Bright sunlight streamed into the cabin occupied by the two boys when they awoke the morning following their departure from London. They jumped up, dressed hurriedly, and went on deck. There was no land in sight, nor was there even a sail in the distance; nothing but water as far as the eye could see.
The little cruiser steamed swiftly along, rising and falling gently with the swell of the sea. For a long time the boys stood gazing out over the water, and they were still there when Lord Hastings approached.
“Good morning,” he greeted them. “How do you think you will like life on the ocean wave?”
“It’s glorious,” replied both lads in a single voice. “Where are we?”
“We are headed straight for the North Sea,” was the reply.
“Is there any danger of our meeting a German warship?”
“Very little. Of course, there may be a cruiser prowling about, but I doubt it. I did hear, however, that there was a German cruiser in these waters several days ago. Nothing has been heard of her since, in spite of a keen search. She has probably put into some neutral port. In that event she must either leave in twenty-four hours or disarm until the end of the war.”
“Are we to join the fleet immediately?”
“No, not immediately. We shall do some scouting for several days off the Scandinavian coast, trying to pick up some of the Germans who, under neutral colors, have been laying mines in the North Sea.”
“But isn’t there some danger of our striking a mine?”