One stood up on the rim of the conning tower and dived away from the glare of the enemy searchlights into the black shadows of the submarine.  Suddenly the aft hatch was thrown open directly above the engine room and in a moment several begrimed members of the engine crew scrambled up the ladder in quick succession and threw themselves into the sea.  The enemy had ceased firing.

“What does it all mean?” pondered Ted as he floated, watching the graphic picture.

Unable to solve the problem for himself, he turned his attention to the nearest man in the water.  He swam now only a few strokes away.  With little effort Ted drew up to him.  It was Bill Witt.

“Reckon they rammed a shot into her,” yelled Bill as they beheld their ship sinking gradually.

“Looks that way, doesn’t it?” answered Ted

The stricken submarine was gradually going down.  McClure was there in the conning tower, of course; that old tradition of the sea, about every skipper going down with his ship, held true in the case of a submarine as well.  Jack was there, too, in all likelihood; he had been standing by his commander as Ted and Bill hurried up to hurl themselves from the deck.  Ted gulped as he thought of his chum.  Was it all over with Jack?  Would the Germans rescue the American lads bobbing about in the water?

In another moment the Dewey was completely under, leaving many of her crew floating in the open sea, at the mercy of their enemies.

“Tough luck!” stammered Ted as he linked arms with Bill over their life-belts.

Bill was dauntless even in the face of death.

“You never can tell,” he said.  “I am guessing that ‘Little Mack’ has another card up his sleeve.”

Down in the turret of the submerged Dewey an extraordinary scene was being enacted.  McClure, Cleary and Jack were standing together as the vessel glided away under the water.

“It worked—–­it worked!” shouted the young lieutenant as he ordered the submerging process discontinued and the Dewey held on an even keel.

“What worked?” gasped his dazed executive, who had yet to grasp the significance of his commander’s action in ordering members of the crew overboard.

“Why, don’t you see?  Those Germans think they sank us.  When they saw our boys leaping into the water they took it for granted one of their shots had landed and we were done for.  They think the boys leaped overboard to escape death in the hold of a mortally wounded Yankee.  And here we are, safe and sound, under the water!”

“But what about those fellows swimming around up there?” asked Jack in startled tones.

“We’ll go back and get them in a few minutes after we’ve tended to this Prussian gentleman that we hypnotized,” shot back his commander, as his jaw squared and his eyes flashed.

Jack and Officer Cleary stared at each other.

“Well, of all the nerve!” gasped Cleary.