‘Rouse out, you chaps,’ came Tingle’s voice.  ’Rouse out, if you want some breakfast.  The old man’s going to put you aboard the ‘Charnwood’ to finish your voyage.  You’ll find some of your pals in her, I reckon.’

‘Did they get the submarine?’ was Ken’s first question.

Tingle’s honest face darkened.

’No, by gosh.  She slipped away in the dark, and never a one of us set eyes on her.  What are ye to do with a thing like that?  It’s like trying to tackle a shark with a shot gun.’

‘Here’s your khaki,’ he continued, ’dry and warm.  Shift as sharp as ye can.  The old man, he don’t wait for nobody.’

Ken and Dave changed in quick order, and as soon as they had finished were conducted for’ard for breakfast.  Biscuit, butter out of a tin, sardines, and cocoa.  War fare, but all the best of its kind, and the boys did justice to it.

The ’old man’—­that is, Commander Carey—­was on the bridge when they came on deck.  He greeted them kindly, and Ken ventured to ask if anything had been heard of Kemp.

‘Not a word,’ was the answer.  ’He’s not been picked up, so far as any one knows.  Probably he’s food for the fishes by this time.  Well, good-bye to you.  Wish you luck.’

‘Thank you, sir,’ said Ken and Dave together.  Then they were over the side into the collapsible, and were pulled straight across to the wall-sided ‘Charnwood’ which lay at anchor less than half a mile away.

Mudros Bay, which is a great inlet in the south of the island of Lemnos, was alive with craft of all sorts.  Warships and transports by the dozen, British and French, were lying at anchor in every direction, and in and out among them, across the brilliant, sunlit waters, dashed picket boats and all sorts of small craft.

‘My word, this looks like business!’ said Dave, as he glanced round at the busy scene.

‘It does,’ agreed Ken.  ’Last time I was here, there were two tramps and an old Turkish gunboat.  Not a darned thing else.’

A couple of minutes later they were alongside the big ‘Charnwood,’ to be greeted with shouts of delight from a number of their Australian comrades who were leaning over the side.

They said good-bye to the destroyer men who had ferried them across, and climbed the ladder to the deck, where they were immediately surrounded and smacked on the back, and generally congratulated.  The two were very popular with the whole of their battalion, and their comrades were unfeignedly glad to find that they had not lost the number of their mess.

Pushing through the throng, they went aft to report themselves to their commanding officer, Colonel Conway.  He had, of course, already heard of Ken’s adventure with the spy in the bathroom, but took him aside to get further particulars.

‘No, nothing has been heard of him,’ he said.  ’I do not think it possible that he can have been picked up.

‘And yet,’ he added, ’that’s odd, for he must have had plenty of time to get on deck, and, so far as we can learn, we have not lost a man.’