DEFEAT TURNED INTO VICTORY.
Captain Oscar Pelham knew that whatever was to be done must be done
quickly.
In the terrific naval battle now in progress the Americans were getting
the worst of it fast.
Ship after ship was either going down or burning up and thousands of
brave lives had already been sacrificed.
Officers and men were doing their best to hold their own, but the
foreign fleet was so much larger, that defeat appeared inevitable.
The first warship the Holland attacked was a British armored cruiser
which was pounding our own Iowa III.
The Iowa was suffering from several big gaps in her larboard side, but
still fought on desperately.
Under the British cruiser sunk the Holland XI. a torpedo was rapidly
adjusted, and then the submarine craft ran away with all speed.
Some sixteen-inch guns had just been trained on the Iowa III. and the
English gunners were about to set off the pieces when a deep rumble
was heard, like an earthquake, and up went the British cruiser into a
million atoms.
The explosion was a surprise to everybody. The Holland had, so far not
shown herself and it was thought by friends and foes alike that the
British warship had been the victim of her own magazines.
Those on board might have told a different story, but all were either
killed outright or drowned in the awful wreckage which followed.
"Number One!" cried Captain Oscar. "Now for Number Two!"
Close at hand lay a broad-beamed French ship, the Coronet, carrying a
newly-invented battery of dynamite guns.
Another torpedo was quickly adjusted here and an explosion as loud as
the first followed. The Coronet, however, was not blown to pieces,
but suffered a hole in her bottom four feet long and three feet wide.
Through this the ocean poured with the power of a Niagara, and swiftly
the Frenchman sank from view, leaving her dead and dying scattered in
all directions. Some of these sailors were picked up and they told of
the explosion from the bottom, and then the foreigners knew a submarine
craft was at work.
This explosion also revealed to Admiral Fielding the true state of
affairs.
"Nothing but a torpedo from the Holland XI. could have done that!" he
cried. "She is among us and is doing nobly. The day will be ours after
all!" And the old salt almost fell to dancing a jig.
The news was quickly communicated from ship to ship and all felt the
inspiration of the Holland's presence.
To the northward two big German cruisers had cornered the Virginia, a
gunboat of fair size.
The Virginia was fighting desperately, but the German men-'o-war were
slowly but surely driving the American ship on a low-lying reef.
"We will fight to the last," said the commander of the Virginia. "A man
can die but once and what more noble than to give up one's life for his
country!" And his men cheered him loudly.
Captain Oscar had noted this state of affairs, and as soon as the
Coronet was disposed of he made after the two German vessels.
As he came closer, he noticed the two ships moving up side by side, as
if their commanders were consulting together.
"I'll end that consultation," he muttered, and ordered that a torpedo
be shot out directly between them.
Wizz! went the huge instrument of death, and as it struck the side of
one of the German warships it went off with a terrific noise, tearing
great holes in both vessels.
The ships were not sunk, but consternation now reigned supreme, for
both were in danger of sinking.
"Hurrah!" yelled the jackies on board the Virginia. "Hurrah! The new
Holland is at hand. The fight is ours!" And then the Virginia went into
the contest with new vigor, which speedily placed the two foreign ships
completely at her mercy. The Holland did not wait to see the end of the
struggle, but ran back to where the sea battle was still at its hottest.
To the northward four American warships had been cornered by eight
foreign ships and shot and shell were raining down as never before.
Coming to the surface to get a good view of the situation, the young
commander of the new Holland ordered that two of the new highite bombs
be thrown at the largest of the enemy's vessels.
The bombs were aimed with great accuracy and did fearful execution,
one almost clearing a deck of all the men standing upon it, while
smoke-stacks and riggings went flying in all directions.
Then the Holland XI. sank below, but not before one of the Allies'
warships had sent a thirteen-inch solid shot over her bow.
"Phew! But that was close!" muttered Andy Greggs. "A foot nearer and we
would have had a pretty good-sized hole into us."
"We must expect to get hit sooner or later," answered Oscar. "Every one
of the enemy is laying for us. They would rather sink us than capture
our largest armored cruiser."
"To be sure, for the Holland XI. is more deadly to them than a score of
cruisers."
The Holland now turned her attention to several Italian and Turkish
vessels which were guarding the enemy's transports, far to the eastward.
"If we make a demonstration against the transports those cruisers in
front will have to run back to protect them," said Captain Oscar. "It's
a pity to sink the soldiers who haven't had a chance to fight, but it's
got to be done."
The attention of the Holland was first turned to the Turkish
man-'o-war, that being the nearest. It was crowded with Turkish
soldiers and sailors, their bright-red uniforms standing out boldly in
the sunlight.
A time torpedo was attached to the Turkish ship, and before it went off
another torpedo was attached to the Italian corvette. Then the Holland
went for the nearest transport, one carrying nearly two thousand
foreign soldiers of various nationalities.
Bang! crash! boom! went the torpedoes, and as the Turkish and the
Italian ships sailed skyward, the Holland hurled two highite and one
dynamite bomb at the transport.
The execution was horribly perfect, for the upper deck of the
transport, crowded with soldiers, was literally swept clean; men,
deckhouse, masts, sails, smoke-stacks, everything being hurled into the
sea. A blood-curdling yell went up, and instantly the steam whistles of
numerous other transports sounded a note of warning.
It was the beginning of the end and that end was triumph for the
Americans.
But the victory had been dearly bought, and would have been a defeat
had it not been for the timely arrival of the wonderful Holland XI.
By night what was left of the Allies' fleet had withdrawn to the
darkness of the Atlantic Ocean.
What a celebration there was when the news of the victory reached land!
Bells were rung, cannon fired, bonfires lit, and the people went almost
crazy.
The name of the Holland XI. was on every lip, and everybody spoke of
her young inventor and commander, Oscar Pelham.
"A wonderful young man," said President Adams. "He will assuredly make
his mark in the world, indeed he has already done so."
He telegraphed his congratulations to the fleet at large and sent an
extra message of thanks to Oscar, which pleased all on board of the
submarine ship very much.
Yet the President was very sad.
He could not forget that his daughter, his only child, was in the hands
of the enemy.
The shock had been severe upon Mrs. Adams and she was now sick in bed
and not likely to get up for a long time to come.
It must not be supposed that the strain of the great naval contest had
not told upon the Holland.
Her machinery had been taxed to the utmost and needed overhauling, and
several of her plates had to be re-riveted. Besides this, she needed
another supply of ammunition.
She accordingly put back to Boston and to the Charlestown Navy Yard,
where the repairs were made with all possible speed.
A week passed and all remained quiet.
Then came news which was calculated to fill the stoutest heart with
dread.
A fleet of fifty Chinese, Japanese and Russian warships had set sail
for Asiatic waters, bound, so it was surmised, for the western coast of
the United States.
The fleet would probably try to enter the Golden Gate and bombard San
Francisco and Oakland!
These twin cities now rivaled New York in size and their commercial
value was enormous.
During the past ten years thousands of Chinamen had been driven from
San Francisco and other cities of California, and this made the
Celestials wild to gain a footing in what had once been their beloved
Chinatown.
Soon came a message for Captain Oscar Pelham:
"You are wanted immediately on the pacific coast. If you do not
come we are doomed.
"Chester."
Alvin Chester was the Admiral in command of the Pacific Squadron of our
navy. He was a fighter to the core and had been well acquainted with
Oscar's father.
"Wanted, eh?" mused the young captain of the new Holland. "All right,
we'll go."
"But how are you going?" demanded Andy. "It will take a long while to
sail around Cape Horn."
"We will go by the way of the Central American Canal," answered the
young captain.