YANKEE INGENUITY
There was no denying the fact that the _Monitor_ had become enmeshed
in one of the German wire nets.
Unmistakably the scraping against the hull of the submarine was that
of the cables and chains that composed the net. Furthermore, it was
evident from the manner in which the propellers of the ship had ceased
their revolutions that they had struck an impediment of some kind.
McClure and Jack both realized they had, indeed, run into a snare of
the enemy.
For the next half hour the _Monitor_ was put through all manner of
maneuvers as her captain sought to extricate his craft from the web
of steel into which it had dived.
"Seem only to be getting in the tighter," said "Little Mack" as he
stopped the engines and from his chief engineer received a report to
the effect that the driving shafts could be turned only with the
greatest difficulty.
That which vexed the _Monitor's_ officers most, however, was the
knowledge that their capture was almost certainly known by this time
to the Germans ashore and that it would be a matter of minutes until
a German patrol or some other vessel in close touch with the wireless
ashore would be standing over the _Monitor_ awaiting the time when
the submerged vessel must ascend from the depths and surrender. For
it was well known that the submarine traps were equipped with electrical
lamps floating on the surface that were illuminated automatically the
moment a submerged vessel came in contact with the charged cables
underneath the water. Thus the light would engage the attention of
either a patrol ship or the lookout on shore who would soon dispatch
a destroyer to the scene.
Discussing this phase of the situation, Captain McClure had just
decided to make a quick ascension to the surface and take his chances
on freeing the _Monitor_ of her entanglements before a German warship
could come up; but at that moment Bonte reported from the wireless
room the approach of a vessel to port, coming up at full speed.
"Looks as though we are always running into hard luck," said McClure
disgustedly.
Jack tried hard to see the bright side of the situation, but had to
confess to himself that things did look rather black for the _Monitor_
and her men. Nevertheless the boy figured to himself that surely there
was some way in which Yankee wit and ingenuity could baffle the
craftiness of the Germans.
"What are we going to do?" asked Ted as Jack joined him in the torpedo
chamber.
"Haven't quite figured out yet, chum," answered his old Brighton
roommate. "I'll confess that things don't look very rosy for us, but
I'm not going to give up, nor will 'Little Mack' give up, until we
have thought this thing over for awhile."
They strolled from the torpedo chamber into the compartment fitted out
as the men's quarters and there came upon the party of German prisoners
lounging in their bunks, chatting in their own language. Jack could
understand one of them as speculating on the next move of the
Americans. In their midst sat their captain, Hans Schmidt, from Bremen,
he had told them. Jack paused and looked them over for a moment
ruefully.
"I suppose they are chuckling to themselves over our luck and thinking
how nicely they will escape when we go up above and hand ourselves
over as prisoners of war," suggested Ted.
"No doubt, chum, and they probably have the laugh on us right this
time," answered Jack solemnly.
But as he surveyed the prisoners again there came to him a sudden
inspiration born out of the needs of the moment, a brilliant idea
that sent him running into the control chamber and up into the conning
tower where his captain sat alone trying to solve his problem.
"I have it; I have it," he shouted as he grasped the hand of his chief.
And then for five minutes the boy unfolded his daring plan.
"Little Mack" was so thoroughly convinced of the practicability of
Jack's scheme that he set about immediately to put it into action.
"The sooner we try this the better chance we have of getting away,"
volunteered Jack.
"Bonte says there is only one ship above us and it will be better to
try to get away from one than from many. And besides, by going up
immediately we stand a better chance of getting away with our plan
of palming ourselves off as a German crew in one of their own U-boats."
And now Jack's plan was set in motion.
"Mr. Wainwright, will you bring Captain Hans Schmidt into the control
room," "Little Mack" directed.
In a few minutes Ted returned bringing with him the captive naval
officer. Then the American captain addressed himself to the German
leader.
"Captain Schmidt, you are probably aware of the fact that we have
driven into one of your submarine nets and are firmly entangled,"
began McClure slowly. His prisoner nodded assent.
"We do not intend to surrender, although the odds are against us,"
continued the Yankee skipper jauntily. "If we decide to remain down
here and take our medicine you and your men whom we rescued so kindly
from the mother sub are going to get the same medicine that we do."
He paused for a moment to let the import of his words sink home.
"But, Herr Schmidt, we do not propose to stay down here and wait for
death to claim us," he continued calmly. "Life is sweet to us just
as it is sweet to you. We are all here together, prisoners and
captors, and if we live you live; if we die you die.
"Now here is what I propose to do. This, as you see, is a former
U-boat of your navy that fell into our hands. You are a brave German
captain and I am sorry to have had to sink your ship. But there is a
way that you can save yourself and the men who survived with you.
"We are going to ascend in a few minutes. You are to open this
conning tower and call out to the commander of this destroyer overhead
that your U-boat has accidentally stumbled into this net. I am
going to stand right here beside you in the conning tower with this
revolver pressed squarely between your shoulders. We understand
your language and can hear every word you say. If you decline to
obey orders or make one false move you die instantly. You are going
to direct your men here in the hold to work themselves out on the
deck of the _Monitor_ fore and aft. Mr. Hammond will go with the party
forward, Mr. Wainwright aft. They will be armed, with instructions
to shoot the first man who seeks to give an alarm. Your men will cut
the cables and release this vessel.
"And now, what do you say? Either comply with our plan or stay here
and die with us."
Herr Schmidt blinked for a full minute at the electric bulb over the
compass. Then he looked from McClure to Jack and then at Ted, the
trio of American officers gazing intently at their prisoner, grim
determination written on their faces. He must have read in their
eyes their willingness to die rather than submit tamely to surrender,
for he turned in a moment to McClure and said:
"I vill do as you command."
McClure at once directed Jack and Ted to get down into the hold and
change into the uniform of petty German officers, several such
costumes having been found in the _Monitor_ at the time of her capture.
At the same time McClure ordered the German prisoners brought into
the control chamber where he had Bonte, the wireless man, explain
the situation to them in detail. Jack and Ted returned shortly and
all was in readiness for the daring ruse.
"Remember, now, the first man who betrays us dies instantly," said
McClure as he gave orders to throw out ballast.
As the water was expelled from the tanks the _Monitor_ began slowly
to float upward. Moving over to the periscope McClure watched intently
for the moment when the sub would emerge from the sea and he clasped
in each hand a heavy revolver. In another moment the periscope had
thrust its eyes out of the water and McClure was able to make out
the outlines of a German destroyer standing on guard not more than
sixty yards away. Pointing to the conning tower hatch, the American
commander turned to the German leader.
"Now, Herr Schmidt, get busy," he said, with a wave of one of the
revolvers.