“Now, Herr Schmidt, get busy,” he said, with a wave of one of the revolvers.

CHAPTER XXIII

OUT OF THE NET

In stolid silence the German “Herr Kommander” signaled for the conning tower hatch to be thrown open and turned to find that Commander McClure had taken a crouching position directly behind him in the conning tower, a huge automatic gripped in one hand.  Bonte had been summoned from the wireless room to overhear and translate to the American commander every word spoken by Herr Schmidt.  The latter grumbled a reply with a nod of his head.

“Remember now, if you betray us, you die instantly,” cautioned McClure as the lid of the conning tower flew open at the touch of a button and the German thrust his head out into the early morning atmosphere.  A thin silvery mist floated over the water, and McClure, from his position, could see the, stars twinkling above him.  The German destroyer hovered right at hand and her captain on the forward deck was bellowing a challenge at the Monitor through a megaphone.

There was a tense silence in the conning tower of the submarine during the parley that followed.

“Don’t attempt to move,” said McClure to the German at his side.

In whispers, at intervals in the German dialogue, Bonte translated to McClure the conversation of Herr Schmidt.  The Teuton was telling his fellow countrymen that it was all a mistake; that this was the U-108 and that she had stumbled into the net by accident, having been pulled off her course by a defect in the diving rudders.

McClure had given orders that at the first sign of betrayal the conning tower was to be closed and the Monitor submerged again as quickly as possible.  Ted stood by ready to transmit the order to lower away.  But what was the surprise of “Little Mack” to have Herr Schmidt turn and shout down the conning tower in German: 

“Send men on deck through the fore and aft hatches equipped to cut away the cable nets!”

Cramming his revolver into his holster, Jack hurried forward while Ted made off aft to the engine room.  In another moment the forward hatch was thrown open and three of the German seamen emerged on deck, followed by the Monitor’s executive officer in German naval uniform.  At the same time Ted climbed up from the engine room on the aft deck, followed by four of the German prisoners.  In the dim light the crews moved about their work like phantoms.

As best they could the Germans lifted the steel wires and cables and carried them along the deck of the Monitor; one toward the bow, the other toward the stern.  It was tedious work and hard work, too, for the cables were heavy and so interwoven that it was a difficult task to move them.  Ted and his crew had the hardest work because of the fact that the netting had become entangled in the propeller blades.