CHAPTER XVI
'Twixt U-Boat and Arabs
HAD the discovery of the petrol store been made a few hours earlier,steps would have been taken to cope with the peril from the sea thatmenaced the castaways. The defences that had been hurriedly thrown uphad been constructed against attack from the landward side; thepossibility of being shelled from a German submarine had notpreviously been taken into account.
Hastily the British seamen set to work to strengthen the parados ofthe trenches, in order to convert it into an earthwork sufficientlystrong to resist the comparatively light shells fired from thehostile submarine.
Bullets from the Senussi now began to sing over the heads of thedefenders. Well it was that the Arabs were very indifferent shots atlong range, otherwise they would have taken a heavy toll of theseamen who were obliged to present a fair target as they toiled inthe open.
The German submarine, which had been approaching rapidly, had noweased down. She was running on the surface, showing her conning-towerand the whole length of her deck. She displayed no colours, but hertwo quick-firing guns had been hoisted from below, and were mannedready for opening fire.
"I feel pretty certain," said Captain M'Bride to Osborne as theofficers kept the hostile craft under observation, "that thatsubmarine is the one which bagged us--and the _Sunderbund_ as well.She's been lying off-shore waiting for the weather to moderate inorder to replenish her fuel, and now she finds her depot in ourpossession. It was a rotten blunder on her part, sinking the old_Portchester Castle_ so close to her temporary base."
"If it hadn't been for the firing, perhaps she would have come rightin, sir," remarked Osborne. "Now she has her suspicions."
"The wreck of the ship would in itself give her warning," said theskipper. "Besides, if she did approach we could do little or nothing.It's just as likely that there's an understanding between the Arabsand the Huns. However, we must take things as we find them, and notlook for trouble before it comes."
Accompanied by Lieutenant Osborne, the Captain made a tour of thetrench, where every man who possessed a rifle was kneeling in frontof a loophole, ready at the word of command to pour a destructivevolley into the approaching Arabs. At the left flank stood Webb, withthe Very's pistol in his hand, awaiting the time to fire the petrol.
"Picturesque sight, Mr. Webb," remarked the Captain composedly, butat the same time his keen eye was trying to detect any sign of"jumpiness" in the young Sub. But there was none; beyond a slightlyheightened colour, Webb was as cool as if he had been on thequarter-deck of the _Portchester Castle_.
Captain M'Bride had aptly described the scene that lay before them.The Senussi were approaching in all the barbaric splendour of theirrace. Some were on camels, others astride small wiry horses. Withloose rein they would dash forward perhaps a hundred yards, wheel,and, firing their rifles somewhere in the direction of the foe, wouldtear back for fifty yards, repeating the manoeuvre and utteringshrill yells of defiance. On their flanks in the rear were crowds ofmen on foot, for the most part armed with long broad-bladed spears,two-edged straight swords, and circular hide shields.
Outnumbering the British by ten to one, the Senussi looked, and were,formidable. Had every man of the _Portchester Castle_ possessed arifle the odds would have been considerably lowered. With a Maxim thedefenders could have regarded the onset as a foregone conclusion intheir favour.
It was to be a tough and desperate struggle. Every man realizedthat--a fight to the death, for a worse fate awaited them should theyfall alive into the hands of the savage foe. At all costs the Senussimust be kept on the far side of the sorry breastwork of sand and thehedge of thorns, otherwise sheer weight of numbers would decide theday.
And as if the situation were not serious enough, a U-boat wasthreatening to shell their puny defences.
"Don't throw away a single shot, men," cautioned the Captain."Reserve your fire till I give the word."
"She's opening the ball, sir," exclaimed Osborne, as a shell from theU-boat hurtled through the air and exploded away on the right flank,sending up a huge cloud of smoke and sand.
"Wonder what damage that's done?" remarked Captain M'Bride.
"I'll see, sir, if you wish," said the Lieutenant.
"Do, by all means, Mr. Osborne," was the rejoinder. "I'll make my wayto the centre and await you there."
Before Osborne returned, two more shells had been fired by thesubmarine. Whatever damage they might have caused, they also didgood, for the bursting projectiles had the effect of cooling theardour of the approaching Arabs. Absolutely fearless as far asbullets are concerned, they have a wholesome respect forhigh-explosive shells which would, in their opinion, render a TrueBeliever a sorry spectacle when he came to present himself at thegates of the Mohammedan paradise.
"No casualties, sir," reported Osborne. "The first shell fell short;the others pitched thirty yards over. One has blown a big gap in ourzariba, unfortunately."
"Strafe her!" exclaimed Captain M'Bride. "She'll be improving on thatbefore long, I'm afraid."
Even as he spoke there came a loud rumble from seawards--a longdrawn-out report, totally unlike the crisp bark of the Germansubmarine's quick-firers. Where the modern pirate had been was merelya dense cloud of greyish smoke.
"She's properly strafed, sir," declared the Lieutenant delightedly,grasping what he absent-mindedly took to be his uniform cap, with theresult that on removing his calico headgear he brought a handful ofhis own hair with it.
"Internal explosion," suggested the skipper. "Well, we've somethingto be thankful for. Half our difficulties wiped out in one fellswoop."
Slowly the smoke dispersed, for there was now practically no wind.The sea, momentarily agitated by the explosion, had resumed itsoil-like aspect. Not a vestige of wreckage was visible to mark thegrave of yet another of the inglorious pirates. It was indeed a justretribution. The U-boat, in common with other German war-ships, hadbeen in the habit of discharging her torpedoes without previouslysetting the sinking mechanism according to the recognized rules ofwar. Therefore, in the event of a torpedo missing its mark, it would,at the end of its run, float, and thus become a sort of derelictmine, instead of sinking to the bottom as these weapons are supposedto do.
When the submarine attacked the _Portchester Castle_ she had letloose two torpedoes, one of which hit the mark. The other, passingunder the vessel's stern, came to a standstill a couple of miles off.By sheer chance the U-boat, while in the act of shelling the shore,had bumped upon the warhead of the missile she had discharged severalhours previously, with the result that she was practically blown topieces with all her officers and crew.
Three hearty cheers from the sun-baked British seamen greeted thestrafing of the craft that was directly responsible for their presentprecarious position. Then, having given relief to their pent-upfeelings, the sturdy sailors directed their attention once more tothe danger that threatened them from the landward side.
The Senussi, not knowing what had occurred, and still showingconsiderable reluctance to enter the region where the German shellshad fallen, were "marking time". The camel-men had withdrawn behind arange of sand-hills, but the glint of spear-heads denoted prettyconclusively that the foe had not decided upon a discreet retirement.
Several times an intrepid sailor stood upon the breastwork, with theintention of drawing the enemy's fire; but even this tempting baitdid not succeed. The Senussi were evidently going to tire thedefenders by a period of nerve-racking inactivity.
"It's this rotten waiting for something to turn up that makes youjumpy," declared Webb to Osborne, as during the prolonged lull theLieutenant made his way along the trench to see how his chum fared."I don't mind so much when these beggars start a rush, but it's thesuspense of expecting them."
"Like our troops on the Somme," rejoined Osborne. "It's the fiveminutes' wait before the whistle goes for the men to go over the topof the parapet, that is such a strain. Once they're off they don'tseem to notice their surroundings. But I've rather bad news, old man
.I've just reported to the skipper that one of those shells has playedOld Harry with the water barricoes. Only three left--and you canguess what thirst is in this sun-baked spot."
"How long will that last?" asked the Sub.
"Ten days with the utmost economy," said the Lieutenant gravely.
"I say, Osborne----" began Webb.
"Well?"
"Isn't it a good thing, after all, that poor old Laddie isn't withus? What a horrible time he would have without anything to drink!"
"He would have had half my share whatever happened," declared Osborneresolutely. "But, unfortunately, there is no necessity for that. Iwish there were."
Webb made no further remark upon the subject. He knew that Osbornewas still awfully cut up about the loss of his pet, and now, ratherclumsily, he had touched upon the matter of the dog's death.
"We do look a pretty pair," he remarked, setting out on a fresh tack."Our fond parents wouldn't recognize us if they could see us now."
"They would be very pleased to," was his chum's rejoinder; "or rather,we should both be most delighted to see them at home. I've had enoughof African sands to last a lifetime. And these flies!"
A petty officer, mopping the perspiration from his face, wriggledpast his comrades in the narrow trench, and approached the Lieutenantand his chum.
"Cap'n's compliments, sir," he said as he saluted. "He'd like to havea word with Mr. Webb."
Webb found Captain M'Bride consulting with the gunner and the bos'n.Seeing Webb hesitate, he signed to him to approach.
"I've a little job on hand, Mr. Webb," he said. "After dueconsideration I've decided that you are the best officer I can sparefor the business. We're short of water. Up to the present there is nosign of the _Restormel_ putting in an appearance to search for us.The niggers are evidently going to protract their assault and subjectus to a state of siege. So since help is not forthcoming, we mustfetch it. In short, I want you to take the whaler and make a dash forCrete. Mr. Cox" (indicating the bos'n) "has examined the boat, andfinds that she's seaworthy. A few slight repairs will have to bemade, but they won't take long. The distance is roughly 180 miles,but perhaps you'll fall in with a vessel before that."
"Hope it won't be a U-boat, sir," remarked the Sub.
"You're game? I need not remind you that it is a risky voyage for anopen boat."
"I'm quite willing, sir," said Webb resolutely.
"As I thought," added the skipper. "Well, good luck! The weatherlooks promising, and ten to one you'll get a fair slant of winddirectly you're a few miles from shore."
Delighted at the prospect of being afloat once more, yet reluctant tohave to leave his comrades in dire peril, Webb hastened to makepreparations for his hazardous voyage in the open whaler. He realizedthe risk--he also realized the tremendous responsibility, for if hefailed in the enterprise the rest of the survivors of the_Portchester Castle_ were doomed.