“Frank Shaw!” cried Jimmie, crowding close to the lad lying on the locker. “What’s that you’re saying about the ‘U-13’?”
“I say ‘Look out for it,’ that’s all!”
“No, it isn’t all!” protested the boy. “Take another drink of this coffee and then brace up and tell us what you know! How did you get here and what and who and where and why is this ‘U-13’?”
Frank smiled as he struggled to a sitting posture.
“If you’ll rub the cramp out of that leg, boys, I’ll ‘fess up’ everything,” he began. “That leg feels as if some one were trying to pull some teeth out of it by the roots. A cramp is fierce.”
Two lads began massaging the offending member.
“If I’d known it was you swimming to us, I’d have lowered a boat myself and come to your assistance!” declared Jimmie.
“And if I’d known you were on board this schooner,” replied Frank, “I’d have left that ship long before I did!”
“Why, what’s the matter on that ship, Frank?” asked Ned.
“Oh, nothing, only it’s one of these ‘work-houses’ just exactly like we have read of. The captain is a hard nut and the mates are both of the ‘bucko’ type. There isn’t a man aboard who hasn’t got a mark from one or the other of the mates. They’re a tough crowd!”
“I’ll bet you didn’t just fall overboard, then!” shrewdly guessed Jimmie. “You missed your footing purposely! You know you did!”
“How do you know?” grinned Frank, nursing his cramped leg.
“I was watching through the binoculars,” answered Jimmie. “But go ahead and tell us something. We’re dying from curiosity!”
“Well,” began Frank, “you know I wasn’t quite satisfied to be left behind when you four lads left in chase of the fellow who had stolen the Panama plans. I wanted to go along in the Grey Eagle.”
“We know that, and we’re sorry we didn’t take you!” cried Ned.
“I went to see Mr. Bosworth about following you,” continued young Shaw. “He was opposed to that plan, but you know I usually get my own way somehow. I put together a kit and started out. I had little difficulty in securing passage on a ship loaded with miscellaneous cargo for England. The vessel was a British tramp—a ‘bucko’ ship.
“We got close to Land’s End after a rather uneventful voyage across the Atlantic. I was dreaming of getting ashore in a short time and then hiking across the channel into France to hunt you up.
“One fine morning we were all startled to hear a hail from the lookout informing the deck that a submarine was approaching. We hove to at the command of the submarine people. They commanded our captain to get his crew into the boats as quickly as possible, for in five minutes they intended torpedoing the ship. They wouldn’t take ‘No’ for an answer.”
“That was going some, I must say!” put in Jimmie.
“You needn’t be told, of course,” went on Frank, “that we lost little time making preparations. One of the sailors disputed my right to take my kit into the small boat. I objected and he cracked me on the jaw. When I recovered I was alone on the vessel. The boats were at some little distance away, with the crew pulling like racers.
“For a moment I was quite desperate, not knowing how to escape. I thought of trying to signal the submarine, but could see the vessel just launching a torpedo. Seemingly the whole after end of the ship was shattered by the explosion. As soon as I could I tried to signal the enemy, but they were just turning about to leave the spot.
“Maybe I didn’t hustle about some. The ship was already filling rapidly. The stern was settling fast. All the boats were gone. I could see nothing to serve as a float. Desperately I seized a capstan bar and knocked the wedges and battens off a hatch cover. Then I got a small piece of line. I passed it through a ring bolt and made fast. I figured that when the ship went down the cover would float free for a raft on which I could keep up. Before I was fully ready the compressed air blew the cover off with a ‘boom’. It landed close to the rail.
“Just as the hull took a last slant I jumped overboard. After swimming quite a distance away I saw the ship go down. I turned back. There was my hatch cover floating just as I expected.”
Here Frank paused to extend his hand for another cup of coffee.
“You’re the wise little Scout!” declared Jimmie, admiringly.
“Sure!” agreed Frank. “Then,” he continued, “I floated around for the rest of the day on that hatch cover. Toward evening I saw a smoke off to the southwest. It was just out of the glare of the sun. When it got nearer I knew it was a steamer bound for England or some nearby place. It was the Anne of Melbourne. So here I am!”
“But what about this ‘U-13’?” inquired Harry, eagerly.
“Oh, yes, I nearly forgot,” said Frank. “The submarine that torpedoed the ship was marked ‘U-13’ on the side!”
“They’ve been doing a lot of that, according to the newspapers!” stated Ned. “But why do you warn us to look out for her?” he asked.
“When I told the captain of the Anne of my experience,” went on Frank, “he decided to head north, intending to go to the westward of Ireland, around between Scotland and the Shetland Island into the North Sea, in the hopes of dodging the submarine, which seemed to be working the waters of the English Channel. Yesterday morning we were hailed by a submarine. I could see that it was the same old ‘U-13’!”
“How did it get way up here?” questioned Ned, incredulously.
“Search me!” replied Frank. “They ordered us to heave to, but that captain is a daredevil. He cracked on all steam full speed ahead, declaring that if they took him they’d have to catch him.
“The submarine launched a torpedo at us, but it only smashed our rudder. We had good headway on. That, of course, put us in a mighty bad fix, as the submarine could then have easily sent a torpedo into us, but for some unknown reason they turned and left us.
“The captain was nearly crazy when he discovered what damage had been done. The vessel had been bad enough before, but it became ten times worse. I got a crack or two with a rope’s end that sting yet!”
“How could they navigate?” asked Jimmie.
“They couldn’t!” answered Frank. “We just lay in the trough of the seas and let the old tub roll. They even put preventer stays on the masts and on the boilers to keep them from rolling out of the crazy old wagon. You never saw such a place as that ship was!”
“And then when the captain got her under the lee of this land and you saw this schooner you just concluded that you’d jump the ship?”
“Exactly!” agreed Frank. “I had lost my kit when the sailing vessel went down, so I left nothing on the steamer.”
“I’m awful glad you got here safely,” stated Ned, grasping Frank’s hand in a hearty clasp that spoke eloquently of the friendship between the two boys. “But you’re too late to help capture the Panama Canal plan thief. He’s out of his misery quite a while ago!”
“But he’s just in time to get mixed up in this ‘U-13’ business!” urged Jimmie. “He’s right in the midst of the excitement!”
“But since you don’t want any more Boy Scouts along we’ll pitch Frank overboard again!” declared Harry, with mock gravity.
“Aw, you go on!” scorned Jimmie. “I didn’t know it was Frank!”
Laughing at Jimmie’s confusion the boys related to their chum the salient points of their experience up to the time of their strange meeting. Frank was greatly puzzled over the circumstances of the strange package, for the presence of which in their kits the boys could not account.
For some time the lads remained in the cabin, drying the uniforms of the swimmers and exchanging experiences. It was the opinion of all that they would be adopting a wise course to return at once to New York.
Captain von Kluck was greatly interested in his strange passengers. He listened eagerly to Frank’s account of the doings of the strange submarine. At the conclusion of the recital he paced the deck nervously.
Not until midafternoon did the wind decrease sufficiently to permit the Lena Knobloch to venture forth from her position of shelter.
Through the binoculars the boys made long examinations of the steamer lying to windward of their position. They determined that preparations were being made to send a boat’s crew to some port for assistance in towing the crippled vessel to a harbor.
At one bell, or half past four o’clock, Captain von Kluck came from his cabin. He stepped to the rail, sniffing at the wind. Presently he turned to join the mate in his walk across the deck.
For some minutes the two conversed in low tones. Directly the mate stepped forward, bawling out orders to his men.
At once all was commotion on the Knobloch’s decks. Men tumbled eagerly about, hauling a line here, letting go another there, until they had set the double reefed mainsail, foresail and a mere rag of jib.
When this had been accomplished all hands seized capstan bars. To the tune of a Dutch sailors’ “chanty” the links of the cable slowly clanked inboard. With a lurch the Lena Knobloch swung as the anchor broke ground. Like a storm driven bird she was off in the wings of a northwester, lying far over even under the greatly reduced sail.
“Where to now, Captain?” asked Ned as von Kluck stepped along the deck with head bent forward. By his manner of nervous intentness Ned guessed that the captain was carrying a load on his mind.
Von Kluck’s only response was a growl as he passed the boys.
“Captain’s grouchy!” declared Jimmie. “Leave him alone, Ned!”
“Sure, don’t bother him!” added Frank. “He’s worried enough!”
“Just the same, I don’t like his looks!” stated Ned with some degree of apprehension. “He seems to have soured after hearing about the ‘U-13.’ Didn’t you fellows notice how he listened to Frank’s story?”
“Sure we did,” Jimmie replied, “but then, it’s only natural that he should be worried over the possibility of losing his vessel!”
“Well, his getting under way in this weather shows that he intends to be square and land us in an English port as he agreed!”
“I guess von Kluck is a pretty good sort of a chap, after all!” ventured Harry. “He has tried to treat us as right as he could!”
“I think you’re right. We can’t blame him for feeling somewhat worried under the circumstances. We’d be grouchy, too!”
Under a port helm the Lena Knobloch swung to starboard leaping forward into the waves as if glad to again be battling with the sea.
Ned and his companions felt that they could be of no service in handling the schooner. They, therefore, retired to the shelter of the cabin, where they were protected from the stinging blasts of sleet and snow that came screaming out of the northwest.
Scarcely had the schooner won clear of the jagged ledges when the full force of the tumbling waves was felt. It seemed to the boys that the stern of the little vessel was hurled to an unbelievable height only to drop so far they feared nothing could save them.
But Captain von Kluck and his mate were expert navigators. They had sailed the ocean since large enough to handle a line. They knew the Lena Knobloch’s ability to withstand the buffeting of the elements.
As night drew on the boys expected to witness a cessation of the storm. Their prediction was fulfilled. Gradually the gale blew itself out, leaving but a strong sailing breeze, although the water still continued rough. Captain von Kluck took advantage of this change to shake out the reefs in his canvas and to spread more sail.
Just as the moon showed in the east between masses of cloud the lookout reported a ship in sight off the port bow. In a short time the two vessels had approached within about two miles of each other.
“They’re apparently heaving to!” cried Ned who had been using the binoculars. “It looks as if they’re getting the boats over!”
From the waist of the other vessel the boys saw a great cloud of dark smoke appear. The small boats had scarcely gone a ship’s length away from the scene. The crew were rowing with the greatest haste.
“I see the conning tower of a submarine!” cried Ned.
Clearly visible to the members of the crew on the Lena Knobloch the great cloud of smoke slowly spread over the vessel.
Directly a sullen “Boom” reached their ears. As the smoke spread away the lads could see a great rent in the side through which water was rushing. Already the ship was listing heavily.
Two small boats were being pulled away from the vicinity by the crew of the doomed vessel. The small craft were handled in a seamanlike manner. They made good progress in spite of the still heavy sea.
“By golly!” ejaculated Von Kluck, drawing a long breath. “Maybe vhe get id next, vhat? Dere ain’d no vay of tellin’!”
“Why do you think that, Captain?” questioned Ned.
“Dot verdom ‘U-13’!” grunted Von Kluck. “Vhe’ll pe lucky,”—here his excitement grew so intense that he delivered himself of several great sailor’s oaths—“if vhe make a port in England alretty!”
“Keep a sharp lookout, boys,” said Ned. “Maybe we can get a sight of the ‘U-13’ if it’s still in this neighborhood.”
Scarcely had the boy uttered the words before the lookout hailed the deck. His voice vibrated with excitement and fear.
“Vot is, aloft, dere?” roared Von Kluck.
Excitedly jabbering in his intense emotion the lookout frantically pointed in the direction of the sinking ship. Without waiting for orders he came sliding down the halliards. As he landed on deck he turned an ashen face toward the captain. Again he pointed seaward.
“The ‘U-13’!” he gasped in an agony of terror.
A glance in the direction indicated showed the boys an object like a spar buoy apparently standing upright in the water. The next moment a swell rolled over something beneath the upright object.
The next wave disclosed a long, rounded steel hull. In the center the conning tower showed plainly. A moment later the outlines of the dreaded submarine were distinguishable as the craft was propelled to the surface. Each wave broke clear over the arched back of this terror of the seas leaving the black hull gleaming in the faint light. Only the upper portion of the conning tower escaped a ducking.
Presently the hatch was opened. A man in uniform stepped out onto the narrow confines of the small deck. His attention was directed toward the schooner. After what seemed to the boys to be an almost endless examination of their vessel the man turned to address a remark to some one evidently close to the hatch but out of their vision.
“What is he saying?” Ned asked von Kluck.
“He iss telling dot odder feller dot vhe iss das Lena Knobloch!”
“What next, I wonder?” speculated Jimmie aloud.
“Next?” almost screamed von Kluck. “Next, vhe iss ordered to get by our boats into und row far enough avhay so dey couldt blow up us!”
In his intense agitation the captain began pacing up and down the deck. The submarine drew close alongside the schooner easily keeping pace with the sailing vessel at the rate they were progressing.
“Von Kluck is certainly worked up about it,” remarked Harry as he noted the captain’s distracted manner. “He’s almost bughouse!”
“Well, so would you be, too, if all you had were about to be sent to the bottom of the ocean!” declared Ned. “It’s tough luck!”
“Maybe we’d better be getting our kits in shape,” suggested Jack moving toward the cabin. “I don’t want to leave everything!”
“I had to leave everything,” put in Frank, “when they sunk the ship I was on. I felt lucky to get away with my life!”
“Let’s make a try for it, anyway,” continued Jack.
“Wait a minute!” cried Ned, “let’s see what they’re going to do. The man is going below again! Why don’t he hail us?”
Strangely enough the officer was descending the hatchway without speaking a word to those on board the schooner.
This procedure puzzled von Kluck, but did not serve to reduce in any degree the excitement under which he was laboring.
“Lay aft a couble of handts und make reaty der boats!” he shouted. “Come on, hurry oop! Lifely, now, men!”
In obedience to this command two members of the crew sprang towards the stern of the schooner to make preparations for launching the boat lashed at the stern. Two others frantically loosened the lashings of the upturned boat lying amidships.
A clanking sound indicating that the hatchway of the “U-13” had been closed attracted the attention of the boys in that direction.
“What are they going to do now?” questioned Jimmie eagerly.
“I fancy they are going to pull away a little so as to launch a torpedo at us,” stated Ned. “It don’t look as if they’re going to be kind enough to let us get off the vessel before they blow it up!”
“Then it isn’t the same crew I met!” declared Frank firmly. “They treated the men fine! While I must admit that I don’t admire their way of sinking merchant ships, I will have to say that they gave the people a chance to get out of danger!”
“Well, is it the same submarine you saw?” asked Ned.
“It looks exactly like it. Besides,” the boy continued, “I see the figures ‘U-13’ painted on the side of this one, too. I believe it is the very same vessel. Maybe they won’t sink us!”
With hatch closed the submarine was preparing to execute some maneuver. Gathering speed the craft plunged ahead quickly leaving the schooner alone. Scarcely had the bow of the sailing vessel been passed ere the submarine was so far beneath the water as to show only the periscope. In a moment there was but a swirl to indicate where that had been. Presently it, too, disappeared. The “U-13” was gone.
For some time the boys stood at the rail eagerly scanning the water to discover evidence of the submarine’s return. Their search was fruitless. Nothing was found to indicate the presence of their late visitor. The waves rose and fell without hint of its location.
“Oh, Captain von Kluck!” Ned called. “They have gone!”
“Vhat?” asked the captain in a tone expressing doubt.
“Yes,” continued the boy. “They have slipped back into the ocean again and have left us. Possibly they think we’re too small for them to waste a torpedo on. Torpedoes cost a lot of money, you know!”
“Vhell, dot’s lucky!” answered the captain, much relieved.
“Sure is!” assented Jimmie, throwing out his chest. “You see, Captain, we’re mascots for you. We’ve brought you good luck!”
Joining in the laugh that greeted this remark the captain ordered the men who had been at work upon the boats to cease their operations. A hand was again posted aloft to act as lookout.
After a short consultation between von Kluck and the mate it was decided to proceed on the course traveled by the steamer from which Frank Shaw had recently escaped. They intended to pass between the Shetland islands and the coast of Scotland in an attempt to make a port on the west side of England, believing that there would be less danger in this procedure. Accordingly all sail possible was made.
As if understanding the necessity for haste the vessel leaned far over under the press of canvas and sprang forward with increased speed.
“We ought to make the west coast of England in a short time, Captain, at this rate,” said Ned as he noted with satisfaction the rate at which the Lena Knobloch was traveling through the water.
“I don’d know!” declared von Kluck. “Dere’s nasty vedder oop dere!” he added, pointing to the western sky. “I don’d like id!”
“It can’t very well blow hard enough to stop us, can it?”
“Don’d you tink it can’t blow hard in dese vatters! Ask me—I know!” replied the captain sagely wagging his head.
With eager looks the boys watched the gathering clouds to westward. The captain’s prediction seemed about to be verified.
An uncommonly strong puff of wind struck the schooner heeling her far over to starboard. The blast bore a chill as of ice.
“Oh, boys,” cried Jimmie turning his head away from the biting blast, “look up to windward and see how smooth the ocean is getting!”
“That’s wind coming!” shouted Ned.
An order was roared out by von Kluck. Men sprang to the lines. The sails were stowed with a speed that seemed scarcely credible. Heeling round on a port helm the Lena Knobloch turned from the approaching blast.
Leaving only the shortened jib von Kluck and the mate stood on the after deck peering anxiously at the violent disturbance overtaking the little vessel. Now and again the mate glanced apprehensively at the schooner’s masts or along the decks.
With a shriek the storm struck. For a moment the very weight of wind seemed to settle the schooner farther into the water. The next instant they were tearing along with the speed of a race horse.
Flattened by the pressure of the wind the waves no longer gave her motion. By reason of her being headed directly away from the blast the schooner rode on an even keel. Every line, every shroud hummed like the strings of a gigantic harp. The noise was terrific.
A glance at the compass in the binnacle showed Ned that they were headed nearly northeast. They were fast leaving England astern.
Conversation was almost impossible in the howling gale that tore and fretted at the vessel. Yet Ned managed to shout to the captain:
“How much sea room have we got in this direction?”
A shrug of the shoulders indicated the captain’s doubt. He accompanied this movement with a wagging of the head.
“Vhe’ll get into der lee of somedings bretty soon,” he replied.
“I surely hope so!” declared Ned, cupping his hands to carry his voice to the other’s ear. “I’d hate to hit anything at this rate!”
Nodding an acknowledgment to this assertion the captain by signs indicated to the mate that he desired a hand sent aloft as lookout.
In a short time it seemed to the boys that the terrific force of the gale had somewhat spent itself. Waves began to toss the vessel at an alarming rate. Each mountain of water appeared about to board the schooner at the stern, threatening to crush the craft by its weight.
Anxious for the safety of the vessel and for their own welfare the lads, nevertheless, understood that they could do little good on deck. They, therefore, made their way into the cabin, where they sat on lockers.
Here the noises of the tempest were somewhat stilled, but the creaking and groaning of the timbers was far more noticeable. It seemed to the lads that the vessel was being torn asunder by every billow.
“I wonder what weather the old ‘U-13’ is making of it about now?” said Frank, as the boys grouped themselves about the little table.
“She’s in smoother water than this, I’ll venture to say,” put in Jimmie, clutching the edge of the table in an effort to support himself.
“If they are not in better water than this,” remarked Harry, “they’re getting shaken up some! I’d like to be under water right now!”
“Why, Harry,” spoke up Ned, “you shouldn’t say that!”
“I mean in a tight little submarine!” explained Harry.
“I wish we had the Sea Lion over here!” cried Jimmie. “We could have more fun than we had when we tried to rescue the papers out of that ship in the Gulf of Tong King with Moore and his nosey son butting in!”
“That was sure some fine boat!” declared Ned. “Just as easy to ride in as a rocking chair. And it was always smooth and—”
The boy’s speech was cut short by a violent roll of the vessel. All the lads were thrown in a heap to the cabin floor. Directly the schooner righted herself, but began pitching with a violent motion. From the sounds the boys knew that the captain had hove to, bringing the vessel into the wind. Apparently he intended riding out the storm.
Waves were breaking over the bows, falling with tremendous blows upon the forward deck. The scuppers were not able to release the flood.
Suddenly a terrific crash sounded directly beneath the cabin floor. The stern seemed to lift bodily into the air. A shudder ran through the fabric. Again the boys fell to the deck.
Above the noises of the tempest and the straining timbers sounded cries from the deck that told of confusion amongst the crew. Von Kluck’s hoarse voice was bawling out orders mixed with great sea oaths. He was driving the men to some duty.
The tramping of feet above the boys sounded for a moment, then ceased. Judging from the sounds they thought the men had gathered in the waist of the vessel. Puzzled, they looked at each other in fear.
“What’s up?” inquired Jimmie, attempting to rise to his feet.
Ned steadied himself at the table as he tried to peer out of the little skylight overhead. He could see nothing.
“We just about struck something!” declared Jimmie.
“Maybe we hit another vessel,” ventured Harry.
“Or a rock, perhaps,” continued Jack. “We surely struck something solid. I hope we don’t hit it again like that first crack!”
“Look here, boys!” cried Ned in alarm. “The motion of this ship is much less than it was a minute ago! Notice it?”
“It surely is!” agreed Jack. “Is the wind going down?”
“We are getting into some sort of shelter,” guessed Harry. “Probably von Kluck has navigated the schooner behind a breakwater.”
“Boys, the ship is sinking!” shouted Ned. “See the water coming into this cabin! We’ve struck a floating mine!”
In alarm the boys sprang to their feet. As Ned had said, the motion was lessening rapidly. They found little difficulty now in keeping their footing without support. With one accord they made a break for the companionway, crowding out in a body.
The sight that met their gaze brought consternation to every heart. The schooner lay head to the wind. The mainsail had been set with a double reef, to help keep the vessel in that position. The seas seemed alarmingly higher than when they had been last on deck.
This was due, of course, to the difference in perspective, owing to the fact that they were fast settling into the water.
Above the stern clung traces of heavy, black smoke. A disagreeable odor pervaded the atmosphere in spite of the strong wind.
“There goes von Kluck and the crew!” shouted Harry, pointing to leeward. “They’re scared to death. That mine settled them!”
A short distance away the boys could see the larger of the two boats that had been carried by the schooner. In it were the members of the crew, accompanied by the captain and the mate.
Tossed about by the angry waters the little shell seemed about to be engulfed at any moment. However, skillful hands were at the oars. Rising and falling, now on top of a wave, now out of sight, the boat soon put considerable distance between the two parties.
“Well, Great Frozen Hot Boxes!” exclaimed Jimmie in disgust. “What do you know about that? They’ve gone and left us!”
“And the ship is settling fast!” cried Ned, in alarm. “We’d better get busy if we don’t want to go down with it!”
“What can we do?” asked Harry. “The boat’s gone!”
“Suppose we try to patch up the leak,” suggested Jimmie. “Maybe we could keep the old tub afloat until the storm dies down!”
“No chance!” decided Ned. “Von Kluck and his crew would have done that if they could. We’d better get busy!”
“What’s the matter with using the small boat at the stern?”
“That’s a good idea unless it is broken too badly. Let’s have a look at it anyway,” replied Ned, hastening toward the stern.
A brief examination of the small boat indicated that it would be more seaworthy than the hull upon which they were standing. No time was lost in preparations for launching the craft.
“When folks get shipwrecked,” suggested Jimmie, “don’t they take water and food with them if they have it?”
“They surely do, little man!” cried Ned. “Hustle about and see what you can get. Try to find something in which to carry fresh water.”
Jimmie dashed back into the cabin to raid the pantry. There he found the water gaining rapidly. It was almost knee deep.
Splashing his way about with the aid of the swinging lamp the boy found several loaves of the hard, black bread with which the vessel was provisioned. These he wrapped in an oilskin coat from the captain’s room. He tucked the parcel under one arm. With his free hand he seized a huge piece of the captain’s beloved cheese.
Hastening quickly to the deck he deposited his burden in the boat. Another trip to the cabin failed to locate any vessel in which fresh water could be carried. The boy then dashed forward to the galley.
There he found a huge kettle used by the cook for boiling beef. This Jimmie filled with water from the barrel on deck. The cover of the kettle was provided with a clever device for fastening it in place. This Jimmie secured, then staggered toward the stern with his burden.
Working with desperate speed the four boys had succeeded in launching the small boat. It now hung bobbing about to a short length of painter under the schooner’s stern. It was not far below the taffrail.
Ned and Harry made a hurried trip to the cabin to secure the kits, returning just as Jimmie succeeded in placing his kettle of water aboard.
“Hurry up, Ned,” cautioned Jack. “The little wagon is just about to say ‘Goodby’! We’ll have to go some to escape the suction!”
“All aboard!” replied Ned, tossing his kit into the boat.
Harry pitched the luggage he was carrying to waiting hands. Both boys then watched for an opportune moment when the small boat swung close to the sinking stern. A quick leap carried them safely aboard.
“Oh, I forgot!” cried Ned. “I was going to bring the compass!”
“Never mind the compass now, Ned!” cried Jimmie, seizing an oar.
“No,” put in Frank, “we don’t know where we are at anyhow, and the compass wouldn’t be of any use to us in such a case as this!”
“Goodby, Lena Garlic!” shouted Jimmie a moment later as he pulled manfully at the oar. “Goodby and good luck!”
The others turned to see the schooner now with decks awash. A loud detonation marked the blowing off of the hatches by the compressed air in the hold. That incident seemed to mark the passage of the vessel.
Gradually settling by the stern the schooner quietly slipped backward, settling deeper and deeper, until a large wave overwhelmed the craft, leaving only the masts projecting above water. In another instant these, too, had disappeared, leaving but a few floating pieces of wreckage to mark the spot where the boys had only a short time before been standing.
“And goodby, Grey Eagle!” almost sobbed Ned. “No more flying in that little airship! I wish we could have saved the machine!”
This seemed to be the sentiment of all, but they knew that their sturdy aeroplane was now gone forever.
“The Germans needn’t think we’ll ever trouble them again in that airship!” declared Jimmie. “We can’t be pinched for that!”
For a moment the disappointment of their recent experiences sat heavily on all the lads. At length, however, Ned roused himself and tried to cheer his comrades. He knew that nothing could be gained by bemoaning the fate that had happened to them.
“We can’t be far from land,” the lad stated presently. “Von Kluck and his crew seemed to be heading the same way we are. They evidently knew about where they were and have made for the nearest port.”
“Let’s keep right on after them, then,” suggested Frank.
“Second the motion!” panted Jimmie, straining at his oar. “But this is hot work! Wish I had a drink of water!”
“You’ll have to go slow on the water, boys,” cautioned Ned. “That kettle holds only about three gallons, and we can’t drink sea water.”
“Let me take the oar a while, Jimmie,” volunteered Harry. “I guess you’ve worked about hard enough, anyway. You rest a bit.”
Cautiously the boys changed places. What with their kits, the bundle of bread and the cheese the little boat was carrying all that could be conveniently stowed. They were glad that no more had remained to accompany them. Soon all had settled themselves quite comfortably.
“Now,” spoke up Jack, presently, “all we’ve got to do is to let this wind blow us along. We’ll just keep the boat straightened into the seas and take it easy. We can’t do a thing to help matters.”
“Right you are, Scout!” agreed Jimmie. “I think it’s getting gray over there,” the lad continued, pointing toward the east. “Morning will be along shortly and we can see what time it is.”
“Maybe we’ll meet some ship that will pick us up,” ventured Harry, hopefully. “There are plenty of vessels in these parts.”
“I see a smoke astern of us now, I think!” declared Frank. “It seems to be from a vessel low in the water.”
“Let me take a look,” cried Ned, standing and balancing himself by clinging to Jimmie’s shoulder. “Yes, I can see it, too! It seems to be overhauling us quite rapidly,” he added. “Maybe they’ll help us!”
Ceasing their efforts to propel the boat the boys handled the oars only enough to keep their tiny craft properly riding the seas.
“It looks to me like a tug!” stated Jimmie, presently.
“A tug wouldn’t come smashing along at that rate!” objected Ned.
“Well, then, what can it be?” queried the other. “It is too low in the water for a battleship and no freight steamer ever made such good time as they are clipping off! They’re coming up fast!”
The boys were not long left in doubt. Rapidly overhauling them the strange vessel did, indeed, seem to be at first glance a tug tearing along through the waves at a great rate. The bow was lost in a smother of foam and spray. But a tiny speck of deck house was visible. The stacks were low. Great billows of black smoke vomited forth from the short funnels came drifting down the wind.
In a short time the vessel approached near enough so that the boys could distinguish a small gun mounted at the bow.
“I know what that ship is!” announced Jimmie, directly. “That’s what they call a torpedo boat destroyer or despatch boat!”
“I believe you’re right, Jimmie,” decided Ned. “They certainly have got the speed!” he added admiringly as the craft approached.
“Get ready to hail ’em!” cried Frank. “Get out a flag!”
“Haven’t got a flag aboard this wagon!” scorned Jimmie. “What do you think this is—a dreadnaught with full equipment?”
“Then take off your shirt and wave that at ’em!”
“Just the idea!” agreed Jimmie, proceeding to follow the advice.
Bracing himself against a thwart amidships Jimmie waved the improvised distress signal. His efforts were not unavailing.
“They see you, Jimmie!” shouted Jack, presently. “There’s a man on the bridge looking at you with glasses. They’re shifting the helm!”
“I can see two or three men standing on the bridge!” announced Ned. “They are examining us pretty closely. Wonder who they are?”
The boys were not long left in doubt. Way was checked on the stranger. As the vessel drew close to the small boat a churning of foam at the stern told the lads that the engines were reversed in an effort to stop. Presently the stranger ranged alongside. A line was flung to the boys. They were towed beside the other under bare steerageway.
Fending their craft off the larger vessel Ned explained their plight to an officer. They were invited aboard the steamer. Their boat was hoisted aboard, where it was carefully stowed.
The lads found themselves upon the steel deck of a peculiarly long and narrow vessel. Guns were mounted forward and aft. Only a cursory examination was necessary to determine that they were quick firers.
“Now, boys,” said the officer who had invited them aboard, “I shall ask you to step to the cabin. The commander will hear your story.”
As the boys entered the cabin in response to the other’s request they saw a familiar face. Beside the commander seated at the table was none other than their one time acquaintance, Mackinder.
Upon seeing Mackinder’s face, Ned halted in amazement.
A smile spread over the other’s countenance as he noted Ned’s look of wonder. But beneath the appearance of amused indifference the lad’s quick eye detected a look of care. He was not the same Mackinder.
For a brief moment nothing was said. Then the officer saluted the commander, who recognized the act. The boys were presented.
“So, my friends,” the commander began, “you were adrift on the North Sea in an open boat? Have you suffered greatly?”
“No, thank you,” replied Ned, acting as spokesman. “We have not been adrift very long. The vessel on which we were riding struck something which we took to be a floating mine. The crew got away quickly in one of the boats, while we left a little later in another.”
The shrewd eyes of the commander narrowed perceptibly.
“And what was the name and rig of the vessel?”
“The Lena Knobloch, a schooner, of Amsterdam,” replied Ned.
“And the name of her captain?” continued the commander.
“Von Kluck,” the boy answered.
“Ah, a Hollander! I believe he is a peaceful trader in small cargoes. He is what the English call a ‘tramp’ of the sea.”
“May I ask what boat this is and where you are bound?” asked Ned. “We would like to get to the United States, you know,” he added.
“Yes,” smiled the commander. “But you are far from that country now and we think your company delightful. This vessel is the Sturmvogel, a destroyer of the German navy. We have been doing some small tasks upon the high seas and are returning to a base of supplies.”
“Can you put us in touch with some means whereby we can secure passage on a vessel leaving for the United States?” asked Ned.
“I am afraid that is impossible for the present,” slowly replied the other, with apparent reluctance. “We like your company, you see. We also are favored with the presence of one of your countrymen,” here he indicated Mackinder, “who has consented to pay us a brief visit.”
“Pardon me, sir!” stated Mackinder, half rising. “These are not countrymen of mine! I must disclaim that honor!”
“So-o-o?” drawled the other. “Then you do not know them?”
“No!” stated Mackinder positively. “They are strangers to me!”
“Then you did not mean what you said a few moments ago?”
“I was mistaken!” replied the other, briefly.
“As you please,” responded the commander with a wave of his hand. “Perhaps I misunderstood your statements concerning them!”
An order was given to the officer who had conducted the boys to the cabin. The German language was used. Saluting the officer approached Mackinder. Without a word that gentleman rose and stepped from the room.
As Mackinder was conducted from the apartment the commander motioned the boys to seats about the table. He smiled at them kindly.
“Do you know what von Kluck’s cargo consisted of?” he asked.
“Mostly cheeses,” replied Ned. “Also an airship!” he added.
“An airship?” was the questioning response. “An airship?”
Ned smiled a trifle regretfully as he related briefly the adventures of the four lads with those who have read the previous volume of this series are already familiar. He concluded by saying:
“We were trying to get ourselves and the airship back to the United States, when this man Mackinder seemed bound to delay us on some flimsy pretext. Unfortunately our Grey Eagle went down with the schooner.”
“Yes. And now you are headed directly away from your desired destination. For you, at least, the situation is unfortunate!”
“We think we are lucky to be afloat!” declared Ned.
“Yes. You are indeed fortunate in that respect. But I wish to make some inquiries,” went on the commander.
“We shall be pleased to give you any information possible,” answered the lad heartily. “We highly appreciate your kindness to us!”
“Perhaps my act of picking you up was not altogether prompted by such a noble sentiment,” smiled the other. “I want some information.”
“I hope we can help you out,” replied the boy.
“What I want to know is this: What did you do with the package?”
“What package?” puzzled Ned, unable to grasp the other’s meaning.
“The package so much desired by your friend Mackinder!”
Instantly the boys comprehended the statement. They were unable to understand how this man should know anything of the mysterious package unless Mackinder had told him. They glanced at each other in apprehension.
“Haven’t we got clear of that thing yet?” spoke up Jimmie.
“If you please, sir,” said Ned, “we don’t really know anything about the package. A package was found in our baggage when we were searched at the border between Belgium and Holland. It was stolen by some person whom we believe to be this man Mackinder, who has since been trying to get us to deliver it to him, although we have not had it.”
“I presume that you understand him to be an officer in the British army?” inquired the commander kindly.
“We heard so from von Kluck,” replied the boy.
“Do you know what was in the package?”
“No. We had not seen it until the time it was taken from our kits by the soldiers who were searching them. All we know is that it was marked ‘U-13’ on the outside. We have seen it but that once.”
“I cannot understand why Mackinder should be trying to take the package out of the possession of his own countrymen!”
“But I beg to say that we are not countrymen of his!” declared Ned. “We are citizens of the United States. Here are our passports!”
“I beg your pardon!” apologized the commander. “Circumstances seemed to indicate that you were Englishmen. The mistake is mine!”
“I admit that the mistake was natural,” said Ned. “But can you tell me if there is any connection between the package marked ‘U-13’ and the submarine vessel of the same name? If there is, why should Mackinder, an Englishman, have anything to do with the package?”
A smile greeted this query. Clearly the officer was amused.
“If, as I suspect,” he stated presently, “the package contained information valuable for the ‘U-13’ do you not understand why Mackinder would be glad to get possession of it? The ‘U-13’ is a German craft!”
“Oh, yes,” cried Ned. “And the two countries are at war!”
“And you will also understand why, under the circumstances, we must feel honored by your presence, as well as that of Mackinder, for a little time. Just now we should hate to see you go!”
“Then we are going to be prisoners?” asked Jimmie.
“Oh, no! Nothing so harsh as that!” reassured the other. “We will call it simply guests for the time being. That sounds better!”
“Would you mind telling us what Mackinder had to say about us?” inquired Ned. “We would like very much to know that!”
“Consider,” temporized the officer, “how little time there has been since we first sighted you for conversation of any sort!”
“Yes,” agreed the lad, “but he has told you something!”
“Nothing of importance!” declared the other, rising to indicate that the interview was at an end. “You will be given quarters forward, where you will receive every consideration until we reach our destination.”
“Where are you bound, Captain?” asked Jimmie.
“Our destination just now is a lonely island in the North Sea,” answered the other. “It is heavily guarded, so you will be in no danger.”
“Does Mackinder go ashore, too?” Jimmie continued.
“That has not been decided yet,” replied the commander. He touched a button, summoning an orderly. “Take these young gentlemen forward and see that they want no comfort. They are our guests!” he ordered.
In a few minutes the boys were seated at a table in the forecastle, where they were provided with a great profusion of well-cooked food from the sailors’ mess. With sharpened appetites they fell to eagerly.
Since none of the members of the crew with whom they came in contact seemed able to speak English the boys were forced to content themselves with speculating on their destination.
They knew that the torpedo boat destroyer had been headed nearly northeast when it overhauled, and picked them up. They also knew that in this direction lay the entrance to the river Elbe and the Kiel ship canal, but whether the boat was making for some port in that vicinity they were unable to learn.
Keenly as the lads regretted their lack of definite information they were not inclined to become despondent. They found it possible by using signs to carry on a sort of desultory conversation with the members of the crew, who had gathered out of curiosity in their vicinity.
At length Frank jumped from his seat with an exclamation.
“I’ll bet I know where we’re going!” he announced, gleefully.
“So do I!” stated Jimmie in a nonchalant manner.
“Where?” asked Frank, somewhat crestfallen. “Aw, you don’t either!” he declared, after searching his comrade’s face intently.
“All right,” admitted Jimmie, laughing. “I just wanted to take some of that overconfidence out of your system, that’s all!”
“Where do you think we are bound for, Frank?” inquired Ned.
Frank placed a finger on his lips, glancing about to make sure that no one was close enough to overhear his whispered words.
“Helgoland!” he said, cautiously.
Instantly the others jumped to their feet, slapping Frank’s shoulders, shaking his hands and otherwise showing their appreciation of his shrewdness. Their enthusiasm could scarcely be restrained.
“Sherlock Shaw, The Scout Sleuth!” shouted Jimmie.
“Frank, you’re the real, old-fashioned guesser!” declared Jack.
“How did you do it, Frank?” asked Harry, admiringly.
“Well, the commander said we were destined for a lonely island in the North Sea that was heavily guarded. I guess Helgoland fits that description right enough. Besides, as I remember the geography of these parts, that’s about the first land we’d strike going on this course.”
“But I understand that is a sort of naval base,” put in Harry. “Isn’t that the island where the Germans are fitting out so many of their Zeppelins? Seems to me I read something about that in a paper.”
“That’s the very place!” put in Ned. “The paper said it was a lonely, rocky island, difficult of approach and quite well fortified.”
“And book agents, canvassers, peddlers and rag men are not allowed there at all!” asserted Jimmie, gravely.
“Take his pie away!” shouted Jack. “He’s raving again!”
“And you have to deliver all goods in the rear,” added Jimmie, as Jack reached for the plate containing the lad’s breakfast.
“Hurry up, let’s finish this food and get out on deck, where we will be able to see something,” suggested Harry. “This is interesting!”
Directly the boys were standing in the lee of a deck house eagerly scanning the horizon for some sign of the island where they expected to be landed as prisoners of war.
The gale gave no hint of abating. Indeed, the motion of the waves was much more noticeable. Jack attributed this partly to the build of the craft, whose lines were sharper than those of the Lena Knobloch. The sharp prow cut the water like a knife, while the slender, tapering stern slipped through the seas without making a roller of large proportions.
Presently, just as Jack declared he could see a blue smudge in the distance, indicating the presence of land, the lads were joined by Mackinder. He glanced at the group without speaking.
Speedily the vessel approached the object that had been sighted.
An officer drew near. He conducted Mackinder toward the stern.
As the craft slowed slightly to enter a harbor Jimmie grasped Ned’s arm. He pointed eagerly toward several large objects on land.
“There is a whole flock of Zeppelins,” he declared. “And as I live,” he continued, “I see a bunch of submarines at that dock over there!”
“There must be a dozen or more!” gasped Frank, in amazement.