Fortunately the rain served a good purpose. It kept down the sea, so that, instead of vicious, crested waves breaking inboard, there was little more than a long, sullen roll.
"Lights ahead!" announced Detroit, as a faint luminosity became visible in the rain-charged darkness.
"Yes, searchlights. They always look like that in rainy weather. We're apparently in the thick of the German naval manoeuvres. It may be Heligoland. They say the place bristles with powerful searchlights."
"Heligoland, eh? I'd just like to have a look at that place," exclaimed the American. "Many years ago my father spent a holiday there. That was when it was a British possession, used principally as a bathing resort for German visitors. He lived in Germany for some time when he was about my age."
"I'm afraid you won't be able to gratify your wish, old man," said the Sub. "It's forbidden ground now. In 1913 it was strongly fortified, and shortly after that the island was given over solely to military and naval purposes. The civil population had to clear out. It's a sort of second Kronstadt. Our Intelligence Department would dearly like to know a great deal more about it than they do at present."
"Don't you think the British Government was a bit of a fool to give the place away?"
"No, certainly not. We did jolly well out of the deal. Had a vast tract of territory in Africa in exchange for a little lump of sandstone that looked very much like falling into the sea."
"That's the average Britisher's notion—that is, if he thinks about it at all. The German view is very different. As colonists the Teutons do not shine, except, curiously enough, when under any Government but their own. Very well. They give you a slice of virgin territory. You develop it, and it increases in value a thousandfold in a couple of decades. When 'The Day' comes, should Great Britain be overwhelmed by the Triple Alliance, Germany takes back her former territory—and a lot besides—all ready for her much-wanted place in the sun."
"You're a jolly old croaker, Detroit," exclaimed the Sub. "I'll bet my last halfpenny that the British navy will be top dog for a good many years to come. I don't fancy that you and I will see the Teutons walking through London with fixed bayonets, and the Kaiser dictating terms of peace in Buckingham Palace. Hallo! The searchlights are out. Evolutions finished for the night. What's the time, I wonder?"
Thrusting back the sliding hatch, Hamerton looked at the clock on the fore bulkhead of the cabin. It was just 2 a.m.