Taking heart from the gallant action of their commander, the British stokers sprang forward anew, and now the Germans tried to escape. The English pushed them back rapidly.
Straight for Colonel Von Roth went Jack. The colonel, with upraised revolver, saw him coming and turned pale. He aimed quickly and fired. Jack staggered back a step and then came on again. A second time the colonel fired, but this time the lad did not even pause.
The heavy iron poker seemed to whirl about his head; there was the sound of a blow. Colonel Von Roth went to the floor with a groan, and Jack fell sprawling on top of him, unconscious.
Even as the lad fell, the one German soldier who still remained in the room, picked up a heavy wrench and sprang forward. Quickly he raised his arm, and was in the very act of hurling it at the head of the unconscious lad when there was the sound of a revolver shot. The German threw up both arms, spun rapidly around once or twice, and fell to the floor.
In the doorway stood Frank. Aroused from his slumber by the sounds of scuffling below, he had sprung up suddenly. At first he could not make out the cause of the disturbance. Then there suddenly flashed before his face a vision of Colonel Von Roth.
This vision spurred him to instant action. Leaping from his bunk he ran on deck. There all was serene and quiet. He paused for a moment, undecided. Then, urged on by some uncanny foresight, he dashed toward the engine-room.
On the steps he met the first of the retreating German soldiers. With a cry over his shoulder to the third officer, who had followed him, he plunged in among them, striking out swiftly right and left. At the door of the engine-room he halted.
At first he could not make out Jack's unconscious figure lying, on the floor. But, as the German stooped to pick up the wrench, the lad divined his purpose. He had fired just a moment before the wrench would have crushed out his friend's life.
Quickly Frank bent over his chum and gently raised his head to his knee. There was no sign of life in the still body and Frank quickly placed his hand over the lad's heart. A faint fluttering was his reward.
"Thank God! he's alive!" he said.