“Hey!” shouted the policeman as the two boys dashed off to catch the already moving car, “Hey, young feller, come back and gimme yer name and address!”
But Ned and Herc paid no attention to his cries. They caught the back platform rail of the cable vehicle and swung themselves nimbly on.
“Just time to fix up and get down to the landing,” said Ned, consulting his watch, which had luckily escaped breaking in the recent adventure he had encountered, “we don’t want to overstay our leave, Herc.”
“Uh-huh,” grudgingly assented the red-headed lad, “but just the same ’Frisco suits me better than any place we’ve struck so far on this round-the-world cruise, and I’d like to look around a bit more.”
The Dreadnought Boys, who had just met such a thrilling experience in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco’s beauty spot, were, as our old readers know, the same two lads, who, as told in “The Dreadnought Boys on Battle Practice,” enlisted in Uncle Sam’s navy after tiring of a life of farm work under unjust conditions. They were cousins and life-long chums. In the volume referred to, the first of this series, we saw how quickly the boys, by earnest attention to duty and a fixed determination to make their mark in their chosen profession, attracted the attention of their superior officers. True, they had some hard knocks, chiefly caused by a bully, to whom Ned in a fair, stand-up fight taught a needed lesson. A flareback in one of the big-gun turrets gave them an opportunity to display the mettle they were made of, and right well did they take advantage of it. But ashore at Guantanamo, as well as on the ship, their enemies caused them considerable trouble and they were put to the test in many ways.
Wearing proudly medals of honor, and having achieved raises in rank, we found them next, in the second volume of this series, “The Dreadnought Boys Aboard a Destroyer,” participating in stirring scenes in South America, whither the torpedo boat destroyer Beale had been sent on a special mission. Dangers real and imminent threatened the boys, and they found themselves involved in a desperate battle between the government and revolutionaries. Their gunnery skill and knowledge of tactics won the day for the side that was in the right, and they earned fresh laurels following an exciting experience in a sea-fight.
In “The Dreadnought Boys on a Submarine,” the boys engaged in service on yet another type of Uncle Sam’s fighting ships. Under the water and on the surface they encountered experiences that form one of the most exciting narratives of this series. The submarine affords a peculiar field of interest, and the mystery in which the lads found themselves involved in no way detracts from the thrill and swing of action in this story.
Still forging upward in their chosen profession the lads were detailed next to a squad which, more than any other, calls for nerve, coolness and skill, combined with technical knowledge. In “The Dreadnought Boys on Aero Service,” we followed the two erstwhile farm boys into a new element. In navy aeroplanes they demonstrated the value of air-craft as an auxiliary to the fleet. Ned was especially successful in showing what could be done aloft. It will be readily remembered, too, that many difficulties, as well as triumphs, attended the boys’ aerial experiences, but they “made good,” like sterling American lads, and conquered every obstacle by using brains and brawn.
And now the boys were on their first long cruise. Back again on the huge, drab Dreadnought Manhattan, where they made their début into naval life, they formed part of the crew of the flag-ship of the sixteen battleships sent around the world to give other nations an impressive demonstration of Uncle Sam’s great sea-power. The passage down the eastern coast of South America and around the Horn had been made, the great fighting sea-dogs exciting the most intense interest and enthusiasm everywhere. Two days before, the massive, formidable squadron had steamed in column through the Golden Gate in perfect condition, and dropped anchor in San Francisco’s historic, land-locked harbor.
It was due to sail ere long across the broad Pacific for Hawaii and the “purple east,” returning to America by way of the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean. Small wonder that the men of the fleet were all on tip-toe with excitement over what lay ahead of them on this wonderful voyage. None were more enthusiastic over the prospect of visiting unknown waters than were Ned Strong and Herc Taylor. They looked for adventures afloat and ashore, but those they were destined to encounter surpassed even their fondest imaginings.