The Submarine Boys for the Flag | Page 8

business is rather on the quiet."

"Is he in his office?" queried Jack.
"Yes."
"Thank you; we'll go right in, then."
"Now I wonder what country it is whose agent has gotten hold of Mr.
Farnum?" asked Eph, plaintively.
"Nonsense!" mocked Jack.
"That's what we try to tell 'em all," mocked Eph. "But the Germans are
the hardest."
All three of the submarine boys were laughing so heartily, as they
entered the shipbuilder's private office that Jacob Farnum, a youngish
looking man to be at the head of so large a manufacturing plant,
glanced up quickly.
"What's the joke, boys?" he asked. "I haven't had a laugh since I
pounded my thumbnail with a sledge-hammer."
Captain Jack Benson quickly detailed the meetings with Radberg and
d'Ouray.
"The Frenchman didn't look a bit like a 'shovelee' either," muttered Eph.
"If anything, that looked more in the German's line."
"Well, you'll have a chance to get rid of nonsense, now, for a while,"
went on Mr. Farnum, after having enjoyed a few laughs with the boys.
"I've some serious business in hand for you, and the time has come."
That was like the shipbuilder. Whatever he was planning, at any time,
he kept strictly to himself until the time came to put the plan into
operation.
"There's quite an important little job for you up at Craven's Bay,"
continued Mr. Farnum. "You know, there are important fortifications
there, because the Navy people expect, in wartime, to use Craven's Bay

as a possibly important naval station and shelter for vessels that have to
put in. Now, for some time the Army engineer officers have been
perfecting a system of submarine mines for the bay. The engineers have
a problem on hand as to whether an enemy's submarine boats could
sneak into the bay and blow up the submarine mines before the Army
woke up to the danger."
"There's a chance that that could be done," nodded Jack, musingly.
"Jest so," nodded Mr. Farnum. "So I want you to go up in one of the
boats. To-morrow the engineer officers at that station will test it out
with you whether a submarine can destroy the mines, or the mines
could be made to destroy the submarine boats."
"Then the Army engineer officers will use dummy submarine mines, I
hope," broke in Eph.
"Oh, of course," nodded Mr. Farnum. "Now, the trip to Craven's Bay is
only an eight-hour sail at a good gait, so you won't really need to start
until after dark to-night."
"I believe I'd rather start now, though, and go at less speed," suggested
Jack, thoughtfully.
"That's just as you please, of course," nodded the shipbuilder.
"It will take us out on the water, for one thing," Captain Jack continued,
"and we've been growing stale on shore, of late." Then he added,
whimsically: "Besides, if the agents of any more foreign governments
show up, they won't find us here."
"And there's a Jap just about due now," grimaced Eph.
"Take Williamson with you, for use in the engine room," advised Mr.
Farnum. "That will allow you to take the boat through with two
watches above and below. Which boat will you take?"
"The 'Spitfire,' unless you'd rather have us take the other one," young

Benson replied.
"Take the 'Spitfire,' by all means," nodded the owner.
Twenty minutes later, Williamson having been found, the crew was all
ready for the start for Craven's Bay.
Eph and Williamson cast off from moorings while Hal Hastings, down
below at the gasoline motors, started the twin propellers as soon as Jack
Benson, at the deck wheel, signaled for speed ahead.
Right after the start, Williamson, a grown man and machinist, dropped
below. Eph Somers stood beside the young submarine captain.
For some minutes both boys gazed out over the waters. Then Eph
remarked:
"Well, we got away without being overhauled by a Jap or a Russian,
didn't we?"
"I don't know," smiled Jack, unsuspectingly. "See that launch over to
port? Hanged if she doesn't seem to be putting toward us."
"She does," admitted Eph, solemnly. "Oh, well, with a few more turns
of the screw we can easily get away from that launch."
For some moments Captain Jack paid no especial heed to the launch
bearing down upon them on the port side. He noted only, at the
distance, that the launch contained two men. Presently, however, as the
launch came nearer, Captain Benson made a discovery.
"Eph," he gasped, "look over there! Are my eyes going back on me, or
is that a Japanese in the bow of the launch?"
"Japanese?" gasped Eph Somers, in turn. "Nothing but!"
Eph made a swift dive for the box that contained the signal flags used
in the international marine signaling code. Moving swiftly, young
Somers selected the two flags representing