CHAPTER XI
OPERATING THE SUBMARINE WITH A CAPTIVE CREW
The officer now saw that he was dealing with a man who understood themotives of those aboard the submarine, and it was also evident that thesympathy of the boys was turned from the young man. The latter hadplayed his part to the ultimate.
"You have now done all and more than is required of you," said thecaptain, as he altered his tone of voice. "You have set the automaticdevice, which, in due time, would have sent this vessel to the bottom. Iunderstand all these devices, and they will not avail you. I understand,as well as you do, that to open that box will cause an explosion; but itis necessary to make an example of you." Then, turning to the boys, hesaid: "You may go on deck. As for you, Mr. Officer, I shall detain youbelow a sufficient length of time to be sure that the automatic devicegets in its work. We really have no use for the submarine."
He turned and started up the stairway, when the sub-lieutenant, withtrembling voice, said: "I am powerless to prevent the explosion,----"
"Unless," interrupted the captain.
The officer nodded his head. "I supposed so!" continued the captain."The lieutenant in the galley has the key which controls the automaticdevice. You may open the door and get the key, and from this timeforward, if I find that you deceive me in the slightest degree, or makeany attempt to injure the vessel, I will make it your grave without amoment's hesitation, and without the least compunction."
The sub-lieutenant moved toward the galley, and opened the door. In amoment he reappeared with the key and followed the captain to theconning tower.
Below the switchboard was a tiny slot. Into this the key neatly fitted,and upon giving a turn, a set of switches was exposed.
"These are the control circuits," he said.
"Turn them off and open the boxes below!" ordered the captain. This wasdone.
"Who are the men that operate the trimming tanks?" asked the captain.
"The machinist Scholer and his assistant Bracher," was the reply.
"Lieutenant," said the captain, addressing the commander of the chaser;"send those men on board."
When they appeared the captain continued: "You will go below with thesemen, and obey my signals, as we take the vessel to port, and remember,that if any part of the machinery is destroyed I will not guarantee todeliver you safely on shore."
As they disappeared, the trap-door was closed, and the boys were free,for the first time since the eventful morning, five days previous tothis time, when they stepped aboard the submarine.
They now realized, in a particularly pointed manner, that while the airin a submarine seems to be fairly pure, it is filled with the mostnoxious fumes, due to the petroleum and lubricants, as well as to theodors due to cooking, all of which cannot be gotten rid of, howeverconstantly the air-circulating apparatus of the ship is in operation.
The greatest efforts have been made to automatically discharge theseodors, but the hundreds of dead corners within a hull of this charactermake it impossible to effect a thorough discharge, and when thetrap-door finally closes down there is a peculiar feeling, not unlikeseasickness, which seemed to attack one.
"I understand your feelings," said the captain, as he noticed the palefaces of the boys. "It is wonderful how you have been able to keep up,and not exhibit symptoms before this. I will have two seamen come overto assist me in the conning tower."
"I wish you wouldn't do that," said Alfred, as he placed his hand on histemples. "I am sure we will get over this in time."
"No, no; we want to stay with you, if you don't mind," insisted Ralph."I am all right now," and he tried to smile, but it was not a verysuccessful effort.
"Then I suppose I shall have to accede; yes, lieutenant, we can takecare of the boat, but I shall expect you to act as our convoy," repliedthe captain.
The lieutenant directed his men to pull for the chaser, and the captainturned to the operating board. "Forward," the word was plain. The signalwas made by two distinct rings. The propellers turned. The captain, withhis hands on the wheel, turned to starboard and made a short turn. Thisbrought the vessel alongside the chaser. A slight turn to port, thenforward, and they glided alongside _l'Orient_.
The crew had been lined up on the port side, and the captain at the endof the bridge raised his cap in salute as they passed by.
"Where are we going?" asked Ralph, as he saw the prow pointing to thesouth. "Are we going to France?"
"What are those funny things bobbing up there for,--that whole line?"asked Alfred.
"They are the floats for the torpedo nets," replied the captain. "We arenow on our way to go through the gates, and thus avoid the nets."
"Is that why we are following the torpedo chaser?" asked Ralph.
"Yes, and when once inside the lane, we will change our course and reachthe English base for craft of this kind," said the captain.
The submarine followed the wake of the chaser for fully a half hour,when, for some reason, that boat stopped. As they neared it they noticedthe sailors and marines aboard on the port side, and intently engagedin looking forward.
"What's up now, I wonder?" said Alfred, as he opened the door of theconning tower and stepped on the deck.
"Look at the floats ahead," said the captain.
On investigation two of them were noticed moving back and forth, andoccasionally dipping in an unaccountable manner.
"Look at those fellows with the guns on the deck of the chaser," saidRalph.
Alfred looked up. He saw the gun crews at their stations, with theofficers in charge of the guns standing at one side in attitudes ofexpectancy.
"I know," said Alfred. "They have caught one of them."
"Yes; and they are making the same efforts to get away that we wereengaged in only a few hours ago," said the captain.
The chaser steamed back and forth in a quiet, determined way, the mennever for a moment relaxing their watch.
"What are they trying to do with that funny-looking, big, fat gun on theside near the front end of the deck?" asked Ralph.
"That is a howitzer," answered the captain.
"What in the world do they want a howitzer for?" asked Alfred.
"To use it on the boat if it should get free from the net," replied thecaptain.
"Why don't they use it now?" asked Ralph.
"Because they do not want to destroy the boat unless it is absolutelynecessary," answered the captain.
"But how will they know whether the boat gets away?" asked Alfred.
"By the condition of the floats," answered the captain. "You will noticethat the two floats within range of the submarine's action are beingdragged down. If the floats should be in a normal condition, or float ontheir true water line, which you can readily observe by glasses, it isevident that the submarine is free."
"And then that would be the time they would use the howitzers?"suggested Alfred.
"But how could they reach the submarine?" asked Ralph. "Do they knowjust where the vessel is now?"
"Yes, they can locate it within a hundred feet; but that would be nearenough for their purpose," replied the captain.
"Do you mean," asked Alfred, "that they would send the shell from thehowitzer anywhere near them, and that it would destroy the submarineeven though it didn't hit it?"
"Yes; the detonating or rupturing effect of the high explosive in theshells is such that even though the explosion would take place a hundredfeet from the hull, it would put it out of commission at once, and, inall probability, crush in the sides like an egg shell," said thecaptain.
"Why are they signaling?" asked Ralph, as the wig-wagging began.
"I think that's _l'Orient_ in sight on the port side," replied thecaptain, after gazing in the direction indicated.
"Then the cruiser will take the position of the chaser?" said Alfred.
"Quite likely," answered the captain.
"Look at the smoke; she's coming this way," shouted Ralph.
The captain waved his hand to the lieutenant
on the chaser, as heshouted: "They have responded to your signals."
As _l'Orient_ approached and took up position, the chaser, with aparting salute, turned and started for its former course along the lineof buoys. The boys looked back and kept their eyes on the moving buoysas far as they could see them.
"It will never get away," said the captain.
The chaser described a long curve, and changed its course due east, and,following it, they were at the entrance which had been left free. Beyondwere several other small vessels, two of which dashed up and steamedalongside. The crews cheered as the boys emerged from the conning towerand waved their caps.
The lieutenant quickly informed the officers aboard the other boats ofthe prize, which had been taken by those aboard of her, and the newsredoubled their noisy welcome. The tell-tale number on the side of theconning tower, U-96, was sufficient to inform the crews of the passingvessels that another of the dreaded boats was out of action.
Once within the lane, as the path between the two lines of buoyed netsis called, they turned and steamed north. Vessels were passing andrepassing; transport and hospital ships; immense freight carriers, andsaucy little tugs drawing barge-like flat-boats; innumerable fastlaunches and large war vessels, going to and fro between the shores ofEngland and France.
Within a half-hour they again approached the place where _l'Orient_ waswatching the struggles of the entangled submarine. The boys thought ofthe trying hours when they, too, were thus imperilled, and could hardlyrefrain from shuddering at the thought of the human beings in the narrowprison house below the waves.
Evidently, something exciting was taking place, for the cruiser wasconstantly manoeuvering, and the men at the howitzers were keenly alive.Occasionally, there would be a lull in the movement of the buoys and itwas during those moments that the most intense activity was shown onboard the guarding vessel.
"I don't understand how it is that the submarine can get fastened to thenets," said Ralph to the captain, as they leaned over the rail of theirvessel.
"The meshes of the nets are very large,--that is, of sufficientdiameters to permit the ends of the submarines to pass into them,"replied the captain.
"But, if that is the case why cannot the submarines back out in the sameway that they went in?"
"They can, if the mesh is too small to take more than the bow of thevessel; but, in the event the mesh is large enough to permit the bow toenter, and the net once gets behind the fins of the submarine, that isthe end of them, for the vessel cannot, in that case, free itself,"responded the captain.
"How was it in our case?" asked Ralph. "Do you think the fins of ourship got caught?"
"I did not explain it to you at the time, as I did not wish to alarmyou; but this vessel had one of its fins through the net. Evidently westruck the nets at an angle, and the tide helped us in keeping the hullagainst the net at the proper angle. The lieutenant knew this, for headopted the only method known to free the ship under thosecircumstances," said the captain.
"So you think the lieutenant knew that only one fin had caught, and forthat reason he tried to up-end the ship?" inquired Alfred.
"Yes; but not that alone. I observed one thing that you may haveoverlooked," remarked the Captain. "He was particular to store all theboxes which we helped to carry aft, on the starboard side."
"I noticed that," said Ralph hurriedly, "and that wasn't all. Every timea box was brought in he would ask: 'Heavy or light,' and I have manytimes wondered why he did so."
"I did notice one thing, though," said Alfred, "and that was, when therear end of the submarine shot upward, and the boxes came tumblingdown, that the hull seemed to roll around to the left."
"That was our salvation," replied the captain. "I then knew we had achance."