THE "SIGNY."
"The orders of the Commander are for the Americans to disembark!"
A lieutenant clicked his heels in front of our friends and saluted.
"Bub u lul lul yack!" shouted Jim. "Where? When?"
"Immediately!"
The submarine was on the surface of the water, but Jim and Kent had been
ushered below, evidently to give their mysterious fellow prisoners a
turn at the deck. They were never allowed to see them, and to this day
are absolutely ignorant as to who they were or how many or of what
nationality.
It turned out that a Swedish vessel, the _Signy_, had been sighted
thirteen miles off the Spanish port of Camarinas. She was signaled and
ordered to take aboard the Kentuckians and land them. Explicit commands
were given the captain of the _Signy_ that she was to land the young men
immediately.
Kent and Jim were too glad to get off the submarine to care where they
were being landed. They only hoped it was not in South America.
"Gug o o dud bub yack!" shouted Jim to the grinning crew of the German
vessel.
The young lieutenant of the inquisitive mind made another note in his
little book as the life boat from the Swedish ship bore the young men
away.
They were very cordially received on board the _Signy_ but not allowed
to stay a moment longer than was necessary. The ship steamed to within a
few miles of the Spanish port, all the time being followed up by the
submarine, then the boats were lowered again and Kent and Jim rowed to
shore. They were given a good meal in the interim, however, one that
they were most pleased to get, too, as black bread and canned stew had
begun to pall on these favored sons of Kentucky.
"Where in the thunder is Camarinas?" queried Kent. "I know it is Spain,
but is it north, south, east or west?"
"Well, I reckon it isn't east and that's about all I know."
It proved to be in the northwest corner and after some mix-ups, a person
was found who could speak English. The American Consul was tracked,
cablegrams were sent to Kentucky apprising their families of their
safety, and at last our friends were on the train en route for Paris.
It was a long and circuitous journey, over and under and around
mountains. They would have enjoyed it at any other time, but Kent was
too uneasy about Judy to enjoy anything, and Jim was too eager to get in
line to swat the Prussians, as he expressed it, to be interested in
Spanish scenery. They traveled third class as they had no intention of
drawing too recklessly on their hoarded gold.
After many hours of travel by day and night, they finally arrived in
Paris. It was eleven at night and our young men were weary, indeed. The
hard benches of the third class coaches had made their impression and
they longed for sheets and made-up beds.
"A shave! A shave! My kingdom for a shave!" exclaimed Kent, as they
stretched their stiffened limbs after tumbling out of the coach in the
Gare de Sud.
"Don't forget I am a stranger in a strange land, so put me wise," begged
Jim.
"I know a terribly cheap little hotel on Montparnasse and Raspail where
we can put up, without even the comforts of a bum home, but we can make
out there and it is cheap. The _Haute Loire_ is its high sounding name,
but it is not high, I can tell you."
"Well, let's do it. I hope there is some kind of a bath there."
"I trust so, but if there isn't, we can go to a public bath."
The Kentuckians were a very much dishevelled pair. They had purchased
the necessary toilet articles at Camarinas, but sleeping for nights in
suits in which they had already had quite a lengthy swim did not improve
their appearance. The submariners had pressed their clothes after their
ducking, but Jim's trousers had shrunk lengthways until he said he felt
like Buster Brown, and Kent's had dried up the other way, so that in
walking two splits had arrived across his knees.
"We look like tramps, but the _Haute Loire_ is used to our type. I don't
believe we could get into a good hotel."
"Are you going to look up your girl--excuse me, I mean Miss Kean, before
you replenish your wardrobe?"
"Why, yes, I must not wait a minute. I would like to do it to-night."
"To-night! Man, you are crazy! Get that alfalfa off your face first. One
night can't get her into much trouble."
"Perhaps you are right. I am worn out, too, and a night's rest and a
shave will do wonders for both of us."
Paris looked very changed to Kent. The streets were so dark and
everything looked so sad, very different from the gay city he had left
only a few weeks before. The _Haute Loire_ had not changed, though. It
was the same little hospitable fifth class joint. The madame received
the exceedingly doubtful looking guests with as much cordiality as she
would had they been the President of the Republic and General Joffre.
There were no baths that night, but tumbling into bed, our Kentuckians
were lost to the world until the next day. What if the Prussians did fly
over the city, dropping bombs on helpless noncombatants? Two young men
who had been torpedoed; had floated around indefinitely in the Atlantic
Ocean; had been finally picked up by the submarine that had done the
damage; had remained in durance vile for several weeks on the submarine,
resorting to Tutno to have any private conversation at all; and at last
been transferred to a Swedish vessel and dumped by them on the northwest
coast of Spain--those young men cared little whether school kept or not.
The bombs that dropped that night were nothing more than pop crackers to
them. The excitement in the streets did not reach their tired ears.
Kent dreamed of Chatsworth and of taking Judy down to Aunt Mary's cabin
so the old woman could see "that Judy gal" once more. Jim Castleman
dreamed he swatted ten thousand Prussians, which was a sweet and
peaceful dream to one who considered swatting the Prussians a
privilege.