Rolf Bennett

“ The other seemed to grasp the situation in a flash, and, before he had time to consider what to do next, Lawless found himself looking straight into the barrel of a revolver. But the sight of the weapon had the same effect upon him as a douche of cold water has upon a swooning man. It restored his presence of mind, and his brain worked with lightning-like rapidity.
In the face of death no man could be calmer than the reckless Lieutenant. For a moment they stared at each other, the airman raised his pistol, and then, to his amazement, the Englishman laughed. ”

“ All at once everybody on board the dirigible was startled by the sound of guns in the distance, and next moment the sky was illuminated by searchlights which swept the horizon like tremendous phosphorescent antennæ.
Mike had given the alarm!
Several minutes elapsed before the searchlights found the airship and focused themselves upon it, and then everything on board was illuminated by the dazzling rays. A few seconds later the sound of firing increased, and Lawless guessed that a battery of howitzers was being trained on the dirigible. ”

“ The destroyer gave another lurch and the water came swirling over her decks.
"Abandon ship! Every man for himself!"
The men sprang into the sea, and not a moment too soon. As Lawless gave his last order there came the sound of another explosion in the engine-room and, before the steam from the shattered boilers had cleared away, nothing remained of the gallant little vessel but a mass of crumpled metal at the bottom of the North Sea and some wreckage floating upon the surface. ”

“ About ten minutes afterwards there came the heavy thud of ship's engines going at full speed, though as yet nothing could be seen of the ship itself. The situation for those on board the Knat was one of infinite peril, for they did not know from one moment to another when, from out of the enveloping fog, a great towering mass might hurl itself upon their frail craft and send it to the bottom. Yet for obvious reasons Lawless dared not make any signal or betray his presence to the unknown monster advancing at, probably, between thirty or forty knots an hour. ”

“ While Trent was bringing the destroyer round to the patrol boat, the gunner still stood behind his quick-firer, cursing his luck and calling upon all the gods to witness that he would have sunk "the blighter" (i.e., the submarine) with his next shot, and Lawless leant over the deck-rail trying to catch a glimpse of the men who had vainly endeavoured to regain the submarine before she sank. He was still trying to penetrate the gloom, when a shadowy figure was swept towards him and, leaning over the rail, he made a grab at it. ”

“ Lawless was now underneath, his back resting on the narrow deck of the car, while the airman struggled to get a grip of his throat. Uppermost in the mind of each was the desire to kill. Hate gleamed from their bloodshot eyes, and they ground their teeth savagely. Having the advantage of position, the airman at last managed to get his fingers round the Lieutenant's throat, and the latter, in a desperate endeavour to free himself from the choking grip, relaxed his hold, and was swung over the side of the car. ”

“ The high bows of the O47, towering above the low decks of the Gelderland as the trawler came racing up, threatened to crash right into the Dutchman and cut her in twain amidships, but the trawler's engines were reversed in the nick of time, and her stern slewed round so that the two vessels lay alongside each other.
Skipper Chard dropped on the Gelderland's deck just as the Captain—a short, stout man—came puffing down from his bridge in a violent temper. ”

“ Upon the quivering bridge towering above the narrow, sea-washed decks stood Lawless wrapped in a hooded "lammy" suit, which had once been white but was now the colour of a coal-sack. In front of him a quartermaster, similarly attired, gripped the little steering-wheel and gazed alternately at the illuminated compass and the tiny light at the bows that showed which way the vessel was heading.
"Ease her a couple of points," said the Lieutenant, recovering his balance after a sudden lurch which had thrown him against the searchlight apparatus. ”

“ He had opened the gas valve in the wild hope that the airship might sink to the water safely before the threatened explosion took place. It was their one chance of escape from a terrible death.
Slowly, very slowly, the monster dirigible descended. Everybody had forgotten Lawless in the horror of the threatened calamity, and all eyes were turned towards the smouldering cords, which occasionally burst into flame in the upward rush of wind caused by the airship's descent.
Would they reach the water before the explosion took place? That was the question each man asked himself. ”

“ Lawless had realised that if the man fired at him it must inevitably attract the attention of those on board the Mars—for revolver shots in mid-air would be hardly likely to pass unnoticed—and they would at once open fire with the anti-aircraft guns. But the same thought had evidently occurred to the other, for, instead of firing, he slipped the revolver back into his pocket.
Lawless braced himself for the coming struggle, and twisted his legs round some wire guys to secure a firmer grip of the machine and leave his arms free. ”

“ Then, looking over his shoulder, he saw the distant beam of the Knat's searchlight still focussed upon the patrol boat; evidently no one had seen him fall overboard nor had he yet been missed.
"Well," he remarked turning to the Commander of the submarine, "what are you going to do with me?"
"I have a good mind to send you back where you came from," answered the German officer, jerking his head in the direction of the water.
"As a reward for saving one of your men, I suppose," replied Lawless. "Well, as you seem to be afraid of even one Englishman, perhaps it is the best thing you can do." ”

“ The Germans, of whom there were several on the U boat's platform, made a simultaneous rush for the open hatch, for all the world like startled rabbits diving into their burrows. But before they disappeared inside a yellow flame flashed out from the vicinity of the searchlight, followed by a dull roar. Another and another followed in quick succession; the submarine suddenly tilted up, gave a lurch, and then disappeared for ever beneath the waters of the North Sea.
"Pity you plugged that petrol tank as well," remarked Lawless as he and Trent sat at breakfast in the Knat's cabin. ”

“ Taking advantage of the darkness—for there had been no moon—the skipper of the smack had fixed up this dummy riding-light in order to deceive the watchers aboard the destroyer and then extinguished the real one. This done, he must have got a row-boat with muffled oars to tow him out of the harbour, thus obviating the necessity for using the engines and so warning the Knat's men of his manœuvres. It was an ingenious trick, cleverly carried out.
"We must get under way at once," said Lawless. ”

“ The Lieutenant savagely stamped down the little iron ladder and gazed wrathfully around to see if any of the men had the suspicion of a grin on his face. But the men's countenances were almost preternaturally serious as they busied themselves with little odd jobs about the deck.
"What's the matter with the men, bos'n?" he growled. "They look like a company of funeral mutes."
"Oh, they're quite cheerful, sir," answered the bos'n apologetically. "I think the weather's a bit oppressive, sir."
Lawless went back to his cabin and found Trent on the settee, doubled up with laughter. ”

“ If only he could have brought down another Zeppelin....
Now, Lawless, as those who have followed his turbulent career are aware, was one of those hapless individuals who seem to be marked out as the sport of destiny. On this particular occasion the mischievous planet under which the Lieutenant had first seen the light must have twinkled with more than its usual malignity, for, within twelve hours of setting forth on his pleasure trip, he was a prisoner in the hands of the Germans. ”

“ Lawless glanced over the man's shoulder at the compass-card and then started to walk—or rather stagger—up and down the bridge in order to exercise his cramped muscles. Each time he reached the end of the bridge he grasped the rail and tried to pierce the surrounding blackness for any sign of a vessel, friendly or otherwise, but without success, because it was impossible to see more than a few yards ahead even between the rain squalls. ”

“ The Knat was steaming at half speed and in every direction syrens were screeching and bellowing, some close at hand, others far away in the distance. It was, in fact, just the sort of weather that the Germans love when contemplating a raid on some defenceless east-coast port, since they can take advantage of the mist to escape when threatened with the arrival of British warships
"I feel I could just do with a scrap; it would be a sort of tonic," said Lawless as Trent joined him on the bridge. "Demands for money always make me hopping mad." ”

“ Lawless proceeded to the bridge and, catching sight of the steamer dimly visible ahead, chuckled softly.
"The fun'll start before long," he remarked to Trent. "Oh, to see the old man's face when the officer of the watch reports a submarine astern!"
"I've calculated that your precious joke's taken us about four miles out of our course," answered the junior officer gloomily.
"You'll meet with an early death, like all good young people, if you're not careful," retorted Lawless. "Virtue has its disadvantages remember." ”

“ Lawless, now that his doubts were at rest, lost no more time, all the men were at their stations in readiness and there was no further reason to delay an action. His object now was to creep up abreast of the cruiser until he could launch a torpedo with a fair chance of its getting "home." This manœuvre, however, was not by any means easy, for it necessitated exposing the Knat to the enemy's fire, and if only one shot made good it would almost certainly mean an end of the adventure so far as the destroyer and her crew were concerned. ”

“ As a matter of fact it had not occurred to Lawless until that moment that he had won his uncle's wager and was, therefore, entitled to the thousand pounds. But now, strange to say, he did not feel elated in the least degree; the triple tragedy in which the Knat, the German cruiser and the Zeppelin had been involved, together with, probably, the loss of several hundred men, dwarfed everything else for the time being.
"How many of our men have gone under do you think?" ”

“ Only an anti-aircraft gun, firing at right angles to its base, could hit the terrible war machine above.
All this time Lawless was waiting for his opportunity—and at last it came. Springing forward, he seized one of the hand grenades and flung it with all his strength at the gas-bag above his head, hoping that it would explode and ignite the gas. Unfortunately, it struck a girder below the balloon, but in doing so ignited some of the cordage, which, being creosoted, began to burn furiously. ”

“ The two remained in conversation for some moments, and then the Commander again addressed his prisoner.
"I shall put you where, for a time at least, you can do no harm," he said. "The rest will depend on yourself."
A moment later Lawless felt the throb of the submarine's oil-engines and the vessel, still awash, started to plunge forward. Soaked to the skin and shivering, for the water was cold despite the fact of its being a very warm night, he hoped that the commander would offer him something hot if nothing else, but the German appeared to have no such intention. ”

“ Then, having taken his bearings, he left Plymouth far away to starboard and headed down Channel, while, in obedience to his instructions, the quick-firer was taken out of the hold and mounted on deck and the damaged funnel repaired.
He had been the recipient of a brilliant inspiration.
"The young fool's been and got himself torpedoed, that's what he's done," said Skipper Chard in a tone of conviction.
He was seated with other patrol-boat skippers in the bar-parlour of a certain hostelry, and the conversation had turned on the mysterious disappearance of the Gelderland with her prize crew. ”

“ The first two attempts to torpedo the German proved unsuccessful, and in both cases the Knat was driven off with the loss of several men killed and wounded, while the machine-gun aft on the bandstand had been wrecked by the only air-bomb which, up to the present, had struck the vessel. With such odds against him, Lawless would have been quite justified in drawing off; but to retire before a superior foe is not one of the ways they have in the Navy. ”

“ The fog, too, was a serious handicap, for, should a warship be sighted, the difficulty of deciding whether she was a friend or an enemy would be enormously increased. War vessels, seen at a distance even on a clear day, look much alike, and in a thick atmosphere it is practically impossible even for an expert to distinguish friend from foe. A wireless message of inquiry, though sent in code, would, of course, defeat its own object should the vessel receiving it be an enemy. ”