"A prize?" repeated the master. "For why?"
"You are conveying contraband."
"We are not," protested the "Freya's" captain. "We have not touched at a British port. Our papers prove that. And our cargo is not contraband."
"I did not say contraband cargo," said the German with a leer. "Men can be contraband as well as stores. You had English seamen on board, therefore you are under arrest."
"We were in Norwegian waters when you overhauled us," declared the skipper.
"No," replied the German. "Well beyond the limit. But what is the use of your protesting You are under arrest and the vessel is a prize. If you do not know how to make the best of the business, I will have to show you."
So with a prize crew on board, the luckless "Freya," escorted by a torpedo-boat, was taken into the Elbe, while Tressidar found himself a prisoner of war in the hands of the Huns.