lowed to show. Here she remained
until Lord Hastings believed the German battleships had approached close
enough to be in range of the submarine's torpedoes. Then she came to the
surface again.

Lord Hastings had gauged the distance accurately. The German ships were
now hard by and steaming swiftly forward. As the U-6 sprang up from
beneath the water, there was some excitement aboard the German vessels,
which soon quieted, however, as the Germans made out the lines of the
vessel and caught the German flag with their glass.

"We're safe enough," declared Jack. "They take us for one of
themselves."

"Much to their sorrow," said Frank.

"All ready below?" demanded Lord Hastings.

"All ready, sir," replied Jack.

"Good. Down with both of you then. I'll be down the moment the first
torpedo has been fired, and we'll have to submerge as quickly as
possible."

The lads obeyed Lord Hastings' command and took their positions.

"Ready with No. 1 torpedo," came Lord Hastings' command from above.

"Ready, sir," returned Jack, after a quick scrutiny.

"Ready with No. 3 torpedo," shouted Lord Hastings.

"Ready, sir," said Jack, and then exclaimed in an aside to Frank:

"By Jove! He's going to try and get two of them at once."

And such, indeed, was Lord Hastings' intention. The German battleships
were so close together that Lord Hastings believed he could strike a
double blow successfully and with perfect safety to his own vessel.

Signal flags now were displayed at the masthead of the foremost German
battleship and Lord Hastings knew that some answer was expected from the
submarine.

"Well, I can't decipher your signals," he muttered, "but I can give you
some kind of a reply--which I don't suppose will be much to your
liking."

He turned and gave a command to Jack; and Jack, in turn, flashed it upon
the electric signal board below with the pressure of a button beneath
his finger.

"Attention!" came the command now, displayed in letters of fire.

Then a brief lapse of time, in which all was silence below.

Then another signal showed red on the board.

"No. 1 torpedo! Fire!"

Again came that faint metallic click to which the boys had grown so
accustomed, and a terrible engine of destruction sped over the water
toward the German ships.

A moment later a second command flashed on the board.

"No. 3 torpedo! Fire!"

Once more the click and then nothing but silence. A moment later Lord
Hastings hurried below