h the
Needles Channel. Half an hour later it ran with a velocity exceeding
five knots. The _Capella_, moving at a rate equal to that of the tide,
kept about half a mile from the Isle of Wight shore, with the white,
occulting light of the Needles just visible to the north of Cliff End
Fort.

It was a perfectly calm night, overcast, but with no wind. A dull
rumble, rising and falling in volume, could be heard from the direction
of the open sea.

"Breakers on the Shingles--a large bank on the starboard hand of the
Needles Channel," explained Barry in answer to the midshipmen's enquiry.

"Then it means that bad weather is approaching," said Ross, who had had
plenty of opportunities of observing the phenomenon of "ground swells"
on the North Cornish coast. "If it's like this, the U-boat won't be
able to make direct communication with the shore."

The appearance of Captain Syllenger on the bridge put an end to
conversation. The officers, by the aid of telescopes and binoculars,
kept the Hampshire shore under close observation.

To the naked eye nothing was visible but a dark bank of trees. Not a
light was to be seen, although there were several houses in the
vicinity. The position of Lymington, in time of peace discernible by
reason of a strong blaze of light, could only be determined by the
feeble glow of the high red light marking the course up the river.

"It's nearly midnight," observed the skipper. "If our friends the
Germans are going to shift their supplies from here to Milford, they'll
have to be pretty sharp. Seems to me like a case of 'nuthin' doing'."

Hardly were the words out of his mouth, when the silence was broken by
a peremptory hail. The sound travelled clearly across the water,
although the person shouting must have been a mile and a half away.

Then came the jumbled noise of men's voices, quickly followed by two
rifle-shots. The voices then died away, and, as far as the listeners
on the _Capella_ could hear, all was quiet.

"That's soon over, whatever it was, sir," remarked Barry.

"Hurst calling up, sir," announced a signalman, as a light blinked
rapidly from the fort guarding the Hampshire side of the narrow
channel. It was the order to proceed at full speed to the position
previously decided upon.

Although the torpedo-boats were speedy craft, the _Capella_ left them
behind "hands down". Fortunately there were no search-lights to baffle
her quartermaster, for those of both Hurs