"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."