CHAPTER VII.
IN THE CONNING-TOWER.
For several minutes Arnold Hythe sat motionless, watching therapidly-changing objects that flitted across the inclined mirror.Captain Restronguet made no attempt to distract his attention, butstanding with folded arms he watched with feelings of satisfaction theeffects of the spectacle upon the young officer's face.
"Wonderful!" exclaimed the sub at length.
"You think so, Mr. Hythe? Let me assure you that this view is nothingto what I can show you. Suppose we take a stroll for'ard?"
The captain opened the door of his cabin.
"You will excuse me preceding you," he remarked apologetically. "Wewill proceed to the fore conning-tower. Oh, yes, the 'Aphrodite' hastwo. That accounts for the reports of the master of the 'BarbertonCastle,' that he sighted two submarines lying side by side. As a matterof fact he saw the two conning-towers of the 'Aphrodite' against thelight, and influenced by the fact that he had hitherto seen submarineswith single conning-towers he was misled. Had he really seen twosubmarines"--and here Captain Restronguet's features darkenedominously--"he would have witnessed a catastrophe to one of them. Butof that I will say more later. Suppose we look into this compartment onour way for'ard."
Hythe's guide rolled back a sliding-hatch that communicated with themen's quarters--a fairly spacious room on the starboard side amidships.To the sub's surprise he saw O'Shaunessey.
"Holy St. Pathrick!" ejaculated the seaman, almost forgetting in hisexcitement to salute. "Faith! sorr, how came you in this shebeen? Sure,I thought 'twas meself only as these rascally foreign spalpeens 'adtaken."
"They collared me too, O'Shaunessey," answered Hythe.
"Bad cess to them!" continued the gigantic Irishman, shaking his fist inthe direction of half a dozen almost as powerfully built men who wereimperturbably regarding their captive. "They tackled me with someinsthrument, an' I couldn't raise me hand in self defence. They musthave known that I could never stand being tickled, the ign'rantforeigners."
"Why foreigners, O'Shaunessey?" asked the sub, while Captain Restronguetgave a low chuckle.
"Ain't they foreigners, bedad? I prached to 'em like the blessed St.Pathrick held forth to the sarpints, an' all they did was to shake theirheads."
"There is no necessity to keep up this pretence any longer, men,"exclaimed Captain Restronguet. "This sailor must be treated as one ofyourselves for the time being. You might reassure him, Mr. Hythe, forin spite of our electric treatment he seems inclined to be troublesome,and a good deal of damage might be done if we have to use strongmeasures."
"Look here, O'Shaunessey," said the sub, "we must make the best of ourpresent position. This gentleman, Captain Restronguet, will doubtlessput us ashore in good time," and with a swift look that the sailorrightly interpreted that he must keep his weather eye lifting, Hythefollowed the captain out of the compartment.
"This is the for'ard double bulkhead," explained Captain Restronguet, asthe pair came to the doors that Hythe had previously noticed. "The'Aphrodite' is built in three separate sections, any of which can, in acase of emergency, be detached from the remaining portion and stillremain watertight. The midship sections at the two principal bulkheadsare identical. Thus if the centre compartment should happen to be holedthe fore and after sections can be detached, brought together, andsecured. We would then still be a submarine of two-thirds the length ofthe present one. In the foremost section are the offensive appliances,subsidiary motors, and certain stores. The midship portion forms theliving space for the crew, main store rooms, etc.; the after sectioncontains the officers' cabins, and underneath them the main propellingmachinery. In each section is a diving-chamber capable of being floodedin order to allow the crew to leave the vessel when occasions arise.The exit in the midship section is on Number Two Platform; in the othersit is on Number Three."
"Sounds like a railway station," thought Hythe; then--
"What do you mean by platforms?" he asked.
"You might prefer to call them decks, Mr. Hythe. Number One isliterally on deck, and extends practically the whole length and breadthof the vessel. Her sections are, as you doubtless have observed, almostsquare, the ridges of the deck and the bilges being very slightlyrounded off. This gives plenty of space for the crew when running onthe surface, and also enables the 'Aphrodite' to rest on the bottom ofthe sea without any perceptible list, unless, of course, the bed shelvesat all. Number Two Platform--but perhaps you are not interested?"
"Rather!" exclaimed the young officer eagerly.
"Well, then, Number Two Platform runs fore and aft at nine feet belowthe overhead girders, so there is no necessity to have to stoop when inany of the compartments or alley-ways. Number Three Platform rests onthe cross girders that are bolted to the keelson, and being airtightform a hollow bottom. As a matter of fact these double bottomcompartments are nearly always filled with water, which can be ejectedby powerful, quick-delivery force pumps when necessary. Here is thedoor in the base of the for'ard conning-tower."
Unfastening the door by a cam-action lever Captain Restronguet agilelynegotiated the narrow way and sprang up a steel ladder. Hythe followedand found himself standing on a metal grating in the company of thecaptain and a quarter-master. The latter took no notice of hissuperiors beyond moving a little to one side; his whole attention wasfixed upon the task of steering the submerged craft.
The interior of the conning-tower was literally lined with electricalappliances, each switch distinctly marked according to the work it hadto perform, but for the moment the sub paid scant heed to them. Hiseyes travelled in the direction of one of three large oval scuttlesfilled with plate glass.
The submersion indicator pointed to thirty-four feet, a depth thatallowed the "Aphrodite" to pass under the keel of the deepest draughtedbattleship afloat, with five feet to spare. The compass pointed dueeast.
"We are just pottering about, as it were, between the Draystone and theMewstone," announced Captain Restronguet. "The depth here averages tenfathoms, which gives us a margin of five feet under our keel. There isa battleship coming out of harbour, she is now in Smeaton Pass, and weare waiting for her to draw clear. On a falling tide we must take norisks."
"What do you mean?" asked Hythe.
"Simply that as soon as the vessel is outside the Breakwater I mean totake the 'Aphrodite' into the Hamoaze, and give you a chance to see thathistoric stretch of water under slightly different conditions from thatwhich you have been accustomed to, Mr. Hythe. You were in the submarineservice, I believe?"
"Yes," assented the sub. "But how do you know that?"
"Merely by a reference to the Navy List. But look ahead; see thatobject dead in line with our bows?"
"An electro-contact mine, by Jove!" exclaimed Hythe.
"Right again. Since the beginning of this German war-scare, which Iventure to predict will pass away, unless my powers of reasoning play mefalse, the approaches to all British ports of any magnitude, especiallythe naval ones, have been strewn with these contrivances. Watch."
A slight touch on the switch controlling the helm and the "Aphrodite"swung away to starboard, clearing the deadly mine by less than twentyfeet. Another loomed up ahead, only to be avoided by another touch ofthe helmsman's finger.
"I do not want to boast," remarked Captain Restronguet, "but I haveenough electrical energy stored within this vessel to explodesimultaneously every mine, be it a mechanical, observation, orelectro-contact one, in Plymouth Sound, and even seriously imperil everyfort and ship in the vicinity. Some day I may have to put the powers atmy command to a stern test, but until the necessity actually arises Iprefer to exploit the 'Aphrodite' solely as an example of what I amcapable of producing in the interests of science. Look out of thatscuttle on your left; what do you see?"
"A regular pile of huge stones," replied the sub.
"The eastern extremity of that wonderful work known as PlymouthBre
akwater. We are now in only forty-five feet of water allowing forthe state of the tide. The top of our conning-towers are but fifteenfeet above the surface, yet I can assert with confidence that anyonestanding on Staddon Heights and looking down upon this channel from analtitude of not less than three hundred and fifty feet would not see thefaintest sign of the 'Aphrodite.'"
"What causes her to be almost invisible?" asked Hythe. "Are her platesmade of or faced with glass?"
"Oh, no. Glass would not serve the purpose. The light would bereflected too much. In fact the 'Aphrodite' would be a huge heliograph,sending out rays of reflected sunlight in all directions. Thecomposition placed over the steel plating of this submarine is a secret.All I can say at present is that it has the power to reflect the imageof near objects only. It absorbs all brilliant rays of light, and is inconsequence an almost perfect form of invisibility."
"What is that?" asked Hythe excitedly, pointing to a sudden turmoil inthe water ahead.
"Only the action of the triple propellers of a torpedo-boat-destroyer.We are overhauling her. Ease down to ten knots, Carnon. She's offthrough the Asia Pass. There's not enough water for us; so let her comeround to starboard."
The quartermaster telegraphed for speed to be reduced; the submarineturned towards the deeper Smeaton Pass, leaving the destroyer, inblissful ignorance of the proximity of the much-searched-for CaptainRestronguet, to take the short cut into the Hamoaze.
"Now we can take things more easily," observed the captain after awhile."The channel is now ninety feet deep, although we are but a few hundredyards from Plymouth Hoe. We are now approaching the Drake Channel,between the Victualling Yard and Drake's Island."
"However do you contrive to find your way about in a complicatedwaterway like this?" asked the sub, who was well acquainted with theabove water navigation of that part of Plymouth Sound within theBreakwater. "You have no periscope?"
"A periscope would soon give the show away," observed his companion."For the present, we simply rely upon the chart and compass, and lookout for the sudden shelving of the bottom. See, there! Hard astarboard, quartermaster: there's the Vanguard Bank dead ahead."
From almost due south the "lubber's line" in the compass-bowl pointed toalmost due north. The "Aphrodite" had reached the "Narrows" between theDevil's Point and Cremyll.
At a word from Captain Restronguet the quartermaster set the engine roomtelegraph indicator to stop; another movement, a gentle hiss betokenedthe admittance of water into one of the sub-compartments of the vessel.Then slowly and mysteriously the "Aphrodite" sank in twenty-two fathomsof water to the bed of the narrow channel.
At that depth, and owing to the swift-running tide, charged with the mudbrought down by the River Tamar, the water was so thick that, till theelectric lamps were switched on, the submarine was in total darkness.
"Prepare to anchor," ordered Captain Restronguet through a telephone.
"Good!" he ejaculated, after about a minute had elapsed. "Now, Mr.Hythe, you must be feeling hungry; so will you do me the honour ofhaving lunch in my cabin?"