CHAPTER X
A Bid for Freedom
"By Jove, Farnworth, I little thought that I should have to undergo thehumiliation of wearing this shameful uniform!" exclaimed Dick, as,attired in the tunic, greatcoat, trousers, and long boots of the GermanMajor, he disdainfully shook himself. Circumstances compelled him tobuckle on the sword, but the binoculars he, somewhat rashly, discardedas an encumbrance. "Nearly ready? Farnworth, I'm not paying you acompliment when I say you look a proper swaggering Prussian officer ofthe von Forstner type with that insipid little moustache of yours.It's my beard that worries me. Hello! Good business! Here's a pairof pocket scissors in this rascal's tunic. You might clip off myragged whiskers as close as you possibly can--leave the moustache.Hurry for all you're worth, for time's precious!"
The midshipman set to work with a will to remove the six weeks' growthof beard from his superior officer's face, for during the period ofincarceration they had been unable to shave.
Farnworth stood back a pace and surveyed his handiwork in theupslanting rays of the lamp set upon the floor.
"Oh, my maiden aunt, sir!" ejaculated Farnworth. "You look absolutely'It'--von Kluck and von Hindenburg rolled into one."
The Sub smiled at the way in which the midshipman had "got his ownback".
"Let's hope so for the next few hours," he remarked. "Now, to preventmistakes, we'll gag and lash up these two minions of the Kaiser. Taketheir handkerchiefs and tear them in halves. That's right; now set ourold friend Ahmed up, while I prop the fat subaltern against him. Whenour resources are limited we must needs go to work methodically andsparingly."
The two unconscious men were propped up back to back. The right arm ofthe Major was lashed to the left arm of the subaltern just above theelbows, and the former's left to the right arm of the junior officer.The halves of the second handkerchief were used to gag the senselessmen.
"How about their legs, sir?" asked Farnworth.
"We'll pass a strip round them. That old belt which for the last sixweeks has been an inferior substitute for my braces will do. That'sdone it."
The two Germans were now lying full length on the ground back to back.To all appearances they were securely trussed up, but even then themidshipman was not satisfied.
"I've my old belt," he announced. "Couldn't we trice their feet up andmake them to that window-bar? It would puzzle the world's championcontortionist to wriggle free then, I fancy."
"Very good," assented Dick. "We'll heave together. My word, they area weight!"
The sill of the long, narrow window was within eighteen inches of theground, while the whole length of the aperture was furnished with threevertical iron bars, additionally secured at mid-length by a shortcross-bar.
Passing the second belt between the turns round the ankles of the twoGermans, Farnworth tied the other end to the lowermost part of themiddle bar by means of a clove-hitch. It was thus impossible for thebound and gagged men to regain their feet without assistance.
"Now we'll chance our luck," said Dick. "When we cross the courtyardI'll jabber to you in German, and you'll reply 'Ja, ja!' to everythingI say. Ten to one the Turks won't twig my rotten rendering of thistongue-twisting jargon, but that won't matter. If we spoke Englishthey might smell a rat, for a good many Turks have a smattering of it.By the by, I'll take charge of that document which our old friend askedus to sign. I'm curious to know what it all means."
Unlocking the door, Dick and the midshipman unhesitatingly stepped outinto the corridor. The passage was deserted. Relocking the door andthrusting the key into the pocket of his greatcoat, the Sub,accompanied by his companion, walked noisily along the corridor,allowing his sword to clank loudly upon the stones. This style of"sabre-rattling" he knew from observation to be one of the chiefcharacteristics of the German officer in the Ottoman service.
After traversing about twenty yards the two officers came to a broaderpassage running at right angles to the former. The turning to theright, Dick knew, led to the courtyard. It was dimly lighted. Nearlya score of Turkish soldiers were squatting Oriental fashion on thestones, some smoking, most of them engaged in mending clothes, and allwere talking rapidly.
Through the crush Crosthwaite and Farnworth made their way, the Turksbacking against the wall in obvious fear of their supposed taskmasters.At the entrance stood a soldier on guard. Upon hearing the officersapproach, he drew himself up and saluted. Not for one moment did heshow any signs of suspicion, a circumstance that gave Dick additionalconfidence. His one dread was that they might meet with some of theGerman officers, and be held up by some trivial question in an attemptat conversation.
Fortunately the square was practically deserted. Half a dozenartillerymen bent double under loads of blankets and accoutrements wereproceeding in single file from one store to another, while on the flatroof of one side of the barrack buildings stood a sentry in charge ofthe pair of anti-aircraft guns, Away to the right a search-light wasslowly playing upon the waters of the Dardanelles, while the sky wasilluminated by the reflected glare of dozens of other search-lightsupon the sides of The Narrows.
Dick led the way to a large stone arch, which, he knew, communicatedwith the open country, for through it the battery of field-artilleryhad departed and returned. The wall on either side was protected by athick wall of sand-bags, evidently placed there as the result of bitterexperience, when the British and French 12-inch shells came fallingobliquely from the sky.
The archway was nearly twenty paces in length. About midway, and onopposite sides, were small doors. They were open, and disclosed longgalleries lighted by lanterns of a similar type to those used inmagazines on board ship in pre-electricity days. Along the sidepassage ran a pair of narrow-gauge rails, while just within one of thedoors stood a couple of trucks, each carrying a large locomotivetorpedo fitted with a war-head.
Dick came to an abrupt halt. Even in the midst of his bid for freedomhis professional instinct would not let the opportunity pass. Thesesinister weapons, he knew, could not be for use on board a ship, sincethere was no accommodation for vessels alongside the water-front ofFort Medjidieh. Besides, warships taking torpedoes on board would mostcertainly do so in places remote from the range of British guns--mostprobably at Constantinople or Skutari.
They were powerful weapons, longer and of greater diameter than theBritish Whiteheads, while from the German characters engraved on partsof the mechanism the Sub concluded that they must be the formidableSchwartz-Kopff torpedoes. Moreover, they were intended to be firedfrom shore stations. Carefully screened from observation,torpedo-tubes had been placed in position, so that a direct hit at anyhostile warship attempting to force The Narrows was almost a certainty.
The Sub would dearly have liked to follow the narrow-gauge line ofrails, but the risk was too great. No doubt he would be able todiscover the exact locality of the firing-station, but realizing itwould serve no useful purpose if he did so and was caught in the act,he resumed his way through the main archway.
The doors were closed and barred by massive beams, but a wicketattracted his attention. Somewhat dubious as to what would be awaitinghim on the other side, Dick cautiously shot the bolt and pushed openthe means of exit.
It was not perhaps in keeping with his role as a Prussian officer toopen a door cautiously, but well it was that he did so. Ten feet fromthe door was a grey-painted sentry-box, in which stood aferocious-looking Bashi Bazouk, his shawl simply bristling withweapons. Fortunately his face was turned away from the wicket-gate,and the noise it made was not sufficient to attract his attention.
But it was not the Turkish irregular that caused Dick's heart to give aviolent thump in spite of his usually cast-iron nerves. A littlefarther away a regiment of infantry was drawn up in quarter-column,while in front, and almost at the angle nearest the British officers,were seven or eight Germans, both of the line and of the artillery, allengaged in studying by the aid of a lantern a map which had been spreadupon the ground.
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bsp; "Where's von Eitelheimer?" demanded one in the uniform of a colonel."He ought to be here."
"He and Lieutenant Schwalbe went to see the two cursed Englishmen, HerrColonel," replied a German sergeant-major. "The Major said it was mostimportant to get the prisoners' signatures before the regiment marches."
"Quite right," assented the Colonel. "Nevertheless he ought to be herebefore this. Hurry, Schneider, and tell Major von Eitelheimer that----"
Dick waited to hear no more. Softly closing the door, he grippedFarnworth by the arm and hurried him back under the archway until theyreached the transverse passage.
"We've precious little time," he explained hurriedly, at the same timelowering his voice to a whisper. "They're sending a fellow to look forour pal Ahmed and the fat subaltern. We'll risk it and try this way."
The subsidiary passage ran parallel to the eastern face of thefortress. At intervals there were large recesses converted intoarmoured casemates, each containing a 9-inch Krupp gun of a pattern ofthe early 'nineties. Since the ordnance on this side was intendedsolely for defence against a land attack, the guns were not soformidable as those enfilading the Dardanelles, yet the Sub realizedthat Fort Medjidieh would be a hard nut to crack if invested by anexpeditionary force unprovided with the heaviest siege artillery.
At each casemate a line branched off from the main narrow-gauge track,showing that the tramway was originally intended to supply the heavyguns with ammunition. Making use of the rails for transportingtorpedoes was the result of recent considerations.
Save for a few Turkish artillerymen who were lolling about, and whopromptly made themselves scarce when they saw the German uniformsapproaching, the gallery was deserted. Without actually meetinganyone, Dick and his companion reached the bend of the passageimmediately under the south-eastern angle of the fortress.
Overhead the sounds of bustle and activity could be faintly heardthrough the massive steel armour-plate, additionally protected by athick bank of earth faced with sand-bags. The purr of electric dynamosbetokened the fact that the seaward search-lights were in fulloperation. Here the tramway dipped abruptly, egress being prevented bya heavy steel sliding-door.
"Rotten luck!" exclaimed Dick in a whisper. "Let's try that port-holeand see how the land lies."
The two officers made their way between the sliding carriage of thehuge Krupp gun and the armoured wall of the casemate. There was justroom enough between the chase of the weapon and the side of theembrasure for the Sub to wriggle. The walls here were not less thanfifteen feet in thickness, and since the gun was "run in" there wasenough space between the muzzle and the sill of the embrasure for bothofficers to observe the scene that lay before them.
Away on their right front was exposed a broad sweep of the Dardanelles,the swiftly-flowing water gleaming like burnished silver in the complexrays of the search-light. Almost immediately opposite were theoutlines of Fort Kilid Bahr, backed by rugged hills towering to aheight of nearly seven hundred feet.
Southward Fort Chanak reared its grim pile, from which search-lightsinnumerable swept sea, land, and sky, while fifteen or twenty miles tothe southwest the sky was agleam with the flashes of heavy guns,showing that Sedd-ul-Bahr and Kum Kale were exchanging a vigorouscannonade with the ships of the Allied fleets.
Here it was that Dick made an important discovery. Fort Medjidieh wasapparently not to be held in the event of a bombardment. It was to beused as a decoy to attract the British and French fire, while at adistance of not less than four hundred yards from the deep moat, rowsand rows of deep, narrow, and zigzagged trenches were completed or inthe act of being constructed.
Hundreds of Turks were busy, working by lantern-light, in diggingthemselves in, while the whole system of earthworks literally bristledwith machine-guns. At the back of each trench, Dick noticed, werelight canvas screens stretched upon wooden frames, and painted asimilar colour to that of the surrounding soil. These screens wereready to be drawn across the trenches on the approach of hostileair-craft, In order that the observers would be unable to locate theposition of the defences.
At frequent intervals between the trenches, concrete emplacements forheavy field-guns had been constructed, their fronts and sides beingwell protected by sand-bags hidden by coarse grass and thorn-bushes.Already a dozen huge guns were in position, while others were beinghauled up by traction-engines to within a few feet of the site, whencethey were dragged on to the platforms by dint of abundance of manuallabour.
These, apparently, were the reserve line of defence, for farther afielda myriad of men were working like ants on a disturbed ant-heap; but thedarkness and the increased distance prevented Dick from coming to anydefinite conclusion as to the nature of their toil. Dearly would hehave liked to have had his binoculars, and he regretted the hastydecision that led to the discarding of those belonging to Major vonEitelheimer.
Almost beneath the place where he crouched, and between the moat andthe sea-front, was a stretch of rocky ground averaging a hundred yardsin width. Here the narrow-gauge line reappeared. With methodicalcraftiness the Turks had refrained from carrying the line across themoat, where it would be exposed to shell-fire. Instead, they had goneto the extreme pains of driving a tunnel underneath the deep ditch, sothat the means of transporting the torpedoes to their firing-stationwere entirely concealed and protected.
Almost at the water's edge were two torpedo-tubes, around which a partyof officers and men in German naval uniforms were busily engaged inmaking some adjustment to the intricate mechanism.
"Men from the _Goeben_ and _Breslau_, by Jove!" muttered Dick."Wouldn't I like to send a shot through the war-head of that 'tinfish'!It would tickle those fellows a bit. I've half a mind to try."
"What's the move, sir?" whispered the midshipman, seeing his superiorofficer place his hand on his revolver holster.
Fortunately the Sub's calmer councils prevailed. He realized uponsecond thoughts that with a weapon to which he was not accustomed therewas a good chance of a miss. It would be of more service to theBritish naval and military authorities to be informed of all thepreparations for defence that the officers had observed, rather thanattempting to destroy at long odds a couple of torpedo-tubes and thetorpedo gunners.
It was fairly safe to assume that these tubes had only recently beenplaced in position. For one reason, the concrete platforms lookedfairly new; for another, Dick was certain that the torpedoes that hadbeen fired at the _Calder_ during her observation-dash up The Narrowshad not been discharged from that position. It showed that, howevergallant the dash had been, it was useless unless contingent measureswere immediately forthcoming before the Turks could erect new guns andtorpedo-firing stations.
All these observations Dick and his companion made with great rapidity.A naval training teaches a man to observe and act promptly. Everyminute was precious, for by this time the German sergeant-major mighthave made the discovery of his two unconscious officers.
As a matter of fact, the fellow had gone straight to the room in which"the cursed Englishmen" were supposed to be detained, but finding thedoor locked, he concluded that Major von Eitelheimer andSecond-lieutenant Schwalbe had finished their business with theprisoners, and had gone to their quarters before proceeding on parade.
"We'll have to get clear of this, Farnworth," declared Dick. "Are yougame for a twenty-foot drop? It'll mean neck or nothing."
"Or perhaps a broken ankle, sir," added the midshipman. "I saw a polewith a hook at one end a little way along the gallery. I'll get it."
Farnworth backed through the embrasure and hurried off. Withoutarousing any suspicion, for the Turkish artillerymen still kept out ofsight of the supposed German officers, he removed the pole from itsslings. It was about fifteen or eighteen feet in length, and, as themidshipman had stated, was provided with a large steel hook.
With very little difficulty he passed it, hook end inwards, to the Sub,who recognized it as being part of the equipment of Turkishfire-brigades. He had seen men
using this device on a previous visitto the Near East, when a disastrous fire broke out in the Galatadistrict of the capital of the Ottoman Empire. Whenever a fire showedsigns of getting beyond the control of the firemen with their primitiveappliances, these poles were employed to pull down adjacent houses andthus limit the conflagration to a certain area.
"Spiffing!" declared Dick. "Now down you shin, while I keep the hookfrom slipping."
Extreme caution was necessary, since, twenty feet above them, a pair ofsearch-lights were in full operation. These were a blessing indisguise, for the contrast threw the outer face of the wall and thebottom of the ditch, into deep shadow, although occasionally theprojectors were trained so low that the beams played upon the steepslope of the opposite side of the moat.
Allowing Farnworth sufficient time to descend, the Sub agilelyfollowed, notwithstanding the fact that he was encumbered with theheavy German overcoat.
"What shall we do with this, sir?" whispered the midshipman, giving thepole a slight shake.
"We'll have to use it to get out of the moat," replied Dick. "Bearaway a little to the right. We stand a better chance of dodging thatinfernal search-light. I fancy even our borrowed uniforms would notallay suspicion if the Turks spotted us shinning up the wall. Steady!'Ware barbed wire."
The two officers pulled up only just in time to escape the sharp pointsof a triple row of entanglements, that in the darkness had escapedtheir notice. Well it was that they had not attempted to leap from theembrasure, otherwise the momentum would have carried them headlong intothe veritable trap.
By mutual aid the two comrades succeeded in crawling through the wire.The presence of the entanglements was a warning, and they proceededwith even greater caution.
A couple of yards beyond this barrier Dick's ankle came in contact withanother wire. It was barbless.
"What luck!" muttered the Sub. "If the current had been switched on itwould have been all up," for the copper tape was intended to conduct anelectric current of sufficient voltage to destroy any living thing thatcame in contact with it.
Nevertheless they took precautions. It would never do to risk contactwith another wire in case it might be charged; so unbuckling hisscabbard, which being painted a dull grey did not reflect the light, hewrapped around it several folds of a silk handkerchief which hadformerly belonged to Major von Eitelheimer. Holding the insulatedscabbard in front of him, Dick proceeded towards the remote face of theditch, Farnworth treading in his footsteps.
"Lie down," whispered the Sub hoarsely.
Both officers did so, as a giant beam swinging overhead graduallydescended till the lower arc struck half-way down the wall againstwhich the fugitives were lying. Had the fugitives attempted to climb aminute earlier, they would have been "picked up" by the dazzling rays.
Suddenly the sharp rattle of musketry, punctuated by the deeperbark-bark of quick-firers, came from the eastern part of FortMedjidieh. Up swung the troublesome beam until it pointed within tendegrees of the vertical. Other search-lights were likewise trainedskywards.
A thousand feet or more in the air glided seven water-planes, lookingno bigger than swallows. Detected by the alert Turks, they weresubjected to a heavy fire. Shells seemed to burst perilously close,yet serenely they pursued their course at regular intervals like aflight of wood-pigeons.
An appalling crash, against which the noise of the fusillade paled intoinsignificance, told that a bomb dropped from the leading sea-plane hadlanded almost in the centre of the fort. Although, from where theylay, the British officers could form no accurate idea of where it fell,they knew that the powerful missile had pitched not far from thequarters they had involuntarily occupied only a short while ago.
"Blest if I want to be sky-highed by our own sea-planes!" declaredDick. "Let's make a bolt for it."
Profiting by the confusion caused by the fall of the bomb, and by thefact that the attention of the Turkish search-light was directedskywards, the two fugitives set the pole in position, engaging the hookin the coping-stone of the wall.
Hand over hand Farnworth climbed to the top, where he threw himself onthe sandy soil until the Sub rejoined him. As he did so the second andthird bombs dropped almost simultaneously, exploded--one close to asearch-light in the wall, the other in the moat; the blast of thedetonation sending a shower of stones and dust over the two prostratefigures.
The troops engaged in throwing up earthworks and digging trenches hadpromptly vanished on hearing the explosion of the first bomb. A fewhad delayed bolting to their burrows sufficiently long to draw thecanvas screens over the deep narrow trenches. Here and there a shotrang out from the earthworks, but for the most part the Turks in thatlocality were restrained from firing lest the flashes should indicatethe position of the trenches.
Dick led the way, purposely choosing a direction that would take thefugitives towards the mountainous interior. He knew that on theirflight being discovered a strict search would be made along the shore;while on the other hand the Turks would not be likely to look for themin the interior. His idea was to make a circuitous detour, and regainthe Allies' position in the vicinity of the French troops operatingnear Kum Kale. Already his eyes had marked a gap between the triplerows of trenches where it seemed possible to pass through the hostilelines.
Suddenly the ground gave way beneath the feet of the two officers.With futile efforts they grasped at the earth to save themselves, then,encompassed by a cloud of dust, they dropped headlong into a deep pit.