CHAPTER XXVI
CRUISING AGAIN
It seemed long hours to Frank and Jack before they once more made out the form of the Sylph, still cruising slowly to and fro close to where they had left her nearly two days before. The submarine drew up to her rapidly, and soon Captain Nicholson ordered a small boat launched.
Into this climbed first a seaman, then Captain Nicholson and Frank and, Jack. Lord Hastings greeted the boys warmly as they dropped over the rail of the Sylph.
"I was beginning to fear something bad gone wrong," he said. "I certainly am glad to see you back safe and sound. Was the raid a success?"
"It was indeed," replied Frank.
"Three Turkish cruisers sent to the bottom," said Jack briefly.
"Good!" cried Lord Hastings enthusiastically. "And the submarine wasn't damaged, eh?"
"Oh, yes, it was," broke in Captain Nicholson, and proceeded to relate the details of the encounter.
"And how did the two lads behave themselves?" questioned Lord
Hastings.
"Admirably," was Captain Nicholson's reply. "We were in a pretty ticklish situation for a moment, but they never lost their nerve."
The lads blushed at this praise.
"Well," said Captain Nicholson, after some further talk, "I guess
I shall have to say good-bye."
He shook hands all around, and was soon on his way back to his own vessel. Immediately the Sylph was got under way, and proceeded on her course westward. But she had gone hardly a mile when the wireless operator rushed up to Lord Hastings, and handed him a message.
"Relayed by the Gloucester and Terror, Sir," he said.
Lord Hastings read the message:
"Strong German squadron somewhere off coast of South America.
British fleet on watch. Get in touch."
The message was signed by Winston Spencer Churchill, first Lord of the Admiralty.
Lord Hastings pursed his lips and whistled expressively.
"Another long cruise," he said briefly.
Soon the Sylph's head was turned toward the South, and for several days thereafter she pursued her uneventful way down the coast of South Africa. Rounding the Cape of Good Hope, she steamed straight for the distant coast of South America.
Lord Hastings stopped to coal once or twice, and so it was some days before the lookout picked up, land ahead.
"Should be the Argentine coast, if we have not drifted off our course," Lord Hastings informed the two lads.
He was right, and the following day the Sylph put in at one of the small South American ports for coal.
"We'll have the ship looked over a bit," said Lord Hastings. "We are permitted to stay in this, port 24 hours, and at the expiration of that time we must leave or be interned."
It was in this place that Lord Hastings and the members of the Sylph's crew learned of the disaster that had overtaken several British cruisers in those parts. Here, for the first time, they heard of the defeat of a small British squadron by the Germans, and of the death of Admiral Sir Christopher Craddock, who had gone down fighting to the last.
"Never fear," said Lord Hastings, "Sir Christopher's loss shall be avenged, and that shortly, or I am badly mistaken."
The following day the Sylph put to sea again, and headed down the
Argentine coast.
It was late the next afternoon, when the wireless operator aboard the Sylph picked up a message.
"German squadron some place near, sir," he said laconically, as he handed a message to Lord Hastings.
The commander of the Sylph glanced at the message. In regular maritime code, it read:
"Close in."
"I haven't been able to pick up the position of the ship that sent that, sir," the operator volunteered.
"If you can do so," said Lord Hastings, "let me know immediately."
"Do you know what German ships are supposed to be in these waters?" Jack asked of Lord Hastings.
"Why, yes," was the latter's reply. "The armored cruisers
Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, the former the flagship of Admiral
Count von Spee, and the protected cruisers Leipzig, Dresden and
Nurnberg. Why?"
"Well," Jack explained, "judging by the message just picked up, they must be separated. Couldn't we, by representing ourselves as one of these vessels, possibly pick up a little useful information?"
"By Jove!" said Lord Hastings. "We could."
"But how are we to know which ship sent that message?" asked Frank. "We wouldn't want to make a mistake, and we might try to pass ourselves off as the very cruiser that flashed that message."
"The message was undoubtedly sent from the flagship," said Lord
Hastings, "so we are safe enough there. Come with me."
He led the way to the wireless room, where the operator was making unsuccessful efforts to pick up more messages from the air.
Now, at Lord Hastings' direction, he tapped his key.
"Scharnhorst! Scharnhorst!" the instrument called through the air.
There was no reply, and the call was repeated.
"Scharnhorst! Scharnhorst!"
A moment later and there was a faint clicking of the Sylph's apparatus. The call was being answered. The operator wrote it off.
"What ship is that? Admiral von Spee orders all to close in," and the exact position of the German flagship was given.
"'Dresden!" flashed back Lord Hastings. "Signed, Koehler."
"I happen to know Captain Koehler commands the Dresden," Lord
Hastings confided to the boys.
He sent another message to the German admiral:
"Where are you headed?"
"Falkland Islands," came back the answer.
"To attack the British?" was the message Lord Hastings sent through the air.
"Will sink one British ship in harbor and destroy Wireless plant," was the answer to this query.
"Good!" said Lord Hastings to the lads. "We now know his objective point, and if we could pick up the English fleet we would be prepared to receive them."
"Is there a British fleet in these waters?" asked Jack, in some surprise.
"Yes," replied the commander of the Sylph. "Vice Admiral Sir Frederick Sturdee, chief of the war staff, is hereabouts with a powerful fleet. The fact has been generally kept a secret, but I am in possession of that much information."
"Do you make the Germans' position closer to the Falkland Islands than ours?" asked Frank.
"No," replied Lord Hastings. "Judging by the action of the wireless, I should say we are fifty miles closer."
"Then," said Frank, "why cannot we make a dash for the Islands? We can put in there and give warning. Besides, it may be that some of the British fleet is near there."
"A good idea," replied Lord Hastings. "It shall be acted upon at once."
Under full speed the Sylph dashed forward toward the Islands.
"I don't expect we shall pick up the Falklands before morning," said Lord Hastings, "and we shall have to keep a sharp lookout tonight, for we are likely to bump into a German cruiser prowling about here some place."
"Scharnhorst trying to raise the Dresden again," said the wireless operator to Lord Hastings, with a grin.
"Let her try," replied Lord Hastings. "Guess Admiral von Spee will think it funny he gets no reply, but he'll think it funnier still when he finally does raise the Dresden and learns that it was not she who answered his other call."
And it was not long until the real Dresden did reply. The
Sylph's operator picked up the messages that were exchanged.
"Dresden, Koehler!" came the response to one of the flagship's calls.
"What is the matter?" came the query. "Why did you cease communicating?"
"Don't understand," was the reply. "Have not communicated with you before."
"Didn't you acknowledge my call fifteen minutes ago?"
"No!"
Even the ticking of the wireless instrument now grew nervous, and it was plain that the sender was laboring under stress.
"Received message signed 'Dresden, Koehler, fifteen minutes ago," came from the flagship. "Did you send it?"
"No," was the reply flashed back. "Picked you up now for the first time."
"Enemy must have picked up call and answered then," flashed the flagship. "Heed only code messages in future, and answer in kind."
Thereafter, although the operator picked up the messages passing between the two ships, they were only a jumble. In spite of all attempts of Lord Hastings and the two lads to decipher the code, they remained in ignorance of further communication between the enemy's ships.
"Well," said Lord Hastings. "We have scared them up a little bit, anyhow."
"I should say we have," replied Jack. "They don't know whether we are one or a dozen."
"But," said Frank, "they probably will make for the Falklands now faster than ever."
"Right," replied Lord Hastings, "and it's up to us to get there well ahead of them."
"Other cruisers coming within zone, sir," reported the wireless operator.
"Can you make out their conversation?" inquired Lord Hastings.
"No, sir," was the reply. "They have reported to the flagship, and after being warned, have continued in code."
"Did you pick up their identities?"
"Yes, sir. Besides the Dresden, the Gneisenau, Leipzig and
Nurnberg have reported."
"That's all of 'em," said Lord Hastings dryly, "and they make a pretty powerful squadron. Here's where we have to begin to hustle."
The Sylph seemed to go forward even faster than before.