"Ah, I have heard of you, Herr Lieutenant," said the German. "As a British Naval officer I shall take you prisoner. Be good enough to step aboard."
"You've done for me, skipper," said Lawless bitterly as he mounted the submarine's platform.
The Captain of the Lake Killarney realised his mistake only too well, but the mischief was done now.
"Cast off," said the Commander, "I am going to sink your vessel."
Half-a-dozen shots beneath the water-line sufficed to sink the steamer, and then the commander, with Lawless and the men on the gun platform, went below, the conning-tower hatch was closed and the boat dived beneath the surface.
Two days later Lawless was taken ashore at a certain German port under an armed escort. He was domiciled temporarily in the local prison, and on the following morning an escort took him to another part of the building and ushered him into a sort of office where various uniformed individuals were gathered. There a careful record was made of his name, professional rank, place of birth, and many other private details of his life and habits. Then he was photographed.
This done, a sergeant stepped forward and, gripping the prisoner by the shoulders, began, with the assistance of a private, to feel in his trouser pockets. At this the Lieutenant's patience vanished and, before the sergeant had time to guess what was coming, he had been pitched head first into a large wastepaper basket and the private had taken a header into the coal scuttle. But before Lawless could perform any further athletic feats, he was seized by three soldiers and forced against the wall.
Then the search recommenced, and various articles, including a note from a tailor threatening legal proceedings unless he received a "remittance forthwith," were brought to light.
"Ach, what is this?" asked an officer looking at a crumpled piece of paper which the sergeant had handed to him with an air of triumph.
He carefully smoothed it out, and then, exhibiting it to the prisoner, repeated the question.