“Admirals?” cried Herr Professor Radberg, protestingly.  “Oh, but that, my dear young friend, would be quite impossible.”

“You are wasting your time with us, sir,” Jack continued, firmly.  “We may, one of these days, be asked to enter the American service permanently.  We would not enter any other country’s service, no matter what the bait.  Do not give the matter any further thought, please, for we won’t.”

The German officer had been standing a few paces away, twirling his moustache and frowning.  Now, he came forward.

“Herr Benson,” he broke in, “I fear that you are so young that you do not fully understand the honor and dignity of being officers in the German service.”

“Very likely we do not, Captain,” Jack returned, with a bow.  “And it is absolutely certain that we shall never find out from experience.”

Lieutenant Jack excused himself, turning to seek his friends.  As Benson entered the reading room once more he came upon Eph and another whose face was decidedly familiar.  It was the Chevalier d’Ouray.

“Just in time, Jack,” nodded Eph.  “Tell the Chev. for me, please as he doesn’t seem to understand my talk, that we wouldn’t even give the slightest consideration to his idea that we should enter the French naval service in the submarine division.”

“It is quite hopeless, Chevalier,” laughed Jack Benson, shaking his head.  “The honor is quite enough to turn our heads, but we can serve only the United States.”

The Chevalier d’Ouray made a low bow, then turned away, for others were approaching.

“Where is Hal?” asked Jack.

“Crickety!  Look at him over there, talking to that little Japanese,” muttered Eph, inclining his head toward a corner.

Hal and a Japanese were talking earnestly.  At any rate, the little brown man was.  Hal was listening, occasionally shaking his head.  Then Hastings happened to espy his chums.  He turned to the Japanese, to take his leave, but the little brown man followed him across the floor, still talking in low tones.

“Captain Nakasura has been trying to interest me in the idea that we three go over to Japan, under a three years’ contract, to act as instructors and advisers in submarine work,” Hal told his comrades.

“And I have high hope that you will see matter same as I do,” smiled the Japanese attache persistently.

“We shan’t,” Jack declared, shaking his head, emphatically.  “Captain, you are the third, representing also the third nation, that has just approached us on this matter.  We shall serve no other country than our own.”

“But my government,” urged the Japanese officer, “will make you most handsome offer.”

“Do you remember the day when we were leaving Dunhaven, and you tried to overtake us in a gasoline launch?” asked Jack, with a smile.

“Yes; very well,” admitted Nakasura.

“Do you remember that we hoisted the signal, N.D.?  That meant ’nothing doing,’ Captain.  Our answer is the same, and will be, to-morrow and the next year.”