THE TREACHERY OF MORTON
To the midshipmen that was rather startling news to receive while
in the act of enjoying a very excellent meal.
Lieutenant Jack Benson, however, appeared to take the news very
coolly.
"May I ask," he inquired, "whether any of you young gentlemen
noticed anything unusual in our motion during the last two or
three minutes?"
All six of the midshipmen glanced at him quickly, then at Darrin
the other five looked, as though appointing him their spokesman.
"No, sir; we didn't note anything," replied Dave. "We were too
busy with our food and with listening to the talk."
"But now you notice something?"
"Yes, sir."
"What?"
"That the boat appears motionless, as though speed had been stopped."
"And that is the case," smiled Benson. "Mr. Somers, soon after
the soup was placed on the table, came in from the deck with the
one man of his watch, closed the tower and signaled for changing
to the electric motors. Then he filled the forward tanks and
those amidships, at last filling the tanks astern. We came below
so gently that you very intent young men never noticed the change.
We are now on the bottom---in about how many feet of water, Mr.
Somers?"
"About forty, sir," replied Eph.
The six midshipmen stared at one another, then felt a somewhat
uncomfortable feeling creeping over them.
"Had it been daylight," smiled Benson, "you would have been warned
by the disappearance of natural light and the increased brilliancy
of the electric light here below. However, your experience serves
to show you how easily up-to-date submarines may be handled."
"What do you think of the way the trick was done?" asked Hal Hastings,
looking up with a quiet smile.
"It was marvelous," replied Midshipman Farley promptly.
"I would like to ask a question, sir, if I may," put in Midshipman
Jetson.
"Go ahead, sir."
"Were submarines ever handled anywhere near as neatly before you
three gentlemen began your work with the Pollard Company?"
"We didn't handle them as easily, at all events," replied Jack
with a smile. "It has required a lot of work and practice, night
and day. Steward, a plate for Mr. Somers."
"This is the way we generally manage at meal times," smiled Ensign
Eph, as he took his place at table. "There's no use in keeping
an officer and a man on deck, or a tender at the engines, unless
we're going somewhere, in a hurry. So, in a case like this, where
the deck officer wants his meal, we just sink into the mud and
rest easy until the meal is over."
"Are you giving instruction, or merely seeking to amuse your guests,
Mr. Somers?" Lieutenant Jack Benson asked quietly.
"Oh, I forgot," explained Eph, with another smile; "these young
gentlemen are not yet acquainted with me. When they are they'll
know that no one ever takes me too seriously."
"A bad habit for a superior officer, isn't it?" inquired Benson,
looking around at his student guests. "But Mr. Somers may be
taken very seriously indeed---when he's on duty. He is unreliable
at table only."
"Unreliable at table?" echoed Eph, helping himself to a slice
of roast meat. "Why, it seems to me that this is the one place
where I can be depended upon to do all that is expected of me."
The others now sat back, out of courtesy, looking on and chatting
while Ensign Eph Somers ate his meal. "There may be a few
questions---or many---that you would like to ask," suggested
Lieutenant Jack Benson. "If so, gentlemen, go ahead with your
questions. For that matter, during your stay aboard, ask all the
questions you can think of."
"Thank you, sir," replied Midshipman Dave Darrin, with a slight
bow. "I have been thinking of one point on which I would be glad
of information."
"And that is-----"
"The full complement of this craft appears to consist of three
officers and four enlisted men---that is, of course, outside of
your combined cook and steward."
"Yes," nodded Benson.
"One of the officers is commanding officer; another is deck officer
and the third engineer officer."
"Yes."
"Then, on a cruise," pursued Dave, "how can you divide watches
and thus keep going night and day?"
"Why, originally," Jack replied, "we put on long cruises with
only three aboard---the three who are at present officers. With
a boat like the 'Dodger,' which carries so few men, the commanding
officer cannot stand on his dignity and refuse to stand watch.
I frequently take my trick at the wheel. That gives Mr. Somers
his chance to go below and sleep."
"Yet Mr. Hastings is your only engineer officer."
"True, but two of our enlisted men are trained as engine-tenders.
Our engines are rather simple, in the main, and an enlisted
engine-tender can run our engine room for hours at a stretch under
ordinary conditions. Of course, if anything out of the usual should
happen while Mr. Hastings were taking his trick in his berth, he
would have to be wakened. But we can often make as long a trip as
from New York to Havana without needing to call Mr. Hastings once
from his berth during his hours of rest."
"Then you have two enlisted men aboard who thoroughly understand
your engines?" pressed Dave Darrin.
"Ordinarily," replied Hal Hastings, here breaking in. "But one
of our engine-tenders reached the end of his enlisted period to-day,
and, as he wouldn't re-enlist, we had to let him go. So the new
enlisted man whom we took aboard is just starting in to learn
his duties."
"Small loss in Morton," laughed Lieutenant Jack Benson. "He was
enough of a natural genius around machinery, but he was a man
of sulky and often violent temper. Really, I am glad that Morton
took his discharge to-day. I never felt wholly safe while we
had him aboard."
"He was a bad one," Ensign Hal Hastings nodded. "Morton might
have done something to sink us, only that he couldn't do so without
throwing away his own life."
"I don't know, sir, what I'd do, if I were a commanding officer
and found that I had such a man in the crew," replied Midshipman
Darrin.
"Why, in a man's first enlistment," replied Lieutenant Jack, "the
commanding officer is empowered to give him a summary dismissal
from the service. Morton was in his second enlistment, or I surely
would have dropped him ahead of his time. I'm glad he's gone."
Ensign Eph had now finished his meal and was sitting back in his
chair. Lieutenant Jack therefore gave the rising sign.
"I want to show the midshipmen everything possible on this trip,"
said the very young commanding officer. "So we won't lie here
in the mud any more. Mr. Somers, you will return to the tower
steering wheel, and you, Mr. Hastings, will take direct charge
of the engines. I will gather the midshipmen around me here in
the cabin, and show the young gentlemen how easily we control the
rising of a submarine from the bottom."
Hal and Eph hurried to their stations. The midshipmen followed
Jack Benson over to what looked very much like a switchboard.
The young lieutenant held a wrench in his right hand.
"I will now turn on the compressed air device," announced Lieutenant
Jack. "First of all I will empty the bow chambers of water by
means of the compressed air; then the middle chambers, and, lastly,
the stern chambers. On a smaller craft than this we would operate
directly with the wrench. On a boat of the 'Dodger's' type we
must employ the wrench first, but the work must be backed up with
the performance of a small electric motor."
Captain Jack rapidly indicated the points at which the wrench
was to be operated, adding:
"I want you to note these points as I explain them, for after
I start with the wrench I shall have to work rapidly along from
bow to stern tanks. Otherwise we would shoot up perpendicularly,
instead of going up on a nearly even keel. Mr. Hastings, are
you all ready at your post?"
"Aye, aye, sir," came back the engineer officer's reply.
"On post, Mr. Somers?"
"Aye, aye, sir."
Lieutenant Jack applied the wrench, calling snappily:
"Watch me. I've no time to explain anything now."
With that he applied one of the wrenches and gave it a turn.
Instantly one of the electric motors in the engine-room began
to vibrate.
Almost imperceptibly the bow of the "Dodger" began to rise. Lieutenant
Jack, intent on preserving an even keel as nearly as possible,
passed on to the middle station with his wrench.
Just as he applied the tool the electric motor ceased running.
"What's the matter, Mr. Hastings?" Jack inquired quietly. "Something
blow out of the motor?"
The submarine remained slightly tilted up at the bow.
"I don't know, sir, as yet, what has happened," Hal Hastings answered
back. "I'm going over the motor now."
In a moment more he stepped into the cabin, a much more serious
look than usual on his fine face.
"This, looks like the man Morton's work," Hal announced holding
a small piece of copper up before the eyes of the midshipmen.
"Gentlemen, do you notice that the under side of this plate has
been filed considerably?"
"Yes, sir," nodded Dan Dalzell, a queer look crossing his face.
"Won't the motor operate without that plate being sound?"
"It will not."
The other midshipmen began to look and to feel strange.
"Then are we moored for good at the bottom of the bay?" asked
Jetson.
"No; for we carry plenty of duplicate parts for this plate," replied
Ensign Hal. "Come into the engine room and I will show you how
I fit the duplicate part on."
Hal led the midshipmen, halting before a small work bench. He
threw open a drawer under the bench.
"Every duplicate plate has been removed from this drawer," announced
Hastings quietly. "Then, indeed, we are stuck in the mud, with
no chance of rising. Gentlemen, I trust that the Navy will send
divers here to rescue us before our fresh air gives out!"