“Well,” said Jack, “we are off at last. I wonder where we shall be next month at this time?”
Frank shrugged his shoulders.
“Who knows?” he replied.
For several hours the two lads stood upon the deck, gazing over the rail into the dark waters of the river; but at length they turned in.
The Sylph was manned with a crew of 100 men, besides her officers. A small cruiser, she nevertheless had been an extremely large-sized yacht. All told she mounted ten eight-inch guns and several smaller pieces.
Used frequently as she had been by Lord Hastings on diplomatic and political missions, the Sylph had always been prepared to resist an attack, so that her present armament was only twice what it had been.
While the Sylph would stand little chance against one of the great German dreadnoughts or battle cruisers, Lord Hastings had little doubt that she could give a good account of herself in an encounter with some of the enemy’s smaller vessels. If he encountered one of the enemy’s bigger vessels, it was Lord Hastings’ plan to run, and he was positive that he could not be overhauled; for the Sylph had the heels of practically anything afloat.
Officers and crew were trained to the minute. Picked from among the flower of Britain’s sailors, drilled so that they went about their work like well-oiled cogs in a great machine, they were all eager to get into action.
Although rated as midshipmen, Frank and Jack were not assigned to fixed stations. They had been given a cabin just off the one occupied by Lord Hastings. The Sylph, ostensibly a pleasure yacht, had been fitted up with roomy and beautiful cabins, and this space, although the yacht now was a war cruiser, necessarily had to be utilized.
Under Lord Hastings, Lieutenant Edwards was the second in command. The next two ranking officers were Second Lieutenant Taylor and Third Lieutenant Harvey.