well not to attempt to keep it all in working order, but to rely in -practice on the old-fashioned gear.”</p> - -<p>Commander Rich then said: “I don’t recall making any such remarks as -that. Captain Brigham and I had frequent conversations, and at some -time I may have said that some of the older gear had stood up well in -service and was in some ways more reliable than some of the newer -devices. Mr. Secretary, you know how easy it is to misquote a man, -even with the best of intentions. Some remark of mine has been -misunderstood and then passed from mouth to mouth till it actually is -held up as evidence of treason. The thing is ludicrous. I never -dreamed of advocating anything that would impair the efficiency of the -ships.”</p> - -<p>Evans spoke next. “The efficiency of the <i>Delaware’s</i> radio room as it -was in Captain Brigham’s regime might well be likened to that of a -Ford car with one cylinder working and no front wheels. In spacing the -battleship divisions most effectively for the concentration of -gun-fire, in disposing the cruiser squadrons and destroyer flotillas, -every bit of modern equipment authorized by the Bureau is needed. -Messages must often go out simultaneously on as many as five different -wave-lengths. With the gear as Captain Brigham had it, that would be -absolutely impossible; the team-work of the fleet would be crude and -clumsy—worse, it would be paralyzed. Our ships, rambling incoherently -over the ocean, would be at the mercy of the enemy if ever they were -brought to action. That is what Brigham’s efficiency stood for.”</p> - -<p>“Mr. Secretary,” said Rich with dignity, “I have already told you that -I never advocated any neglect of radio equipment which could have -impaired the efficiency of the fleet. The gunner here is obsessed by -an exaggerated sense of the importance of certain devices in whose -development he has been interested. When he found them not working as -well as he would have liked, and Captain Brigham not as much -interested in them as he was, he built out of some misquoted remark of -mine an elaborate picture of high treason.”</p> - -<p>Evans shrugged his shoulders and looked at Barton. The case against -Rich did not appear on the face of it as clear and convincing as it -had before the defendant’s eloquent tongue had been mobilized in his -defense. But Barton held in his hand a strong card of which he had as -yet given no intimation. During the night, after hearing from Mortimer -how Goss had been caught and driven to confess, he had interviewed -Long. He now rose and went to a door leading to an adjoining room, -opened it, and beckoned Long to come in. As he entered, all eyes were -not on him, but on Rich. When this officer saw the prisoner enter, he -started and turned pale. To the watchful eyes of Barton the look of -guilt on his face was unmistakable. Mortimer was rather struck by the -ease with which he regained his composure after the surprise of seeing -one whom he thought to be in the Azores, suddenly brought before him.</p> - -<p>Barton then handed to Mortimer the original orders under which Long -had been sent to Punta Delgada, formally signed by Admiral Bishop as -Chief of the Bureau. Mortimer read the orders; then questioned Long as -to his mission and how he had come to be sent on it. Long’s voice -trembled as he answered:</p> - -<p>“Commander Rich explained to me that my task was to damage the radio -equipment on the flagship—and later on the division flagships—as much -as I could without its being discovered in time to repair it. Before I -went he called me to his office in the Bureau, where we looked over -the diagrams of most of the apparatus, and considered the best places -to damage the sets in a way that would not be found out till they were -called on for heavy usage. After making a few suggestions he left it -to me to work out the details.”</p> - -<p>“This is the most preposterous fabrication I have heard yet,” called -out Rich in high dudgeon.</p> - -<p>“Just a moment,” said Mortimer. “I wish to ask Gunner Long a few more -questions, then we can have your comments.” Then, turning again to -Long, he continued, “How did you come to be in the service, and how -did your relations with Commander Rich come about?”</p> - -<p>“Goss and I were working as electricians in a factory in New York -where they make radio apparatus. We had been in this country since we -were boys; I came from Bulgaria and he from Thrace. Just before this -country joined the war, Commander Rich, in civilian clothes, came to -see us and talked with us for a long time, asking us what we knew of -electricity and how we felt about the war. We both were on the side of -the Balkan Powers in our hearts and had no feeling of obligation to -America. He told us this country was soon going into the war and that -the rulers in Constantinople had things so well planned and organized -that they were sure to win, and America would then be under their -rule; and any one who had helped the cause would be in luck. Finding -us disposed to work for that end, he told us that he was an agent of -the Constantinople Government and had been holding a position in the -United States Navy for some years, and showed us documents proving his -statement. He offered us jobs in the Bureau of Engineering with the -salaries of our ratings and in addition an equal amount from a secret -source at his disposal. We both accepted the offer, and as I was the -older and more experienced, I was made a radio gunner, while Goss was -enrolled as chief radio electrician. He promised us both rewards -either in money or good positions at the close of the war, and assured -us he would then control great power.</p> - -<p>“Goss was my best friend in the world. No man was ever more faithful; -never did a man face the dangers of that work more bravely or more -cheerfully than he. If Commander Rich had stood by him, nothing on -earth would have made me tell. Till yesterday I stood ready to keep my -mouth shut even if you tortured me. But last night I learned how this -cur had betrayed my friend and foully done him to death. And now I am -ready and glad to tell you the truth. Goss never faltered. He was ever -ready at the master’s bidding to risk discovery, tapping wires and -impersonating others. When Rich found himself cornered, he turned to -Goss and ordered him to reveal his mimicry that he himself might -escape the net.”</p> - -<p>All eyes were on Rich. His face wore a sneering look.</p> - -<p>“Mr. Secretary,” he said, “it seems to me that story is pretty thin, I -might almost say transparent. You, as a lawyer, have doubtless seen -through it yourself already. This man is a spy; we all know that. He -was caught in the act of doing the work he has just described. Goss -was his friend; they were confederates. Now that he has been caught, -and his plan frustrated, he naturally wants to shift the burden of -guilt, as much of it as will shift, on to the shoulders of some one -else. Whom will he try to implicate? Naturally the head of the -division in charge of radio apparatus. It would help his case to do -so, anyway; and now that he finds on his return that I discovered his -friend and confederate, and caused his execution, naturally his desire -for revenge makes him all the more eager to accuse me. With two -motives, both strong, one might almost predict in advance that he -would do just this. As for his story, any one who wanted could invent -it in ten minutes. Surely you will not be so simple as to believe it.”</p> - -<p>Long was seeing red. The storm of pent-up feeling, brewing as Rich -delivered these remarks, now broke.</p> - -<p>“You vile scoundrel!” cried the prisoner. “Goss served you to the -last, and you betrayed him; you made him use the skill that had served -you, to bring on his own death sentence, to save your dirty hide.”</p> - -<p>“Mr. Secretary,” said Rich, “on my honor I am innocent. A man of your -experience will not take the word of a confessed spy with an obvious -grievance, against that of an officer tried by years of service in the -navy.”</p> - -<p>“Probably not, if that were the only evidence,” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“I demand of you in the interest of fair play,” said Rich earnestly, -“that Admiral Bishop, Chief of the Bureau of Engineering, be permitted -to come and speak in my defense. I am certain he will assure you of my -innocence.”</p> - -<p>“Very well,” said Mortimer, “I will send for him at once.”</p> - -<p>In a few moments Admiral Bishop was ushered in, looking more pompous, -his face redder and his whiskers whiter then ever. Mortimer told him -briefly the story of the suspicions and charges, and summarized Rich’s -defense. Admiral Bishop could hardly contain his indignation.</p> - -<p>“This is the most outrageous frame-up against a loyal officer that I -ever heard of,” he said. “Commander Rich has been my right-hand man -throughout the war. He has contributed more than any one in Washington -to the high state of preparedness of the navy to-day. Ask any man who -has been close to the organization of radio communications in the -fleet during recent months if the efficiency of the apparatus is not a -signal tribute to the responsible man at the head.”</p> - -<p>“We have just heard from one man who has been very close to radio -communications in the fleet,” said Barton, “and he didn’t seem to look -on their efficiency in that light.”</p> - -<p>“Who?” asked Bishop.</p> - -<p>“Evans,” replied Barton. “He seems to feel that our communications are -working well in spite of Commander Rich, not because of him.”</p> - -<p>“The gunner here!” said Admiral Bishop in surprise. “You don’t expect -me to yield to a radio gunner in my judgment of the men in charge of -the divisions of my Bureau?”</p> - -<p>“No,” said Barton, “only you said, ‘Ask any man who has been close to -the organization in the fleet,’ and he was one; that’s all.”</p> - -<p>Barton deemed it unwise to mention before Rich anything of what he had -heard from Heringham about Rich’s status in enemy circles. He had -mentioned this to Mortimer in private, but the skill with which Rich -had parried all attacks thus far, and the stanch support of Admiral -Bishop seemed to have obscured that testimony in Mortimer’s mind; and -the upshot of it was that he seemed perplexed and rather inclined to -lean toward Rich’s side of the case. Barton therefore left the room, -and, when out of sight of the others, beckoned Mortimer to follow. In -a moment Mortimer excused himself and joined Barton in a corridor -where they could be far enough to be safe from eavesdroppers while -they conversed in whispers. Barton then reminded him of the testimony -received in the secret messages from Heringham in Constantinople.</p> - -<p>Mortimer thought a moment and then remarked: “That might all have come -from some spy who has caught on to Evans’s method of getting messages -from Gibraltar, and has smuggled in fake messages implicating Rich.”</p> - -<p>“That is extremely improbable,” said Barton. “Anyway, there are so -many things all pointing the same way I am convinced of his guilt.”</p> - -<p>“He has offered a reasonable explanation of every item thus far,” said -Mortimer. “I don’t see how we can prove the case against him without -something more definite and unanswerable than we’ve got.”</p> - -<p>While this whispered conference was going on in the corridor, -Commander Rich and Admiral Bishop were making things as uncomfortable -as they were able for Evans. The Admiral was so incensed by the affair -that he freely proclaimed his indignation—men who made such -accusations against one of Rich’s integrity and distinguished service -ought to be imprisoned. Rich, with malicious insinuation, turned the -odium of it upon Evans who, glum and silent, paid no apparent heed.</p> - -<p>Mortimer and Barton in the corridor outside were making little -progress with their conference and were about to rejoin the others -when Mortimer’s attention was drawn to the sound of a man’s voice -talking rather excitedly to one of the clerks in the outer office. He -listened and could hear the voice saying, “It is most important that I -should see him at once.”</p> - -<p>Then he heard the clerk say, “He is having a very important conference -and can’t be disturbed.”</p> - -<p>Mortimer stepped into the outer office and saw that the man with the -excited voice was Rand.</p> - -<p>“Did you wish to see me?” he asked.</p> - -<p>“Yes, at once,” answered Rand breathlessly.</p> - -<p>Mortimer led him into the corridor.</p> - -<p>“What is it?” he said. “Tell me in a whisper. We can’t go in there -now.”</p> - -<p>“Tompkins has just appeared,” said Rand in a hoarse whisper. “He was -kidnaped and has just escaped. His story is most important.”</p> - -<p>“Where is he now?”</p> - -<p>“In his own office,” said Rand.</p> - -<p>“Bring him here at once,” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>Rand disappeared on the run, and in less than three minutes returned -with Tompkins, looking thin, worn, and exhausted. Tompkins then told -how on that memorable morning when so many things happened he had gone -early to the Secretary’s office with the message from Evans, and, not -finding Mortimer, had returned to his own office, and how, when he -next set out, Commander Rich had dealt with the situation.</p> - -<p>“Commander Rich called you up and explained the situation, then handed -me the phone,” he said. “You probably remember the conversation; as I -recall it, you said, ‘It’s all right, give Commander Rich the message. -It will excite less notice if you don’t keep coming to my office.’”</p> - -<p>“You say I said that?” broke in Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir.”</p> - -<p>“I never had any telephone conversation with you at all that morning,” -said Mortimer, “nor with Rich till after I received the message -delivered by his messenger.”</p> - -<p>Tompkins stared with amazement.</p> - -<p>“This is the most important testimony we’ve got,” said Barton. “Go on, -and remember to speak quietly.”</p> - -<p>Tompkins then told of his kidnaping, the long motor-ride into the -mountains and the days of imprisonment in the abandoned logging hut -with the scantiest food supplies, under guard of five armed ruffians.</p> - -<p>“A few days ago they had an altercation. There were whispered -conferences and arguments just out of my hearing. Angry words passed, -and I don’t know just what happened, but pretty soon I found that -three of the five had deserted, leaving only the two to guard me. The -food got low and one of them had to walk a long distance to get more; -he got back pretty tired. The two of them drank some liquor and -started taking turns at watching through the night. Just before dawn -the man who had gone for the food, having stood watch since midnight, -dropped off to sleep; the long walk and the liquor were too much for -him. I was sleeping with one eye open. When I was satisfied that he -was asleep, I slipped out of the hut. The dawn was just breaking, and -I picked my way down a wood road, and then ran till I had got a good -mile from the hut. I tramped nearly all day and in the afternoon -reached a village where I learned that I was at the edge of the -Shenandoah Mountains. I hadn’t a cent, but I got a man to take me down -in his flivver to a railroad town where I induced the bank president -to trust me and give me a night’s lodging. That was yesterday, but it -seems like last year. This morning he lent me the railroad fare to get -back to Washington. I took the first train this morning, and got in -about an hour ago.”</p> - -<p>Barton asked a few more questions, and then said to Mortimer, “I think -we’d better have him come right in and give his testimony before the -others.”</p> - -<p>Then he explained to Tompkins that Rich was charged with treason, and -they were in the middle of the investigation.</p> - -<p>Mortimer and Barton reëntered the room, and then, with their eyes on -Rich, beckoned Tompkins to follow. As Tompkins entered, Rich caught -his breath with a gasp. There was no mistaking the pallor on his face -now, nor did he regain his composure as easily this time.</p> - -<p>Tompkins then recited the details of the momentous morning when Rich -had intercepted his message. Mortimer explained to Admirals Rallston -and Bishop that he had never taken part in the alleged telephone -conversation, that the message which Tompkins tried to deliver was -identical with that which Evans had later repeated to Rand, and that -the message received by messenger, urging the recall of Fraser, was a -bogus one. Admiral Bishop was quite bewildered, and got lost in the -intricacies of the conflicting narratives. Rallston, grasping the -significance of the revelations, looked very serious. Evans, alert and -missing nothing, was looking more cheerful.</p> - -<p>Mortimer turned on Rich.</p> - -<p>“How do you explain this telephone conversation in which I never took -part, but in which Mr. Tompkins understood me to instruct him to -deliver his message to you?”</p> - -<p>Rich, once more perfectly at ease, replied: “I explain it by telling -you it is a lie; just one more bit of this whole elaborate frame-up. I -told you Tompkins was probably involved in this business, and had -probably absconded.”</p> - -<p>“Or committed suicide,” put in Barton.</p> - -<p>Rich ignored the interruption and continued: “When he heard that there -was a conspiracy on foot to discredit me, he saw his chance to get in -on the thing. He has doubtless been in conference with others in his -gang, and they have decided that this story is the best way to play -their game.”</p> - -<p>There was a pause. Admiral Bishop stroked his whiskers and nodded -approvingly.</p> - -<p>“I think that is a very reasonable explanation, Mr. Secretary,” he -said.</p> - -<p>Evans then spoke.</p> - -<p>“I think there is now a chance of putting this thing to the test of -something better than words. Until Tompkins entered the room just now -I had no idea he was in Washington; I didn’t know whether he was still -alive. I have therefore had no possible chance of collusion with him -since I got home from the Azores. Are you satisfied on that point?”</p> - -<p>“Perfectly,” answered Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“I should now like to ask Tompkins if he felt sure that he recognized -the voice in the telephone as yours,” continued Evans. “Is that a fair -question?”</p> - -<p>“It is,” said Mortimer, turning to Tompkins and awaiting his reply.</p> - -<p>“The voice sounded exactly like the Secretary’s; I had no doubt of it -at the time,” said Tompkins.</p> - -<p>“Now,” said Evans, “according to Tompkins’s story, Commander Rich went -through the usual procedure of calling this room through the Bureau -switch-board. In due course a voice, which Tompkins believed he -recognized as yours, answered. You never received the call. If -Tompkins’s story is true, some one must have cut the wires from -Commander Rich’s room to the switch-board; otherwise the call would -have gone through to this room. Furthermore, some one who could mimic -your voice must have been at the other end of the cut wires. When Goss -was charged with cutting in on Tompkins’s line and impersonating -Commander Rich, more than one man in the Bureau testified to having -seen him with a portable phone in the vicinity of the wires leading to -the switch-board, on the morning when all this happened. He was also -shown to be an expert mimic. It remains, then, to see if the wires -from Commander Rich’s phone to the switch-board have been cut.</p> - -<p>“As for the possibility that they have been cut since then in order to -corroborate the story, you will notice that Tompkins himself has not -suggested that mode of corroboration, and you have granted that he has -had no opportunity of suggesting it to me. Furthermore, if his story -is true, the wires must have been cut and spliced together again a -week ago when all this happened. But if, as Commander Rich suggests, -he had made up his story as the result of a recent conference with his -gang, after hearing that he had a good chance to get in on the -frame-up, then, if he has had the forethought to cut and splice the -wires in order to back up his story, he must have done it within a few -hours. Now an experienced electrician could tell, on examining the -splices, whether they were done within a few hours, or as long as a -week ago. In fifteen minutes we can find out whether those wires have -been cut, and approximately when.”</p> - -<p>“I think, Mr. Secretary,” said Admiral Bishop, “it would be a -gratuitous insult to a distinguished officer to follow the inquiry -further by looking for such evidence against him. I am satisfied the -whole business is an audacious conspiracy to discredit Commander -Rich.”</p> - -<p>“Don’t you think that fair play to Mr. Tompkins requires that we -should look at those wires before concluding that he is lying?” asked -Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“I do not see it,” said the Admiral.</p> - -<p>“I do,” said Mortimer.</p> - -<p>The electrician who had installed the wires in the Bureau at the -outbreak of the war was sent for; also two other expert wire-men as -witnesses. It was a strangely assorted procession that walked through -the corridors of the Navy Department from the Secretary’s room to the -Bureau of Engineering. Secretary Mortimer and Admiral Rallston went -first; behind them followed Admiral Bishop and Commander Rich, while -Barton, Evans, Rand, Tompkins, and Long brought up the rear. Evans and -the electricians set to work removing planks to explore the wires -leading from Commander Rich’s room to the switch-board. It was not -long before Evans, who had chosen a place where a man could work -unseen, to begin his search, called the others to come and look. There -were the wires, each with a swelling of electric tape. This was -carefully removed by one of the electricians, and under the tape the -wires were spliced. Every one had a look at the splices.</p> - -<p>“Do you recall whether the wires were spliced at that point when you -put them in?” asked Mortimer.</p> - -<p>“I am certain that they were not,” replied the electrician.</p> - -<p>“Have you ever looked at them since?”</p> - -<p>“I inspected them two months ago.”</p> - -<p>“Were they spliced then?”</p> - -<p>“No.”</p> - -<p>“Could you swear to it?”</p> - -<p>“Yes.”</p> - -<p>“Can you tell how long ago those splices were made?”</p> - -<p>The electrician examined the wires carefully; then answered, “They -weren’t done within the last three days; I am sure of that. How much -longer ago, I can’t tell.”</p> - -<p>The other electricians examined the wires and all testified that the -splices couldn’t have been made less than four days ago at the very -latest.</p> - -<p>The electricians were dismissed. Admiral Rallston turned to Admiral -Bishop.</p> - -<p>“Can you tell me how that evidence could have been faked?” he said.</p> - -<p>Admiral Bishop did not answer. All eyes were now on Rich who was an -ashy gray, all his affable manner gone, a venomous look of malice on -his face.</p> - -<p>Evans and Barton exchanged glances, and Barton nudged Admiral -Rallston.</p> - -<p>“Have you heard anything from our friend Bela since his unceremonious -departure?” said Evans casually to Rich. “He has been praising you -warmly.”</p> - -<p>Rich started violently and turned a shade paler; the look of fear and -hate in his face was more intense than ever. He opened his mouth to -speak, and then, looking at the eyes of the others all grimly watching -him, he remained silent. Suddenly he turned on Evans and like a flash -drew a pistol from his pocket. Barton, standing close beside him, was -watching him like a lynx. Quick as was Rich’s hand, Barton’s was -quicker. With a swift blow he struck Rich’s right hand toward the -ceiling with such force that the pistol flew from it, and, sailing -through the air, fell at Evans’s feet. Long’s desire to assault Rich -now became uncontrollable; like a wild animal he sprang at him and -dealt him a blow with his fist that sent him sprawling on the floor.</p> - -<div style='height:1em;'></div> -<p>High officials in Constantinople sent out message after message -through secret channels. But the messages remained unanswered.</p> - -<p>The day after Rich suddenly ceased to be an officer in the United -States Navy, a great seaplane arrived at Trepassy Bay from Halifax -just after sunset. Out of it stepped Commander Barton and Radio Gunner -Evans, both looking haggard and exhausted. They turned in early at the -seaplane base. Next morning before sunrise they were once more on -board the same seaplane that had brought them from the Azores, with -the same skeptic as pilot, somewhat cheered now by his visit to dry -land. At the floating hangar they found the original crew of the -plane, well rested now and eager to get back to the Azores.</p> - -<p>The sunset colors were fading and the pink stucco buildings of Punta -Delgada but dimly showing against the green hills behind the town as -the great seaplane hovered over the battleship <i>Delaware</i>, answering -her recognition signals, and then alighted at the entrance to the -inner harbor.</p> - -<p>Evans was now easier in his mind, for Rich was no more. But still he -was terribly haunted by the fear that Rich or his agents had learned -the secret of the code stolen by Wellman (alias Bela), and revealed it -to their superiors in Constantinople. Therefore the first thing he did -on his arrival aboard the <i>Delaware</i> was to send one of his secret -messages to Heringham by way of Kendrick, requesting an investigation -as to whether the code was still believed to be genuine, and a report -as soon as feasible.</p> - -<p>Two days later, Evans, listening on his specially prepared receiver at -the appointed hour when Kendrick was wont to transmit intelligence -from Gibraltar, recognized the significant combinations of sounds -which meant there was news for him. Listening eagerly, with quickening -pulse he followed the message which came from Heringham. Careful -investigation, it said, had satisfied him that implicit trust was -still placed in the genuineness of the stolen code. Evans breathed -freely once more. The talisman was still good.</p> - -<p>At last, early in April, orders were issued to the various units of -the fleet to be ready for sea on a certain night, and a handful of men -knew that this foreshadowed more than a practice cruise. This handful -of men knew that, by dawn of the morning following the designated -night, the entire fleet would be on the open sea.</p> - -<p>Two days of feverish preparation followed, during which Evans made -hasty visits in the rôle of family doctor, or rather chief consultant, -to the radio apparatus of the fleet, diagnosing ailments, giving -advice and, when necessary, applying radical treatment to disordered -gear.</p> - -<p>As the last day before the departure drew to a close, weary with his -labors, but satisfied that the fleet was ready for its task, he went -to the Borge garden at dusk and ascended the old watch-tower once -more. The moon was rising over the sea, and its broad, shimmering wake -on the water was broken in a hundred places by the dark forms of great -ships, emblems of concentrated might. The moon rose higher till its -outline was broken by the branches of the old cedar tree which formed -a perfect frame for the great tableau of gallant ships on the shining -water. Evans sat and drank in the glory of the picture before him, -which for sheer beauty was almost unsurpassed in all his experience; -its splendor took his breath away. And as he sat gazing far off over -the moonlit sea with the soft air of the spring night fanning his -cheek, a sense of the glamour of the great navy with its power and -majesty, swept over him. A wild thrill went through him, and -long-forgotten feelings of his boyhood seized him. He yearned -passionately to do great deeds and play an heroic part in this war for -civilization. And as the expansive feeling took hold of him he -contemplated his own rôle as he saw it—a technical man fussing over -small details in a small part of the great machine that was going -forth to fight—a tiny cog in the works of a vast organization of men, -almost a non-combatant compared with the men who would direct the -battle, or the spotters in the fighting top. With a pang he told -himself that perhaps his part in the war was already done, and the -yearning to express the heroic impulse within him must die -unfulfilled. Then he rebuked himself for thinking of his own paltry -rôle as if it were of consequence. The sublimity of the scene before -his eyes inspired him to a larger perspective in which self was -submerged and the cause was all.</p> - -<p>“If the cause only triumphs,” he thought, “that’s all that matters. -And the cause will triumph.”</p> - -<p>The majestic fleet dotting the silvery surface of the moonlit sea now -seemed to him the symbol of a great hope, and yet, symbol though it -was, it was something very personal and very dear to him. Then there -came back to him another feeling, long buried deep in the remote past, -a feeling once closely linked with the ardent yearning for great -deeds, that had fired his youth. There rose before his eyes the vision -of one who long ago had meant more to him than life itself, one who -when his hopes seemed brightest had been snatched from him through the -influence of a dominating and ambitious mother.... From this his -thoughts turned to the memory of his own mother, unfailing in her -sympathy, gone now, leaving him the priceless heritage of her -devotion.</p> - -<p>It was time to return to the flagship. Descending through the shadowy -paths of the old garden, he came out at last and threaded his way -through the picturesque streets of the town to the harbor front where -the Old-World architecture around the landing seemed shrouded in -mystery in the pale moonlight. And as he took his place in the -motor-sailer, he felt that his spirit had been far away from the -little things that make up the daily life in the fleet, now crowding -in on his consciousness and dragging him rudely back from Olympian -heights.</p> - -<p>By dawn the next morning the vast fleet—battleships, cruisers, -destroyers and all—had vanished.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chXIV' title='XIV—The Battle'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XIV</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>THE BATTLE</span> -</h2> -<p>At Communication Headquarters of the enemy in Gibraltar there were -busy times. Radio experts, decoding experts, and Intelligence officers -were especially active in analyzing Allied naval dispatches. The code -system to which Bela procured the key had been verified by repeated -observation of fleet maneuvers, thus completing their assurance that -the Allies still placed confidence in it, and were changing code from -month to month according to the schedule outlined in the key.</p> - -<p>And now activity of special interest was discovered. A considerable -detachment of the Allied Navy, scouts and armored cruisers, together -with four of the older battleships, was cruising to the eastward of -the Azores and approaching near enough to the coast of Portugal to -make things look very interesting. Intercepted messages and -radio-compass bearings taken on their signals by the shore stations at -Vigo, Lisbon, and Gibraltar told the story, leaving no chance of -mistake as to the actual approach of ships to the coast. Such a force -as this, if cut off from the rest of the Allied fleet, would be easy -prey for the Mediterranean Navy; and a chance to destroy it would be a -golden opportunity, for the loss of these cruisers and battleships, -even though the latter were nearly obsolete and inferior to the -first-line capital ships, would be a serious blow to the Allies; it -would measurably weaken their navy, and greatly improve the outlook -for a subsequent battle between the two fleets.</p> - -<p>But could this force be really cruising so far away from the main -fleet as to render it liable to be cut off from support? With -redoubled vigilance the radio forces in the Portuguese and Spanish -stations listened for clues to the presence of a supporting force of -capital ships, or to some explanation of the apparently isolated -position of the cruiser force.</p> - -<p>Now, in radio communications, as elsewhere, the chain is often no -stronger than its weakest link. A slip on the part of a single -operator entrusted with a message may work vast havoc through the -resulting confusion. Before long, as the messages of the Allied -flagships were decoded and studied by the enemy experts in Gibraltar, -an explanation of the dangerous move of the Allied cruisers came to -light. This force, conducting a sweep of the waters east of the Azores -on the chance of finding enemy commerce raiders, was supposed to be -remaining within reach of the main fleet, still at the Azores; that -is, so near that if the enemy should put out from Gibraltar, the -cruiser force and the rest of the fleet could, by steaming toward each -other at full speed, effect a junction before the enemy battle -cruisers with their higher speed could overtake and attack. But a -message from Allied Headquarters in Punta Delgada saying, “Proceed no -farther to the eastward,” had through error been transmitted, “Proceed -farther to the eastward.” Before the mistake had been discovered, the -cruisers had steamed close in to the vicinity of Cape Saint Vincent -and Gibraltar. And now, with the slow speed of the older battleships -to retard their escape, and with the rest of the fleet far away, the -detached force was in a most perilous position. All this was now -revealed to the enemy through their analysis of intercepted messages.</p> - -<p>Clearly there was no time to lose in giving chase. The cruiser force -had discovered the mistake and would retreat toward the supporting -fleet with all possible speed. But so near was it, and so much would -its speed be retarded by the slower ships, that the battle cruisers of -the Mediterranean Navy could surely overtake it before reinforcements -could arrive on the scene.</p> - -<div id='i006' class='mt01 mb01 wi006'> - <img src='images/illus-006.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> -</div> -<p>Emergency orders were given by the Turkish Admiral; steam was raised -for maximum speed in the entire fleet, and with expedition denoting a -high degree of preparedness and efficiency the fleet steamed off to -the westward in search of the detached force. Speed was everything in -this pursuit, and soon the advance force of the battle cruisers with a -screen of scouts and destroyers thrown out ahead, speeding west at -twenty-nine knots, had dropped the main battle fleet out of sight -astern. It was nearly sunset when the fleet left Gibraltar, and -through the night the race to the westward went on. No radio signals -were sent by the advance force, for, though their strength left no -doubts in the mind of the commanding officer of his ability to destroy -the force that now seemed almost within his grasp, still it was -desirable to avoid revealing his approach, in order that he might -catch his prey unawares—he would probably make quicker work of them -this way. But every radio operator listened intently for signals from -the Allied cruisers. Before the night was over, they had been heard -reporting progress and telling their whereabouts to the Allied battle -fleet, supposedly hastening eastward in a vain endeavor to come to the -rescue before a superior force from Gibraltar should have time to -overtake and destroy them. To the great satisfaction of the Turkish -Admiral on the battle cruiser flagship, a message soon reached him -from Gibraltar reporting that bearings taken by radio compass at -Lisbon and Gibraltar on the same message of the Allied cruiser force -had verified the position reported by the cruisers themselves, and -showed that they were only making nineteen knots. Soon after sunrise -the fugitives would be overtaken, and it would not be long before the -heavy guns of the battle cruisers had sunk the entire force. Even if -the Allied battle fleet had started eastward at top speed as soon as -the dangerous position of the cruisers was discovered, they could not -possibly reach the point where the battle cruisers would overtake the -fugitive detachment before the afternoon. By that time the battle -cruisers would have ample time to finish off their victims, retreat, -and effect a conjunction with their own battle fleet. The -Mediterranean fleet thus consolidated could well afford, if conditions -then seemed favorable, to meet and give battle to the Allied fleet, -weakened as it would be by the loss of its cruisers and the four older -battleships.</p> - -<p>At dawn seaplanes were sent up from the Turkish battle cruiser -squadron to scout to the westward and look for the Allied cruiser -force, and especially to make sure that no other force, not mentioned -in the dispatches, was lurking in the neighborhood. A light southwest -wind was blowing; low-lying haze and clouds rendered observations from -any great height impossible. This obliged the seaplanes to fly low. -Just after sunrise they returned and reported sighting a considerable -force of cruisers and destroyers steaming west. Being under orders to -avoid approaching enemy craft near enough to be seen, they had -returned without getting close enough to make out just what type of -cruisers they had seen or whether the four battleships were with them, -for the visibility to the westward was very poor. There was no mistake -then; their prey was surely theirs. The news was acclaimed with joy on -the flagship. The Admiral rubbed his palms together and smiled grimly. -He recalled the great deeds of the Turkish navies of the fifteenth -century, and gloried in the thought that the honor of adding a new -page to their illustrious record would be his.</p> - -<p>Onward steamed the battle cruisers, all hands in high hopes of a swift -and decisive action. At half-past seven in the morning the lookouts in -the Mediterranean scouts, three miles in advance of the battle -cruisers, reported ships to the westward. “Action stations” was -sounded and the scouting line rapidly maneuvered into battle -formation. Overtaking as fast as they were, it was soon easy to make -out a long line of scout cruisers to the westward, now steaming on a -northwesterly course. But where were the armored cruisers, and where -were the four battleships that had been holding them back? The -visibility to the westward was low, and probably the scouts and -destroyers, having greater speed, had held back to give warning if a -pursuing force should come. Probably the rest of the force was a few -miles ahead. At all events, the scouts were now in range, and the -chance to do them damage was not to be lost. The battle cruisers -opened fire with their big guns, and had landed two salvos close to -the fleeing scout cruisers when a smoke screen from the destroyers on -their flank hid them from view. When next they were seen through the -smoke, they had increased speed and opened the range, so that the -battle cruisers’ salvos were falling short.</p> - -<p>The northwesterly course of the fleeing ships was a considerable -change from the westerly course of the pursuit through the night. -Possibly the slower ships had turned southwest in hopes of escaping in -the low visibility while the scouts decoyed the battle cruisers away -to the northwest. Therefore the seaplanes were sent up again to search -the sea to the southwest and find the armored cruisers and -battleships. After a prolonged search they returned with a report that -no ships were to be seen to the west, southwest, or south for a -distance of many miles.</p> - -<p>Meanwhile the destroyers of the two fleets had come together in an -attempt to maneuver for torpedo attack against the larger ships. -Lively shelling at close range resulted, but only minor damage was -done on either side. In consequence of this diversion, the smoke -screen became sufficiently dissipated to enable the battle cruisers to -catch sight of the Allied scouts speeding toward the northwest far on -the port bow, near the limit of visibility. Again they opened fire and -saw their salvos beginning to fall very close just before the smoke -screen of the destroyers again hid them from sight.</p> - -<p>When next they came into view, they had changed course to north and -were already bearing almost dead ahead. The battle cruisers swung on -to a parallel course and opened a heavy fire on them, but the rapidly -changing range made the targets difficult to hit; so, dodging salvos, -the Allied scout cruisers sped northward disappearing again into smoke -and haze.</p> - -<p>Hitherto the scout cruisers of the Mediterranean fleet had remained -only a short distance ahead of their supporting battle cruisers and -hence too far out of effective range of the Allied scouts to make it -worth while to open fire with their six-inch guns. But now a signal -was made from the flagship telling the scouts to pursue and engage -those of the Allies.</p> - -<p>Putting on all speed and changing course to port, the Mediterranean -scouts succeeded in closing the range with their adversaries till it -was possible to engage them with their six-inch guns. And now for the -first time in the war ships of the same type, evenly matched, engaged -in battle. In numbers, speed, and gun-power there was little to choose -between the opposing scout cruiser divisions; but in morale the -difference was one that told in the tense five minutes after the -cruisers opened fire on each other. Those of the Allies replied to the -first salvo, which fell short, not only with a salvo from their own -six-inch guns, but also by deploying sharply toward their adversaries, -thus passing well under the second enemy salvo which screeched -overhead, and rapidly closing the range. Hits were scored on both -sides. On the Allied ships one gun was put out of action, while -several shells burst in pantries, hammock lashings, and other places -which caused more annoyance than vital damage. But so heavy and -determined was their fire upon the Mediterranean scouts that, with -flames bursting forth and magazines endangered, a conning tower -smashed,—skipper and all, and two or three guns crippled, confusion -and panic began to spread. With the Allied fire growing heavier and -their own growing wild, the Turks soon veered sharply away and -retreated under cover of the big guns of the battle cruisers.</p> - -<p>What with distance, haze, and the smoke screen of the destroyers, only -the flashes of the guns on the Allied scouts were visible to the -pursuing battle cruisers; and when their firing ceased as the -Mediterranean scouts withdrew, they disappeared from view altogether. -But it was not for long; soon they were seen again through a rift in -the smoke screen, once more dead ahead, and now heading no longer -north, but northeast.</p> - -<p>What could this mean? Could it be that these scouts were leading the -battle cruisers into some sort of trap? Could there be reinforcements -lying in wait to the northeast? This seemed hardly possible. No -vessels had been heard sending radio signals in that vicinity, -although the net of sensitive receivers, capable of detecting even the -feeblest signals, had been constantly spread—an army of vigilant -operators listening every instant for the faintest sound. Nothing had -been heard save the steady stream of tactical signals between the -Allied scout cruisers as they sped away. If the four old battleships -and the armored cruisers, reported to have been with the scouts, had -gone in that direction, it would be the worse for them, since the -heavy guns of the approaching battle cruisers, soon to be reinforced -by those of the main battle fleet, coming up rapidly from the east, -would make short work of them. No; it was unlikely that the Allied -scouts would attempt to lead them toward the detached division of -slower ships. The main battle fleet of the Allies must still be far -away—in the vicinity of the Azores; the dispatches intercepted the day -before seemed to make a certainty of that. This move on the part of -the Allied scouts was quite unintelligible. At all events, it was -leading them toward the main battle fleet of the Mediterranean Powers. -At this rate a junction would soon be effected, and the Turks couldn’t -wish anything better than that.</p> - -<p>The chase continued on a northeasterly course till the forenoon was -well advanced, the fugitive scouts and destroyers of the Allies -appearing like shadows in a dream, with bewildering elusiveness; and -all this time the main battle fleet from the east, apprised of the -course of events by radio from the battle cruisers, was approaching -rapidly on a northwesterly course. Most of the time the Allied scouts -were out of sight, and fire was withheld, but now and then a fleeting -glimpse of them would cause the battle cruisers to “loose off” a salvo -or two.</p> - -<p>The lookouts on the pursuing ships did not see two American destroyers -approach the Allied scouts from the north at thirty-five knots and -fall into line on their port beam. But they did see the scouts -reappear through the haze and smoke once again at closer range than -before, having shifted course to the east. This was better still;—the -battle cruisers would the sooner effect a junction with the main -fleet.</p> - -<p>By noon the men in the fighting tops of the Mediterranean battle -cruisers saw the welcome sight of smoke in the southeast denoting the -approach of their main battle fleet. A few minutes later the smoke was -also seen by the lookouts on the Allied scouts. The Mediterranean -fleet was now united in one colossal force, the scout and battle -cruiser squadrons taking station ahead of the battleships. Upon this -the Allied scout cruisers and destroyers veered to the north. -Zigzagging, disappearing behind smoke screens and fitfully -reappearing, these scouts presented a maddeningly difficult target for -the battle cruisers. With the speed presumably at their disposal they -might have drawn away and escaped, but instead they zigzagged and kept -reappearing so near that the battle cruisers would open fire on them, -only to lose sight of them again in the smoke and haze before the -range-finders, spotters, and trainers could get in the necessary work -for hitting the elusive targets. Then, as the order to cease firing -was given, the commanders would realize, to the tune of many an oath, -that they had only been wasting ammunition.</p> - -<p>Thus the running fight went on, the entire fleet of the Mediterranean -Powers pursuing a squadron of scout cruisers and a score or so of -destroyers on a northerly course, but only the battle cruisers in the -van could get within range of the fugitives. For half an hour they -held this course; then the zigzagging of the Allied scouts took them -farther to the west, till by one o’clock the pursuit had shifted to a -northwesterly course. Then for a moment the scout cruisers appeared -still well in the lead, but more clearly visible than usual and -offering an irresistible target for the big guns of the battle -cruisers. But it was only for a brief minute or two, and as the salvos -began to splash closer to their mark, six destroyers were seen to dash -between the scouts and their pursuers, sending out a dense smoke -screen behind which all else was lost to view. The smoke screen -continued to lie like a great pall far on the port bow of the pursuing -fleet, but the light southwest wind swept it toward their path, and -soon the destroyers, dodging behind their own screen, had also -vanished from sight. They must, however, still be holding the same -general course, for the smoke continued to pour forth, making a wide -blanket to the west and northwest; and behind that blanket the scouts -were doubtless increasing speed to make good their escape. So said the -Turkish Admiral in command of the battle cruiser squadron, but he -could not see the Allied scout cruisers behind their screen executing -the same maneuver which the German High Seas Fleet executed at -Jutland, although the British believed it impracticable in action—a -“simultaneous swing-around” whereby, each ship doubling on her tracks, -and all at the same moment, both the direction and the order of the -ships were rapidly reversed. Steaming back at high speed, together -with the majority of the destroyers—all but the six that made the -screen—it was only a few minutes before the Allied scouts were abreast -of the main body of the enemy’s battle fleet, some miles astern of the -battle cruisers. Again the simultaneous swing-around was effected and -the scouts closed in on the enemy.</p> - -<p>With blank amazement the Turkish Commander-in-Chief on the bridge of -his flagship saw the long, slender scout cruisers, nine in number, -preceded by some eighteen destroyers, emerge from the thinning smoke -and haze barely five miles away on his port beam and come tearing at -top speed toward his formidable fleet of giant dreadnaughts. The -audacity of it fairly staggered him; here they came into the very jaws -of death. The smoke screen, dissipated and blowing across his line, -left the visibility good toward the southwest; against the bright -horizon sky under the sun the approaching ships stood out clearly, -making excellent targets but for their speed, which taxed the -range-finders’ powers to the limit. Clearly it was an attack with -intent to torpedo.</p> - -<p>“What madness is this?” gasped the Admiral. “They’ll pay for their -folly,” he added grimly. And all along his battle-line big guns and -secondary batteries began to belch forth their terrific fire on the -swarm of hornets making their reckless dash. And pay they did. One of -the scouts was hit heavily by two successive salvos, burst into -flames, and then blew up in a great cloud of black smoke. Another, -with steam pouring from the rent deck over her engine room, veered -off, dropped out of line, and soon fell rapidly astern. But the other -seven came on at a frightful pace, following close to the destroyers, -already hotly engaged by those of the enemy. On came the destroyers -through the deadly hail of shot, and some of them came unscathed -except for funnels and superstructures, to within six thousand yards -of the great battle-line, where each one let go a dozen torpedoes. The -scout cruisers, close behind, fired their torpedoes almost at the same -moment.</p> - -<p>So densely did these underwater missiles swarm toward the great battle -fleet that, in spite of every effort to dodge, several vital hits were -made. One battleship sank then and there. Another, hit close to the -stern, her port propeller gone and her steering-gear smashed, was soon -left wallowing helpless far astern. The Admiral in his flagship -muttered savagely as he saw two of his best ships put out of action, -but he noted with satisfaction the cruel punishment the Allied scout -cruisers and destroyers were getting as they turned to retreat after -firing their torpedoes. He was eagerly watching his salvos hit, the -red glow of the impact, the bursts of flame, the shattered decks and -superstructures that marked the havoc wrought by his gunners, when a -frightful din behind him made him turn and stare wildly to starboard. -There, scarce a hundred yards away, rose the giant splash of a -concentrated salvo of heavy shells. With an awful screech projectiles -ricocheted overhead, and tons of water came aboard. Only the big guns -of a dreadnaught could have sent such a salvo. Where was she? The -skyline to starboard all the way from north to east was obscured by -the combined smoke of the Allied destroyers and the entire -Mediterranean fleet, blown thither by the southwest wind, and merging -into the haze. In vain the Admiral and his lookouts searched for the -outline of an enemy ship. But then, through the murk, they saw faintly -an ominous ripple of orange flashes extending almost continuously for -miles along the northeastern horizon. Not one, but many salvos were on -their way through space, coming with deadly aim for his battleships. -With indescribable noise the next salvo arrived and straddled the -flagship. One shell hit fair on a forward turret, exploded, and put -its three guns hopelessly out of action; another started an angry -blaze on the superstructure; others tore great holes in the ship’s -side, wrecking compartments through which they passed. Looking -anxiously down the line of ships astern, the Admiral saw an awful -picture of fires and explosions telling of havoc already wrought. -Confusion and consternation were everywhere. All hands on all ships -had been giving their full attention to pouring the hottest kind of -fire from full broadsides into the attacking destroyers and scouts as -they endeavored to turn and escape from the close range to which they -had approached. No one grasped the significance of this sudden -development in time to begin training the turrets around to starboard -before the second salvo arrived and registered damaging hits on nearly -half the ships of the line. Orders were wildly shouted and signals -made, and when they understood what was up, with all the speed they -could muster the distracted men trained the big turrets to starboard. -But what was there to shoot at? Not a ship could be seen; only the dim -blur of the orange-red flashes through the smoke revealed where the -salvos came from, and these were far too well obscured to enable the -range-finders to give the gunners the distance or to offer a target -for trainers and pointers. But from a range of twelve thousand yards -each of the Mediterranean battleships presented a perfect target in -silhouette against the southwestern sky to the battle-line of the -Allied fleet.</p> - -<div style='height:1em;'></div> -<p>In the radio room of the battleship <i>Delaware</i>, Admiral Johnson’s -flagship, there had been a busy scene all the morning. Yet in all the -fleet not a transmitter was in action, not a signal was sent by radio, -for a single spark might reveal their presence to the enemy and give -away the maneuver; but on every battleship and on every destroyer the -radio operators were listening intently. Nearly a hundred miles to the -northeast, as the running fight between the enemy battle cruisers and -the scouts began in the early morning, the Allied battleship fleet, -well screened by destroyers, had been maneuvering, guided by -radio-compass bearings taken on the tactical signals of the Allied -scouts and the signals exchanged between the battle cruisers and the -main fleet of the enemy. Since no telltale radio signals could be -sent, all messages between the ships of the Allied battle fleet must -be transmitted by flag hoist or by blinker—flashes sent by -searchlights from the bridge. By this means the radio-compass reports -from all parts of the fleet were silently relayed to the flagship, and -in return all orders directing operations were sent out from the -flagship to the other ships, without making a sound that could reveal -their presence to the enemy.</p> - -<p>So important was it to place the ships accurately in the desired -position that two methods besides those of ordinary navigation were -used to coördinate the movements of the battle fleet with those of the -decoying squadron of scout cruisers and destroyers. Radio-compass -triangulation was worked both ways: first, with the battle fleet as a -base line; second, with the decoying scout cruisers as a base line. -The second method was a rough one, for in their running fight the -scouts offered a poor base line at best. Therefore the main reliance -was placed on the base line established in the main fleet. For this -purpose, two groups of destroyers, one at each end of the column, were -detailed to take radio-compass bearings on the signals of the scout -cruiser flagship, and report them to the <i>Delaware</i> by blinker, the -reports being relayed from ship to ship all along the column. This -method was accurate, but slow because of the time needed to relay the -reports. Therefore it was supplemented by the reverse process, the -<i>Delaware</i> herself taking bearings on signals exchanged between the -two ends of the scout cruiser column.</p> - -<p>The <i>Delaware</i> had two radio compasses at widely separate points on -the superstructure, in case of accident to one. At these stations were -two men whom Evans had chosen from all the radio-compass operators in -the fleet for the speed and accuracy with which they could take -bearings. At one of these stations, with an extra pair of head-phones -plugged into the circuit, Evans listened in during the entire time of -the running fight which brought the fleets together, checking the -bearings taken by the operator and reporting them to the plotting -room. Thus he gave Fraser a rough estimate of the position of the -scouts some time before the more accurate information could be relayed -in from the destroyers.</p> - -<p>In the plotting room, Captain Fraser, Chief of Staff, with a group of -officers plotting the entire development of the action, including the -positions and progress of both the advance force and the main fleet of -the enemy and of the decoying scouts and the battle fleet of the -Allies, received the advance reports which Evans gave him, and -prepared in his mind the next step in maneuvering the battle fleet -while waiting for the corroborating reports from the destroyers at the -ends of the column.</p> - -<p>Thus the morning wore on, the mighty fleet, giant dreadnaughts, -armored cruisers, scouts, and destroyers, spread out for miles over -the wide expanse of ocean, all moving in perfect unison, maneuvered at -the behest of Fraser’s guiding mind. Now they would speed up, now slow -down, now change course to port or starboard, much as a hawk with -watchful eye will hover and wheel before the final swoop on his prey. -And ever the suspense grew more acute.</p> - -<p>Admiral Johnson on the bridge scanned the wide horizon where his great -line of ships stretched away as far as the eye could reach, and -farther. Signalmen, tense and alert, awaited the word to flash out -orders by blinker or bend on the flags to the signal halyards. -Lookouts way aloft strained their eyes to detect the slightest object -on the blue expanse of sea.</p> - -<p>In the middle of the morning, Fraser, studying on the plotting sheet -the converging courses of the three groups of ships, calculated where -his decoying force of scout cruisers should next lead the enemy in -order to place them in a favorable position for attack. He then -dispatched the two destroyers which approached the scout cruiser -squadron from the north where the enemy could not see them, with -orders for them to shift course from northeast to east.</p> - -<p>Soon after this, signals were sent out from the <i>Delaware</i> to the rear -admirals in command of the various battleship divisions giving them -preparatory instructions for the maneuver which should bring the fleet -into battle-line when the right moment arrived, and apprising them of -the imminence of battle. By this time every man in the fleet knew that -momentous doings were on foot, but few knew what the next turn of -events would be. The ships were cleared for action.</p> - -<p>As soon as the radio reports from the scouts showed that the enemy had -joined forces, a third destroyer was sent to approach the scouts under -cover of the smoke and haze in the northwest, telling them what course -to steer and when to make the torpedo attack which should divert and -absorb the attention of the enemy. The united fleet of the enemy was -now only fifteen miles away bearing southeast; the booming of their -heavy guns was clearly heard.</p> - -<p>On every ship all hands were assembled and told that action of the -first magnitude was at hand; the situation was outlined, conditions -were favorable, and the outcome was in their hands.</p> - -<p>On the <i>Delaware</i>, Admiral Johnson spoke to the men himself.</p> - -<p>“The great battle is at hand,” he said. “Now is the chance of your -lives to show what is in you. The outcome of the war is at stake. The -advantage of visibility will all be on our side. You will see the -enemy better than he can see you. It is a golden chance to do your -best at gunnery; so keep your heads and shoot straight, and your first -five minutes’ shooting will decide the issue. We are going to make it -a swift and decisive victory, and it depends on you. In a few minutes’ -time a detachment of our scouts and destroyers will make a desperate -attack on the enemy’s battle-line from the farther side, partly to -damage him with torpedoes, but chiefly to draw his fire from us. We -are asking heroism of the highest order from them; let us see that it -is not given in vain.”</p> - -<p>Then “General Quarters” was sounded. The men ran eagerly to their -action stations.</p> - -<p>Now began a maneuver of the fleet which would have staggered the -imagination of an admiral of the Jutland days. A brief series of -signals went out from the <i>Delaware</i>, and at the word the countless -ships of the fleet commenced an evolution so bewildering and involved -that the keenest observer would have seen in it nothing but disorder -and confusion. In complexity it surpassed the performance of the most -intricate machine. Yet in an incredibly short time all ships fell as -if by magic into battle-line in perfect formation, on a northwesterly -course that slowly converged on the enemy.</p> - -<p>As soon as the scouts commenced their simultaneous swing-around, they -ceased sending signals lest they betray their move; but the -destroyers, making the smoke screen where they had been, kept up the -patter needed to inform the battle fleet of their progress. As soon as -the scouts emerged from the lifting smoke screen and came into full -view of the enemy battle-line in their final dash, they began again to -use their radio.</p> - -<p>The battle fleet of the Allies had now maneuvered into a position -northeast of the enemy, broad on his starboard bow, and had swung into -battle formation. The lookouts reported sighting the enemy -battleships, and Fraser, now in the conning tower, noted with -satisfaction how closely their position agreed with that deduced from -the great mass of data which had been pouring into the plotting room. -The radio compass had not failed. The maneuver, which had been his -dream since he scratched the diagram on the ground in the Borge -garden, was realized at last; it had worked even better than he had -hoped. Then in the radio room the signals of the scouts were again -heard.</p> - -<p>“Attacking enemy on his port beam—range nine thousand yards—under -heavy fire, big guns and secondary battery—range eight thousand -yards”—and so on.</p> - -<p>Thanks to the greater visibility to the southwest, the enemy -battle-line was now clearly in view from the turrets and control tops; -the range-finders had measured the range, the targets had been -assigned, the trainers and pointers were “on,” and all were in -readiness to open fire. Their suspense was nearing the breaking point. -Then the results of the torpedo attack appeared; one battleship -silhouette changed to a cloud of black smoke and vanished. The other -disabled ship could be seen to drop out of line.</p> - -<p>At a signal from the <i>Delaware</i>, all at once the broadsides of the -entire battle-line went off; in record time the second salvo followed -the first, and then the third; and, even before the enemy had -responded and his first salvos had come screeching through the air, -great fires and jets of steam and smoke told the story of heavy damage -already done across the six miles of water.</p> - -<p>There was now no more need for silence; the flagship would direct the -movements of the fleet by radio, all transmitters would be in action; -the radio compass had done its work. Evans left the radio-compass -station and hastened to a hatch leading to the main radio room beneath -the armored deck. As he crossed the superstructure he saw far away in -the southwest the scene of wild tumult, ships on fire, the orange -flashes of their salvos, the splashes and hits of the straddling -salvos from the Allied fleet, and then the great splashes of the -enemy’s salvos landing several hundred yards short, followed by the -screech of their ricocheting shells overhead. Added to this, the -deafening roar of the <i>Delaware’s</i> own broadside completed an -indelible picture in his mind as he went below into the comparative -quiet of the radio room, now becoming the busy scene of tactical -dispatches coming and going, with Elkins directing the work of coding -and decoding.</p> - -<p>The scouts and destroyers of the decoying force had paid a fearful -price in the climax of their torpedo attack. The seven surviving -cruisers, all riddled with shells, some crippled with vital hits, -their decks strewn with splinters and wreckage, but all still able to -steam, withdrew out of range. Their work was done, and well done. -Several destroyers were sunk, for they had come even closer to the -enemy, and thus drawn the heavier fire. Those nearest to their sinking -comrades turned, zigzagged, dodged a salvo or two, and then stopped -while the shells still fell round them thick and fast, to rescue the -survivors, the speed of the enemy battle fleet soon, happily, causing -the range to increase just enough to render the rescue something short -of downright suicide. Yet many men went down with their ships, -thinking to the last, not of self, but only of the fight.</p> - -<p>Barely had the attacking cruisers and destroyers on the port side of -the Mediterranean column withdrawn, when no less than forty American -destroyers appeared darting out from the haze on their starboard bow. -With all available destroyers of the Mediterranean fleet busy -repelling the first attack on the port side, and with all turret guns -not yet crippled, firing wildly into the haze on the northeastern -horizon, there was nothing left but the starboard secondary batteries -of the battleships with which to repel this new and formidable -onslaught. The morale of the gunners, already shaken by the startling -turn of events, was no whit the better for the sight of the angry -swarm of destroyers charging in with the speed of express trains. -Their fire was hot but wild, and soon the sea fairly seethed with -torpedo tracks which the battleships desperately maneuvered to dodge, -thus dislocating the aim of their turrets.</p> - -<p>The torpedo attack was chiefly concentrated on the leading ships and -especially on the Mediterranean flagship, for well the Allies knew -that morale was not the Turk’s long suit, and that a loss of -centralized control would severely cripple his fleet. In spite of -frantic efforts by the gunners of the secondary battery and vigilant -watch for torpedo tracks from bridge and crow’s-nest, nothing the -helmsman could do availed to dodge the concentrated swarm of -torpedoes, and, in less than ten minutes from the landing of the first -salvo, the Mediterranean flagship was hit in the starboard engine -room.</p> - -<p>The men on the American destroyers, now zigzagging off through a -tornado of shell-fire, looked back through the leaping pillars of -white, frothy water, and shouted as they saw the great battleship more -than half-obscured by a strange patchwork of white steam and black -smoke rising in clouds above her fighting tops. Then they saw her, -with her engines crippled, listing heavily to starboard, fall out of -line, and drop astern. The Turkish Admiral signaled a light cruiser to -come alongside, and soon had transferred his flag to another -battleship farther astern, swinging well out of line to port and thus -taking refuge on the disengaged side of his line during the transfer.</p> - -<p>Before his flagship was torpedoed, the Admiral had managed to send a -signal to his advance battle cruiser force, ordering them to deploy to -starboard and attack the Allied battle-line. The rear admiral in -charge of this force, angry at his vain pursuit of the scout cruisers -which had led him into the trap, turned his flagship at high speed and -led his column impetuously to the attack. At nine thousand yards, in -spite of the low visibility to the east, he sighted the American -flagship leading the Allied column, and, swinging rapidly on to a -parallel course, opened fire on her. The <i>Delaware</i>, having seen the -enemy flagship hit by the torpedo and then fall out of line, was in -the act of training her turrets on the next battleship astern when the -enemy battle cruisers suddenly appeared closing rapidly on her port -bow. She had barely time to train her turrets on the leading battle -cruiser before the concentrated fire of three of these formidable -opponents began to pour in upon her. And now came the great test for -her manifold radio equipment. There was no time to lose. Signals must -be sent to all battleships within range to support her by diverting -their fire to these fast and powerful ships; signals must be sent to -all available destroyers to harass them with torpedo attacks; and -still the direction of the fleet as a unit must go on, and all without -mutual interference of messages. Signals were flashing out -simultaneously on different wave-lengths from three or four separate -antennæ, both by radio telephone and by radio telegraph. The -<i>Delaware</i> was now heavily engaged, delivering salvos from all her -turrets at the maximum speed, and, in spite of zigzagging, frequently -being straddled by the salvos of the battle cruisers. Down in the -radio room officers were feverishly coding and decoding messages, some -operators were sending them, others tending the control switches -whereby the radio telephone was kept running so that the chief of -staff in the conning tower could give orders verbally to those units -which he was in the greatest hurry to reach. Evans was watching the -various ammeters and indicators to see that the machinery ran -smoothly, and Elkins was directing the whole show.</p> - -<p>Suddenly Evans noticed the metres of the radio telephone outfit doing -strange things. Down behind the battleship’s armor the general din of -action was so confused that the burst of a shell on the superstructure -had not been noticed as distinct from the rest. But to Evans the -combination of symptoms in the metres told a story.</p> - -<p>“The antenna or rat-tail of the ’phone set is broken,” he shouted to -Elkins. “Tell Fraser. I’ll see if it can be fixed.” Then turning to -the chief radio electrician and pointing to the generator involved, he -called, “Shut off the juice and don’t turn it on till I tell you.” -Then, seizing a spool of wire and a strong pair of wire-cutting -pliers, he shot out of the room.</p> - -<p>A hasty conversation then followed by voice-tube between Elkins and -Captain Fraser in the conning tower, in which arrangement was made for -the use of the next most expeditious channel of communication with the -destroyer flotilla. Just then Fraser, looking out of the conning -tower, saw a figure in dungarees climbing rapidly up the basket mast -like a monkey, with a loose wire trailing from his belt. Evans, coming -on deck, had found the rat-tail, cut away from the antenna by a shell -fragment, sprawling on the deck. Seizing the broken end and securing -it to his belt, he started up the ladder, swinging himself out on the -framework where necessary to avoid leading the rat-tail foul of stays. -As he crawled out at last, clinging like a bee to the chain of -insulators that supported the antenna swaying in mid-air, and groping -for the ends of the broken wires that had converged from the antenna -to the rat-tail, his senses were fairly dazed by the roar and din of -the battle now raging at its height. Shells screeched past him, shells -hit on the decks, shaking the whole ship as they burst, great -fountains of water rose where others fell short and filled the air -with heavy spray. Smoke was pouring from a large, jagged hole in the -deck; and as he clung there, swaying high in the air, he saw a large -whaleboat smashed to matchwood by a shell, fragments of her timbers -flung far into the sea. A fire brigade was running aft over the -splintered deck, the men looking like ants from the great height -whence he caught these fragmentary glimpses of the scene. Every -fifteen seconds consciousness seemed suspended as the <i>Delaware’s</i> -twelve sixteen-inch guns let go their salvos—flash, roar, and -concussion fusing in one mighty shock that well-nigh stunned and -paralyzed every faculty. Half-dazed he could only cling each time till -the salvo was over, then renew his efforts to reach the swaying wires; -and each time the spotters in the foretop close by, while waiting for -the smoke to clear and the seconds to elapse before the salvo was due -to reach its mark, looked round to see if he still was there. At last -he reached the wires, and, clinging with both legs and one arm, -managed to join together the broken ends by means of the spool of wire -in his pocket. As he crawled back, he had a momentary glimpse of the -enemy battle cruisers in the west, and could clearly distinguish from -the flash of their gun-fire the red glow of the hits made by the -<i>Delaware’s</i> salvos. The action, as he had seen it earlier when he was -on his way to the radio room, was mild compared to what was going on -now. The <i>Delaware</i> was being heavily pounded, but, supported by the -three battleships next in line, she was scoring more hits on the enemy -than she received, and with heavier shells. Just as he reached the -basket mast, there was a concussion which almost shook him off. -Looking aft he saw fragments of steel flying from the roof of one of -the turrets. With a sinking feeling he realized that in that turret -was Lindsay’s battle station. A moment later some of the turret crew -came scrambling out of the hole the shell had torn. Then to his horror -he saw a great burst of flame shoot from the turret and rise to the -height of the mast.</p> - -<p>Descending the basket mast, he shouted to Captain Fraser as he passed -the conning tower, “All ready to use,” and hastened below to the radio -room where he found the generator already humming again at its task of -supplying the power to carry the voice from the conning tower far over -the turbulent waters. And as he watched the metres on the panel he -knew that the transmitter was again carrying the messages that were -directing the work of the fleet. But his heart was sick with the -haunting picture of the flame shooting from Lindsay’s turret.</p> - -<p>A flotilla of American destroyers, stationed ahead of the column, was -now racing to attack the battle cruisers with torpedoes. -Simultaneously some thirty more destroyers—all that were left and able -to fight of the forty which had just delivered their attack on the -enemy’s main battle-line—came up from the south to join in this new -attack. Meanwhile the destroyers of the enemy, thrown into confusion -by the unexpected change in affairs, their coördination completely -upset when the flagship of the fleet was put out of action, operated -in haphazard fashion, each virtually “on its own,” darting about like -mad hornets in search of their tormenter. Some of them now came to the -support of the battle cruisers, and engaged in lively dueling with the -American destroyers at close range. But their haphazard attacks -availed little against the team-work by which the Allied flotillas -delivered their concerted torpedo attack.</p> - -<p>The Allied fleet had a great advantage in visibility all along the -line. Not only the main battle fleet of the enemy in the southwest, -but also his battle cruisers in the west stood out in bold relief -against the afternoon sky. For this reason, as well as by virtue of -the heavier guns of the Allied battleships and the disconcerting -effect of the torpedo attack, the fire of the battle cruisers soon -became wild and ineffective. Vital hits were being made on them in -increasing numbers, and soon one of them, on fire in several places, -was straddled by a salvo which let the flames into her magazine. With -a blaze that lit the sky she burst into fragments, leaving nothing but -oil and wreckage when the smoke cleared. Another, hit in a starboard -boiler room, was unable to maintain speed, and, to avoid being pounded -to pieces as she dropped astern past the entire battle-line of the -Allies, turned sharply to port and escaped behind her own line of -battleships. The remainder of the battle cruisers, battered and -crippled, drew out of range while still they could, pursued by -destroyers racing after like a pack of hungry greyhounds.</p> - -<p>And now the <i>Delaware</i> and those directly astern of her were able to -concentrate their fire once more on the main battle-line of the enemy, -or what was left of it. One turret on the <i>Delaware</i> was out of -action, her funnels and superstructure were riddled with shells, her -decks presented a picture of chaos, but in the main her fighting -strength was scarcely impaired. The Allied battle-line had maintained -a range which rendered them invisible except for the flash of their -guns in the northeastern haze and smoke, while the enemy in silhouette -against the southwestern horizon made good targets for the American -gun-layers. And during the time when the leading ships were compelled -to direct their fire on the enemy battle cruisers, those in the rear -had been pounding away at their corresponding ships in the enemy’s -line, scoring two hits at least to one received, till, with turrets -smashed, control tops gone, bridges shattered, and superstructures -ablaze, the hostile guns were silenced in steadily increasing numbers.</p> - -<p>Now, seeing that he had the enemy where he wanted him, Admiral Johnson -closed the range enough to render his gun-fire even more effective. -This brought his ships into view of the enemy, whose gun-fire was so -badly broken that he no longer feared it. Then, as with increasing -deadliness of aim the sixteen-inch guns tore holes in deck and armor, -the shattering of the Mediterranean fleet became more rapid. And as -ship after ship sank, or, out of control and helpless, dropped out of -line, the concentration of fire upon those that remained closed in -like a Nemesis. Two hours after the first salvo from the Allied -battleships the great Mediterranean fleet which had defied the -civilized world was reduced to a straggling line of battered hulks -scattered over the sea in all stages of destruction. Before sunset the -Turkish Admiral had surrendered.</p> - -<p>The casualties of the Allies had been surprisingly light, considering -the extent of the action, having fallen most heavily on the scout -cruisers and destroyers, although the battleships had come in for a -good share of pounding, in spite of their advantage in the matter of -visibility. On the <i>Delaware</i> the most serious mishap had been in the -turret from which the ominous flame had shot forth. The members of the -turret crew who had escaped told the story of what happened. A shell -had penetrated the roof of the turret and killed several of the crew. -Their clothing, ignited by the detonating shell, was spreading fire -toward a charge of powder in the loading cage on its way to one of the -guns. Lindsay, in command of the turret, seeing that nothing could -avert the explosion, and shouting, “Clear the turret!” to those about -him, had plunged down through the working chamber into the main trunk -and yelled into the handling room below the order to close the -magazine doors. Instantly the doors had slammed shut, thus cutting off -the magazine from the turret. In another second the fire reached the -powder, filling the entire turret, handling room, and all, with a -blinding flash which instantly killed all those who had not yet made -their escape. Lindsay’s quick action which cut off his hope of escape -had saved the flagship.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chXV' title='XV—The Harbor at Sunset'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XV</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>THE HARBOR AT SUNSET</span> -</h2> -<p>It was an impressive procession of ships that steamed into Punta -Delgada two days after the great battle. As the <i>Delaware</i>, at the -head of the column, battle-scarred from stem to stern, passed the -supply ships and fleet-tenders anchored in the roadstead, the shout -that went up seemed as if it would lift the vault of heaven. For miles -astern the battleships stretched out in an apparently endless line, -while destroyers and cruisers lined both flanks. The disabled craft, -including the surrendered ships of the enemy, followed more slowly at -a greater distance, while those unable to steam were still waiting -near the scene of the action for ocean-going tugs to arrive and tow -them in.</p> - -<p>In the United States not a hint of an impending naval crisis had -filtered through into the daily press. So when the news of the victory -came, the people were fairly dazed by it. Stirring as it was, and -great as was the rejoicing throughout the land, the full meaning of it -was scarcely realized at first, for the extent to which the enemy -depended on his fleet was not understood by the general public.</p> - -<p>But the heads of the Coalition Government in Constantinople -understood, and cursed their lot, and trembled in their shoes. And the -British Admiralty understood, and lost no time instigating the Foreign -Office in London to make certain significant representations to -Washington, which figured largely in the negotiations that followed. -Before long overtures from Constantinople concerning peace were -received in Washington and London. They were met by a firm and solid -front on the part of the Allies. Nothing but unconditional surrender -would be acceptable.</p> - -<p>The Constantinople leaders, being better endowed with wits than with -morale, had little disposition to prolong a futile struggle or -continue a losing game, especially as they held the Mediterranean -Powers united by a slender thread of intrigue rather than by unity of -spirit. The control of the sea irrevocably lost to them, their armies -were doomed to ultimate defeat. Therefore, after some clever attempts -at bargaining for terms which were coolly and flatly rejected by the -Allies, they agreed to unconditional surrender. With explosive force -the news spread through the Western world, like a titanic peal of -thunder echoing from mountain crest to valley and reverberating -throughout the land. The bells rang, and all the populace gave -themselves to wild joy or solemn thanksgiving.</p> - -<p>As soon as the surrender had been made, the Allied fleet proceeded to -Gibraltar to take possession. At the first opportunity for shore -liberty, Evans found Kendrick, and for hours they talked over the -events since they had separated in the dark on the shore at Punta -Delgada. The tales which Kendrick told of his adventures in finding -his way to the desired post at a radio transmitter fairly made Evans’s -blood run cold. A kaleidoscopic sequence of hardships, narrow escapes, -and undreamed-of expedients to outwit the enemy, long hours in hiding, -disguises, brazen effrontery, and lightning decisions in the face of -danger, all told with the unconcern of one used to living in that sort -of thing, kept Evans enthralled, now laughing, now as nervous as if -himself facing the danger of discovery. Before leaving, Evans arranged -to have the kayak exhumed from her hiding-place and sent back to her -owner.</p> - -<p>June was in its prime when Evans, on his release from active duty, -returned to his home, a private citizen. He went to the university -where before the war he had been engaged in research, and asked if he -might resume his former position as Associate in Physics and continue -the researches which had been interrupted. Some there were in the -university who looked askance at the giving of valuable laboratory -space to one who had held no more distinguished a position in the war -than radio gunner. But there stood his unique apparatus which had -taken him years of patient labor to assemble and which no one in the -world but he could use. Fortunately the head of the Physics Department -understood this, and his wish prevailed.</p> - -<p>Evans, assured that his cherished laboratory was his once more, -returned to it. The apparatus stood as he had left it, but covered -with the dust of two long years. A flood of happy memories returned to -him of days and nights spent in enthralling quests. He began eagerly -to overhaul and test the apparatus in preparation for the renewed -attack on the great problems which awaited his long-deferred -experiments for their solution. For a few days he tinkered with the -intricate assortment of instruments and devices, inspecting parts -here, making minor repairs on them there, looking over old notes, and -endeavoring to plan his campaign for renewed research. But as the hot -July days wore on, his brain seemed to balk at the task; he realized -that he was tired with the deep-seated fatigue which a day’s rest or a -week’s rest will not cure. On the one hand, the din of a great naval -action still echoed in his ears; on the other, he heard the call of -the sea and the wild New England shore.</p> - -<p>“I’ll make a better job of this in September,” he said to himself. -And, closing his laboratory for the summer, he went to New Bedford -where soon he was splicing ropes and helping the riggers at the -shipyard put the <i>Petrel</i> in commission.</p> - -<p>In a few days he was again at the wheel of his beloved boat, the sails -pulling hard in the fresh southwest wind. Leaving New Bedford, he -headed for the Maine coast. Once more alone in his seaworthy little -ketch, he cruised along the coast by easy stages, northward and -eastward, farther and farther from the crowded habitats of man, to the -spruce-clad, rocky islands of Maine. Off Seguin he stood well out to -sea, the gentle rocking of the boat on the ocean swell lulling him -into a happy reverie as she glided along before the summer breeze. -Passing the Georges and the endless labyrinth of islands in Penobscot -Bay, he came at last to Mount Desert Island, where Mortimer, breaking -away from his desk in Washington, joined him for a cruise into the -unfrequented waters beyond Schoodic. Here there are bays and harbors -seldom visited by the great stream of cruising yachts, where, over -dense forests of spruce that rise from the water’s edge along a rugged -shore line, great ospreys wheel and scream, and in countless mossy -nooks in the depth of the wood close by the sound of the surf, the -witchery of Nature’s solitude casts a spell over the lonely wanderer.</p> - -<p>Into such a bay, as the gorgeous summer afternoon drew to a close, the -<i>Petrel</i> steered her course, her sails beginning to droop as the -breeze gave way to the calm of evening. Two happy men sat lazily in -her cockpit gazing over the placid water into the enchanted forest -that lined the shore ahead of them. Through the day, while bounding -over the sparkling blue waves, their talk had drifted on, as the -spirit moved them, from one phase of the war to another. Evans -delighted Mortimer with his pictures of the life in the navy and -sidelights on the various admirals and others who had figured in the -official doings. He told of his talk with Fraser in the Borge garden -and the conferences that followed—tales which never reached another -mortal ear.</p> - -<p>The opal tints of approaching sunset were playing in kaleidoscopic -reflection on the restless surface of the water, and the dying zephyr -just sufficed to give the <i>Petrel</i> steerageway as she headed for a -snug little cove among the spruce trees.</p> - -<p>The conversation had drifted through all phases of the war to the -final action, and Mortimer was for the first time receiving a clear -exposition of the underlying strategy and tactics. Evans explained how -the placing of every unit of the fleet was worked out to ensure the -greatest strength in case of every conceivable unforeseen contingency, -and how, guided by the master mind of Fraser, Admiral Johnson’s -fighting spirit had driven home the decisive blow.</p> - -<p>The sun had set, and both sea and sky were aflame with gorgeous -colors, while the dark, pointed spruce trees on the shore, now close -at hand, cast mobile reflections dancing on the undulating surface of -the cove. The anchor splashed and the chain rattled down, and then the -sails were lowered and furled for the night. Late into the twilight -the two comrades sat watching the colors fade in sea and sky as the -great chapter of history just closed was unfolded in reminiscence -before them.</p> - -<p>“Jim,” said Mortimer, “I know you prefer to work in the dark, but it -makes me uncomfortable to have you go without recognition. I want to -have some open acknowledgment of the Nation’s gratitude to you, to -ease my own feelings. Would you mind if I did something about it?”</p> - -<p>Evans gave his friend a look that spoke his depth of friendship.</p> - -<p>“I am well content as it is,” he said. “That is something of a boast, -and sometimes I don’t live up to it. But I know that in my better -moods I’m not bothered that way. The pleasure of praise tends to cloy. -Please give recognition to my better self, and let the reward be -always, as now, in the doing.”</p> - -<div style='text-align:center; text-indent:0; margin-top:0; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:auto; margin-right:auto; '> -<div style='margin-top:1.6em;'>THE END </div> -</div> -</div> -<div style='display:block; margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE RADIO GUNNER ***</div> -<div style='text-align:left'> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will -be renamed. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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