His progress was slow, for although in the hollows he had no fear of being seen, yet when he breasted a rise he had to be careful. It was when he had attained the summit of one of these sandy acclivities that Ned noticed that the tug had come to a standstill.
The crane arm swung inboard and one of the mines, looking like a huge black shoe button, was slowly hoisted from the pile on the deck. Then through the still air came the rattling sound of chains and the shrieking whir of the steam winch as the mine was lowered.
From this, Ned turned his attention once more to Kenworth. The midshipman was squatting down in his hollow now, and with a note book on his knees, was recording some sort of observations.
Risking detection, Ned centered his binoculars on that note book. What he saw through the powerful lenses caused him to flush angrily. Kenworth was making, not without considerable draughtsman's skill, a sketch map of the whole situation.
"Oh! you miserable wretch!" exclaimed Ned, gritting his teeth. "I'd give a whole lot to get my hands on you for about five minutes, and that's just what I'm going to do, too."
All unconscious of the concealed watcher, Kenworth sketched on. He actually appeared to take a pride in his work, from time to time holding it at arm's length as if to get a better perspective upon it. Then from his pocket he took a small camera, and made some pictures of the two forts and the stretch of water between.
"Great heavens! He's risking the loss of his commission," exclaimed Ned to himself as he saw. "There must be some uncommon motive behind all this to make him take such chances. What can it be?"
The tug was moving now, crawling like some ungainly black bug across the shimmering water.
Once more the anchor rumbled down, and again the crane poised, swooped, and deposited another of the globular black objects, piled on the fore-deck, in the water.
Ned, watching Kenworth intently, saw him place a surveyor's instrument to his eye, no doubt to make a rough calculation of the exact spot of the planting. Following a few seconds' observation through this, he jotted down some more notes in his book.