ng whether the Zeppelin sighted by the man at the gun
would attack the ship, but Captain Raleigh considered it best to be on
the safe side. That was why he had left orders to be called immediately
should an enemy appear.

Again a bell tinkled in the engine room, following an order from the
commander of the _Queen Mary_.

The great engines stopped and became silent.

"Cut off all lights!" was the next command.

A moment later the great ship was in darkness.

Frank and Jack, in their quarters, were awakened by the sounds of
confusion above. All hands had not been piped on deck, so most of the
men still lay asleep, unconscious of what was going on above, but the
two lads, dressing hurriedly, made their way on deck. They walked
forward, toward the bridge.

All was dark and it was this that told Frank and Jack that something
was going on.

"Wonder what's up?" said Frank.

"Airship, I guess," was the reply. "Can't see any other reason for
extinguishing all lights."

Near the bridge the lads stopped and waited to see what would happen.
All was quiet aboard. Not a sound came from the officers or the men on
deck. Then Captain Raleigh commanded:

"Try the forward searchlight there. See if you can pick her up!"

The light flashed aloft; and there, so far above the _Queen Mary_ as to
be little more than a tiny speck, hovered a giant Zeppelin; and even as
they looked, the airship came lower.

"She's sighted us," said Captain Raleigh to his first officer, who
stood beside him. "Try a shot, Mr. Harrison."

The first officer passed the word and a second later there came the
sound of the anti-aircraft gun. The gunner had taken his range at the
moment the flashlight revealed the airship.

The shot brought no noticeable result.

"Fifteen knots ahead, Mr. Harrison!" ordered the captain.

He was afraid that the Zeppelin might drop a bomb on the ship; and from
that moment until the end of the battle the _Queen Mary_ did not pause.
First she headed to port and then to starboard, manoeuvering rapidly
that the German airmen might not be able to reach her with a bomb.

"Another shot!" commanded Captain Raleigh.

Still no result.

"Funny she doesn't rise and try and escape," said Frank.

"No, it's not," returned Jack. "They don't know anything about this new
anti-aircraft gun. They believe they are out of range."

"Well, they're likely to hit us with one of those bombs, and then where
will we be?" said Frank.

"If the