CHAPTER XIV
THE WAR-SWEPT LAND
"You've got to hand it to that fellow, though," said Billy. "He hadhis nerve right with him to try to cop out a transport right under thenose of a convoy."
"Yes," agreed Bart. "Although, after all, it may simply have been achance meeting. The captain of the U-boat might have been as surprisedas we were when he came up to breathe and found himself so close to us.But being there it was too good a chance to miss and he let fly."
"Maybe there wouldn't have been a high old time in Berlin if thetorpedo had reached its mark," said Frank. "Think of being able toboast that they'd sunk thousands of Uncle Sam's troops! They'd havehung out the flags and rung the bells and given the school children aholiday."
"Well, a miss is as good as a mile," returned Billy. "It's a heap morecomfortable sitting here and talking about it, than it would be to bein the water or rowing about in small boats while the submarine shelledus."
"Well, that particular submarine will never do any more shelling," saidBart. "It's all over with them now. It must be a fearful thing to diethe way those fellows did, like rats in a trap. It's no wonder thatthe Kaiser finds it hard to get men to man his U-boats."
"It is pretty rough on them when luck goes against them," admittedFrank. "But if those fellows played the game fairly I'd feel sorrierthan I do. Don't forget, that if they saw us struggling in the waterthey'd be standing on the deck of the submarine, if there were nodestroyer about, grinning and mocking at us. And if women and childrenwere drowning, it would make no difference to them."
"Right you are," declared Billy. "Do you remember what that U-boat didthat sank the _Belgian Prince_? Smashed the small boats, threw awaythe oars, and took those of the crew who were left on top of thesubmarine."
"Yes," said Bart. "Then the Germans made everything tight and wentbelow, leaving their prisoners on the deck. The U-boat sailed alongthe surface for a few hours and then slowly sank leaving their captivesto drown. If that wasn't brutal, cold-blooded murder, there never wasany in the history of the world."
"I hope this submarine was the one that did the trick," said Frank."Perhaps drowning didn't seem such a rich joke to them when their turncame."
From that time on, the vigilance aboard ship was redoubled, foralthough the general opinion was that it was only a chance meeting, noone knew but what this U-boat was simply one of a fleet whosecompanions might look for better luck where their comrade had failed.
But nothing more was seen of the undersea terror until they wereapproaching the French coast and then the boys were witnesses of anexciting game that held them breathless.
"Look at that speck up there in the sky," exclaimed Frank.
"Biggest bird I ever saw," remarked Billy.
"That's no bird," declared Bart, after a prolonged inspection through apair of glasses that he produced from his kit. "That's an aeroplane."
"An aeroplane!" exclaimed Billy. "So far away from shore as this?You're dreaming."
"You can see for yourselves," replied Bart, as he handed the glassesaround. "Take a squint at it and you'll see that that bird never worefeathers."
"It must be a seaplane," announced Frank. "It's been launched from thedeck of some vessel and now it's hovering up there like a hawk, lookingfor submarines. It's a funny thing, but they say that those seaplanepilots can look right down through the water and see a submarine whenit can't be seen from the deck of a ship."
"What's the dope?" asked Billy, with great interest. "Suppose he doesspot one, what good does it do?"
"He's got a wireless equipment," explained Frank, "and he sends outsignals to trawlers and destroyers. They come on the jump and theseaplane tells them just where the submarine is lying."
"By jiminy, I think he sees one now!" exclaimed Tom Bradford, who hadjust come up. "See that smudge of smoke over there? That means asteamer's coming and there's another."
As though by magic one boat after another hove in sight until therewere four, coming from as many points in the compass and heading towardthat point in the sea over which the seaplane hovered.
The boys were on edge with excitement at the prospect of being in atthe death and as the liner was rapidly approaching the scene of action,they had a clear view of what followed.
Guided evidently by signals from the seaplane, two of the trawlersstretched a long chain between them and advanced slowly toward theother two who, with a similar chain approached from the other direction.
"What do you suppose they're trying to do?" asked Billy, curiously.
"The idea is, to get those chains under the submarine," explainedFrank. "After they've done that, they'll crisscross them from above.If they once succeed in doing it the sub is done for. He's got to comeup and surrender or else they'll slip him a depth bomb and blow him toflinders."
Deftly and quickly the work went on under the direction of the skilledveterans who held command of the trawlers. Then they waited for thesubmarine to come up.
But it did not come. Instead, it released a group of mines on thechance of wrecking one or more of its captors. But they were on thelookout for just such a contingency and fended off these "floatingdeaths," waiting till they had finished their more important workbefore rendering them harmless.
Minutes passed and still the U-boat lay like a sullen monster, trappedbut not subdued.
Then it was the trawlers' turn to take the offensive. Two depth bombswere placed on the taut chains and slid down through the waters to thehull of the doomed submarine.
There was a muffled boom, a geyser-like rush of water, and then thetelltale oil that came to the surface showed that all was over. Onemore of the assassins of the sea had paid the score it owed to anoutraged world!
"And that's the Kaiser's weapon that was going to bring England to herknees!" ejaculated Tom.
"The Allies are getting the best of them," declared Frank. "It lookedat one time as though Germany were going to put it over. But we'resinking them now just as fast as they can be built and when Americagets fairly to work we'll sink them still faster."
"Just wait till Edison gets on the job. He'll find something that willfinish the U-boats in jig time. He'll make them look like thirtycents," declared Tom.
A little later they caught their first sight of France. Only a blur onthe horizon at first, it grew steadily larger, and the bow of the boatwas packed with the eager young soldiers, straining for a sight of thewar-swept land that had suffered so much and done so much in the fightfor liberty and democracy.
Here they were to fight, here they were to suffer, here they were tocarry their country's flag to a glorious victory!
Frank breathed hard as the land came closer, for to him France had agreater significance than even to the others. It was his mother's landand for that reason doubly dear.
As the great vessel followed by others drew near the port, it was seenthat the wharves and shores were black with people. News had beenwirelessed of their coming, and the city had gone wild with joy at thisvisible token of help from the great sister republic across the sea.
Bells were ringing, whistles blowing, cannon booming. Flags were flungout from all the buildings and the whole city was in holiday garb towelcome Uncle Sam's army boys to France!