Under Foch's Command: A Tale of the Americans in France

by F. S. Brereton

"A gun!" Jack looked worried for a little while as he peered over the bulwarks of the trawler and looked seaward. "This 'ere trip's come off well, young feller, but it ain't the only fightin' we've got to do this time. That gun-shot came from aboard a sister trawler. You can see her there, steaming up out of the mist. She's heard the shooting. Maybe she thinks there's mutiny aboard, though, knowing there was prisoners here, she guesses what's happened. There's another!" he exclaimed as a sharp report sounded from the direction in which he pointed, while through the mist there loomed the bows of another trawler. "A shot's gone just ahead of us. Next time they'll get our range. Things then won't be very pleasant."

Bill clambered to the bridge and looked eagerly about him in all directions. Right aft he could see a party of the sailors standing about the hatch, which no doubt led to the engine-room, and presently a head appeared. A man was extricated by the scruff of his neck, and was tossed on along the deck to the companion, out of which Bill and his comrades had so recently emerged. There, at an order he had given now some minutes ago, stood two burly British sailors, one of whom was armed with a rifle, while the other had seized an axe from the rack round the mast. On the bridge beside him stood Larry, alert, and as eager as himself. At his feet lay the body of the skipper; and then of a sudden his eye fell upon an object right forward, covered in tarpaulin.

"A gun!" he shouted, and waved eagerly to Jack. "Hi!" he bellowed. "There's a gun for'ard, Jack; see if you've got any men who understand it. There's a locker, too, near at hand, and there will be ammunition in it. Larry, you get along with one of the men and see if you can discover some rifles and ammunition, for we shall have to look for a boarding-party. If not rifles, then get axes, iron bars, shovels if you like from the stoke-hole, anything with which to repel the Germans. Jack, ahoy!" he shouted again, and that worthy, playing up to the young fellow whom he had placed in command, touched his cap and aye-ayed to him.

"Aye, aye, sir," he repeated as he came up on to the bridge, having sent four of his men forward to the gun.

"We have been making a bad mistake," said Bill. "She's still steaming, but now that we're taking the hands away from the engine-room she'll soon come to a stop. Put her about; and Jim, here, will take command of the stoke-hole. Send some men down with him, and let 'em stand over the German boys there."

He hailed the men standing at the opening of the companion which led to the hold.

"Order up those of the engine-room staff who have been passed down, and send them along to their job again. Some of 'em'll understand enough English; and just see that you get 'em!"

In between his orders, punctuating them in fact, came the thuds of the gun aboard the other trawler, which was now clearly visible, though at some distance. Fortunately, too, not yet had her shells reached the vessel, though they ricochetted astern and ahead and passed over her decks, without hitting her. As Jack put a man at the wheel and swung the vessel round, the shots went far astern, though a little later, the trawler turning too, they began to burst within a few feet of her bows, and looked as though presently they would come aboard her. By then, however, the scratch gun-crew, which Jack had sent into the bows of the captured vessel, had thrown off the tarpaulin which covered the gun, and very swiftly (for your British sailor is a man of parts and smart at understanding things of that nature) they had grasped the meaning of the various wheels and levers, and had made themselves familiar with its breech action.

Inspection of the ammunition and a trial loading followed, and then a shot which shook the trawler and deafened those on her decks. Not one, but a dozen and more pairs of eyes followed the shot or fixed themselves upon the other vessel. Then a hoarse cheer burst from the men, for a splotch of white suddenly obliterated the bows, there was a blinding flash, and when the smoke had cleared away it was seen that the short bowsprit had been smashed, and that the halyards from it had been cut adrift. What other damage had been done by this lucky shot it would be impossible to say, but it was significant that the trawler sheered off at once, and steered a course which took her farther away rather than nearer to the captured vessel.