Clair W. Hayes

“ But, going more swiftly now, the British submarine soon reached a zone of comparative safety and Lord Hastings gave the command to come to the surface once more. Then, followed by Frank and Jack, he stepped on to the bridge for a breath of the cool air.
“Well, I was sure we would get through safely, and we have,” said Jack, as he peered off across the water.
“And we have accomplished,” said Lord Hastings, “such a feat as was never before attempted, and one that has been rated as impossible. You lads are both deserving of the greatest praise for your coolness and bravery.” ”

“ As the D-16 made her way up the narrow strait, the sounds of cannonading became louder, until, after half an hour’s journey, it became a veritable roar.
“Great Scott!” shouted Frank. “This is awful. A fellow can hardly hear himself think.”
Now the D-16 came within sight of the last of the allied vessels, and she was pouring her shells along the shore as fast as she could shoot. Other vessels ahead of her, now also in sight of the D-16 were doing likewise.
“Where is the Queen Elizabeth?” asked Jack.
“Oh, she is way up ahead,” said Lord Hastings. ”

“ The admiral smiled.
“Oh, well,” he said. “We sailors never grow old.”
The two old friends shook hands affectionately, and Lord Hastings took his leave.
All was quiet on the submarine when he went on board, and he turned in at once. Not a man aboard the D-16 that night but slept a well-earned sleep, for the chase of the Austrian submarine, while not so long in itself, had, nevertheless, sapped the energy of all. The strain under which they worked—never knowing when a torpedo would send them all to their deaths—was tremendous. ”

“ A raid by an enemy has been deemed as impossible by strategists.”
“Nevertheless,” said Frank drily, “it is not impossible, as the Kaiser and his subjects will find out.”
“As I understand it,” said Jack, “Heligoland is a natural stronghold.”
“To a certain extent, yes,” replied Lord Hastings. “Heligoland, as you know, is an island, and nature has done her best to make it immune from attack. To nature’s work has been added the brains and brawn of the best German strategists and workers. An attack by a hostile battle fleet could have but one result—failure. ”

“ As the men started slowly from his cabin, Lord Hastings raised a hand.
“One moment,” he said quietly. “There is a chance for all but one of us. As I am the commander of this vessel, and should be the last to leave, that one shall be me.”
“What do you mean, sir?” asked one of the men, stepping forward.
“The torpedo tubes,” said Lord Hastings quietly. “All but one of us can be shot to the surface by means of the torpedo tubes.”
The face of every member of the crew lighted up with hope.
“Are we still moving ahead?” asked Lord Hastings.
“Yes, sir,” replied Jack.
“Good, at what speed?” ”

“ Jack, in the meantime, was grappling with the German officer, who had drawn a concealed revolver and was attempting to bring it to bear upon Lord Hastings. Frank sprang to his assistance, and Lord Hastings, unmindful of the struggle, and thinking only of the mistake he had made, stepped quickly from the compartment, and opening the conning tower, made his way to the bridge.
And there, he, too, started back in dismay, and no wonder. For what his eyes beheld was this:
Dead ahead rose the sheer walls of a massive fortress, the powerful guns of which swept the narrow canal for miles. ”

“ The D-16 leaped ahead, and at the distance of half a mile, rose slowly to the surface.
Lord Hastings and his two officers ascended to the bridge, where they took in the scene about them with their night glasses.
In the very center of the German fleet, a huge battleship was sinking. The glare of the searchlights of the others showed her plainly to the eyes of the British. Terrified cries carried over the water. The confusion aboard the sinking vessel was terrible to behold.
Men ran hither and thither about the decks, yelling and fighting, so great was their fear. ”

“ At last they reached the side, under a volley from the pursuing German launch. Lord Hastings clambered aboard and Frank and Jack followed in rapid succession. As they set foot on deck the latter shouted:
“Below! Quick!”
All made a mad dash and in a moment the entrance through the conning tower was hermetically sealed behind them.
“Submerge!” cried Lord Hastings; and as the D-16 once more sank from view, her commander wiped the beads of perspiration from his forehead with his sleeve.
“Whew!” he exclaimed. “Pretty close! Pretty close! But we are all safe, and that’s enough!” ”

“ IN THE DARDANELLES. From the bridge of the D-16, Lord Hastings and the two lads viewed the terrible havoc wrought upon the Turkish fortifications by the guns of the allied fleet. Huge holes had been cut in the walls in some places, while at others the fortifications had been literally razed until there remained hardly one stone upon another.
Broken cannon were among the débris, shattered and in tiny pieces. Even now, after all this time, dead bodies, both of men and horses, lay here and there. ”

“ Lord Hastings approached and laid his hand on Frank’s shoulder.
“Jack is right,” he said. “An agreement between gentlemen is not to be set aside for any reason. Be sure that I feel just as deeply as you, but I am older and not so much given to showing my feelings.”
He walked over to Jack, and held out a hand.
“I am sorry it was not me,” he said quietly.
“And still,” said Jack, taking the hand, “it won’t be so awfully bad, will it, to be the one who fires the last shot of the British Submarine D-16?” ”

“ Templeton,” said Lord Hastings, turning to Jack.
“Pretty fair, sir,” was the latter’s modest reply, for he had launched the torpedo with his own hand.
Aboard the sinking German vessel all was confusion. Men rushed hither and thither in wild excitement. Officers shouted hoarse commands. Men scrambled wildly about and jumped madly for the life boats as they were launched. So great was the panic that two of the small boats were overturned and the men thrown into the sea.
“They’ll be drowned!” exclaimed Frank. He turned to Lord Hastings. “Cannot we rescue them, sir?” ”

“ Just this little sound and then Lord Hastings gave the command to rise, for he wished to witness the effect of the torpedo on the German cruiser.
The D-16 rose swiftly, but not as swiftly as the torpedo had sped on its way. For when the submarine reached the surface the torpedo had already done its work, and the German cruiser was helpless. Men were jumping into the sea on all sides and swimming away. ”

“ This was the work of an instant.
“How deep are we?” asked Jack.
“Quarter of a mile,” replied Lord Hastings briefly.
“Then the pressure will not be so bad for you fellows,” said Jack.
He stepped to No. 1 torpedo tube and examined it.
“All right,” he said. “The only trouble you may have is that you will not be seen when you reach the surface. However, that is the chance you will have to take. Just keep your senses, and when you reach the surface swim until you are picked up. How does the barometer read?”
“Clearing,” replied Frank, after a quick glance. ”

“ Frank’s ruse undoubtedly stood him to good advantage. A foot struck his prostrate body, and the figure of a man pitched over him, muttering a fierce imprecation as he fell to the floor.
Before the latter could rise, Frank grappled with him. Quickly reversing his revolver, he brought the butt of the weapon down in the direction in which he judged the man’s head to be. It struck something soft, and a guttural howl of pain went up.
“A spy!” Frank found time to think to himself. ”

“ There seemed to be no one in the crowd who had perceived the cause of Jack’s struggle with the two men, and the latter, taking advantage of this fact, struggled fiercely with Jack, uttering loud cries of “Assassin!” “Kill him!” “He tried to assassinate the Czar!”
With his one free hand, Jack fought desperately, but the crowd, attracted by the cries of the two conspirators, closed in on him angrily. Some one wrenched the bomb from his hand, and other hands clawed and struck at his face and body. ”

“ He turned and dashed back along the dark road, Frank and Jack following.
From behind came the sounds of a terrible commotion. The garrison was aroused, and the fugitives realized that speed was the only thing that would save their lives.
Without a word they sped along as fast as their legs would carry them. In the darkness Lord Hastings would have passed the spot where they had hidden the launch had not Jack’s keen eyes recognized it as he flashed by. ”

“ No incident marred the peaceful progress of the D-16 as she made her way through the sunny waters of the Mediterranean. The weather was beautiful and Lord Hastings, Frank and Jack spent many pleasant hours upon the little bridge.
“How long before we shall reach the entrance to the Dardanelles?” asked Frank during one of these siestas.
“At the rate we are going,” was the reply, “we should be there tomorrow morning. Of course, we might even do better than that, but I am in no particular hurry. There will not be much action before daylight.” ”

“ Deep, deep down in the sea the D-16 made her way from the harbor of Heligoland, diving far beneath the mines that protected the German fortifications. And in her wake she left three sunken German ships of war and another so badly damaged that she would be out of commission for many months.
“I am willing to bet,” said Frank, “that the Germans either lay the raid to internal troubles or else claim that a British submarine flotilla of at least 20 vessels participated.” ”

“ As briefly as possible Frank reconstructed the scene for the Czar. As he progressed with his tale, the Czar became more and more interested.
“And so,” Frank concluded, “had it not been for my friend, who your majesty is pleased to believe would have killed him, the real assassin would have accomplished his work.”
“You tell exactly the same story as the prisoner,” said the Czar thoughtfully. “There must be truth in it.”
“I can vouch for both of them, your majesty,” interposed Lord Hastings. “Why, time after time they have been instrumental in dealing smashing blows to the enemy. ”

“ Not half a mile away a French cruiser of the first class was sinking by the head. Members of her crew were throwing themselves into the sea, and boats from other ships were standing by to pick them up.
“What do you suppose is the matter? Explosion?” asked Frank.
“Looks like it,” answered his commander. “I——”
But Jack supplied the answer.
“The Austrian submarine that passed us!” he exclaimed. “She is responsible for this.”
“By Jove!” exclaimed Lord Hastings. “You must be right.”
At this moment the French Admiral signalled Lord Hastings.
“Torpedoed by Austrian submarine,” read the signal flags. ”

“ He took in the situation at a glance.
“The fleet to the east is German,” he said, after a careful scrutiny through his glass, “and the other must be the British fleet commanded by Admiral Beatty.”
“Then there will be a fight,” said Frank.
“There will be unless the Germans perceive our ships soon enough to give them a chance to escape,” returned Lord Hastings. “Another hour undiscovered, however, and we’ll get them sure, for if I am not mistaken, the leading British ships are the Lion and the Tiger—the fastest cruisers afloat today. Also their guns are greatly superior to those of the enemy.” ”

“ Jack was struck with a sudden idea. He turned to Lord Hastings.
“If we could pick up one of those fellows,” he said, pointing, “perhaps we could find out what has happened to Frank.”
“Good,” replied Lord Hastings, “it shall be done.”
Upon his command the submarine forged ahead slowly directly toward the doomed German cruiser. Heads of men swimming began to bob up and down on both sides. Jack, leaning over the side, which was almost level with the water, suddenly stretched forth a hand and dragged a German petty officer aboard. ”

“ She carries the heaviest guns and outranges anything afloat. Shore batteries, powerful as they may be, are no match for her, for she can stand off at a distance of twenty miles and pound them with perfect safety to herself.”
“She must indeed be a terrible engine of destruction,” said Frank.
“She is,” replied Lord Hastings calmly, “and eventually, mark me, she, and ships of her class, will be the means of bringing the Germans to terms, land victories of the most gigantic scale notwithstanding.”
“Well, the sooner the better,” said Frank.
“I agree with you,” declared Jack. ”

“ Accordingly Frank went to fetch him, and a few minutes later all were comfortably seated in the commander’s cabin.
Lord Hastings informed the prisoner what they desired of him, and the latter was nothing loath to enlighten them.
“Possibly the matter of greatest moment at this time,” said the prisoner with some show of pride, “is the German blockade of Great Britain and the coast of Northern France.”
Lord Hastings was on his feet in an instant.
“Blockade of Great Britain!” he ejaculated. “Why, it’s impossible. The German fleet itself is bottled up by our ships. ”

“ Lord Hastings asked him.
“He has been sent ashore,” was the reply. “He was to have been taken to Berlin today, to be held as a prisoner of war; but I understand that for some reason it was put off till tomorrow.”
“I see,” said Lord Hastings, and as he did not wish to put the prisoner on his guard, he talked for some minutes of other matters.
“By the way,” he said finally, “how is our friend guarded? Is he locked in a cell, or what?”
“Yes,” was the reply. “He refused to give his parole, so naturally he had to be confined. However, he is perfectly comfortable and is being well cared for.” ”