THE BATTLE!
There was an instant of awful silence; then came the command:
"Fire!"
There was a horrible noise, louder by far than the loudest clap of
thunder; the _Sylph_ quivered, then seemed to leap back. The big guns on
the starboard side of the little vessel had poured forth their volley.
So close had the _Sylph_ approached to the enemy without being
discovered that a miss was impossible; and the suddenness of this
unexpected attack took the Germans completely off their guard. There
came a voice from above:
"A hit! A hit!"
The _Sylph_ now shook and trembled continuously, as broadside after
broadside was poured into the enemy, first from one side and then from
the other, as the little vessel maneuvered, presenting first one side
and then the other to the enemy.
Although taken practically unprepared, the Germans had no mind to give
up without a fight. One of the shells from the _Sylph_ had passed
through the cabin of the commander, leaving death and ruin in its wake;
a second tore a great hole through the smokestack, and she had been
pierced in other vulnerable spots.
The marksmanship of the British gunners was superb!
But now the Germans had brought their big guns to bear on the little
vessel. There was a gigantic boom, followed immediately by the sound of
a great crash. The shell had struck one of the guns of the _Sylph_,
blowing it to pieces.
There was a shower of iron, and men fell on all sides as it rained upon
the deck. At Gun No. 2 the gunner crumpled up and fell to the deck just
as he was about to fire.
"Report this to Lord Hastings!" cried Jack to Frank, and the latter
rushed upon deck.
Jack leaped to the gun and touched it off with his own hand. His action
was rewarded by a great shout from on deck, followed by a terrific
explosion.
Another German shell struck the gun deck of the _Sylph_, and again
several men went to the deck. But as they fell others jumped to take
their places, Jack among them.
For another few minutes the battle raged without cessation. Jack
continued to work like a Trojan; Frank, returning from above, where he
had reported to Lord Hastings, saw his friend running, shouting,
fighting with the others, stripped to the waist.
With a shout, Frank rushed to his side, arriving just in time to touch
off a gun as the gunner fell beside it.
Then, suddenly, there came from above the command:
"Cease firing!"
As if by magic the night became still. After the great noise and
confusion of the battle the sudden stillness was so intense that the
boys' ears hurt. Then they made their way to the deck.
And what a sight met their eyes!
Before them the sea was covered with a mass of wreckage. The stately
German cruiser of a few minutes before was like so much floating débris.
"Great Scott!" exclaimed Jack. "Did we do all that?"
"I guess we did," replied Frank.
"Mr. Chadwick! Mr. Templeton!" came the voice of Lord Hastings. "You
will man two of the boats at once and pick up as many as possible of
those poor fellows in the sea!"
The lads rushed to obey this order, and soon were busily engaged in
rescuing the German sailors clinging to the débris and swimming about in
the water.
For almost an hour they rowed about, picking up the unfortunate Germans.
Although a mass of wreckage, the German cruiser had not yet sunk, but it
was plainly apparent that it was settling rapidly. On the bridge Jack
made out the form of a man in uniform. It was undoubtedly the commander.
"By George," declared Jack, "we must get him off!"
"It's no use," spoke up one of the German officers who had been picked
up. "He refused to leave the ship. We tried to prevail upon him to jump,
but he said he would stick to his post."
"Even so," replied Jack, "we must make an effort to save him."
"It's useless," repeated the German.
The little boat was rowed closer in spite of the German's words, and
Jack called to the German commander:
"Jump, sir, and we will save you."
The German looked at the lad, but made no reply, and Jack repeated:
"Jump. We will get you all right."
Slowly the German commander drew a revolver, and, pointing it at the
boat, exclaimed:
"Keep away, or I shall fire!"
As Jack did not immediately order his men to move away, the German
officer in the boat exclaimed:
"You would better do as he says. Besides, the ship will sink in a
moment, and the suction will draw us under if we do not move from here."
At the same moment Frank, returning to the _Sylph_ with his boat filled
with survivors, called:
"Get back quick, Jack, or you will be drawn under!"
Jack looked once more at the German commander, who still stood with
leveled revolver, and then turned to his men:
"Give way!" he commanded, and the little boat headed once more for the
_Sylph_.
The small boat withdrew from the danger zone none too soon.
When still a few yards from the _Sylph_, Jack turned his face toward the
sinking cruiser. As he did so, the sinking craft gave a convulsive
shudder, then the sea closed over it. The last thing that Jack saw was
the commander, standing calmly on the bridge, awaiting the end. He went
to his death with bared head, standing at attention. Jack will remember
the sight till his dying day.
"A brave man!" was all he said, lifting his cap from his head.
Back on the _Sylph_, Frank and Jack learned that the casualties in the
battle had been comparatively slight. Ten men had been killed and
twenty-two wounded. Two of the latter were not expected to live. The
German shells had done considerable damage to the _Sylph_, particularly
upon the gun deck. Lord Hastings declared, however, that this could be
patched up with very little difficulty.
It was during a talk with Lord Hastings, while the commander of the
_Sylph_ and the two boys watched the approach of the British cruiser
_Lancaster_, that Jack learned just what an important part he had played
in the engagement.
"It was a single shot that put the German out of business," declared
Lord Hastings. "It was just after the first fire from the German hit us,
killing some of the gun crew."
Jack looked surprised, but said nothing.
"A second later," continued Lord Hastings, "there was a single shot from
the _Sylph_. The shell penetrated to the magazine on the cruiser, and it
exploded. Although the Germans fought for some time thereafter, that was
the shot that decided the battle; it was the shot that sunk the ship."
He turned to Jack. "You were in the gun room at the time," he said; "do
you know who fired that shot?"
"Yes, sir," replied Jack, in some confusion.
"Who was it, then?"
"I fired it, sir!"
"What!" exclaimed Lord Hastings and Frank in the same breath.
"Yes, sir, I fired it; but it was just luck that I hit anything."
"A shot like that can hardly be called luck," replied Lord Hastings.
"Well, it was luck as far as I am concerned," said Jack. "The gun had
already been sighted. I just touched it off when Mitchel fell to the
deck."
"The hand of Providence has surely been with us this night," declared
Lord Hastings.
A sailor approached with a message.
"A message from the wireless room, sir," he said.
Lord Hastings took the paper he extended. He read aloud:
"Your report received. Congratulations on your gallant victory.
We are proud of you all, and are sorry we could not be in at the
death. Stand by, I am coming on board. Will relieve you of your
prisoners.
(Signed) "CAPT. T. T. MAYFAIR,
"Commanding H. M. S. _Lancaster_."
Lieutenant Edwards approached at this juncture and saluted.
"A boat from the _Lancaster_ is coming alongside, sir," he reported.