The great liner lay silent in the moonlight, with no lights visible about
her, but thin columns of smoke rose lazily from her funnels. A gangplank
was down.
It was decided that our number should divide into three equal parts. One
was to go to the bow and board the craft there by climbing up the line
fastening the ship to the pier; this line was in the shadow except at its
far end, where the men would emerge upon the deck. The second group was
to get aboard at the stern by the same means. And the third detachment
was to advance by the gangplank.
The plan worked without a hitch, and soon we were assembled upon the
vessel’s main deck. No guard was in sight. Hurriedly, we explored the
upper decks and all the chambers off them. They were empty.
Then, descending simultaneously by companionways forward, aft and
amidship, we began to search the body of the vessel. Still no one could
be found.
And this deserted condition of the ship continued until only the
stokehold remained to be entered. Here, however, we were certain of
finding people.
Leaving three men on deck to guard against surprise, the rest of us crept
into the boiler room.
Only two Chinamen were in the place, leisurely engaged in stoking the
furnaces. We had them covered with our revolvers before they had any
warning of our approach.
In spite of the odds against them, one of the Mongolians leaped forward
and had almost struck one of our men with his shovel before a shot killed
him in his tracks. The other Chinaman submitted, and he at once was
securely bound and dumped into a corner.
Dr. Gresham tried to question the prisoner in Chinese, but all the
information he could get regarding the keeping up of steam on the
_Nippon_ was: “Maybe leave here soon!”
While the astronomer had been thus engaged, Ensign Hallock and some of
his men were examining the coal bunkers, and they now reported that the
vessel was stocked with fuel for a long voyage.
At this juncture, one of the deck watch came to announce that the moon
was sinking near the mountaintops, and that if we hoped to get far down
the channel before the light failed we would have to start promptly.
Detailing eighteen men to do the firing—with orders to get more steam
as rapidly as possible—Ensign Hallock and the rest rushed to the engine
room, where the three apprentice engineers already were at work. Finding
everything all right there, the officer proceeded to the steering room,
while some of us pulled in the gangplank.
The astronomer and myself next started to find the radio plant, to
get into communication with the Mare Island navy yard. But here
we encountered a set-back: The wireless plant had been removed!
Kwo-Sung-tao, we could only surmise, had moved the set to a spot more
convenient to the village. So, for the present, communication with the
outside world was impossible.
During this brief period of putting the ship in sailing order, none of
the sorcerers made an appearance; probably all the men they could spare
were exploring the captured destroyer.
Soon steam was up; whereupon Ensign Hallock sent Dr. Gresham to the bow
and myself to the stern to keep a close lookout, and himself ascended to
the bridge and gave the order to start the engines and cast off. Before
many moments the leviathan was moving away from the wharf.
The officer had found from the charts that there was a place only half a
mile or so upstream where the fiord opened into a bay, or amphitheater.
There, from all indications, room might be had to turn the ship around
and head her down the channel. For this opening he now set his course.
Although we maintained a very slow speed, it was not long before we
nosed our way into the bay. Here the walls of the fiord retreated far
enough to form a considerable body of water; nevertheless, it was plain
we would have close work turning the _Nippon_ in such a space. It would
be necessary to steam well over against the north bank, where there no
longer was any moonlight and the shore line was swallowed up in inky
blackness.
Redoubling the vigilance of our lookout, we began the maneuver. Slowly,
Ensign Hallock swung the huge ship around. Twice it was necessary to stop
and reverse the engines, accomplishing part of the turn by backing. In
doing so, we had a narrow escape from running into a rocky promontory in
the dark.
But at last the liner’s head was fairly about and the way seemed clear
for our dash down the channel past the _Albatross_. As the officer
signaled for more speed, all of us unconsciously steeled ourselves for
the climax of our adventure.
But at that instant a deep-toned bell, sounding like the tocsin upon the
Temple of the Moon God, began tolling in the distance. This was followed
almost immediately by a series of sharp blasts from the whistle of the
destroyer.
Now that we had completed the dangerous turn, my duties in the stern were
finished, so I ran forward, joining Dr. Gresham, and together we climbed
to the bridge.
“The Chinks must have discovered that their ship is gone!” was the
greeting the young officer gave us.
He was hardly able to restrain his excitement; the prospect of a brush
with the sorcerers seemed to give him great joy.
The steam chant and the tolling of the bell continued, as if intended for
a general alarm.
“Must be getting their gang together!” the ensign remarked. “They’ll be
laying for us now, but we’ll give them a run for their money!”
The liner now was beginning to get under considerable headway.
“We’re in dangerous quarters until we get out of this stretch of
darkness!” the officer announced. “Here—you fellows each take a pair of
glasses! You, doctor, keep watch from the starboard end of the bridge!
You”—indicating myself—“go to the port side! Watch like hawks!”
We started, but—the command had come too late!
With a dull, long-drawn ripping sound from her interior, the great liner
suddenly staggered and listed heavily to port! We were thrown off our
feet.
“_Struck a rock!_” Ensign Hallock shouted, as he leaped up. And instantly
he began signaling frantically to stop the engines. Almost in the same
breath he yelled: “Go below—both of you—quick! See what damage has been
done!”
As we rushed down from the bridge we could tell from the _feel_ of things
that the vessel’s progress had come to a stop: the _Nippon_ was stuck
fast!
At the head of the stairs leading to the boiler room we met the seamen,
who had been doing stoker duty, rushing up.
“You can’t go down there!” they shouted. “The whole bottom’s torn out!”
Nevertheless, we leaped past them and continued below. But near the
bottom of the stairs we were brought up short. A few lights still were
burning, and in their feeble rays we could see huge foaming torrents
pouring into the place. Already the floor was awash to a depth of two or
three feet, and before we could take our eyes from the sight the flood
seemed to rise several inches! Any moment the boilers might explode!
Up the steps we dashed madly.
As we reached the deck everyone was hurrying aft. We joined in the rush.
The tolling of the temple bell and the shrieking of the destroyer’s
whistle continued in the distance: the Seuen-H’sin was preparing to take
up our pursuit!
Then, before we could make another move, the vessel suddenly lurched
backward and listed heavily to starboard, with her stern rising high out
of the water. Then she began to nose forward under the waves.
_The Nippon was sinking!_
_CHAPTER XI_